Alice ✧ [a. karev]

12. the storm

i wish i could say i am a light that never goes out
but i flicker from time to time

Jade figured being a resident wouldn't be much better than being an intern. Still doing attending's charting and taking orders from them.

She was so wrong. Sure, she was still doing all that but the added bonus of getting to boss around interns made it so much better.

"Quint, page neuro. Coleman, push two of morphine," Jade ordered confidently to her fresh-faced interns as she started a standard exam on a car crash victim in a trauma room. "Not that tube, the other one," she spoke quickly before pulling her gloves off.

She knew she was once a new intern too, and not all that long ago, but she still couldn't believe she used to know this little and they still let her around patients.

"George, take him to get a head CT. Lee, run labs," she ordered and she couldn't help the small smile of satisfaction as Lee scurried away and she exited the trauma room.

"You're doing great by the way," she turned to George before he left. He became one of her interns when he decided to repeat his intern year after failing the exam. "I'm really glad you came back," she smiled encouragingly at him and he gave a small smile back as he nodded his head.

"Thanks, Jade."

The ER was fairly empty that day and she could spot Alex exiting the trauma room to her left and she smiled.

They had spent most of their vacation together. It was really the first time they could spend time together outside the hospital, with Meredith and Cristina on Cristina's honeymoon and George god knows where they were left to their own devices.

She walked closer, ready to grab his attention but he looked up first and spotted her. His brows were furrowed and he started talking before Jade got a chance to even open her mouth.

"I was just about to come find you. Addison's brother is here," he spoke worriedly, jabbing his thumb back towards the trauma room.

"Archer?" She asked quickly, her smile falling as she grabbed the chart out of his hands.

Alex's expression of worry turned to one of confusion as he slowly shook his head. "He said his name was Austin. He was in the other car."

Jade's movements froze and she swore she could feel a chill all the way down to her bones. Her eyes stayed down but she realized she must've looked strange and she opened his chart in choppy movements.

She moved past Alex, looking into the trauma room.

He was out cold and despite a few scrapes and bruises, he looked exactly as Jade remembered. Same curly reddish-brown hair, exactly like his mother's. Same crooked nose and sharp jaw.

Her face turned hard and her nostrils involuntarily flared as her knuckles turned white with her grip on the chart.

"Is his real name Archer?" Alex asked.

"No. No, that's Austin," she said, her jaw clenched and it came out in more of a strained whisper.

Alex reached for the chart again but Jade quickly moved it out of his reach. He gave her a strange look and asked "Are you okay? Is that not her brother?" He asked.

"He's mine. He's my brother," she whispered.

Alex's face showed concern but it slowly morphed into one that looked like anger to Jade but she couldn't quite tell. He reached over, tearing the chart from Jade's hands despite her superwoman grip and walked away without another word.