"There are times in our lives when love really does conquer all: exhaustion, sleep deprivation, anything. And then there are those times when it seems like love brings us nothing but pain. We're always looking for ways to ease the pain. Sometimes we ease the pain by making the best of what we have. Sometimes it's by losing ourselves in the moment. And sometimes all we need to do to ease the pain is call a simple truce"

"there's nowhere you can be that isn't where you're meant to be"

Meredith and Derek kissed and fell onto the couch as Meredith laughed. Kelly was sitting in front of the couch, drinking coffee and watching a surgical video. "Good morning", she greeted them, drawing their attention to her presence. "Yeah, I'm watching a pyeloplasty. I can rewind it back to the beginning if you'd like". "No, let's go", Derek said, getting up. "Hey, listen for the baby", Meredith said to her. "What?" Kelly said. "Twenty minutes", Derek said.

"Okay"

Kelly approached the car where Meredith was sitting on top of Derek, holding Zola in her arms. She knocked on the window and they rolled it down. "I'm sorry, but she woke up, and she seemed like she wanted you guys", she said. "But don't worry. She didn't see anything". They got out of the car and Meredith took Zola. "Well, listen, I can babysit tonight if you guys need some time to yourselves", Kelly offered. "'Cause I have no plans 'cause my life is empty. I'm alone with no plans whatsoever, at all". "That's great", Derek replied.

Aurora lay in bed, alone. Owen's side had stayed unslept in the entire night.

Kelly entered the hospital and went to the coffee cart where Arizona and Mark were discussing their Valentine's Day plans. "You can't take a baby camping. Sofia's gonna hate it", Mark said to Arizona.

"What... You're getting a sitter. Callie said you're getting a sitter"

"Yeah, Callie also said you were going camping. Callie's lost her mind"

"Really, it's camping?"

"I don't know, but it's your night with Sofia"

"Well, I need to have sex with my wife apparently in the woods on cold, hard ground. And you promised Callie a sitter, so get a sitter"

"Come on. This thing with Julia is young and fragile. There's a lot of pressure. I got us a table at Campo's"

"Well, then you better find a sitter"

Arizona walked off. "I have plans", Kelly blurted out. "Yep, I got a hot date. Our thing is young and fragile, too".

"We're gonna get a zillion valen-traumas", April as some of the residents stood in the decorated ER. "I bet a few of them will be good surgeries for our boards". "Well, it's not Saint Patty's day. Those are good traumas", Alex replied. "Car crashes, bar brawls. Yeah, Valentine's Day is all swallowed engagement rings and guys who threw out their backs getting laid". "You're just bitter 'cause I turned Valentine's Day into a study date", Lucy pointed out. "You guys are studying already?" Jackson asked. "Of course. You're not?" April said.

"No, I am"

Owen came over to them. "Who put up all this?" he said, looking irritable. "I did", April answered. "Well, research shows that a cheerful environment reduces stress and helps the patient feel more...". He crumpled one of the paper decorations in his hand and walked off. "Yeah, I have to find Aurora", Beck said.

Meredith, Cristina and Lucy were walking in the hall. "I have to get that baby out of my bed", Meredith said. "She's ruining my sex life". "Yeah, well, at least yours is alive", Cristina replied. "You could, you know, find a date", Lucy suggested. "I'm sure there's plenty of men here with no date for Valentine's Day".

"I'm not gonna go out with some desperate loser just because I'm lonely. Besides, I'm busy. I'm focused. I'm a surgeon"

"Well, everyone's a surgeon. That doesn't mean..."

"It does. For me, it does. I'm brilliant. I'm gifted. I don't beg"

Jackson approached them. "Hey, have you guys started studying for your boards?" he asked them. "Yeah", they all said in unison. "Why?" Meredith said. "Yeah. Cool. Me, too", he said.

Beck, Aurora and Kelly were walking in the hall. "I think he's gonna leave me", Aurora said. "He won't", Kelly said.

"Yeah, he will. He is. I mean, I know it. And you know what? I don't care. You know, if he wants to leave, if he wants to hate me, then fine. I can't make someone stay"

"Well, you could kinda beg him to stay"

"I would never beg anyone to stay. Especially someone who said hurtful, cruel things to me. You know, if he wants to go, then fine. I'm good"

Aurora approached Owen in the ER. "Okay, this is getting ridiculous", she said. "You have barely spoken to me for two weeks now. I don't even know why you're mad at me...I haven't done anything to you. Can you at least look at me?" He looked at her for a moment. "Happy?" he said before walking away. She looked out at the ambulance bay when suddenly, a van crashed through the ER and she was thrown to safety by Owen. "Are you okay?" he asked, helping her up.

"Yes"

"You sure?"

"Yes"

He stood up.

Owen and Aurora were trying to help the driver of the van. "Airway seems fine, but he's got some JVD", Owen said. "He's tachycardic with muffled heart sounds", Aurora said. "What happened?" the driver gasped.

"Sir, you're at Seattle Grace-Mercy West hospital. Your van crashed"

"No one was hurt, but we need to get you examined. Come on", Owen said. "I must have fallen asleep at the wheel for a second", the driver said as they prepared to move him. "I've been working like a dog all week. God. No, no, no. I gotta go. I...". "Sir, relax, relax. Just lie down", Aurora said.

"No, I have to go. I'm a florist. These roses won't last in the open air. They're gonna wilt"

"Sir, you need to calm down. We're gonna get you out of here", Owen said. "Maintain in-line stabilisation", Aurora instructed.

"We need to get trauma labs, films, and ultrasound. Make sure that CT is available, and page Altman"

The van was towed out of the ER as Kelly and Richard went outside into the ambulance bay. April was picking up the flowers. "Kepner, forget the flowers", Owen said. "Throw them out and get back to work". She looked dejected as he walked off. "Kepner", Richard said. "You're not throwing those flowers away?"

"But he..."

"He doesn't need to know"

She grabbed another bouquet and walked off happily. "Throwing away perfectly good flowers", Richard said. "Everyone's a cynic these days. Talking about not believing in Valentine's Day. I mean, what's wrong with a day devoted to the person you love? I take this day very seriously". "I know you do. Happy anniversary, sir", Kelly replied.

"Thank you, Dr Ripa. I'm getting home early, try and spend most of the day with my wife. What about you? You hitting the town?"

"I'm not hitting much of anything these days. Oh, God. I'm sorry. That was crass. I have no Valentine's plans"

The ambulance pulled up and they could hear a woman yelling from inside it. "What the hell was I thinking? I should've listened to my mom", the woman said. "I used to be young! I used to be pretty! I have wasted my entire youth on you!" "Charlie Wilson, 32, hit by a car when he ran head-on into oncoming traffic", the paramedic explained. "Complains of chest and back pain. Has abdominal tenderness and palpation. And it looks like a broken nose".

"I cannot believe you did this!"

"Okay, if you hadn't made me chase you down...", Charlie argued.

"You should not have chased me. You shouldn't have bothered, because it's over. This is over"

"What happened? We're having breakfast in bed. One second, you're so happy..."

"I thought you were going to propose!"

Richard and Kelly were working on Charlie in a trauma room. "Honestly, those little boxes?" his girlfriend said. "They taunt me, Charlie. I would rather a nice coffee table book or maybe even a mug, because then at least I wouldn't get my hopes up every freaking Valentine's Day when you pull out the little velvet box". "You didn't even look at the necklace", Charlie said.

"I didn't have to. It wasn't a ring"

"That's a pretty nast cut there", Richard said to her, referring to the cut on her arm. "Dr Ripa? You want to take a look?" "Sure", Kelly replied. "Come with me".

Aurora and Owen were looking at the florist's scans. "Is this our flower guy?" Teddy asked, entering the room. "Yeah. He has an intrapericardial diaphragmatic hernia", Owen replied.

"How did his abdominal organs get into the sac around his heart?"

"His chest hit the wheel when crashed", Aurora answered.

"Well, I'm gonna have to reduce the hernia. Book an OR. bump any non emergent patients, and you can scrub in"

"We need to get in there and do the repair before he tamponades, so we should move as quickly as possible", Owen said, before walking away.

"Like I'm ever anything but"

Kelly was fixing up the girlfriend's cut in the ER. "You must think I'm such a bitch", she said.

"No"

"It's been eight years, and it's every Valentine's Day, the buildup gets worse. This morning he wakes me up, and breakfast in bed, and he tells me he booked dinner and a nice hotel at the pier, and then he pulls out another cheap-ass necklace. Eight years. We're not exactly teenagers"

"Maybe he doesn't know how much you want it"

"We go to 20 weddings a year, and I sob like a lunatic at every one. I'm not that sentimental. He knows. He knows"

Charlie was being wheeled past them. "CT shows extensive internal bleeding", Richard informed them. "He's also hypotensive. We have to get him up to the OR. Now". "What's going on? What's happening?" the girlfriend asked.

"We're taking your fiancé to surgery"

They got into the elevator. "He is not her fiancé", Kelly corrected him.

Owen, Teddy, Aurora and Steve were operating. "Suction", Owen said. "Yeah, watch the...", Teddy said. "Sorry. Sorry", Aurora said. "So anybody got any good Valentine's plans?" Steve asked. "My husband died in this OR a month ago", Teddy replied. "Dr Yang and Dr Jacobs performed the surgery. I was in a seven hour surgery and didn't know that he had died. Dr Hunt kept that a secret. So I don't speak to him. He and Dr Sloan were expecting a baby. The baby didn't make it and for some reason, Dr Hunt blames Dr Sloan for that because she got into an ambulance that crashed. So now they're not speaking to each other even though they're married. So... No. How about you?"

"My girlfriend and I are gonna..."

They all looked at him. "

"Nothing. Nothing"

Richard and Kelly were operating on Charlie. "He's hypothermic", Kelly said. "Yeah. There's too much bleeding", he agreed. "He's not gonna make it if we keep going. Let's pack him and get him up to ICU to stabilise him". Mark and Jackson entered the OR. "I am not babysitting", Jackson argued. "I have made your career, and I can break it", Mark said. "I need to check for a septal hematoma. I'll be quick. I got a date tonight".

"What makes you think I could babysit?"

"Well, you know CPR, you can think on your feet, you're fit, you can run out of a burning building in no time. Septum looks fine. And I'm not gonna cancel a date on Valentine's Day. women claim that they don't care, but they all do, a lot"

"Okay, let's prep him for ICU, and I'll stay and monitor him", Richard said. "No, it's your anniversary. I'll stay", Kelly said. "I thought you had a hot date", Mark said. "Really? With who?" Jackson said. "Dr Sloan, I mean, if you're finished here, we'd like to...", Richard said. "I'll tell you who's finished", Mark said, turning to Jackson. "You're finished". They left the OR. "Thank you", Kelly said to Richard.

Aurora pressed the button for the elevator and waited. Owen came over and pressed the button as well. A moment passed before he pressed the button again. "I already pressed it", she said. "Whatever". The doors opened and she got in. He went in after her. "I'm moving out", he said after a beat of silence. "So if you need me, I'll be at my mom's till I figure something out. Okay?"

"Okay"

The doors opened and he got out, giving her a chance to break down alone.

Kelly was updating Sharon in Charlie's room. "His vitals are holding. That's good", she said. "His pupils are a little sluggish. Sharon, are you okay? Can I get you anything?" "I had a ring picked out", Sharon replied. "I sent a picture of it to all of my sisters so they could help Charlie surprise me when the time came, 'cause that ring was important. It was so freaking important. Look at him. He looks... I don't care about that crap anymore. And I don't need a stupid ring. I just... I need him. That's it. I just want him to be okay. Please. Just let him be okay".

Mark was sitting down, eating chocolates. Kelly sat down beside him. "The nougats are gone. Sorry", he said.

"Did you get these from a patient?"

"No. I bought these for Julia, but she's standing me up for an emergency ocular transplant surgery, so I'm gorging myself on Valentine's chocolate"

"I'd mock you right now if my mouth wasn't so full"

"Try the square ones. They're caramel with sea salt. I don't want to disappoint her. You know, I bought candy and flowers. I got rose petals, Kelly. Bags of them. I was looking forward to sharing it. But now I'm alone one Valentine's Day, eating chocolate"

"I can do you one better. My hot date tonight? Zola. I am babysitting"

They smiled at each other. The moment was interrupted by the sound of a monitor beeping. They rushed to Charlie's room. "Can someone tell me what's happening?" Sharon said. "Sharon...", Kelly said, trying to get her out of the room.

"He was just fine one second ago"

"No, you need to go. Now!"

"What's happening?"

"Somebody page Dr Webber"

"Taking over compressions", Mark said. "He's in v-fib".

"Push an amp of epi and charge the paddles to 360. Clear"

"He's haemorrhaging. Probably in DIC"

"Okay, charge again. Go"

"Hang some FFP at factor VII"

"Clear"

Richard and Kelly went to the waiting room to update Sharon. "God. No", Sharon said, knowing by the looks on their faces. "I'm so sorry. His heart stopped, we tried to revive him, but despite our best efforts, he didn't make it", Richard explained. "He died at 7:53pm".

Teddy approached Aurora and sat next to her. "I'm done. I am done with him", she said.

"Owen?"

"Yeah. He actually thinks that we can just forget everything that happened. I don't even know how to... How can he think that he would ever, ever be friends again?"

Kelly walked into Charlie's room where his body was covered with a sheet. She started packing his stuff into a clear plastic bag when something fell out of his wallet. It was a gold locket. She pried it open and the words Will You Marry Me? were written inside.

Kelly was walking around the house, holding Zola. "I'm just gonna go. I'm gonna go and I'm gonna tell him, and if there is a...", she said. "No, I'm not gonna tell him. No, I'm gonna... Of course... Okay, of course. No, I'm gonna tell him because if you don't say anything, then you bleed out and die and you read about it in a plastic locket. I mean, what do you think? What should I do? Zola? Well... Tell me". Meredith and Derek came home. "Look, look she's up, she's eaten", Kelly said. "She's ready to roll. I'm gonna take...". "So we just need...", Meredith said.

"I'm gonna take off"

"Yeah, take her with you", Derek said. "Drive her around. She loves that".

"No, what? What?"

"Zola, we'll be back"

They ran up the stairs.

Mark opened his door revealing Kelly, holding Zola. "Hey", she greeted. "I thought maybe the girls could have a playdate. And we could talk about stuff, 'cause there's been some stuff that I've been wanting to say". She heard some noise from inside.

"Oh, is that Julia? I'll go"

"Avery's cooking me dinner"

"Is that Julia? 'Cause I can go", Jackson said from inside. "That's...", Kelly said, struggling to find the words. "But he can go...", Mark said. "If you want to talk. Should he go?" "Hey", Jackson said, appearing behind him. "Nope. It's nothing. I... It's...", Kelly said. "You know what? You two have a very pleasant evening". "Don't be stupid. You love steak", Mark said. "Sofia, your friend's here". She walked in and Jackson looked like he was holding in a laugh.

Owen was in the vent room, standing on the vent. Aurora walked in. "This isn't fair", she said. "You can't hate me. You hurt me. You were unbelievably cruel to me. So please, don't hate me. I'm begging you". He turned around to look at her. She approached him, putting a hand on his chest. He held her arm. 

hope you enjoyed! comment your opinions! song is all you need is love by the beatles