chapter thirty-six ━ ambulance crash
( season eight, episodes eight, nine & ten )

❝I am not dealing with his
crankiness.❞

ELLIE HELD HER head in her hand while working on the schedule for the week and Jackson paced back and forth in her office. "Just—Just tell me I'm paranoid or something," he said, pausing to look at her.

"Okay." She glanced up from her computer with a sigh. "You're paranoid."

He nodded and sat down on the couch. "Thank you."

Ellie shrugged. "Then again, you were the one who spent the night at my apartment because she threw a softball at his girlfriend."

"Exactly!" he exclaimed, standing up and shaking his head. "No, screw this. I can't be around Sloan today. I... Just take me off of plastics for the day. I gotta clear my head."

She frowned. "No," she said and he looked back at her. "No, I am not going to rearrange the entire surgical schedule just because you're having relationship troubles. Besides, then Mark won't stop bothering me. So, suck it up."

Just then, Alex walked into the room and sat down on the couch with a sigh. "Ellie, is Robbins taking cases from you for a Polly Preston?" he asked.

"Uh, no, why?"

Jackson peeked over Ellie's shoulder at the schedule she had just finished. "Hey, uh, what are you working on today, Karev?"

"A fat lot of nothing," he replied sulkily. "Why?"

"How would you feel about a nerve graft?" Jackson asked and Ellie sighed, looking up at the man and he smiled innocently at her.

"I would feel great about a nerve graft," Alex replied and the blonde rolled her eyes when Jackson gave her his best puppy dog eyes.

"Fine," she said with a sigh, turning back to her computer. "Alex, you're on Mark's service. Jackson, enjoy the day."

"Thank you."

"But if Mark starts questioning me about why you're not on his service, he's your problem," she added as she looked back at him. "I am not dealing with his crankiness."

Jackson shrugged. "Fair enough. Thank you, Ellie."

She cracked a smile. "Yeah, yeah..."

Alex glanced between the two as Jackson walked out of the room and he looked at Ellie. "Dude, you like him."

"What?" she said with a chuckle and shook her head. "I—He's my best friend, Alex. I don't like him like that. He's just my best friend."

He hummed. "Usually people who say they're 'just friends' are usually more than just friends."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, be quiet you," she told him, leaning back in her chair. "Go and do a surgery with my brother." She watched him close the door behind him, her mind now swirling in confusion. "No, he's just my best friend..."

☀️

"ELLIE!"

She jumped at her brother's sharp voice, spilling coffee on her scrub top in the process. With a groan, she turned around. "What?" she asked in annoyance.

"Why is Karev on my service today and not Avery?" he asked and opened her mouth. "Because we've been preparing for this surgery for weeks. Why the hell isn't he with me?"

"He—"

"I mean, I need the full plastics posse if we're going to be successful."

Ellie paused and furrowed her brows. "The what?"

"It's just something I'm trying out," he said with a shrug and she nodded slowly. "But that's not the point. Why do I have Karev?"

"Um..." She scratched the back of her neck. "Alex wanted... more hours on plastics?"

"Hmm..." Mark narrowed his eyes at his sister. "You never were a good liar, Ellie. So, what's the real reason?"

She sighed. "You should ask Jackson," she said, throwing away her now-empty iced coffee. "He's the one who asked to be off your service for today. And, besides, this is between the plastics posse as you call yourselves."

☀️

ELLIE SAT ON the couch in her office, eating lunch while April, Meredith, and Cristina were sitting at the table. The redheaded resident looked at the heart in a box just as Jackson and Alex walked into the room with their own lunches.

"It's kind of soothing," she said. "Like sitting in front of a fish tank."

Cristina frowned. "It's not a fish tank," she replied. "It's a key."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Meredith asked, looking between the resident and the box that seemed to have a heartbeat.

"Ask Webber," Cristina replied, a hint of annoyance evident in her tone. "He came in here, trashing my wishlist, and told me heart-in-a-box was the key to fixing it. Well, I'll you something, she's not talking. Heart-in-a-box, what should I put on my list?"

"It's not a magic eight ball," Ellie said, crunching on her carrot stick and Cristina looked at her. "It's a medical wonder. There's an organ, beating inside a box. That's pretty cool if you ask me. So... look at your list. Are they as cool as a beating heart in a box?"

The cardio resident stared at the blonde before pointing at her. "See, that's why she's a genius. She understands Webber's riddles better than anyone."

Meredith smiled in amusement. "Heart-in-a-box, what's wrong with George's mom?" she asked.

April tilted her head. "Who's George?"

"He used to work here," Cristina replied quietly. "He died."

"Whoa. Who died?" Jackson asked.

"George."

Alex looked up from his food. "And we're talking about that creep because...?"

"Alex, you're an ass," Meredith said with a frown. "His mom's in the hospital."

He let out a breath and walked out of the room. "I just wanted to eat my freaking lunch. That's all..."

"So..." Ellie turned to look at Jackson. "How's the other half of the plastics posse?"

"Oh, God." He groaned and rubbed his face. "Is he using that around the hospital now? I told him that it wasn't going to catch on..."

She shrugged, stealing one of his french fries. "You know, he's very upset that you aren't with him today. Let me ask you something." He glanced at her. "You're avoiding Mark because of Lexie, right? Which means that you're avoiding your mentor because of Lexie. So, I think you have to ask yourself if you love Lexie enough to keep avoiding him. Because I think you need to pick Mark."

"Between Mark and Lexie?"

Ellie nodded. "I know you love Lexie, but—and don't take this the wrong way—I don't think Lexie loves you enough for you to sacrifice plastics."

He looked around and let out a breath. "Yeah..."

"Look, just—" She stood up and looked down at him. "Just think about yourself before thinking of anyone else. Can you promise me that much? Because you have a gift for plastics, Jackson."

He nodded with a small smile. "Yeah. I can promise that."

"Good. I have a surgery."

April cleared her throat and Jackson looked away from the door that Ellie had just closed. "What?" he asked.

"You two are so clueless," she said, shaking her head.

☀️

ELLIE AND ALEX followed Arizona out to the ambulance bay. "The baby was born a couple of hours ago, and it looks like a tracheoesophageal fistula. You two know what that is?"

Ellie nodded while Alex answered their attending. "Yeah, it's the connection between—uh—the trachea and esophagus."

"Fills the lungs with secretions," Ellie added, handing Alex one of the medical bags. "Baby can have a hard time breathing and feeding."

Arizona nodded. "Exactly." She opened the doors of the ambulance. "Bentley Hospital is tiny. They can't handle it. So you two need to go pick up the baby, bring her back, and then hopefully, I'm done with the kid that's on his way in by the time you're back. You need to reconfigure the ambulance for intensive neonatal transport."

"Let's go, Alex."

☀️

"DO YOU THINK it was a mistake?" Alex asked a few hours into the drive and Ellie looked over at him. "That Derek and Meredith may not get Zola. I mean, do you know anything?"

"Just because Derek is like a brother to me doesn't mean that I know anything," she replied before sighing. "Whatever happens... happens. The important thing is that we're there for them. They're our family. Now change the subject."

He shrugged. "Alright... What's going on with you and Avery?" he asked and she gave him a look. "What? You said to change the subject."

"Not entirely the subject I meant!"

"I'm just saying, you two are blind if you don't see the way the two of you look at each other," he said.

"He's with Lexie, Alex," she told him, looking out the window. "It doesn't matter now."

He shook his head. "He's not with Lexie."

She looked back at him. "What?"

"They broke up," he continued and she raised her eyebrows. "Last night."

Ellie paused and stared at him. "Why—Why do you know that?" she asked.

"I ran into Lexie afterward and she told me," he replied with a shrug. "I guess Avery chose Sloan."

"Still." She let out a breath. "He's my best friend. And my mentor's mentee."

"Why are you so against being with him, Ellie?" he asked and she pressed her lips together. "You may not see it, but he looks at you like a puppy in love. And I don't admit that I watch people, but it's hard to ignore you two."

"Oh, how nice," she said sarcastically.

"I'm serious." Ellie sighed and looked back at him. "What are you so worried about?"

"I've just..." She let out a breath with a shrug and leaned back in her seat. "I met him when we were interns. And through everything... he's been there. He's always been my best friend. And I just—I don't want to do anything that could jeopardize what I have with him."

"I get that, I do, but... I think you'd be more unhappy by not telling him."

Ellie glanced over at him. "You seem way too invested in this."

He shrugged. "I'm not a cold-hearted jerk all the time," he replied and she snorted softly. "You two have a connection that people look for their entire life. So, I say, go for it."

"Hmm." Ellie smiled softly to herself. "You know when we first got to Seattle Grace, people told me to watch out for you. They said you were this—this tough guy who doesn't open up to people. But you've proven them wrong, Alex Karev. And you're one of my best friends."

"You're too mushy."

"Oh, come on," she said with a small smirk. "You like it when I'm mushy."

"Driver, are we almost there yet?"

☀️

"HEY, WE'RE HERE to pick up a newborn," Alex said, walking into the hospital while Ellie followed behind him with the incubator. "Take her to Seattle Grace."

"You're—uh—you're looking for me." A doctor walked up to them and the two residents looked at him. "I'm Jordan Wagner. I am really glad to see you guys."

Alex nodded. "Yeah, I'm Alex Karev, this is Ellie Sloan."

"Okay." Dr. Wagner let out a breath. "Li—uh—listen, she was born six hours ago," he began explaining while they followed him to where the newborn was. "Right away, trouble breathing. Stomach looked distended, so we put down an N.G. tube. But the x-ray showed that it was just coiling in her chest. We've done everything we can to keep her breathing, but it's been a struggle."

"You don't have a neonatal mask?" Ellie asked, moving over to the small baby.

"We're not set up for neonatal or OB," Dr. Wagner replied and she glanced at him. "She was an emergency delivery, otherwise, we would've sent her to the hospital in Leavenworth."

Ellie took her stethoscope off from around her neck. "Pulse ox is seventy-nine," she said to Alex. "Respiratory rate is eighty. She's got retractions."

"How come she's not intubated?" Alex asked the doctor.

"The smallest tube we had didn't fit," he said to them and they glanced at each other. "Please tell me that you brought a neonatal tube."

Ellie sighed and dug through the supplies they had brought with them. "We're gonna need x-ray in here for a post-intubation film," she told him. "This IV's no good."

"Yeah," he agreed with a small sigh. "You don't even have a neonatal central kit?"

"No."

She looked at him. "I.O. needle?"

"No."

Ellie and Alex looked at each other before the former pulled out her phone and the latter continued digging through their medical bag. "Jackson?" she said into the phone while peeking over Alex's shoulder. "Oh, good. At least someone answered. Go into Robbins' OR and put her on the phone."

"Why?"

"Because we need help," she said with a sigh, shaking her head at the needle Alex held up. "Just do it."

"Okay, okay, hang on." Ellie held up the scans to the light while she heard rustling on the other end of the call. "It's Ellie."

"How's it going?" Arizona asked as soon as she was on the phone.

"She's septic," Ellie answered. "She's got pneumonia."

"Was she intubated when you got there?"

"Yeah, well—" She fluttered her lips and glanced around the room. "They don't really have any neonatal stuff at all. We intubated and we started an umbilical line to hang D10 normal saline and antibiotics. But her SATs aren't coming up, and all the oxygen's going into her stomach."

"You're gonna need to put in an amplatz umbrella."

Ellie frowned despite her attending not being able to see her. "They don't have a 3-0 ET tube," she said. "Do you really think they're gonna have an amplatz?"

"Okay, elevate her head."

"Alright." She covered the phone. "Alex, lift her head."

"Do they have a Fogarty catheter?" Arizona asked. "They use those on grownups?"

Ellie looked up at the doctor. "Uh, a Fogarty catheter?" He nodded and pointed at the nurse to grab one. "Yeah. What else?"

"You're gonna have to thread the Fogarty down her trachea—pretty far down—then blow up the balloon and pull up until you get traction," the attending told them. "That'll occlude the fistula and get the air flowing into the lungs. You're going to have to keep the blind pouch clear on your way back. And I'm not sure you have anything in your box that's gonna do that."

"Uh..." She peered into the bag. "How about an eight-inch suction catheter?"

"Yeah, that'll work."

Ellie nodded. "Got it. Alright. We're gonna call you when we get back to the rig."

"Hey, Ellie." She paused. "You don't have a lot of time. You know that, right?"

"Yeah." She let out a breath and nodded. "Yeah, we know..."

☀️

"OH, GREAT." ELLIE sighed, pushing the baby's incubator toward the hospital exit. "A thunderstorm. Just what we needed right now..."

"Wait!" Ellie glanced behind her and saw a woman calling out to them in a wheelchair. "I'm coming with you."

"Dana?" Dr. Wagner asked, turning and walking toward her. "Why is she out here?"

"She said if I didn't take her, she'd walk," the nurse answered him. "I was afraid she'd try it."

"Please." Dana looked at the doctor with pleading eyes. "Please, let me come with her."

"Dana... You just had surgery, and you've lost a lot of blood."

She shook her head. "I'll be fine," she insisted. "Please."

"I need you to take care of yourself," Dr. Wagner said. "These guys—" He pointed behind him at the two residents. "—they're the best. She is in great hands."

"Please," she said again, desperately. "She's my baby. We're supposed to be together. I can't leave her. She's so little. Please. I have to be with her. Please let me go with her."

Ellie glanced at the incubator before walking over to the new mother. "I'm Dr. Sloan, and that's Dr. Karev." She gestured behind her. "And we're going to take your daughter to one of the best baby surgeons in the world."

"She doesn't even have a name yet."

"Then you're going to give her one when you get to Seattle," Ellie said, crouching in front of her and taking the woman's hands in hers. "But for you to do that, we need to bring her there. And you need to get stronger for her. Okay? I promise, your baby is going to be in the very best hands." Dana nodded and Ellie smiled softly. "Okay. Let's move, Alex."

They quickly loaded themselves onto the ambulance and began their journey back to Seattle. Ellie glanced out the window. "It just had to storm today, didn't it?"

"It's my fault," Alex said and she looked back at him in confusion.

"For the storm?" she asked, tilting her head. "It's Seattle. It's always raining..."

He shook his head. "No. For Meredith and Derek not having a kid." She sighed. "I can't be the reason they never have kids."

"It's not your fault, Alex."

"Yeah, it is."

"No," she insisted, crossing her arms. "You have to stop beating yourself up over this. People may have hated you for telling on Mer—well, Cristina hated you—but you did the right thing. Regardless of why you did it. It was illegal what she did, okay? And she made that decision for herself. All alone. It was her."

Suddenly, the ambulance began rattling and jerked around as it pulled to the side of the road. Alex looked out to the driver while Ellie checked on the baby in the incubator. "Dude, what's the problem?" he asked. The paramedic got out of the vehicle and opened the back door. "What happened to the engine?"

"I don't know what the crap it is," he replied. "I called for another unit, but we're in the middle of nowhere. It's gonna take forever. I'm putting these out and then I'm gonna run back." He pulled out the traffic cones he had in the ambulance. "It looked like there was a store or something about half a mile back. Maybe they got a truck. You gotta get out of the rig."

Ellie frowned. "It's pouring rain and freezing," she said. "We can't go out there with the baby."

"And there's no shoulder," Alex added, agreeing with the blonde. "It's not like we can just take the incubator out. I mean, there's not even anywhere to stand."

"This thing is full of oxygen," he told them and they looked at each other. "We get it and it'll go up like a roman candle. You gotta get out."

"And leave the baby?" Alex asked.

Ellie shook her head. "She'll die."

"You want to all die?" he retorted and she sighed. "I'm putting these out. You better hope people see 'em. You're on a hill and you're on a curve. I'm telling you... get out of the damn rig."

They watched the paramedic walk away and Ellie pulled out her phone, anxiously bouncing her leg while bringing it up to her ear. "Come on, come on, come on..." she muttered, biting her lip. "Pick up the phone."

"Just get out of the rig."

She looked across at Alex. "I'm no better out there than I am in here," she replied, shaking her head. "You said it yourself. There's no shoulder. It would make no difference. Jackson, answer your goddamn phone."

"Ellie?"

She sighed in relief, closing her eyes when she heard his voice. "Thank goodness. Our ambulance broke down," she said and on the other end of the line, Jackson's eyes widened. "You need to go back to Robbins' OR and tell her what happened. And put her on the phone. We need to talk to her."

"Well, did they send backup?" Jackson asked while running through the halls toward the OR where Arizona was currently in surgery with Derek and Mark.

"Yes, but it's gonna take a while to get here because of the storm."

"Ambulance broke down," she heard him say before she put the phone on speaker. "They're in the middle of the road or something."

"Did they send a backup?" Derek asked.

"It's—It's coming, but it's slow."

"Put her on speaker."

"Alex? Ellie?"

"We can't move," Alex said to them while Ellie held the phone between them. "We're freaking sitting ducks."

"Alright, hold on," Arizona interrupted. "I can't hear you. Say that again."

Ellie sighed. "We gotta take the baby out of here, but the two of us can't move the damn incubator and all of the crap on a highway."

"Did you send up flares?" Derek asked. "Okay... Leave the phone. See if you can get a helicopter up there."

"Secure the umbilical line with extra tape," Arizona told them and Alex began doing what she said. "You need the D10. Put the oxygen tank in the holster and take the paramedic kit."

"Get out of the rig," Mark said.

"Swaddle her so that she stays warm."

Ellie pressed her lips together. "We can't regulate—"

"What?"

"We can't regulate her temp with the incubator," she said.

"They may have to leave the kid," she heard Mark say and she immediately shook her head.

"No, absolutely not. We're not leaving the kid, Mark!"

"Well, one of you should get out of the rig," he countered and she sighed, glancing at Alex. "One of you has to..."

"What are they gonna do?" Derek asked with a small scoff. "Flip a coin?"

"They're sitting in a powder keg!"

"Get out," Alex said to her and she looked back at him, shaking her head. "Go. There's no reason for both of us to get killed."

"Well, I'm not any safer in the middle of the damn road."

"Ellie, I'm telling you, get out of the damn rig."

She sighed. "Alex, if you want to go, then go. We're not safe either w—"

Suddenly the ambulance was hit and both residents were thrown around the vehicle. Ellie hit her head on the side of the incubator while Alex fell flat on his back with a groan. She looked up and kept up the incubator, holding it upright.

Mark looked up at the phone when he heard Ellie get cut off followed by the dial tone. Derek glanced at him and saw he had turned pale at the thought of what might have happened to his baby sister.

"I just spoke to emergency dispatch," Jackson said, walking into the OR. "Another ambulance is coming now. The cops are a few minutes out and the helicopter wouldn't be any faster since they leave out out of Skykomish." He looked around the room. "Are we still on speaker or what?"

"Uh..." Arizona cleared her throat. "We were talking to them and there was a loud noise, and... We lost them."

"What?"

Derek looked back at his best friend. "Avery, Dr. Sloan's gonna put down his instruments and you're gonna step in for him," he said and Mark shook his head. "Fancy part's over. We'll take you through the rest. Mark."

"I'm good."

"Mark," Arizona said and he looked at her. "Go. We got it."

With a sigh, he set down the tools and snapped off his gloves, leaving the OR. Derek turned his attention to the resident. "I know that Ellie is your best friend and you're worried about her—I am, too—but we need you to focus for the rest of the surgery, okay?"

"Yeah." Jackson cleared his throat and nodded, moving to the scrub into the surgery. He stared through the window at the phone that had been turned off. "Please be okay, Ellie... Please."

Meanwhile, Alex had managed to push himself upright and he moved over to Ellie. "Hey, are you okay?" he asked and she nodded, standing up with a groan. Her gaze shifted to the incubator and began opening it. "Uh, what are you doing?"

"I'm taking her out," she replied and looked at him. "Get me a blanket."

"Ellie, put her back in," he said while handing her the nearest blanket.

"She just got thrown around a plastic box," she told him with a frown. "I'm not putting her back in, she needs to be held."

He sighed and nodded. "Okay. Listen, we gotta get outta here before this thing blows," he said and she looked over at him once she had the baby securely in her arms.

"How?" she asked him with a small huff. "She's connected to every single thing imaginable."

He stood up. "You got the bag and the baby," he replied, wrapping the blanket tightly around the newborn. "I'll get the O-2 tank and the IV. And we're disconnecting her from the antibiotics."

Ellie sighed. "It's the only option we really have, I guess. Alright. Let's do this."

Alex opened the door of the ambulance and helped her out. Ellie stumbled slightly once her feet were on the ground while Alex gathered their supplies.

"Alex..." He looked back at her and found her staring straight ahead of her. "I think I know what hit us."

He followed her gaze and it landed on a family on the road, all injured. She glanced back at him and he sighed.

☀️

"SIR? CAN YOU move?" Alex asked, running over to the family while Ellie stayed to the side, continuing to take care of the baby. "We need to get you off this road."

"Honey," he was saying, looking over at his wife and Ellie wanted desperately to help her. "Jessica. Answer me."

The blonde looked over when she heard a thunk come from the car and she saw a teenager crawl out, pausing when she saw the woman on the road. "Mom?" she asked, moving over to her. "Mom, wake up. Mom, wake up!" She looked around and she saw Ellie. "Help them, please. You have to help. My mom, my dad, the van—and I just stepped in blood. I—I just stepped in blood."

Ellie walked over to her. "Hey, hey, what's your name?"

"Lily."

She nodded. "Okay, Lily, I need you to take in a few deep breaths for me," she said and the teenager met her gaze. "And I need you to take the baby. Hold the baby."

"I don't even babysit," she replied, shaking her head. "I can't hold a baby."

"Lily, I want to help your family," Ellie told her. "But to do that, I need you to hold the baby for me." She nodded hesitantly and the resident placed the newborn in her arms. "Okay, now I need you to squeeze. One, two, squeeze. One, two, squeeze."

"What—What if I mess up?" she asked nervously.

"You won't," Ellie assured her gently. "One, two, squeeze. One, two, squeeze. And whatever you do, don't stop squeezing. Okay?" Lily nodded and Ellie hurried over to the mother. "Ma'am. Ma'am. I'm a doctor, can you hear me?" Alex made his way out of the ambulance and she looked over at him. "You got any tape in there? I need to do an adhesive dressing."

"Probably," he replied with a shrug and she dug through the bag he set down beside her. "I just grabbed whatever."

"Is my mom okay?" Lily asked them. "Mom?"

"Lily, I need you to keep counting for me," Ellie said, looking back at the teenager. "Okay. Please don't stop counting."

"O—Okay. One, two, squeeze."

Alex looked at her. "How's she doing?" he asked.

"Not good," she replied quietly with a sigh. "I may have to intubate. Don't you have to do a pressure dressing?"

"Ugh." He looked around. "I see grey matter. Brains are on the ground."

"Wait." Ellie and Alex glanced at each other, hearing Lily's voice. "That's Nana. That's my na—"

"There's nothing we can do," Alex said to Ellie before moving to the young girl. "Oh, crap. This kid's got a shard of glass in her eye. She's unconscious. Her pulse is low."

"That's my sister," Lily said tearfully. "That's Abby."

"Lily." Ellie shifted her attention away from her sister. "Do you see that blinker on the van?" She nodded. "Good. Just watch that blinker and keep counting with it. One, two, squeeze. One, two, squeeze."

"The kids," the father groaned and Ellie looked over at him. "The kids."

"Your girls are okay," Alex told him, still kneeling beside the younger sister. "I just helped one and the other one is over there. And she's okay."

"And Michael?" Ellie's head shot up and she walked over to the father. "What about Michael?"

"'Michael'?" she repeated, her eyes widening. "There's another kid?" She started walking toward the car. "Michael? Michael!"

"Help!"

Ellie looked over when she heard the voice. "Michael?" She bent down and looked under the car, seeing the young boy pinned under it. "Hi there, Michael."

"Can you help?" he asked.

She nodded and pressed her fingers against his neck. "Your pulse is a little weak," she said before standing up once more. "Okay, I'm going to try and free your legs, alright?"

She strained, pulling at the car when she heard Alex's voice. "Ellie, there's a car coming!" he shouted and she groaned.

"Damn it. Michael, can you feel your legs?" she asked.

"Ellie, you gotta get out of there!"

She turned to look toward him. "I can't!" she shouted in desperation. "He's trapped. I have to free his legs."

"There's no time," he called back and she ran a hand through her hair. "You have to get out of the road before you get killed!"

"Come on!" Ellie pulled on the car once more. "Come on!" With a sigh—and slightly off-balance—she walked in the other direction.

"No, don't leave me."

"I'll be right back," she reassured Michael.

Alex frowned as he watched her walk in the direction that the car was coming from. "What the hell are you—they're not even gonna see you! Ellie, what are you doing?!"

"I'm taking a risk," she replied, waving her hands as the car rounded the corner of the road. "Stop! Please!"

She let out a breath once the car stopped in front of her and Alex shook his head. "Son of a bitch..."

☀️

ALEX AND ELLIE arrived at Seattle Grace and Arizona immediately met them to take care of the baby. Alex followed her while Derek helped Ellie out of the ambulance and she stumbled against him. "Are you okay?" he asked her, his face full of concern.

"I'm fine." She waved his concern off dismissively. "Thirteen-year-old female, intubated in the field. Multiple facial fractures. Foreign body to the eye. You should page Mark."

Derek looked at her forehead. "You're bleeding."

"I'm fine," she insisted and despite her best efforts, she stumbled once more and he caught her, shaking his head.

"Yeah, you're not fine. Come with me," he said and she sighed, allowing him to take her into the ambulance and he began shining a light in her eyes. "Follow the light."

As soon as the light hit her pupils, she squinted. "Why is it so bright?" she asked before tilting her head. "And since when are there two of you?"

Derek paused. "What do you mean 'two'?"

"I mean that there's one of you there—" She pointed at an empty spot beside Derek and then back at him. "—and there."

He let out a breath. "Well, in my professional opinion, you have a concussion," he said and she slumped. "So—"

"Oh, thank goodness." Derek and Ellie looked over and saw Mark hurrying over to them as color returned to his face. "Is she okay?"

"She's going to be just fine," Derek assured him. "But she does have a concussion. She can sleep, but someone should stay with her."

"I can—"

Ellie shook her head. "No, you won't." Mark looked back at her with a frown. "There's a thirteen-year-old girl with a shard of glass in her eye. She needs you more than I do."

"But—"

"Jackson can stay with me if you're so worried," she said, interrupting her brother once more. "If he doesn't need to be in the ER. Please just help that girl. She and her siblings have already lost their grandmother and might lose their parents. Please, Mark."

Mark sighed and nodded. "Okay," he said softly, kissing her forehead. "Avery!" Ellie jumped at his loud shout and looked behind her, seeing Jackson had been walking down the hallway toward the ER. "Since you're on my service, your new job is to stay with Ellie to make sure she doesn't slip into a coma or something."

"A... A coma?" he asked.

Ellie rolled her eyes. "You just have to supervise me while I sleep," she said quietly before looking at her brother. "Go. That girl needs you."

"Okay, okay, I'm going." He stopped next to Jackson. "She better not slip into a coma."

Ellie huffed and grabbed Jackson's hand, walking to the patient room that Derek had assigned her to. "So... Do you wanna watch the Wizard of Oz?" she asked him.

"That's your reaction after your ambulance got hit, you have a concussion, and your brother just threatened me?" She shrugged and he sighed. "I'll go get the DVD that you keep in your office."

"Thank you!" She smiled happily and settled herself on the hospital bed. She looked down when she heard her phone ring and she furrowed her brow at the contact. "Addison?"

"Ellie," she said on the other end, sounding worried. "How soon do you think you can get on a flight to LA?"

"Uh—I'd have to check with Derek first because of my concussion," she replied. "Why? What's wrong?"

Addison sighed. "It's Amelia."

☀️

━ author's note:

happy to say that we're in single digits before jallie is official!

also, next episode takes place in private practice, just in case you haven't watched it and don't know who the characters are, you have a warning...

and, yes, ellie has a dvd of the wizard of oz that she keeps in her office because why not