xiv. atlas has a bright idea
9.17

Atlas stands and leaves the conference room when everyone else does. Although he does not own the hospital like his husband does, everyone said he could join the meetings. He didn't mind, he actually enjoyed being in the conference room as everyone else was. It made him feel important, even though he didn't need to be there.

"Jackson." Atlas stops in the hallway, waving a see you later to his husband who continues to walk away. Jackson stops and stands beside Atlas, carrying a bundle of papers and a box of donuts. "Walk with me?"

Jackson nods and falls into the same steps as Atlas takes. He shifts the things in his arms before he turns his head slightly. "What can I do for you? Or are you going to talk me out of everything the fox foundation wants? Or yell at me for what I said; how we shouldn't have been sued to bankruptcy."

Atlas takes a minute as they walk, letting the two continue on in silence. When they round the hallway corner into the cardio wing, where there's a wing of construction, Atlas lets a lightbulb go off above his head. "I have an idea actually — and I won't yell, but you definitely shouldn't have said what you said."

Jackson sighs, but nods anyways. He understands what he said was wrong, and he only said it in the heat of the moment because he felt alone, like no one trusted that he could do this. He was starting to feel like he couldn't do it either. "What's your idea?"

Atlas stops in front of the entire wing under construction; there had been major overdue changes that needed to happen and it would make more room for more patients if they didn't have so many empty conference rooms and storage rooms. "I have money saved up, money that my father left me when he passed away." When Brian passed away due to a fatal gunshot wound many years ago, Atlas was broken. His father's death and the feeling of not being able to do anything broke something inside of him. He's been keeping ahold of the money as a tie to his father, but after a long talk with his therapist ( who we'll meet later! ) he felt like he needed to let it go to finally put his father to rest.

"Derek didn't try to convince you to use it in buying the hospital?" Jackson's voice wasn't harsh, or one that implied anything, it was just Jackson's Avery's genuine question.

Atlas shook his head and gestured towards the construction. "He said to save it for a rainy day, this is a rainy day, Avery."

Jackson chuckled. "We have money for construction, Atlas, if you wanted it to go faster you could say and I could hire a few more workers."

Atlas once again shook his head, that was not what he wanted. "No, no. I want to make it into a clinic. The Venus Bardot memorial cardiology clinic. We'd do probono operations, free consultations, free treatments, anything regarding the heart and lungs and well, everything that Venus wanted. She wanted to give many people another chance at life, this we can do. We can help her dream, Avery."

"I think we can make that work; how about we go and iron out some details, write up a proper proposal." Jackson smiled, one that said, this will make change. "You have any surgeries today?"

"Of course not, I've been thinking about this for weeks. C took my surgeries today, claims its fellow work." Atlas chuckled as he walked side by side with Jackson's Avery down the hallway and away from where the new wing will be.

╚═ ☆ ═╝

Atlas sits in the conference room, beaming with a hidden excitement. As he waits for everyone else to join him and Jackson, in yet another board meeting, he bounces his leg up and down.

"They'll say no." Jackson mutters as he fiddles with the pen and notepad in front of him, an anxious trait he did not pick up from his mother, that's for sure. "They'll say no because they won't listen, they're mad, Atlas."

"They'll say yes, Jackson, because it's a good idea." It is, truly. Restarting; becoming a new face and a new hospital and honouring the ones that had been lost. They had taken all day to discuss things. Atlas had helped Jackson in guiding him in ways he could help the hospital, and how he could be his own person and make his own decisions well still benefitting the foundation. 

"You here to tell us once again that the foundation wants to put their name on the hospital? And that we can't open the ER or how we have to fire Owen?" Christina and Derek are the first ones to enter the room, Christina choosing to let the snarky comments roll of her tongue as Derek steps towards his husband and presses a kiss to his forehead.

Jackson slides a document across the table towards the two new comers as they wait for the others. "Not yet. Here's your legal documents, in regards to becoming the new board of directors. A lawyer will be here shortly, and then everyone can sign."

Meredith and Oliver enter together, both hand in hand as they smile and chat about the ultrasound that Meredith had today. Owen and Arizona enter as well, both chatting too, about a patient they both had during the day.

When everyone sits down and the lawyer is finally in the room, everyone sits silent as they read through the papers and sigh. As everyone is reading, Jackson slides a paper to Atlas.

"We've made a position for you and April, the co-board of directors. It's just legal stuff, but you'll be with us, up here and building this hospital up." Jackson smiles as Atlas sends a proud look.

Arizona is the last person in the room to sign her documents. She sighs, sliding her paper towards the lawyer. "This is it, where the new official board of directors — and the co-board."

The lawyer sends a small smile as he stands, gathering all the papers. "Congratulates everyone, I'll get in contact in regards to Doctor Eliza Lee-Sunny and Doctor April Kepners signatures."

Owen decides to keep it quiet that he had visited them on a farm, and gave them plane tickets, which would land in approximately one hour, with them on it if they got on.

Everyone stands and gets ready to leave, but Jackson is quicker and shares his thoughts. "Actually, I'd like to share a list of a few things I think are our top priority."

Meredith tilts her head and has a small glare. "You mean that the foundation thinks..."

Jackson shakes his head in disagreement, "I mean me." He tosses the protocol book into the garbage as a gesture and everyone who had stood now sits back down. "Number one, I move that we reinstate Owen Hunt as chief of surgery, effective immediately. My second point. We are reopening the E.R. We will be a level-I trauma center again. From now on, the foundation will follow our lead. We will tell them our decisions as we make them."

Cristina gives Jackson a genuine smile. She was glad that he had pulled his big boy panties on. "Well, hear, hear."

"I've got one more thing." Jackson says but then Atlas clears his throat. "Well two actually. We are building a new hospital. And that was your vision, not mine. My priority is to make sure your vision comes true. And while it is important that we become a leading center for research and innovation, we have to remember something ..."

Atlas takes in all the doctors that surround him, a found family that he is glad to work with, who he is glad to grow with.

"We are now officially a hospital run by doctors. That should mean something. It is our responsibility to be the best doctors we can possibly be so that those who come after us can strive to be their best. Because of this, we are opening up a new clinic for one."

Arizona and Derek lean forward at the same time, both with curiosity in their gaze. "What?"

"The Venus Bardot Memorial Cardiology Clinic." Atlas grins as he takes his turn to speak, loud and proud. "I have funded the beginning of this clinic, and the foundation will fund a portion, on Jackson's behalf. This is so her dream can continue to come true. Her memory will help save so many."

Christina claps, because she loves this idea. "More heart surgery for me!"

Jackson stands with a yellow note pad in hand. "Before we leave; I propose that we give this hospital a name that can honor the very reason we've come together and been able to do this, a name that exemplifies the spirit of this hospital, but also the depth of our dedication." He turns around a notepad, which says to his audience,

GREY SLOAN MEMORIAL HOSPITAL.

╚═ ☆ ═╝

Owen — G.I Joe — Hunt stands in the airport as he waits hopefully for three people to come done the escalator.

He waits ten minutes. Twenty. Half an hour. An hour.

He's ready to go home now, sighing and taking a few steps away and pass where all the luggage is on a spinning conveyor belt. And then he pauses and takes a quick glance over his shoulder, one last look.

"Are you kidding me! You lost my luggage?!" He hears it. Her. The one he was waiting for. Turning, he sees Eliza with Brian standing at her feet, April beside her with a bag on her back and two suitcases beside her. "How!"

Owen steps forward, but non of the three notice him yet. He lets a smile onto his lips. "I'll buy you new stuff."

Eliza turns, throwing her hands up in defeat. "Yeah?"

"Until they find your luggage, of course." He chucked and waves them forward. "Come on, let me give you a ride. I brought a car seat too, from the hospital, don't tell anymore."

authors note  ══════ ☆
what do you want to see before this fic ends? also, parts of the second book to this series, devoted hearts (Meredith + Oliver) is out and would love to be read!