Chapter 10

As Meredith entered Lucas' room, she found herself reflecting on the events of the previous night. She hadn't intended to lose her temper and yell at Derek. All she had wanted was a night out to unwind, but Izzie's emergency call had disrupted her plans. However, after witnessing Lucas' heartfelt performance and observing the emotional reactions of their friends, her initial empathy for Lucas had turned into frustration towards Derek. She spent the majority of the night not sleeping and thinking about what she did and what to do about Lucas.

Unbeknownst to Derek and Lexie, Meredith had been present when CPS spoke with Lucas. She had concealed herself, as she always harbored conflicting emotions towards the other Greys, especially Lucas, more so than Lexie. While Lexie seemed like a good kid, Meredith didn't want to forge a personal connection with her. There might have been a lingering resentment towards Lexie due to Thatcher favoring her side of the family over her's but that's beside the point.

Lucas was different. At first, she thought that they only had the same last name but after what Derek said to her and Lexie, she started viewing Lucas differently and she didn't appreciate that. The idea of caring for someone solely because they shared a biological connection with her father didn't sit well with her. Yet, every time she thought about what Lucas had endured, an overwhelming sense of empathy welled up within her, a desire to assist him that she tried to suppress whenever it emerged.

This made her reflect on Cristina's approach to medicine, where patients were viewed primarily as medical cases rather than individuals with lives beyond the hospital walls. It was a way of removing the emotional element from medicine, focusing solely on their illness. It made the practice of medicine more efficient and straightforward.

But Meredith couldn't adapt to that approach. Last night had been the breaking point. Witnessing Lucas' tears and hearing his song had been excruciating to witness. Though she hadn't shed a tear herself, she could still feel the raw emotional pain and sorrow that Lucas carried within him.

"Good morning," Meredith greeted as she took hold of Lucas' charts and began reading through them.

Lucas observed both Meredith and Lexie entering his room, and the memories of the previous night's events in the pediatric play lounge flooded back to him. He couldn't help but feel a tinge of shyness, and he stuttered a reply, "Go... Good morning."

As Meredith carefully reviewed his charts and Lexie stood silently beside her sister, an awkward silence settled in the room. Although Lucas recognized these individuals from a TV show he had watched in the past, there existed no real connection between them beyond the doctor-patient relationship.

In an attempt to alleviate the silence, Lucas initiated a conversation. "Are you guys hungry?" he asked, glancing at his food tray. "You can have my banana if I can keep my cookie. I'm fine with that."

Showing her inherent kindness, Lexie responded with a polite smile, speaking on behalf of herself and Meredith. "We're fine, Lucas."

Suddenly, Derek entered the room, wearing a questioning expression as he directed his gaze towards Meredith. He inquired, "You page?"

After enduring Meredith's outburst, the previous night, Derek assumed that she would once again avoid speaking to him. However, that assumption was shattered when Meredith paged him the moment he arrived at the hospital. This prompted him to swiftly change into his scrubs and head towards Lucas' room.

Upon seeing Derek enter, Meredith returned Lucas' chart to its place at the foot of his bed. She briefly glanced at the three individuals in the room before taking a deep breath. Opening up to others was something Meredith struggled with—it was a vulnerability she was aware of. That was why she considered her closest friends as family. She had built walls in her life that only a select few had the chance to pass through, and now she found herself on the verge of opening up to someone new. She needed a few moments to gather herself.

"Lucas, we have something important to tell you", she stated, causing confusion to mark Lucas' face.

"What's going on?" Lucas asked, uncertain of what was happening. In his mind, he was fine. The various tests and scans he had undergone in the past few days had yielded inconclusive results. So, he was quite curious why the 2 Greys along with Derek appeared in his room early in the morning.

"You're aware that you were adopted, right?" Meredith inquired.

Hearing Meredith's words, Lucas could only nod in response, now even more confuse. He didn't quite understand why Meredith was asking such a question. Upon pondering for a moment an idea began to form in his mind — a notion that seemed almost too absurd to be true. Such a thing might even be stupid to consider. People around the world share the same last name without having any ties whatsoever.

"Your biological father is Thatcher Grey— the biological father of Lexie and I," Meredith stated, her hand gesturing towards Lexie. The younger Grey-sister was equally stunned by Meredith's sudden disclosure.

"That means we are you half-sisters", Meredith added.

Honestly, the three individuals in the room had never explicitly agreed to keep this information a secret from Lucas. It was simply that both Grey sisters were grappling with the information themselves, which led them to inadvertently keep it from him until now.

With a raised eyebrow, Lucas could only respond with a hesitant, "..Oh.." His initial idea was actually on point. So this was the reason why Lexie visited him multiple times in the past few days even though she technically wasn't Izzie's intern. In the show, Lexie Grey was one of Cristina's interns. Her consistent presence was an indication of her concern for Lucas, driven by their shared blood connection via her father.

While in the show there was no character named Lucas Grey, it appeared that in this particular world, Thatcher Grey had likely engaged in an affair during the 90s, leading to the birth of the original Lucas. As someone who had watched the show, it held an intriguing prospect to establish connections with all the doctors from Grey's Anatomy. However, as the consciousness inhabiting Lucas' body, the new Lucas remained outwardly impassive, displaying no emotions beyond confusion.

"I understand that this information is overwhelming and looking at your charts, you would be discharged soon", She paused and then took another deep breath before continuing. "I was hoping you would consider the idea of being fostered by me," Meredith stated.