55. First Years

I can't because I'm pregnant.

-Meredith Grey

"Happy three months, baby," Mark whispered and Emily groaned, squirming in his arms.

"Mark, I wanna sleep," Emily mumbled sleepily when Mark brushed his nose against the skin near her ear. "Lemme sleep. I'm tired."

"Oh, yeah?" he murmured back and she flung an arm around him to hug him tighter. "Baby's taking a lot out of you, huh." When the brunette didn't reply, only snuggled closer, he chuckled. "Is it okay if we start telling people? Seems we're in the clear." Her hazel eyes opened sleepily and he leaned to kiss her. When her morning breath mingled with his minty one, he wrinkled his nose and she let out a whine from the back of her throat, burying her face in the covers.

"Okay. Anything for you to leave me alone so I can sleep!" He nodded, kissing her forehead before looking at the time over her shoulder. His hand rubbed up and down her arm, soothing the goosebumps that rose when exposed to the air.

"Torres and I have to actually work - maybe I'll tell her then." Getting up, he felt her hand scrabble for his waist.

"No!" she groaned, rolling into his empty space as he changed his clothes. "You just came back."

"Came back from the washroom, yeah," he snorted, pecking her cheeks. Reaching out blindly, she grabbed the collar of his shirt and pressed a longer kiss to his mouth. Cupping her face, he deepened it before pulling away. "Love you, okay? Text me when you get there."

"Yes, honey," she muttered sarcastically and he made sure she was warm and covered before going out to call for Callie. Emily heard the door closed before she rolled out of the bed and dragging herself into the bathroom. Once she freshened herself up and was significantly more awake, she proceeded to change into casual sweats and go to the kitchen where a pot of coffee was there, already made.

Pouring herself a steaming hot cup in a travel mug, she set it down and pulled on her cream coat. Sipping again, she sighed before grabbing her keys and heading down to go to the hospital. The baby was taking a lot out of her, sure, but it wasn't anything she couldn't handle from her intern year.

.

"I'm going to die."

"No, you won't. It's just one day," Lexie shot back with a smile as Taylor greeted his girlfriend with a kiss to the temple before continuing on his way. Rolling their eyes at the blond trauma surgeon, the two brunettes continued to walk through the hospital, the group of first year med students trailing behind them. Emily herself wasn't even in her scrubs, adjusting her bag on her shoulder as she walked beside the younger Grey.

"One day too many, Lex," Emily sighed, brushing a curl behind her ear. Her hair was up in a messy bun because she was too lazy to do anything else as they finally found the Chief who jerked his head towards the main nurse's station. "The time of my life, sis. Good morning, Chief."

"Right. Now get over there." Lexie shoved her gently towards the congregating residents and with a faux-foul glare, she sidled in next to April who greeted her with a cheerful good morning. Offering a smile in return, she rubbed at her eyes.

"Morning, Red." She stretched, feeling the clack of her shoulders and watching the mass of med students slowly come into view. The Chief offered them all a good morning.

"Behind me stand the interns and residents of tomorrow. Today you will show them what it's like to be a surgeon. When you go into surgery, they go into surgery. When they have a question, you will answer."

"It's like taking court-ordered community service."

"I'd rather be picking up trash off the side of the highway." Lexie watched her sister with a raised eyebrow, easily guessing what Meredith was saying.

Lexie began calling off names and Emily subtly took out her phone to inform Mark that she was now in the building. Slipping her phone back into the pocket it usually inhabited, she listened with half-interest, playing with the ring around her finger and watching the med students gaze at the older residents in slight fear.

"... you're with Dr. Karev. Edward Taylor, Dr. Avery. Kim Peterson, Dr. Moore…" Hearing her name, she raised a hand as a dark-haired woman poked her head out from behind Edward Taylor. Sending the woman a smile, she adjusted her bag as Lexie began to list off the next group of med students. The woman did not smile back, only seemed to rake her gaze up and down before backing away.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Emily Moore," she offered a hand to the woman who ignored it. Trying not to let it phase her, she sighed internally but said, "How are you?"

"You're the doctor I'm assigned to? You're not even in scrubs."

"Which is why we're going to the change room first before rounds," Emily said pithily. April and her student came up with a charts and Emily watched Kim take it. "Thanks, Dr. Kepner."

"No problem, Dr. Moore," she replied cheerfully and the brunette rolled her eyes. "Hudson Powell, this is Dr. Moore, one of the-"

"I will be picking our Chief Resident in a few months…" Chief announced before resuming his conversation with Cristina. All the residents raised their heads as April's dark eyes widened.

"The race for Chief Resident is on?"

"Since when?"

"Uh, how long have you been evaluating us?"

"Since your first day here." The Chief's self-satisfied smile had all of them burning. He swept his gaze over the residents before turning to leave. Emily rubbed her temple as April's mouth fell open.

"We've gotta go." Snapping her fingers, Emily got the attention of Kim again. "Looks like we're on the same case, Red, so I'll meet you there." Turning, she walked to the resident's lounge where she quickly went to her cubby. Telling Kim to just stay put, she put her stuff into the cubby. Changing into her scrubs quickly, she pulled on her lab coat and made sure her pens and notepads were intact before exiting. "Okay, chart. Did you read it over?"

It was placed in her hands as Kim just shrugged. Feeling irritation flash through her, Emily lead the way to the elevator.

"We're with Dr. Sloan today. Plastics and in the peds ward. Sarah Cassidy, fifteen, has Treacher Collin's syndrome," she recited and Emily bit her tongue to say something rude.

Still, she asked, "Meaning?" The word came out so easily that she felt as if she were having an intern follower again. There was a silence on the other side and she cast a glance at the med student. "Treacher Collin's syndrome is an autosomal dominant congenital disorder characterized by craniofacial deformities."

"The typical physical deformities include downward-slanting eyes, micrognathia, conductive hearing loss, underdeveloped… zygomatic bones, drooping part of the lateral lower eyelids, and malformed or absent ears but they're differ between each patient. This can cause difficulties with hearing, seeing and breathing," Kim Peterson finished, eyes sparking. "Learnt that, like, last month."

The elevator doors finally opened and they stepped on. Everyone else was already there, including Arizona, April, and Mark. "Dr. Robbins, Dr. Sloan—" She nodded— "this is Kim Peterson."

"Hello," her husband greeted as the woman went on before dragging his gaze to his wife. "Hey."

"Hi,"

"Hello." Arizona beamed but Emily found it hard to smile at the blonde who broke Callie's heart.

"Mark, is Aria settling down okay?" She got on the elevator which closed behind her and sidled in behind April. The redhead was jotting down in her notebook as Mark turned to talk to her.

"Yeah. We can swing by later today. She's getting an ultrasound and then we have to talk to Callie about her treatment plan."

"Alright. Ten o'clock, if we're lucky, then." He nodded, giving her that warm stare that filled her up inside.

"Yeah, ten o'clock."

.

As they exited the room, Emily was thinking of multiple ways to try and shorten the healing time. "Digging into her skull will tack on an extra year of healing, you know?" Arizona took out her pen as they approached the nurse's station. Hands in her pockets, Emily bit her lip, trying to remember the name of that paper Mark was reading about just last night. Something to do with regenerative medicine…

"Well, maybe she'll play in a couple of years, then."

"Well, did you consider the stem cell-" Mark began and she suddenly remembered, beaming.

"-surgery they did in in Cincinnati using a cadaver bone graft. That's what it was!" she exclaimed and Mark snorted in amusement. Arizona gave her a doubtful look but with Mark's reassuring nod, she continued, "I know it's experimental - hell, he even said that last night but we both think it's worth considering given how young she is."

"I think—" Her blue eyes met Mark's blues before landing on Emily's hazel— "given how young she is, it's best to be conservative. I'll see you in surgery." With that, the peds surgeon turned around and flounced away.

"No flaws, my ass," Mark muttered and Emily patted his arm before putting the chart away. "I need the four of you to gather all the information you can on this stem cell surgery and compile it into a slide show. No matter what, Dr. Robbins is going with this surgery." There were nods as April led her student to the library.

"Kim, can you go with them?" Emily asked and the woman, who was staring quite obviously at her husband, snapped out of it. Following the redhead, Emily didn't miss the looks over the shoulder. "So… can you stop being so good looking?" she asked, walking slowly over to her husband. With a shrug, he rubbed her arms.

"Why?"

"I think my med student wants to jump you in an on-call room," she said bluntly and he laughed, kissing her mouth before kissing her neck casually. Smiling, she pecked his cheek back before hugging his neck tightly. "But I only get that privilege."

"Yeah, you do," he affirmed, leaning down for a deeper kiss this time.

"I told you the beard works wonders," she mumbled against his lips.

"And you're right." Pulling away with a sigh, he gazed down at her. "Now, go. I actually need that info." She nodded and pecked his lips one last time before heading after April.

.

"Stop staring," Hudson whispered as Kim sighed, dragging her gaze back to her friend. "Lady," he began when she just merely glanced at him before looking inconspicuously from behind her book, "you're crazy."

"But he's so handsome," Kim sighed, "and I'm hot. Hotter than my resident and he's all over her." Dr. Sloan was leaning on a counter, talking to her resident. The bright smile never seemed to fall off his face even by a millimeter as he laughed. "God." Dr. Moore ran a hand through her curls as she tilted her head at him.

"She's badass. Did you see her on Seattle Med? She saved a guy during the shooting."

"Yeah, yeah, but still." Kim rolled her eyes before glancing above her book again. "Ugh! Disgusting." Hudson squinted as Dr. Sloan leaned down to listen to something Dr. Moore was saying. Her hand was pressed against his abdomen and thoughtful frowns were on their faces. "I'm going to go talk to him. Make my move." She was about to push herself up but Hudson wrapped a hand around her wrist.

"Are you crazy?" he hissed and she shrugged him off. Standing, she closed her book and cleared her throat.

"Confident."

"Kim!" Ignoring him, she approached the tall man and shorter brunette.

"Kim." Dr. Moore gave her a smile and Kim ignored it in favor of smiling at Dr. Sloan. "Do you have a question?"

"Yeah. See, this stem cell surgery… why is it better than what Dr. Robbins proposed?" she asked and Dr. Sloan's smile shrunk. Damn, I've got to switch tactics. "I want to help you as much as I can."

"I'll be right back. I have an idea to share with Dr. Kepner," Dr. Moore whispered to her superior, slipping away towards Hudson. Her hand played around her neck but Kim payed her no mind as the brunette doctor left the scene.

"As stated before, it'll greatly reduce her recovery time. She wants to play volleyball, we're going to try and do that." He shrugged as if no big deal and a smile pulled at her lips.

"That's very considerate. But, isn't this a bit risky?"

"Like Dr. Moore said, given her age, we have a bit of leeway. As long as her family agrees, then we'll proceed when Dr. Robbins finally gets it through her head." Despite the comment, it was said with fond amusement. "Em!" he called and Kim scowled, turning around as the older woman returned from talking to Hudson's resident. The redhead was stifling a laugh as she read her book and Dr. Moore was trying to contain her own smile.

"Hey. Sorry, Red had a thought." The woman's smile became full blown, her eyes crinkling. "I'm heading for coffee. Want anything?"

"You know, the usual." He made a move for his wallet but she shook her head.

"You don't have to pay for everything anymore." What does that mean? Kim had a nagging feeling in her gut that she had tread into uncharted waters full of sharks and eels and other scary stuff in the ocean. Dr. Sloan paused and Dr. Moore sent him a fond smile.

"Old habits die hard." Chuckling to herself, she tucked a curl behind her ear. "Just meet me back here. We'll be starting the powerpoint in a bit." Leaning down to peck her lips, he grinned.

"I'll be back in a few. Kim, if you could just wait here…" The med student was completely paralyzed the moment they kissed but managed a robotic nod.

"Do you have any other questions?" Dr. Sloan inquired not unkindly. Kim's throat constricted as Dr. Moore left the library.

Hudson was right. Why do I never listen? Kim bemoaned in her head. "Nope, thanks for answering, Dr. Sloan."

"We have to meet up with Dr. Robbins again in thirty minutes or so, so we have to actually start on the slides. Go meet up with Dr. Kepner." Nodding to herself, the med student walked back to a snickering Hudson.

"Shut up," she muttered under her breath, collapsing into a chair and burying her face into her arms. "They're married. Or dating, or something."

"Married." Behind them, Dr. Kepner appeared with a slight smile. She carried textbooks which she let slap against the wooden table. "They got married. Now, if you aren't too busy ogling Dr. Sloan, we have a power point to put together."

.

When Mark grabbed the permanent marker next to her thigh from where she was sitting, it took a moment for what just happened to register in her head. She watched as he uncapped it and grabbed the med student, turned him around and lowered it. He was ready.

But then she realized what was wrong and she grabbed his arm with a smile. "That's permanent marker, Mark." She threw him sticky notes that he stuck to the bald man's head. "You're welcome." Hudson looked thankful as Mark rolled his eyes playfully. "Continue, Dr. Sloan."

"Thank you, Dr. Sloan." Scoffing, she crossed her arms as Mark continued to explain the pros and cons of the stem cell surgery.

.

"Why is my baby gonna be poo-covered?" Emily sat down beside Meredith as the blonde asked this. Lexie had a hint of a smile that disappeared as soon as she looked at the table diagonal to her.

"Okay, what is that about?" They all looked in synchronization at Alex who was teaching his med student how to do stitches. Jackson cracked open his water bottle as Emily brought a cube of watermelon to her mouth.

"Come on. You blame him? She's hot."

"Don't be a pig. He's being gross, not to mention unprofessional." Meredith raised her eyebrows, glancing briefly at the redhead.

"Well, the thong is unprofessional." Jackson raised his head, hoping it wasn't true and Emily choked slightly when she saw that Meredith's blunt sentence was, in fact, honest. He threw his fork down onto his plate with a curse and April glared at him.

"That's disgusting."

"Unprofessional. Wh-what is wrong with them? I was never that dumb when I was in med school."

"They're weak and gutless," Cristina scoffed, giving them another look over.

"Boy crazy."

"Oblivious."

"Slutty."

"Wow—" Lexie brought her soda up, the straw nearly touching her lips— "you all sound really old." Slurping on her soda, Lexie watched as Alex prepared another suture for his med student. All the residents looked at their younger companion in offence as Emily glanced at her friends. She cleared her throat.

"Well, with being old comes… things," she began awkwardly. The other residents looked at her and she glanced to her watermelon. "Like families, and babies, and you guys are my family."

"Is there a reason why you're being a sap?" Cristina started and Emily shot her an offended look. "I mean, I'm all for the 'we're a family' crap but we don't talk about our feelings."

"I'm trying to tell you I'm pregnant and you're ruining it, Cristina," Emily exclaimed only to realize what she said. Jackson dropped his fork and Lexie choked on her soda as Meredith turned to her, eyes wide. "I'm… I'm pregnant. And you guys are my family and I wanted you to know." Jackson stood up, hands running over his head as he walked away before coming back. Cristina's mouth dropped open as Meredith brought her into a hug.

"Congratulations!" Emily laughed before pulling back, smile fading. "Don't do that. You got pregnant and I'm so happy for you. That has nothing to do with me." The brunette released a sigh, slouching against her friend before Lexie joined in on the hug.

"You're having a baby?"

"I'm having a baby." April let out an excited squeal and clapped, unable to form a coherent sentence as Jackson picked her up in a giant hug. "We're having a baby, guys." The giant smile on Emily's face ached as her friends began to discuss baby names before her. She knew, without a doubt, that her baby would have people.

.

"So, Jackson, April, Mer, Lex, and Cristina know," she listed to Mark as they scrubbed into surgery. "Does Derek know?"

"Not yet. He has surgery with this dude who got trampled by a horse."

"Callie's having a field day with that, I bet." He pressed his mask against her cheek, drying his hands and walking into the O.R.

.

Surgery a success, she walked to the ortho wing to Aria's room and sent the Latina a smile. The woman was resting on the bed to cover the pain that probably spiked whenever she moved. "Rough day?" she asked, walking in as Aria shrugged.

"Had some scans. Cal's probably gonna come around sooner or later." The younger Torres closed her magazine and sat up as the doctor pulled up a chair. She still had such a flat stomach. When Aria caught Emily staring, she smiled albeit sadly. "The dad's not even in the picture. Would've stayed for the baby if the bone cancer didn't show up one day."

"Sucks," she mumbled. "But you have a sister."

"Had. She wasn't kidding when I disowned her. She's… she's still mad, even if she won't admit it." Emily grimaced, watching the woman shift uncomfortably. "I didn't even want to do it, y'know? But my mom was so adamant and I didn't even talk to her. I thought we could work things out."

"Yeah, maybe you should've called," Emily agreed quietly as Aria leaned back with a sigh. "So you're her half-sister."

"Yeah. Same mom, different dad. Probably why at reunions Callie is 'Daddy's little girl'. Carlos doesn't even like to think that I exist."

"It's hard to accept that your wife cheated on you," the brunette replied shortly. "That you have a child and they still went ahead and did it."

Aria was a quiet for a moment and Emily stared into her lap. "Callie was the first one. She accepted me. Not without a long time of silence, but still. She took care of me. It's hard to be the reason a family split up."

"Yeah." Someone cleared their throat behind them. Looking over her shoulder, she saw Callie with a manila folder. Taking out the scans, her jaw was clenched. Aria raised her chin defiantly, trying to put on a brave face.

"Callie, tell me."

"The osteosarcoma—" Immediately, Emily could hear the doctor tone her mentor was using— "is seeded deep into your bones. Immediately scheduling for an amputation is recommended."

"What? But the baby-" Aria cut herself off as Callie continued, a sympathetic expression across her face.

"The baby... " Callie sighed, sitting down on the bed near her sister's foot, "the baby won't survive this. You need to give it up."

"No!" Aria immediately shouted, sitting ramrod straight. "I'm not giving up this baby."

"Aria!"

"No! Callie, you don't get it. I'm not flushing this baby out of me. It deserves better." Emily glanced at her, watching the orthopedic surgeon stay stock still. She knew that Callie wanted kids badly. Her sister didn't seem to share the same want but yet she wouldn't get rid of it.

"Aria, it's either the baby or your life."

"No. It's either we find out another way to treat this or I'm finding another doctor." There was a stony silence where Callie didn't say anything. Emily met the woman's dark eyes and when the Latina jerked her head sharply to the door, Emily stood and followed her out. Leaning against the wall, the brunette waited until Callie closed the door before walking to the nurse's station.

"How bad?"

"Just the fibula and it's confined to the lower half. It's in there deep - we need aggressive treatment."

"But can you really blame her for wanting to keep the baby?" Emily argued, "We can figure something out, right?"

"Since when were you buddy-buddy with her?" Callie rubbed her temple, eyes closing and leaning on the counter. Arizona's presence was clearly taking the toll on the woman's temper. "She's being an idiot."

"Hey! She is being a mom. Putting her baby first is a telltale sign." Callie raised her head to look at her student incredulously, "I should know because I always put mine first." A hand on her abdomen and a small smile had Callie staring at her in shock. "I'm pregnant, Callie."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, seriously." Emily grinned and Callie picked her up, swinging her around as the brunette let out a shriek. "Put me down!"

"Oh, my god! I'm so happy for you." She beamed and Emily, flushed and happy, shrugged. "How long have you been keeping it from me? I live with you guys, for God's sake!"

"It's thirteen weeks, right now. And… yeah. Uhm, Mark calls it a mighty oak in my uterus but I just think that we'll have a son or daughter in about six months. You better be prepared."

"You know I am."

.

Emily was lying in bed with Lexie and Alex, staring at the ceiling in silence.

"I have this Chief Resident thing in the bag." Alex said, arms crossed. "Shepherd's got me on his clinical trial."

"Nah. I have three attendings on my side. Callie, Arizona, Mark. Could have a recommendation from Harper Avery, too," Emily added teasingly and Lexie laughed softly. "Hey, you know the tweets from Bailey?"

"Yeah?"

"What's her handle?" Alex asked.

"M_Bailey06," Emily answered, resting her hands on the small bump. Yawning, she closed her eyes as Alex growled out a yawn. "The baby wants a milkshake."

"Flavour?" Lexie asked, eyes closed too. They were all exhausted. "I'll text… Jackson or something."

"Wait, what do you mean, baby?" Alex stared at her, shocked.

"Since you were too busy with your med student, you haven't been caught up, but you know, Mark knocked me up and I'm having a baby." Lexie took out her phone, texting Jackson and asking again for the flavour. "Vanilla's fine. Alex—" She looked over to see his dumbfounded expression still sitting on his face. Smiling, she stared back at the ceiling and closed her eyes. "Do you want anything?"

"I need a beer." He sat up, staring at the two women he was in between. "Lex, want one?"

"Nah. Taylor has some at his place." Emily opened her eyes and when she met the Grey's sparkling ones, she raised an eyebrow. "I'm moving in with him. Tonight's my last night here." Emily held out a hand for Lexie to hold and she took it.

"Congratulations. You guys seem happy."

"We are. And so are you."

.

Moaning, Emily closed her eyes as Mark's hands kneaded out a knot in her back. Hugging a pillow underneath her cheek.

"You're tense here. Okay, hold on tight." Her lips pressed together and her eyebrows furrowed as his palms caught a particular part of the muscle. He removed his warm hands from her back, squirting oil onto his hands before returning to massaging her back. "There we go. Take a deep breath. Relax."

"That's amazing…" she mumbled and he laughed, setting his hands on her hips and leaning over to kiss her neck. "You're an amazing husband." His hands traced the curves of her body, setting himself against her. Her soft smile pressed against his skin as their mouths fit together. Rolling over, her legs bracketed his hips. Giggling against his mouth, she pushed his boxers off with her feet just as he put the oil on the countertop. "Mmm, but I want food. I'm hungry."

"Em," he groaned and she pulled away, pouting. Her eyes widened and her pout fell away to a full frown when he just stared at her. "Em, you can't be serious."

"Mark, I'm really hungry and I don't want sex when I'm hungry." Her breath hitched and her nose scrunched up. Her eyes closed and he sighed, forehead pressing against hers.

"What are you craving?" Her hands came to the side of his neck and she kissed him, giggling slightly before sniffing.

"Mexican."

"You hate mexican food. It makes you backed up and gives you stomach aches." She glared at him, eyes narrowed as tears escaped from the corner of her eyes.

"I can't help it. I want mexican food." She swallowed to stop herself from crying. He sighed, getting off her and pulling on his pants. She sat up and wiped at her face as he grabbed a black shirt. "I'm hormonal. I'm so sorry."

"You're pregnant with my kid. You get to be as hormonal as you want," he whispered, pressing one last kiss to her mouth before grabbing his keys and going to get dinner.

A/N: Edited - November 18, 2018

Next: Aria camps out on the exam table.