He arrived to his apartment to find her sitting on the floor by his doorstep. Nurturing a seemingly warm beer.
Without a word, he took her hand, helped her to her feet and steered her in. She should speak first after the discussion of the evening. He was still mad about the surgery, and her recklessness, even if she was waiting for him.
"Where you breaking up with me?" She said looking up with teary eyes, without even saying hello and at least partially drunk.
"What???" he stuttered "You must be kidding me...! Cristina, you do not break up with the person you love when you get mad" but he could still see the pain in her eyes, and it did melt his anger. She was afraid he would leave her at the slightest discussion. She was a tough woman, and at the same time, she was extremely insecure when it came to dealing with feelings. He should note that, and reassure her. He could not really help a small smile curving up his lips, and putting a light reassuring peck on hers.
"Good, because you've spoilt me for the rest of men" She said with a pained look in her eyes
"What?" His confusion increased.
"Someone kissed me at the party...and I really wanted to puke on his feet... it was a good kiss actually, and the guy is hot... should have been nice, or at least flattering... but I could only think about you... you've spoilt me! It's good you haven't left me, since I cannot kiss anyone else... what would I do if you left me? Never have sex again?" She really seemed worried about the thought.
His pulse was racing during her speech. He was balancing the possessive instinct that compelled him to rip the guy's head off for kissing Cristina, especially in her at least half-drunken state, and the relief of Cristina wanting to puke on his shoes. Well, probably the nausea was beer induced, but it was reassuring that she found herself unable to be with other men, and also her need to come and tell him. He wondered if he really wanted to know who the kisser was. If he was in the party, he was probably someone from the hospital, and it would be a very bad idea to beat the guy to pulp.
"What happened?" He asked, trying to sound calm.
"Well, we were talking, discussing surgeries, just having some beers, and suddenly I do not know how, because it is a bit blurry, but I found myself against a wall with the guy kissing me. I needed some seconds to react and push him away... told him that I was with someone and that I wasn't interested, so, he apologized and left. Actually it was not that much"
"I am going to kill him... how does he dare kissing you without your consent?!" His temper rising again.
"Are you calling the kettle black???.. I distinctly remember someone kissing me in a similar way outside Joe's not that long ago, or in the exam room the day we met for that matter.... do not remember you asking for my permission or if I was with someone.." She put her arms around his neck and pulled him closer.
"Well, that's different" he muttered, knowing that he was being irrational, and kissing her at the same time.
"How?"
"Well, we are together; and besides, you were never drunk! You do not take advantage of drunken women!"
"We weren't together back then...and I'm not drunk... a bit tipsy might be... Besides; he didn't know about us.... actually I didn't know... because after he left I wondered if I was with someone, or if you had left me. I needed to know... so, I came... and then you were not here.... and I didn't know what to think."
It broke his heart to see her uncertainty. He was afraid it was not just the beer. He sat down in the couch and pulled her to sit on his knees and held her tight, her head against his shoulder.
"No need to wonder. You are with someone. Think that I'm not going anywhere; that I will be prying a scalpel out of your hands in 40 years... Think that I love you even when I am mad at you; and that in the next decades we are going to fight, and make-up, and still going to love each other afterwards. That is what being together means. I Just went for a walk to unwind, didn't feel like coming home without you... and talking about home... I do not like the idea of you sitting on the corridor. We should be getting you a key"
"You want to key me?"
"I want many things, but I think we should take them a step at a time, and giving you a key and a drawer sounds like a good starting point"
"Do you want a key of my apartment? After all, it is closer to the hospital, and we are there more often"
"Do you want to give me one? You have a roommate; Callie might not like it..." He said, not wanting to press her too much.
She stared at him for some seconds, and then took a shiny new key from her pocket, and pressed it into his hand.
"Yes" she said. "And Callie likes the idea better than you knocking when she is trying to sleep... I have had the key for the last couple of weeks, just didn't know what you would think, or if Wyatt would find it too soon, but if I can have yours, you can have mine"
He just held her tighter in his arms, feeling lucky. After all they had been through he didn't doubt it for a second that she loved him, even if jealousy could take over for a split second thinking about other guys kissing her.
He felt her relax comfortably in his arms.
"I still think I did what I had to do today.... did the procedure a couple of times for Burke, so, I knew what I was doing... miss the times when I learned this kind of stuff every day... will never be a cardio-god at this rate... " Her voice was little more than a sleepy whisper against his shoulder. The mumbling felt more for her than for him, and he wondered if there was anything he could do to help her professionally. He knew there wasn't much he could teach her himself about cardio, and she was right; she would never reach the heights she should without adequate mentoring.
Still with this thoughts and feeling her fall asleep against him, he scooped her and stood up to bring her to the bedroom. For the moment he would just let her sleep. He would soon find a solution.