Candy, Cartoons, and Cavities
Halloween was a fun night for most people. A night filled mystery and sweets- one to look forward to and remember. For most people- but not for Meredith Grey. She hated it almost as much as she hated Christmas. She'd begged for the clinic, offered bribes for trades, but no one wanted to stand out in the wet and chilly night air to give out candy to those dressed in "scary" costumes for her. She told herself it could be worse, even though she hadn't figured out exactly how. Derek was off, and she hoped that he wouldn't come up and mock her, but she wasn't counting on it. After all, Derek loved all holidays, and he wanted her to love them too. She didn't have the heart to tell him there was no chance in the universe that was going to happen. She tightened her coat around her frame as she stepped outside. It was 6:01 PM, which meant she was officially late for candy duty- alone. She hated Halloween.
She grinned when she saw him sitting on a bench with a big bucket of candy to match her own. She wouldn't be alone after all. It seemed right that she would be spending her night with Alex. Surely he wasn't a fan of Halloween either. They had bonded over their dislike of Christmas, and she could tell it was bonding time again. She'd been afraid someone like Sydney would be out there to surprise her. The thought made her wince, Sydney loved to tell her how she'd broken up with Derek. Meredith thought it always sounded a lot like regret.
She hadn't seen Alex all day. She'd assumed he'd taken it off for Izzie. "So, what did you do?" She smiled as she sat next to him. She'd missed him since he and Izzie had gotten an apartment together. The house felt so empty when she was there without them- even though that didn't occur very often anymore.
"Yelled at the Chief, you?"
"Wish I knew." She huffed. She didn't question him on why he'd yelled at the chief. If he wanted her to know, he would have told her. It was just the way their friendship worked. Plus, she was still trying to figure out what she'd done to piss off the Chief so badly. She sighed, it wasn't like she didn't have all night to figure it out.
"No costume?"
"Are you suggesting that I don't look like a sex kitten?" She raised her eyebrows, looking directly at him. She was in her scrubs- and a coat. No costume. But she could pretend. If a kid asked, she'd say she was pretending to be a Peds doctor. Her scrubs were pink after all. She didn't even own pink scrubs. They were Izzie's- which also meant they were kind of swimming on her. She wasn't even sure why Izzie had pink scrubs. They reminded her of Addison. Ha. She could be Derek's ex-wife. She didn't say that though, she doubted Alex would find the amusement in it.
"Oh! I see it now. Very subtle, Mer." He smirked at her, shaking his head.
"TRICK OR TREAT!" A little princess walked up to Alex, pushing out her bag in his direction. She didn't even look at Meredith, which Meredith didn't mind. It was obvious the little girl had formed a little crush at the sight of Alex. She wouldn't ruin it for the little girl. She wasn't Izzie. She watched as the little girl batted her eyelashes as Alex tossed in some candy to her little pumpkin.
"Happy Halloween, kid." He smirked at the little girl as she ran away- after turning bright red that he'd talked to her. Meredith wished that she had a camera, but she hadn't expected anyone to be with her. Not that she was too big on cameras anyway. But it would have been funny. Alex would probably kill her though.
"Where's your costume?" She asked, feeling the need to pick on him since he'd picked on her. She actually didn't mind that he wasn't dressed up. She would have felt worse if she'd been the only one not dressed up. At least for a second anyway.
"I don't celebrate Halloween." He stated simply, and it made her smile.
"No?"
"Never have."
"Me either. You'd think I would though." She sighed, a little annoyed that there weren't any kids around. Why had she been assigned to do this? No one came to the hospital for candy! It wasn't logical!
"Why's that?"He asked, and she was surprised she would have to explain it to him. She thought he was the one person that would understand.
"Most people jump at the chance to be someone else for a night." She said, hoping she wouldn't have to explain. Saying it was one thing, but explaining took a level of strength that she didn't possess in that moment.
"Halloween isn't about being someone else, Mer. It's about eating massive amounts of candy. Being in a costume doesn't change the fact that you're going to gain 10 pounds & get cavities. "
"You sound like my mom." She smirked at him. It was true. It sounded exactly like something her mother would have said to her when she was younger. Hell, she probably did.
"You sound like mine." She didn't know anything about Alex's mom, so she really didn't know how to take that. So, to be safe, she stayed silent. She didn't want to ruin the easiness that was falling between them. She was going to need it if she was going to survive the rest of the night. Especially if no more kids came. The chief was clearly out to get her with this. She was certain someone would have volunteered for this if he'd asked. Hell, Izzie probably would have begged. She was the one obsessed with holiday cheer and spreading it to others. Alex and her were the absolute worst candidates.
"Did you watch cartoons?" He asked, and the question had surprised her. She didn't understand what cartoons had to do with anything.
"Like Batman?"
"Sure."
"Sometimes, when the babysitter would let me." She blushed. Her mother had strictly prohibited cartoons. She'd said they were for idiots, and her daughter would not be an idiot. But her babysitters were often teenagers, who didn't care about her mother's rules. Especially the cartoon rules. You beg enough, they eventually give in.
"I always wanted a babysitter." He sighed, and her eyes shot open in surprise.
"You NEVER had a babysitter?" She couldn't imagine. Her entire childhood, up until she was thirteen, was spent with countless numbers of babysitters. Some of them she liked more than others, but if it wasn't for them, she would have never been fed after her father left.
"My mom never left the house... or her bed." He whispered, and she was suddenly glad that she hadn't forced him to explain before. Although, she was glad he explained that. It made sense, really. About a lot of things that he did. Including getting involved with Ava- Rebecca. She couldn't ever remember what to call her. Luckily, she didn't have to worry about that anymore.
"Oh..." She trailed off, not sure what to say. She knew better than anyone that apologies didn't help, but it didn't stop her from wanting to offer them.
"We don't have to do that."
"What?" She asked, only slightly insulted that he knew where she was going by saying one word. She had the look, she decided. The pity look. The look she hated more than anything else in the world. She didn't need that look, and she knew Alex didn't' either.
"The apologies. We survived. We're doctors." He shrugged his shoulders, watching as his breath lifted to the sky. She was reminded once again by how cold it was. As a doctor, she should have known that scrubs were a bad idea. She'd been too pissed off at the duty to think about that though.
"Even if we're giving kids candy and refuse to wear costumes?" She grinned, a subtle acceptance of his terms.
"We're surgeons. Not dentists." He laughed as they both leaned back into the bench, allowing their bodies to slouch and relax. The bench was cold, but it was better than being uncomfortable. They both sat their buckets of candy between them since they'd yet to have another kid come up. What a waste of a night.
"True. I will eat to that." She grinned, grabbing a piece of candy and unwrapping it.
"Me too." He agreed after a moment of watching her. If they didn't have kids to give it out to them, the least they could do is eat the candy themselves. It was already paid for, after all. They were doctors, they did not waste.
"I always wanted to be a witch for Halloween." She offered after few moments of silence.
"I wanted to be a rock star- like my dad. Before I realized he was just a wanna-be drunk in a bar." Once again, she was left with nothing to say. Alex already knew that her dad was a dead- beat that didn't want anything to do with her as a child. He had his new family, and then Susan had died, and he'd become a dead- beat again. She told herself that he was the one missing out, but she still wasn't sure.
"Hey Alex?"
"Yeah?"
"If I get a cavity, I won't bitch as long as you get one too." She grinned at him as she unwrapped another piece of candy and popped it into her mouth.
"Deal!" He laughed as he followed her lead. "To candy!" He held up his tootsie roll to her in a toasting manner before eating it as well.
"To cartoons!" She giggled, lifting another piece up to him, this time waiting for him before eating it.
"To cavities!" He finished before they both ate the pieces of candy. Meredith smiled as she eyed him. The holidays had always been her and Alex's bonding time. She was glad that the tradition had continued- even if she was freezing giving out candy to invisible kids.