Written from a prompt I received on tumblr. Inspired by and titled after the song, Hoping For Snow by The Vamps.
Snowflakes gently sprinkled down from the sky, landing on the ground and nestling themselves in the pre-existing white blanket that had already accumulated on the ground. Despite the confused, baffled looks being shot his way by paramedics and patients entering and exiting the hospital alike, Alex continued to pace back and forth in front of the main entrance of the hospital, his breath visible with every one he took in the brisk wintry air.
With his head geared down towards the ground and his eyes aimlessly staring at the way the blacktop pavement glowed underneath the overhead lights, Alex used his dominant right hand to press the phone harder against his ear and the index finger of his free hand to plug his other ear so he could hear better.
"What do you mean?"
He wrinkled his eyebrows at the blaring of the ambulance alarm off in the distance and attempted to concentrate harder on the words being spoken on the other end of the phone. His shoes made a wet, squishing sound with every movement he made and a crunching noise with every step as he grounded the sidewalk salt into the pavement with the soles of his feet.
"Jo, what the hell do you mean you're not gonna be able to make it?"
He closed his eyes and tilted his head back, his chin to the sky. He took a deep breath and willed the tears in his eyes to stay where they were. His hand inherently fell from his plugged up ear and clenched itself into a fist, a clear notion of frustration. She wasn't going to be able to make it? What did she mean she wasn't going to be able to make it?! He swallowed a lump in his throat as his thoughts unfolded in his mind.
He had it all planned out. Her flight would get in around 11:30 Seattle time and by then, he'd already be showered and home from work long enough to pick her up at the airport. It was late, but it was necessary. Tomorrow was Christmas and if he wanted to see her at all, 11:30 was what it had to be. He'd take her back to the loft that they still shared, and he'd finally grab the black box from his sock drawer. He'd wait until she was cozy in pajamas, sucking on a candy cane that she plucked off the tree. And then, just when she was least expecting it, he'd open the box and show her what he spent an entire two paychecks on. And he'd ask her the question that danced in his mind and burned his tongue so many times before. He had it all planned out and in one instant…it was wiped away. Wiped away with one simple,"I'm not going to be able to make it."
As soon as the other end of the line was unoccupied by the sound of her voice once again, he cleared his throat to mask the frustration and outright disappointment in his voice.
"I know that. I know all of that, but–" he stopped mid-sentence once her voice cut him off. He let her speak and then took a breath to steady his emotions. "Okay, but…alright, but Jo, it's Christmas," he bargained, emphasis on the word. "But you said you could, which is why I didn't. I told Robbins that I could work until 10 because you said you'd be here. You're all the way in frickin' Massachusetts."
On the other end of the phone, Jo apologized for the millionth time of the conversation and reiterated to him exactly why she couldn't again. Alex could recite this word for word, he had heard it three times too many. In fact, he even mouthed the words as she spoke them. I can't, she said. We got a massive snowstorm here and I got called in. A bus crashed. My attending needs me. I could try to get out of here soon but there's no way I'm going to make my flight.
He sighed and sucked his teeth. "You weren't here on Thanksgiving, either. I can't…," he exhaled hard and brought his hand up to the bridge of his nose, pinching it. "I just can't believe you're missing this. I haven't seen you since September. I can't–I can't keep dealing with not seeing you. I can't keep doing this."
Finally, for the first time since he stepped outside to have a private moment of solitude to indulge in this conversation, he stopped pacing and stood still. His hand slowly unclenched itself and fell open. His shoulders slouched and so did his heart upon hearing the way Jo's voice cracked on the opposite end when she asked him the question. What did he mean? He didn't know. What was he saying? He didn't know that either. What he did know was that he couldn't take it anymore.
He couldn't take seeing her once every three months only for three days. He couldn't take making her stay awake until 12:00 midnight so she could call him when it was 9:00 his time. He couldn't take the empty space in the bed next to him, the long-distance "I love you"s, the video-chatting, the rushed phone calls and the opposite schedules. Ultimately…he couldn't take having his heart 5,000 miles away in Massachusetts while he was in Seattle. He didn't know what he was saying…he didn't know what he meant…but he knew that he couldn't take it any longer.
"I don't know what I'm saying Jo," he sighed. "I know I'm the one who told you to go…I didn't think it'd be this freakin' hard, that's for damn sure." He scratched at the bridge of his nose and began pacing again. "I'm saying that this is too hard."
He could tell by the absolute silence on her end of the phone that Jo was thinking on what he had said. He knew Jo well enough to know that she was most likely doing the same thing he was. She was probably in a secluded area with the phone pressed to her ear, pacing back and forth. He knew her well enough to know that his words were tumbling around in her mind as she processed and tried to make sense of what they could potentially mean. Jo was like him. She was much too much like him…and that's what was going on in his own mind.
"I'll call you later," he mumbled, suddenly rushing her off the phone for mostly selfish reasons. He wanted to get off the phone before she'd ever be able to tell that he would soon be crying. Jo's voice was hollow on the other end of the phone as she murmured their usual conversation ender.
"Love you too," Alex emptily murmured right back.
Jo tapped her thumb against the red circle button in the middle of her screen to end the call and stared blankly at the picture attached to the caller ID as the screen flashed to indicate the call had been ended. Alex's arms wrapped around her waist and she nonchalantly kissed his cheek…that picture was the happy time. The time where they didn't argue…mostly because that was when she still lived in Seattle. That was when she didn't live in a tiny, cramped, one-bedroom apartment. That was when her heart didn't lie clear across the country, when they had nothing but everything to smile about.
She didn't want to admit it, but she really was beginning to regret her decision to come out to Massachusetts and take the fellowship spot at Harvard Medical Center. When she got the offer, Alex was completely supportive. He encouraged her to go, told her that they could make it work and swore that when his contract at Grey-Sloan was up at the beginning of the following year, he'd move with her. He made it sound so good, and for the first few months, it was. They called each other and sat on the phone for three hours every night. They Skyped every night and really kept up with each other. But he got busier and so did she and it was beginning to get hard. She was excelling here at Harvard. She already performed fifteen solo Orthopedic surgeries and she was the go-to fellow…but she was beginning to realize that it wasn't worth it. Being away from Alex wasn't worth anything…not even being the best surgeon in the world.
"Dr. Wilson?"
She quickly shoved her phone back into her pocket and reached up to swipe the stray tear that had fallen off her cheek. She cleared her throat to further pull herself together and whipped around to face the person that called her, knowing that the voice belonged to Dr. Pratt, her attending.
"I-I'm sorry," she stuttered, still visibly flustered. "I was just…"
"You seem distracted today, Jo." Dr. Pratt tucked her loose, dishwater blonde curls behind her ears and gave Jo a quick onceover with her eyes. The way her eyebrows were contorted was in a state of sheer concern. Unable to lie to her superior, Jo just looked down at the ground. "Look Jo, you're…you're about as good as anyone I've ever seen…maybe better," she took a step towards her. "Your instincts are good, you've got quick and steady hands, impeccable references…but I can't teach you if your mind is somewhere else. And your mind is clearly in Seattle."
"I'm fine," Jo shook her head and wiped her nose with the palm of her hand, sniffing. "It won't happen again, I swear." She cleared her throat once again and threw her shoulders back to appear more confident. "Where do you want me?"
"I was actually coming to tell you…," Dr. Pratt's voice trailed off in a totally different direction as she studied Jo's expression a little further. She could see the distraction in her eyes and the force it took for her to plaster the smile on. She wasn't convinced. "That we're slightly overstaffed so you can head on home," she lied. She motioned with her head towards the exit. "Go on."
Jo's eyebrows raised and her eyes widened. She wasn't sure how, but she knew that if she really busted her behind and hurried, she could make her flight. She could make it to the airport in less than one hour if she left now and high-tailed it there without packing anything but the clothes she had on her back and the phone she had in her pocket. No money, no cell phone charger, no extra underwear. Just the maroon colored scrubs she had on her back, the phone she had in her pocket and the one way ticket to Seattle in her locker.
"You're sure?" she asked, the tone of her voice laced with incredulousness. She didn't want to get her hopes up until she was sure. They were dealing with bus crash victims. Multiple traumas had just come in…and they were somehow overstaffed? She didn't understand it…but she was willing to write it off as a Christmas miracle if it meant that she could go to Seattle, especially after the conversation she just had with Alex. "You're absolutely sure?"
"Yeah, I'm sure. I finished nightly rounds myself and I've got Andrews here to cover my pre and post ops…you can head home."
"Thank you SO much Dr. Pratt!"
"Robbins!" Alex wrapped his hand around his pager, which was dangling around his neck, and held it so it didn't flop around too much while he ran. He jogged to the nurses' station that Arizona was standing at and approached her, slightly out of breath. "Can…you…" he breathed. "Cover me…for…a few days?"
"A few days?!" Arizona's eyes widened in disbelief. "Alex, what?! A few days?!" Alex nodded his head, still struggling to catch his breath. "What the hell are you, gonna be out with the flu?"
"I'm going to Massachusetts," he replied, finally full of air again. He wiped a bead of sweat with the backside of his palm and swallowed hard. "To see Jo." Arizona narrowed her eyes at him.
"Seems pretty impulsive. You're just gonna go to the airport and buy a ticket? On a whim?"
Alex's shoulders slouched. He knew it was impulsive and he knew that if he had said this to any logical person, they'd think he was nuts. It was crazy to up and decide to fly across the country at 8:30 at night. It was crazy to not plan a trip like that. It was crazy to leave, unplanned and decide once he got there exactly how long he was going to stay. But that was the thing. He was crazy. When it came to Jo, he was insane and he was illogical. It was whimsical, yes, but he was going to see Jo this Christmas if it killed him.
"She can't come to Seattle 'cause she's gotta work… So I'm gonna go and surprise her," he explained. Arizona still looked at him with wide-eyed skepticism. "Look, I know it's crazy, but it's Christmas. It's Christmas and I haven't seen her since September and I don't know when I'll be able to see her again. I have to go see her. Please do this for me, Robbins…please."
Arizona cracked a slight, half grin. "Look at you…sayin' please," she nodded her head and patted him on the shoulder. "Of course I'll cover for you, 'lil butthole." She smiled at him, pride shining in her eyes. "Go ask her to marry you too."
Alex heaved a sigh of relief and cracked a smile back. Arizona was the only person, aside from Meredith, that knew why seeing Jo this Christmas was particularly important. She was also the only one aside from Meredith that saw the ring.
He knew he could count on Arizona.
"Pick up, pick up, pick up," Jo mumbled into her phone as she had it pressed against her ear by bracing it against her shoulder. For the third time in a row, the phone went to voicemail. "Dammit, Alex!" she slammed her fists against the steering wheel and quickly shuffled out of her car. She mumbled a profanity under her breath and slammed the door shut.
She slid her hand down into the pocket of her scrub pants just to quadruple check that her plane ticket was there and began walking quickly to the entrance of the airport; the possibility of slipping on the ice the only thing hindering her from full-out sprinting. She had ten minutes to get through security and onto the plane. It seemed like an impossible feat but she was bound and determined to accomplish it. She was banking on the fact that it was Christmas Eve playing out in her favor. Maybe luggage would be backed up and the plane would be delayed by a few minutes…maybe. But if she had to threaten the airline to hold the plane, she would. There was just no way she was going to miss Christmas with Alex…not whenever the threat of breaking up and losing the only man she had ever loved was looming clear over her head.
She was going to make it to Seattle for Christmas if it killed her.
"Yeah Mer, I don't know when I'll be back…"
Alex spoke loudly so the speaker of his phone would pick up his voice even though it was laying on his bed while he whizzed around the room, leisurely shoving pairs of pants, t-shirts, underwear and socks into a suitcase. He picked the box out of his sock drawer with such gentleness that it seemed as though he thought it would break. He picked a piece of lint off the velvet and stuck it neatly and carefully into his pocket. The thought of putting it in the suitcase with all his belongings crossed his mind briefly, but faded just as quickly. He couldn't fathom having Jo's ring in a suitcase. Anything could happen to it in there. If it was on his person, nothing could happen to it. Someone would have to physically harm him to harm the ring if he had it on him.
"They only had an 11:45 flight available, so that's the one I took. I'll just get in and surprise her, I guess. I haven't talked to her to know that I'm coming."
He rolled up a pair of socks and stuffed them next to a pair of boxer shorts, sighing at the realization that he truly was going out to Massachusetts on a blind whim. He liked the prospect of showing up at the hospital and surprising Jo once he got out there, but he did wish he could've at least spoken to her before he got on his plane. It didn't seem likely, though. Every time he called her, the phone went straight to voicemail and he was forced to hang up. He was sure that the reason she didn't answer was because she didn't want to hear what he had to say after their last conversation. He suspected that Jo probably thought he was going to call her back and tell her that he couldn't do it anymore and that he wanted to break up. Jo was purposely ignoring him. She didn't want to hear him say the words. Nevermind the fact that he wanted to call her just to make sure she'd even still be at the hospital once he got out there.
"When I get there, it'll be like two or three in the morning in Massachusetts, but…" He pulled the suitcase closed and began to zip it. "Yeah, I've got the ring."
He stood back up and sauntered over to the coat rack and slipped his arms into the sleeves of his brown jacket.
"Alright…I'll call you when I get there."
"Thank you so much," Jo said to the driver as she sifted through her wallet for a twenty dollar bill. Though her fare was only $12, she figured she'd let the driver keep the change. After all, it was 11:25 at night in Seattle and he was still up and driving her around. She felt like that deserved a little extra, no matter what. "Keep the change," she added, politeness in her tone.
She shuffled out of the taxi and shut the door behind herself, tilting her head upwards to look at the Seattle sky. A smile cracked across her face as she noticed the familiar Space Needle off in the distance, and she held her hand out and giggled as a snowflake softly fell and landed in her palm. She was home…she felt it deep within. She felt it as soon as her plane touched down on the Seattle-Tacoma International runway, and she felt it when she stepped out and felt her hair frizz up at the moisture in the air.
Winter in Massachusetts was a little bit colder than in Seattle and the air was very, very dry. She missed the dampness in the air, the smell of the rain even though it was snowing. She missed everything about Seattle and as soon as she saw the Space Needle from the window of the plane, she felt at home and at ease. But as she looked up at the bricked structure of the loft she once shared with Alex, she felt it even more. She was home and it was official…and though she wanted to bask in the glory of being here by frolicking through the snow and jumping up and down in the middle of the street, more than that, she wanted him.
The taxi slowly crept away from the curb she was dropped off at and steadily gained speed until finally, the taillights disappeared in the distance. Jo wiped her excited smile away, blinked her eyes a few extra times to get the snowflakes that collected on her lengthy eyelashes to melt, and plucked her phone out of her pocket. She jammed her thumb against the power button and waited for the screen to illuminate. She had turned it off on the plane instead of putting it in airplane mode, mostly because it was dying anyway and she didn't have her charger on her from having left the hospital so suddenly. She was finally turning it back on though.
She paused at the missed call notifications, all of which were from Alex. Her shoulders slumped a little, but she quickly pulled herself together and took the steps one at a time. She anticipated that he would be cranky over the fact that she didn't answer her phone if she called him back. She could redial his number and throw all her apologies at him, explain that her phone was off and hope that he wouldn't be angry enough to act on the notion that arose the last time they spoke on the phone. She thought that her safer bet was to walk in the loft and surprise him. Walk in, tell him that she was sorry for not answering the phone and explain that the reason she didn't was solely because she was on the plane. He would be too happy to see her to be angry.
She took a deep breath and fished her key out of her pocket, smiling to herself at the thought of seeing him again. She didn't know what she was going to do. She figured she'd run into his arms and cry. I made it home for Christmas, she'd say. Alex would hug her, definitely. Would he cry? Maybe. Her fingers trembled with excitement as she turned the key and pulled the door aside to open.
She stepped into the loft and pursed her lips together to keep herself from crying. She didn't want to cry just yet. She wanted to wait until she was actually in his arms to cry, so she looked around…and took in the scenery. It was pitch black, but as soon as her eyes adjusted, she could make out the kitchen table, the sink, the fridge and the silhouette of the lights hanging from the ceiling. It was just as she remembered it; exceptionally beautiful, even in the dark. She kicked her sneakers off at the door and softly padded further inside, figuring that Alex was sleeping. He probably figured that she wasn't going to answer her phone since she didn't the last few times he called, and went to sleep. She would just climb in the bed with him instead of jumping in his arms then.
But as she got further into the loft and approached the couch before their bed, she realized that it was all too quiet. Alex usually slept with at least a fan on. The ceiling fan rattled and made decent background noise, and it wasn't on. She didn't even feel the breeze coming from it.
"Alex?" she called, feeling her way through the darkness and over to a light switch. "Alex, it's me…I know I said I wasn't going to be here, but…," she turned the light on and squinted at how the entire place came to life with just the flick of a switch. "I made it…" she looked around. "Alex?"
Feeling the sting of tears at the corners of her eyes, she unlocked her phone and scrolled through her contacts. She silently promised herself that she wouldn't cry…at least not until she knew for sure that all hope of seeing him was lost. If he wasn't here, he was at the hospital and that was fine. She could call a cab and hitch a ride over to the hospital, no problem. So she couldn't jump into his arms and cry with him and she couldn't crawl in bed with him anymore…she could page him now. She could have someone page him to the lobby and that's how she'd reveal herself.
"Dr. Robbins?" she croaked into the phone. "Yeah hi, it's Jo…Wilson, yeah. Um…is Alex at the hospital? ….No? …Do you know where he's at? No? …O-okay…no, I was just wondering where he was at…Thank you."
She hung the phone up and put it right back in her pocket…and as soon as she did, tears softly rolled down her cheeks.
"You're on flight #238 from Seattle to Boston, is that correct?" The attendant asked, looking up at Alex and nudging her glasses up with her index finger.
Alex just nodded his head, unable to be bothered out of being distracted away from his phone. He wanted to surprise Jo by showing up in Massachusetts, but the anticipation was killing him. He couldn't help but text her and let her know that she should at least be expecting a surprise for Christmas. It was 11:39, his plane boarded at 11:45 and he was too anxious to do anything but check in, get through security and get on. He didn't know how he was going to make it through the flight. He didn't know how he was going to contain himself when in less than three hours, he was going to be in the same proximity as Jo.
Before the elderly woman could even ask for it, Alex pushed his credit card across the counter and let her slide it to pay for the flight. His thumbs moved quickly across the screen of his phone as he continued to type away. He wanted to drop this hint to Jo perfectly before he had to board the plane and shut his phone off.
"You'll be loading in terminal number three, which is just down that hallway there and to the right. There are signs, and you can't miss it."
"Thanks," he mumbled.
The woman raised her eyebrows just slightly, surprised by the fact that he actually could talk since the majority of their interaction had been nonverbal. She gave him an easy grin and handed his card back. Alex took it and put it back in his pocket. His fingers brushed against the soft velvet and elicited a smile. He couldn't wait…he couldn't wait to give it to her. He couldn't wait to see the look on her face when she saw it. He couldn't wait to tell her that yes, he had flown across the country just to ask her to be his wife.
He tapped the blue "send" button and put his phone in his pocket as well. He grabbed the handle of his suitcase and walked a few paces away from the check-in counter, dragging it behind him. As it was a usual and typical night in the airport, the line moved up when he got out of it and the next person stood at the woman to be directed to his or her flight. Feeling completely light and carefree, Alex dragged his suitcase across the white tile floor and headed for the hallway he was supposed to walk down to get to his terminal. He passed the snack booths, the luggage management, the customer service counter and the ticket vendor in a daze of Jo-centric thoughts.
How would he explain it to her? How would he tell her that he decided to come across the country on a whim? That he didn't know how long he would stay because he wasn't sure how long his patients would be covered? He didn't know any of that. But hopefully, Jo would be too happy to be angry that he made such a spur-of-the-moment, rash decision.
"I need a ticket…"
Coming out of his thoughts, Alex heard the shaky voice of a woman asking for a ticket. For a moment, he felt his feeling slip into the depths of sorrow, but mostly because it was audibly apparent that the woman that the voice belonged to was upset. Her voice was shaky and trembly and she sounded like she was either crying or close to it. He felt sorry that she was crying on Christmas Eve, but he was also happy that it wasn't him…because after the first half of his night, crying on Christmas Eve could have and should have been his story.
"For the 11:45 flight from Seattle to Boston, please…," the woman continued.
Alex wrinkled his brows. Could it be? No. Definitely not. She was stuck in Massachusetts taking care of a bus crash trauma. She was stuck there. It couldn't be. There was just simply no way. …But still…he just had to look. So he turned his head and glanced at the crying woman standing at the ticket desk. He could only see the back of her. He could only tell that she was wearing maroon colored scrubs. She had a short, very petite stature and shoulder-length brunette hair with blonde highlights. Even in scrubs, she had well-defined curves…curves that he would recognize even in sweatpants.
He dropped the handle of his suitcase and sent it crashing to the floor. He took a step towards the woman and kept his eyes narrowed. He didn't know if maybe being away from her for so long really had made him crazy..crazy enough to think that he was seeing her when it was damn near impossible. Maybe it was like buying a car and afterwards, seeing that car everywhere you turn. He didn't know. But when she woman put her head down and ran her fingers through the lengths of her hair, there was no mistaking it. Taking a gambling chance, he opened up his mouth and tried her name.
"Jo?"
At the sound of her name, Jo slowly turned around and met him with the same baffled expression. Her eyebrows were contorted and her eyes glossed with undisputed confusion. The two of them stood, ten feet apart, and staring. Neither one of them were willing to move, for fear of disturbing the slumber and making the other fade away in a puff of dream-induced smoke. Alex's lips parted and slowly gave way to a smile as Jo's eyebrows relaxed. As her hands rested at her sides, she clenched her hand, took a heap of skin between her thumb and forefinger and pinched herself. She wasn't dreaming. It was him. It wasn't a fallacy.
"Alex?" she whispered his name. Her voice hung in the air for a few uninterrupted moments and in that instant, it was as if the two or three hundred other people in the room failed to exist. It was the two of them.
As Alex took one step toward her, Jo gave in to all her suffocating feelings and overcome with emotion, she bounded over to him. On the same page as she was, Alex extended his arms and caught her when she threw herself into them. She wrapped her legs around his waist and he secured his arms around hers. To Jo, it still seemed like a dream. To have him in her arms seemed unreal and to be able to feel his breath against her neck was dizzying.
"Alex!" she nestled her face into the crook of his neck and let herself cry instead of keeping it bottled up inside.
"What the hell are you doing here?!" Alex slid one arm up and rested it in the middle of her back. "Jo, what the hell are you doing here?! You're supposed to–you're supposed to be…" He leaned down and safely deposited her on the ground. "What are you doing here?!"
Jo wiped her eyes and tried to get a handle on herself. "I had to come see you…my attending let me…she let me go early and I had to rush, but I made my flight…I went to the loft and you weren't…there. What are YOU doing here?!"
"I got out of the hospital early…nevermind that, though…" he shook his head. "Come here," he mumbled and pulled her into another hard embrace. He squeezed her so tightly against his body that she groaned. When he pulled back, they finally shared a kiss. "I can't believe you're here," he pulled away long enough to say just that before smashing his lips against hers again.
Jo reciprocated the kiss by wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him closer. She pulled away once and for all once she had enough.
"I missed you so much…," she whispered, overcome with another rush of tears. "I–"
"…Jo, I have something I want to talk to you about," Alex interrupted. He knew it was mighty abrupt, but he didn't know if he could hold off any longer. He didn't want to do it right then and there in the airport, but if he didn't, he would burst for sure. He had to do it and do it now before he lost his nerve.
"Alex, no!" Jo shook her head and held her index finger to his lips. She didn't want to hear him say that he couldn't do it anymore. She just wanted a few more moments of sheer bliss before they got into the very conversation that propelled both of them to go to opposite ends of the country…and somehow meet up in an airport. "I know it's hard…I know…I don't want to break up, though…I love you so much. I don't–"
"Jo, no…that's not–"
"I know it's hard though, Alex! It's hard for me too, but I really think we can–"
"Jo, shh!" he put his finger over her lips the way she did his and shushed her.
When she was quiet, he took his hand away from her face and slid it down into his pocket. Jo just looked at him, tears lining the rims of her eyes. When he produced the small black box, her eyes widened and her jaw innocuously and reflexively dropped.
"What are you…doing?" she whispered, mostly to herself. Alex opened up the box and presented her with the ring. She closed her eyes and tilted her head back. Her jaw trembled and she felt every nerve in her body come alive.
"…Will you?" he challenged.
She couldn't believe he asked. She couldn't believe that he asked her in the middle of an airport after just seeing her for the first time in months. But more so than that, she couldn't believe he was actually waiting for an answer instead of shoving the ring on her finger. He should've known her answer. He shouldn't have had to ask. He should've just shoved the ring on her finger and told her that she was his fiancee. But he waited. He held the box in the palm of his hand and he waited and she couldn't breathe.
"Of course…of course," she nodded, blinking so she could get a decent look at the ring through the vision blurred by tears.
She didn't know how they were going to continue spending months apart. Perhaps she'd quit her fellowship and come take the one offered to her by Callie at Grey-Sloan Memorial. She wanted that fellowship in Massachusetts so badly. But what she wanted more than that was a life with him. She wasn't going back to Massachusetts. She'd phone in her resignation. She'd call Dr. Pratt and apologize, but she wasn't going back to Massachusetts after this. Not after her finger had a new resident.
It was going to be a great Christmas after all.