It was about 10 at night when they wheeled her in. She was alone and bleeding with broken ribs, a broken wrist, abrasions, bruises, lacerations, and internal bleeding. She was scared. She was crying and half conscious. She flinched when anyone would touch her. She coded twice on the table. When her named was called in the waiting room nobody was there to see about her behalf. When she woke up she was alone too and it broke Meredith Grey's heart that someone would do that to a little and scared girl like that. She didn't know why she was so attached to this girl when she didn't even know her name or anything about her but she knew that she was going to help her. But first she was going to find out what happened. So after talking to her about smaller things for two weeks and bringing her husband in sometimes to chat with the girl and get her comfortable with them she walked into the room to talk to her and find out what had happened to her.
"Sweet heart… can you tell me your full name?"
The girl stared at her cautiously for a minute studying her before nodding her head.
"Rachel."
"Do you have a last name Rachel?"
Again she nodded.
"Berry. My name is Rachel Berry." She said quietly looking at Meredith but not at her face.
"How old are you Rachel?"
"16…"
Rachel… Where is your mother or father?"
As soon as the word father came out of Meredith's mouth Rachel began to freak out and cry. She was hyperventilating and begging Meredith not to send her back there. The fear was evident in her eyes. Meredith paged her husband and told the nurse to call social services. She walked over to the bed and grabbed Rachel's hands she began to coax Rachel and relax her so that they wouldn't have to use a sedative.
"Rachel it's okay. No one is going to hurt you okay?"
Rachel leaned into Meredith's touch and relaxed shaking slightly. Meredith rubbed the girls back until she calmed down.
"Sorry..." Rachel said quietly looking down and playing with her sheets.
"Rachel I'm going to ask you a question but you have to promise to be honest with me okay?"
Rachel took a deep breath then nodded. She found that she liked Meredith Grey so she nodded her head in hopes that she wasn't wrong for trusting someone else once again. Someone that was just going to crush her even more.
"Did one of your parents do this to you?"
Rachel looked up and bit her quivering lip. Tears started to form in her eyes. She took a deep breath even though it hurt her ribs but it helped her relax.
"I… I can't say… He said he would kill me if I told anybody and I believe him."
"Rachel nobody is going to kill you. There are people who can help you but you have to tell me who did this so we can protect you."
"But that's the thing I trust you but I do not trust other people because anyone I have ever trusted has hurt me in some way and I don't want that anymore. Maybe it would be better if he had killed me."
"Look at me Rachel… I know that life is hard for you because I can see it in your eyes but these things happen because you can handle them. But you have to let us help you."
Rachel contemplated it for a minute then nodded her head slowly.
"I was adopted when I was younger by two gay men. My mother didn't want me and abandoned me when I was 3. Things were great. I had a great childhood with them it wasn't always this bad. But about 6 months ago I got really sick at school and my father Harem was rushing to pick me up from school. There was an accident and he died. My other father Leroy started drinking and began blaming me so he hit me. Last night I got home late and I didn't have enough time to make his dinner like I was supposed to and he got upset. Then he hit me but I begged him to stop and that made him even more upset so he started to kick me and threw me into the wall and he yelled at me and told me it was my fault that he died but I told him I didn't do it on purpose and then he lost it and threw me around more and kicked me and tried to choke me then finally when he was done he threw my down the steps outside and told me never to come back. I tried to get away but it hurt to stand up so I crawled away and I guess I got somewhere because I woke up here."
Meredith's heart broke for the girl. She handed Rachel a tissue and ruffled her hair. She discretely wiped her own eyes.
"Rachel I promise I'm going to try to help you okay?"
Rachel nodded and gave Meredith a genuine smile.
"I'm kind of hungry. Can I go to the cafeteria or something?"
Meredith nodded and laughed when she heard Rachel's stomach grumble. She helped Rachel stand up and see if she was okay to walk or if she wanted a wheel chair. She was in slight pain but Rachel sucked it up and held on to Meredith's arm.
"Come on it's my lunch anyway."
Walking into the cafeteria Rachel hid behind Meredith slightly as she took in her surroundings. She didn't want to make anyone angry so she avoided eye contact with everyone. She grabbed some soup and some crackers and followed Meredith to a table. She sat down and looked around when she noticed everyone but Meredith was staring at her. It made her feel uncomfortable so she looked down and lowered herself into her chair. Rachel tugged Meredith's sleeve and whispered quietly.
"Is this okay? I could go sit by myself."
"It's fine Rachel." Meredith said as she glared at everyone and they went back to eating and talking about the case until they decided to talk to Rachel. After Rachel ate about half her soup and a few crackers she tugged Meredith's sleeve and told her she was going to go back to her room. She waved bye and wondered out of the cafeteria happy to get away from the awkward table. She decided that she wasn't quite ready to go back to her room and wondered into the ped's section play room. A little girl ran up to her and hugged her leg. She was probably around 4 or 5.
"Hi." The little girl said smiling up at Rachel with her two front teeth missing. Rachel smiled back at her and ruffled her hair.
"Hi, my names Rachel what's yours?"
"Lea!"
"Well Lea do you and your friends like music?"
The little girl nodded her head vigorously as she took Rachel's hand and dragged her more into the room. Rachel spotted a guitar in the end of the room and grabbed it. She sat down as Lea and a few other little kids sat down in front of her. Then she started to sing to the cancer patient kids strumming her guitar as they bobbed their heads.
"You're insecure
Don't know what for
You're turning heads when you walk through the door
Don't need make up
To cover up
Being the way that you are is enough
Everyone else in the room can see it
Everyone else but you
Baby you light up my world like nobody else
The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed
But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell
You don't know
Oh Oh
You don't know you're beautiful
If only you saw what I can see
You'll understand why I want you so desperately
Right now I'm looking at you and I can't believe
You don't know
Oh oh
You don't know you're beautiful
Oh oh
That what makes you beautiful
So c-come on
You got it wrong
To prove I'm right I put it in a song
I don't know why
You're being shy
And turn away when I look into your eyes
Everyone else in the room can see it
Everyone else but you
Baby you light up my world like nobody else
The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed
But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell
You don't know
Oh oh
You don't know you're beautiful
If only you saw what I can see
You'll understand why I want you so desperately
Right now I'm looking at you and I can't believe
You don't know
Oh oh
You don't know you're beautiful
Oh oh
That's what makes you beautiful
Nana Nana Nana Nana
Nana Nana Nana Nana
Nana Nana Nana Nana
Baby you light up my world like nobody else
The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed
But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell
You don't know
Oh Oh
You don't know you're beautiful
Baby you light up my world like nobody else
The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed
But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell
You don't know
Oh oh
You don't know you're beautiful
If only you saw what I can see
You'll understand why I want you so desperately
Right now I'm looking at you and I can't believe
You don't know
Oh Oh
You don't know you're beautiful
Oh oh
You don't know you're beautiful
Oh oh
That's what makes you beautiful
She laughed as some of them started to sing along and dance. She tapped Lea's nose as she sung the last few words in the song. The kids started to clap when she heard a clap from the back of the room. She jumped up and waved bye to the kids and walked up to the doctor in the door.
"Sorry they looked bored and the little girl Lea she hugged my leg and she said she liked music so I saw the guitar on the wall and I thought it was oka-. " She started rambling to Arizona laughed and cut her off.
"Relax Rachel right? I'm Dr. Robbins but you can call me Arizona since you and Meredith are so cool. She's been looking for you. Why don't I walk you back to your room okay?" Arizona said while putting her hand out for Rachel to take. Rachel nodded and took her hand. But when they arrived at the room Rachel's grip on Arizona's hand tightened. Two police men and what she assumed was a social service worker were in her room with Meredith waiting for her. She started to back away from the room when Arizona stopped her gently.
"Hey, relax its okay."
Rachel shook her head. She did not want to go in there and have to explain what happened again. It was bad enough the first time.
"I don't want to go in there…"
"Look I promise that everything is going to be okay. And if you get scared just hold Meredith's hand okay?" Rachel nodded, took a shaky breathe and walked into her room taking a seat on her hospital bed.
"Rachel my name is Anna I'm a social worker."
"So, your here to find out about my dad then?" She said quietly looking at her hands.
"Smart girl. Yes that is correct can you tell us what happened?"
Rachel looked up at Meredith to see if it was okay. Meredith nodded her head and Rachel shared her story while the police took noted in a pad.
"What's going to happen to me? I don't want to go back with him."
"Well Rachel after you get cleared here we will see if we can find you a home but we'll have to put you in a group home first."
Rachel sighed and nodded her head. She didn't want to have to go to a group home. She knew that nobody was going to take her in and adopt her.
"Are we done I'm a little tired." The social worker frowned and nodded at the girl. She motioned for Meredith to follow her outside.
"She trusts you." The social worker told her. Meredith turned to look into Rachel's room. She didn't want them to put her in foster care or a group home. Especially after what happened in her life. It was going to help her or make her any better. So Meredith did something irrational.
"Can I take her? My husband and I?"
"Are you sure this is something you want to do because she's in a fragile state and she doesn't need to be bounced from home to home. She likes you and she trusts you so I think this would be good for her and you but I want to know that you're serious about this." Anna said
"I'm positive." Meredith said as she nodded her head. Anna smiled at her.
"Good then I'll get the paperwork drawn up and see what I can do."
Meredith grinned and then went off to find her husband and tell him.
"Derek I need to talk to you now."
"Okay." Derek said as he took his wife into his office.
"What if I told you that we were adopting a 15 year old girl named Rachel?"
"You mean Rachel, the girl who came in a week ago who we've have been hanging out with?"
"Yes."
"I like Rachel I really do but are you sure Meredith that this is what you want? The girl is not only physically damaged but emotionally damaged."
"I'm positive Derek I want to keep her."
"Okay, let's do it!"
Meredith grinned and gave her husband a hug then went to go talk to Rachel about it. But when she got to the room Rachel crying something she hated to see.
"Rachel? Are you okay?"
She quickly shot up and wiped her face before turning to talk to Meredith. She cleared her throat.
"I'm fine sorry."
"Rachel I wanted to talk to you about something okay?"
Rachel nodded and waited for Meredith to continue.
"How would you feel if Derek and I were to take you in and adopt you?"
"You mean it?"
"I do."
Rachel gave Meredith a big smile then hugged her. She realized what she and retracted herself from Meredith.
"Sorry."
"It's okay." Meredith said as she ruffled her hair. The she got up and told Rachel she would be back. She was going to go on her rounds.
An hour later Christina spotted Meredith smiling while walking down the hall.
"Okay what is up you have been smiling around here all day. I'm your person so tell me what's up?"
"I'm keeping her."
"Keeping who?"
"Rachel."
"Rachel who?"
"Christina the girl you all stared at all through lunch. You know which Rachel I have been talking about her for the past week and a half at lunch."
"Are you serious Mer? Are you sure you can handle a teenager? A teenager who's as emotionally damaged as Rachel?"
"I'm sure Christina. This girl she needs a person and I want to be that for her. I want her and I'm sure I can handle this."
"In that case congrats Mer you got a teenager and you skipped the whole dirty diaper, screaming, annoying stage of baby." Christina said laughing. Meredith shook her head and laughed with Christina.