Disclaimer: Obviously I don't own Grey's…

My first ever fanfic so please read and review!

Thank you so much to everyone who is reviewing! It is so encouraging!

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Alex was waiting in the clinic when for the police to arrive when Cristina came through the door for her shift. Her eyes widened at the scene before her: the broken glass, the blood on the floor, and Alex standing in the middle of it all.

"Was there a fight? Where is everybody? Oh man, I always miss the good stuff," she hastily said, her voice rising with excitement.

Alex said nothing for a moment, still shocked over everything that he had seen in the past fifteen minutes. "You didn't miss anything good, Cristina," he eventually said with anger, though he knew that he shouldn't be irritated with her excitement. Obviously she had no idea what had happened here. "Izzie was attacked here some time last night. I found her this morning. She was alone, Christina. All night long she was alone and hurting and scared…"

Alex stopped, unable to go on as tears filled his eyes. Cristina averted her gaze from his face so that he could have a moment to compose himself. She was uncomfortable with his uncharacteristic display of emotions, and she needed a moment herself to process what he had told her.

"What…where is she? What happened exactly? "Is she…is she okay?" Cristina finally asked, suddenly captivated by the crimson stains on the floor, which where certainly telling of the magnitude of the situation

Alex shook his head. "I don't know. I just…I just don't know," he said frustrated, running his hands through his hair. "Dr. Montgomery and Meredith walked in soon after I did. They just took her over to the ER to do an exam, so I don't know how she's doing. It looked bad though, Cristina. She was naked and bleeding and…she…when she looked at me, she looked…it was like her eyes were empty. After everything that she's been through this year, she doesn't need this. She was finally starting to become the old Izzie again and now…now…"

Cristina took a deep breath, realizing the seriousness of Izzie's attack. "What should we do?" She asked him, not knowing what to do next, but wanting to help. Maybe staying busy would prevent Cristina from having to deal with the emotions that were welling up inside her. "What should I do?"

Alex looked at her blankley for a moment before saying, "I don't know. I'm waiting for the police to show up. Dr. Montgomery said we aren't going to open the clinic yet. She said the police are going to need to take evidence when they get here, and opening it up to patients would probably destroy anything they might find. Maybe you should call Dr. Bailey and let her know what happened. She might want to be here when the police are going through the clinic."

Cristina nodded her head and headed for the phone.

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Addison stood above Izzie's bed in exam room 3, tenderly examining her badly bruised abdomen. She thought she felt a fracture on one of Izzie's rib bones, so she told Meredith, who was supposed to be making notes on a chart at Izzie's bedside, that an x-ray needed to be ordered. Meredith, however, did not respond to Addison's comment.

"Did you hear me Dr. Grey?"

"What?" Meredith asked, clearly being brought out of a reverie.

"We need to take Izzie up for an x-ray."

"Right, okay,' Meredith nodded, making a note on a chart.

"Dr. Grey, can I see you outside for a minute?" Addison asked, clearly bothered by Meredith's lack of focus. Meredith looked desperately at Izzie, not wanting to leave her friend's side, but Addison was clearly not going to back down from this request so she walked to the door.

"Izzie," Addison said gently, trying not to startle the young intern, "I am going to talk to Meredith outside for just a moment, okay? And then we'll be right back. Are you going to be okay alone for a minute? Do you need anything?"

Izzie ignored all of this, staring at the ceiling and giving no response. She had remained conscious since waking up in the clinic, but all she wanted was to slip back into the unknowing state she had been in prior to opening her eyes. Addison sighed softly at her lack of response and followed Meredith out the door, shutting it softly behind her.

"Meredith, I know you're good friends with Izzie, but right now she needs a good doctor and you are not being that for her. If this is going to be too much for you to handle, you're going to have to go wait with Alex at the clinic for further instructions…"

"No, I need to be with her! She needs…"

"But," Addison continued, unfazed by the interruption, "I know she needs you're support right now, so try to get it together, okay? How about you go take a short walk around, maybe get a cup of coffee, and try to clear your mind. She might want you to be with her for the rape kit or for the police statement, but she'll need you to have a clear head so that you can deal with her emotions. Your's will have to come later."

Meredith knew Addison was right. She sighed and started to walk away, but she paused when she saw Mark and Derek quickly approaching them. The two men stopped in front of Addison and Meredith. Derek hugged Meredith supportively, and his show of affection caused tears to come to her eyes.

"How's she doing?" Derek asked, although his question was aimed more toward Addison than Meredith. He knew Meredith needed a moment to get her emotions back under control.

"How do you think?" Addison responded, and Derek accepted her answer with an understanding nod. Meredith stepped back from him, giving him a small smile to let him know that she was alright, and told them that she was going to get a cup of coffee.

"What are you doing here, Mark?" Addison asked curiously when the three attendings were alone.

"Derek told me what happened, and he thought I might be able to help out. Karev told him she had a pretty nasty laceration on her chest."

"Yeah," Addison confirmed, "it looks like it came from a knife wound. It would be great if you could clean it out and give her sutures because from what I can tell, it looks like it's going to leave a pretty severe scar. I don't know how she will respond with having two men come into her room, though. Let me go warn her first, make sure it is okay." Derek and Mark waited outside while Addison went back through the door, pulling it closed behind her.

Izzie looked up quickly when Addison came in, panic clearly evident in her eyes. She relaxed slightly when she saw that it was Addison that came through the door, but she still remained on edge.

"Izzie, Dr. Shepherd and Dr. Sloan are waiting outside," she explained softly. "Dr. Shepherd needs to examine your head. He's probably going to order an MRI, maybe a CT. And Dr. Sloan offered to stitch up the wound on your chest. Is it okay if I let them come in here?"

Izzie merely stared at her, just as unresponsive as she had been since entering the ER. Addison covered the young intern's hand with her own, concerned at Izzie's lack of reaction. In the two years she had worked with her, Addison had quickly learned that Izzie was the kind of person who wore her feelings on her sleeve. She felt a connection with her, more so than with any of the other interns, because she saw so much of herself in the sensitive Dr. Stevens. "I know you're scared Izzie, but I'll be in here the whole time they're with you. You really have to have these injuries checked out by specialists, and you know just as well as I do that Dr. Shepherd and Dr. Sloan are the best in their fields."

Izzie stared at Addison for a moment, digesting what she had told her. Closing her eyes in defeat, she nodded her head slightly and waited for the attending to get the other doctors from the hallway. When the three of them entered the room, Izzie purposely stared straight ahead, avoiding the sympathetic faces she knew were looking down on her. She heard footsteps approach her bed, and saw from the corner of her eye that it was Addison and Derek. Mark stayed by the door.

"Izzie," Derek said cautiously, "I'm going to examine your head, okay? I need to step closer and touch your forehead." Izzie agreed silently and Derek moved forward. He did a quick assessment, trying to push the ache out of his heart as he observed the severe damage that Izzie had suffered, both physically and emotionally. He had become closer to Izzie since practically moving in with Meredith, and now he was experiencing many emotions as he looked down on her defeated spirit. Derek could honestly say that he had never felt such a strong hatred for anyone as he did for the man who had hurt Izzie Stevens. He felt guilty, however, because he could not help but feel thankful that it was not Meredith lying on this hospital bed.

"Alright, it looks like you probably have a mild concussion, but I want to get a MRI to confirm," he said, making a note on her chart. He smiled at her supportively and turned to Addison, whispering a few words to her. "Okay, Izzie, I'll be back after your test to take a look at the results and talk them over with you," he advised, before walking out of the room, knowing Izzie would be much more comfortable if the males were gone.

Addison then turned expectantly to Mark, who suddenly looked a little nervous about the task at hand. He quickly masked his apprehension, though, and approached her in the same manner Derek did, warning her of his actions.

Izzie stayed quiet as Mark began cleaning her laceration, but her composure was interrupted when a knock on the door made her jump and go rigid with alarm. A police officer poked her head in the door and introduced herself as Officer Jane Davis, and she asked to speak with one of the doctors outside.

Addison looked from Mark to Izzie, trying to gage whether it would be okay to leave her in Mark's hands while she spoke with the policewoman in the hallway. "Izzie, I need to speak with Officer Davis for just a moment, and then we'll need to take you up to X-ray and for an MRI before we do your exam. Is it okay if I leave you with Dr. Sloan so that he can finish up the sutures?"

Izzie again gave no verbal response, but nodded her head solemnly. Addison exited the room with the officer, leaving only Mark and Izzie. He worked in silence for a few moments, but it felt unnatural to be mute around the normally chatty intern, and he felt compelled to say something. "Izzie, I'm not really sure what to say right now, or even if I should say anything at all," he said awkwardly, looking sincerely at her face before refocusing on the wound on her chest. "But I can't tell you how sorry I am that this happened to you. This should never happen to anyone, and I…well, I'm sorry."

Izzie knew that the words that Dr. Sloan was saying to her were an abnormal display of his emotions, but she felt too numb to respond to his kindness. Instead she closed her eyes, and turned her head toward the window, watching the clouds that were rapidly concealing the previously sunny sky.

Mark understood her lack of response and continued with his sutures, carefully perfecting them in an effort to prevent the scarring that would inevitably affect her flawless skin. He then picked up her chart, scanning to make sure that some type of pain medication had been administered.

"Izzie, are you feeling any pain right now? You should be fairly comfortable for awhile because it looks like Meredith gave you a dosage a Demerol, but if you..."

Mark's thought was interrupted when Izzie began screaming in panic. "NO," she shrieked, clawing at her skin. "I don't want that in me! I don't what that in me!!" Mark didn't understand what he had done wrong, but he was alarmed as Izzie tore the skin on her forearms. He sat on the edge of her bed, grabbing her hands and pulling them firmly down by her sides in an effort to prevent her from hurting herself further. Addison and Officer Davis, hearing her panicked screams from beyond the door, quickly entered the exam room, alarm evident on their faces

Still on the bed, Mark tried to calm the woman in his arms. "Izzie," he said firmly, eager to soothe her pain. "Izzie…I don't know what I did but I'm sorry, I'm sorry…It is okay. You're safe now," he whispered. "Shh, it's okay…I won't let anyone hurt you…"

Her screams soon subsided as Mark's comforting promises entered her subconscious, and her eyes filled with tears. For the first time since waking up, Izzie's protective mental barrier broke and, with Addison and the Officer Davis looking on, she began sobbing in Mark's arms.

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