"Are you okay?" Cameron asked Thirteen. She had finally gotten the young Doctor up to her apartment and she was now sitting on the couch with a pillow, blanket, and glass of water. She had stopped crying, but had yet to say a word about her tears. Cameron had also put out three tablets of Aspirin, figuring Thirteen would appreciate them in the morning.
Thirteen put a hand to her head and looked up at Cameron who was standing next to the couch. Thirteen seemed to be thinking something over. "I have to pee," she decided.
"Of course," Cameron said, staring down at Thirteen like a child. She hated taking care of drunken friends and Thirteen wasn't even really a friend. Although, maybe after tonight Thirteen would finally trust her and they could become friends.
Thirteen stood up, but quickly had to hold onto the top of the couch for support. The room was obviously spinning for her, and on top of that, Cameron realized, she had no idea as to the layout of the space.
"Let me help," Cameron said, supporting Thirteen's side and helping her towards the bathroom. She let go once Thirteen's hands were firmly on the bathroom counter. She watched for a second as Thirteen lifted her shirt just enough to reveal a taut stomach and fumbled with the zipper on her pants. Realizing that she was staring, Cameron turned around and exited the bathroom. She blamed her brief hesitancy on her intoxication and ignored the thoughts crossing her mind about Thirteen's stomach and the hint of lace panty that she had seen. She blamed her extreme sexual frustration on even looking at Thirteen in that light. Cameron tried to think of anything else as she walked back towards her room. She figured she should get Thirteen a tee-shirt or something to sleep in.
Cameron rifled through her closet until she found an old white undershirt that must have belonged to Chase. Perfect, Cameron thought. It was soft, mildly conservative, and she couldn't care less if she ever got it back. In fact, somewhere in the back of her mind she knew she might be pleased getting to see someone throw up on it.
Grabbing a pair of yoga pants, she made her way back towards the bathroom. She knocked on the door, and, upon hearing no response, pushed the door open.
Thirteen was sitting on the floor. Her back resting against the outside of the bathtub and her legs sprawled out in front of her. She was staring down at her hands, paying no attention to Cameron, and her chin kept quivering. Cameron wasn't sure if she was about to vomit or about to cry, but either way the poor girl was miserable. She looked so much more like a child than a parent to Cameron, and it took a lot of willpower for Cameron not to just embrace her shaking form.
"I brought you some clothes to sleep in," Cameron said. Thirteen nodded, still not making eye contact. "Do you need help?" Cameron asked, kneeling down next to Thirteen and placing the clothes in her lap.
Thirteen shook her head and accepted the pile of clothes. She, however, made no move to get dressed.
"What's going on with you?" Cameron asked, still kneeling next to Thirteen.
"She knows." Thirteen looked at her. "She knows everything." Thirteen began to cry again. She shrugged Cameron's clothes off to the floor, brought her knees into her chest, and hugged them with her arms.
"Who knows everything?" Cameron asked, also wondering what exactly everything was. She knew Thirteen had some secrets, but she never imagined they were dark enough to reduce her usual killer confidant self into this crying mess.
Thirteen continued to sob and Cameron couldn't find anything better to do than put an arm around her and let her know she wasn't alone while she cried. Cameron thought of their lunch the other day. Everything seemed fine. Thirteen was happy, she was smiling, and she had even played with Ben's happy meal toy for a quick laugh from the boy. She had been pleasant, polite, and shared a few funny stories about Ben.
Although, now that Cameron was thinking about it, she realized that Thirteen hadn't really shared a thing about herself. Cameron knew she now had custody of her brother's kids, but Thirteen had shared no other personal information about herself. Although it had come up that Ben's prescription was for an asthma medication, one that had given her hives years ago, so Cameron supposed she had also learned that Thirteen had asthma. That was pretty pathetic considering that Cameron had pretty much shared her life's story over lunch.
She had told Thirteen about leaving Chase, although no specifics as to why, about moving back home. She was open about her year away, about why she came back. She had even shared a few funny stories about awkward run-ins with old high school friends. Cameron wondered how she had not realized that she knew nothing about Thirteen's personal life.
Cameron found herself oddly jealous of whoever it was who knew everything. She wanted to know what was so awful that Thirteen couldn't bear having a single person know.
Thirteen seemed to be calming down, but Cameron kept rubbing her back. She wanted to gain this woman's trust. Something about Thirteen, even as she cried drunkenly in her bathroom, made Cameron want to get to know her better. She wanted to understand who Thirteen was.
Movement from Thirteen snapped Cameron from her thoughts. Cameron quickly let go of the younger doctor and stood up.
She offered a hand to Thirteen, who took it and got herself up as well.
"Are you going to be okay?' Cameron asked. Thirteen rubbed her eyes and shook her head. But before Cameron could say anything else, Thirteen made a move for the clothes Cameron brought her. Trying to be respectful, Cameron exited her bathroom quickly.
She walked into her room to put on some pajamas before trying to see what was going on with her younger companion. Shrugging off her jeans and top, Cameron quickly dressed in a pair of pajama pants and an old shirt. She pulled her hair back into a ponytail, and went back out into her apartment. Passing by the bathroom she noticed the door was open and Thirteen's clothes were in a pile on the floor. Having someone else's clothes there caught Cameron a little off guard. The last person who used to leave their clothes all over the apartment was her ex-husband. She stared at the pile a bit too long, before turning back towards the living room. Sometimes she really missed Chase.
When she walked into the living room she found Thirteen sound asleep on the couch. Her head on the pillow Cameron had given her, but the sheets and blanket still folded in a neat pile on the table next to the water and Aspirin.
Cameron took the blanket from the stack and spread it over Thirteen. She watched the woman for a moment. Even with eyeliner smeared in circles around her eyes and a face bloated from crying, Thirteen was beautiful. In fact, seeing her this vulnerable almost made her more captivating because it was a light Cameron would have never been able to see her in. Cameron felt like she was finally getting to know the usually reserved doctor.
Taking a step back, Cameron headed into the bathroom to brush her teeth. When she was finished, she glanced back over at Thirteen's pile of clothing. She quickly folded it beginning to feel uncomfortable with it. The she headed towards her bedroom. She wondered if she should set an alarm for Thirteen or something, but the thought was soon forgotten as she quickly fell into a deep sleep. It was almost three in the morning by then, and Cameron was exhausted.
When Cameron woke up it was almost noon. After years of waking up to a six am alarm, she had finally grown used to sleeping in from her unemployment. She had worked part time in Chicago, but it had officially been about three weeks since she'd stepped foot into a pair of scrubs.
Rubbing her eyes, she sat up and remembered that she had a guest. One who probably didn't sleep until noon in a room that filled with natural light. Cameron pulled the duvet back and stepped out of bed.
For some reason she felt nervous while walking into her own living room. However, when she looked around there was no sign of Thirteen. She came closer to the couch and saw a note next to the refolded blanket and empty glass of water.
Sorry about last night. Thanks for everything.
That was it. She hadn't even signed her name. Instead she signed it with the number 13. Cameron picked the glass up and brought it into the kitchen. She accidentally slammed it a little too hard into the sink, and a piece of the top chipped off.
Leaving the glass in the sink, Cameron sunk into a chair at her table. So that was awkward. She should have realized that after showing such a vulnerable side of herself, Thirteen would never want to see her again. Cameron wasn't headed in a direction of friendship with Thirteen, she would now always be a reminder of how her secrets could crush her if she wasn't strong. Cameron groaned, she didn't want to be a reminder of the girl's weakness; she wanted to be a confidant. She wanted to help. But she supposed, Thirteen could be a great start to getting over her fixing-things complex.
But, she had never really wanted to fix Thirteen. She had just wanted to understand her and, she supposed, that after tonight she was a few steps closer. Or on second though, maybe not, she figured. If anything she was more confused. And her head throbbed.
She stood up and circled around her kitchen, bringing a cordless phone, a glass of water, and two Aspirins back to the table with her. Quickly downing the pills with the water, she dialed a familiar number, though she had not called it in months.
After a few rings the call went to voicemail. Cameron left a message for Doctor Cuddy saying that she was back, looking for a job, and was asking for a recommendation. Then hanging up, Cameron put her hands into her folded arms and fell back into a hung-over sleep on her kitchen table.