Richie stood in the room for a moment, staring after the exit of his grandmother, a thousand thoughts running through his mind. He felt a deep sense of panic rising through his body, sending his heart pounding violently. He had witnessed his grandmother's power plays for years, always on the verge of tormenting to her doctors, and always tormenting for his father. He kept hearing her voice echoing in his mind, and the more he thought about the situation at hand, the more frightening it became.
He turned swiftly and grabbed three large medical books, tucking them clumsily into his arms. He grabbed his father's forgotten cell phone from the table, hidden beneath several papers that had been shuffled during their search, and he shoved it into his pocket. With one more look around the room, he took off out the door, and didn't turn toward his brother's room, instead he ran for the stairwell, praying for solace on another floor. He was hoping that he could find some peace to work out a game plan on revealing this frightening news to his parents.
He could feel his insides twisting, the sharp pain of an empty stomach wrenching at his other organs, his head dizzy not only from the news from his grandmother, but from the lack of sugar in his system. He slammed open the door of a darkened wing of the hospital, a quiet corner that he could sit and think things out while his father tried to reveal the true cause of his brother's ailment. He prayed that Harper was right, though he had no idea what it meant for his brother. This disease that she had exclaimed could be at the bottom of his brother's years of psychological and physical pain, and also could be the key to his survival and his longevity. Richie slammed the books in his arms down on an abandoned gurney, sliding his body onto the creaky old bed, he began to flip through the old Medical book in the dim hallway, trying to learn as much as he could about this monster of a disease, and the procedures that his brother would be forced to undergo.
Copper.
Fatal.
Inherited.
Undiagnosed.
Neurological and Psychological disorders.
Often mistaken for behavioral issues.
Tremors.
Aggression.
Depression.
Hallucinations.
Liver.
Cirrhosis.
Kidney failure.
Transplant, only cure.
Inherited.
The words melted into Richard's mind, his hands were sweaty and his mouth was dry. He felt that his entire body was betraying him. He felt that his entire being was breaking apart. He felt lost and alone, and he didn't know which way to turn. His parents were going to be devastated by the news. His father and grandmother weren't a match, and he had made a hopeful declaration to his grandmother that his mother not be tested. What good would it do? She was a carrier. He could be a carrier, his sister. How do you solve something like this? He looked at the genetics of the situation, the makeup of how his brother had gotten the disease. His eyes poured over the information in front of him, soaking it all in as he tried to understand.
Siblings: One in four chance.
"I have to be tested. Mariellis." He whispered to himself as he looked up, staring at the wall, he shook his head. "Shit." He whispered. "Mom is going to blame herself for this, blame Dad." He whimpered as he looked to the ceiling, his eyes dropping to the pages, he could feel a lump forming in his throat, he could feel tears beginning to form in his eyes.
"Some neuropsychological functions may not be restored." He whispered as he bit his lip. "Why am I doing this to myself?" He whimpered as he read the last line of the article.
"If left untreated, Wilson's disease is fatal." Richie slammed the book closed and threw it across the hall against the wall. Several pages of the old book flew from its binding as he let his head drop into his hands, and began to cry.
From the moment she left the library, to now as she stood just inside the room of Greyson Shepherd, Harper was overwhelmed. Derek had all but shoved her into the room of his son, his tall frame sliding across the room toward his wife as she looked up at him. Her eyes were hopeful as Harper watched his wife feel his excitement from the doorway, as it rose her from her chair and forced her to step to his frame and grab his arm as he declared that he needed more testing done on Greyson.
"I need an ophthalmic slit lamp! I need his urine and blood tested for copper. I need a ceruloplasmin test done, and STAT!" Derek exclaimed to the nurses in the room as Meredith watched them scurry.
"Derek?" Meredith said, her eyes only on his as she spoke, her hands were trembling as she gripped his arms. "What's going on, what did you figure out?" She asked, her lips were also trembling as he pulled his hands down slightly and gripped them tightly.
"Wilson's disease." He whispered.
"Wilson's?" She whispered, her eyes staring into Derek's as she wracked her brain to remember something, anything about the disease that Derek had said to her. She shook her head as if she were trying to rile it up in her memory, that shaking her head would bring about a quicker answer.
"Copper buildup." Derek replied. "I… I think…"
"That's hereditary." She said, her eyes widening as she stared into his eyes, the surprise and shock in her face sent a shudder down his spine.
"Meredith…" He shook his head.
"No!" She exclaimed, looking to her son lying in the bed.
"Meredith, stop!" Derek said as he jerked her attention back to him. "It doesn't matter where it came from, who gave it to him. It doesn't matter… none of that matters, Meredith. The only thing that matters… is that… if these tests confirm it, then we know." Derek said softly. "We know what is hurting him, and we'll be able to do all that we can to help him… all that we can to get him better."
"But his liver, Derek." Meredith whimpered. "His kidneys could be damaged… his… oh Derek, he could have brain damage!" She exclaimed as she covered her mouth with her hand. "Why didn't we see this earlier, why didn't we see this? We're doctors! We should have known!"
"Um…" Harper said as both of their attention was brought to the young woman who was standing in the doorway. "Wilson's disease is an orphan disease." She said in a soft, nervous sigh, watching as they stared at her blankly. "Rare." She said quickly, as both doctors swallowed. "Less than 200,000 Americans suffer from it… it's very often mistaken for behavioral problems, Alzheimer's, and other neurological disorders. It's only seen in about 1 in 25,000 people… and its… um… it's an autosomal recessive disorder, meaning that… that you both… have the recessive trait for it… and… and Greyson… unfortunately has both of your recessive traits… and Richie has a one in four chance of also having it." She mumbled as she watched them stare at her. "I'm sorry." She whispered, thinking that these were surgeons, doctors, people who had been practicing for years. They knew what Wilson's disease was, yet they stood staring at her like deer caught in headlights.
"Don't apologize to those two, dear." Ellis said as she walked past Harper into the room. "They're so wrapped up in themselves, they probably didn't even notice you were talking."
"Mom…" Meredith said as she sighed, looking to her mother as Ellis shook her head and approached the bed where Greyson was sleeping. She reached her hand up and touched her grandson's forehead.
"My poor little prince." She whispered as she glanced up at Derek. "Did you order the tests?" She asked as Derek nodded, pulling Meredith closer to him as she buried her face in his chest.
Ellis' eyes moved to Harper, who was standing awkwardly in the doorway. She was beginning to feel out of place, the initial excitement over her diagnosis had whistled away with the breeze following the doctors out the door as they rushed to arrange the tests and find the eye lamp that Derek had ordered them to get. She took another step toward the door as Ellis glanced to Derek.
"Did you tell Meredith who won?" Ellis asked sharply as Derek gave her a confused look.
"It's alright." Harper said softly as Ellis approached her.
"No… no, it's not alright. You did it without books, without a chart. You did it from memory, and you did it well. Orphan diseases are very difficult to diagnose, and you were right on top of this, you should be proud of yourself."
"We don't know that is the…"
"We don't know for certain, but the fact that you brought it to our attention was brilliant. Stop selling yourself short. You're going to be a fantastic doctor, no matter what specialty you go into." Ellis nodded.
"You don't even know me." Harper said nervously as she glanced to Derek as he held his wife tightly. He was watching her carefully.
"She's already read you from cover to cover, Harper." Derek replied. "Just be glad she's not cracking your binding"
"Derek, your metaphors are slipping." Ellis said sharply as the doctor rolled in a scope on a cart. Ellis took charge, and Derek, Meredith and Harper all watched as she readied the scope and moved in on Greyson, moving his head and directing the doctors to do as she says. They kept his eyelid open, the sedatives he had been given were keeping him sleeping as she turned the light on the lamp and looked through the magnifying glass. "For the love of…"
"Was she right?" Derek asked as Meredith pulled her face from her husband's chest. "Mom, was she right?" He asked as Ellis continued to look into his eye.
"Come and look for yourself." Ellis said as she motioned for them to come closer. Meredith moved quicker, moving to the scope, she looked in with wide eyed surprise as she looked up at her mother, and back to Harper.
"You were right." She whispered as she grabbed Derek's hand and pulled on it, bringing him closer. "You were right!" She exclaimed as she moved across the room and embraced the stranger, squeezing her tightly, though she didn't even know who she was, she was another person who was concerned about her son. She was the one that saved him from the snow. She was the one that had seemingly kept Richie sane. She then looked up, pulling herself from Harper's surprised embrace. "Where is Richie?" She asked as she looked to her mother. "Mom, where is…?"
"I don't know, dear. Perhaps he had something important to do." She shrugged as she glanced to Derek, watching as he stared into the scope. "Harper…?" Ellis said, nodding toward the scope.
"No thank you…" Harper whispered, her mind suddenly on the missing older brother, who had seemed so overjoyed at her discovery, yet hadn't arrived with his grandmother.
"Harper, you must see… it's rare, remember? It's imperative to your education to experience everything, and not give up an inch." She nodded definitively as she pushed Derek's shoulders. "Now move away, you oaf, and let the student observe." She said as Derek glared at her.
Harper stepped forward toward the scope, glancing to everyone as they stared at her. She walked over to the magnified glass that was the window to Greyson's pupil, as she observed his blue green eyes up close and personal. Carefully round his iris, however, there was a dark copper colored ring. Copper deposits in his eyes, just as she had suspected. Wilson's disease.
"Amazing." She whispered, as she pushed away from the scope. She watched as Ellis began to disassemble the machine with the help of the doctors. "I…" She whispered as she watched Ellis busying herself, and Derek and Meredith staring at one another once again as they tried to fathom what they could do at this point, when her attention was brought to the doorway as another man entered the room.
"Mark?" Derek said as he breathed a sigh of what Harper perceived as relief.
"Everyone is here." Mark breathed heavily as he shook his head.
"What do you mean everyone is here?" Derek asked as he and Meredith exchanged a look.
"I mean everyone. Everyone is here. Derek, it's Christmas morning." He said, out of breath. "When I got back and told them what had happened, your mother packed everyone and brought them here to be with you and Meredith. They know that they can't be up here in ICU, but they want to be here." Mark explained.
"Mark." Meredith whispered as she swallowed hard, tilting her head as she held tightly to Derek.
"Yes?"
"Thank you." She whispered. "For bringing Christmas." She said as she felt tears coming to her eyes. "I was beginning to think the world was ending here." She whimpered. "And you come in and you bring Christmas morning."
"They're waiting for a prognosis, Doc." Mark said to Derek, as he nodded his head and glanced to Meredith, her eyes already on his face, waiting for him to turn to her.
"Bring me my little girl, please?" She whispered as Derek nodded. He leaned down and kissed her nose delicately as she leaned up and kissed his lips. "I love you, Derek." She whispered.
"I love you, Meri." He said softly as he took a slow, deep breath and looked up. He glanced to the bed where his son lie and said a silent prayer for his safety. He then grasped Meredith's hand one more time, before moving toward the door, and Mark. He turned around to ask Harper if she'd like to go with him, but to his surprise, she had already slipped from the room unnoticed. Derek swallowed as he turned toward Meredith, with a soft blowing kiss, he slipped from the door, leaving Meredith feeling cold, disconnected and alone at the foot of her son's bed, with the start of something warm moving through her veins as she thought of her waiting family downstairs, and how she was never, and would never, ever really be alone.
Harper walked through the halls of the hospital virtually unnoticed. She traced her steps back toward the library, where she had last seen Richie, only to find the room empty and darkened. She had an excitement in her belly, conjured up from the depths of her soul as she heard the great Doctor Ellis Grey tell her that she was smart, that she was going to make a good doctor. Ellis Grey was not only standing feet away from her, but she, herself was able to help in diagnosing her grandson's ailment.
She wondered if she would be able to have a part in his treatment, his recovery. However, at this moment, she could think of nothing more than to find Richard so that she could tell him that her hunch had been correct, that her memory had not failed her. She needed to tell him that Greyson was going to be alright, because that is what she believed. She needed to make sure he was alright, that her thoughts on his brother's illness had not frightened him half to death. She wanted to clarify some things that she was sure that he had misinterpreted through her actions, as impulsive as she sometimes found herself being. She wanted him to know that he seemed to awaken something deep in her soul, and she didn't understand what it was, or how he did it, but it happened.
She found herself looking up and down the hallway, having absolutely no clue where to look for him, when suddenly she heard the shrill sound of her cell phone in her pocket. Half expecting it to be her father, asking where she is, she answered it with a loud huff. "Hello?" She said as she waited for a moment for the reply. There was a long pause, and the sound of soft breathing on the other end. "Hello?" She said as she pulled the phone from her ear, and looked at the number, she noticed that it was unfamiliar and sighed, thinking she should try one more time. "I'm going to hang up now." She said into the line as she moved her thumb toward the hang up button, listening for another second.
"Harper?" Richie's voice was weak and small as it floated into her ear. She could literally feel the fear through the phone line.
"Richard?" She said, a slight gasp falling from her lips as she listened for his reply.
"I need…" He sucked in his breath as he tried to hold back the sob in his throat. "I need someone to talk to." He said as his held breath released into the line. "I need to talk to someone…" He said as his breath sucked in again.
"Richard, where are you?" She asked as she pushed her back against the wall, she pressed the phone into her ear as she listened, the fear and sadness in his voice was becoming overwhelming for her. "Richard?"
"Stairs." He said with a swallow. "Downstairs. I'm downstairs." He said as he heard her breath quickening slightly.
"Where downstairs?" She asked, the sound of her pursuit was obvious as he listened on the line, hearing the stairwell door open with a loud clunking sound, and the sound of her pounding feet.
"Two floors." He said as he sighed, and just as he said it, he looked up as the door opened, and she stood there the phone to her ear, staring down the hallway at the young man sitting on the abandoned gurney in the virtually empty hallway. She pulled the phone from her ear and slid it down her cheek, as she folded the receiver into her hand, her eyes not leaving his as he pulled the phone in his ear down, closing it into his hand, dropping it into his lap.
He sat cross legged on the gurney, his hands now moving to the side as he shifted himself forward to let his legs hang from the bed, she approached him fiercely, her arms moving out as she reached him, grabbing him tightly, gathering him in her arms, as she hugged him tightly, her head resting on his shoulder as he instinctively moved his arms to her back, encircling her body in his as he began to sob. "Oh…" She coddled as she hugged him tightly, not knowing exactly what to do, but she understood his pain. She understood his confusion and heartbreak. She understood why he was breaking right now.
"What did they find out?" He asked as he suddenly pushed against her arms lightly, feeling her reluctantly pull back and look into his eyes. "What did they find out, Harper?" He asked as he sniffled as he watched her eyes. She gave him a hopeful look, her eyes brightening up as soon as she was able to look deeply into his.
"They found out all of the things that you already know." She replied. "They just have to do the definitive tests."
"The rings? They were there?"
"The Kayser-Fleisher rings were there." She nodded.
"And his liver is…?"
"Destroyed." She swallowed hard.
"What about his brain? What about his…"
"That's not something we know anything about just yet. The copper is poisoning him and when he has proper treatment it could get better." She whispered. "He could get better…"
"But he could get worse?"
"His brain has been through a lot of trauma, and there is surely to be some damage, Richard." She whispered. "If they take care of it now and treat him for the disease the Wilson's isn't going to make things worse."
"It's the fact that he hadn't been treated."
"The damage has already been done." She nodded. "Your family is here." She swallowed. "Someone came in to say that everyone was here. Who is everyone?" She asked.
"Oh God…" He said as he tipped his head forward. "Oh God, I can't do this. I can't do this. I can't! I can't do this."
"Richard? What can't you do?" She asked as she crouched down a little, trying to see his eyes. "Richard?"
"This! I can't do this!" He exclaimed as he pulled the three folders from beside him and shoved them at her. "I can't do this!" He said as she took the folders from his hand and moved to the side. She slipped up onto the gurney beside him and started to look through the labs, the folders.
The first one she opened was Derek's labs. She scrolled down the information in the folder with one hand holding the folder, the other reaching out for Richard's hand. He offered it to her reluctantly, and kept his head down, unable to watch her reaction, he listened to her making small noises as she ran her finger down the lab results, folding the folder back up, she slipped it to the bottom and started to look through Ellis' chart. She shook her head and sighed as she swallowed hard, her eyes passing to Richie, who had his head down, shaking it as he cried. She closed that folder and opened the third one, looking through the file, she saw the bottom had been stamped with a large red 'MATCH' stamp at the bottom, her eyes lit up and she looked at him. "Richard! This is wonderful!" She exclaimed, feeling the energy and excitement shoot from her toes, warming her body as she grinned brightly. "This is wonderful, Richard!" She exclaimed as she leapt from the gurney. She turned sharply and watched as he continued to hide his face from her. "Richard?"
"This is not wonderful." He said angrily as he looked into her face. "This is not wonderful." He sighed.
"What do you mean? You're a match! you can save your brother's life!"
"You don't understand." He sighed as he looked back down into his lap. "You don't understand."
"What don't I understand, Richard?" She asked as she stepped forward and touched his leg. "You are a match, your brother needs a liver."
"Yes." He said as he started to pull himself off the gurney. "That's the easy part." He said as he started to gather the files together. "The easy part is lying on a gurney, getting drugged up and cut open so they can take a part of my body and give it to my little brother." He said as he looked into her. "That's the easy part."
"What's the hard part, Richard?" She asked, swallowing hard, knowing that telling her was almost as hard as actually doing it.
"The hard part…" He swallowed. "The hard part is telling my parents that I'm going to have to do it." He whispered. "They were counting on my father, on my grandmother." He whispered. "My mother and father don't even know that I was tested for this. They don't even know if I'm a carrier for this stupid disease. They don't even know that I did this."
"Why do you have to tell them?" She whispered. "Why do you have the lab files?"
"Because my grandmother is trying to teach me a goddamned lesson about growing up." Richie whispered. "My mother and father are like… inseparable, you know? They've been through everything imaginable together. They've been through the birth of their three children, happy times, birthdays, holiday accidents and scares. My grandmother being at death's door, they almost divorced at one point." Richie shrugged. "They have struggled through Greyson's depression, his attempted…his depression." He sighed as he raised his eyes to look into hers. "They have been through everything, Harper. Everything, but death." He whispered. "My parents have never experienced death together of anyone close to them. I'm not convinced that they're prepared for it. I am not convinced that my mother could come back from knowing that not only one of her sons is being put at risk, but two?"
"Richard…" She whispered as she reached for his hand, thoroughly surprised when he didn't pull his back from her. "What you can do for your brother is astounding." She said delicately, trying not to frighten or freak him out. "What you can do for your brother is scary, it is frightening." She shrugged. "But at the same time, it's heroic. It's selfless. I've seen your labs, the tests. You're strong, you're young, and you're going to be up and about in no time at all." She said with a hopeful smile. "You can do this, Richard, and you have to stop worrying about your parents. I bet they're stronger than you're giving them credit for."
"I don't know." He whispered back, his eyes dropping to their hands.
"Richard…" She swallowed as he slowly lifted his eyes to hers. "You can do this." She said as she carefully ran her thumb over his hand involuntarily. She could feel him pull her hand into his a little more. "I believe you can do this."
"Who? I mean. How? You don't even know me, Harper." Richard said as he started to pull his hand, feeling her hand grip his tighter, he shook his head. "Why are you doing this to me? Why are you doing this? You're the girl that caused this, you're not my family, you're not my girlfriend. Stop trying. Just stop." Richie stammered as he pulled his hand hard from hers and took a step back. "I'm sorry." He said as he looked into her eyes, seeing the hurt that he was causing, he turned his face from hers, unable to look at her. "I'm sorry… but… I'm sorry that I called you." He said as he turned around. "I'm sorry that you were thrown into this, and I'm sorry I called you, and I'm sorry that…"
"Are you really sorry?" She asked as she grabbed his shirt suddenly, making his head jerk to the side as his eyes clashed with hers, the anger in her stare was evident, and it was shooting daggers right into his soul. "Are you really, really sorry, Richard? Well, I think you've been sorry enough, alright? This pity party has been great, alright? We had the punch, we danced a little around the subject, but let's get down to the real dirt beneath our fingernails here, okay? Stop pushing me away, Richard."
"I don't owe you anything!" He exclaimed.
"Who brought you to the hospital, smartass? Who patched your brother up? Who made sure he was stable and alive and not freezing to death when he got here? And if you say that I was the one that caused it, I swear to GOD I will ram my fist into that big fat rectangular head of yours! You don't owe me… no… you're right you don't owe me. But your brother does, and if your nasty ass body has the liver that is going to save his life, then you're going to give it to him. You are going to swallow your fucking pride, you're going to wipe those goddamned crocodile tears off your stupid…" Suddenly her tirade was interrupted by an assault upon her mouth. His lips crashed into hers as his hands moved to the side of her face. Her hands moved to his chest, and for a split second she thought of pushing her hands against him, pushing him away from her, but before she could get her bearings, his tongue slipped into her mouth just slightly, sending shots of warmth through her body. Instead of pushing him away, she gripped his shirt and pulled him in tighter.
She felt and heard him breathe deeply from his nose, filling his lungs with oxygen as he continued to explore her mouth, his hands cradling her delicately as her soft, tender moans sent shivers through her body. "Oh God…" She mumbled against his mouth as her arms lifted around his neck, pulling herself up as her head tilted, deepening the kiss any farther, if it were possible. He suckled her tongue slightly, sending her into a soft, sweet, tender tizzy as she moaned against his lips, eventually needing air, she reluctantly pulled away and was left standing against him, their noses virtually touching, both of their eyes filled with a lustful fire.
"What were you saying?" He whispered, his lips curling to a playful smirk as she breathed heavily, licking her lips as he licked his.
"I…" She swallowed as she tried to push the clouds from her mind. "I brought you something." She whispered, her arms still around him as she nodded toward his bag in the corner that she had dropped when she entered the room.
Derek walked down the hallway, Mark by his side as he talked. Derek's eyes were focused on only what was in front of him, not the sound of Mark's voice as he talked of his mother's worry, not the inflection or fear in his voice as he asked questions that remained unanswered. His focus was only on getting to his family, getting to his daughter.
"Daddy!" Mariellis' voice was filled with hope as her father came walking around the corner. She ran to him and he bent slightly to let her wrap her arms around his neck. "Daddy, why did Uncle Mark bring us here? Where's Richie and Grey?" She asked as she felt Derek hug her a little tighter. "Daddy?" She asked as she felt him bury his face in her neck just a little as he released her carefully to the ground, she could see that his eyes were red with tears. "Daddy, are you crying?"
"Derek?" What's going on?" Marion's voice interrupted his daughter's worries as he grasped her hand.
"What did Mark tell you guys?" He asked as he looked around at the rest of the family as they looked on. "You didn't have to bring everyone down here."
"It's Christmas Derek, we're your family, and we want to show you support. Mark said it was very serious."
"It is very serious." Derek cleared his throat. "It's very, very serious." He said as he felt his daughter tugging at his arm.
"Daddy, tell me what's going on! Where is Richie? Is Richie alright? Where's Grey? Did he hurt himself again, Daddy?" She asked as she watched her father's eyes move to hers instantly.
"I'll bring you to see your mommy in a minute. We can talk to you about it in a minute. Just hang on, alright, sweetheart?"
"Derek." Marion said as she looked down at her granddaughter. "You can tell all of us."
"Greyson is sick." Derek said as he looked to his sister's faces as they all watched Derek's normally stoic face, his strong eyes, failing at words, he felt his daughter tugging at his arm. "Greyson is sick, and we know what's wrong and he's going to need a liver transplant."
"A liver transplant?" Marion gasped.
"Derek, where is Meredith?" Nancy asked as she stood up.
"She's with Greyson." Derek said as he held his hand out, in a calming manner. "Grey is stable right now and we've started him on some medications to keep him stable, but we don't know how extensive the damage is."
"What about Richie?" Joann asked as she watched her brother, her eyes flashing to her own son who was watching in alarm as he held his daughter in his arms.
"Richie is alright, he's… he's around in the hospital, he didn't sustain any injuries in the car accident."
"Car accident?" Cristina finally spoke up. "Derek, there are a lot of things that you're not telling us. A lot of details that just…"
"They'll get worked out, Cris." Mark said softly.
"Don't take his side! I need to check on Meredith." She said stubbornly as she started to walk past Derek.
"Cristina, stop." Mark said as he grabbed his wife's arm as she pulled at him.
"I need to check on her. I need to…" She said angrily as she tried to pull.
"Hey…" Richie's voice suddenly interrupted everyone's tirade as everyone's eyes were brought to the corner of the room, where Richard stood with his arms crossed over his chest. "He's doing all he can here, cut him some slack, will you?" Richie said as he waved his hands for a moment and glanced over to his father.
"Richie!" Mariellis exclaimed as she ran toward her brother, feeling him lift her from the ground as he hugged her tightly. "You're alive!"
"I'm alive, I'm alive." He said as he set his little sister to the ground after their hug, taking her hand. "Everyone is alive, and everyone is alright, okay? What we need now, is a little bit of organization." Richie said as he shrugged. "We appreciate your support, and Merry Christmas to everyone, but we don't need to be clogging up the hospital." He said with a nervous chuckle. "Dad is going to take Mari to go see Mom and Grey and I'll stay and answer your questions, and then we'll figure out who is going to stay, and who is going to go ice skating and otherwise enjoy their Christmas day. Alright?" Richie said as everyone watched him, nodding. "Dad?" He said, nodding as Derek held his hand out for Mari. She turned and tugged at Richie's hand, he wrapped his arm around her and she kissed his cheek.
"Thanks for not being dead." She whispered as he gave her a nudge.
"How about you not say stuff like that?" Richie whispered as she hugged him again and ran toward Derek, grabbing his hand.
Derek grasped the little girl's hand tightly as he gave his mother a hug, and gave a thankful nod to Richie, as he turned and walked down the hallway.
Harper stood by and watched it all, holding the bag she had brought to Richie, and the files for the lab tests. He had one more thing to do before he faced his parents, and that was to take care of his family. The longer she stood there and watched him hug each and every one of his family members as he talked to them, the more respect she felt for him, the more warmth she felt in her heart, and the more she couldn't bear telling him that she had to go home soon to be with her own family.
Richie suddenly felt like a dam had burst as he was suddenly drowning in family members asking questions, demanding answers, poking at him, looking at his scrapes. The other people in the waiting room were looking a bit anxious at the large group of people and Richie just waved his hands and spoke a little louder. "Okay, okay…" He said as he waved his hands. "Just settle down here." He said as he sighed. "There are some answers that everyone wants and I'll do my best to tell you what's going on." He said as he glanced to Harper, who was watching. She shrugged slightly and he flashed her a smile. "Okay, okay, come on sit down, you're making me nervous." He said as his grandmother refused to sit down, he took her hand and led her to the rest of the family as they sat down.
"Richard, are you sure you're alright?" She asked as she took his hand. He smiled and shook his head.
"I'm getting there." Richie said as he kissed his grandmother's cheek. "Come on over here. I just want to talk to everyone." He said as he stood in front of his family who had stretched out through the large waiting room, sitting on chairs as they waited. His grandmother refused to sit down as she just held his hand tightly and watched him. "Alright, here is the deal…" Richie said as he sighed. "Greyson has been sick for a while as you all know, and this is all a culmination of that." He said as he sighed. "He has… they're pretty sure… the doctors in the room concur." He said as he nodded toward Harper. "What is called Wilson's disease."
"Excess copper." Nancy said out loud as Richie smiled.
"That's right." He said as he turned his head toward Harper. "They're all doctors." He shrugged as she nodded and smiled, getting a strange look from several family members. "Okay, so the deal is, his liver is damaged, he needs a transplant."
"Do any of us need to be tested, Richard?" Marion whispered. "Do you know if…"
"No." Richie said softly. "No one needs to be tested, he has a donor, a match, and um… but I think that just to be on the safe side, the doctors are going to want to test family members. It's a simple blood test, but Wilson's is hereditary so this is kind of a wake up call." He said as he sighed. "But there was a car accident last night and he broke his arm. I'm okay, and we're all going to be alright, okay? Just don't worry, okay? Dad and Mom are going to be alright and I'm going to be alright. Grey is going to be alright, okay?" He whispered as he felt himself becoming slightly panicked as he felt that he was rambling. "Just…" He sighed.
"It's alright, dear…" Marion whispered as she pulled her grandson into her arms. "You did fine. You did fine, sweetheart." She held him as he wrapped his arms around his grandmother.
"I'm scared." He whispered into his grandmother's ear as his voice whimpered a bit.
"I know you are, sweetheart, it's normal, but you're doing great. You're not alone, baby." She whispered as Richie hugged her tightly.
"I wish that were true, Granny." He whispered as he wiped his tears on her shoulder and swallowed hard as he looked up at everyone. "So, you guys can all disband, go about your Christmas day. We'll be here, and we'll make sure you all know what's going on." Richie nodded as everyone started moving around, asking questions and talking about the goings on as some people prepared to leave, while others like Cristina and Mark prepared to stay. Richie felt like he was suddenly on the outside of the conversation, on the outside of the situation and he felt himself getting tugged away from everything.
At first, he thought it was only figuratively, but it took him a second to realize that he was being tugged, by a very persistent Harper. "Richard… Richard…" She whispered as he turned around and looked her in the eyes. "Richard, I have to go." She said softly as she watched the emotion in his eyes drop completely out of them.
"I understand." He said, nodding his head, his eyes moving down as she tilted her head.
"No. I don't… I don't want to go, Richard, but I promised my father that I'd have Christmas dinner with them. My aunt dropped me off this morning, and they've been trying to get me on the phone for the past hour." She said as she shrugged.
"Go." He nodded. "Go home for Christmas." He said as he tried to give her a smile, though it looked more like a grimace. He nodded his head. "Go before your dad sends out a search party looking for you. It's Christmas, you should be with your family." He said as he tilted his head, watching her watch his eyes. "Why would you want to spend Christmas here? You saved my brother and you did a hell of a job getting my head out of my ass." He said with a slight smile as he felt his cheeks burning slightly. "Thank you." He said, shrugging slightly as he tried to figure out what to do next. He could feel his heart beating faster as she looked into his eyes, and he wasn't thinking clearly as he put his hand out to shake hers.
She paused as she looked down at his hand, her eyes then lifting to his. "Seriously?" She asked, her voice was soft and a bit insulted as she felt her own cheeks burning. "Richard?"
"Thank you, Harper." He said softly as he felt many of his family member's eyes on him as he continued to talk to the stranger in the corner. "I mean…um… what more do you want?"
He watched as her face turned a deeper shade of red, her ears as well as she stared into his eyes. He watched her jaw clench. "Goodbye, Richard." She said as she stared at his hand for a second more, turned and walked away from him angrily.
He paused for a second as she left the waiting room, and suddenly felt his stomach twisting. "Wait!" He called as he ran out the door after Harper, watching her stomp down the hallway angrily. "Harper, wait a second!" He said as she continued to walk away from him. "Please?" He said as he slowed his pursuit. "Harper, please." He said as she turned around and stared angrily into his eyes.
"What do you want now?"
"Are you bipolar or something?" He asked as he jogged to catch up with her.
"That's how you expect to keep me here to talk to you? By insulting my psyche." She asked as she started to turn around.
"Harper, stop…" He said as he touched her shoulder, sending her spinning around, she came face to face with him, their noses practically touching. "I want you to come back." He said as he took a sharp intake of breath. "When you can…" He whispered. "If you want to…" He whispered.
"You want me to come back?" She stated, her eyes burning into his for a moment as he nodded.
"Please?" he asked.
"You want me to come back here?" she said, nodding toward the floor, her eyes lifting again. "Why?" She asked as she shook her head.
"You know why." He replied.
"And I want you to say it." She replied as she gave him a challenging look.
"I can't say it." He whispered.
"Why not?" She asked defensively. "You can give your organs away like you're handing out candy, but you can't tell me why you want me to come back?"
"It sounds stupid." He whispered.
"I bet it doesn't." She replied. "Try me." She said as she stepped into him a little more, her voice was low and husky as she narrowed her eyes and gave him a tender smirk. "Try me, Richard."
"I…" He swallowed hard as he felt her body pushing up against his. He could feel his body reacting to her. He could feel her breath on his skin. "I…"
"Do you like me?" She whispered as she gave him a soft, sweet smile that made his heart flutter. He smiled back at her as he swallowed again. "Then say it." She said, her lower lip slipping into her mouth as she smiled at him.
"I like you." He whispered.
"I like you." She replied, closing her eyes for a moment, she let her lips tenderly touch his, lingering for only a second as she took a step back. "I have to go." She said as she gave him a shy smile.
"You're coming back?" He asked hopefully as she raised her eyebrows.
"You'll have to see." She said as she gave him a wink. "See if I like you that much." She said as she took a step back. "Goodbye, Richard."
"Bye, Harper." He said softly. "Drive carefully."
"Good luck." She said, nodding toward the room with his family, as he turned around to see his grandmother standing nervously in the doorway, waiting for Richard. He swallowed hard and took a deep breath.
"Crap." He whispered to himself as he turned around to say one more thing to Harper, only to find that she had already disappeared.