Hidden Truths

Chapter 38: Death and All His Friends

Nina could only stand there and watch as Derek fell; she swallowed thickly before she turned on her heels and started rushing to find a way to Derek. It looked like he had been shot in the chest and would need her. She rushed quickly, ignoring Ashlie's warning kicks and she focused on the task on hand: save her best friend.

~x~

Teddy and Owen were pushing a patient to the ICU. "You have to choose for Cristina's and my sake. Her or me." Teddy pleaded with him.

Owen sighed. "I choose no one. I taking myself out of the equation." Owen firmly said. Teddy sighed as they continued to walk. Owen stopped when he noticed a body. He moved forward, knelt and felt for a pulse. "He's…George is dead."

There laying on the ground was George O'Malley, the man who survived a bus running over him, was dead.

~x~

Nina knelt over Derek, trying to calm the man as she worked on trying to stop the bleeding. She stared down at her best friend, swallowing thickly. "Don't you dare die on me, Derek." She said firmly.

Meredith came running forward and Nina didn't lift her eyes to the petite woman. "Oh God! Derek! Please don't die I love you!" Meredith cried out in fear for her husband, kneeling beside him and grabbing for his hand, while Nina continued to work.

"Meredith… Nina… get out of here…" Derek whispered, groaning as he closed his eyes. "Before he shoots you too…"

Meredith shook her head. "Don't you die! I can't live without you!" Meredith snapped at him.

Cristina came rushing over and Nina lifted her head to her, still holding the wound closed. "I called the police." Cristina said, moving to her friend's side.

"If you die, I die!" Meredith continued to yell at her bleeding husband.

"Good…" Nina breathed out before looking up to Cristina. Cristina and Meredith kept yelling, trying to be the one heard and it was hurting Nina's head. Meredith was yelling at Derek about how he couldn't die and Nina understood, if it was Mark… Nina would be in the same boat.

"The police aren't going to be here in time…" Cristina said to Nina, staring blankly in shock at Derek. "Derek needs surgery…"

"YOU STAY AWAKE!" Meredith yelled in worry.

Nina looked up at Cristina. "What do we do?" Cristina asked.

"We get a wheelchair. Fast. Then we get Derek on it, have Meredith keep the wound close and we move him to the OR. I'm going to have to crack his chest, find the bullet and patch him up. Cristina, do you understand me?" Nina said firmly, noticing that Cristina was freezing up. She had to be strong, she had a life depending on her. "Cristina!"

Cristina nodded and hurried to go find something to move Derek. Meredith continued to cry over Derek.

Nina turned to Derek. "You stay awake. You hear me? You're Ashlie's godfather. She needs you." Nina told him quietly, as she kept the pressure. Meredith continued to wail.

~x~

"You gotta eat more… bacon…" Alex grunted, laying on the table bleeding. He felt loopy as Mark continued to work on him.

"What?" Mark asked, stunned by the man's words.

"You stop yourself from doing a lot of crap that you want to do in life…" Alex said, sounding like he was in a lot of pain. "I mean, I'm dying and I'm telling you to eat more bacon… have more sex…"

Mark nodded slowly, leaning over Alex. "Okay. I will. I'll eat more bacon. But you gotta hang in there because she's gonna be back any minute. She had to run to the blood bank and back." Mark said as he opened another gaze.

~x~

Nina swallowed thickly, looking to Meredith who was getting a hold of herself finally. "You prep him, okay? Cristina, I need you to scrub in. April, I need you to help Meredith prep Derek. Okay?" Nina got a nod from each of the women and then she turned to make sure everything that she would need was in the room. Derek looked very pale. Nina made sure that there was enough blood for him in the room.

Nina turned when she heard Derek whisper, "Kiss me." To Meredith. Meredith leaned down and kissed his lips, not wanting to move because if she did, Derek might die. "I'm not going to die. I promise." Derek uttered weakly.

"Good, 'cause that would be the worst breakup ever." Meredith said gently, pulling herself together for her husband.

Nina turned to April. "April, go get Doctor Hunt for me. Make sure to bring Doctor Knight, the anesthesiologist. Make sure to also bring the OR nurses. Go!" Nina told the woman.

April nodded and went to go find the people Nina needed. Meredith continued to prep Derek whilst Nina went to scrub in.

~x~

Nina was scrubbing in, watching as the team worked together to prep the OR for her. She turned to Cristina, who was also scrubbing in but looking not so ready. Meredith came in. "They're ready." She said softly. "Can… can you do this?"

Nina turned to Meredith, her eyes on her as she hid her frown behind her mask. "They don't call me a Cardio Goddess for nothing." She said, trying to be confident. When Meredith turned to scrub in, Nina shook her head. "No. There is no way you are going into the OR. You will cause my residents to freeze up. There is a reason we don't allow family to go into the OR with us." Nina said firmly.

Meredith looked ready to argue but April entered. Cristina turned to April. "April, Meredith will sit on the this floor. You will watch her. Doctor Sloan doesn't want Meredith in that room. There will be no peeping either. If she does anything, you have to stop her." Cristina said firmly.

Nina smiled gently. "I think you've earned the right to call me by my first name, Cristina." Nina said. "Just… don't let anyone hear it." She tried to joke.

Meredith frowned. Cristina flashed a small smile to her idol. "Thank you…"

Even though she didn't want to, Meredith sat.

~x~

"Izzie?" Alex whispered for his dead wife.

Lexie moved forward. "It's Lexie…"

"Iz… I'm sorry…" Alex whispered, sounding like he was in a world of pain. "Don't go… we got married… please don't go…"

Lexie could feel tears filling her eyes. She shook her head, "I won't go anywhere." She promised him.

"You came back for me…. Iz…" Alex whispered.

Even though she knew she was lying, Lexie nodded. "I came back."

Mark stood off to the side, watching with pain in his eyes. Now that Alex was sort of stable, they were just waiting for the blood to take, all he could think about was Nina. Was she alright? Was she dead? I wish I had my damn phone on me… Mark cursed himself. He had left it in the car this morning.

"Don't ever leave me…" Alex uttered. "Don't ever leave me again…"

"I won't." Lexie sniffled, glazing down at her dying boyfriend. "I won't ever leave you again. We're always gonna be together, okay? Always."

"Yeah." Alex tried to smile but he was in too much pain. Lexie continued to cry.

Then, the door opened and the SWAT team arrived. The floor was cleared and they were taking them out of the hospital. Mark turned to the SWAT team, looking very worried. He assumed the SWAT team had already saved his wife. He would see her outside.

~x~

Once they were outside, Mark told Teddy all that he knew about Alex. He knew that Teddy could take care of Alex.

After helping them load Alex up, Mark began to look for Nina. He looked around everywhere before laying his eyes on Teddy. "Teddy, where's Nina?"

"I… I'm the only doctor out here." Teddy said nervously.

Lexie didn't want to talk about Nina though and tried to get the topic back onto Alex. "Is he going to be okay?" Lexie demanded.

Teddy didn't answer. She turned to follow her patient. Lexie felt tears fill her eyes.

Mark frowned as he turned and got off the vehicle. "Mark? I need you!" Teddy said frowning.

"I can't leave her here, Teddy. She's carrying my kid. And… she's my wife… she's my everything. If I lose her, I lose everything." Mark said before turning to go back to the hospital.

~x~

Nina was standing in front of Derek's body, focused on the task. Jackson was with Meredith and April, since Nina only really needed Cristina's hands in the chest with her own. Nina tried not to think about how wildly her daughter was kicking and she was trying not to think about Mark.

Her hands were literally in her best friend's chest; she had to be strong though and she tried not to think about it like that. She stared down at Derek's heart, trying to find the bleeder.

"Can you see where the blood is coming from?" Cristina asked.

"Not yet." Nina answered. "Damn it… I can't see anything. Suction." She demanded.

Cristina worked on that, focused on that while Nina continued to work.

Nina frowned when she felt where the bleeding was. "It's by the aorta."

Cristina cursed. "Can you get it?"

Her green eyes locked on Cristina's brown ones. Her eyes screamed that playful smile she always gave her loved ones. "There's a reason why I have three Harper Avery's and you call me your Cardio Goddess. More suction Yang."

Nina went back to work, holding out her hand for a clamp. She would need to clamp, then saw open the chest to get past the ribs and fix the lungs. She didn't even notice that Ashlie had stopped kicking.

~x~

It was like her life was flashing before her eyes; she couldn't stop fixing Derek, or else he would die… but the gunman was there, holding a gun to her head and telling her to stop. She had two children she needed to live for but Derek… Derek had this future and he needed to live too.

Nina could hear someone enter the OR and then there was Owen's voice. Cristina sounded hopeful but Nina knew there was no hope. She continued to fix Derek, Cristina working on suction and Owen tried to calm the man down.

"Stop fixing him!" Gary yelled at Nina. "Let him die. Let him lie there and die!"

Cristina was sobbing at this point, seeing her idol at gunpoint, seeing her best friend's husband on the table… knowing that her own ex-boyfriend was in trouble.

Nina couldn't though, she couldn't stop working so she tried to give Cristina a helpful look. "Do you want me to shoot you?" Gary yelled.

"Stop! She's pregnant!" Cristina tried to plead. She noticed Gary's eyes drift to her stomach.

"STOP FIXING HIM!" Gary yelled, causing Nina to close her eyes tightly and Cristina to scream.

Nina swallowed thickly, "Cristina, I need you clamp- "

"Don't you dare! I will shoot you!" Gary growled, pointing the gun at Cristina. Owen called out stop and Gary pointed the gun at him. Cristina quickly clamped and Nina continued to work before the gun was back on her. Tears began to pool in Nina's eyes when Gary lowered his gun to her stomach. "I will shoot you in the stomach so that your baby will die!"

"HEY!" Owen yelled. "That woman is someone's wife, someone's mother! She has a son at home and she has a husband who will fall apart completely if you kill her! That baby she is carrying has not had the chance to live yet! That woman with her is the love of my life! Touch either of them and I will kill you!"

Cristina looked at Owen, looking at him with pleading eyes to save them. Gary turned the gun back to Owen, who was the bigger threat at the moment. "I said stay back!"

Owen looked very torn. Nina tried to brace herself as she continued to work; she nodded to Cristina who kept suctioning.

"Maybe I shoot you and then I shoot her and then I shoot Shepherd. Is that what you want?!" Gary yelled with rage. "I didn't come here for this. My wife is dead and he's responsible!"

I love you Mark… Please keep Ethan safe for me… make sure he knows that I love him too. Nina thought with a heavy heart as Gary continued to yell at Owen. And then the gun was back on her and Nina's heart began to really race. That was when the doors opened.

"Shoot me." It was Meredith. Jackson tried to stop her but Meredith shook him off.

"Meredith." Cristina looked so horrified.

"You want justice, right? Your wife died." Meredith said, panting and looking just so pleadingly. She had to save Derek. She had to keep Nina safe so that she could save Derek. "I know what happened. Derek told me the story. Lexie Grey is the one who pulled the plug on your wife. She's my sister. Doctor Webber… he was your wife's doctor. I'm the closest thing he has to a daughter. And the man on the table… I'm his wife." Meredith was gasping for air, trying to do everything in her power to save her husband. "If you want to hurt them, the way that you hurt, shoot me. I'm your eye for an eye."

Cristina shook her head from across the table, "Meredith." The gun was now pointed at Meredith. "Meredith."

"You tell Derek that I love him and that I'm sorry." Meredith said, accepting her fate.

"Meredith." Cristina's voice cracked as Nina continued to work. She had a plan. "Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait! She – she's pregnant! You wouldn't shoot a woman who's pregnant, right?" Cristina had to believe. Nina glazed down at her own stomach, frowning but she kept working.

It was as Cristina did her plan that she told Nina to hold up her hands. Owen had been shot and now there was no games. It was real. "His chest is going to fill with blood any second!" Nina said, her eyes on Gary.

"NO! Don't stop!" Meredith cried and Nina told her to shut up. "NO! No!"

Then the machine flat lined.

"NO! DEREK!" Meredith wailed. Meredith kept chanting no.

"See? He's dead." Cristina said, whilst Gary stared at the screen. "It's over. It's over… he's dead."

Nina closed her eyes, her whole body buzzing with energy. She just wanted this man to leave her OR. She could feel everything all at once; and her thoughts went to the cupcake scrub cap on her head. It was the one Ethan picked out for her.

Finally, Gary left.

Meredith continued to wail before Cristina and Nina jumped into action. They reattached the wires and got back to work. "Mere, is Owen dead?" She called. Meredith froze. "Doctor Grey, is Owen dead?!"

Meredith continued to whimper as she crawled over to Owen. "He's- He's alive…He's alive but he's unconscious but he's alive."

"Take Owen to the OR across the hall, and take that bullet out of his chest. Get April and Jackson to help you." Nina said, knowing that Cristina was in shock so, she stepped up as the Attending.

"Doctor Sloan- "

Cristina had tears in her eyes.

"We are trying to save your McDreamy." Nina said firmly, not looking away from the chest. "Now go save your best friend's McDreamy."

Meredith nodded and took Owen out of the OR to save him, getting help from Jackson and April.

~x~

The Way It Ends by Landon Pigg

~x~

After getting Derek safely to the ambulance, Nina realized something. Halfway through the surgery, Ashlie had stopped kicking. She looked around for someone to help her and then her eyes fell to Mark. Meredith was beside Derek, holding his hand; Cristina was speaking with the police about what happened, gripping onto Owen who was also getting looked at.

Nina and Mark moved towards each other. He pulled her into his arms, feeling tears flood his eyes. Nina began to sob into his chest, gripping onto his bloodied shirt. "Mark…"

"Nina…" He uttered, holding onto her. "I overheard… are you okay?"

Nina nodded her head slowly. "Ashlie… I need…"

"Oh God…" Mark was worried but he didn't want to let her go. He grabbed a portable ultrasound and gel; Nina stood still as he checked on the baby. "Thank God…" He uttered as the sound of Ashlie's heartbeat filled their ears.

"She… she stopped kicking…" Nina whispered, reaching to down to touch the side of her stomach.

Mark locked eyes with hers. "You were doing surgery on our best friend with a gun to your head. She's freaked out." Mark whispered.

Nina looked up at her husband and then she kissed him passionately. Mark returned the kiss. She pulled back and looked into his eyes. "We need to go for a vacation… get away from all this… death. Please?"

"Whatever you need babe." Mark whispered.

She nodded and held onto him. "Let's take Ethan and go to LA."

"Why LA?" Mark asked, tilting his head sideways.

Nina took in a deep breath. "I need to go somewhere with a beach and I need Addison Montgomery to reassure me that my baby is going to be okay."

Mark nodded and kissed her lips once more. "Whatever you need, Nina, whatever you need. I love you."

"I love you too."

~x~

The End

~x~

Hey everyone. So, this is the end. Hard to believe, huh? Nina and Mark have come a LONG way, haven't they? Anyway, this is the end of "Hidden Truths". I think I will be doing a sequel but I want to hear your thoughts.

Should I do a chapter before season 7? Where Nina, Mark and Ethan go to LA? Or skip right to season 7? Let me know.

Also, seriously considered having Meredith miscarry but I won't reveal what I decided until the sequel (If I do a sequel). I really thought about having Nina miscarry too but obviously, that didn't happen. Can you imagine Mina not having their Ashlie? I couldn't do it!

Here's all who died: Reed Adamson, Charles Percy, George O'Malley, and Gary Clark.

REVIEWS

NicoleR89: Thanks!

H (36): Hehe, I'm glad to hear that you really, like Nina and Ethan. I was really, really, scared that no one would like them. And at first, people made me think so. Everyone was like "Lexie needs to be with Mark!" and I was like "But Nina…". Oh, well. I'm on the Mina train too! I'm glad Mark has come to terms with it too because can you imagine there being no Mina? I can't. I love them together. Thanks, by the way. ;)

H (37): Yes, Ethan does have to grow up ya know. LOL. I was crying writing it and re-watching the episode. To write, I re-watch the episodes to give myself some inspiration and I was bawling. Fuck… I hate crying. As you can see, Nina did save Derek and Mark saved Alex. And Mina will live on. They're going to LA to visit Addison! Thank you. I hope you enjoyed~!

Let me know your thoughts and as always thank you and I love you all.

Xoxo,

Nerdy~