Title: Sleep
Author: MissMouseMD
Disclaimer: Don't own Grey's Anatomy.
A/N: Sorry for the confusion!
Insomnia
She's scared. And broken. But mostly just scared.
She can't sleep. Every time she tries, she wakes up screaming. In her dreams, she's alone. She feels so empty.
The worst part is, the loneliness isn't just a dream.
Izzie asks about the screaming. She says it was a bug.
She gives up even trying to sleep. Instead, she lies in bed, staring at the ceiling. Trying to forget her pain. She's not successful.
She shouldn't be practicing medicine. She hasn't slept in over 72 hours. But she's so used to ignoring her problems, ignoring her pain that she doesn't realize the trouble she's in.
She feels like she's in a dream world, somewhere in between awake and sleeping. She walks into the elevator.
He rushes in at the last minute, squeezing past the closing doors.
She ignores him.
He looks at her, concerned.
"Meredith? Are you okay?"
She doesn't say anything, just waits for her destination. When the doors open, she practically sprints out.
She doesn't want to talk to him. He broke her heart. He's still married.
It's been days, and she still hasn't slept.
Walking in a straight line is difficult, and her head is pounding.
At the hospital, everyone's staring.
She tries her best to ignore them.
She's in the locker room, leaning against the wall. Eyes closed.
"Grey? GREY!"
It's Bailey. Normally, she would be terrified, but she's too tired to care.
Bailey's yelling now.
Everyone's staring.
She opens her eyes.
Tries to walk towards the intimidating woman.
She takes two steps, and her legs start to give. She grabs the wall for support.
They're all still staring.
"All right, that's it. Stevens, take her home. Make sure she gets some rest. Grey, don't even try to come back here until you've slept at least 12 hours, you hear me?"
Izzie helps her to the car, and practically carries her to her bed.
When Cristina comes in four hours later to check on her, her eyes are still wide open, staring at the ceiling.
She can hear Cristina talking, but the words don't make sense.
Now Izzie's there too, talking to Cristina.
Their voices are worried.
They leave, and she's left in peace for a while.
The door opens, and it's Him.
She rolls over so her back is to him.
He's talking to her now, his voice soothing. She can't tell what he's saying. She doesn't care.
He puts his hand on her shoulder.
She pulls away. He should know better. He's married.
The tears start to come. She can't stop them.
This time, she lets him touch her.
Hold her.
Suddenly, the loneliness is ebbing away, leaving her feeling peaceful.
And sleep comes.