THREE

At Joe's Cristina sat staring at the drink in front of her, what else she could do with it, she'd lost her liquid appetite.

"Is it something you want to talk about?" Asked Owen.

Cristina didn't move, didn't nod, didn't comment, nothing.

Owen reached his hand onto her shoulder, the shoulder closest to him and massaged it deeply but gently. Then he soothed her back with his palm and settled his arm across her waist. They remained like that, at the bar, looking at their drinks.

"Meredith?" He surmised. "Do you want me to talk to her?"

"If I want you to come back without your thumbs I'll send you in." She replied.

At least she was joking, that was a good sign. He hated to see her this low. He didn't like her hurt, in any capacity. "So, I gather you told her, about us."

Cristina used her finger nail to scrape at something on the bar top.

"She's your friend, she loves you, she'll come around." Said Owen with a squeeze to her waist. "She wants the best for you. She's worried."

Cristina grunted.

Owen pulled his arm from her waist and took a sip of his drink. "You're the same where Derek is concerned, in fact worse."

"Well if I forget myself next time Derek acts up. You have my permission to have me put down."

"She doesn't trust me yet Cristina. She might never trust me. She just wants you to be safe."

"From you." It was a statement.

" Yes."

"Am I not safe?" Cristina straightened herself up, but didn't look at him.

"We don't know. Not for sure."

She didn't say anything.

"Cristina?"

She ever so lightly dipped the tip of her middle finger into her drink, fishing out a floating speck.

"Cristina?"

"I don't like this conversation." She said.

"But it's a conversation we need to have over and over." Owen turned his head to her. "It's a conversation that will never go away. We can never be sure that I won't......again."

"Choke me? Go on say it if we have to talk about this." She emptied the remains of her glass and climbed off her bar stool, she needed to use the bathroom.

He sighed and rubbed a hand across his chin. They were supposed to be celebrating. Owen didn't know. He was at a loss for words. Cristina needed Meredith and Meredith needed Cristina. This was always so fucking complicated. A hand grabbed him on the shoulder, startling him.

"Owen! I hear congratulations are in order." Derek folded his coat over the stool Cristina had been sitting on. Owen got to his feet with his best smile and shook Derek by the hand thanking him.

"A better, braver man than me!" Thundered Mark behind Derek. He squeezed in to grip Owen's hand. "Taking on Yang. Permanently." He squared his shoulders and his eyes shone. "A brave, brave man, but then you're used to working in dangerous situations." Mark looked around him. "Well where is she, the blushing bride to be? I want to kiss her. With your permission of course." His eyes glinted.

Smiling Owen sat back down. The three men sat on stools along the bar and started talking, joking. Owen was ordering a round of drinks as Meredith strolled up, her coat slung over her arm. She laid it on top of Derek's coat.

"So I guess we're not getting a booth?"

Owen jumped to his feet. "We could..." He looked round him. The place was filling up, but there were still some empty booths where they could all sit down. Derek placed a hand on Owens arm without acknowledging Meredith and without looking at Owen. "Owen." He said.

"You've been doomed already." Said Mark, taking his drink from Joe. He placed it on a coaster on the bar and then grabbed a handful of nuts from the bowl Joe had placed in front of them. "There is nothing you can do to make this situation better. She hates you. Just live with it."

"She does not hate him." Interjected Derek. "She's just upset. She's having trouble... processing events... The best we can do right now is to stay out of it and let the 'persons' fight it out amongst themselves. Let me buy you another drink Owen."

"No let me get it." Owen insisted. "Meredith? What will you have?" He jumped to his feet again.

Mark shook his head.

"I'll have vodka and cranberry." She said easily meeting his eyes.

Cristina was walking up. "I'll have what she's having." She said when Owen looked to her.

He noticed that she was wearing the engagement ring; it dangled brightly on the end of her necklace.

They all noticed it. Cristina's top had a scooped neck and the jewellery shone brightly against the fabric. She seemed oblivious of the affect her engagement ring was having on her friends. As far as she was concerned she was back from the bathroom and was ordering a drink. Meredith stared at it.

Owen smiled happy with Cristina. She was signalling to him that no matter what, they were moving forwards, not backwards, never backwards. They were in this together, they were engaged to be married, person or no person, it would all work out. Mark eyed Derek who eyed Meredith, who turned to the bar and pretended to fidget with something in her coat pocket.

Derek picked up his drink and stood up. "Do you want a game of darts Mark?"

"Sure."

"Come on." Derek nudged Owen.

Meredith sat down on the stool vacated by Owen and Cristina sat next to her. They didn't say anything for a while, but knew they were going to talk at some point. Meredith, despite her uncertainties wanted to tread carefully. Cristina wanted unconditional acceptance. It could go horribly wrong either way and they'd already been there. Side by side they never glanced or looked at one another. Their drinks arrived and they took sips. Put their glasses on their assigned coasters, sipped some more and put them back down. They did this one more time before Cristina spoke; she had directness in her tone.

"Be happy for me."

"I am happy. See."

"For me. Be happy for me. You don't have to like him, but be happy for me."

"Who said I don't like him. I've spent a long time trying to like him. So I like him. Cristina I like your fiancé." She exaggerated the syllables in the word.

Cristina rolled her eyes.

Meredith spoke carefully and methodically. "I don't want this to get out of hand. I don't want us to fall out. So I am working on being alright with this. But I don't understand why you have to marry him. On Tuesday he was breaking up with you, and you were freaking out about that."

Cristina didn't say anything.

"He's not okay." Continued Meredith. "This is not okay."

"On Tuesday he was worried about us." Cristina responded. "He was processing...some things."

"All right, I'll understand that. But why do you have to marry him?"

Cristina looked into her drink and wondered how long they were going to have this argument. "You're married." She shifted on her stool.

"I'm married with post it notes Cristina. Post its!"

Cristina didn't need a diagram drawing. She knew what Meredith was saying and she knew what her friend was feeling. She'd felt frustrated herself with Owen a few days ago, but they had worked through that as a couple. Her position wasn't to convince Meredith of Owens good points, it was to get some peace and stop this constant guarding against her being hurt by Owen. She was honestly glad to have a lioness like Meredith on her side. But there had to be a line drawn at some point, Cristina had done the therapy, she'd talked to Owen and they decided they were going to move forward in their relationship, and she liked that direction. There had been enough drama, enough crap, enough sadness, enough tears, enough guarding. Cristina wanted more of the lightness and the love, and the fun and lots and lots more of the sex, the great sex with Owen.

"Why don't you just say the words crazed, psycho Meredith, you'll feel better."

Meredith put her glass up to her lips. "Cristina I'm just worried about you, that's all. I was liking him, but now I'm worried. Again."

"I'm engaged Meredith. Engaged! I couldn't even think about that before without wanting to throw up. I've moved forwards, even you can see that. I'm evolving." Cristina said it like it was a dirty word. She turned her body toward Meredith. "I am your person. You are my person. So I need you to be happy for me. I need you to accept this. I need you to be on board. When the time comes, you have to be there to help me choose a dress, and flowers and all of the other crap. Please." It was as far as Cristina wanted to go emotionally. The pleading was taking her over the edge; she turned back to her drink.

They didn't talk anymore for a while. Meredith had listened. She was considering. She had thoughts about it. She thought she had accepted Owen. She thought she liked him. He was fairly humorous, dry. Derek liked him, liked their conversation. Professionally he was excellent. Cristina liked him, which was important, she loved him. He had good qualities, she could admit that, and Cristina was genuinely a happier person. But, and it was a big but, when things went wrong between them, they went horribly wrong and no matter what else Owen was unpredictable, rash and hot tempered. The possibility of another choking incident was always on Meredith's mind, even if it wasn't on Cristina's, and the fact that a few days ago Owen wanted to break up with Cristina, made Meredith further doubt his stability.

"His mind, his actions seem to change so quickly." She said.

"He was processing Meredith. You're not allowing him any room to process or change his mind." Cristina took a drink.

More silence. More thinking.

"Alright." Said Meredith after sometime. "Alright." She nodded.

"Alright what?"

"Alright I'll be your person for the wedding."

"Thank you." Finally. Finally things were getting back to normal. Meredith just had to exercise her person status and flex her best friend muscles. Cristina drained her drink. "Thank you."

Meredith reached for her bag which was wedged under her coat. She put the bag on the bar in front of her and took out a small mirror and some clear lip gloss. "Did you tell Helen?" She said, feathering her bangs into the mirror.

"Tell Helen what?"

"About Owen, about your impending marriage?" Meredith arranged some strands around her face.

"No." Cristina said quietly. "Not yet."

"Will you?" Meredith applied some lip gloss and pressed her lips together.

"Of course, she is my mother."

Meredith nodded. "Does she know everything?" She placed her things back into her bag.

"Like what?" There was a warning tone to Cristina's voice.

Silence.

"Meredith why don't you just get to the point."

"Does she know he has issues?"

"Had issues Meredith. Had, and no she doesn't."

"Well don't you think she ought to know, seeing as you want to get married?"

It was the way Meredith said married that made Cristina turn her head, she did it very slowly. Her brown eyes flashed.

"Meredith I'm warning you."

"She should know." Meredith wasn't put off. "Don't you think she should know everything? She should know everything." Meredith braved nodding.

Cristina's back stiffened, her face contorted, she waved her finger at her person."Meredith I am warning you, if you talk to my mother. I will break up with you!"

Over at the dart board, Owen pulled the darts from the board after his throw and walking back watched Cristina, he could tell, they all could tell that things weren't going great, but were trying to abide by Derek's advice to let them get on with it and just play darts. Mark leant in behind Owens ear.

"I dare you." He said with a smile glancing at the darts and then toward Meredith. Owen laughed and held his darts down, Mark straightened up. "You know she probably wouldn't feel it, for any number of reasons."

When Owen saw Cristina shake a finger at Meredith, he decided to go over, Derek followed him.

"Everything all right ladies?" Owens hand pressed onto Cristina's shoulder.

"Meredith?" Derek questioned standing beside her his hand on her shoulder.

"Oh let them go at it," Barged Mark coming up the rear. "Mano to mano."

Meredith was standing, Cristina stood. Cristina gathered up her things and arched an angry finger at Meredith. "Do not speak to Helen!"

Meredith sniffed, and flicked her hair a bit embarrassed at Cristina's anger. Cristina, coat in hand pushed her way out of Joes bar and left.