The Broken Padlock

Chapter Four

-A Hard Night's Day-

Lexie silently let herself into her boyfriend's apartment, and couldn't help herself but sigh in relief when she saw that his daughter wasn't up yet. Mark was forced to go back to work that day; apparently there were a lot of emergency cases lately, and Webber needed as many doctors as possible. So that morning, as the sun was still rising slowly, half-covered by clouds, Mark drove to the hospital, after making sure Mel was alright in her room.

Lexie was told about the arrangement the night before, when Mark called her asking if she could come over to keep an eye on Mel. He said Callie and Arizona would be next door in their apartment, but that he wanted her to go – if she agreed – so that she and Mel could bond a little.

Lexie was a little anxious; Mel wasn't always nice towards them and she wasn't often willing to talk, and on top of that Lexie had no idea of what Mark really expected her to do, although he made it pretty clear that all she needed to do was to make sure Mel wasn't feeling too sad, and in that case cheer her up, and make her something to eat, even if she claimed she wasn't hungry. Part of her was convinced it was easy and totally manageable, but she also feared to say something that would upset the grieving fifteen-year-old.

Since Mel was still sleeping, Lexie decided to cook her breakfast. Remembering the girl was vegan, Lexie opted for a fruit salad with soy ice-cream to add, and rolls with blueberry jam inside. She made some orange and apple juice and set the table, hoping that Mel would appreciate her efforts.

She quickly went to the bathroom, and glancing inside Mark's bedroom she rolled her eyes seeing a lot of his clothes on the floor of the room, or piled up on a chair. She took some of his shirts and folded them, setting them nicely in Mark's closet. A lot of her clothes were there as well, and Lexie was starting to feel more at home when she was at Mark's rather than when she was at Meredith's house.

Lexie turned the tv on, but there wasn't anything interesting; preferring to spend her time doing something more useful, she did the laundry and started to tidy up the messy house.

When Mel got up from bed Lexie was ironing some of Mark's clothes. She looked up at the girl, giving her her best smile. "Hello, there. Did you sleep well?"

"No." Mel mumbled, rubbing her red eyes with a shrug.

Lexie's smile faded. "I'm sorry. Do you want to talk about it?"

Mel didn't answer right away, and Lexie glanced at her several times as she turned the electric iron off and folded the clothes.

"I had a nightmare, that's all. I don't want to relive it."

"Of course." Lexie nodded. "Come to the kitchen, I made you breakfast." she offered her hand, but Mel didn't take it; Lexie was pleased when the girl followed her, though. She had almost expected a snarky comment.

Lexie carefully placed the food in front of the teenager.

"Thank you." Mel took a bowl of fruit, and Lexie sat on the other chair and ate some as well.

"Your dad should be home in the late afternoon, but he said he would try to come home for his lunch break. I don't think he'll make it, though, once you get to work and they see you're available, it's hard to leave when you want."

Mel nodded. Part of her was happy to spend the day without him. She still resented him for the way in which he treated her mom before she died, but even for the years before that. She figured her mom would have told him she was pregnant, had he been a good, responsible person. The other part of her, though – still small and hesitant, but growing – wanted to get to know her father better. She wanted to find similarities between the two of them, she wanted him to tell her everything Elizabeth had always refused to say. Something was still holding her back, and she still felt the need to punish Mark for never being there, but she knew that talking to Mark's family and friends was some sort of first step.

"What do you feel like doing, today?"

"I don't know. I usually spend all my time in my room."

"We can do something a little more fun, today. Do you want to go shopping? Mark mentioned you need clothes, if I don't recall wrong."

"I do." Mel admitted. "I don't have any money though. My moms used to give me a weekly pocket money."

"Mel, do you really think I'd let you use your money? I'll pay. You don't have to worry about it. And I'll talk to Mark about your allowance. You might need your own money if we happen to not be around."

Mel blushed. "Thank you."

"We're family now. Your mom paid for your stuff, and now your dad will. It's how it works, parents do that. And Callie, Arizona and I will be just as happy as him to do things for you."

Mel nodded. She liked Lexie, and she liked Callie and Arizona. She wasn't completely used to their presence in her life yet, because it had always been just her mom and her and now there suddenly were a lot of people around her, but they were nice and funny and she noticed that Mark felt more comfortable when he talked to her if they were in the room as well.

"We have several options. If you don't want to go out, we can shop online, but actual shops are way more fun." Lexie was getting excited. Mel agreed to do something with her, and she stopped feeling nervous. "So you can either choose the mall or the downtown shops. Your choice."

Mel shrugged. "I don't know Seattle at all. What's nicer?" she asked.

"There are a few shops that I really love, downtown."

"I was hoping you'd say that... I don't like malls."

"Me neither, not much at least. When I was five I got lost in a mall, my parents found me after about fifteen minutes, but it seemed much longer to me."

Mel stood up and took the empty bowls to the sink. "I'm going to get dressed, then."

Lexie glanced out of the window. "Put on something that will keep you warm, it's about to start raining and there's a lot of wind."

"Okay." Mel went to her room and closed the door. As she chose her outfit – a deep blue sweater and a denim skirt with tights – she thought about Lexie and about her mother. Lexie was nice to her, and though she probably was closer to her in age than to Mark, she had acted like a mother a few minutes earlier, telling her to dress up properly and making her breakfast. If she ended up staying with Mark, would Lexie be her mother? She didn't want to replace Elizabeth, she'd never to that. Mel felt herself panicking. Lexie was nice, she liked her, and she liked how she took care of her that morning. But could she really let her in? And could she let Mark in? Glancing at her mother's picture on her nightstand, she sighed. She didn't have an answer yet. Most of the time she didn't even know how she felt, or if she even felt something at all.

Lexie knocked on the door, and Mel opted for stopping her thoughts for the whole day. She hadn't had a pleasant day since her mother had died, and although the wound was still fresh and bleeding, she knew she deserved to have a good day.

"I'm ready." she said.

Lexie nodded with her smile. Mel forced herself to smile in return. What had Callie said that first night? Having a dad is more than 'just fine'. Mel didn't believe her yet, but she was most definitely right. And Mel knew she would have a more than fine life with a mother figure by her side.

Lexie drove, glancing at Mel from time to time. "Do you like The Beatles?"

"Who doesn't?" Mel answered, half-faking an incredulous voice.

Lexie turned on the radio, pushing in a CD and going to track 3. "Here comes the sun is my favorite song."

"Mine is All you need is love."

"Yeah, that's my second favorite, I think. No, wait... it's Lucy in the sky with diamonds."

Mel nodded. "I love it."

They spent the next minutes talking about their favorite songs and bands, and Lexie was happy to finally see Mel smile, even if her smiles where hesitant and they never lasted long. She stopped the car in a parking lot, glancing at the sky as she locked the car. It was definitely going to rain.

"Follow me, there's a good shop around the corner. I'm sure you can find something there."

Lexie pushed the door open, and Mel followed her inside. She immediately started to look through the clothes.

Lexie watched her curiously. Mel seemed to like colored things. She was looking at an orange long-sleeved shirt. There was something written on it, but Lexie couldn't see what it was. She let the girl gather up some garments, observing her. After a while Mel walked up to her. "I'm going to try these things on."

"Sure, go on."

Mel showed her each outfit as she put them on. In the end Lexie bought her two pair of jeans, one pair of leggings and two t-shirts. After she paid, she took Mel to other two shops, watching as the younger girl's mood improved. Mel chose another pair of jeans, a casual dress, two tights, three sweaters and a blue quilted jacket before claiming it was enough.

"Are you sure? Don't you need shoes?" Lexie asked her. They could go buy them some other day, but they were there, and they were having fun.

Mel looked at her feet, then shook her head, giving Lexie a genuine smile. "No, I'm good. But we should go shopping together again, Lexie. I had fun today. Thank you."

"No, Mel, thank you. I had lots of fun as well, and it wouldn't have happened if you had locked yourself up in your room."

"You're right." the teenager admitted. "It was a nice morning."

They walked back to Lexie's car, holding the bags.

"Are you hungry?"

"A little. It's almost lunch time after all."

"Me too. I think Mark said there is some leftover in the refrigerator."

"Good." Mel nodded.

Just as Lexie was stopping the car in front of Mark's building, her pager went off. She groaned.

Mel looked at her, holding back a grumpy sigh. She was having fun with Lexie. "Do you have to go?"

"I'm afraid I do." Lexie sighed. "I'll walk you upstairs though. And don't worry, you won't be alone. Callie and Arizona are supposed be home."

"They're so beautiful." Arizona said, resting her head on her wife's shoulder. Meredith and Derek were working, so they were watching little Zola. She and Sofia, happy to have a playmate, had worn each other out, and now they were peacefully sleeping on the thick patchwork quilt on the floor.

"They are." Callie smiled. "And one of them is ours. I still can't believe I made her, sometimes."

"And I can't believe I got mad about it. She's my life now."

"I know." Callie whispered, thinking about the past two years. The past two perfect years. "I love you."

Arizona turned her face to kiss her. "I love you too, beautiful."

They simultaneously adjusted their bodies so that they could entangle themselves in a hug of kisses and moans.

"Shh..." Arizona giggled when Callie let out a pleased noise. "We'll end up waking the tiny humans."

Callie kissed her neck in answer, and Arizona's turn to taste a piece of heaven.

But suddenly the door burst open, and both of them jumped back, pulling apart from one another.

"Lexie?"

"Er, I'm sorry. I – I didn't mean to just come in like this. It's just – Mark gave me a copy of his key. And I have to go to the hospital. Oh, and Mel is here, she has to stay with you."

Callie stood up, ran her hands through her hair and cleared her throat. The idyllic moment ended too soon. "It's okay, go save lives. We'll take care of Mel."

Lexie nodded, gave them a quick wave as a goodbye, and was out of the door before they could say anything else.

Mel burst out laughing – for the first time since her mother's death – and Arizona did as well, followed by Callie.

"Well, come on and sit down." Arizona told her after their laughter died down.

"Have you met Zola, Mel?"

"Who is she?"

"She's Derek and Meredith's daughter. Derek is your father's best friend."

"Oh."

"She's Sofia's age, they're really close."

Instead of getting comfortable on the couch, the girl plopped down on the floor, next to the two toddlers, and she brushed her fingers against Sofia's forehead.

"You can play with her, when she wakes up." Arizona told her softly. "I know it must be hard to accept that you have a sister you never knew existed, but I'm sure you'll bond quickly. She'll love to have a big sister."

Mel hinted a smile. "My mom's best friend had a little girl. I babysat once."

"You can come here whenever you want to play with her. Or if you feel like talking to someone other than Mark, we'll be here."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome, Mel."

"Hey, I'm gonna make some lunch. Have you eaten, Mel?"

"No, not yet. Lexie and I were about to have lunch when she was paged."

"Is pasta with eggplants okay?" Arizona asked.

"Sure, it's perfect."

"What did you and Lexie do this morning?" Callie asked Mel as they set the table for lunch and Arizona cooked.

"Lexie took me shopping downtown. She was really kind, she bought me a lot of clothes."

"Can I see them?"

"Callie loves shopping." Arizona informed the girl when she saw her wife's eyes light up.

Mel took her bags, showing everything to the two women.

"I love these. You have good taste in clothes, Mel. We should go together, next time."

"Sure, I'd like that." Mel smiled.

"Just let me know when you need new clothes, or even when you're simply craving shopping and need someone to go with."

"I'll do that, thank you."

"Lunch is ready!" Arizona told them, placing three very full plates on the table.

"It looks amazing, Zona."

"Aren't Sofia and Zola eating with us?" Mel wondered.

"They had a snack about forty minutes ago; they'll eat when they wake up. They really did wear themselves out."

"Oh, okay."

Callie and Arizona told Mel stories about Sofia and Mark while they ate, and they explained to her who Meredith and Derek were.

Mel felt like she was becoming part of that big happy family, and though sometimes she felt out of place, she liked to listen to Callie and Arizona talk, informing her of how her life would be from that moment on: full of nosy overprotective surgeons who would soon love her to death.

Growing up with her mother, Mel had often dreamed about having a huge family, and little by little she was getting it. Yes, it all started because of her mother's death, and she would never get over it, but all those people made her see there was something good in the world, something to live for.

The girls woke up one hour later, and after another snack they seemed to decide Mel was their new favorite person, because they kept climbing on her lap and on her back, playing with her hair and earrings, asking to be picked up and cuddled.

A few hours later Mel was definitely in love with her younger sister, almost wishing they lived together, although the difference wasn't really big with the actual situation.

Mark let himself into the apartment at almost seven, when Callie was already cooking her famous pepperoni and Zola had gone home. Mel instantly liked Meredith too.

"Hello, my ladies." Mark greeted them with a grin, holding a big box that he put on the floor.

"What's that?" Arizona asked him, curious.

"It's for Mel."

"For me?"

"You and only you. Come here, open it."

As always when she was with Mark, Mel felt something hold her back, but curiosity won over her doubts, and she stepped forwards to open the mysterious box.

"You got me a guinea pig?!"

Mark shrugged nonchalantly, but he couldn't hide a smile. "You said you're allergic to dogs, so I opted for something else. Have you ever heard of someone who's allergic to guinea pigs?"