Two chapters tonight because I could tell you guys were ready for some answers.
Two Months Later
Richard paused for a moment before he opened the door. Why was he doing this? He knew why he was doing it, but he didn't want to admit it. He opened the door.
"Dr. Webber! We haven't seen you in, what, two months? How have you been?" The receptionist asked. He gave her a fake smile.
"I'm sorry. There's just been a lot going on, I haven't found the time to come see her." He said, feeling a pang of grief as he thought about the girl he practically raised.
"I understand. Well, she's just in there, if you want-" She was cut off when a nurse rushed into the room from the direction she was pointing in.
"She's lucid! Ellis Grey is lucid!" She cried. Richard ran up to her.
"She's lucid? She remembers?" He asked. She nodded.
"She's asking for her daughter. Where is Meredith? We haven't seen her in a while." The nurse said. Richard rushed past her without answering her question.
"Ellis? Ellis?!" He called, pushing past people as he burst into the room. Ellis Grey was sitting on the bed, extremely confused.
"Where is Meredith?! I want Meredith!" She screamed at the nurse trying to calm her down.
"Ellis," Richard said from the doorway. She looked up at him. The nurse left the room.
"Richard... Oh, my god!" She cried. "Thank god you're here. Where am I? Who are these people? Where is Meredith? Is she still in Europe? God, I said horrible things to her before she left. Why can't I remember anything?" She asked. He walked into the room slowly and sat down on the bed.
"Ellis..." he started, But she interrupted him with more questions.
"Richard, is this a hospital? Am I sick? I want to go home, Richard." She asked. He grabbed her hands to force her to listen to him.
"Ellis, this is Home. It's been your home for the past five years." He said. She furrowed her eyebrows.
"Five years? No, no, I was in Boston with Meredith. The last thing I remember is fighting with her before she left for Europe." She said. Richard sighed.
"Meredith went to Europe five years ago. She came back because you were diagnosed with Alzheimer's. She went to Med school and was an intern at Seattle Grace." He said. Ellis gasped, her eyes overflowing with tears.
"Alzheimer's?! Is that what this place is? A home? Is that why I can't remember anything?" She cried. Richard nodded solemnly. She sobbed loudly, holding her chest with her hand, for a few moments.
"I'm so sorry Ellis." He said.
"Wh... what about Meredith? Is Meredith okay? Did she turn out okay?" She asked. Richard sighed.
"Meredith was engaged to a wonderful man and she was pregnant with his child. She was extraordinary, Ellis. She was beautiful." He said softly. Her mouth fell open and she furrowed her eyebrows at him again.
"Richard... why do you keep saying was? Where is my daughter?!" She yelled. He wiped a tear from his face.
"Meredith was murdered two months ago. One of her best friends was angry at her because he was in love with her and she didn't love him back. He got drunk one night and just... killed her. Derek went home and found the house covered in blood. She was gone, there was a note on the bed telling him not to look for her. The police did an investigation and said she was murdered. George pled guilty and went to prison. I haven't seen Derek since it happened. He loved her so much, Ellis." He said, tears spilling onto his own face as she gasped and sobbed next to him.
"NO! Meredith! How... how could this happen?! This isn't happening! No!" She sobbed. Richard rubbed her back calmingly and she cried into his shoulder.
"I'm so sorry, Ellis." He cried. She stopped suddenly. He felt her breath catch in her throat. She went limp in his arms. He pushed her off of him and found that her eyes had rolled back in her head. "Ellis?!" He checked for a pulse. "I need help in here! Call 9-1-1!" He yelled out into the lobby. Nurses came flooding into the room.
"What happened?!" One cried while another called 911.
"She must have had a heart attack. She's in cardiac arrest, do you have an AED?" He said quickly. The nurse ran out into the hallway and brought back a defibrillator. He quickly charged it and shocked her heart. The hospital was just down the block and he heard sirens already. "Charge again!" He ordered when he still didn't feel a pulse. They shocked Ellis again and a third time before her eyes finally shot open and she gasped for air, coughing and groaning in pain. Richard let out a long sigh of relief.
"Richard... what happened?" She wheezed.
"You had a heart attack, Ellis. The ambulance is on the way." He said.
"Oh, God." She gasped.
XxXxX
Cristina was assigned to Ellis's case because of her interest in cardio. She was in the process of checking the former surgeon's vitals, under the supervision of the chief, when Ellis started asking questions.
"Dr. Yang, isn't it? Did you know Meredith? She was my daughter, and I just found out today that she's dead... did you know her?" She asked. Cristina looked up uncomfortably for a moment before going back to what she was doing.
"Um... Dr. Yang was Meredith's best friend. They called each other their 'person'." Richard said for her. Ellis furrowed her eyebrows.
"What's a 'person'?" She asked Cristina. Again, the intern said nothing. Ellis noticed she was shaking a little bit and her eyes were glistening with tears.
"Well, uh, it basically means that um... she was the person... oh, it's really hard to explain. They were good friends." Richard gave up. Cristina finished what she was doing and left the room swiftly.
"What's wrong with her? Why doesn't she talk?" Ellis asked.
"Cristina hasn't said a word to anyone since Meredith... died." He paused before he said the last word as if it was painful for him to say. "She hasn't smiled or laughed or shown any emotion but sadness for two months. She's gone dead inside. The only thing keeping her alive is surgery." He explained sadly. Ellis's face fell.
"The poor girl. This is awful, it's all just horrible." She cried.
"Her boyfriend broke up with her because she wouldn't talk to him. She moved into Meredith's house, which I guess is actually your house, with all of their other friends. She took George's room. Originally, they were going to sell the house, but no one wanted to buy a house where someone was murdered and it was really all they had left of Meredith. Still, no one uses her room anymore. They set up a little shrine for her and people come to pay respects and things. I've seen it. It's really sweet of them." He said. Ellis had a sad smile on her face.
"What about the fiancé? Who was he? How was he? Where is he?" She asked. Richard sighed and smiled.
"Derek was perfect for her. He loved her more than the sun itself. And her heart belonged to him. She was so much happier when he was around. He was the head of neurosurgery-" Ellis cut him off with a disgusted look.
"That's inappropriate! An intern dating an attending? And you let this happen?" She cried. Richard shook his head.
"They met before they knew they worked together, Ellis. And trust me, I didn't support it at first. But... he made her so happy... I couldn't stand to be the one to put an end to that." He defended. Ellis narrowed her eyes at him.
"Did he ever hurt her?" She asked. Richard cringed at the question.
"Well... before he moved to Seattle, he was married. His-" Ellis cut him off again with an exasperated choke.
"She was dating an older married man?!" She cried. Richard ran his hand over his face.
"Derek's wife cheated on him with his best friend and he left. He wanted an escape here and he found love instead. He didn't tell Meredith about his wife. She didn't find out about the wife until she showed up in Seattle and told her herself. He continued. "They broke up for a while. Derek tried to fix things with his wife. About six months back, the interns threw a prom at the hospital. Meredith and Derek got together that night. They both realized they still loved each other. He left his wife and she left her boyfriend." He smiled.
"That's what we could have been, Richard." She said softly. He shook his head.
"We were never meant to be like Derek and Meredith." He sighed. She was silent for a few seconds.
"So what happened next?" She asked.
"Meredith found out she was pregnant. A month later, Derek proposed with this amazing, romantic evening he spent weeks planning. She looked so happy that night... I think her smile could have warmed even the coldest hearts. Her happiness could brighten even the worst of days. She was extraordinary." They both couldn't help but smile despite the tears staining their faces.
"Was she... happy? When she died, was she as happy as she was that night?" Ellis asked tearfully. Richard sighed painfully.
"It was the next day. She went home early because she fainted in surgery. She forgot to take a drink of water and the baby wasn't happy. She checked out fine, but Derek made her go home to rest. He got home and she was gone." He said softly. Ellis nodded and didn't say anything for a while, letting tears drip down her face.
"At least she was happy." She said softly. Richard nodded.
"At least she was happy."
XxXxX
The next chapter is up now- there will be answers! Don't forget to review.
Kisses!
-E