"Joe 2 shots of vodka," Cristina said.
"What's with the shopping bag? Don't tell me you went shopping," Alex laughed.
"Uh something like that," Cristina said.
"You Cristina Yang left in the middle of your shift to go shopping? I don't believe that for one second," Alex admitted.
"Aren't you supposed to be banging nurses or something?" Cristina asked.
"Nah they're all leftovers from Sloan besides I'm an attending now."
Cristina laughed, "Look at Alex all mature I'll never forget that time you gave George Syphilis."
"Why are we talking about that? We're not interns anymore Let's be like grownups here," Alex said as he got up and grabbed his coat.
"Did you just tell me to grow up?" Cristina yelled at him.
"You paged?" Cristina asked.
"Yes, 17 yr old car crash victim ultrasound showed internal bleeding had a significant new heart murmur associated with fever and now afebrile on antibiotics," Murphy said.
"Who's on this case?" Cristina asked as she listened to the patient's heart.
"Dr. Hunt and Dr. Douglas."
"Oh great just what I needed," Cristina muttered. "I need you to run some labs and report them back to me asap we don't know what's happening until I get the full report then page Dr. Hunt and tell him to meet me at the second-floor nurse's station."
"Oh, you're a lifesaver!" Cristina exclaimed as Meredith handed her a plastic container with a waffle in it.
"Yeah well I actually had breakfast for the first time in like 5 years," Meredith added.
"Mmm thank you for this waffle... wait did you make this?"
"No," Meredith laughed. "That was all Izzie."
"Enjoy that while it will last doesn't Derek want to kick out Alex and Izzie," Cristina asked.
"He's all this our life and he's excited about building our life together," Meredith said.
"And the award for the mushiest couple goes too?"
"Cristina!" Meredith laughed. "We're not mushy ok maybe Derek is but I'm not."
"Whatever you say Mrs. Mcdreamy," Cristina joked.
Meredith noticed an intern was standing at a close distance to them, "What's the problem?"
"I have these labs for Dr. Yang."
"Well then give them to her," Mer said with clenched teeth.
"I've been waiting for those for over an hour," Cristina said.
"I had to do-"
"Stop making excuses," Cristina interrupted her.
"Sorry," Murphy said.
"Stop apologizing," Cristina muttered.
"I uh..."
"Stop talking," Cristina said looking up from the charts she was working on. "Her plasma VWF levels are consistently 30-50 IU/dL and platelet count is low what does that tell us?"
The intern just stood there looking at her. Cristina sighed," You can talk now."
"That she's probably at risk for von Willebrand disease and she might be fine?" Murphy said.
"You consider having Von Willebrand Disease fine?"
"Well, she did have low hemoglobin so I should probably keep an eye on that."
"Get out of my face," Cristina snapped.
"I think you might be the nazi," Meredith said.
"Damn right."
"What's the diagnosis?" Owen said approaching Cristina at the nurse's station.
"Uh, she needs a valve replacement, and tests were indicative of von Willebrand's Disease and now she can't take blood thinners for the mechanical valve so I'm suggesting a porcine valve instead."
"I guess I'll fix the internal bleeding after?" Owen asked.
"I won't know until I get in there," Cristina said as they enter the patient's room.
"We ran some tests on your daughter and we discovered she has a disease in which her blood is clotting properly and she does need a valve replacement but instead of a mechanical valve I'm suggesting a porcine valve instead," Cristina informed them.
"No," the patient said. "I'm an orthodox jew I'm not having a pig in my chest."
"Miss Freedman I value your religious convictions but without this procedure, you will die."
"You're hotshot doctors. You'll come up with something else I don't care what it is as long as it has nothing to do with a pig," the patient said.
"Hotshot doctors," Owen said. "Never heard that before.
"I don't see anything wrong with a porcine valve it's not like it's going to oink at her or something," Cristina said.
"We can't really judge I'm, not an orthodox so I don't understand their morals," Owen said.
"I'm not orthodox either but that doesn't mean they need to bring religion into medicine they're both 2 different things."
"Do you want any help?" Owen offered.
"No this isn't your field your a trauma guy I'm the cardio god I'll think of something," Cristina said
Owen knew she was right he wouldn't have offered if it were someone else. He was willing to help her out.
"You know what I'll be back in 20," Cristina said.
"Hey what are you up to?" Meredith asked.
"Researching," Cristina mumbled. "My stupid patient doesn't want a pig valve in her and wants something that isn't related to Wilbur.
"Or you can secretly use a pig valve its not like she's going to know she'll be under," Meredith suggested.
"Yeah and you can take a kidney out inside of the appendix your patient won't know they'll be under as well."
"Fine. Derek is begging me to kick out Alex and Izzie," Meredith said.
"Since when does he say jump and you jump?" Cristina remarked.
"Well, I'm happy, and isn't marriage suppose to be an adventure?" Mere inquired.
"There it is a bovine xenograft," Cristina said getting up from the nurse's station.
"A bovine mitral valve should be the solution and it's superior to the pig," Cristina said.
"Have you ever done one?" Owen asked Cristina.
"No, but I've seen many of them."
"And the patient is ok with this?" Owen asked.
"Yep Murphy is prepping her now and I guess while I'm there you can treat the internal bleeding," Cristina suggested.
"Sounds like a plan I'll see you up in 10," Owen said.
"I'm going to do a left transverse atriotomy to expose the valve," Cristina said. "Murphy where do you see the regurgitation?"
"It's by the ventricles," Murphy said.
"Looks like someone actually paid attention in med school unlike your other interns," Cristina mumbled.
"So Dr. Yang," Douglas said. "Are you thinking of publishing anytime soon?"
"Well I just started my fellowship so I guess I could," Cristina said. "Suction here Murphy."
"I remember doing my fellowship though my wife wasn't happy with me," Douglas admitted.
"Well lucky for me I have no one waiting for me at home so I can do whatever the hell I want."
"Badass Dr. Yang we rarely see anyone who's as passionate as you isn't that right Dr. Hunt?"
"Very much Dr. Douglas. I never saw that many women in the military mostly us guys," Owen said.
"That went well," Owen said.
"You can say that," Cristina said.
There was an awkward pause before Owen spoke, "I have to go back to Iraq."
"And you're telling me this why?" She asked.
"I just thought you should know considering we've worked together on a few cases."
"But what about the ambush that caused you to lose your whole unit?" Cristina asked.
"Well I was discharged honorably so I'm still eligible to continue and they need a trauma guy up there to train other doctors," Owen said
"Well while your back in the desert don't do anything stupid and get your leg wounded," she joked.
"Aww, You're going to miss me?" He teased her.
"No this is me as a doctor I don't want to have to staple your leg shut again."
"I'll do my best and you try to stay out of trouble." He added.
"Nevermind I wonder how the trauma department is going to be without you here it has been well maintained since you started working here," Cristina said
"Really? Thanks for the compliment, Dr. Yang." He laughed as the doors opened and they walked to the attending lounge.
Cristina headed to the mini kitchen for a snack when her pager suddenly went off and as she was about to grab the door handle Owen grabbed her by her arm his eyes met her brown eyes filled with confusion and he slowly leaned in and began to kiss her. At first, she didn't respond but she slowly eased herself and began to kiss him back. Her pager went off again and she pulled back, "I- I've got to go."
"Yeah go," he said and watched her leave the room. He was leaving tomorrow how could he be so foolish? Now that he was going back on duty he was going to miss her even though he barely knew her she was the type of person he needs in his life and who he thought about after he left Seattle after that car crash. It's like she had some superpower over him to make him think about her without her knowing.
Cristina sat down next to Meredith with a defeated force, banging her tray while doing so. Nobody flinched or bothered to look away from their food or conversation. To them, this was just Cristina being herself all Cristina could think about was Owen. Why had he kissed her? He was leaving tomorrow there was no need to relive what happened the night he pulled out her icicle all Mcbadass. She took a bite of her sandwich and swallowed it after barely chewing it. She grabbed her fork and stabbed her salad harder than usual.
Meredith looked at her, one eyebrow raised, "What's wrong with you?"
"Nothing."
"Something's wrong with you," Meredith said decidedly.
"I'm just on edge," Cristina said not bothering to look up at her.
"You're always on edge. You're Cristina." Cristina grunted a reply and went back to eating her food. She made eye contact with Meredith and signaled to the bathrooms as she got up from her seat and headed toward them.
"What's wrong Cristina? Did you see do or see something scary?"
"No well kinda... G.I Joe kissed me."
Meredith's jaw dropped, "He kissed you? Why?"
"I don't know it was stupid. It was nothing. It was a stupid nothing."
"He was just telling me he has to go back to the army and then it happened."
"Sounds very romantic," Meredith said.
Cristina glared at her, "No, it's not he's leaving to go back to the army it's like deja vu all over again. I mean he pulls out my icicle, kisses me, leaves, comes back, kisses me again, and is leaving again."
"I think you should find someone to unwind with," Mer joked."
"What like a sex friend?"
"Mmm more like friends with benefits," Meredith added.
"I might be a terrible person but I'm not someone who is going to use some guy for sex," Cristina mentioned.
"I did that and it helped me when Derek chose Addison over me."
"Yeah well, what about that time Derek called you a whore?"
"Haha, very funny look how that turned out I married the man!" Meredith shouted as she left the bathroom.
Cristina sighed and slid down to the floor with her arms around her knees she wasn't Meredith she doesn't go around kissing random men. Why did he have to appear in her life as soon as she was trying to get herself back together?
Hurt, drama, and pain were purely words of the past and she was determined to never look back. It took her over a year to kick those broken pieces to the curb the only thing left in her heart was an enclosed wall to never let anyone get close to her again.