Medical Center
As always, Adam's team of angels put on a performance that turned heads. 😎
This time, even Cristina and Meredith felt the heat big-time.
"Ugh, that damn photographic memory!"
As they headed to the second ward, Cristina whispered to Meredith, venting her frustration: "Adam's got it, fine, but Little Grey too? That's just unfair—like, total cheat mode!" 😤
Meredith stayed quiet.
The blow to her confidence was hitting her a hundred times harder than it was Cristina.
In her eyes, it was personal. Growing up, her dad picked Lexie over her, leaving her in the dust. And now, the surgical chief—who'd always had this subtle dad-vibe with her—first chewed her out with harsh words, then turned around and showered Lexie with praise and warm smiles.
It felt like a double slap to the face. 😞
"Meredith, you okay?" Cristina finally noticed her bestie wasn't herself.
"I'm fine," Meredith said, shaking her head.
But like some pro who'd recorded "Up, Up, Boob Workout" once said: lying and shutting down are the first signs things are about to get worse.
Cristina, being a doctor, knew this all too well. But they were mid-rounds, with the surgical chief's eagle eyes on them—and she was already in hot water herself—so she shoved her worry aside and focused on the job.
"Jack Aubrey, 47, admitted for an abdominal aortic aneurysm. Latest CT shows calcification, so I booked a CT angiogram to check if the tumor's worsening or holding steady," Cristina reported smoothly.
"Nice work, Dr. Yang. Take him for it after rounds," Dr. Burke said, flipping through the chart with a satisfied nod. 👍
Sure, Cristina's basics weren't at master-surgeon level yet, but her skills? They could go toe-to-toe with most senior residents. She wasn't just answering questions anymore—she was jumping into diagnoses and treatments headfirst.
That's the first step to being a doctor who can stand on their own.
"Dr. Yang, you're done here," the surgical chief cut in, strolling over. "Dr. Grey's taking over."
"…" Cristina was speechless for a sec.
Did her bestie just swoop in and steal her thunder? But she caught on quick—the chief knew she'd already nailed this case type, so he was handing it off to someone who hadn't, giving Cristina a chance to tackle something new or brush up on stuff she'd dodged before.
"Damn it! Stupid tire!"
Meredith was pushing Mr. Aubrey in a wheelchair for his CT when it got stuck. Already in a lousy mood, she let out a colorful curse. 😡
"It's not your fault," Mr. Aubrey said, trying to comfort her. "It's me. This is just how things go with stuff around me."
"Huh?" Meredith crouched to check the wheelchair, looking up at him, confused.
"Last month, my toaster broke, my cat ran off, and my back door collapsed," Mr. Aubrey said with a resigned shrug. "TV's just static green now…"
"I'll grab you a new wheelchair," Meredith cut in. She was a walking disaster herself and wasn't in the mood to hear another sob story.
Someone else's bad luck wasn't gonna make her feel better.
"No need to fuss. Maybe I'm safer walking," Mr. Aubrey said, standing up.
"No, Mr. Aubrey, you have to stay in the chair!" Meredith spun around, raising her voice. "Hospital rules!"
Thud!
Cue the classic slip-and-fall—Mr. Aubrey hit the floor hard, landing square on his butt. 😬
"Mr. Aubrey, you okay?!" Meredith forgot her own woes and rushed to help him up.
"I'm fine, I'm fine," he said calmly. "I survived three car wrecks last year. This is nothing."
"What happened?" The surgical chief stormed in, got the rundown, apologized profusely to Mr. Aubrey, then turned to Meredith with a dark glare.
"Do the CT, then report his status to me every hour, Dr. Grey. Can you handle that?"
"Yes," Meredith nodded, no choice but to agree.
CT Room
"Sorry, looks like I got you in trouble," Mr. Aubrey said. He wasn't the type to shift blame. Plus, he'd accepted his cursed luck dragging others down with him.
"It's okay," Meredith managed a weak smile.
After getting him into the CT room, the surgical chief—too antsy to wait an hour—followed right behind.
"How's he doing? Think we're looking at a lawsuit?"
"I don't think so. He's not that kind of guy," Meredith said, avoiding his gaze.
And then—bam! Sparks flew, lightning cracked, and the CT machine flatlined. 😵
"…" Meredith's lip twitched. Okay, Mr. Aubrey was officially the king of bad luck.
Once the chief and team hauled him out:
"I'm so sorry. Dr. Grey, you're gonna treat him like royalty!" the chief barked, practically losing it. "You hear me? Mr. Aubrey, you're our VIP today. I'm getting Dr. Duncan to operate on you personally!"
"Thanks," Mr. Aubrey said with a chill vibe, accepting the apology and the offer with a self-deprecating chuckle.
"My wife left me, my accountant stole all my money, my workplace burned down. I get diagnosed with an aneurysm, and now this hospital's got it out for me. God's really got a grudge." 😅
"Don't worry, once Dr. Duncan's here, it'll all turn around," Meredith said, setting her own gloom aside to cheer him up. "They call him 'Adam's Hands'—God's favorite. With him, your luck's gotta change."
Seeing someone as unlucky as Mr. Aubrey, Meredith suddenly felt like her problems weren't so bad.
Hmm. She'd been wrong—someone else's misery could lighten her own.
Meanwhile, Adam was mid-surgery with Carter when he got the chief's request and gave a quick "Got it."
Mr. Aubrey's legendary bad luck spread through the hospital like wildfire.
A short intern shadowing Adam's clinical research project perked up at the news. Eyes gleaming, she grabbed the latest patient application list and made a beeline for Mr. Aubrey.
"What are you doing?" Meredith gaped when she saw what the intern was up to.
"Just asking Mr. Aubrey for a favor," the intern said coolly, glancing at Meredith.
"It's fine," Mr. Aubrey said with a grin. "Happy to help."
"You've really got that Adam vibe," Meredith muttered through gritted teeth.
"Thanks!" The intern flashed a smug smile. "Dr. Duncan's always been my idol and goal."
Meredith watched helplessly as Mr. Aubrey took the pen from the intern and, on her list, checked off the "lucky" patient he thought should get treatment first.
She'd just rearranged the priority rankings.
That move? Pure Adam energy! 😏
(End of Chapter)