Paging Payton(A Grey Anatomy/Jackson Avery Fanfic)

F O U R T Y- T H R E E

Payton Arizona

"Jesus Christ, you insolent little- this isn't that complicated" I hissed in pain as one of the residents poked at my port.

"I can take it from here, McAvoy." The poor boy was dismissed as Jackson came into my room. The resident scurried away and I scowled at his back as he scuttled off.

"Are you trying to make another one cry?" Jackson laughed as he took a seat on the stool across from me and began fiddling with the equipment he was attaching to me.

"He was incompetent, he deserved to be yelled at. Besides it's not my fault that all of these residents are weak hearted-"

"Okay, okay that's enough." Jackson laughed again. "I know you're nervous for your first round of chemo but that doesn't mean I can just let you rip into our poor residents."

I stuck my tongue out at him and sat back, trying to calm my nerves as Jackson finished preparing the equipment.

"All right, you're all set. Are you ready?" His voice softened as he turned to look at me. I pursed my lips and nodded my head slowly.

"Hey, you're gonna be okay." Jackson put his hand over mine. "Just relax and it'll be over before you know it." He pressed a kiss to my hair and stepped back to look at me.

"I have to go, I have an exam, but I promise I'll be back as soon as it's over."

"Go, go." I waved him off and he kissed me one more time before making his way down the hall.

I settled myself against the back of the chair and closed my eyes, planning on taking a short nap. After what felt like 2 seconds however, there was a knock on the doorframe and I peeled my eyes open to see Alex, Meredith, and Derek, who was holding Bailey, standing in the doorway.

"What are you all doing here?" I asked. "I thought you guys had a trauma."

"He's chilling." Alex shrugged. When I looked at him with a horrified expression due to his use of slang he laughed and explained, "literally, he's chilling. His temperature spiked and were trying to bring it back down."

I let out a sigh of relief, grateful that Alex wasn't trying to feign youth. "But seriously, why are you guys here? Shouldn't you be out surgeoning?" I joked.

"We are here because it is your first round of chemo and no one deserves to alone for that." Meredith said. "So to cheer you up we've brought you our company and my extremely adorable kid."

"Well," I said, holding my hands out and smiling at Bailey. "Your kid is extremely cute, so I'll allow it. What I won't allow is you all fussing over something that isn't a big deal. Go, get back to work and let me have some quality time with this handsome man." I gushed over the toddler.

Meredith squeezed my hand and Alex kissed me on the forehead before leaving the room. Derek, however, stayed behind.

"How are things between you two? Any better?" I asked him the question he was avoiding bringing up.

"Not much. I leave again in a week, which she isn't happy about. She's trying to pretend she's okay with it all, but she isn't." I put my hand over his, trying to reassure him.

"Is this first trial goes well, I'll be in DC for a few months. Of course, I'll try and sneak home for a few days at a time, but you know Meredith, she hates that there's no guarantee."

"Things will get better, I promise. Besides, you'll have to come home for the end of the month. I mean, who else is gonna remove my brain tumors? You didn't think I'd let just anyone poke around in there, did you?" I teased. Derek did not find my joke funny, looking at me in horror.

"Oh come on, we both know that eventually your gonna have to crack me open and do some maintenance." I said.

"But- the chemo. You're doing the chemtherapy and you start radiation soon-" His words came out breathless and confused.

"Derek, you're one of the most talented brain surgeons to ever live. You've seen my scans, chemo and high does radiation are solely to prevent the cancer from metastasizing so quickly and if I'm lucky it'll shrink the tumors a millimeter or two.  But it's not curative, you know that." I knew my argument was solid,but I was reassured when Derek didn't say anything, he just gave me that sympathetic look that everyone gives me.

"So, I have a plan. After a few more treatments we're gonna run a full work up again and then we're gonna see how bad things are. Meredith and Bailey will take care of my pancreas and wherever else the disease has spread,Maggie has already agreed to try and salvage my lungs, and you sir- you're going to try not to lobotomize me." I smiled and Derek tried not to look sick.

"Alright," I said, breaking the awkward tension in the room. "Go away now. I know you have things to do and Bailey and I have interns to teach." I bounced the gurgling child on my knee.

"Interns?" Derek questioned.

"Hey, I may not be able to operate myself, but that doesn't mean I can't teach my interns how to not kill people. Besides, if there's any hope of me miraculously not having to completely restart this program over, I can't be out of practice. Boards are coming up quicker than you'd think and living vicariously through those hooligans are what's gonna get me closest to real world experience. Well, other than the medical anomaly living inside of me." I smiled wide and Derek shook his head at me. I shooed him away and started preparing for my interns.

"Dr Arizona," I heard a hesitant voice say from the doorway. Without looking up from the charts I had placed in front of me I told the interns to come in. "You were supposed to be here 45 minutes ago, you're all late."

After a few seconds of no response came another voice, this one more urgent. "Dr. Arizona." I looked up from my binder at the catastrophe that was standing in my doorway.

"Oh god." I muttered. "Alright, someone get me a wheelchair, someone else, take the baby."

Here is a super short chapter with some really shitty dialogue. Enjoy :)