After All This Time
By Bella Taggart
Part 5/?
Erica took the stand and shook Richard's hand.
"Thank you Richard."
After he moved away, leaving her alone in the center of everyone's attention, she turned towards the crowd, took a deep breath and standing still, slowly looked around. There was absolute silence in the room, the gatherers waiting expectantly to hear what the new chief of surgery had to say. This was after all the first time most of them were meeting Erica Hahn, and this initial meet would be where they formed their first opinions of her. As though she knew this, she stood still, almost allowing people to fully take her in, as she took them in, in return.
She was wearing a burgundy shirt under her white doctors' coat. Her hair was tied back in a ponytail. Single diamond studs adorned each ear. Her subtle makeup brought color to her cheeks and accentuated her strong eyes, without being overwhelming by any stretch of the word. She looked classy; she looked sharp.
She looked around making eye contact with curious eyes, and after what seemed like an entirely too long moment of silence Erica started speaking.
"I'll make this short. When I left here 3 years ago, Seattle Grace ranked as the 12th teaching hospital in the nation. Today, I see that many things have changed in my absence," she said. Callie felt her breath hitch as Erica's eyes came to rest on hers. After a moment she continued, "You have moved forward in your quest to better yourselves and as a result have bettered the lives of others. I know that you have worked very hard, and it has paid off."
She spoke briskly, clearly and confidently. Her words were to the point as expected. She wasn't going to waste anyone's time today, especially not hers.
"Today, Seattle Grace has a respectable ranking of being the 5th best teaching hospital in the nation. You have been re-instated to a number 1 trauma center which means that you are able to treat thousands of more lives now than you would have been able to 3 years ago.
Richard is right, you have achieved greatness." She looked back at Richard and smiled at him in salute.
"Even though we might have had our differences in the past, we have always shared a common goal: our commitment to making Seattle Grace the best teaching hospital in the nation, and our commitment to providing the best possible patient care. This will never change and I promise you that everything I do from this day forward will be to serve that purpose.
I thank you Richard for all that you have given this hospital. Through your guidance this hospital has, as they say, swam and swam and come to the last lap."
She paused once again allowing the crowd to applaud in appreciation of the retiring chief. Richard tipped his head in acknowledgement, looking proud. When they stopped, she turned once again towards the crowd.
"But there is more to do. There is always more to do.
Medicine is a profession that requires. You are required to use your knowledge, I will ask you to build on it. You are required to search; I will ask you to find. You are required to be strong; I will ask you to be stern.
You are required to work hard; I will ask you to work harder. You are required to be your best, know this; I will ask you for more.
If you cannot deliver, you do not belong here.
But I believe that you can. And that you will. That is why I came back.
We will be all that, and more and I promise you, together we will swim this last lap and claim our rightful place on the top of that list, but more importantly, we will change the face of medicine. Thank you."
The crowd started clapping, hesitantly at first, no one missing the not so subtle warning in her words, than more freely, joyously as the rest of her words registered. She was going to lead them to victory. Soon the combined sound of clapping snowballed into one of a fiercely turning propeller's.
Richard got up and shook Erica's hand once again, Derek was also there, nodding along and congratulating her. The energy vibrating in the room could be felt all the way in the back where Callie stood. People applauded and they didn't seem to be slowing down any time soon. Finally, Erica held up a hand and silenced the crowd once again.
"We are in the business of making miracles happen, miracles take work. So let's get to it, shall we?"
It was pretty cliché, but it served its purpose and people started moving with a glow across their faces.
* * * * * * *
"What the fuck just happened?" Callie gasped, as the crowd started breaking up.
"I tried to tell you." Christina said shaking her head in worry. "Are you okay?"
"I need to sit down."
"Come on, let's get some air." She led her by the arm towards the exit. They passed through the revolving doors and came to a stop in front of Erica's bench.
Great, Callie was already back to referring to places according to their association with Erica. It had taken her over a year to stop doing that. A year until Erica's locker was no longer her locker, until the table they always had lunch together was no longer her table. A year until this damn bench where she had first kissed Erica was no longer Erica's bench.
She was back for less than 30 minutes and already she was reclaiming her spots in Callie's mind. This was not good. Callie shook her head in frustration.
"Sit down" Christina ordered.
Callie flopped down next to her, her mouth open, her eyes still wide in disbelief.
"Are you okay?"
"Who fucking does that?" she mumbled, still shaking her head. "I saw her a few days ago, but she never said…"
"You did?"
"That's what I was telling you. She told me she was here for work but not this, nothing like this."
"That's why you left for New York."
Christina's words were more a statement than a question. Callie nodded all the same. Turning to look at Christina directly in the eyes, she asked, "I mean, what the fuck is she doing here?"
"I don't know."
"Of all the places in the country…fuck, fuck, fuck" Callie repeated as a mantra under her breath, her hand tapping an out of control beat on the bench, until Christina reached over and held her wrist, stilling her. "This is why you should never switch off your phone." She said, after a moment, trying to lighten the mood.
"Humph…now I know."
Callie lifted the corners of her mouth into a pitiful smile, and squeezed her friend's hand in thanks.
They sat in silence for a minute or so, Christina allowing her to regroup, until finally Callie stood up and started pacing. "Seriously though, what is she doing here?"
Christina shrugged, shaking her head "It's crazy, you're right."
"When did you find out?"
"Yesterday. Bailey told Derek, Derek told Mark, and he told me. I..I called you."
"I know, I know…Why do you think she's back? There must have been other job offers, she could have gone anywhere."
Christina stood up to stand next to her. "You can talk to her and find out."
"I'm not speaking to her!" Callie cried, shaking her head vehemently. "Forget it, as far as I'm concerned we don't ever have to talk again."
"Well, you're gonna have to talk at some point."
"Yes, for work, but other than that, there is no reason we have to speak." She started walking back towards the building, with Christina on her tail. After only a few steps she stopped and faced her friend, her brows knitted in frustration. "I did that once and see where that got me."
She was speaking fast, her voice barely controlled in a whisper, her hands up in the air emphasizing her points.
"I was polite, friendly even and she couldn't tell me she was gonna be my boss? She obviously didn't think I was important enough to tell. She obviously doesn't think we have anything left to talk about. And you know what? I agree with her. We don't have anything to talk about. We can just go ahead and be colleagues. She can direct her little hospital; I will break my bones, and we will be fine. I'll be fine. In fact, I'm already fine. I mean, let's not exaggerate the situation here. This is someone I thought I cared about for about 2 minutes a long, long time ago; this is not the end of the world. So, screw her. Right? Screw her. I'm fine. I'm great."
She finished, crossing her arms in front of her, breathing heavily through her nose. Her chin locked as she looked up and down the exterior of the hospital building.
After a moment, Christina flatly asked. "Feel better?"
Callie looked back at her friend and smiled, relaxing her muscles. She opened her mouth and took in a deep breath.
"Yes, thanks"
"Ready to go back in?"
"Sure" she nodded as they started walking back.
After the 30 feet it took them to pass the doors and enter the building, they walked across the lobby and came to stop in front of the elevators. Christina pressed the up button and they waited silently.
The lobby was back to its normal state now, with the 2 security guards back behind their desk and the few faces lingering in the gift shop. Callie and Christina were the last ones of the crowd that had gathered, the rest were already seemingly back at work.
When, after long minutes, the elevator finally beeped and opened its doors, only 2 other people joined them in the cabin. A general surgeon named Charles and a woman that worked in administration, whose name Callie couldn't remember.
"Hey Torres," He greeted as he and his companion walked in to stand behind her in the cabin.
"Charles."
Callie and Christina stood in the front, both looking up at the numbers as they moved up on the panel above the doors, pretending to give the other two a false sense of privacy, as they spoke amongst themselves.
They were talking about Erica, how she was an excellent surgeon, and how he would give an arm to see her in action. Callie took a deep breath at that, rolling her eyes.
People were going to have to be on their toes from now on cause Dr. Hahn didn't seem like the tolerant kind, the woman said, and something else under her breath, which Callie couldn't hear, but which made him chuckle in response.
Callie realized she would have to get used to this. People would likely be talking about her ex for days to come, at the very least. She would have to get used to a lot of things she wasn't going to like, she suspected.
After the others left and they were alone and only a few floors away from Callie's destination, Christina tipped her head towards Callie and whispered.
"You don't believe that"
"Hmm?"
"The two minute thing, about Erica."
Callie let out a long breath, looked down at her feet and back up, straight ahead as the doors opened. She walked out and right before they closed back, she turned back towards her friend in the cabin and smiling sadly, whispered.
"Give me time"
Continued...