xxvi.  ❝you've been sued❞
10.09

"You've been sued, Callie?" Atlas stepped into the on call room, where he had been paged 9-1-1 by Callie Torres. He's got wide eyes, and he's looking around the room, seeing Callie, Derek and Oliver sitting on the same bed, shoulder to shoulder.

"We're both being sued." Oliver cries out, tears flowing from his eyes like a newborn baby.

Atlas kneels in front of his brother, reaching out and gently placing his hands on his brothers knees. "Ollie, Ollie, it's okay." But that goes through one ear and out the other. The young doctor is hyperventilating and his face is turning beet red.

Atlas doesn't pay attention to when Derek pulls Callie out of the room, but keeps his focus on his brother. He coaches him on taking some air into his lungs until Oliver can form some words. Atlas leans back and pulls the tissues from the bed side table, placing them beside his brothers side.

Oliver wipes at his face, tears messily spreading across his cheeks. "I didn't do anything wrong, Atly." He didn't -- Callie was the one who made the call to do the surgery, she was the one who fought so hard to close him when Oliver fought to recount all the towels and sponges.

Atlas nods his head softly, patting his brothers shoulder. "I know. I'll be with you every step, Ollie." He moves so he's sitting on the bed beside Oliver, and he wraps him in a hug as Oliver starts to sniffle and cry again.

╚═ ☆ ═╝

Oliver stands at the podium, eyes locked on to Travis Reed — the man whose life changed under his and Callie's watch. His voice is steady at first, but the cracks begin to show as the questions had been thrown at him.

"I didn't go into medicine to hurt people, if that's what you're asking. I went into it because I wanted to fix things. I wanted to be the kind of doctor who made people better. Who gave them their lives back, who gave them hope." Oliver spoke, reaching up and wiping the tears gathering in his eyes.

"So what went wrong?" Travis Reeds attorney asked, shifting from foot to foot in front of the stand. "Doctor Lee — Sunny, do you know what went wrong?"

"I — I don't know what went wrong. I can imagine what went wrong, it haunts surgeons in their dreams. I've read the chart a hundred times, I've had my wife read over it a hundred times. I've replayed every second. And I still don't —" His voice falters. He grips the podium tighter, knuckles white, tears are flowing down his cheeks. "I still don't know how it happened. I thought I was helping. I thought I was doing everything right. I'm only a fellow — I shouldn't have been given this much trust, I'm still learning. Travis, I'm so, so sorry. I'm sorry."

He stumbles back from the podium, breath catching in his throat. His attorney — a great paid man who Derek had recommend — reaches out, but Oliver shakes his head, trying to compose himself as he stumbles towards the doors.

The courtroom is silent — not out of judgment, but empathy. Maybe a few are shocked, but they're all watching the young man breaking down.

The judge stands, their gavel on the sound block. "Fifteen minutes recess."

Oliver nods, barely able to speak. Atlas stands from the bench and walks to him, placing a hand on his shoulder and leads him out of the room.

Oliver collapses into the seat beside him outside the court room, shoulders shaking. Callie watches from the back, her own eyes glassy, feeling guilty. She placed this on him, she gave him the responsibility of being a lead surgeon on the case.

And because of it, he was being sued too.

Travis Reed, who had already made up the decision in his head that Oliver wasn't guilty, rolled out to where the young man was sitting.

"I didn't want to ruin your life, Oliver. I just wanted someone to say it mattered. That I mattered." Travis spoke, glancing at Atlas who was staring at him. "I sued because I felt like I didn't matter."

Oliver looks up, eyes red. "You do. You always did. I'm so sorry, Travis."

╚═ ☆ ═╝

The case had been dismissed with Travis Reeds request. He had spoke once the people had gathered back, saying how he had never meant to hurt Oliver or Callie, he just wanted to know why it had happened and to feel like someone felt bad for what had happened.

Oliver passed by Travis and his girlfriend who were chatting about the case, and he handed him an envelope. His backup envelope, one he had shoved into Atlas over the shoulder bag this morning without either realizing. A written letter, a check, a phone number, and a voucher for the best coffee in Seattle.

Cupcakes were scattered around the table when Oliver got home. Lilla, his mother, panicked and baked and baked until there was no tomorrow. She had baked over one hundred and twelve cupcakes, each one looking different than the other.

When Oliver went to sleep, curled up beside Meredith, he replayed everything that had happened. And for the first time in weeks, his slept until his alarm went off in the morning. It didn't haunt his dreams this time, and after the surgery ended behind his closed eyes, he couldn't see anything else.

For once in weeks, it was peaceful.