126. A Bit of Hope

Disclaimer: I don't own TV shows.

Thank you as always for your patience! Enjoy!

Meredith arrived at the hospital to check on Adam within the hour, and she wasted no time on running every test she could think of shortly thereafter. So far, everything seemed normal. He wasn't cyanotic, had no apparent heart condition, and his breathing was regular. But to rule out any possible problems, Meredith sent him down to radiology for a CT. She stood outside the booth and waited until he was finished, so she could look over the scans.

She leaned her head against the wall and sighed. Before she was a parent, getting paged back in after completing a full shift wasn't a big deal. But since Lilly was born, switching back into doctor mode was a huge sacrifice, and if she'd been paged in for any other patient, she would have passed the page along to someone else. This was different, though. Adam already felt like her nephew, and right now, he needed her.

"Dr. Grey, scans are coming up now," the tech, Paul, said from the booth.

"Okay," Meredith said, stepping back inside and dropping into a chair in front of the monitor. Scans of Adam's lungs flashed up onto the screen, first from one angle, then another, and another, and another. Meredith examined each one closely, looking for even the slightest indication that something was wrong, but found nothing. "These look normal to me, but I'm going to page respiratory to make sure."

"Alright, I'll get him out of there," Paul said.

"Thank you."

While the tech was getting Adam from the CT, Meredith made a quick phone call to Derek to keep him posted. She pressed number one on speed dial, and the phone rang only once before he answered.

"Hey," Derek said from the other end. "Any news?"

"He just had a CT of his lungs. Everything checks out normal. If respiratory gives him the all clear, I have to start looking for other causes," Meredith said. "Where are you?"

"In bed with Lilly. She fell asleep on my chest after I gave her a bottle and burped her," Derek said.

Meredith smiled at the thought, wanting nothing more than to be there, curled up next to both of them. "Okay, good," she said. "Did Amy and Tom seem suspicious after I left?"

"No, they didn't say anything," Derek assured her. "So, do you think you'll make it home tonight?"

"I don't know. He's stable right now. If I think it's safe, I can hold off on doing any tests until morning," Meredith said, checking her watch before yawning. "I'm already exhausted."

"If you're too tired to drive, I can come get you."

"I might hold you to that," Meredith managed to laugh. "Okay, well, I'll keep you updated if I find anything out. Give Lilly a kiss for me."

Derek leaned down and pressed a few kisses to the top of Lilly's head. "From you to Lilly," he said.

"Thank you," Meredith smiled. "Love you."

"I love you, too. Call me whenever," Derek said.

"Okay, I will. Bye."

"Bye."

Meredith hung up the phone and dropped it into the pocket of her white coat, the rounded the corner to meet Adam. When she saw that the tech was about to lay him in an incubator to transport him, Meredith reached her arms out. "That's okay. I'll hold him."

"Okay," he nodded, passing Adam into her arms. "Would you like me to page respiratory for you?"

"That would be great; thank you," Meredith said. She held Adam close to her chest and walked toward the elevator. "I'm gonna figure this out, I promise," she told the baby, who gripped onto her scrub top with his small hand.

She pushed the elevator button, and the doors opened almost immediately, courtesy of the nearly empty hospital traffic at night. Once the doors reopened on the OB floor, she headed toward the nursery. She saw his empty isolette with the blue blanket and small, beige teddy bear she'd bought for him, and sat down in the nearby rocking chair.

"Getting sleepy?" Meredith asked him, noticing how his eyelids were getting heavier every time he blinked. "That's okay. Try to sleep."

One of the night nurses, Megan, walked in holding a newborn, and gently placed her back in her isolette, smiling at the little girl, then at Meredith. "How's he doing?"

Meredith looked up. "Oh. I'm not sure yet. He just got a CT," she said. "Were you here when... whatever happened, happened?"

"Yeah, he was doing fine. I fed him his usual bottle, and he fell asleep. An hour later, he woke up screaming. His face was bright red, then he started with the coughing and the hiccups, and wouldn't calm down. It was hard to get clear lung sounds with the stethoscope. He was so wheezy from crying," Megan explained. "Your name's been on his chart since he was born, and we know you spend a lot of time with him, so you seemed like the logical one to page."

"Has he ever gotten fussy after his feedings before?" Meredith asked.

"Occasionally, but that's pretty typical of newborns," Megan said.

"Okay," Meredith said, anxious to get some answers from respiratory. She checked her watch, and saw that it was a quarter after nine, which wasn't exactly late, but with her own baby at home, every minute spent here was time away from where she really wanted to be.

There was a short knock at the nursery entrance, and Cristina walked in, surprised to see Meredith sitting there. "Wait, these are Adam's scans?" she asked, holding them up.

"I didn't know you were on call tonight," Meredith said in relief, knowing that if there was one cardio resident she could trust to give her accurate information, it was Cristina.

"Yeah. Are you?" Cristina asked.

Meredith shook her head. "No, I got paged in for Adam. Is he okay?"

"Scans are clear. His lungs are fine," Cristina replied. "Does Derek's sister know why you're here?"

"No, Derek and I didn't want to scare them if it was something minor, but now it just means there's something else wrong with him," Meredith said, glancing at an empty bottle sitting on the counter top. The more she put the puzzle pieces together, the more things started to make sense. "You know what? I don't think it's a respiratory thing."

"What?" Cristina asked, confused.

"I think he has acid reflux. I want to schedule an upper GI X-ray tomorrow, which means he can't eat for the next twelve hours," Meredith said, glancing at her watch again. "When was his last feeding?"

"He was finished around 7:30," Megan answered.

"Okay. Maybe Robbins can do it tomorrow morning," Meredith said.

"I'll call down to the nurses' station on the surgical floor, and make sure she's available," Megan said as she finished re-swaddling a nearby infant.

"Thank you," Meredith said.

"Are you staying here all night?" Cristina asked.

Meredith sighed, resting her head on the back of the rocking chair. "Wasn't planning on it, but I don't want to leave him here alone, especially if he gets fussy again."

Cristina gestured for Meredith to get up so she could take her seat. "I have to be here anyway. I'll sit here."

"You'd really sit in the hospital nursery holding a baby, surrounded by other babies?" Meredith asked in disbelief.

"I'll basically be taking a glorified nap, disguised as patient monitoring. If I'm in here, at least I won't get paged down to the pit to deal with the late night idiocies," Cristina shrugged.

Meredith smiled, impressed by her friend's willingness to help, and she decided to press her luck. "Will you assist Robbins with his X-ray tomorrow, too?"

Cristina exhaled slowly as she dropped down into the rocking chair. "Only if nothing better comes along. Why? Won't you be here?"

"I'm not scheduled to come in until nine, and in case I can't get here before then, I want to at least know he's with people I know," Meredith said, gently passing Adam over to her.

"Fine. I'll do it. But you owe me," Cristina compromised, making a face when Adam blew a bubble with his mouth. "Eww, he's spitting."

Meredith couldn't help but laugh as she wiped the minuscule amount of drool off Adam's lip with her finger. "It's probably a good thing you don't have kids. If you think spit is gross, try changing a dirty diaper in the middle of the night with your phone tucked under your chin for light."

"You're the one that purposefully got herself knocked up," Cristina pointed out.

"Yes, I did. And now, I'm gonna go home, and see my beautiful, perfect baby, and try to get some sleep before I have to come back here in eleven hours," Meredith said, draping Adam's blanket over his back to keep him warm. "You sure you don't mind staying here with him?"

"No, I'm good," Cristina yawned.

"And remember, he can't eat until he has the test," Meredith said.

Cristina made sure Adam was settled on her chest before waving Meredith out of the room. "Got it. Now go."

"Thank you," Meredith said. She quietly pulled open the door to the nursery, and walked as quickly as she could back to the elevator before Cristina had the chance to change her mind.

...

When Meredith finally made it back home, she barely had enough energy to change into some sweats and crawl into bed. Derek lay sleeping with his nose pressed to Lilly's cheek, and Meredith smiled, leaning down to kiss both of them.

Derek stirred as he woke up, and he propped his head up on his hand, careful not to wake Lilly. "Did you just get in?"

"Yeah," Meredith nodded. "I didn't mean to wake you."

"No, it's fine. So, what's going on? Is Adam okay?" Derek asked.

"Nothing's wrong with his lungs. I scheduled a GI for him tomorrow morning with Robbins," Meredith said.

Derek frowned. "A GI? You think he might have a hiatal hernia or something?"

"I don't know yet. I'm hoping it's just acid reflux, and there's a quick fix that doesn't involve surgery."

"Which would delay the adoption process," Derek finished.

"Yeah," Meredith sighed, rubbing her finger over Lilly's arm. "We kind of have to tell Amy and Tom."

"I know. We'll tell them in the morning. Maybe they can come up to see him afterward. They don't need to be at the airport until six, so at least they'll be able to spend some time with him," Derek said, leaning over to hug her.

"Sucks that they have to leave," Meredith said. She hugged him back, resting her chin on his shoulder. "I just keep thinking what if it were Lilly. I don't know what I'd do if I had to leave her here, knowing she's sick, and fly across the country without her."

"I know. But we'll be here. We'll take care of him," he said.

Lilly made a soft sighing sound as she woke up, and they both looked down when they heard her. She smiled up at them sleepily as she stretched her little arms and legs. Meredith knew she should just let her fall back to sleep, but she couldn't help but pick her up. "Even when we accidentally wake you up, you're in a good mood."

"She shares that shiny, happy, just-woke-up demeanor with me," Derek grinned, kissing the top of Lilly's head.

Meredith laughed. "Well, she definitely didn't get it from me."

"Maybe I'll bring her up to the hospital tomorrow. We can all have lunch together in the cafeteria. At the very least, it'll take their minds off Adam for a while," Derek said.

"That sounds good," Meredith yawned, watching as Lilly nuzzled her face into her chest. "Are you hungry, peanut?"

Derek took Lilly while Meredith got situated, propping a pillow behind her back so she could nurse. "Do you have any surgeries scheduled for tomorrow?"

"A brain biopsy, and a shunt placement with Nelson, but those are quick. And if something happens with Adam, he'll let me scrub out. You know, he said I'm the best neuro resident he's ever worked with," Meredith said.

"He's right."

Meredith smirked as he handed Lilly back to her. "Of course you're gonna say that. I give you sex."

"Sex or not, it's just the truth," Derek upheld, wrapping his arm around her. "Although, the sex is certainly a perk."

Meredith rested her head on his shoulder. "Yes it is."

...

It was 9:00 the next morning when Arizona and Cristina took Adam back for his GI X-ray. Meredith sat in her scrubs in the waiting room, Lilly on her lap, sitting next to Derek. Amy, Tom, and Kyle sat on the other side of the small table, nerves running high as they all waited for Cristina to come out with an update, eager for any news.

"It usually takes about twenty minutes, so they should be coming out soon," Meredith said. When she and Derek had told them about Kyle this morning, they'd taken the news well; but like any other parents, even potential ones, they were scared, so the least Meredith could do was try to offer some relief.

"He couldn't be in better hands. Dr. Robbins is one of the best peds. surgeons in the country," Derek added.

"Not that we think he'll need surgery. But if he does, she's the one you want," Meredith said, turning Lilly around so she could look over her shoulder to watch the hustle and bustle of the hospital to keep her entertained.

"Hi, pretty girl," came Arizona's voice behind them as she waved at Lilly.

They all straightened in their seats as they waited for whatever news she had to give. Derek turned around in his chair and smiled, keeping his demeanor calm and optimistic. "So, how'd it go?"

"He did great. Dr. Yang's taking him back to the nursery now to eat. I put a rush on the X-rays, so they should be developed within the hour. Then Dr. Bailey and I are going to look over them, and we'll give you some answers as soon as we can," Arizona said.

"Do you think it's anything serious?" Amy asked.

"It's hard to say without seeing the X-ray results; but based on my personal assessment, I think it's probably just acid reflux. I see it in preemies all the time. But if not, then we'll fix whatever's wrong. At this point, there's no reason to worry," Arizona assured them.

"Will we be able to see him?" Tom asked.

Arizona nodded. "Of course. We just want to get him settled first. He wasn't too happy about not getting his bottle this morning, but once he eats, I'm sure he'll be up for some visitors," she joked. "Are you leaving today?"

"Yeah, we have to be at this airport in the late afternoon," Amy replied.

"I'll talk to Dr. Halloran, and make sure you guys get to spend as much time with him as you can," Arizona said.

"Thank you," Tom said, repositioning Kyle on his lap.

"My pleasure," she said. "I'll let you know when Dr. Bailey and I have reviewed the results, and we can meet in the conference room. I'll make sure the social workers are there, too."

Meredith smiled, tilting her head as Lilly grabbed a fistful of her hair. "Okay."

Arizona returned a polite smiled before turning around and walking back down the hall. Derek leaned forward in his chair, running a hand through his hair. "So far, so good," he said.

"Yeah. No reason to worry if we don't even know if we have to," Meredith agreed, patting Lilly's bottom. "She has my hair in her mouth, which is usually her hint that she's hungry, so I'm gonna go feed her before surgery."

"You can go with her if you want, Derek. Kyle's been asking to go on elevator rides since we got off the plane," Tom said.

Kyle looked up at his dad with wide eyes. "Can we?"

"Sure. Come on, buddy. Let's go," Amy said as they all got up out of their chairs. "If you hear any news, just call us."

"We will," Derek promised, smiling as the three walked down the hall toward the elevators. He put his hand on the small of Meredith's back as they headed for his office so she could nurse. "If the tests come back and it's something serious..."

"Hey, you're the optimistic one. Don't flake out on me," Meredith laughed softly.

"I'm not. It's just hard. Amy's my little sister. I don't like seeing her upset, that's all," Derek shrugged.

"I know. Let's just wait and see."

Derek nodded. "Yeah. Okay."

...

An hour passed before Meredith got the page from Arizona, who wanted to discuss Adam and how his test results would bode on the adoption process. They all met in the conference room within minutes. Family on one side of the table; Adam's doctors and social workers on the other.

Meredith held Lilly in the crook of her arm, fast asleep after nursing. She rubbed her fingers over the baby's tiny hand, smiling at the indents of her knuckles. She knew every perfect detail of her daughter, and seeing Amy and Tom go through all this made her appreciate each one of those details even more.

Once everyone was settled with the results and mountains of paperwork on hand, Arizona began speaking, a reassuring smile on her face. "Dr. Bailey and I reviewed the scans, and we saw no indications of a hiatal hernia, or any esophageal damage, which means he won't need surgery."

There was a collective sigh of thanks in the room, and Tom grabbed a hold of Amy's hand. "So, he's okay, then? Did you find anything?"

"It's nothing more than acid reflux, which is very common in preemies. That's why it's important to be vigilant with burping him after his feedings; otherwise, it could potentially get worse, in which case, he may need surgery to repair his esophagus. But because we caught it early, there's a far less chance of it ever progressing to that point," Arizona explained.

"Okay," Amy exhaled. "So, we just need to thicken his formula with rice cereal, right?"

Arizona nodded. "Nine times out of ten, that's all it takes. It's a quick fix, and it'll ensure that his food stays digested and doesn't back up into his esophagus. Just to be on the safe side, I'm recommending that he spend an additional two weeks here. Normally, I'd suggest one week; maybe even just a few days. But I went to the Chief and explained the circumstances, and he granted an additional week here, just to give us a time cushion. "

"Would that delay the option for temporary custody from going through?" Derek asked.

Michelle, who was Amy and Tom's social worker, shook her head. "Not necessarily. During the extra two weeks he spends here, I'm going to fly back to New York, and take care of things on that end. Your name is in the system from last time, and your verification and clearances are still current. At this point, it's just a matter of covering all our bases: making sure Adam is healthy enough to be put into your care, and getting everything signed and stamped," Michelle said.

"What do you think the chances are of us being given temporary custody?" Tom asked.

"I'm going to be on the agency like glue to make sure your paperwork is processed. And in situations like this, because he's a preemie with a possible need for special care, the agency won't shuffle its feet because of liability reasons. I'd say your chances are pretty good," Michelle replied.

"If all goes well, then in two weeks, I'd fly out with Adam as Seattle Grace's social work rep., and Michelle and I would finalize everything, in which case you would be granted temporary custody until we could schedule a hearing with a judge, who would grant Adam's legal, permanent adoption," Karen added.

"It's hard to put an exact time line on situations like this, but assuming that the request for temporary custody goes through, he'd be placed in your care by the end of October or early November, and you'd get a hearing six to eight weeks later," Michelle said.

"So, they'd have custody over Thanksgiving and Christmas?" Meredith clarified.

"That's the hope, yes," Michelle replied. "I'm flying back to New York with Amy and Tom tonight, and first thing tomorrow, I'm going to get the ball rolling."

"Thank you," Amy said softly, overcome with relief. She looked to Arizona. "Can we see him?"

"Absolutely. Take as much time as you'd like," Arizona agreed.

Meredith took Derek's hand and squeezed it, smiling at him. "See? Everything has a way of working out."

Derek glanced at Lilly, who held Meredith's finger while she slept. If there was anyone who understood the truth to that statement, it was him. He smiled back at her. "Yeah. It does."

...

The bags were packed and loaded into the car, awaiting the trip back to New York. Derek would be driving Amy, Tom, and Kyle to the airport to catch their flight while Meredith stayed home with Lilly. It had been a busy few days, the result of which would hopefully be a beautiful, little boy joining their family.

Amy tucked a small photo of Adam that the nurses had given her into her wallet for safe keeping, then she reached out her arms to hug Derek. "Thank you for everything," she said.

Derek kissed Amy's cheek as he hugged her back. "I didn't do anything. You guys are the ones who are gonna give Adam a family."

"Yes, but without you and Meredith, we never would have known he even existed; then, who knows what would have happened to him?" Amy said, switching out a hug with Derek for Meredith, Lilly between them. "Thank you."

Meredith wrapped her free hand around her sister-in-law and smiled. "We'll make sure to visit him every day. And call whenever you want."

"We'll even put Adam on the phone if you want us to," Derek chuckled.

"Really?" Kyle asked excitedly.

"Really," Derek echoed, ruffling his nephew's hair, then kissing his forehead. "I love you, buddy."

"Thanks for letting us stay here, too. With everything going on, we appreciate that more than you know," Tom said.

"It's no problem. We wanted to show off Lilly, anyway," Derek joked.

"Kathleen, Nancy, and Liz are already jealous that I got to meet her before any of them," Amy laughed. "And you all better be there on Thanksgiving."

"Wouldn't miss it," Derek assured her. "We'll set up an extra spot at the table for Adam, too."

Amy smiled at her brother. "Before we go, Tom and I wanted to tell you that if all of this works out, and Adam is ours one day, we're giving him your middle name. Christopher was Dad's middle name, and when you were born, Mom and Dad gave it to you. And whether you take credit or not, you're the reason we might have another son, so we wanted to say thank you by letting Adam share something with you," she said, wiping away her tears with the sleeve of her sweater.

"Ames, that's..." Derek said softly, bereft of a response. He nodded slowly in appreciation, and Meredith could see the tears in his eyes. "Thank you."

"We're honored to do it," Tom said, shaking Derek's hand, then Meredith's. "Thanks for everything."

Amy reached for Lilly's small hand, and held it in hers, pressing kisses to the back of it. "We love you, Lilly. We can't wait to see you again at Thanksgiving. And you know, your Mommy and Daddy are the best parents you could ever hope to have, and I mean that," she said.

"Thank you, Amy," Meredith said sincerely.

"Bye, Lilly. Bye, Aunt Meredith," Kyle waved.

Meredith waved back at him. "Bye, sweetie. Thanks for helping us so much with Lilly and keeping her entertained. I think she really loves you."

"Uh huh," Kyle said.

"Okay, we better go," Amy said reluctantly. "Take good care of Adam for us."

"We will," Meredith promised.

The four of them gathered into the car, and Meredith watched as they pulled out of the driveway, Lilly zipped in Meredith's jacket to keep her warm. When the car was no longer visible, she kissed the top of Lilly's dark head of hair. "What do you think, Lilly? Was this a success?"

Lilly looked up at Meredith with a smile, and Meredith hugged her daughter close as they walked back into the house. "I hope so, too."