chapter sixty four

invasion. season six, episode five.

. Dark purple rings circled her eyes, physically marking the fact that she didn't get any sleep.

It was less than 48 hours after she broke up with Mark, and she hadn't seen him since.

A part of her regretted it, regretted breaking his heart to just to heal her own. She regretted the look on his face after he realized what she was doing, and she regretted acting out because of her grief. But another part, the rational part, didn't regret a thing. In the end, it was the right thing to do.

After all, how could Cassie let Mark love her when she didn't even love herself?

A tired hand ran over her face while she opened the door, stepping out and locking it shut. As she did so, another from a lock sounded from behind her, making her turn around with a jump.

Mark stood there, keys in hand, a startled look on his face as he stared at her. Just as Cassie opened her mouth to say something, the keys slipped from his hand, causing him to mumble a string of profanities under his breath as he went to pick them up.

Cassie felt her heartbeat speed up. "I-I like your keychains." Frowning in confusion at her own statement, she internally cursed herself. Clearing her throat, she looked up at him with trepidation. "So, um... how are you?"

Mark just looked at her, emotionless as he stuffed his keys into his pocket. "I've been better."

Cassie watched as he abruptly turned his back on her and left down the narrow hallway without another word, feeling tears burning in her eyes which she blinked away as soon as they came.

"Okay then," she whispered to no one in particular, silently wondering what the hell she'd gotten herself into.

☆

Cassie stepped into the elevator, her head down as she sent a text to Meredith. After she donated a piece of her liver to her father, Meredith had been bored out of her mind living in the hospital as she recovered, thus bothering her friends for free entertainment.

Not looking where she was going, Cassie walked directly into the back of the elevator, hitting her head as she slammed into the wall.

Hearing a snort coming from behind her, she turned around with a glare, only to pause at the sight of a stranger clad in orange scrubs standing on the other side of the doors. Clearing his throat, the doctor tried and failed to restrain his grin.

"You know, they say texting and walking kills."

Rolling her eyes, Cassie stuffed her phone in the pocket of her leather jacket, pressing the floor number to Meredith's room as the stranger moved to stand next to her. She didn't say a word, her arms crossed over her chest as she watched the floor numbers change at a slow pace.

When the doors opened, Cassie stepped out, turning on her heel at the last second. "Your scrubs are on inside out," she told him with a smirk, enjoying the look on his face when he realized that his clothes were, in fact, on backwards.

With one last look into the stranger's bright green eyes, Cassie left, making her way down the hall towards the room where most of the residents were gathered.

"They're locusts," she heard Meredith say. "Comfortable locusts, feeding on our surgeries."

Cassie nodded, stealing a bag of chips from Rue's hand as she passed by. "The Mercy Westers? Yeah, they're mean," she added, plopping down next to Meredith's feet. "One of them made fun of me."

Rue frowned, snatching the snack away and raising a brow in question. "For what?"

"Not important."

Izzie scoffed, bitter after one of the new surgeons stole George's cubby. "It's rude. There should be at least a couple of days where they act like guests, before they put their feet up on the coffee table."

"And what's with the orange scrubs?" Lexie shook her head, staring through the windows at a few random doctors they'd never seen before. "What, ours aren't good enough for them?"

"We ran out," Meredith said nonchalantly. "They're on back order. Randall from the supply company says that they'll be here in a week." Everyone gave her a weird look. "That's what you learn when you lie here all day. "

"Why bother ordering new ones?" Ryan wondered aloud, sitting next to the window. "Let's just give these to our replacements."

Alex rolled his eyes, sharing a snack with Izzie as they got ready for the day ahead of them. "We're not gonna be by anybody."

"If I have to become a coroner—" Ollie started, fear clear in his eyes as he shared a look with his boyfriend.

"No one is becoming a coroner," Meredith cut him off. "Cristina, tell him."

"Tell him what?" the girl in question shrugged defeatedly. "They're here. It's over."

"Hey!" Meredith snapped. "We are not some stupid hosts. They can't invade us. They can't attach themselves to our faces, and then while we're eating spaghetti, explode out of our chests and skitter across the floor. This is ship. This is ."

Lexie laughed, tilting her head at her sister. "Excuse me. Are you... are you quoting a Sigourney Weaver movie?"

"She totally is," Cassie snorted, patting Meredith's leg in mock pity. "I think she's lost it."

"Shut up."

"That's what happens when you live here," Izzie added. "You watch a lot of TV."

"We own this hospital," Meredith continued with determination. "We were in this hospital. And we will hold this hospital, with our last... gasping... breath."