IF YOU DONT KNOW ME BY NOW
4x11

Athena was called in early this morning for an emergent surgery, so she was already at the hospital when Addison and Amelia arrived.

Addison's mother had arrived early in the morning today. She'd came with the hopes of getting Addison to perform surgery on her new girlfriend.

That, Addison was not having.

She wasn't homophobic, by any means, but she wasn't accepting what her mother was doing. She'd seen her mother be in love with her father all those years, and now?

"She's holding Susan's hand," Addison grimaces, looking from side to side to get looks at Amelia and Athena's faces. "Bizzy never held the Captains hand."

"Yeah, I wouldn't think so," Amelia stands with her arms over her chest.

The group turns to look away, Addison leading them a few feet away before turning to be in front of the other two, "She never held my hand. And I have to go in there and deliver bad news. I mean, really bad news. Get-your-affairs-in-order kind of bad news."

Amelia's pagers beeps, "Crap. I gotta get to the E.R. You gotta go in there. It sucks. But standing in the hall is not gonna make it any easier. You need a hug?"

"Yes, please," Addison says, her face sad.

"Athena will give you one," Amelia hurries down the hall, Athena's eyes never leaving her until she's long gone.

When Addison lets go, she gives her sister a skeptical look.

"What's going on with you guys?"

"To hell if I know," Athena lets out a loud sigh, tucking her hands into the pockets of her lab coat.

"Well what happened last night?" Addison tries reading Athena's face, but comes up blank.

"Nothing— what are you getting at?" Athena chuckles slightly.

"You like her," Addison accuses playfully.

"Well, yeah, I like her. I've been after her since I've set eyes on her. I guess she just doesn't want me," Athena shrugs, acting as if it doesn't bother her at all.

"Or she still doesn't trust you," Addison suggests. "It takes a lot for her to trust people."

"Yeah," Athena nods. "Hey! You're distracting us from doing what matters."

"Does it really matter.." Addison asks herself, biting her lip.

"Yes. Yes it does," Athena nods. "Now, let's go. I'll even come with you."

The two sisters enter the room together, Susan noticing them first.

Bizzy stands, a scared look across her face.

"You should never play poker, Addison," Susan says breathlessly.

"I'm sorry, Susan," Addison swallows, sparing a glance at Athena who nods in encouragement.

"What do you mean you're sorry?" Bizzy spits out.

"If we had caught this earlier, then we might have other options," Addison admits, regret shown all throughout her eyes. "But the cancers spread. And, um.. there's nothing I can do."

"So I'm gonna die," Susan lifts a side of her lips up, trying her best to smile sadly.

"We can make you comfortable, but, uh, yes."

"No," Bizzy pleads.

"I know this is hard.." Addison begins, only to be cut off by her mother.

"What it is, is unacceptable," The woman approaches Addison, getting up in her face.

"Bizzy—"

"The cancer is too far advanced," Addison attempts to explain again. "At best, I could give Susan a couple of extra months, but she'd be miserable—"

Bizzy's palm comes up and slaps Addison right across the face, which is a when Athena decides to intervene.

Athena puts her smaller body between Addison's and Bizzy's taller ones.

"You will save her life!" Bizzy did her best to reach over Athena and to Addison, but failed when Athena began pushing her back. "Do you hear me? You will save her life."

"Back up!" Athena shouts.

Addison faces her mother with a gasp.

"Back it up," Athena pushes Bizzy back. "You don't assault a doctor."

"And who are you?" Bizzy asks with her chin held high. "Her lover?"

"Her sister," Athena snapped. "Now back off. Don't ever lay a hand on her again, much less an another doctor in this hospital, and you will no longer be welcome in once your visit is done."

"Oh, you're the Captains.." Bizzy let out a bitter laugh.

"Bizzy," Susan shook her head, telling her girlfriend to stop before she said something she would regret.

Athena stared Bizzy down until she felt so small she had to sit down beside her girlfriend once again.

Addison is still holding her face with disbelief that her mother hit her as Athena leads her out of the room.

🪷

Amelia spends most of the day at the hospital, and Athena has vowed her day to her sister and her already shitty day.

Addison meets with one of Susan's doctors, and she after finds Athena so the two of them could head over to the practice.

Athena is not at all happy that Addison is even considering helping Susan. Not after the way Bizzy spoke and treated both her and Addison.

But she couldn't stop Addison and her empathy.

"Rodriguez thinks I should scope Susan," Addison says as the two exit the elevator.

"I thought you both agreed that there was nothing to do," Athena is all but running to keep up with the much taller woman.

"Well looking at the scans he wasn't sure of the liver involvement. So I'd like to get in there and see if it's possible that surgery will help—"

"That's just desperation talking," Athena insists, following Addison into her office. "You know what the answers gonna be. This is exactly why doctors should never operate on family. It's a bad idea."

"You didn't object when I operated on Sam's daughter, Maya," Addison puts her bag on the couch and hangs her coat on the rack.

"That was an emergency," Athena defends.

"This is Bizzy," Addison snaps.

"Bizzy," Athena scoffs. "Bizzy who slapped you across your face so you'd feel obligated to help her?"

Addison clenches her jaw, looking away from her sister. Athena knew she hit a spot deep inside Addison, which made her go quiet.

"Close the door on your way out."

And so she did.

🪷

Later in the afternoon, Addison had decided to go through with the surgery, and Athena followed her back to the hospital.

She'd gotten the worse job, to watch Bizzy.

The last time they'd spoken, it hadn't been very civil, so imagine Athena's surprise when Bizzy talked to her like they were best friends.

"Have you ever met the Captain?" Bizzy asked, her face red and filled with worry.

"Oh, uh, no. I haven't," Athena shrugs.

"You don't want to," Bizzy chuckles.

"I don't?" Athena asks warily. "I've always wondered what he looked like."

"You're better off," Bizzy admits. "Trust me."

The two of them sit in silence in the waiting room before Bizzy speaks up again.

"Did you have a father figure? A step father?" She asks.

"I did," Athena's throat tightens.

"He was better than the Captain ever could have been. I swear that."

"He was the greatest," Athena's eyes water. "Did you know my mother?"

"I did," Bizzy tilts her head as she reminisced. "She—"

"The cancer has spread beyond what we initially saw on the C.T. scans," Addison reveals, cutting Bizzy off and ending the conversation. "It's attached it self to the major vessels. It's in her liver."

"So what do we do," Bizzy looks up at her daughter.

"Honestly? Nothing," Addison says, her face almost as red as her mother's.

"That's not an answer, Addison," Bizzy sits up straight, getting herself worked up.

"I'm sorry," Addison insists. "I am. I could try to cobble together a series of— of treatments. But it would make Susan miserable—"

"The truth is," Rodriguez speaks up from behind Addison. "even if she suffered through all of it, she'd have less than a one out of five chance of living another few years."

"Some people do better but some people do much worse," Addison shook her head.

"Do you understand what she's saying?" Athena looks at Bizzy, tears still sparkling in her eyes.

"No," Bizzy shakes her head, her brows pulled together with worry as she stands to her feet.

"No, what?" Addison asks.

"No, I don't accept your numbers. And I won't accept your conclusions."

"They're not my numbers, Bizzy," Addison fought back as Athena stood.

"I don't want twenty-five percent. I don't want fifty percent. I want a cure," Bizzy grabs her bag off the waiting room chair. "plain and simple. I don't care what it costs. Do you understand that?"

Addison looks down as Rodriguez says, "I'm sorry. We can't offer you that."

"I expected more from—" Bizzy gets up in Addison's face, Athena a millisecond from getting between them like she did earlier this morning.

"What exactly did you expect from me, Bizzy?" Addison sniffs.

"For my daughter to be something more than a passive spectator to the death of someone I love," Bizzy storms off.

"Addison—"

"Don't," Addison growls.

🪷

Athena knows Addison wants nothing more than for Athena to stay out of this now that it's gotten real, but Athena won't accept that.

Athena stomps out of the hospital, on a mission as she finds Bizzy outside on a bench.

"Bizzy, what you're doing to Addison is wrong," Athena places her arms over her chest angrily. "It's unfair, and I'm not gonna.."

Athena stops talking when she realizes Bizzy is crying.

The brunette opens her mouth to speak, but nothing comes out.

"I ask very little of my children," Bizzy stares into the water fountain that sits in front of the hospital entrance. "But what I'm asking of Addison.. it's not lost on me."

Athena gives Bizzy a tissue out of the small pack she keeps in her scrubs as she sits down.

"It doesn't look like there's anything left to be done," Athena says regretfully. "I'm sorry. I really am. I know how it feels to be at a loss like this. But you.. you can't keep pushing Addison. For whatever is left of your relationship with her, Bizzy please, don't do this."

"Susan means.." Bizzy's voice breaks. "everything to me. And she's.. and I have to believe that there is some way to help her. Do you have someone you'd walk to the ends of the earth for?"

"I did," Athena clenches her jaw. "And I would if she'd give me one more chance."

"That's why I came here. Because Addison is the best at what she does. The very best. And I need her to save my Susan."

"Well, have you ever told her that?"

"I'm her mother. That's not my job," Bizzy gives a sad nod as she lifts herself from the bench, going back inside.

okay theres like no
athena and amelia in
this but im building it
up i promise you.

they are gonna get together
And stay together until the
end of this book