Six Days, Part 2

 is the twelfth episode of the third season and the 48th overall episode of Grey's Anatomy.

Short Summary
The O'Malleys await for a response from the surgery, Addison and Alex feel awkward after their almost moment and Cristina and Burke still are not talking, while Meredith's snoring is still annoying Derek.

Full Summary
Derek and Meredith are fighting over the reason for his sleepless nights. She gets mad when he suggests a surgical cure for her snoring. Meredith asks him if there is a surgical cure for his Morning Halitosis and razor stubble. She tells him he is impossible to kiss in the morning because of it. He hollers that he is too tired from lack of sleep to bother to shave.

Cristina and Burke continue to play Uncle until one of them gives in. Yang is obsessed with trying to find out if Burke has had any tremors, without actually having to talk to him, but her every attempt fails. She spends the whole shift trying to get others to ask him about his hand, and at one point even tries to withold his food in order to get him to talk. But everyone keeps telling her to just ask him herself. She says no.

Mer, Izzie and Cristina are at the nurse's station watching Thatcher Grey talk on his cellphone. He is sloppily dressed and spilling coffee all over himself as he stammers and makes a mess.

Meredith wonders out loud how she could be related to such a walking disaster. Iz and Cristina tell her she really is alot like her dad. That she sometimes has bits of food in her hair, spills stuff, stammers and Izzie even tells her she can still see some of the adhesive from the snore strip she wore to bed the night before. Mer walks off in a huff while the other girls laugh because Meredith really is so much like Thatcher.

There is still some tension in the halls between Alex and Addison over The Almost Kiss. They keep avoiding each other, or try awkwardly to make small talk about work. Alex flees and goes up to observe a surgery. The rest of the interns are all in the gallery watching the surgery that Izzie says she should have been allowed to scrub in on. Bailey banned her from the OR after discovering that Iz got involved with the patient, financially speaking. Dr. Shepherd and Dr. Torres are busy removing part of the girl's spine to allow her to stand upright for the first time in years. When Alex enters the surgical gallery Mer asks him how Addison is. He stammers wondering if they know about The Almost Kiss in the NICU. She says she means the baby, Laura (her niece) who is under Addison's care, and her father. Karev relaxes a bit and says that yes, the baby is fine, everything is fine.

During the surgery George's pager beeps with a 911 for his father. So does Meredith's. Callie looks up at the gallery and realizes there is an emergency with George's father. She asks McDreamy if she can scrub out of the surgery. He wonders if she is crazy, this is a very important and rare surgery (the spinal surgery for the girl who can't stand up straight)but he tells her to go. Callie joins George and his family while they wait in the hall for word that their Dad made it through a dangerous procedure involving his breathing tube.

Bailey is in charge of Mr. O'Malley but gets nervous. He needs the new tube, but with the surgery it is difficult for her to get the new one in. The Chief tells her to shake it off. They are successful. Dr. Bailey takes a moment to compose herself. She is visibly shaken. When Dr. Webber asks her if she is okay she tells the Chief that her son is named after Mr. O'Malley's son and she needs a minute.

Bailey has been wishing all along that she didn't have to keep The Secret from George. He has already figured out from the chart notations and his chats with Dr. Burke that the surgery was more extensive than expected, than it should have been. Later, while he is waiting in the family room with his mother he realizes what his father did. George goes out into the hall and walks up to the Chief and Bailey and asks them why they did the surgery if they knew the cancer was everywhere. Dr. Webber tells him they have to honor the patient's wishes. George yells that his father didn't know any better. That they could have had weeks or even months with him if they hadn't done such a hardcore surgery. He yells at them that his dad didn't know any better but they should have known better. George is crying at this point and probably realizes that his father is going to die...and soon.

George goes back to Burke for advice and Preston tells him there is no more medical advice to give. The only thing he can do is offer us hope and a prayer. George is starting to understand that they are going to have to let his dad go. Later on, we see the family sitting down with Drs. Webber and Bailey and they make the difficult decision to terminate life support, only after asking George what he thinks. He tells them that the man in the bed isn't their dad anymore. It is time to let him go.

Earlier, Meredith and Cristina were in the on-call room trying to get some sleep but they can't. Yang says that Burke has 'ruined her' and now she can't sleep alone anymore. But she used to be able to before. Meredith muses about her father being everywhere in the hospital today, she can't seem to get away from him. And yet George's Dad is on the brink of death and George loves his father. Then she asks Cristina if its weird that she is a little jealous of George. Cristina says... Yes.

At lunch that day Callie confides in Addison. She says that George kissed her the day before and she is confused. Did he just do it because he was excited about his father's kidney function. Or did he kiss her because he really loves her? Addy seems lost in thought and doesn't reply. Then we see Addy confide in Callie. She blurts out 'I aborted Mark's baby'. And Callie says 'it really is all about you'. But she is supportive and listens while Addison explains that she didn't want a baby with Mark and that about 8 months ago she terminated the pregnancy even though she told Mark about it and he went out and bought baby clothes. Now we know for sure why Mark has been so miserable and angry this week.

There is even more tension between Addison and Mark, continued from the previous episode. She finally corners him, or does he corner her? She tells him what he doesn't want to hear. That they would not have made it as a couple, she knew about the other women he cheated on her with, and that she didn't want a baby with him. She says that he would not have made a good father. She did want to have a baby just not with Mark. She wanted a baby with Derek.

This explains why earlier Mark is seen asking Alex if Addy is miserable. He is miserable and he wants her to feel really miserable, too. He asks Alex again. Alex is just trying to scrub in on Sloan's surgery so he says yes, she's really miserable, just terrible and so, so, so miserable. Then he asks Dr. Sloan if he can scrub in. Mark barks NO as he strides away.

Later Mark runs into Callie. A look passes between them and Mark says 'She told you didn't she'. Callie confesses that she knows about the abortion. Mark asks Dr. Torres if he would be a good father. After quizzing him about whether or not he likes kids, is a family man, remembers birthdays, etc. He says no. Aren't all men like that? She tells him no, with a smile as she thinks about George. She tells him that there are men like that who care, who love kids. And that she knows one. Mark realizes that he would have made a bad father. He admits it to Callie and walks away.

Earlier that morning, before leaving for the hospital, George discovered that Izzie finally deposited The Check. Izzie did it reluctantly but she realized she may have found 'some good to do' after all. She anonymously donated the money to pay for the medical care of the teenaged girl with the genetic disorder who needed spinal surgery. The girl's insurance company was not going to pay for it and her mother could not afford to pay. Bailey figured it out right away and recognized the signs that Izzie is getting too emotionally involved with her patient, again. So no OR time for Izzie that day.

It's later in the day and it is time for George's father to be taken off the machines that are keeping him alive, barely. The family gathers around his bed as Dr. Bailey removes his breathing tube. She stays until the monitor registers ??? no heartbeat. She switches off the machines as George's mother is kissing her husband a final goodbye, and George is crying as he rests his hand on his dad's shoulder. The brothers are also in tears and holding onto their dad.

George walks out into the hall while all the other interns are watching him. Mer and Izzie don't seem to know what to say. They watch him walk out the door. Cristina goes running after him. She finds him outside in the cold and tells him about the Dead Dad's Club. You aren't in it until you are in it. And she is sorry that he had to join the club. She tells him about her own dad dying when she was nine. George looks at her and says he can't imagine a world without his father in it. Cristina, not trying to be cold, replies 'yeah, that doesn't really ever go away'.

Izzie finds Bailey sitting in a hallway after a long hard, and sad day. Dr. Stevens defends herself. She says she is a surgeon and gets involved and that it isn't going to change. But she does tell Miranda that she has learned her lesson and vows not to ever cross the line again like she did with Denny. But she also promises Dr. Bailey that she will not change who she is as a doctor. She is both. A surgeon, and someone who gets emotionally involved.

Just before George and his family are taking his dad off life support we see Meredith go to the NICU and find her father. She asks Thatcher if there is some secret drawer full of cards she doesn't know about, that he might have sent and her mother hid. She asks him to tell her his side of the story of why he left them. She says she has only heard her mother's side of the story and wonders if he has a side she hasn't heard. He tells her that Ellis told him to stay away and not contact her after they moved to Boston. He stutters to try and find the right words so Meredith asks him if he snores. She says it appears that she snores and her mother never did so she wonders where she got it. Thatcher tells her yes, he snores, that she gets that from him. He tells her that he snores like a trucker. As Mer is turning to leave he tells her that wax earplugs work pretty well. She smiles as she is walking away.

Cristina is sitting on the sofa in Burke's hospital room. They are still not talking. No one has said 'Uncle'. Dr. Shepherd comes in to check on his patient. Burke looks up and over at Cristina. He says his arm is fine, his hand is fine. He hesitates, then says he hasn't had any tremors at all. Not one that whole week. Cristina looks up and realizes that Preston finally said 'Uncle'...sort of.

Addison is wrapping up her work day over a drink at Joe's Bar. Alex comes in and sits down a few stools away from her. Joe asks Alex about George's dad. Alex just shakes his head, no. He slides down and sits next to Addison. They talk for a moment and then she looks at him with a sad look and they end up kissing. Or rather Addy kisses Alex. It seems like a mutual kiss.

It is the end of a very long and sad, sad day and Meredith is already home in bed asleep. She has her anti-snore strip on but its not really working. Derek comes in and starts to get ready for bed when he sees the wax earplugs that Meredith bought for him, they are laying on his pillow. He gets into bed, puts the plugs in his ears and lays there. Then a big smile breaks out on his face because they are working. He can't hear the snoring and he goes to sleep next to Meredith, happy that he will finally get some rest.

Music

 * "Here It Goes Again" - OK Go
 * "Fidelity" - Regina Spektor
 * "The Way That I Am" - Ingrid Michaelson
 * "Love Will Tear Us Apart" - Susanna & The Magical Orchestra
 * "Falling Awake" - Gary Jules
 * "Life in Disguise" - The Slip

This episode's title originated from the song Six Days, originally sung by DJ Shadow.

Quotes

 * George: Er, Izzie, t-the t-the check! It's not er-, it's not- D-did you drop it? It's not here! Izzie, it's not here.
 * Izzie: I deposited it, okay?
 * George: You didn't deposit it in the garbage disposal or something like that, did you?
 * Izzie: It's at the bank, okay George? So just shut up about it already.
 * George: I-it's at the bank? It's earning interest?
 * Izzie: Did I just not say shut up about it already?
 * George: Izzie. It's real now. Money could travel. It could buy things. It could buy many, many things. That's a- It's a lot of money, Izzie!
 * Izzie: Shut up about it, George!
 * George: I'm just saying. I'm just saying life is short. You know it's like cancer happens and surgery happens and you know, you got [pause] rosebuds! [hits her with a piece of cloth] You got 8.7 million rosebuds, Izzie! [hits her again] Now go spend some rosebuds, that's what I'm saying.
 * Izzie: [loud sizzling noise] You made me burn my french toast.
 * George: [hits her yet again] You can buy new french toast!


 * Cristina: There's a club. The "Dead Dads" club. And you can't be in it until you're in it. You can try to understand, you can sympathize but until you feel that loss- My dad died when I was nine. George, I'm really sorry you had to join the club.
 * George: I. [pause] I don't know how to exist in a world where my dad doesn't.
 * Cristina: Yeah, that never really changes.

Main Cast

 * Ellen Pompeo as Dr. Meredith Grey
 * Sandra Oh as Dr. Cristina Yang
 * Katherine Heigl as Dr. Isobel 'Izzie' Stevens
 * Justin Chambers as Dr. Alex Karev
 * T.R. Knight as Dr. George O'Malley
 * Chandra Wilson as Dr. Miranda Bailey
 * James Pickens Jr. as Dr. Richard Webber
 * Kate Walsh as Dr. Addison Forbes Montgomery
 * Sara Ramirez as Dr. Calliope 'Callie' Torres
 * Eric Dane as Dr. Mark Sloan
 * Isaiah Washington as Dr. Preston Burke
 * Patrick Dempsey as Dr. Derek Shepherd

Guest Starring

 * George Dzundza as Harold O'Malley
 * Jeff Perry as Thatcher Grey
 * Debra Monk as Louise O'Malley
 * Greg Pitts as Jerry O'Malley
 * Tim Griffin as Ronny O'Malley
 * Mae Whitman as Heather Douglas
 * Judith Hoag as Rhada Douglas
 * Steven W. Bailey as Joe

Co-Starring

 * Patricia Bethune as Nurse Ginger
 * Moe Irvin as Nurse Tyler Christian