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Sometimes, you can't go it alone. You need someone on your side. In medicine, we have surgical assists, second opinions. We stack our deck. We're dealing with life and death here. You don't want to get caught with your pants down. The thing about being on a team is, it's a commitment. You have to bring it. You have to help with the win, no matter what. You may not always like your teammates. You have to learn to share the ball. You have to be all-in, one side or the other. But if you play hard, give it your all, really commit, victory is that much sweeter.

You're Gonna Need Someone on Your Side is the twenty-first episode of the twelfth season and the 266th overall episode of Grey's Anatomy.

Short Summary[]

Stephanie's relationship to Kyle becomes complicated. Meredith encourages Amelia and Owen to take a chance and choose to be a real couple. Arizona and Callie are at odds and put their friends in the middle of an uncomfortable situation.

Full Summary[]

As Meredith's voiceover talks about not going it alone, Meredith and Maggie lead the kids down the stairs. Maggie wants to wait for Amelia, but Meredith says Amelia's made her late too many times and she knows better than to miss carpool. Maggie sees something in the living room and rushes Zola and Bailey out the door. Meredith looks and sees Owen and Amelia naked together on the couch. The two of them wake up and Owen quickly grabs a pillow to cover up.

In the car, Maggie and Meredith give Amelia a hard time about Owen. Amelia says that it was definitely the last time. She can't be in a relationship.

Ben and Bailey get ready for work and fight about Ben's work as an anesthesiologist. She says if her department heads are smart, they won't work with him. He doesn't believe that the punishment is just about him learning. She leaves in anger.

Penny and Callie walk together. Callie is worried because she thinks Meredith will pick Arizona because they were in a plane crash together. Today's the day she loses all her friends.

Arizona tells Richard she won't do it. She won't ask her friends to testify for her. The subpoena should do that. Richard asks her to try it out. She figures she has April and Jackson's support.

Meredith, Owen, and Jo come out of the hospital to wait for an ambulance as Richard walks in. Meredith tells Owen her kids don't need to see his penis. Richard says he used to ask, but he's learned not to.

The paramedics unload Leo Paulson, who fell down a flight of stairs and was complaining of back pain. His doorman, Vincent, has come along with him and is worried about him.

Kyle and Stephanie wait for Amelia. Amelia is surprised to see Stephanie because it's her day off. Kyle says he ruined it because she made him come in when he developed a new tremor, this time in his left hand. Amelia says they'll do a full workup and asks to talk to Stephanie in the hall.

Amelia questions Stephanie about their relationship. Stephanie says it's nothing and talks about Kyle's medical problems. Amelia says Stephanie can't be his doctor because she's seeing him. Amelia says she can keep him company, but can't treat him.

Nathan, Maggie, and Bailey scrub in to operate on a patient with multiple stab wounds. They enter the OR and Bailey's shocked to see Ben as their anesthesiologist. Dr. Knox is out sick, so he took over. Nathan didn't know Ben was previously an anesthesiologist, but says it's good to have him back. When Bailey glares, he's not so sure. Ben says there's no problem on his end and Bailey says she won't say a word.

Arizona puts gel on April's belly to prep for an ultrasound. She starts to ask her and Jackson for a favor, but there's a knock at the door and Penny enters. She's on Arizona's service. She can talk to someone about switching it, but Arizona says to wait. Instead of asking the favor, Arizona looks at the ultrasound. The baby's bones look good and there are ten toes and ten fingers and a strong heartbeat. Then Arizona stops. April asks what she saw. Arizona denies seeing anything, but then admits that it's the baby's brain.

Meredith, Owen, and Jo examine Leo in the trauma room. He has a contusion on his back. Vincent gives her a list of all Leo's medications and whatever paperwork he could find. Leo's wife, Angelica, comes in. She got Vincent's message. Meredith tells her he's stable, but asks her and Vincent to step outside.

Amelia tells Kyle he had a new abnormality. Kyle doesn't want another surgery, but changing his meds won't work because his meds just prevent new lesions from forming. It's the same surgery, just on the other side of his brain. They can operate today. He's worried because he has three more tour dates left, but Amelia tells him the tremor will only get worse, so they need to operate as soon as possible. Kyle looks at Stephanie and she says they'll do it. Amelia asks Kyle and he agrees with Stephanie.

Meredith looks at Leo's scans. Callie comes in and says she can do a spinal fusion. She starts to ask Meredith about the hearing, but Owen comes in and interrupts. Meredith tells Callie about seeing Owen naked in her living room. Meredith tells Owen to take it upstairs next time, but Owen says it won't happen again until it does, knowing Amelia.

Maggie, Nathan, and Bailey are still operating. Bailey talks about taking Tuck to the amusement park. He didn't meet the height requirement for a ride, so he wanted to stuff his shoes with his socks to make himself taller. Ben says he was passionate about riding the rollercoaster. But Bailey said one inch is enough for him to go flying out of his seat. Rules are in place for a reason. But Ben says sometimes, rules can be excessive. Tuck had a fit and Bailey thinks he learned it from Ben.

Arizona tells April and Jackson that the baby's ventricles look slightly dilated. It's hard to tell. It could be a glitch, but April talks about the scary options of what it might be. April's in shock, but Arizona says they'll do a workup and get a bigger picture. April wonders how Arizona missed it. She looked and said it was a healthy baby. Arizona tries to calm her down, but April says she held her baby and watched him die, so forgive her if she's not calm. She asks Arizona to leave, which she does along with Penny.

Penny asks Arizona if she can do anything. Arizona says no. Penny asks if she should find a new service. Arizona says she doesn't have time to find someone else and sends Penny to do a full workup on April.

Alex examines a baby in the nursery and says he's ready to go. Callie comes up and asks him for a favor. He figures out she's asking about the custody hearing and says he likes them both and won't choose sides.

Amelia tells Kyle's he's been scheduled for surgery. He asks about what after surgery. Stephanie did some research on a trial. Amelia says they could look into it, but right now, they need to focus on his surgery. Stephanie steps in to draw his blood in place of Andrew.

Vincent tells Leo he scared him to death. Leo asks about Angelica. Vincent says she's getting a cup of coffee. He asks Leo if he can stay and Leo says he can. Meredith comes in and sees their joined hands. She says she's there to talk him through pre-op. Angelica comes in. She had to call their family because everyone was worried.

April gets on an elevator and asks Arizona if her labs are back. Arizona put a rush on them, but she thinks they'll be normal. April says that'll be inconclusive. Arizona says she can do a fetal MRI, but that requires full anesthesia and she doesn't want to do that. Arizona tells April to trust her. April trusted her to catch this.

Stephanie brings Amelia and Andrew more information on the trial. Amelia reminds her she's not on the case. Stephanie says she can keep Kyle calm in surgery. Amelia sends Andrew away and tells Stephanie she's been the family member from hell today. She can't risk Stephanie second-guessing her when they're in the OR. Stephanie wants to sit in the gallery instead. Amelia says no family in the gallery. She wants to take Stephanie's access badge and have her sit in the waiting room like a family member. Stephanie hands over her badge.

Leo tells Meredith that despite what she saw, he's never cheated on his wife. They've been married for 51 years. His wife is happy and loves him. His feelings for Vincent would destroy her and he won't do it. Meredith says she didn't see a thing.

As they operate on Leo, Callie, Owen, Meredith, and Jo talk about him and Vincent. Meredith tells the others they're in love. She caught them holding hands, very PG, unlike what she saw that morning. They have love in front of them, but Vincent just going to keep opening the door and letting it walk right by him.

Bailey tries to get Nathan and Maggie on her side. Ben says they'll agree with her because she's Chief. She says her surgeons can speak their minds. She thinks having Ben in the OR means her doctors have extra stress. Ben tries to argue, but the patient develops an air embolus. Ben steps in to reposition the patient for a needle aspiration. Once it's resolved, Ben says Nathan and Maggie will say whatever she wants. She'll never know what they really think because she's their boss. Bailey says Ben is arrogant as they continue to operate.

Arizona's shocked that Callie asked Alex. He said no and he's also saying no to her. He's both their friends. Penny comes in. Arizona says she's everywhere. Like she's a spy for Callie. Arizona asks Penny if she needs them to repeat anything for her so she can report back that Arizona's incompetent. She asks if they know about the fake leg, because she's not the best runner in a crisis. She tells her to go back and report that and just back off. She leaves the cafeteria.

Stephanie walks Kyle to surgery. When they reach the doors, she kisses him goodbye. She watches as they walk down the hallway.

Vincent and Stephanie sit near each other in the waiting room. He asks her if she's waiting for her husband or family member. She says she's not sure what they are. Vincent knows that feeling. She says she shouldn't be sitting there and he says he shouldn't either. He gets up and says he's getting tea. He offers to bring her some. She declines, but then reconsiders and says yes, thank you.

Arizona sits in her car crying. Richard gets in the car and offers his handkerchief. She says she wants to lie down. She's going to lose the case. It's going to hurt Sofia and she's still going to lose her little girl because that woman is watching her be a terrible doctor and mother. Maybe she is that because today, she feels like both. Richard says if she wants her daughter, she has to fight like she's never fought before. She doesn't get to lie down. He says he'll see her inside and leaves her.

Maggie asks Ben how many times he's done that. He says one including today's. She says he is arrogant. He shouldn't be pulling cowboy moves in front of the chief right now. He says he's just trying to learn. Maggie points out that if Bailey really wanted him out, he'd be out. She has that power, but she didn't. He did something wrong, got punished, and went around it. He was only able to do it because Bailey's his wife.

Bailey tells Nathan to page her if the patient shows any sign of air embolus. Nathan tells her she's not Ben's boss, not right now. Working as an anesthesiologist is what he needs to do. They were all residents and they took opportunities to learn however and wherever and whenever they could. Ben's just doing that and Bailey can't stop him, nor should she.

Arizona asks April if she's sure she wants the MRI. April says she wants to know. Arizona tells her to come with her.

Stephanie watches the other family members in the waiting room. Andrew comes out and tells her Kyle's out of surgery. She knows he's okay because Andrew came instead of Amelia. He won't show her the tablet because Amelia ordered him not to. Andrew leaves, saying he'll let her know when she can see him. Vincent says he's glad everything went well for her. Stephanie wishes the same for him.

Callie is working on Leo's spine. She says she's not going to be a doorman. She's choosing the life she wants. That's why she's moving to New York. The life she wants has Penny and Sofia. She then asks Meredith and Owen to testify for her. She wants them to think about it, but they both immediately agree. Jo sees something and calls Callie's attention to it. It's the reason why his spine snapped.

Meredith tells Leo his cancer has metastasized to his bones and liver. He has six months to a year left to live. He asks her if Vincent's still there. He hasn't left. Leo says the first time he saw Vincent, he thought he was having a heart attack because his heart jumped out of his chest. When he found out Vincent felt the same, he smiled for weeks. He loves his wife, but it was different. They spent the next fifteen years talking and passing by each other. Meredith points out that he has one more year. Angelica comes in and Leo says they need to talk. Vincent comes in behind her. She says he refused to leave until Leo got out of surgery. Vincent says it was his pleasure. Leo says Vincent's always been too good to him. He thanks him and then says he can go. They've kept him long enough. Angelica pulls out some money and thanks Vincent. She doesn't know what they'd do without him. Vincent takes the money and leaves.

Arizona shows April and Jackson the fetal MRI, which shows no abnormalities. It's definitively nothing. April thanks her for doing the MRI. She went a little crazy because she was scared. Arizona hands them a list of the best OBs she knows. She can't be her doctor anymore. If she's April's doctor, she can't be her friend and she wants to be her friend.

Stephanie visits Kyle, who's still asleep. She kisses him and leaves a note on his table.

In the locker room, Jo tells Stephanie she had the worst day. She wants to go home and crawl into bed. She asks Stephanie if she's okay. Stephanie tells her she ended things with Kyle. She was him when she was a kid, in and out of hospitals. She became a doctor to help people. She can't just sit in the waiting room. She chose herself over Kyle. Stephanie says she wants to go to work.

Callie tells Penny she got Meredith and Owen on her side. Penny says she knew Meredith would side with her. Callie thinks she's got a real shot and asks Penny about her day. Penny says she spent the day with Arizona. Callie asks how it went. Penny says it was fine and Arizona was great. They leave the hospital.

Amelia tries to catch up to Meredith and Maggie. She continues to say that she and Owen aren't a thing. Meredith tells them they are a thing. It should be happening, but not on her couch. She keeps throwing away her happiness. Maggie does it to, like with Andrew. She tells them both to get it together. Amelia walks away. Maggie and Meredith go home.

Bailey writes Ben's name on the surgical board. He comes up and sees that. She tells him he's still sleeping on the couch.

Amelia arrives at Owen's trailer. She comes up and knocks. He comes up behind her. He was out on a walk. She gives him a big speech about how they're not the kind of people who say I love you. She knows better now because it's a lie. That's not how life works. They both understand that. She creates obstacles out of dead people and drugs and sisters-in-law. She makes it tough, but it feels like work because it's going to be work. If they move forward together, it'll be hard. It's harder to love someone than to walk away and them together is messy and scary. It scares both of them. He says if they decide to be really together, he'll end up screwing it all up. She says she will too. Owen tells her "Let's screw something up." and they kiss.

Cast[]

Main Cast[]

Guest Stars[]

Co-Starring[]

Medical Notes[]

Leo Paulson[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • T10 fracture
    • Adenocarcinoma
  • Treatment:
    • Spinal fusion

Leo, 76, came into the ER after falling down a flight of stairs. They took him to a trauma room, where they found a contusion on his back. His spine was broken at T10 and Callie said she could do a spinal fusion. In surgery, Callie tried to repair his spine and found that his spine had snapped because he had adenocarcinoma that had metastasized to his bones and liver. Meredith said he had six months to a year left to live.

Kyle Diaz[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • Multiple Sclerosis
    • Tremor
  • Treatment:
    • Deep brain stimulation

Kyle developed a tremor in his left hand, indicating a lesion on the other side of his brain. They did an MRI, which showed an abnormality. He needed a second round of deep brain stimulation, which they performed. It went well.

Maggie, Nathan, and Bailey's Patient[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • Stab wounds
    • Hemopericardium
    • Septal defect
    • Air embolus
  • Treatment:
    • Chest tube
    • Surgery
    • Needle aspiration

Maggie, Nathan, and Bailey operated on a patient who came in with multiple stab wounds to the chest and abdomen. The patient had had chest tubes placed in the ER and was then taken to surgery, where they worked to repair the damage. In surgery, he developed an air embolus and needed needle aspiration before they could continue their work.

April Kepner[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • Pregnancy
  • Treatment:
    • Ultrasound

April had an ultrasound. There were no obvious deformities, meaning the baby didn't have OI. While examining the baby's head, Arizona noticed the ventricles in the baby's brains were slightly dilated. Arizona said they would do a full workup. When April pressed, Arizona said she could do a fetal MRI, which required full anesthesia for April and the baby. They did the MRI, which showed that the ultrasound was a false positive and the baby was okay. Arizona then gave April a list of OBs to transfer her care to.

Alex's Patient[]

  • Diagnosis:
  • Treatment:

Alex examined a patient in the nursery. He said the baby's bilirubin was down, so he was good to go.

Music[]

Song Performer Scene
"Life" Macy Gray
  • Meredith and Maggie lead the kids out of the house.
  • They find Amelia and Owen naked on the couch.
  • In the car, Amelia says they just fell asleep.
  • Ben and Bailey fight over his work as an anesthesiologist.
"My Love" Jess Glynne
  • Arizona leaves the cafeteria.
  • Stephanie walks Kyle to his surgery and kisses him goodbye.
  • She sits with Vincent as they both wait.
  • He offers to get her a drink and she accepts.
"Alone Together" Jamie Lidell
  • Richard tells Arizona he'll see her inside.
  • Maggie talks to Ben about his behavior.
  • She points out that if Bailey really wanted him gone, he'd be gone.
  • Nathan talks to Bailey about how she treated Ben.
  • Arizona asks if April's sure she wants and MRI. April is.
  • Stephanie watches patients' families in the waiting room.
"Love Doctor" Sebastian Kole
  • Meredith and Maggie go home while Amelia goes the opposite direction.
  • Bailey puts Ben's name on the OR board.
  • She tells him he's still sleeping on the couch.
  • Amelia and Owen talk at the trailer.
  • They kiss.

Notes and Trivia[]

Grey's_Anatomy_12x21_Promo_"You’re_Gonna_Need_Someone_on_Your_Side"_(HD)

Grey's Anatomy 12x21 Promo "You’re Gonna Need Someone on Your Side" (HD)

  • This episode's title originated from the song You're Gonna Need Someone on Your Side, originally sung by Morrissey.
  • This episode scored 7.91 million viewers.[1]
  • There was no table read for this episode as the schedule was too busy to have one.[source?]
  • In the episode, when Callie and Penny talk outside, we can see that the hospital is expanding.

Gallery[]

Episode Stills[]

Behind the Scenes[]

Quotes[]

Meredith: I tell my children, "When you're finished with yours toys, put them away."
Richard: Good morning.
Meredith: My kids don't need to see your penis, so the same goes for you.
Owen: Meredith, please.
Richard: There was a time where I would have asked, but I've learned.

Stephanie: I was him when I was a kid...in and out of hospitals for years and...and I just can't sit in the waiting room. I can't handle it. I need to be on the other side of the ride line. I need to be helping people and fixing people, and I can't do that if I'm with him, so...
Jo: So you chose surgery.
Stephanie: No, I chose me.

Amelia: Edwards, you have been the family from hell today. This is why we don't doctor the people we love.

Meredith: You have happiness and you keep throwing it away. Stop the drama and just get on with it already.

Arizona: Did you hear enough? Do you want to just go over anything? So you can report back that I’m incompetent, that I miss things as a doctor and as a mother? I mean, what else? Do they know about the fake leg, because I’m definitely not the best runner in a crisis.

Arizona: I just want to lie down. I should, because I'm gonna lose this fight. I'm putting up a losing fight. This is just gonna hurt Sofia and it's going to end with me losing my little girl anyway, because that woman is watching me be a terrible doctor and a terrible mother. Maybe I am? Today, I feel like both.
Richard: If you want your daughter, you're going to have to fight like you've never fought before. You are going to have to stand up for yourself and believe you deserve it. You want to lie down? You don't get to.

Amelia: You don't just meet your perfect match and everything is beautiful and perfect. That's not how life works, and if anyone should understand that, it's you and me.
Owen: I'm having trouble understanding you now.
Amelia: Oh, stick with me. Okay, I create these obstacles out of dead people and drugs that I may or may not do, and sisters-in-law and I know I make this tough, it feels like work. Cause it's going to be work. If you and I move forward together, it is harder to... It's harder to love somebody than to walk away from them. And this is... This would be... And, oh, geez, this is messy and scary. God, Owen, it just scares the life out of me.
Owen: I'm scared, too. If you and I decide to be together, really together, I will wind up screwing all of this up.
Amelia: Me too! That is how - I screw everything up, all the time!
Owen: Let's screw some things up.

Amelia: There is no me and Owen. We're not a thing.
Maggie: Oh, cause it seemed like a thing when we saw his thing.

See Also[]

A complete overview of this episode's crew can be found here.


References[]

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