Changed Directions

"Hey Mark, have you seen Arizona?" Callie asked her best friend.

"Yeah, she's in the break room. Why, lookin' for a little love? I'd be happy to escort you and watch."

She smacked the man upside the head. "No, you perv. I have to tell her that her cousin is in the waiting room."

"Are they okay?" He questioned.

"Yeah, they're fine. Visiting. Anyways, I'm gonna go tell Arizona." Callie jogged off towards the break room, where she found Arizona chatting with Alex and Lexie. She took a moment to lean against the door and study her beautiful wife, before clearing her throat.

"Hey," Arizona smiled.

"Hey, I need to tell you something." Callie said.

Arizona's smile faded. "Is something wrong?" She stood, crossing to the other woman and placing both hands on her chest.

"No, no. It's just, you're cousin, Brittany, is in the waiting room. One of her friends was beaten up and needed surgery."

"Are you sure it's Brittany?"

"Arizona, I think I'd remember the girl who crashed on our couch for three months."

"Right, of course. Just wanted to be sure. Let's go say hi."

Callie grabbed the pediatrician's hands , lacing their fingers together, and tugged her towards the waiting room.

Brittany, Santana, Puck and Kurt looked up as they heard feet crossing through the door. The two girls had decided to give Rachel and Quinn some time alone before visiting.

"Britt?" Arizona called. The dancer grinned, jumping up and running to pull the doctor into a tight hug.

"Zona! I totally forgot that you work in this hospital. How are you?" She turned to Callie, hugging her as well. "Callie, I totally zoned when you came to talk to us. "I was just so focused on Quinn and Rachel."

"What happened to Quinn?" Arizona asked, worried. She had come to love the trio during the time Brittany had lived with her.

"Her girlfriend, Rachel is the one that just got out of surgery." Santana spoke up.

"Santana," Arizona smiled, "good to see you."

"You too."

"And who are these two?" Callie asked, gesturing to Puck and Kurt.

"Noah Puckerman, call me Puck." He shook their hands. "And this is my boyfriend, Kurt Hummel." Kurt also shook their hands.

"If you don't mind me asking," Kurt said, slightly confused. "How do you know Brittany and the other two?"

"She's my cousin." Brittany replied, wrapping an arm around Arizona's shoulders. "I lived with them when I first came to New York after graduation. Santana was on vacation in Puerto Rico, visiting cousins for the summer, and Quinn was traveling around Europe. I hadn't really applied for any colleges, but I managed to find a place that let me teach dance classes, and a Juilliard scout was impressed enough to offer me an audition."

"Which she aced, of course." Santana said proudly, leaning in to give the dancer a kiss.

"And then San and Q came back and I moved in with them." Brittany finished.

"And we lost contact, unfortunately, mostly due to hospital hours." Arizona frowned. "Speaking of which. Calliope and I have to get back to work, because she has to take care of Sofia later tonight."

"How is my cousin?"

"She's reached four and is getting into everything, but she's good." Both mothers smiled at the thought of their daughter. "But Arizona's right, I gotta get back to work, since she has a full shift tonight."

"Oh, Zona, could I talk to you for a minute before you get back to the kiddies?" Brittany asked her cousin.

"Sure, Britt." The dancer pulled her fellow blonde to the side. "What's up?"

"Could you keep an eye on Rachel at all tonight. I know you're in peds, but I'm worried about her. She lost someone like we lost Uncle Timmy, only, she was there with them."

Arizona winced in sympathy. "Alright, I'll make some rounds."

"Thank you, Zona." Brittany pulled her cousin into another tight hug.

"B, we gotta go see Rachel and get Q. Visiting hours are almost over."

"Okay, San." Brittany skipped over to her girlfriend, grabbing her hand and following after Puck and Kurt.

Opening the door, Brittany quickly shushed the group. Quinn had her arms wrapped around Rachel, one hand running lightly up and down her arm. The brunette's head rested on the other woman's chest, her own hand caressing the blonde's hip. Nothing was being said, but the intimacy of the moment was tangible enough to fill the silence.

It was during Arizona's third check of Rachel's room that she heard the ex-soldier trapped in a nightmare. Mumbles led to crying out, and the brunette thrashed around. Crossing to the bed, Arizona shook the woman's shoulder, afraid that if she thrashed too much she'd damage her ribs more. Rachel bolted upright, before falling back with a groan of pain as her ribs protested the move.

"My advice: no sudden abdominal movements for at least two to three weeks." Rachel jumped slightly at the voice, turning to eye the blonde doctor, whom she hadn't seen before. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you. I'm Dr. Arizona Robbins. I work in pediatrics, but my cousin, Brittany, asked me to keep an eye on you tonight, cause of nightmares. Do you take anything for your PTSD?"

"I don't really like the idea of being on drugs." Rachel croaked out.

"My brother, Timothy, was the same way. He didn't want to depend on pills."

Rachel nodded. "He a doctor, like you?"

"Um, no. He was killed in action overseas." Arizona saw the brunette flinch, eyes flashing with empathy.

"I'm sorry for your loss. I know that doesn't mean much, but-"

"I get it. Thank you." She crossed closer, taking a seat next to the bed. "Britt told me that you lost someone too. A fellow soldier."

"Yeah. My best friend. I was in charge, and we were ambushed. I lost her and eleven others."

"I'm so sorry."

"Yeah..." Rachel looked away, staring off towards the window. "It was her death day today. And her birthday was yesterday. A fucked up coincidence, no? It happened a year ago, and I still wish it was me instead of them. I can't get the picture, of her dying in front of me, out of my head. And the families at the funerals haunt me. The devastation is horrible."

"When I lose a patient, the hardest part is telling their family." Arizona whispered. Reaching out, she grasped Rachel's hand. "I can't say it ever gets easier. When I lost my brother, a piece of me was lost with him, one I'll never get back. But, I hope you know that those people who were in the waiting room are there for you, when everything gets to be too much."

"Quinn, Brittany and Santana coming back into my life made me feel better for the first time in, I'm not sure how long." Rachel turned back towards the doctor, a small smile gracing her features.

"Good, that means you're moving on with your life."

"Moving on, but never forgetting."

Arizona stood. "I think that's for the best. To forget something is to lose a part of who you are, who you've become." She crossed to the door. "I'll be back to check on you in a bit, try and get some sleep." The door closed quietly behind her.

Laying back and closing her eyes, Rachel thought over what she'd just spoken of with the doctor. She slowly drifted into a dreamless sleep.