Princess & the Player

thirty-two: there's no 'I' in team

Marco's POV:

Maggie pointed at her phone and I nodded and picked it up to press Mary Margaret's number. 

Damn. That's my girl. 

The truth was that seeing what Eileen had done to her was kind of the end of my rope. I think Maggie finally realized it was the end of things for her, too. She could have died. 

After I hung up with her grandmother, I pulled over the two visiting chairs and made a kind of lounge chair for myself. I turned on the TV and found a rerun of the movie Red, which Maggie seemed to like. 

She drifted off before the end. 

Mary Margaret Helgen landed the next morning and was at the hospital before rounds. I didn't know old ladies could move that fast. 

She barged right into the hospital room as I was eating the breakfast that Maggie wasn't allowed to eat. Gave me a look that could have frozen the damn sun. 

I quickly brushed off the other chair for her. 

The shocker was an hour later, when my mom walked into the room.

Dad's response when I texted him? Told You. 

Dr. Jill Simon Santos, DDS was a hurricane-level wind. The two women sat with me and Maggie as the doctors came around in a herd and explained to Maggie what she was facing in terms of recovery. If her spleen remained stable for another 48 hours then she could be released. 

As they left, Scottie arrived. He froze at the sight of Mary and Jill. 

"Maggie's grandmother, my mother," I introduced everyone. 

"Your mother?" He demanded in a stage whisper. 

"Scottie," Maggie breathed.

He and I both turned, in shock. She always called him JJ. Something had changed. 

"Scottie, thank you for helping," she inhaled slowly, "with the doctors...and Jacob. I know...you tried...for me and...the kids."

He nodded, his jaw tight. 

"Marco...says...I have to...get off defense," she tried to smile. "Have...to play...offense. Agree?"

He thought a moment and didn't look away from her gaze. "Yeah. But..."

She held up a hand. "I know...I made it hard."

"The situation was never optimal."

"No," Maggie nodded in agreement. "Sub-optimal. Gonna...get ahead of...it...now. You...help? Nana Scott?"

"Whatever you need, Maggie."

"Not...much. You're...gonna be...the...best doctor in town."

"I promise," he kissed her cheek softly. "I'll be back at dinner rounds. Text me if you need anything before then."

After he was gone, Mary gave Jill a very hard stare. "I'm here to help my granddaughter and her siblings. Would you like to visit later, when she's had some rest?"

Jill lifted her eyebrows. "I'm here to help my son's girlfriend. What do you need?"

There was a long, almost dangerous staring contest.

Then Mary made a 'tsking' sound at me. "Well, I see where you get it now."

Maggie's POV:

I was so tired. Every part of me hurt. 

Marco found the social worker's card for Grandma and right there, I could see we were in for it. They called her and the woman stopped by the hospital a few hours later to explain the requirements for me getting custody.