Andrew found Meredith in the lab, arms folded on top of the table, head resting atop them. Smiling softly to himself, he let his eyes wander over her. With every puff of breath, a few stray hairs moved out of her face. He slowly rubbed his hand up and down her back, gently, so as not to startle her.
"Good morning, Sleeping Beauty." He smirked a bit as he teased her. It was late afternoon.
Meredith sluggishly opened her eyes, blinking strongly to bring the room into focus.
"I fell asleep again?" she questioned. She'd fallen asleep the night before during movie night. Work had been so hectic and Meredith so tired that she hadn't stirred until he had been tucking her into bed.
"You did, cara."
"Thanks for waking me. I've been trying to catch up with mini livers after everything..." She shook her head, as if to rid herself of the thought. "Sorry, how'd your surgery go?" Andrew had been scrubbing in with ortho all week, trying his damnedest to stay away from anything peds.
"It went well. Pretty basic Supracondylar femoral fracture. The poor old woman fell off her roof trying to take down her own Christmas lights. Why they were up in May, I don't know."
"Alex was looking for you. Did you talk to him?" Her question caused him to exhale sharply.
He pressed his lips into her hairline, breathing deeply to try to calm himself. Her hair smelled of mint, and it perpetually calmed him. Talking about that whole debacle with Alex and his dad was the last thing he wanted to do. After a long day in the pit, culminating in that surgery, all he wanted to do was go back to Meredith's, help put the kids to bed, and have a cold beer.
"Meredith…" His words were pointed but also weary - he'd talked so much about this and he didn't want to broach the subject any more.
She swiveled her chair and looked up at him, accepting all that he couldn't say. His guilt for backing his father's project. His fear that this time his father might not be alright. His exhaustion from living this nightmare since Vincenzo had gone off the rails two weeks prior. "I know. And so does Alex. It's good that he's getting the care he needs." It had only been a few months, but she had come to know him so well.
"Can we just go home?" He cocked his head to the left and gave her a soft smirk.
"Home, huh?" She looked at him with that cheeky grin of hers, the corner of her eyes crinkling with delight.
"You know what I meant."
"Uh huh…" Taking her teasing in stride, he helped her up and placed a hand at the small of her back to escort her out of the lab.
"You know, you've got a little pen, right there." Andrew licked his thumb and reached for Meredith's face.
"I do not," she said laughing, giving him a light shove. They exited the lab and started down the hallway towards their respective lounges.
He couldn't help but think while they walked. Even with everything that he was still going through with his dad, just being with her brought him joy. It was definitely too soon, but she might just be home.
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AN: I'm a sucker for Merluca lately, plus I can't help but expect Dr. Deluca Sr. to go off the rails at eventually. Intended as a one-shot, but we'll see if further inspiration strikes.
