Disclaimer: I don't own Grey's Anatomy storyline or characters. This is pure fiction, result of my imagination and it's just for fun.
N/A: New Mer/Der story. You'll have some questions after you read this first chapter, but you'll get the answers in time as the story unfolds. It'll have romance, humor, drama, so I hope you won't get bored and you'll enjoy each chapter. Reviews are always appreciated. Thank you. Dana
--
RICHARD WEBBER M.D. – Chief of surgery
Behind the door that held the name written on, Dr. Richard Webber himself was smiling proudly at the paper he was holding.
"Meredith Grey," he read, emphasizing the name with pride.
Across from him, Meredith Grey was struggling to ignore the heat from his office and the uncomfortable position she was sitting on. Despite her discomfort, she couldn't help but smile. There she was, in front of her new boss, at one of the best hospitals in Washington.
"I'm so glad you've chosen to join our staff," Dr. Webber put the paper down and directed his smile towards her. "New York Presbyterian sent me a fantastic record of your first year as surgical intern. I don't know what made you leave the Big Apple, but I don't even want to know," he chuckled. "I'm happy to have you here."
"I'm glad to be here," Meredith smiled back. "I remember, my mother told me once about Seattle Grace. I know this is the place where she did her residency."
"Indeed," Dr. Webber confirmed. "Ellis and I did our residency together at this hospital. I chose to stay and work here afterwards and she chose Boston. How's Ellis doing?" he asked her with sincere interest. "It's been a few months since we last talked."
"She's still in Boston," Meredith answered.
"Has she retired from the OR as I heard?" He asked her.
"Yes," Meredith answered. "Two months ago. Now she teaches at Dartmouth."
"Oh, the place where you studied as well."
"That's right," Meredith smiled, slightly uncomfortable; she had never liked talking this much about her personal life. "So, are all my papers alright now?" She asked him, hoping to bring the topic back to the professional side, also struggling to stand upright over his desk.
"Yes. The contract is signed, your file is complete. All we need now is to see you working for us," Dr. Webber stated as he stood up and walked around the desk to come to her side. He slid an arm around hers and helped her stand up. "When are you due?" He asked her, glancing down at her enormous baby bump.
"In exactly 6 days," Meredith answered, panting because of the effort she had made to reposition herself in her chair. The baby had been kicking for over an hour now and that did nothing but emphasize the fatigue. She circled the bump with her hand, lingering over the spot where she felt the baby's kick, rubbing it intensively.
"I don't want to seem nosy and please don't answer if you find it too personal," he stammered as he walked her to the door. "What does your mother think about your pregnancy?"
"She was in her third year of residency when she birthed me," Meredith answered, looking willingly to answer his question. "And I'll be in my second," she added. "She's not happy, but she can't lecture me either."
"Alright," Dr. Webber smiled and nodded.
"Ok," Meredith nodded back, happy to see that they were done again with her personal life.
"The test is in 5 weeks from now, do you think you can come and take it then?" he asked her.
"I will," she answered promptly. She had planned everything regarding her career so that the baby's arrival wouldn't pull her back. She was 39 weeks pregnant with one month left of her first year as surgical intern; the practice around the hospital was slow for all the interns, so her maternity leave matched perfectly, leaving her more time for studying. After her first year test, she could have at least two more months of maternity leave, without such big holes in her career. Two months were going to be enough for her to find the perfect nanny and then, her career would get back on track.
"Just in case you won't be able, you can have another chance a month later," he mentioned.
"Thank you," she smiled with faint shade of sarcasm. "I won't need favors though."
"We're not talking about favors here, Dr. Grey," Dr. Webber cleared out. "This is a rule that applies to each intern or resident that can't take a test because of a medical condition."
"Alright," she nodded. A sharp pain hit her in her stomach, leaving her almost breathless. She managed to hide it from her boss, but as soon as the pain increased, she turned to the door, ready to leave.
"I guess I'll see you in 5 or 6 days for the big day," Dr. Webber stated as he walked her outside.
"I guess so," she succeeded to smile faintly. "Goodbye, Dr. Webber."
"Goodbye, Dr. Grey," he returned to his office while Meredith headed towards the exit.
--
It was a rainy and chill twilight of August. Meredith stopped outside the parking lot and turned to watch the dim falling over the enormous building, ignoring the rain that was dripping through her hair. It was a new start for her. It was a better start for her… for them she remembered as she felt the baby kicking her hardly. That put an end to her trance. She unlocked her car and slid inside to warmth and dryness. She shut the door, shielding herself from the rain and closed her eyes as she rested her head against the chair. Her hands were circling her baby bump again, more intensively now since the pain was more intense as well.
"Calm down now, baby girl," she moaned softly, as she tried to back out the pain. "Go to sleep and give mommy a break so that I can drive us home and lay down," but as answer, another sharp pain hit her and she had to bite her lip and fight back a shriek. Meredith tried to regain the control over her breathing, inhaling and exhaling slowly. She inhaled and then exhaled. Slowly, the pain was fading and she could feel the baby standing still. She sighed with relief and smiled down at her baby bump, caressing it slowly. "Thank you."
She was finally ready to go home… partially. There was a reason why pregnant women were taking more weeks of leave before the birth, preferring to stay at home, besides the medical recommendation of resting. The baby bump was huge, which made her hold her chair pulled farther from the wheel, her arms stretching exhaustingly to reach to the wheel and the feet, heavy and swollen, hardly visible for her eyes and all these were making the driving a nightmare for Meredith. She fumbled with the key until she found the contact and now she was definitely ready to go home. Her rented car purred softly to life and left smoothly the parking spot.
Probably it had taken her more than 5 minutes to start the car and now the light was fading outside. Meredith turned on the headlights to help her watch the road carefully. It was evening already and many people were heading to their homes. Meredith's house wasn't far from the hospital; 15 minutes on light traffic, but now, it wasn't that kind of traffic. Meredith veered to the right on a street and decided to take a detour. 30 minutes were better than 60 minutes of trailing, she thought; too bad she couldn't reach to turn on the music. She would have liked to change the sound of the rain dripping over the car's hood with any other sound.
She was back on the main road, leading to her house. The traffic was still light. Apparently, not many drivers had the idea of a detour and most of them were still trailing and honking in the center of the city.
Then she felt the worst pain, causing her foot jerk from the pedal and the car died brutally. She had to hold herself steady on the wheel not to crash against it. The pain started fading again, but this time she knew it wouldn't disappear completely. Her thighs were soaked and she knew she was in labor.
"Oh crap," she muttered as she became aware of that. "Why didn't you say you want out when we were still at the hospital?" she started talking to her baby, while she struggled to revive the car and pull it off the road. The car purred to life again and it took her just a second to move the car out of the angry honks of the other drivers. "Why now?" she whimpered, hitting her head against her chair while she started rubbing intensively the bump with both hands. The pain was light but still present and in any minute, another contraction would hit. Meredith took advantage of it and overturned her bag onto the passenger seat, fumbling after her phone.
Her vision was blurry because of the sweat and the tears of fears that involuntarily filled her eyes; her hands were shaky because of the pain and fear. She wiped her eyes and face, trying to see clearer on the display screen, scrolling down for a number. She found it and finally pressed dial.
"Richard Webber speaking," a man's voice greeted her after only one ring.
"Dr. Webber," Meredith panted. "It's Meredith," her throat was dry and her voice was husky already.
"Meredith?" Dr. Webber became suddenly alarmed. "What's wrong?"
"I… argh," she screamed in pain as a strong contraction hit her.
"Meredith!" Dr. Webber shouted in the phone, more alarmed now. "Are you in labor? Tell me where are you?"
All she could let out was a panting noise as the words chocked back in her throat. The pain made her feel like she was being cut open all around her abdomen without anesthesia. Then she remembered she had to control her breathing. She inhaled and exhaled. She inhaled deeply and exhaled slower. The pain was fading, but it was still unbearable. "I'm in labor," she succeeded to whisper.
"Where are you?" Dr. Webber urged her to tell him.
"I…" Meredith looked outside, fighting against the darkness and her weak vision to see where exactly she was. She could see down from the road where she was, a ferryboat docked in the port. "I'm on the Southport St."
"I'm sending an ambulance there right now. Stay calm, Meredith. Everything will be alright," he reassured her.
Meredith winced as she felt the pain creasing again and closed the phone. "Wait a few more minutes, ok?" she looked down at her baby bump, talking to it again. "What's with this hurry?" Then another strong contraction hit her. It was worse and she felt for the first time the need to push. She inhaled and exhaled repetitively until the contraction faded again.
"Are you alright?" A knock in her window made her gasp and brought another contraction. She grasped on the wheel, gritting her teeth tightly to restrain a yell. Then she felt the chill wind and the rain invading her car. "You're in labor," the man's voice stated, slightly worried. Meredith was too weak to watch or defend herself and let his strong arm wound around her waist. "Has the water broken?" he asked her. Meredith just nodded. "Ok, I'm going to move you in the backseats. Wrap your arms around my neck," he told her.
Exhausted, she tied her arms around his neck as he told her to do and rested her head on his shoulder. The rain started pouring over face as soon as he took her out of the car. She could feel him struggling with her weight as he went to the other door and knelt so that he could put her inside the car again.
"Lay down," he told her softly. "I'm going to call an ambulance."
"No," she caught his wrist before he could step out of the car. For the first time she saw him. His features were kind, but the look inside his blue eyes was worried. From his dark curls was dripping rain down his face. "I called for one," she muttered panting.
"Ok," the man sighed with relief. He sat down at her feet, wiping his face with the back of his hand. "Do you want me to call someone?" he asked her.
Meredith shook her head. Tears filled her eyes again, this time not just because of the pain. "I have no one," she muttered under her breath as she let her head fall to back.
The man looked at her with pity and gave her a comforting smile. She didn't see his pitiful look, but she did look up when he smiled. She smiled back, faintly but gratefully enough.
"I'm going to stay with you until the ambulance gets here, ok?" Meredith nodded weakly. "Are you in term?" he asked her.
"Six days before the term," she said. Then another contraction hit and she grasped on the chair. "Breathe slowly," he told her. "And do not push." His hand slowly caressed her baby bump. "How apart are the contractions?" he asked.
"I … I don't … know," she said panting.
"That's ok," he leaned down to her, wiping her forehead and face of sweat. "What's your name?"
"Meredith," she said.
"Meredith," he smiled as he repeated her name. "My name is Derek."
Meredith was about to answer with a nod when she felt a new contraction. Then he caught her hand and let her squeeze on his as she screamed. "Breathe in," he reminded her. "Breathe in and let the air out slowly."
She complied and the pain was fading again.
Derek sighed discreetly. She didn't look like she was going to hold the baby inside until the ambulance would get there. "When did you call for the ambulance?" he asked her, looking out the window. But there were no lights of an ambulance or even a sound of it. Cars were passing by them and nobody seemed to notice that they were in need for help.
"I don't know," she whimpered.
"That's ok," he said softly. He knew she must have lost the track of time.
"I need to push," she cried out. "I can't stand it," her hand clutching on the door handle.
"Try not…" he tried to encourage her, but then he saw she was having another contraction. "Ok," he muttered under his breath. "Do you have a first aid kit?" he asked her.
"Yes. Why?" she jerked her head up to look at him, panicked.
"Calm down," he told her. "I'm a doctor and I don't think you can wait for the ambulance."
"Here?" she shouted. "Do you want me to give birth in here? With you?" she showed the intention of standing up, but Derek held her and pushed her back down.
"Calm down, Meredith," he said softly. "I need to look."
"No!" she shouted, struggling again to stand up, but his hands where holding her firmly against the seat. Then another contraction hit and she grabbed his hand, squeezing it tightly. "I need to push!" she whimpered, gritting her teeth. "I can't… it hurts," she cried and loosened the grip.
"You have to trust me, Meredith," he said. "I know it's uncomfortable, but I think that your baby's safety is much more important right now."
"But here?" she whimpered.
"Where's the kit?" he asked her. Meredith glanced to the trunk. "I'll be right back," he reassured her.
Meredith continued to lay there, uncomfortable in the small space. She was no longer in the condition of asking who was that stranger and how was she going to bring her baby girl into the world in the backseats of a car. All she was asking was how long would the pain last and if it would get worse.
"I found your bag for the baby," Derek said when he returned inside. "It's pink," he smiled as he set it down.
"It's a girl," Meredith whimpered.
"You have a clean blanket in here," he said, pulling out of the back a pink baby blanket with bunnies. "Just in case," he wanted to reassure her as he saw her frown.
Meredith complied unwillingly.
"Now I know this sounds inappropriate but I need to… to look under," he smiled awkwardly, pointing to the dress she was wearing.
Though she never liked them, Meredith found out how comfortable the pregnancy dresses were; especially starting with the 30th week when no other clothing item was fitting her. She cried out because of the pain and lifted halfheartedly her dress over her thighs.
"I need to… now," he stammered as he gestured to her panties.
"Do whatever you have to do and save us both faster from this embarrassing moment!" Meredith burst nervously as she lifted herself partially to glare at him. Then she collapsed onto her back, exhausted.
Derek stared at her for a moment, but then he snapped back to reality. She was right. He was also a doctor so there was no time for awkwardness regarding a patient's intimate parts. He pulled down her panties, stripping them off carefully down her ankles. The space was still too small for them and Derek found it impossible to check how dilated she was. "Try to rest your back against the door," he suggested.
Meredith crawled on her elbows until she was half up, able to lean her back against the door.
"Now flex your knees and part the legs wide," he told her and Meredith complied. Derek leaned down and sighed. "I think it's coming out," he muttered.
"She!" Meredith snapped.
"She's coming out," Derek smiled. He looked outside, hoping he would see an ambulance, but there was nothing new in the view. For a second he even felt outraged by the other drivers' indifference; although, it was hard to see on that rain that something was wrong in Meredith's car. "You have to start pushing," he stated, taking a pair of sterile gloves from Meredith's first aid kit.
"Are you sure?" she looked at him worriedly.
"I am," he smiled reassuringly. "If the ambulance doesn't show up by the time the baby is out, I am taking to the hospital, I promise," he squeezed her hand encouragingly. "Everything is going to be fine," he muttered under his breath, encouraging himself as well. "Ok now… take a deep breath and push as hard as you can, exhaling. Hold on my hand," he held out his hand for her.
She did as he told her to do and the push came together with a deafening shout of pain. Meredith rested her head against the window, breathing powerless.
"You have to push again, Meredith," Derek squeezed her hand encouragingly. "Another push, please."
"I hate this," she whimpered.
"You're going to love it in a minute," he chuckled. "Breathe in and try to push again," he told her. He bent and looked down between her thighs. "It's…" his words stopped as Meredith squashed badly his hands, making him wince in pain. "I still needed this," he muttered under his breath, shaking his hand as soon as Meredith loosened the grip. "I can see its head," he told her.
"Hers," she snapped through gritted teeth.
"Hers," he corrected himself. "We're close, so stay strong," he encouraged her. "Just a few more pushes."
"In a car," she started grumbling, while she was trying to refocus on breathing. "I am sure he cursed me to give birth in a car with a stranger, in a rainy day," she continued, now glaring at Derek.
Derek stared at her, confused for a moment. He didn't know what she was talking about, but he knew it wasn't he the one she was glaring. "You have to focus and push again," he told her, hesitating before he gave her his hand again. "Come on," he took her hand and encouraged her. "Breathe in deeply and push."
Meredith inhaled deeply as he told her and then fought the pain and strived to push as hard as she could, screaming louder in pain.
"That's good," he chuckled, seeing almost half of the baby outside.
"How is she doing?" a female's voice made him startle. He noticed just then the ambulance lights and two paramedics standing behind him, outside in the rain.
"The baby is almost out," he told them, concentrating back to Meredith. "That was great, Meredith. Breathe in and push again," he told her.
"Sir, please step outside and let us take over," the woman told him, grabbing him by his shoulder.
"I am a doctor myself so I can finish what I've started," he told her, hardly keeping his calm.
"Sir, you are not authorized to this so please step outside," the paramedic insisted.
"Authorized or not, I was here when she needed help, so please wait for your turn!" he spat at her, making her stir.
Meredith was too lost in pain to focus on their argument. Suddenly she grabbed his hand, squeezing it painfully and shrieked as she gave another push.
A healthy cry cut in between their arguments. Derek caught the baby girl and carefully wrapped her in a blanket before he placed her on her mother's chest.
The sweat was gliding down her face in streams. She was breathless and feeling like in a bath of steams and tears had flooded her eyes as she looked at the tiny human being on chest.
"You can move her now," he sighed, his eyes tearing as he watched how the baby calmed down once that she met her mother's warmth. He got out of the car and let the paramedics move her, but still supervising each move. "I'll take care of your car," he leaned down and told her. But Meredith didn't give him any answer as her little girl was the only thing in the world she cared about. "Take her to Seattle Grace Hospital," Derek told the paramedics.
"There's where we have been asked to take her," the woman answered, a little irritated by Derek's bossing attitude.
"Good," he muttered under his breath, sighing with relief.
"Sir?" the woman came to him with a clipboard in her hand. "What's your name?" she asked him.
"Derek Shepherd," he answered, watching how Meredith and her baby were settled inside the ambulance, without paying attention to the paramedic, who wrote down his name on the paper.
"Congratulations," she smiled at him.
Dazzled, he looked at her and nodded. That wasn't the first birth he had helped on throughout his career as doctor and that wasn't the first weird place either where he had to practice medicine, but it was for the first time when he felt overwhelmed by a warm feeling afterwards.
Meredith didn't remember much from that moment. She was exhausted physically and emotionally and as much as she fought against it, she lost the battle with her eyelids. She hadn't believed the feeling would be so intense; she hadn't even prepared herself to become a mother, but everything changed from the moment she felt her daughter's chest raising against hers. She felt the bond with her daughter in a heartbeat.