Hey guys! This is my new fic...it started out as part of a different story, but it thought it might work better as a stand alone type thing. I have a few chapters banked and I'm pretty excited to share it with you! For the most part, this will be light and fluffy, but I won't swear off some drama along the way :) Enjoy and feel free to leave a review if you like it!


Meredith took a deep breath as she checked herself over in the mirror one last time. It was their fifth wedding anniversary and they were going out for dinner. It shouldn't feel like such a big deal, but it did. She had been nervous about this night for over a week now. Derek had picked up on her subtle change of personality, but she'd chalked it up to being tired and he seemed to be satisfied with that answer.

Except it was a lie. Meredith never lied to Derek. Especially not about big things. She just didn't know how to tell him this and with their anniversary so close, she had finally concluded that it would be more special if she waited until their yearly outing to tell him what she'd realized nine short days ago.

She was ready. The feeling had been brewing within her for sometime, but on that particular morning she woke up and she was sure. It was time. Meredith Grey was ready to start her family.

The nerves didn't stem from the delusion that Derek wouldn't want kids. Meredith knew he wanted children, and she also knew that he would be an absolutely perfect father. Derek probably would've knocked her up on their wedding night had she been ready back then.

That's what made her nervous. Derek wanted more than anything to be a father, but he had never pushed the issue. Sure, they'd discussed it. Gushed over what their child might look like, and talked about how much they'd love him or her and all the things they'd do as a family. But each conversation had ended with Meredith promising him she'd be ready eventually. Now she was worried he'd be skeptical of the aforementioned readiness.

As Meredith became more lost in her thoughts, Derek appeared in the doorway of their bathroom, "Well you're even more gorgeous than the night I first laid eyes on you."

She turned to him and saw pure love and admiration in his eyes. Meredith quickly approached him, straightening the blue tie he was wearing, "You don't look so bad yourself. You know I love my man in a suit."

"You love your man in anything," he leaned down to peck her lips.

"I'm only going to agree because it's our anniversary," she giggled.

"Oh is it? I hadn't realized," he said as he pulled a box from behind his back.

Meredith beamed as she accepted the gift, "Another one?"

Derek insisted upon getting her a traditional anniversary gift each year. That morning he'd presented her with a wooden frame which he'd made himself over breakfast. The frame held the first picture they'd ever taken together, and she had been so touched that their breakfast was quickly abandoned for kitchen table sex.

In addition to the frame, Derek had surprised her with a gorgeous new watch after they'd completed their morning surgery. The watch made her heart sore as it was no doubt a homage to the last time he'd given her a watch—when she'd passed her intern exam. After the watch came a corny world's best wife mug over lunch. So far all she'd done was present him with a new ferry boat scrub cap and the addition of a hot tub on the balcony, which she knew he was excited about, but her only other gift was her news. The box currently in her possession would be gift number four.

"Another one," he agreed, "and there's more after this." He pecked her forehead, "Five presents," her left cheek, "for five years," her right cheek, "with the perfect wife," finally her lips.

She rolled her eyes at him in spite of the fact that her heart leapt out of her chest as he spoke. She would never tire of hearing him express his love for her. "Thank you," she whispered, "I love you."

"Are you gonna open it?"

Meredith smiled as she pulled the bow off the medium sized box. Pulling the top off the box, she revealed the new stethoscope she'd been pining over, but just couldn't bring herself to purchase. She gasped in surprise and immediately threw her arms around his neck, pulling him into a kiss. "You are perfect."

Derek chuckled and reached for her hand, "Let's go so we're not late for our reservation."

The car ride to the restaurant was a mixture of Meredith trying to make Derek tell her what her last gift was, regular banter about everyday things, and comfortable silence.

They arrived at Seattle's best French restaurant and enjoyed a wonderful meal in an intimate booth. They'd split dessert and now they were taking a walk up to their spot to watch the ferry boats. The idea of going to Joe's had come up since it was where they'd met, after all, but they'd decided against it because they wanted to be alone. It was extremely likely someone they knew would be at Joe's and they simply weren't interested in the interaction tonight.

The couple settled onto a bench atop their hill, Derek's arm automatically wrapping around Meredith and her head falling to his shoulder like a habit. She smiled at the familiarity of the whole thing. Some people would call it boring but she knew they were wrong. As long as he made her feel this loved and important, Meredith knew she could sit with Derek silently in a windowless room for the rest of her life and be content.

"So," Derek began, "you were very patient at dinner. I believe it's time you received your last gift."

Meredith bounced eagerly in her seat as he reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out an envelope. As soon as the paper hit her fingers she ripped it open to reveal two plane tickets and a brochure for the One and Only Ocean Club. She turned to stare at him in awe.

"It's an all inclusive resort in the Bahamas. One week, no pagers, no phones, just us. I already booked our time off, we leave on Sunday."

Her silence was unnerving for Derek "Unless of course you don't want to go…"

Meredith immediately cut him off with her lips on his. "Don't be ridiculous, Derek. I absolutely want to go. There's nothing I'd rather do. I'm just amazed," she whispered.

He tilted his head to the side curiously, "Amazed?"

"It never ceases to amaze me that you love me," she explained.

Derek smiled as he pulled her into another searing kiss, "I love you so much it even amazes me sometimes."

"Thank you so much Derek," she began, "you have made this day and most days for the past five years absolutely amazing. Even the ones that weren't amazing, you made better. I love you."

"Meredith," he wrapped his arm back around her shoulders and pulled her close as he kissed her head, "no matter how tough things get, you make my life better. Thank you for always being here for me."

She smiled up at him as she realized that this was her moment. The nerves were completely gone. She just knew it was time, "Der…I need to tell you something."

"Is something wrong?" he asked as his expression morphed into one of concern.

"No, no," she reassured as he sighed in relief, "I just…I want you to know that I'm ready, Derek."

"Ready?" he asked with a furrowed brow.

Meredith sighed, he obviously hadn't understood the meaning behind her words, "I'm ready…to start our family."

She watched Derek's eyes as he gasped and she saw pure hope in them, "Mer, are you sure?"

"Absolutely, I um…I didn't refill my birth control when I ran out two weeks ago. Please don't be mad about that…and I have a doctor's appointment next week to make sure I'm coming off okay and that everything is in working order….just to be safe." she nodded.

Tears filled his eyes as he pulled her into the tightest hug she'd ever received, "Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you. This means so much to me, I can't even explain how happy you just made me. And I would never be mad at you for that. I'll even come to your appointment with you if you want me to."

She smiled widely up at him, "So we're trying then?"

Derek kissed her repeatedly as he responded with a string of yeses.

Meredith sighed happily as she rested her head against his chest, "It's a good thing we're going to the Bahamas then. Perfect opportunity for Operation Little Shepherd."

Derek chuckled, "I like the code name Dr. Shepherd," he began, "what do you say we head home and get a head start on Operation Little Shepherd?"

She stood and reached to pull him up as well, "Take me home, Derek."

Their free laughter could be heard in the air as they walked back to the car hand in hand. It had truly been a perfect day.