The noise of the busy bar hypnotizes him to the point where he doesn't try to speak to the bartender or the waitress that had been bringing him his drinks. He has ordered so many drinks that a single nod of the head is all it took for a glass with double scotch single malt to be placed on the table top in front of him. He knows he should stop but he thinks to himself, "What's the point". He continues to watch the bar as a woman walks up to the bar and orders tequila. He had never seen a woman to order tequila straight before, especially not a woman as beautiful as her. He stands up and sits himself down next to her. He looks to her and flashes his best smile, "is this a good place to hang out?"
She barely acknowledges him as she replies, "I wouldn't know. I've never been here before." She goes back to staring down into her tequila. That's all the attention she wants is from her tequila.
He presses on, it's the first person he even thought worthy of talking to since moving to Seattle. He is not going to let her get away with pushing him away. "Oh well you know what, I haven't either. First time in town. I'm new in town. First time in Seattle. I got a job so... Ah you're ignoring me."
"I'm trying to."
"You shouldn't ignore me."
She laughs. Most guys would have given up at this point and left her alone. She wasn't used to such persistency especially when she is trying to be extra bitchy. "Why not?"
"Because I'm someone you need to get to know to love."
She laughs again, "Do lines like that seriously work for you?"
"I wouldn't know. I haven't had to use lines like that in 11 years. I guess not though, huh? So what's your story?"
"What makes you think I have a story?" She now cannot ignore the handsome man with the bluest eyes sitting right next to her as much as she tries to.
"Any girl who comes into a bar alone to drink tequila has a story. I know I am out of touch but I'm not that out of touch."
"What's yours? Why are you out of the game for so long?"
"My wife cheated on me with my best friend and I walked in on them." Her mouth drops, she can't help it. She did not expect him to be married let alone what idiot woman would actually cheat on him was probably insane.
"You should be drinking what I'm drinking." She fumbles for his glass and pulls it away from him replacing it with a shot glass full of tequila. He stares at the glass with hesitation and then up at her. "It'll make you feel a lot better."
He laughs, "Somehow I doubt that but I'll do it just for you." He waits until she gets her glass and they down the tequila shot together. It had been since college since he had the stuff. He winces before asking for another. She smiles and admits to herself that she is impressed that he could hang. She wasn't expecting him to go for it.
After a few more shots the tequila begins to catch up with both of them. Their speech begins to slur, their hands begin to come unstable, and their topic of conversation becomes more and more funny. She looks to him and raises her eyebrows. She has a different look in her eyes and he begins to get the same look. "Come on, let's get out of here," she says as she steps off the bar stool. Almost falling over he reaches her catch her but unable to stand up they both fall on the floor and start to laugh hysterically.
Joe, the bartender, looks to both of them who are trying to lean on anything to get back up calls out to them, "I am calling you a cab."
The cab drops both of them off at her house. They stumble up the walk way and to the front door. Meredith squints her eyes to get a good handle on where her keys might be in her bag. She finally finds them and lifts them out. Getting the key in the actual key hole holds more problems but she finally gets it open. Derek looks up the long flight of stairs and just looks at her. "The living room would probably be better," she says as she takes his hand and pulls him into the living room. She throws her bag onto the floor on their way in. They both stumble into the middle of the room a bit off balance.
They both giggle at the fact they allowed themselves to get so drunk. The fact that he was in her living room has finally started to set in. He doesn't think and only reacts to his first impulse. He gently grabs each side of her face with his hands and slowly moves his hands to cradle the back of her head as he runs his fingers through her silky hair. He leans in to kiss her but stops. He puts his head to hers and they look into each other's eyes. What feels like days is only a matter of seconds before he speaks, "I can't." He takes a step backwards. "I'm sorry, I just can't do it." He sits himself down on the couch hard not expecting it to be as low as it is. She sits down next to him.
"Don't feel bad. Normally I wouldn't mind screwing the misery out of you but I can tell you really don't want it. How about we just be each other's escape if only for this one night?" It pained her to say it. The only way she knows how to escape is to sleep with someone. It was the only time she feels free. She couldn't make him sleep with her. That would be wrong. The pain in his eyes is too much to bear. She knows it's her turn to tell her story. "My mother has Alzheimer's and there are days that I wish she would get sick enough that she would die. I tell myself it's because I don't want her to suffer anymore but that's a lie. I just don't want to take care of her anymore. I don't want the responsibility. I want my own life and nobody else's."
He doesn't say anything. He just sits next to her and stares at her like he is in a trance. She doesn't ask for a reply. She isn't sure she even wants one. Talking was never something she was good at so the silence was almost comforting to her. He didn't pretend to understand. He didn't say that he's sorry. He didn't offer up some crazy remedy that she knows wouldn't work. Instead he looks at her and she knows exactly what he is feeling. No words need to be said. She goes to speak again but is interrupted by a thud on the floor. He had passed out and fallen off the couch. She grabs a blanket from the back of the couch and lays it on top of him. She soon falls asleep after.
The morning light shining through the window is enough to wake Meredith up out of her sleep. She squints as she looks at her surroundings. She can't even remember how she got home last night let alone why she would be sleeping so uncomfortably on the couch. She hears a moan coming from her floor and is startled. She looks down to see the man from the bar lying on the floor. Memories of the night before start to come back to her slowly and scattered.
He opens his eyes and soon begins to realize that he is not at home. He looks around to see if anything familiar is around, it isn't. He finally looks up to see Meredith still lying on her couch on her belly staring at him. He manages to squeak out a smile even though it hurt his head to even think. He puts his fist to his eyes and rubs them as he sits up. He soon realizes that sitting up was a bad idea. He leans his head on the arm of the couch. "Good morning," he says with a scratchy voice.
She smiles at him before saying, "Hi."
"Did we have sex last night?" He might as well just come out and say it because he doesn't remember anything that went on in this house last night and he would feel terrible if he did.
"I'm still clothed so I really doubt it. I don't remember much of last night either."
He runs his fingers through his hair. "What kind of man am I that I come home with a beautiful woman and I don't have sex with her?" He is actually frustrated with himself. If he were to get back at Addison with anyone she would be the one no doubt about it.
"A good man. That's what kind." It was the best answer she could give him. She remembers him going in to kiss her and sharing such an intimate moment with him as they searched each other's souls through their eyes only for him to not be able to go through with it. No matter how much he hurt he could not see himself with anyone but her. "Listen, Derek, I need to take a shower and get ready for work. It's my first day and it would be terrible to be late on my first day. Good luck with everything, ok?"
"You too. Don't feel bad for thinking that way about your mom. You're not alone."
He remembered. He actually remembered that she had opened up and told him something she wouldn't tell anybody. She didn't even want to admit it to herself and yet he remembered. It was all she needed to make her forget for just that moment just how alone in the world she feels. "So what are you going to do now?"
"I guess I'll call her. Goodbye, Meredith."
"Goodbye, Derek."
He stands up and hands Meredith her blanket back. She takes it and places it back on the couch where she had grabbed it from the night before. He smiles at her one last time before grabbing his cell phone out of his pocket and walking out the front door. She waits until he is out of sight before running upstairs to start her day as an intern at Seattle Grace Hospital. Little does she know that the man whom she just had shared one magical night with would not be making his first call to his wife but to a cab to take him to his job. "Seattle Grace Hospital," he says before picking up his phone once more to call his wife whom he missed so much. "Addison, I know it's early but I just called to say that I still love you."