Author's note: Sequel to Waiting in Vain. Derek and Meredith go througth everyday life with their fair share of problems.
"Mallory get down here right now!" Meredith Grey-Shepherd called to her seven year old daughter. She picked her screaming one-year-old son Thatcher out of his high chair and bounced him up and down trying to stop his tears.
"Its okay baby." She whispered throwing a banana into Mallory's lunchbox. Despite having a rocky or pretty much non-existent relationship with her father she still wanted to give her son his name. Personally she had always like the name and thought that she shouldn't let it go to waste even if they didn't get along.
"Mommy have you seen my purple tights?" Five-year-old Colby asked. She scratched her scalp with a perplexed look on her delicate face. Meredith couldn't help but life at her confused look.
"No I have not. Can you get your sister down here please." She asked the little girl. Colby nodded and ran out of the kitchen and yelled for Mallory at the bottom of the stairs.
"Thanks hun." She said sarcastically and put a now calm Thatcher into his high chair.
"Okay, Thatch, let's try this again." She scooped some cereal into her spoon and aimed for his mouth but mysteriously the orangey viscous ended up on her sweatshirt.
"Whatever, this was Derek's anyway." She teased Thatcher sticking her tongue at him.
Never in a million years could Meredith picture herself a mother of three with a gorgeous neurosurgeon for a husband and a not to shabby career for herself as a resident. She was even content with not being chief resident, that honor went to her best friend Cristina who really deserved it. She had married her longtime boyfriend Preston Burke after much cajoling on his part, but she told him there wouldn't be any kids until she was ready with her career and all. Meredith was also fine with calling it quits with any more attempts to have any more kids much to Derek's chagrin. It was hard enough raising them on such a helter skelter schedule with Derek flying about the world attending conferences and performing surgeries.
He was currently in California assisting Richard in a lecture. After giving Derek Chief of Surgery he retired going back to teaching and often called on Derek to help him out. With Richard being his mentor Derek could never refuse always jumping at a chance to help him out. The only problem was that Derek was going on these trips more often leaving Meredith alone with the kids and having to deal all by herself.
"Mallory!" she called again. Finally she came waltzing into the breakfast nook with her long honey blonde hair flowing behind her. She was wearing a pair of torn jeans at the knee with her mother's beige cable knit sweater.
"Who told you it was okay to wear my clothes?" she asked looking at her incredulously.
"You wear Daddy's clothes. Look you're even wearing his sweatshirt." She pointed out tucking a strand of flyaway bangs. For a seven-year-old she was a little too precocious and had a smart mouth, like her father.
"Ask please next time." She rolled her eyes going back to spoon-feeding Thatcher.
"Geez mom, when's Dad coming back?" Mallory asked sensing her mom's tense state.
"Um, in two days." She replied with some distress in her voice. Colby ran into the room, she had found her tights and was wearing them with a white baby doll dress.
"Sweetie that's your dress you wore to Aunt Celia's wedding." She reminded her.
"Yeah, can I wear it today?" she pouted blinking her green eyes at Meredith rapidly. Unlike Mallory she had dark wavy hair. Her color was a mix between her's and Derek's, they always joked that she was their in between daughter.
"Fine." Meredith sighed throwing her arms up surrendering. The doorbell rang and Colby shot out of the room to answer it.
"Remember to ask who it is!" she called after her. Not that it really mattered, they lived in the middle of nowhere with the closet neighbors a mile and a half away. Meredith ran a hand through her hair trying to fix her disheveled appearance.
Rebecca Martin a mother of Mallory's friend came into the kitchen spotting Meredith in the nook.
"Good morning." She waved a perfectly manicured hand at Meredith smoothing the invisible wrinkles in her khaki pants. Her blonde her was coiffed perfectly and her red lipstick left no stains on her teeth. 'Shit.' Meredith thought. 'Now I feel even more inadequate.'
Rebecca was one of those uber mom's who quit their day jobs and stayed full time at home with her kids. She was always there on time to pick her kids up from soccer practice and always never failed to have a snack waiting for them when they got back from school. Meredith on the other hand was always late picking the kids up and barely had time to fix their lunches let alone prepare an afternoon snack.
"Hey Rebecca." She forced a smile wiping her hands on her yoga pants. They had worked out a carpool but Rebecca was mainly involved with shuttling her's and her kids around.
"Ready to go guys." Mallory nodded grabbing her lunchbox and throwing her North Face Fleece on. She and Colby ran up to Meredith kissing her goodbye and ran out of the kitchen.
"So when is that yummy husband of yours coming back? I don't know what I would do if my husband was traveling all the time." she said flashing her pearly whites at Meredith.
"He should be back in two days. " Meredith nodded. Rebecca along with all the other moms had been hot for Derek. He was obviously a very good looking man she would think something was wrong with them if they didn't lust after him. Except Rebecca always managed to cross that line of friendly and overly flirty. The horn of her car beeped prompting her to end the conversation.
"Oh, that's probably your Mallory. She's so spunky. Anyway tell Derek I said hello." The sad part was she could have been right about Mallory laying it on the horn.
"Will do. And you tell Mark I said 'hi' too." Rebecca gave Meredith another perma grin and left the house. Meredith let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding in and picked Thatcher up from his high chair.
"Alright let's get you cleaned up." She ran a hand through his dark locks that were streaked with cereal.
Meredith sat in the bleachers of the soccer field sipping her thermos of coffee while she and Izzie talked. Izzie had surprisingly gave her relationship with Alex a chance. The two had recently been going through a long distance relationship. Alex was studying plastic surgery in California, while Izzie focused on neo-natal. He had just moved down there a year ago and often came up to visit Izzie or flew her down there himself. Overall they were a very cute couple.
"Look!" Izzie pointed Mallory out as Meredith rocked a sleeping Thatcher. "My god daughter just made a goal." She said smugly.
"Oh crap. I missed it. What was it like?" Meredith asked pushing her sunglasses off of her face.
"She totally pummeled through this one sucker and kicked it right past the goalie." An angry mother shot Izzie a look. "Oh, was that sucker yours?" she bite her cheek trying to keep in her laughter. Meredith shook her head giggling and took another sip from her mug.
"Hey Izzie, how does you have a long distance relationship? How do you know if their not…cheating on you?"
"Derek's cheating on you!" Izzie hissed. Meredith shushed her waving her hand up and down.
"No! It's just that Rebecca Martin made a comment along the lines of me not being able to trust Derek. But I do, you know, I do." Meredith replied.
"You have nothing to worry about Mer. Derek is like head over heals in love with you. Remember the whole Addison fiasco and how he wouldn't leave your side? Granted he cheated but he did it with you; he didn't want to be with her just you." Izzie said trying to comfort her.
Meredith nodded, there was no way Derek would ever cheat on her, and he promised her that in his proposal.
"Is that your phone?" Izzie asked as it rang. Meredith picked up her Chloe Paddington bag and began to rifle through it.
"Wait is that the new Chloe bag?" Meredith nodded with a smile. "There's like a three year waiting list for that. Derek got you that and your stressing about him cheating on you?"
Meredith ignored Izzie and answered the phone, "Hello?" she yelled getting up to walk away form the angry stares of the other parents.
"Mer bear." Derek teased.
"Derek, how many times have I told you not to call me that?" she laughed her heart melting at the sound of his voice.
"Many, but its sounds so cute whenever Colby says it and I can't resist trying it out myself." He chuckled into the phone.
"I miss you." Meredith said,
"I miss you too." He replied earnestly. "I'm really sorry to tell you this but I won't be due back for another four days, not two." Meredith's face fell at this shocking revelation.
"But Derek. I am going crazy; you've already been gone for a week and a half. I miss you, the children miss you, and we all miss you. Can't you just-"
"Hop out on Richard? I wish but that is not a possibility." He sighed in the background the parents cheered when another goal was made.
"Looks like Mallory made an assist." Derek said. Meredith whipped her head back to the field witnessing the celebration.
"Crap I missed it again…" she trailed off trying to figure out how Derek had seen it. "Derek?" she said again searching the field until she found him leaning against his car in the parking lot. Smiling she walked over to him, her walk turning into a fast walk and then a fast jog. Finally she reached him and jumped into his arms.
"Derek!" She exclaimed wrapping her legs around his waist and kissing him hard on the mouth.
"Mmm…" he moaned pulling back from the kiss. "Once again my sweatshirt looks better on you then it would me."
"You ass." She remarked trying to wiggle out of his embrace.
"Oh no you don't. I haven't held you in my arms in a whole week and a half." He grinned bringing his mouth to hers. His tongue slipped past her lips and Meredith squirmed pulling away.
"Now what would the other mothers say if they caught us making out against your car?" she asked.
" 'What a nice car that Derek has.'" He replied in an awful high-pitched voice. Meredith laughed as he released her. Izzie soon joined them strolling Thatcher with Colby sitting in it, a bad habit of hers. Mallory came charging towards Derek in a flurry of blonde hair and soccer cleats.
"Daddy!" she shouted jumping into his arms.
"Hey Mal." Derek exclaimed. Swinging her around a few times. Colby perked up getting out of the stroller and jumping on her father. Derek swung her up into his arms and kissed her nose. He put Mallory down and ruffled Thatcher's unruly dark curls. "Hi Izzie." He kissed her cheek greeting her hello.
"Well she's all yours. Maybe you can fix solve her insecurities." Izzie said hugging Meredith goodbye.
"What insecurities?" he asked as Colby twirled a finger around a lock of his hair.
"Nothing." She answered pushing the stroller to her car. "Come on guys let's go get ice cream. It's on Daddy." She smiled back at Derek as he put Colby down. He shook his head and pulled his keys out of his pocket.