Summary: Meredith can't help but wonder every once in a while how Derek manages to be this 'McDreamy'

A/N: Hi! Well this story started out like most good stories do, with a great idea, a little planning and then letting it all loose. This is a story about Derek and what makes him so McDreamy to the female eye. So Read, Enjoy, Review!

Disclaimer: Only in a fantasy world would it be possible that I own this very awesome show and all its troubled characters.

Lesson 1: Nancy and her manners

I've always appreciated my sister Nancy. Although she had a tendency to go a little too far with things, she always meant well. At the end of the day she was a mom to the rest of us. When I look back at it I guess she had no other choice.

Since our dad died, our mother had to take on two jobs to keep food on the table and Nancy sacrificed a lot in order to help her.

At the time, mom came up to us kids, Nancy at her side, and made us all promise to grow up and be doctors so other people's dads can stay alive and so we'd never run out of food in the refrigerator.

But every so often Nancy made it hard to live with four older sisters; she was always able to round up the other girls into her own little posse and influence them, mostly against me.

----GAGAGA----

Before season one…

"Who knew how easy it was to meet beautiful women here?" I said aloud, standing behind a single woman who was sitting at the bar. I hated that line. It just wasn't me. It was a line my ex-best friend taught me to say before he became my ex-best friend. But tonight I got to say this line. Tonight I deserved to say whatever I wanted, to be whoever I wanted.

At the sound of my voice, she whipped her head around and I caught a quick whiff of lavender in her hair. She smiled a smile that lit up her face entirely. My eyes became fixated on her; it was almost impolite. As I fought to break eye contact I noticed the empty shot glass in her hand and three others on bar counter nearby.

I sat down beside her and ordered a beer. "Starting off a little heavy don't you think?" I chugged a sip straight out of the bottle.

"Sometimes you have to just give in to your temptations," she said with a small chuckle, as she gazed at the shot glass in her hand.

Her smile made me smile, "Yeah, I guess sometimes you do."

The bartender approached me, "You must be new around here,"

"Is it that easy to tell?"

"Well most of the people here are regulars. You know, doctors, nurses, coming to drown their problems in alcohol once they finish their shift."

"What about her?" I signaled to the girl next to me.

He shrugged, "A first timer"

I turned back to her, "So, how 'bout another round of drinks for me and my fellow first timer," I proposed. She seemed utterly delighted.

"Well what brings you here?" Yet again the choice of words is not mine but my ex-best friend's.

"I just spent the last two hours in room with a bunch of egotistical people who are sure that they and they alone are able to make a difference in this world. And so now I'm just trying to check back into reality."

I nodded, "That's good. Reality's good." On the contrary, reality sucks; I couldn't help but think to myself.

"Not always." She muttered under her breath. She sighed and turned to me, "What about you? What brings you here?"

"Well…" I hesitated, "I'm here just for the sake of change"

"That's good. Change… is good," she said smiling.

"Then please, join me for another round of drinks… for the sake of change"

-----

Nancy was 14 when she and her first boyfriend broke up. I was only about four. She stomped around the entire house ranting about how boys had absolutely no manners and that Tim, or Tom, or whatever his name was, never really cared about her in the first place. That was one of the most significant times she managed to get our other three sisters to conspire against me.

They tied me up to a chair in the playroom and left me curiously awaiting their return. She convinced them that it was for my own good; that they could make me into a perfect gentleman.

A few minutes later Nancy returned to the playroom. I struggled to let myself loose.

"Nancy! Let me go!" I yelled. Nancy pretended not to hear me as she began to lecture. Do keep in mind, I was only four.

"Derek, girls like well-mannered gentlemen…"

"Who cares what girls want? They have cooties!" I shouted. She ignored my screams yet again and continued.

"…so in order to be a gentleman, be polite and complimentary. Women like to hear 'please' and 'thank you'. Tell her she is gorgeous, beautiful, pretty and that she has lovely eyes. Just telling her she is wonderful often helps and thanking her for everything she does for you will also make her feel special." She looked furious but her tone was calm and collective.

"Find something unique about her that no one has ever told her about. Whenever giving compliments, look the girl straight in the eye. DON'T," she emphasized, "call her 'hot' or 'sexy', instead try 'cute', 'pretty', or 'beautiful'. She turned towards the door but stopped half way, clearly she wasn't finished.

"Oh and Derek, mean what you say. Say things you actually mean about her," And with that she left the room to join the other girls, slamming the door behind her and leaving me still restrained.

-----

"Do you know," I said to the woman who had kept me company that night, "that you have the loveliest eyes I have ever seen?"

The strangest thing was that this was not just a line, it was the truth and I meant it. I have never meant anything more in my entire life. Her eyes were just so exquisite; they were deep and blue and had this mysterious sadness about them that captured my awe. When I stared into them I felt as though I was staring into her soul. Cliché, I know, but it felt so real.

"My eyes," she admitted shyly, "are rather plain, I think"

"No. They're not!" I objected, how could such an incredibly looking woman be so modest? "They're lovely"

She watched me then smiled; those eyes of hers emphasized how genuine that smile was.

And so, several drinks and a few compliments later we found ourselves at what seemed to be her place, having the most passionate and invigorating sex I have had in a long time. How could you feel so deeply for someone that you had just met? Maybe all that alcohol was getting to us.

She was the first person I trusted since I've been damaged. That's okay, because when I saw her, I knew it, she was damaged too and for the first time in a while I felt alive again.

Unfortunately the next morning when she awoke, she threw me out. Her smile was still soft and sincere when she looked at me and insisted that I go so she wouldn't be late for the first day at work.

I left with two very important things that morning; the first of them being her name: Meredith and the second was that feeling inside me, that Meredith and I would soon meet again.

A/N: I find it quite ironic that the first line Derek ever said around Meredith was his ex-best friend's line (aka Mark's). I'd like to thank all of you readers for doing what you do best… sitting in front of that computer, procrastinating with your tasks and simply reading.

Make the author happier and review! Have any questions, comments, suggestions? Review!

And a special thanks to my wonderful new beta reader, blueflamedfire for all the help (you should check out her stories too, if you haven't done so already).

Shh… wanna hear what's coming up next? Here's a hint: Derek has another sister, her name is Kathleen. She has a lesson to teach too.