Disclaimer: I don't own Grey's Anatomy. If I did, Derek would have given his marriage a real try.

A/N: There will be mentions of other couples throughout the story, some stronger than others but they won't be a focus. I know it's bad of me starting this story when there's another one I'm working on right now but this plot bunny hopped into my head and would not go away. It's set a bit in the future, about six months. I tried to stay as accurate with the timeline as I could (mainly how long since Addison and Mark slept together) but I may have made an error in that. Feel free to correct me if I have. Anyways, enough of my rambling-on with the story.

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Addison jiggled the key in the seldom used lock. She cursed and stomped her foot, then took a deep breath and put more focus on the task. She was finally able to get the lock to spring free and the door slowly swung open. She stood in the doorway and gazed in at the silent house. She wasn't sure why she had come here, to what was once their little getaway, their house in the Hamptons. What was even more mysterious was why she had felt compelled to tell everyone that she was going to Hawaii for a week. She hadn't even told her New York friends about this little trip. She took a couple of steps inside, her footsteps echoing despite their softness. Addison pulled the key out of the lock and quickly shut the door against the bitter cold that was creeping in, automatically locking the door behind her despite the fact that it led to the garage and she knew that was shut tight. It was a habit she had picked up since that awful night many years ago that had changed her forever. She quickly pushed the thought from her mind. Her eyes roamed around the room, taking in the picture perfect kitchen. A light laugh escaped her lips as she wandered further into the room, mentally patting herself on the back for forgetting to cancel the monthly cleaning service. She dragged a delicate finger over the end of the counter and not a trace of dust was to be found. She remembered that they always came on the nineteenth which had been three days ago. She let out a delicate sigh as she realized that meant only three days until Christmas.

Addison set her bags off to the side and shrugged her coat off, draping it across the top of the bags. "Why am I torturing myself like this?" She deeply inhaled as memory after memory came flooding back to her. She hadn't been able to bring herself to sell the place even after the divorce. Her finger traced the frame that held their wedding photo. They had put one in every room when they decorated the place. It had been Derek's idea, so that no matter where they were they could see the happiest day of their lives. She hadn't been back here since their marriage was still in tact so the pictures remained. "How did it happen to us?" she pondered as she stared at the photo. After several long moments she shook herself out of her reverie and continued through the house. Just about every room brought laughter and then tears to her but also a strange sense of comfort. She had always felt at home here, this secluded little place nestled in the woods. The seclusion was doubled due to the fact that the Hamptons were considerably less populated in the winter.

She made her way up the staircase, her hand trailing along the railing as she ascended the carpeted steps. Things had become a complete mess in the past couple of weeks back in Seattle so she had fled to this little sanctuary. To her surprise, Mark had made it sixty days so she lived up her end of the deal and had given a real relationship with him a shot. She then learned the hard way that one can't teach an old dog new tricks. She had seen the lipstick on his collar when he had shown up for dinner, apologizing for being late saying he had been held up in surgery. She pointed out her observation to him then threw her wine in his face and walked out, never looking back. She had tried finding comfort in Alex a couple of days later, only to have him practically jump out of bed as soon as they were done. He told her as he got dressed that it had been great but it wouldn't happen again. He left, leaving her crestfallen. So she talked to Richard and got the okay to leave for a while.

She reached the main bedroom and deeply inhaled, her nose taking in the scent of recently laundered linen. She found herself yawning, chalking up her tiredness to the long flight and her general dislike of airports. Addison decided her bags could wait and she crawled onto the bed not even bothering to crawl under the sheets and quickly fell asleep.

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It was several hours later before Addison bolted awake. She tried to quiet her breathing as she strained her ears. She began to shake as she heard footsteps throughout the house. She definitely wasn't expecting anybody. She mentally berated herself. How could she have slept so heavily to not hear somebody breaking in? She began to shake as her mind started racing. She frantically looked around, her heart doubling when she saw that it was close to dusk. She knew there wasn't much in the way of self defense lying around. Her eyes darted throughout the room and landed on the lamp on the nightstand. She scrambled off the bed and yanked the cord out of the wall, throwing the shade off and gripping the part by the bulb. She quickly moved over to door, standing by the side with the hinges. She silently pleaded that there was only one person for that would be much easier to fight off. Her body became rigid as she saw the knob turning. She braced herself, raising the lamp above her head, ready to swing it down at the first opportunity. The door was pushed opened and Addison didn't even bother to take in the figure before she started lowering the lamp. It wasn't quickly enough though, for which she would later be eternally grateful.

The intruder saw the movement out of the side of his eye and his quick reflexes caused him to spin around as a hand shot out and stopped Addison midstrike.

Addison gasped in surprise as she finally got a good look at the man standing in her bedroom. Her grip on the lamp relaxed as she shouted "Derek!! What the hell are you doing here?!" Her breath was quick and shallow as she tried to quiet her madly beating heart.

Derek exhaled deeply, obviously quite startled himself. He lowered her arm and worked the lamp out of her hand. He moved over to the night stand and placed the lamp back on it. He seemed to be having difficulty looking at Addison. "I…I thought you were in Hawaii. What are you doing here?"

Addison's first instinct was to direct a scathing remark to him. After all, technically the house was hers. She stopped herself though as she noticed something about Derek's behavior seemed to be horribly off, more than just the fact that he was in the house. "Derek," she quietly asked taking a couple of steps towards him "did something happen?"

Derek chuckled bitterly as he looked up at the ceiling. He ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah, something pretty big."

Addison's worry was increasing in leaps and bounds. She couldn't even imagine what it could be that would drive him to this place. "What is it Derek?"

Derek tapped a finger on the nightstand as he sighed casting a quick glance over his shoulder at Addison before fixing his gaze on the wall. "It's really ironic that I end up talking to you about this."

Addison raised an eyebrow. She was quickly coming to the conclusion that whatever it was had something to do with Meredith. She wasn't letting herself jump to any conclusions though. "Please just tell me what's going on."

Derek spun on his heel and began to pace around the room. Part of him couldn't believe what he had heard earlier but he knew it had indeed happened. He took a deep breath, his hands on his hips as he looked down at the floor. "It seems as though I'm cursed."

Addison swayed slightly on her feet doing her best not to get frustrated with his cryptic speech. She could tell how torn he was and her heart began to ache. She had never really gotten over him and it tore at her to see him like this. "What do you mean cursed?"

Derek paused in front of the dresser, his fingers lightly gliding over a crystal music box that he remembered giving Addison for her birthday eight years ago. He pulled his hand back and his fingers curled into a light fist as he started pacing again. "Meredith and I…we got into a huge fight late last night. I don't even remember what started it. All I know is that it just kept escalating. I ended up going back to the trailer."

Addison slowly nodded. She knew there was much more to the story though. "Okay," was all she said, hoping it would be enough encouragement for him to continue.

"I showed up at her house the next morning. I showed up, like I had told her I always would. The house was quiet so I went straight up to her bedroom. I was just about to walk in when the sounds I heard from the other side of the door made me stop dead in my tracks."

Addison's eyes widened as she felt dread seep into her. She was now beginning to understand his irony comment. She still tried to keep her mind from going there, at least until she heard it with her own ears.

"It was apparent she had forgotten I said that. Or she thought this time was bad enough that I wouldn't. Or she just didn't care. I haven't decided on that yet."

"Derek…" Addison said quietly, at a complete loss for words.

Derek laughed, only it was cruel and slightly maniacal. "If only…if only that was the name she had been calling. No, the whole thing was a biting cacophony. The headboard slamming against the wall, the mattress creaking, low groaning and Meredith's voice calling out 'Alex'" he spat the name out.

Addison did a double take a Derek. Her thoughts turned to herself as she felt an ache in her chest, her mind flashing back to her time with Alex. Meredith Grey had ripped yet another man away from her. She couldn't help but wonder if this morning was their first time together or not. Her attention then went back to Derek and she found the anger in her building. She found herself beginning to loathe the perfect twelve year old because she knew how much Derek was hurting right now, having inflicted that damage herself. She had never told Derek the events that led up to her being in bed with Mark. It may have made him take a different perspective on the whole thing but Addison had never told him because she felt there was no justification. "I don't know what to say to you." Addison confessed.

Derek painfully smirked. Part of him was still in shock that Addison was here. He had needed to escape and didn't stop to question himself when he had booked the flight. He had figured she would have never needed to know he was here though he himself couldn't fully explain why. "I don't know if there's anything that can be said."

Addison smiled, though there was considerable sadness to it. "In that case, I'm sorry for almost bludgeoning you."

Derek managed a short laugh. "It's a good thing I grew up with four temperamental sisters. I'm sorry for scaring you like that Addison. I had no clue you were here."

Addison nodded as she walked over to the nightstand and plugged the lamp back in, picking the shade up off the floor and sticking it back on. She quickly flicked the light on to fight off the encroaching darkness. "I could only imagine the headlines. 'Nation's Top Neurosurgeon in Need of Brain Surgery.'"

Derek smiled a tiny bit, and then sighed. "I'll get going. I didn't mean to intrude. I just…" he trailed off, his whirlwind of thoughts evident on his face.

Addison bit her lip, feeling horribly awkward. "Listen, I know I'm probably the last person you want to be around right now but why don't you just stay here tonight? I promise I'll make myself sparse. You know that there isn't a hotel within driving distance that's open in the winter and you should try to get some rest before you make any treks anywhere."

Derek nodded slowly, knowing she was right. In some way that was indescribable to him, he didn't mind Addison being here in spite of what he was dealing with. "Thanks Addison," he said quietly.

"It's no problem," she responded with equal softness. She headed out of the room in effort to keep with her promise to be sparse. Addison went downstairs and collected her bags and then lugged them back upstairs, stopping outside one of the guest rooms and pushed the door open.

"What are you doing?" Derek questioned as he emerged from the main bedroom.

Addison looked over at him. "I'm putting my bags in the room."

"Why that one?"

"I was going to let you have the main room tonight. The bed's much more comfortable in there and you need the rest."

"I'll take that bedroom. I'm not going to chase you out of the main one. It's your house and I'm the unexpected visitor."

"Exactly, it is my house. Which is why I'm choosing to sleep here tonight. I'm not changing my mind."

Derek smiled softly. "You're still as stubborn as ever."

"I prefer tenacious to stubborn." Addison replied with a smile of her own before walking into the room and quietly shutting the door behind her. She hauled her bags onto the bed and started digging through them, pulling out things she would need. She decided to do the rest of the unpacking tomorrow.

A little while later Addison was settled on the bed, the novel she had been meaning to read for months now in her hands. She had just opened it when she heard a soft knock on the door. She raised her eyebrows as she called out "Come in."

Derek poked his head in. "I took the liberty of making dinner. I wasn't sure if you had eaten or not. You're welcome to some."

Addison was a bit surprised having figured Derek would try to avoid contact with her. She nodded a bit. "Thanks. I'll be right down."

Derek nodded in reply and then exited, pulling the door shut behind him.

Addison followed the smells to the dining room and she found Derek sitting at the table already eating. She then spotted a full plate at the opposite end of the table from him. This caught her off guard in several respects. She had assumed that he had already eaten and had told her about the dinner as an after thought. She sat down at the table and couldn't help being a bit touched that he had fixed a plate for her. Addison laid her napkin across her lap and started eating.

After a longer period of silence Derek finally spoke up though he didn't look at Addison. "You know I'm surprised the grocers didn't say anything to either of us about the other already ordering food."

"It's the Hamptons Derek." Addison teased slightly. "They don't question, they just do."

"You have a point there." Derek responded as he raised his head to look at Addison.

Addison smiled a little. "I have to give my compliments to the chef," she said indicating the food with a wave of her fork.

Derek smiled in return. "It definitely turned out better than our first meal here did."

Addison couldn't help but laugh. "How many hours did we have to scrub the pan to try to get the burnt lasagna off?"

"We never got it off. After four hours, we just gave up and threw the pan out."

"That's right. I remember now. I threw a roll at you when you called time of death on it."

"Hey I clearly remember you laughing at that."

"I still maintain it was completely involuntary." Addison protested though the smile on her face said otherwise.

Derek smiled as well but then it seemed the events from earlier in the day invaded his mind and his face slackened and he busied himself with his food once more.

Addison stifled a sigh and began to eat again as well. She knew silence was the best option right now.

A short while Derek stood up and carried his now empty plate into the kitchen. He came back into the dining room. "I'm going to go grab my things," he informed Addison before heading outside to the driveway.

Addison finished up her meal and went into the kitchen and started rinsing off the plates before putting them in the dishwasher. She busied herself with cleaning up the rest of the kitchen.

"I can get that." Derek said as he entered the room.

Addison shrugged. "It's fine. I'm almost done here."

Derek ignored her and pulled a couple of bowls out of the cabinet and started spooning the leftovers into them. He grabbed the plastic wrap out of the drawer and covered the bowls before setting them in the fridge.

Addison rolled her eyes as she began to wipe down the counter. She resisted the urge to toss some comment out about her not being the only stubborn one. She looked out the window and made out the soft flakes that were beginning to fall. "Looks like it's starting to snow."

Derek nodded. "It doesn't seem like it's anything serious though. I'm sure that whatever sticks will be gone by morning."

The kitchen work was quickly finished and they both headed off to their respective rooms, bidding the other good night.

When Addison was lying in the bed later, she found herself instinctively turning her body in the direction of the room that her ex-husband was currently occupying. She kept replaying their moment at dinner earlier in her mind. The way they were in that time she almost let herself believe that everything that had happened over the past couple of years had just been a horrible nightmare. She knew she was only fooling herself but part of her couldn't help it. She closed her eyes and after a while she fell into a fitful sleep.

Derek was lying on his back, staring up at the ceiling though his gaze kept wandering down to the door that led down the hall. His fingertips gently ran over the pillow next to his head as he pondered over the many thoughts and feelings running through his head trying to sort them all out. He realized he was getting no where and laid his hand over his eyes, willing for sleep to come to give him a brief reprieve.

Little did either of them know that the thoughts in their heads weren't the only storm that was brewing. The biting wind severely increased its intensity and the light flakes quickly became bigger and considerably more numerous. It seemed like the winter storm was determined to prove Derek's earlier assumption horribly incorrect.

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A/N: I'm sure you're all wondering why Derek showed up there. It will be revealed shortly, rest assured. I hope you liked the chapter. Reviews are appreciated.