That night, after Meredith had dropped Christina off at her newly rented, Burke free, right next to campus apartment, she headed to her own place. When she got home, the house was oddly quiet, so she assumed Izzie and George had gone out, most likely to Joe's Pub. She unpacked, and after re-organizing everything for about two hours, she couldn't stand the eerie silence. 'Why not make the best of the last day of my summer?' she thought to herself. Meredith went into her closet and grabbed a pair of jeans, a red knit tank, and a crocheted belt, got dressed, and walked out her door.
The night was perfect. A clear sky full of stars twinkling, teasing her eyes. She gazed, entranced by the beauty of it. Suddenly, her cell phone rang. Meredith continued to walk, while digging into her oversized Adrienne Vittadini handbag her mother probably paid a personal shopper to buy for her twenty first birthday. Suddenly, she collided with something hard. Trying not to fall, she grabbed onto it with at the same time arms came to hold her waist. She looked up and her eyes met a striking pair of blue eyes. Her body tingled all over, heat forming between her legs. Meredith's eyes shifted lower, gazing at his mouth. They were moving, as if he were saying something... 'Shit! He was saying something. What did he say? Oh my gosh!'
"Are you okay miss?" he said.
"Uh fine. Thanks" she stammered.
Meredith realized she was still grabbing onto the man's shirt as if it were a lifeline. Embarrassingly, she let go, her cheeks turning a bright color.
"Sorry about that... I wasn't paying attention" she said, eyes lowered.
"No it's my fault. I'm glad you're okay." And he smiled, the most electrifying smile she had ever encountered. Meredith smiled back dumbly, for no words could form in her mouth.
"Well uh... I'm Derek. Derek Sheppard. It's actually my time being in Seattle. I'm originally from New York, NYU. So uh, I'm trying to get use to the campus you know, so I'm not late tomorrow."
"I'll be happy to show you around. I'm Meredith Grey"
Monday morning had finally arrived. Meredith woke up to the smell of pancakes and coffee. Ahh, she missed Izzie's cooking.
"Morning" Meredith said, as she walked out of her room.
"Hey you! I had some pancakes made, but George ate them all" Izzie explained.
"No big, I have to go anyway. Literature first thing in the morning, so can't be late"
"Well I have no class until noon so I'll save some food for you in the fridge if you get back"
"Thanks Iz" Meredith grabbed her coffee mug and headed out the door.
Meredith walked to class meeting Christina on the way. She was talking about something about how Burke was a dumbass, but yet, still a man. They walked up the steps of the English building and Meredith remembered showing Derek here last night, a smile on her face.
"Meredith, your face is getting all grossly gooey, and you have an awkward smile on your face. Snap out of it" and they continued walking.
Meredith and Christina stepped into their literature class with a class size of eighteen, and seemed to be the last ones to arrive. They took their next to each other and waited for the professor.
"I bet he's old and has weird things growing out of his ears" Christina whispered, "all the English profs are like the walking dead..." Christina went silent, "or not"
Meredith turned, and her mind went blank. It was Derek, in full form, gorgeous.
"Hello. My name is Mr. Sheppard, and I will be your lit professor this term. So a little about myself, I majored Literature in Oxford, taught for three years at NYU, and now I'm here" He smiled. Meredith stopped breathing for what seemed like an eternity. He was her professor, and while she spent the whole night dreaming about him, he was now forbidden. She watched as his eyes scanned the class, his eyes lingered when their eyes met, and moved on.