'Your what?' Meredith asked

'My wife. I'm sorry you had to meet this way'

'Hi' Susan said

The four of them stood there in silence.

'Dinner's ready' Derek said, 'Would you like to come through?'

'Yeah' Thatcher said

They walked into the dining room and sat down. Susan and Thatcher on one side, Meredith and Derek on the other. They dished out the food and began eating.

'How did you two meet?' Thatcher asked

'In the bar opposite the hospital, the…the day before my internship' Meredith told him

'How about you two?' Derek asked

'In the grocery store car park, my bag split and Susan helped pick my things up' Susan said

'So, Meredith. How is your mother?' Thatcher asked, 'Is she still working at the hospital?'

'Err…she…err' Meredith stuttered 'She…she has Alzheimer's' Meredith felt Derek's hand on her knee

'Oh, I am sorry' Thatcher said

'Why didn't you fight for me?' Meredith blurted out

'Meredith' Derek said

'What?' Thatcher asked

'Why didn't you fight for me?'

'I tried Meredith, I did. When your mother left me I was heartbroken, she was the love of my life. We had a little girl together, we had a family. So, when she told me about Richard I fell apart, she destroyed our family. I'll admit it, I did walk out. I did leave you with your mother but I did fight for you after. I wanted to still see my little girl, I wanted to watch you grow up' Thatcher told her

'Why didn't you fight harder?'

'I tried, Ellis took you to Boston. She took you away from me. I didn't know when she was going to bring you back, I couldn't sit there waiting for her. Then four years later I met Susan'

'I can't do this' Meredith said getting up from the table and going upstairs

'I'm sorry' Derek said standing up

'I think we should go' Susan said

'Please' Derek said

Derek went upstairs to find Meredith sat on their bed, her knees up against her chest and her heads resting on her knees. Derek climbed onto the bed, sat next to Meredith and pulled her into him so she was leaning on him. He could tell she was crying, he could feel her body shaking. He didn't know what to say to her, so they just sat there in silence.

'Mer' Derek said after a while

Derek felt Meredith pull away so she could look up at him

'How are you?'

'I don't know. I don't know how I am supposed to feel'

'Me neither'

'What am I going to do next?'

'You don't have to do anything. We can take it one day at a time, we don't have to rush. Not after everything you have already been through. If you decide you want him to be your father and get to know him then I will support you or if you decide you don't then I will also support you'

'I know you will, I don't deserve you Derek'

'Don't say that Meredith, I am the lucky one'

Meredith sat up and kissed Derek. They sat talking for a few hours until Meredith fell asleep leaning against Derek's chest with his arm around her, Derek placed a kiss on her head and tried to fall asleep. He couldn't fall asleep, too many thought running through his head. He was too worried about Meredith, her mother had Alzheimer's and her father had just turned up married to another woman.

He wanted to do something to make her feel better, but he didn't know what. They had been going out for about half a year now, and they hadn't done anything big. It was way too early for him to propose and they already lived together. But they lived together with Izzie and George. They needed somewhere for themselves. Somewhere just them two could live. Meredith loved this house, it was the house where she grew up, it's the only house she has ever known.

He reached into his pocket and took out his phone. He sent a text to Izzie and George asking them to meet him at Joe's bar tomorrow. He knew what he could do so he could eventually fall asleep.

At the hospital he next day, Meredith had just discharged a patient when Miranda Bailey walked over to her.

'Grey' Bailey said

'Doctor Bailey, I have just discharged my patient. I was about to head down to the ER'

'Don't bother. I am doing an appendectomy and you're scrubbing in'

'Thank you, Doctor Bailey'

'I'll see you in the OR in 20minutes'

Meanwhile Derek was waiting for Izzie and George at Joe's bar. He ordered himself a soda, when they walked over to him

'Doctor Shepherd' Izzie said

'I need to talk to you about Meredith' Derek said

'Is she alright?' George asked

'She has been through a lot recently, I don't know if you have heard. And we have been together for a while now. She needs some space, and she has nowhere to go at home. I was wondering if you two could find a place somewhere else' Derek asked

'Oh, err' Izzie said

'I will help you with the deposit for a new place, I don't want to kick you out and you have no money to get somewhere. But this would help Meredith so much'

'That's fine Doctor Shepherd' George said

'As long as you help' Izzie said

'Izzie' George nudged her

'No George, its fine. I will keep to my word and help pay the deposit'

Meredith and Miranda were stood in the scrub room, scrubbing their arms. Once they were done they walked into the OR and started the surgery

'Doctor Grey, would you like to make the first cut?'

'Is this because of everything that's been going on?'

'No, this is a teaching hospital and I was told I have to teach'

'Fine then' Meredith said 'Scalpel'

Meredith made the first cut over McBurney's point revealing the appendix.

'Nicely done Grey, now tell me everything that is going on while I remove this appendix'

'Fine. Well my mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, and then that's when I found out that the Chief is to blame for my mother and father splitting up. And then the other day, my father ended up in the ER' Meredith told Bailey

'How is your father?'

'He's fine, he had a laceration on his forehead'

'So why was it so bad then?' Bailey asked

'Because I haven't seen him since I was 5, and I didn't recognise him. Then Derek thought it was a good idea to bring them over for dinner, and then I found out that he got remarried to some woman called Susan'

'Time to close' Bailey said

'Already?' Meredith asked

'We passed the time by talking'

'Thank Doctor Bailey'

'What for?'

'I feel better, now what I have it all off my chest. Derek keeps asking how I am and I don't know what to tell him. I know he wants the best for me but the answer isn't going to change'

'You know having a family is the best feeling. Having people around you, knowing that they love you is good. I know it won't be the same with your mother but you still have a healthy father who you still have time to get to know. He might have got remarried but that doesn't mean he doesn't love you. He hasn't seen you since your mother took you away, try getting to know him' Bailey said before leaving Meredith alone in the scrub room.

Maybe family is what Meredith needed right now, she needed someone to go through everything with her. But Thatcher wouldn't come and visit her mother with her, not after everything she did to him. Meredith left the scrub room and went to find Christina.

'Hey' She said walking up behind Christina who was stood reading the OR board

'Do you want to come and watch?'

'Watch what?'

'Doctor Shepherd's craniotomy? He's about to start in OR2'

'Okay' The pair of them walked up to the empty gallery and sat down

'You never rang me the other night, after you were packing your stuff up' Christina said

'Oh yeah, sorry'

'What happened that day? You were packing your stuff and then you ended up staying and the Chief hasn't been seen here since'

'It's a long story' Meredith said not wanting to explain it all again

'Okay then whatever'

'Bailey let me do the first cut on a surgery today' Meredith gloated, since interns weren't supposed to

'What?' Christina said, with her voice filled with jealousy

'Yep. Straight over McBurney's point'

Christina and Meredith finished watching the surgery. Christina decided to stay and watch the next surgery, while Meredith went to meet Derek

'Derek' Meredith said as he walked out the scrub room

'You okay?' Derek asked for the hundredth time that day

'Derek, I'm fine. You don't have to keep asking me'

'I care, that's all' Derek said

'I know you do and I love that you do' Meredith said, 'I got talking to Bailey before'

'Oh yeah? What did she have to say?'

'She said that family is the best thing. She got me thinking, I don't know if I want to get to know my dad. It would change my life if we didn't, and I don't really have the time to get to know him with the amount of time I have to spend at this hospital'

'It's up to you Mer'

'Doctor Shepherd, can we have a word please?' George said walking over with Izzie

'Sure' The three of them walked over to one side

'We found a place' Izzie said

'Just thought we should tell you'

'You didn't have to straight away' Derek said

'Well we have'

'How much is the deposit?' Derek asked, once they told him he wrote them a cheque and handed it over. Meredith stood and watched Derek give them the cheque

'What was that about?' Meredith asked as he walked back over

'Doesn't matter' Derek said 'Want to go and eat?'

Derek and Meredith went down the cafeteria and Derek bought them both some dinner. They were having a nice time until Derek was paged for an emergency consult in the pit. Today must have been Meredith's lucky day, because she scrubbed in on two more surgeries before her shift finished. Once they had both finished and changed, they made their way home. Meredith walked into her house and expected Izzie to cooking in the kitchen.

'Izzie!' She shouted

'She isn't here Meredith'

'She might be upstairs' Meredith went upstairs and opened Izzie's bedroom door to find her room empty. She then went to George's room and that was also empty

'They've gone' Meredith said comin back down

'I know'

'What do you mean you know?'

'They have got a place for themselves, and left us with your house to just us two'

'Why?'

'We needed a place for just us, and I knew how much you love this house and that you wouldn't want to move out. So I spoke to them the other day and asked them if they would move out, I helped pay for the deposit. That's what you saw earlier' Derek said 'This is our home now. Me and you'

'Derek, you didn't have to'

'Meredith after everything you have been through, you need some time for yourself. And with them two here you never got that. Now you can, if you need a night to yourself, then there are two beds I can sleep in'

'This can be our house forever, we can be married here, have kids here. Me and you' Meredith said

'Thank you, Derek' She stood on her tip toes and kissed him 'I love you'

'I love you too'