A/N Thanks so much for the amazing reviews and I just have to say that I have never been more motivated to write a story more. I feel like that might be due to the fact that they never were featured as a couple and so there are endless possibilities of what to write. I am so inspired by all of you who have taken the time to read, follow, favorite, and/or review this story. I hope you enjoy this chapter!
As they ran for the entrance, Meredith's heart was racing. She had never experienced anything like this in her life and it terrified her. She felt like she might drown just from standing in the rain too long. Mark pulled Meredith out of her thoughts as he yelled over the wind and rain.
"I think we're almost there!" As he said this, they heard something scraping against the ground and hitting the water in their direction. Mark grabbed onto Meredith's waist firmly and pushed her with him as they dove ahead. Whatever that noise was, it sounded big and dangerous. Meredith let out a scream as she felt something hit her ankle. It didn't help that the water was constantly crashing back and forth, hitting the area that had just been injured.
"What is it? What's wrong?" Mark asked as the wind picked up.
"My ankle I think something hit it, I can't move it!" Yelling over the storm felt draining and Meredith could feel herself getting tired. Mark picked her up bridal style and continued running towards the entrance. It took a good few minutes but they finally made it inside. The hospital was surprisingly empty, except for a few people gathered in the waiting area. As they stepped inside, a few nurses took notice and ran over. Mark shoved past them with Meredith still in his arms. He walked with her all the way to the emergency room. He could now see where most of the hospital staff had been.
There were multiple injuries, extra beds laid out, and even some nurses helping out with stitching. It looked like a rough day in the ER. Mark walked around the room with Meredith and placed her on an available bed. It was then that he noticed the amount of blood coming out of her ankle. It looked like whatever hit it had cut through her skin and made it down to her bone. Looking around, he spotted a nurse a few feet away from him.
"Page Dr Torres immediately." Mark said sternly as he once again looked at Meredith's ankle. The nurse nodded and walked off. Mark inhaled sharply before grabbing a pair of gloves and getting to work. Meredith was his number one priority at the moment. He injected her with some drugs for the pain and got to work on the sutures. He may not have been an orthopedic surgeon, but he at least knew to suture everything up so that it wouldn't get infected.
Meredith on the other hand, was enjoying the drugs. Whatever they were, they had made her feel warm and giggly inside. It reminded her of when she had first met Mark.
FLASHBACK
Meredith was standing at the nurses station with a file in hand. She sighed as she looked at it.
"Invasive non-small-cell with a history of COPD? That guy's pretty much a goner." Meredith rolled her eyes at the comment and kept on reviewing the chart in front of her.
"Sensitivity. I like that in a stranger." Meredith closed the chart and turned to face the man who had interrupted her reading. She could tell that he was arrogant, egotistical, and overall annoying by how intrusive he was when it came to personal space. What Meredith did not expect was to meet a pair of sparkling blue eyes and the most handsome face she'd ever seen on a man. She had to stop herself from lowering her eyes to the rest of his body and checking him out in public.
"Are you new here?" She asked as she tried hard to not drool. This man looked like he had just walked out of a Calvin Klein magazine. His stance was relaxed as he leaned slightly on the counter.
"Visiting. Confounded by all the rain and it's only my first day in town." He gave a fake pout that made Meredith smile, something she hadn't done for weeks.
"You get used to it." She said as she made a step backwards, ready to head back to her patients.
"Makes me want to stay in bed all day." The man sent a flirtatious smile her way and stepped closer to her.
"We Just met and you're talking about bed. Not very subtle." As she said this, she could feel a pull in her body, telling her to listen to this man and enjoy herself. She hadn't felt this confident or enjoyed anyone's company ever since her and Derek broke things off.
"Subtle's never been my strong suit." He gave her another smile and made another step forward.
"So do you go out with coworkers?" At this, Meredith flinched slightly and her energy dissipated. Great, he probably just got offered a job here and she was about to repeat her last mistake.
"I make it a rule not to."
"Then I am so glad I don't work here." He leaned in as he said this and Meredith giggled. This man had come out of nowhere and brightened up her day much better than any surgery could've.
"Are you hitting on me? In a hospital?"
"Would that be wrong?" The man shrugged and held out his hand for her to shake. They smiled brightly at one another before speaking.
"Meredith." The man opened his mouth to respond and the next thing she knew, he was on the ground bleeding and Derek was being held back by Addison. Everything happened so quickly. She turned to Derek with anger fuming in her eyes. Derek had already done enough to upset her for a lifetime and now, when she was finally able to smile, he had to steal that away from her.
"What the hell was that?" Derek looked at her with a stone cold eyes and it made her heart sink in her chest. He was looking at her like how he looked at Addison when she first arrived.
"That was Mark." Meredith then turned to the man she had been flirting with only to see him standing a few feet away from her, clutching his cheek. She felt angry with herself for being so stupid. She should've known who he was. She looked back at Derek (who was standing side by side with Addison) and her thought process stopped. Why should I stop talking to Mark just because Derek has an issue with him? Meredith geared her anger towards Derek and held out a hand for Mark in the process. If Derek was going back to his wife, then she was going to start fresh with someone new.
"Meredith. Meredith, can you hear me?" Meredith slowly blinked her eyes open and looked around. She was in one of the rooms in the hospital. She turned her head and noticed Callie standing on her left, checking her stats and monitoring her breathing. She felt a squeeze on her right hand and turned her head the other way. Mark was sitting in a chair next to her bed. He smiled gently when he saw her face.
"Hey there good lookin." Meredith said in a light tone. Callie chuckled and looked at Mark.
"The drugs haven't worn off yet." Mark smirked and nodded.
"Hey Mer, how are you feeling? You had a nasty fall out there." Meredith continued to gaze at Mark, not realizing that words were coming out of his mouth. She placed her hand on his cheek and smiled.
"You're hot." Callie chuckled from the other side of the room. Mark gave her a look and she cleared her throat.
"Right, um, I'm gonna get going." She grabbed her things in a hurry and rushed out of the room to leave the two in privacy. Mark waited until the door shut behind her.
"Mer, how are you feeling?" He said this slowly and a bit louder than normal so that Meredith could understand that he was speaking to her.
"I'm feeling great sweetie, how are you feeling?" He smiled and kissed her forehead as she said this. She was adorable when she was trying to flirt with him while being high on pain medicine. Meredith moved her head and they met in a very sloppy kiss. Meredith moaned into his mouth and tried to bring him closer to her but Mark pulled away. He didn't want to do anything, especially since she was too high to know what she was doing. His pager beeped and as he checked it he stood up.
"I'm going to go see a patient but try and get some sleep, okay?" He kissed her forehead and moved for the door.
"Okay, McSteamy." Mark laughed at the nickname and continued on his way out. He almost bumped into someone but was too distracted to see who it was. He kept moving and made his way into his patient's room.
FLASHBACK
Meredith was just about to fall asleep when a knock on her door woke her up. The person came in and Meredith didn't bother to hide her annoyance. She had just gotten her appendix removed and she didn't need to deal with any more stress in her life.
"Ugh, what do you want from me now?"
"Meredith I just want to talk. Can we do that?" Addison took a seat next to Meredith's bed and sighed.
"Fine. What do you want to 'talk about'." Meredith used air quotes as she said this and Addison had to bite down on her cheek to keep from smirking.
"My husband." Meredith rolled her eyes and sat up.
"Listen lady, McAsshole is yours. I don't want to be with someone who cheats and doesn't even tell his mistress that she is a mistress. I mean, how hard is it to say "hey I'm married". If I had known earlier Meredith and Derek wouldn't have happened. Believe me I know how affairs ruin marriages and I wouldn't want to be one of the factors of that happening." It was hard to take Meredith seriously when she was mumbling half of her words and high as a kite but Addison felt genuinely sorry for this woman. It was one thing to knowingly go out with a married man but it was a whole other thing to date someone and fall in love and then find out that they weren't who they said they were.
"Do you really mean that?" Addison didn't know whether she could trust this woman or not. She felt conflicted on what to believe now that her life was turning upside down.
"Of course I do. Who in their right mind would willingly have an affair with a married man? My childhood was ruined by it and I saw first hand how it destroyed my mother. I would never do that to anyone even if I hated their guts." Meredith said the last part with such a soft voice that Addison felt tears come to her eyes. She blinked them away and sighed.
"Thanks." Addison grabbed Meredith's hand as she stood up to leave.
"Oh and Addison?"
"Yeah?"
"You are really pretty and you're an amazing surgeon. Don't let McAsshole make you think otherwise." Addison let out a smile and laughed.
"Back at you Mer." She gave Meredith's hand one last squeeze before leaving the room. Damn, it was hard to hate that woman.
A/N - Sorry guys I forgot to make the last part a flashback with Addison so it may have confused you.
