Thank you for all of the reviews! I wasn't going to update today, but they made me want to! This one is only two scenes, but they're fairly important. I think I mentioned before to pay attention to small details and symbolism. I don't think there is much symbolism in this chapter, but just for the future! I know you guys want to know what's going on with Meredith, but just keep reading. I promise everything will be revealed!


Chapter 4: It Ends Tonight

A falling star,
Least I fall alone.
I can't explain what you can't explain.
You're finding things that you didn't know
I look at you with such disdain

Dr. Yang walked into the locker room and threw down her lab coat in exhaustion. Her gaze followed and she noticed Meredith sitting nearby, transfixed by something in her hand. "How long are you planning on being here?"

Meredith almost jumped at the sound of another human's voice, thinking that she'd been completely alone. She shoved something quickly into her purse before absently brushing her hair out of her face, "I was just about to go," she explained.

"Not here," she answered as she gestured at the room, "In Seattle."

Meredith self-consciously stood up and straightened out the smooth red sweater she had matched with her dark jeans. "I'm not sure. As long as Dr. Webber needs me, I suppose," she answered, averting her eyes from her newfound colleague.

Dr. Yang pulled at the handle on her tan locker, used to the squeaking noise it made as it opened. She pulled her hair out of its clip and looked over at Meredith's vulnerable figure, "You do get that he wants you to take over neuro, right?"

Her fingers fumbled against the worn leather on her purse before she allowed her eyes to lead up to Dr. Yang's intimidating figure. "Dr. Shepherd is head of neuro," was her only answer.

"He's next in line for Chief and Webber's wife wants him to retire," Dr. Yang supplied as she pulled her scrub top off, revealing a black tee shirt from beneath. She stuffed the shirt in her locker, waiting for a response.

Meredith's eyes had found their way back to the ground, "Oh, Adele." She had meant it to only be a thought crossing through her mind, but the words had quietly fumbled out of her mouth against her will. She'd never known the woman, but she'd heard of her. Her mother had mentioned her once of twice, especially in the past few years.

Dr. Yang paused her evening routine and looked over at Meredith. She leaned her hip and side against the cold metal of the lockers as she allowed her arms to cross her chest, "You know the Webber's don't you?" her voice almost revealed the slight interest that was playing through her mind.

Meredith looked up at her, horror plaguing her eyes. She hadn't wanted anyone to know of her past, even the past that wasn't her fault. Despite her intentions, she should have known the truth would eventually unravel; no matter how small and insignificant her notion of Adele may have been. "Yeah," she began, letting her expression return to the numb one that it had taken long before her trip to Seattle, "My mother knew them."

"Hmm," was the feeble response she had earned as Dr. Yang pulled out an open bag of Cheetos. She popped a few in her mouth before dropping it back inside what seemed to be an endless disaster of her belongings. "Ellis Grey?"

"Yeah," Meredith answered. She wasn't sure what to do with herself as she continued to becoming increasingly aware of her body language and the way she was portraying herself. Deciding she had no reason to be here, she draped her purse strap against her slender shoulder. She took a few steps towards the door as Dr. Yang pulled her hair into a messy ponytail. She stopped halfway across the room and looked back at the first person she'd really met in Seattle. She swallowed her nervousness and retrieved her voice, "Thanks for showing me around today."

Dr. Yang didn't look back. She just pulled her jeans out of her locker along with a pair of shoes, "I didn't have any choice."

Meredith nodded, not exactly sure how to take that. For a moment she'd thought that they'd become some sort of friends, or at least pleasant colleagues. Apparently her expressions and responses had turned her away. Feeling slightly defeated, Meredith turned away. She took a few more steps and placed her hand on the door, pulling it open.

"It's Cristina."

Meredith turned her head back towards the locker room, once again faced with her colleagues back. "What?"

She turned around, the hair that had fallen from the elastic, falling against her shoulders. "My name. It's Cristina Yang." Her voice was full of confidence and assurance, as though nothing she ever said would ever be considered wrong.

"Oh," Meredith answered, a little surprised. Maybe this Cristina Yang would end up being her first friend in Seattle. "Mine's Meredith."

"I know," Cristina answered as she pulled a thicker shirt over her black tee.

Meredith's eyes narrowed a bit as she let the door handle free from her grasp, "You know?"

"We were told that you were coming and who you were," she answered, as if it was the only possible answer in the world.

"Oh." Meredith began to feel like an idiot, once again thinking she'd ruined her chances, only to feel stupider because of her one-word answers. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow," she said quietly before pulling the door open again.

"Yeah."


Meredith walked into the house that she figured she might as well call her own again. The way things were looking; she wasn't going home anytime soon, so this might as well be her new home. She dropped her purse and jacket on the couch and realized that she should probably move herself upstairs. She knew there was a guest room that she could make her own, but she didn't have the energy anymore.

She let herself fall against the plush couch as her eyes roamed around the room. For the first time in her life, she noticed how beautiful the house really was. She knew her mother must have spent a fortune on the interior decorating, so it better look nice, but it almost looked a little roomy to Meredith. Maybe she could make this her home.

As she continued to look around, she noticed one more thing: her solitude. That was the main difference between her new home and her old. Her apartment in New York was full of life and not because it was located on a busy street. She wasn't the only one living in that apartment and her friends and family were always there.

She looked over at her purse and pulled it towards her. She dug out her cell phone and stared at it for a moment. All she had to do was dial a familiar phone number and all of this would be over. She could go back home and try her best to be who she used to be. But that was it. She couldn't be the person she was a year ago. She could, however, be the person she was a month ago, but in all honesty, she was being that person in Seattle as well.

She realized that dialing that number would only cause her to break a little more. Nothing good could come out of it. She'd made herself a vow before she left New York and she needed to keep it. She wasn't sure how long it would take her, but she had to succeed. She wasn't sure that she could handle failing at something else.


So I've always loved the Meredith and Cristina friendship. That's mainly why I brought Cristina in almost immediately and had them start to form their strange friendship. After all, Meredith is completely alone in Seattle dealing with a lot and she needs a friend. She has a little hope that Seattle will be good for her and that she could possibly make it her new home, but her past isn't leaving her any time soon and that amount of hope is very small.

And if you were wondering, not everything I write is really this sad. Things will get better!