Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Can't Fight the Moonlight

Chapter 8: Because of You Part 1


Previously on Can't Fight the Moonlight

"Hide me."

Alex wraps his arms protectively around her, confused. Derek watches the door and within seconds it's thrown open. A tall woman with strawberry blonde hair struts in, followed by Mark, an older man, and a teenage boy.

This must be her family, Alex thinks. He turns back to the mother, who has begun to poke the lump on the bed that Addison's body has formed, trying to get her to come out. Addison shoves the blankets down and looks at Alex with teary eyes. He brings her close to him and whispers, "I understand."

Addison's mother begins to poke her again. " Addison! Introduce me to your new friend."

Addison glares at her. "Mom, this is Alex." She makes a vague gesture to Alex. "Alex, this is my mom."

Addison's mother gives Alex her perfectly manicured hand. "Hello, Alex. I'm Elise Montgomery."


Because of you
I find it hard to trust not only me, but everyone around me.
Because of you, I am afraid.

Alex shakes Elise's hand. "Alex Karev," he states.

"Ahh...yes. The intern. I've heard so much about you. " Elise grins. Her smirk reminds Derek of Addison's entrance to his life in Seattle.

Addison's jaw drops open. "From who?" I haven't talked to her in over a year!

Elise pats Addison on the head. "From Mark, of course." She presents Mark, who stands sheepishly by the door. Addison, Alex, and Derek all glare at him.

He shrugs. "What? She called yesterday."

"That's right." Elise grins. "I missed him." She sighs. "I was so happy to see him. And I really love his hair." She runs her fingers through it, messing it up a little. Mark raises his eyebrow, but Elise doesn't notice. "I think he looks hot like this, don't you agree, Addison?"

Addison groans. "Mom, if this is you're trying to appear younger by using the word 'hot', it's not working."

Elise pretends not to hear her and continues fussing with Mark's clothes. "You kind of look like Leo DiCaprio. Very handsome. If my daughter didn't already have an affair with you, I might pulled a Mrs. Robinson, you know, from The Graduate."

Mark takes it as a compliment. "Yeah, Mrs. Montgomery, thanks." He tries to shuffle away from her, but she grabs onto his coat.

"Now, Mark, I told you to call me Elise. Unless 'Mrs. Montgomery' turns you on. Which is fine with me. Maybe we could make a little roleplay happen?" She laughs, but Addison is mortified. "Mom!" she gasps.

"Oh, Addison, you're so naive. I'm just kidding." She winks at Mark and laughs again. "We must have lunch again though."

This time, Addison directs her anger at Mark. "You had lunch with her?! I can't believe you!" Addison complains. Doesn't he know how terrible my mother is?

"I didn't really have a choice." Mark protests.

"But why HER?" She whispers, "She's the last person on the face of the earth that I would want to see!"

" Addison!" her mother scolds. "You shouldn't be so jealous." Addison rolls her eyes. Sometimes Elise could be so self-centered.

Elise ignores her and continues. "And why should YOU stop me from having lunch with my favorite plastic surgeon." She walks over to Mark and rubs his chest while smiling at him. "It just disappoints me that I had to hear about your new...love interest from Mark, instead of you. Are you that embarrassed?"

Addison blushes and whispers to Alex. "That's not why..." Please understand.

He nods. "I know." I hope she knows that I trust her. That's the last thing she should be worried about.

Elise taps Addison on the foot. "Speak up!!"

Derek rests his hand over Elise's. "That's enough." She doesn't deserve any more of your abuse.

Elise pulls her hand out from under Derek's and smacks his wrist. Hard. "Don't you dare touch me, young man! You're not married to my daughter anymore and-"

"I can still protect her from you!" Derek stares Elise in the eye. She's never liked, always stereotyped him because of his rural background. She never gave him a chance, so why should he give her any respect? The hatred was mutual from the start. He always held himself back, because of Addison, who hated confronting her mother. But now, he's not married to Addison anymore and now there's nothing stopping him from cussing out Elise right here in the hospital.

Except for Mark. Who steps between the two instantly as he sees trouble coming.

Elise dodges Mark and steps back into Derek's view. "Protect her from me?!" She laughs, like a real evil villain. "And what about you, Derek?" She spits out his name, just like Addison does when she's really mad. "Who protected her from you when you left her crying all alone in the big brownstone?"

Derek's face turns red and he grits his teeth. "Why. Are. You. Here?" Admit it. The only reason you're here is to upset Addison

Elise presses a hand innocently to her cheek. " Addison didn't tell you? I called several days ago." She turns back to Addison and wags her finger at her. "Shame on you, Addison." She saunters over to the man in the chair at the front of the room and places her hand on his shoulder. "Steven and I, we're getting a divorce. We need a lawyer and I know my daughter wouldn't use anything but the best. We're here for your recommendations. And, of course, I wanted to visit Mark." She blows a kiss at Mark, who looks away, pretending not to notice.

Alex hugs Addison closer and Derek's eyes narrow at Elise. "Bullshit." There's no way that Elise Montgomery dragged her ass all the way to Seattle for a divorce lawyer. She's just here to torment Addison, to rub the divorce in her face.

Elise turns to her husband and pats his shoulder. "It's true. Right, Steven?" No answer. She pats him a little harder. "Steven?"

Steven shakes her hand off of his shoulder. "Elise, I'm trying to work." He continues to stare at his laptop, typing at the speed of light.

Addison can't shake the horrible feeling residing in the pit of her stomach. "Dad?" Her voice cracks. He waves her off, dismissing her. Addison doesn't remember when he became like this. He'd been a good father through her childhood and teenage years. She could even forgive him for never learning how to protect her from Elise. But this blunt indifference? It's painful. Especially when all she wants is for him to look at her. Just like Derek.

She turns to her brother and stares at him. He's grown up a lot since the last time she saw him. His hair is lighter than Addison's, the same color as their mother's, and it hangs down in his face. He's so tall that Addison suspects he's grown at least a foot. His sad eyes are light too, but his soft features reflect their father. Addison says his name softly, "Kevin." He's startled that she's even talking to him, but she continues, "How are you?"

"He's fine." Elise declares for him. "He'll stay with his father until he finishes high school in a year. He's graduating a semester early!" She claps her hands together in delight.

I didn't ask you, Addison wants to say. But she's never been able to stand up to her mother, so she tries to connect with Kevin once more. "Do you know what you want to major in?"

Kevin smiles, interested now that they're talking about him. "No. I may not go to college. I want to see if I can make it on my own first, as a musician."

Addison looks up at Alex and explains, "Kevin is an amazing pianist."

"As are you." Derek adds. She never gives herself enough credit.

"But I'm not as good." Addison says while smiling at Kevin.

Kevin watches his sister. She's been through so much and she's still so compassionate. "How are you? Mark told us about..." He looks at the floor. "He told us what happened."

Annoyed by Mark's gossipy nature, Derek complains, "Mark! I asked you not to tell anyone! And I said it nicely!" Which takes a lot of self-control when it comes to you.

"It's her family!" Mark declares. They can help her, like before.

"If you knew ANYTHING at all, you would have just kept your mouth shut!" Derek stands up to get into Mark's face, making Mark even angrier.

"You act like I don't CARE about her! She was my best friend too! She NEEDS her family." Mark debates. He acts like I'm an outsider to Addison's life. But I know her better.

Mark and Derek continue to argue and Addison becomes upset. Alex brings her hand up to his mouth so he can kiss it. They're acting like two year olds, as always, even though they know that Addison hates it when they fight. And what's with her family not even caring about her situation? It's like the divorce is more important than their daughter's current state of mental instabilty.

Kevin stands from his chair and walks over to Addison's bedside. "I'm sorry. You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to. I just want to know how you are."

Everyone gathers around Addison's bed and Elise doesn't like this. Everyone is supposed to be looking at HER. She yells too, in a high-pitched shrill voice that's louder than Mark and Derek combined. "EVERYONE!! CALM DOWN!" She stands between Mark and Derek, placing her hands over their mouths. Derek covers his ears with his hands. Her hand muffles his voice, but he's still understandable. "OW! You can't do that in a hospital!"

Elise smacks the side of his head, but quickly places her hand back over his mouth. "Shut up!" Her eyes dart between Mark, who stands still, watching her in awe, and Derek, who struggles with his moral belief of not hitting a woman. Elise licks her lips and says, "I would expect more from the two of you."

Alex explains, "Oh, it's okay. They do this a lot." Was it a mistake to say that? I should just stop talking and concentrate on Addison

Elise glances at the two of them, raising her eyebrows. "Oh, really?" She removes her hands from Mark and Derek's faces. "Are you two still battling over the affection of my daughter?"

"No." Derek answers forcefully. Mark stares at the ground. He's not sure what Elise wants him to say, but he definitely doesn't want to get on her bad side.

Elise pivots her body so she's fully facing Derek. "You have no right." Elise declares. Derek looks away, but Elise grabs his chin to make him look at her. "When you signed those divorce papers, you gave up the right to look at her ever again, let alone pursue her." Her voice remains calm and even; Alex can see where Addison gets her ability to hide emotions.

Derek angrily moves her hand away from his chin. "Pursue her? In case you haven't heard, I have a girlfriend."

Elise laughs. "You cheated on your WIFE. What is going to stop you from cheating on your girlfriend?"

Derek clenches his fists and his jaw. "I love her and I will never cheat on her. I'm just trying to protect Addison, from Mark and from YOU."

Elise steps on her tippy-toes, intimidating Derek by getting right in his face. "Well, while you were busy 'protecting' her from Mark and me, look who found her! An INTERN!" she snarls and gestures over to the bed.

Alex stares at her with a wide-eyed expression. Did she really just say that? Or am I imagining her? There's no way anyone would really say that. He stays silent, but wonders if he should defend himself.

"I mean, really, Addison, he looks like he just got out of college." Elise is on a roll. No one can stop her. "And I don't want to get into your sex life, but you should be careful. Don't let him pressure you into anything. Who knows where his- oh, you know- has been!"

The rage has been building up in Addison's gut for years and she can't stand it anymore. She hops up out of her bed and paces over to her mother. "What are you thinking?" Addison grabs Elise by the shoulders. "NO ONE says that. At least, not out loud. You don't even KNOW Alex! He's smart and kind and he's more of a man than Derek..."

Derek shrugs, admitting the truth.

Addison continues, "...and Mark...". Mark, offended, exclaims "Hey!".

But Addison ignores him. "...put together." she finishes. "I don't care what you think! You can label him all you want, but I have enough maturity to look past all of that. I love him, Mom, and you can't change that."

"Don't be silly, Addison." Elise says as she wiggles out of Addison's grasp. "You just got divorced. I know you're a little rusty on the dating scene, but this is called a 'rebound relationship'." She spells it out, as if talking to a child.

Addison throws her hands up in the air. "The divorce was over a YEAR ago, Mom. I've already rebounded with Mark- Sorry, Mark-and I knew Alex for almost a year before that."

Elise sighs. "Don't tell me that you cheat-" She stops mid-sentence and her eyes rest on Addison's forearm. Watching her mother closely, Addison quickly hides it behind her and climbs back into bed with Alex before anyone else can notice. I shouldn't have yelled at her. I'm so stupid. I always knew that this would happen, which is why I've never stood up to her. It's going to be more than a lot of trouble covering this one up.

Addison appears guilty and Elise gives no mercy. She clears her throat and looks at Mark. "Mark, dear, could you take Steven and Kevin down to the cafeteria? I need some privacy with my daughter."


I lose my way and it's not too long before you point it out.
I cannot cry because you know that's weakness in your eyes
.

Elise stares coldly at her daughter, as she has been for the past ten minutes. Derek sits in his chair, watching Elise's every move. He had refused to leave and instructed Alex to do the same.

Addison remains enveloped in Alex's arms. I wish I could just make everyone forget, so no questions are asked. She prays for a miracle. Like a sudden ability to disappear. She clamps her eyes shut. When she opens them again, she's disappointed to find everyone anxiously staring at her. Oh-no. Maybe if I just keep my eyes shut, no one will talk. I'll fall asleep and when I wake up, everyone will be gone.

Much to her dismay, Elise finally speaks, "The scratches on your arms look painful. What happened?"

The room remains quiet for a while until Addison mumbles, "It was an accident." Addison's terrified, for the millionth time in these past few days. She just can't talk about this with her mother. She CAN'T do this. It makes her heart jump up in her throat until she can't breathe.

Elise walks toward Addison until she's standing right next to the bed. She places her hands on the bed, leaning down to look Addison in the eye. "Don't lie to me." She says sharply. She pauses and taps her foot. "This is just senseless. Why would you knowingly cause yourself pain? I don't even know where you would get such an idea. It sounds like something a spoiled teenager would do if she didn't always get her way."

Addison purses her lips. What if I'm really like that? She glances at Alex and Derek, both staring out into space. Do they think I'm spoiled and annoying? She wraps her blanket tightly around her hand, attempting to release some of the energy building in her mind. I try not to be selfish.

Elise watches Addison look away. She knows that she can scare her into anything. "Is that how I raised you? Have I let you down somehow? Have I given you some subtle hint that hurting yourself is the answer to all problems?"

Addison presses her hands to her head. Shut up. Shut up. Please.

"There's no way I'm going to let my daughter live in some mental institution..." Elise continues to ramble on and Addison begins to get desperate. I need to find something sharp. But it's not like I can just get up. Addison twists her hands in the blanket even more. I just want to scream. She tries to dig her nails into her skin. Please Mom. Stop talking.

Derek, who has been sitting quietly and trying not to listen, notices Addison struggling. Her hands begin to turn red and an instinct flashes inside of him, making him stand and move over to her bed. "Elise, I think that's enough."

Alex watches Derek curiously. What is he doing? Derek makes a vague gesture to Addison's hands, just enough so only Alex can see. Alex takes the hint and quickly untangles Addison's hands from the blanket, holding them firmly. He massages them, soothing the indents left by her sharp nails.

Elise takes a step forward moving closer to Derek. "I think that you need to stop commanding everyone around when, really, you have no idea what's going on."

"But I do." I remembered. Derek thinks.

"Poor Derek." Elise laughs. "You don't even know the worst of it. Why don't you ask her about what happened in New York? Ask her if THAT was an accident."

Addison stares numbly at her blanket, embarrassed. What am I going to do? Everyone is about to find out EVERYHING!

Derek stands up to hover beside Addison's bed. "You told her?"

Alex sits up from his slouched position, bringing Addison with him. "It's happened before?"

Addison pulls away from Alex, wanting to hide away from all of them. Elise stands up and turns Derek back toward her by grabbing his shoulder. "How would you know? You weren't even there! Did Mark call you?"

Addison groans and buries her face in the blanket in front of her. All hell is about to break loose. Derek stares at Elise, puzzled. "But I WAS there." He whispers, "I just didn't remember it until recently."

Elise crosses her arms. "What are you talking about? You were in SEATTLE."

"What?" Derek falters. He turns back to Addison and gently tries to tilt her head out of the blankets. " Addison, why?" But he already knows the answer to that question. He starts again. "I just-" I thought she told me everything.

Addison looks up. Her face has turned bright red, but no tears escape her eyes. She's learned not to cry around other people, especially her mother. Her eyes find her Elise's and she shakes her head. "You can't just go around telling everyone! It wasn't even a big deal!"

Elise sighs. "But it WAS a big deal. Mark was scared out of his wits. That's why he called me."

Addison squints in frustration. She can't remember much, but she doesn't think that Mark called Elise. But I definitely remember how scared Mark was. She shudders as she recalls the look on his face. She shakes the image out of her head. I can't let Mom get away with this. Derek will think that I lied to him. "It was ONE scratch! I cut myself shaving and Mark just made a huge deal out of it." She tries to direct her comments toward Derek, but he's not even paying attention to the conversation.

"Oh, please Addison, do you think I'm stupid?" Elise sputters. "MY DAUGHTER would NEVER shave her legs in her BED! I know you, Addison. And there's something wrong with that picture."

There's something wrong with ME. But Addison knows her mother will never admit it. "You weren't even THERE!"

Bewildered, Alex stares at the two of them as they volley excuses back and forth. How did Addison live with this? He decides that Elise is something out of this world. I can understand all the flirting with Sloan. That's like a natural instinct for every woman. But why does she continually bully AddisonHe scoots up closer, wrapping his arms around Addison while avoiding out-of-control hand gestures flying towards his face.

Derek can't take his eyes off of Addison. She must have done this right after I left. It WAS my fault after all. I can't believe I was stupid enough to believe her when she said that his was all about her.

Alex tries to make eye contact with Derek. If Shepherd can get control of Elise, then I can calm Addison But Derek won't look up.

Alex decides to try to soothe Addison anyway. He runs his fingers through her hair and whispers kind words in her ear. Addison still won't listen. So, he's forced to grab her arms and loosely clamp a hand over her mouth.

Derek snaps out of his trance and takes the hint. Though Addison has quieted, Elise continues speaking at a very high rate and volume. "I just don't understand. I gave you everything. What did I do wrong? I just wanted the best for y-"

She's stopped by Derek's strong hand over her face and his arm around her waist. He picks her up and struggles to deposit her outside the room. Surprisingly, Elise makes no move to reenter.

Derek leans against the door, breathing heavily. Exhausted, his hooded eyes meet Addison's. He remembers, I'm the one who's caused all of her pain. She can't keep doing this. Three times make a habit. Her life is at stake and if the only way to save her is ending our friendship, then I will. He takes a deep breath before exiting the room quickly.

Finally, Addison finds the tears within her and sobs into Alex arms.


I know, I know. It's been like forever since I updated. Sorry.

I just couldn't decide on whether to make this chapter funny or sad. So, it's awkwardly both. Whatever.

So, Elise's whole "I don't want to get into your sex life, but be careful" speech? True story. Embarrassingly.

This whole chapter was basically setting up for the next chapter. I know that Addison talks with her brother and a lot of stuff is cleared up. I think that Derek and Alex talk, but I'm not sure. And there might be a flashback.

Presents for reviewing: 8th Harry Potter book, 12th season of Friends, Eric Dane wearing nothing but a tube sock, Van Gogh's ear, and a Rubik's cube. All wrapped nicely in a package. Limited supplies, because Van Gogh has only two ears. But I cloned Eric Dane, so there's quite a few of him waiting to be shipped out. Crap, do I have enough tube socks?

Thanks for reading. And for putting up with my weirdness.