A/N: Okay so I added a patient for this chapter. I wanted to have this Annabel thing continue to be a problem for a while. The patient is kinda 'cracky'. It's more a humorously sad case to break the tension and drama of the MerDer issues.

***

Meredith slapped the black box as it began to buzz loudly and quickly rose out of bed. Derek was waking slowly so she took the opportunity to slip into the bathroom and lock the door. Annabel had done an ample job at sewing the seeds of mistrust between Meredith and Derek.

"Mer?" Derek called through the wooden door, pounding with the side of his fist. "I need to use the bathroom."

"Use the other one," called Meredith dryly. Any other day Meredith would have let him in then they probably would have engaged in shower sex before work. But not today.

"Mer come on…"

"Go away."

Derek turned away crestfallen. Of course Annabel put a strain on their relationship currently. He didn't know how but suddenly Meredith was pushing him away. He was usually the only one she let in.

***

"Hi Sophie," Derek smiled warmly as he walked into his next patient's room. She was a thin young girl with strawberry blonde hair. "I'm Dr. Shepherd, the neurosurgeon."

"Hello Sophie," grinned Annabel walking in behind him. "I'm Dr. Calsely. I'm the pediatric surgeon on your case."

"Excuse us Sophie and Ms. Killy," Derek excused grabbing Annabel's arm. "I just need a moment with Dr. Calsely," he said professionally dragging her slightly into the hall. "What the hell are you doing here?" he scowled.

"Richard heard about this case and asked me to stay another day and assist."

"I don't need help. If I did, I'd have asked one of Seattle Grace's excellent peds surgeons," said Derek through clenched teeth, balling his fist in anger.

"Oh come on Derek, calm down."

"I will not calm down," he snapped. "You've caused enough trouble between my wife and I."

"Trouble in paradise?" she feigned a frown.

"Oh just shut up. After your little 'stunt ' last night, my wife will hardly talk to me."

"I can hardly see how that's my fault," she said innocently.

"If you insist on working this case with me then you will not regard me in any way but Dr. Shepherd, understand?"

"All right Dr. Shepherd," she purred. Groaning, Derek left and walked back into the room. Immediately after, Dr. Bailey and her interns, including a furious Meredith, marched into the room.

"Who would like to present?" Derek asked.

"Sophie Killy. Fourteen-year-old female in for tumor removal. She says she's been having hallucinations for about two months now," Meredith presented, avoiding Derek's eyes.

"Thank you Dr. Grey, you will scrub in and assist," nodded Annabel professionally.

"We thought she was kidding about seeing an army of squirrels and James Potter," a woman with fiery red hair spoke up. "She and her friend joke about it all the time," she laughed dryly.

"Ms. Killy," Derek attempted to stop her.

"Please, call me Rebecca."

"Rebecca, the tumor in your daughter's brain is not very hard to get to but there could be complications," Derek said softly.

"We understand," Rebecca nodded. Next to her was a small girl, probably around eight or nine years old with freckles on her face and light blonde hair. Bailey led her interns besides Meredith out of the room.

"THE SQUIRRELS AND THE BUNNIES ARE FIGHTING!" Sophie screamed from the bed, jolting upright.

"Sophie it's okay," her mother coaxed, "they're not real. Breathe."

"They're gone now," Sophie said calmly, resting back into the pillows.

"Sophie, I'm going to do a quick exam," Derek said. "Can you look up for me?"

Sophie nodded and proceeded to look up as Derek took out his small light. "Mom, is Heather coming?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah Soph. I think her mom said they were coming around noon with lunch."

"Follow the light okay Sophie?" Derek asked.

"Okay sure," she followed the light with her eyes. "Heather would really like you Dr. Shepherd," Sophie said. "She's like over obsessed with Patrick Dempsey and you look a lot like him."

Blushing a little, Derek turned back towards Sophie. "Okay Rebecca and Sophie, I'll schedule the surgery for tomorrow afternoon," Derek smiled and he, Annabel, and Meredith exited the room.

***

"Why is he suturing his own face?" George asked as they stared at Mark Sloan with Meredith holding a mirror for him to suture his own cheek. One of his female patient's husbands had mistaken an innocent conversation as Mark flirting with his wife.

"To turn me on..." Izzie groaned. Cristina rolled her eyes.

"Because he's Mark Sloan. The guy is like the go-to plastic surgeon on the east coast," said Alex

"Mark needs an x-ray to check for fractures," Meredith stated, walking up to the nurses' station.

"I'm on it," Alex exclaimed, grabbing the papers from Meredith's hands and running off.

"He is McYummy," Izzie sighed.

"No," both Meredith and Cristina shook their heads.

"McSteamy," Cristina told her.

"Now that's much better," Izzie agreed.

"Allow me to choke back some McVomit," groaned George, pretending to hold back vomit.

***

Meredith and Derek walked into Sophie's room later that, in the absence of Annabel, day to see the small blonde girl from before and a new brown haired girl sitting on Sophie's bed with her. When they saw Derek walk in they began to giggle.

Sophie leaned over and whispered something in Heather's ear causing her to giggle more. The blonde girl demanded to know what they were talking about and Heather leaned over Sophie to tell her. She laughed as well.

Derek cleared his throat and everyone in the room looked up. He smiled his best 'McDreamy' smile. "How are we?" he asked.

"Okay," Sophie responded cheerfully. "Dr. Shepherd, this is my best friend Heather."

"Hello Heather," Derek smiled.

"Hi Dr. Shepherd," smiled Heather she turned to Sophie and they laughed together.

Derek's face turned a shade of crimson red. "Okay, Sophie, have you had any hallucinations since I last talked to you?"

"Nope," Sophie said surely. Derek nodded and smiled. "James Potter! Oh my god!" she leaned forward to hug the air. Sophie frowned when she just fell on to the bed. "Oh. Hallucination. Right," said Sophie dejectedly.

Derek nodded sadly. "Sophie we're going to bring you into surgery in the morning so no food," She nodded in understanding. The two doctors walked towards the door.

Derek continued out but Meredith stopped when she heard words of encouragement being given to Sophie by her mom, sister and friend. Rebecca leaned in to kiss her daughter's head as fat tears fell down Sophie's face. Her friend and sister both lay on either side of her, holding her hands. Meredith sighed and continued out the door.

She couldn't believe that this young girl with a loving family and friends might die or not come out of this the same person she is now. Meredith realized that when she were that age her mother would have told her to shut up and be an adult if she was crying out of fear.

Quickly, Meredith walked to the nearest nurses' station, returning the chart. Before walking away to report back to her attending she put her head in her hands and sighed. "Hey Mer," said Izzie, walking up to her friend.

"You're talking to me?" she asked incredulously.

"I don't know what you're thinking but I don't hate you or anything…I did but I'm good now."

"Thanks Iz," she smiled, walking away.

***

Meredith lay in the dark on her bed, listening to water thrash against the windows of her house. Derek wasn't home yet, and she liked that fact. Even though she knew Annabel was the one to make a move on Derek, jealously and betrayal still coursed through her veins.

That thought brought her musing back to the rain, and she stared. Light from the street lamp on the corner cut through the windowpanes and painted dim squares against the wall above the rocking chair in the corner of the room.

She heard a car pull up the gravel driveway and the front door open. She closed her eyes, pretending to sleep. "Mer," whispered Derek walking into their bedroom. She didn't answer but she . "Mer, I know you're not sleeping," he said louder.

"What Derek?" she sighed.

"Can we talk…please?"

"There's nothing to talk about."

"You're obviously upset," he breathed. "So, yes there is something to talk about."

"Just drop it," groaned Meredith.

"I will not drop it," he said louder, climbing into bed next to his wife. "Come on Mer," Derek pleaded. "You never shut me out."

"I'm not shutting you out," she snapped.

"Mer…"

"Please leave it Derek."

"I won't leave it."

"Fine," she breathed. "What do you want me to say? That I'm a jealous bitch, that I'm blaming you for things that are clearly not your fault? Is that what you want me to say?" she shouted. "Because it's totally what's running though my head right now and Derek, I really didn't need to say that."

He sighed, sucking in a deep breath. "I…I'm sorry about Annabel."

"It's not your fault," exhaled Meredith. "I was just blaming you because it was easy to."

"I love you," Derek promised, stroking her cheek softly with the pad of his thumb. "I don't know what lies Annabel told you but, they're not true. I love you more than anything."

"I love you too," she whispered, falling into his arms.

"I checked on Sophie before I left," he told her. "She was doing great."

"Good."

"And I checked, Annabel checked out of the Archfield hotel."

"Great," she smiled turning towards her husband. "You know," said Meredith coyly, running a hand down his arm, "we fought…"

"We did," he agreed.

"And doesn't that entitle makeup sex?"

Derek smiled devilishly. "That it does," he nodded, moving in to kiss his wife.