Okay, today's my birthday but instead of getting presents from you guys...I'm letting you give into your craving for another chapter. Enjoy! Writing the next one this weekend when I have time. &heart& my fans!

Chapter 10: Competence Competition

"What are you doing here?" Hunt sounded shocked.

"Where's Derek? Is he okay?" he had his eyes closed and had rolled onto his side,'I recognize that voice...' his thoughts were fuzzy as he struggled to breathe.

"Derek, calm down and remember what I told you," Hunt was pulling him away from his recently bandaged shoulder onto his back," It's okay, you're safe," he whispered into his ear and made it look like he was still helping him get comfortable," I won't let anyone hurt you either, I'm trained to protect and like my brother now," Derek's breathing slowed a bit and he felt himself adjust to the anxiety, he kept his eyes closed even after Hunt moved away from him.

"Derek, what happened to you?" his eyes fluttered open slowly," Did you get in a car crash? Why didn't you call me?"

"Addison?" his voice was weak.

"Yeah, are you okay?" she touched his face.

"How..did you get here?" he desperately tried to mask the obvious pain wrought all over his face.

"I hopped a plane as soon as I got the call," her purse dropped to the floor," I was so worried!"

"Addison?" Derek heard Mark's voice.

"Mark! It's good to see you," she turned away and smiled warmly.

"Why is everyone in here?" Meredith was on Mark's heels," Addison, what are you doing here?"

'Oh shit,' Derek thought,' Mer's probably thinking something really bad's going on right about now,' he pictured her turning all tiny blue hulk on his ex-wife and almost smiled, almost.

"I heard Derek was in an accident and I flew in," she got up from the bed," I got a call from..."

"From who?" Meredith's eyes flashed with anger," Who would think to call the ex-wife?"

"Mer..." Derek called weakly,' God, no one's going to even hear me if my voice keeps going out on me,' he thought, annoyed.

"It's not like that Meredith," Addison started.

"It's not! Well then tell me how it is that the man I'm engaged to was in surgery for 7 hours or more and I was stuck outside the OR while he screamed his lungs out because if Hunt had sedated him he'd be dead or in a coma, tell me how it is that the second I get a few minutes alone with him, his sutures burst and I get shuffled out of the room like I've never seen blood before!" tears streamed down her face," All I want to do is spend some time with MY fiance'! No scalpels, no suture kits, no ex-wives, no more drama!" she balled her hands into fists at her sides.

"Meredith, I didn't know you'd be upset if I," Addison had put her hands up in defense.

"Everything upsets me right now! You know why?" Meredith was almost yelling," BECAUSE I'M PREGNANT!" the room fell silent.

"Mer...you're?" for the first time that day a smile crossed Derek's lips, a weak one, but a smile nonetheless," Really?"

"This is our que," Hunt took Addison's arm and lead her out of the room.

"Mark," Derek took hold of the bottom of his shirt," stay, please."

"Derek, I was going to tell you over dinner sometime soon and we could celebrate and..." Meredith curled up in bed next to him and nestled under his arm," then I heard you got hurt and..."

"I'll be okay, Mer," he swallowed the pain and put an arm around her," I...I'm..." a tear rolled down his face," Mark, we're having...a baby," he stroked Meredith's hair.

"Congratulations, Derek!" Mark touched his hand," I'm so happy for you two."

"Mer, when did...you find out?" Derek's chest tightened, a reminder that he'd really regret this later-scratch that-he was regretting letting Meredith, no matter how small she was, lean on him at all.

"Few weeks ago...but I wanted...to be sure before I," she was still crying into his side.

"Don't cry, Mer," he tried to lift his left arm to touch her face out of instinct and painfully remembered it was cuffed to the rail.

"What was that?" Meredith heard a chain rattle, she pulled the sheet back and saw a cuff on his wrist," Derek?" she put a hand on his stomach and used it to sit up, he doubled over and his breath hitched," Why are you handcuffed to a bed?"

"Meredith, before you go off, listen," Mark helped her off the bed," Clark attacked him at a gas station and did this," he gestured to Derek's chest," Derek must have hurt him because he was admitted to a hospital and told the police Derek attacked him because he was high."

"So that's why you couldn't sedate him for surgery?" Meredith put her hand on her head," Wait, he was *high*?"

"Clark...he put a knife to my throat," Derek swallowed hard," and gave me...a sedative," his hair fell in his face as he looked down," Thorazine and Secobarbital...and..."

"So he *drugged* you!" shock was stamped on her features," You could have..." Mark caught her as she fell.

"We didn't want to worry you anymore than we had to," Mark picked her up and held her.

"Okay does anyone wanna tell me why me and Arizona came back from the beach early?" Callie and Arizona were pushing each other playfully and giggling," I mean which celebrity is dyi..." she stopped her sentence when she saw Mark holding a crying Meredith and Shepherd looking pale in a hospital bed.

"Oh my God," she pulled on gloves," Is he okay?"

"Can't say for sure but he's stable," Mark was petting Meredith's back.

"Okay," she went to Derek's bedside," Hey Dr. Shepherd, I'm giving you a once over before we do x-rays," she tilted his head up and began feeling his cheekbones and above his eyebrows," Nothing there," she moved to his nose," Nose is broken, pretty bad, might need plastics there after I set it," Arizona scribbled notes on a clipboard," Moving to his neck," Callie gently moved her fingers down each side of his throat, he winced when she brushed the injection site where Clark had overdosed him," Sorry, good news though, nothing broken or out of place, although this area is really red."

"That's the...the injection site," flashbacks raced through his head.

Callie looked at Sloan, confused," I'll explain after the exam," Mark nodded to her.

"Okay, going to shoulders," he jerked under her touch," Left clavicle broken, we'll need reconstructive surgery. Antebrachial and anticubital areas seems fine other than the lacerations, he's handcuffed?"

"Again, Torres, I'll explain later," Mark had sat down on the recliner on the far side of the room with Meredith still cradled in his arms.

"Okay, moving to the chest," she untied the gown and let it fall to his stomach," Wow, Dr. Shepherd, someone did a number on you. I'm not sure where to start," so many bandages, they covered his chest and almost all of his stomach,' Damn, either this was a bad car crash or you really pissed someone off,' she put a slight pressure on his ribs, his breath caught in his throat and he struggled a bit," We'll just do a full body x-ray and an MRI, I don't want to put him through more than we have to."

"Look at his leg first," Mark instructed.

"His right leg's swollen," Callie said as she pulled the sheet back," We'll need an OR after the MRI and x-rays, Arizona could you go book us one?" she nodded and left in quiet thought.

"Derek, Meredith's going to take you for x-rays and an MRI, we'll review the results and meet you in the OR."

"All right," panic rose as he remembered his previous OR experience.

Meredith crawled off Mark's lap and dried her eyes," Okay, Mark I want to be in with him this time."

"He'll be out, totally this time," Sloan put a hand on her shoulder.

Claustrophobia set in as he went into the MRI's tunnel, it was hard enough to breathe comfortably as it was. The noise started and he closed his eyes,' Don't panic, only ten minutes,' he tried to steady his breathing,' Foreplay lasts longer than ten minutes,' he imagined himself running his fingers down her bare back, bringing a small sigh from her. He tried to focus on what she felt like, soft skin, velvet lips, every time she touched him it was like feeding a fire. A flash of Clark threatened to ruin his moment, he shook his head to shake away the memory.

"You're doing great, just a few more minutes," the radiologist's voice crackled over the speaker near his ear.

"Get him out of there," Meredith noticed his foot twitching.

"He's fine, just a bit nervous," the radiology tech continued typing on the computer.

"His foot's twitching."

The tech took a sip of her coffee," Like I said...nerves."

He tried to remember what Hunt had told him to do,' Focus on what I can hear, see, smell...' he swallowed,' I can see nothing but the blank ceiling of this MRI machine, I can hear the noises coming from it,' the shine on the ceiling of the MRI reminded him of the glitter off the blade,' Keep it together, not long now...' flashbacks crept at the edges of his sanity and finally rolled his mind under their will.

"Get him out of there now," Meredith was firm and held down the microphone's button," Derek, I'm coming just hold on."

"Hey!" the girl dropped her cup on the floor as Meredith reached for the shutoff switch to the machine," We're not finished yet!"

"When his foot twitches like that it means something's wrong," if looks could kill, the radiologist would have died in agonizing horror.

Addison suddenly burst into the MRI room where Derek was now verging on a full blown panic attack, the tech immediately shut off the machine and threw her clipboard on the floor," What is it with this guy? Do his lips taste like candy or something?" furious she stormed out of the room," Deal with him yourselves then!"

Meredith felt herself lose control as the first thing Derek would see when he came out of that MRI was his saviour, and it wasn't her,' In a beauty contest, she wins. In a fashion show, she wins again. In a compentency competition, we're evenly matched,' she raced for the door, defeated Addison had gotten to him first,' but let's see who's the bigger shark."

Hope you liked it...keep reading for more revealing details, I've left a few holes in the story for a reason ;)