Waking up on Christmas morning to the smell of an amazing brunch was a new experience for Meredith. She rolled over and checked her phone; it was half past nine. Derek was still as sleep next to her and she smiled, kissing his forehead before slipping out from under the warm blankets and heading downstairs. She was dressed in a Yale shirt and plaid pajamas shorts with socks, her hair probably a mess but she entered the kitchen to find Carolyn, Lizzie, and Amelia.
"Merry Christmas," she said with a sleepy smile, as everyone replied to her. She slid onto a barstool and poured herself a cup of coffee, stirring in one sugar and a splash of cream before drinking in the life saving liquid she coveted so much. She drank it as she, Amelia, and Lizzie talked.
"So what's up first?" she asked the girls, knowing they had traditions, and she smiled, so grateful to be part of this family. Amelia piped up.
"Mom makes brunch while Christmas dinner cooks, and after brunch we open the rest of our presents. Then if there's snow, which there is, we go outside and have some fun, then come in and shower and usually by then dinner is ready. And don't bother asking to help, mom shoos us away and tells us to have fun because it's Christmas," she smiled at Meredith, brushing her hair away from her face.
Meredith nodded, knowing that she was in for a Christmas she had never dreamed of ever having. Usually Christmas for her was a lonely breakfast, and a lonely dinner, which everyone attempted to make cheery. Presents had been selected by Ellis, but they usually were nothing that Meredith was interested in or wanted. Presents from her friends were more desirable and eventually Meredith had simply asked Ellis if she could buy her own Christmas gifts. Her mother had handed her credit card over and told her not to be such a bother next time.
Rolling her eyes at the memory, she wrapped her hands around her coffee mug and drank deeply, enjoying it's rich favor, knowing that her Christmases would never be lonely and miserable again. She had to smile at that as she looked at the ring on her left hand, thinking back at the words he had said to her. This is just for now until the real thing comes along. It was so nice to know that they were on the same page mentally, that he wanted to marry her and she wanted to marry him. They were end game and they both knew it.
Meredith didn't want to shower since she knew she would just have to shower after coming in from being in the snow, but the threw on a pair of black leggings with a pretty red sweater that she liked, slipping her feet into Uggs. She wanted to be comfortable for brunch. By this time Derek was awake and they were both dressed. Braiding her hair in a side French braid that ended just at her ear and straightening the rest, she turned around and smiled.
"Merry Christmas," she smiled, wrapping her arms around him and drawing him into a deep kiss. He pulled her closer and deepened the kiss and she couldn't help but smile as thoughts ran through her head. This was forever. The boy she ran into on her way to get her keys was forever. The boy with the curly black hair, the piercing blue eyes, the boy she and Addison had dubbed McDreamy. She was going to marry him one day and she was still wrapping her head around it.
They headed downstairs where the table was set, and everyone was taking their seats. There were pancakes, waffles, and French toast, along with sausage and bacon, fresh squeezed orange juice, and champagne to make mimosas. Meredith was suddenly starving to death as everyone helped themselves and she was in heaven. She loved food, and everything was absolutely delicious.
"You outdid yourself Carolyn," she smiled; she was sitting across from Addison and Mark, who were bantering and enjoying everyone around them. Meredith was just glad to be in a place where she was loved by everyone in the room, and no one saw her as an inconvenience. She knew she should see a therapist about her mommy issues but seeing a therapist would tear down her carefully constructed walls, walls she hadn't even broached with Derek.
After brunch they gathered around the big Christmas tree in the formal living room, Meredith sitting on Derek's lap. She was amazed at the amount of presents she had, knowing that Derek must've told everyone the things she liked. She got a lot of clothes and giftcards; Derek gave her a necklace to match her ring and she smiled as she let him clasp it around her neck. Addison gave her a dress she'd been eyeing in a boutique in New Haven, and Mark gave her a giftcard to her favorite store. Nancy gave her her a vintage copy of Gray's Anatomy and Meredith couldn't help but laugh.
"I've contemplated stealing my mothers copy, but I like this better," she giggled, setting it next to her with her pile of gifts. She knew Carolyn had given her a lot of them. From Kathleen she got a bangle with her favorite quote on it – 'The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be'. Meredith loved it and after thanking her with a hug, slipped it on her wrist. Lizzie gave her a kindle, which she knew Meredith had wanted after whining about how she had no space in her dorm for all the books she had. Amelia gave her a Starbucks card loaded with 50 dollars. Meredith felt spoiled and she went around the room, hugging and thanking everyone, giving Carolyn extra love for all the gifts. Most of her gifts from her had been clothes, and she loved everything from everyone.
After everyone had opened their presents and put them away, it was time to go play outside. Meredith and Derek went upstairs to change; Meredith kept her leggings on but switched out her sweater for a thermal shirt and sweatshirt, added another pair of leggings and two pairs of thick socks. She braided the rest of her hair back and pinned it at the nape of her neck, before they both went downstairs and pulled on their snow stuff. It was freezing outside with plenty of snow, and once they headed out the back door and joined the rest of the family, Meredith was immediately pelted with a snowball. She pushed her hood back slightly and glared around; Mark looked guilty so she ran after him, trying to run through the foot of snow that covered the backyard. She was tiny but she tried to tackle him, jumping on his back and effectively taking him down.
"HAH! I got you," she said triumphantly. What she wasn't banking on was him grabbing her ankles and standing up.
"Nope, I'm got YOU," he smirked, and he pouted, trying to shake her off, and finally he did, leaving her on her back in the snow, looking up at him.
"I hate you," she laughed, standing up and brushing the snow off of her, gazing around in search of Amelia, who she knew would be on her side. She found her hiding behind a tree, stockpiling snowballs.
"This would be great but we need a fort," she said to the girl, a mischevious smile on her face. "You make the snowballs and I'll make the fort," Meredith giggled. She started making bricks and piling them into a curved wall formation, and in the better part of an hour they had a fort to themselves. Meredith could see over the wall if she stood on her knees, and it was perfect.
"How many snowballs do you have?" she questioned, before she saw the huge pile Amelia had made. There had to be at least one hundred and the girl was still making them. Amelia smiled back smugly, as Derek chanced to walk by. Meredith grabbed a snowball and chucked it at him with perfect aim, smacking him in the face. He whipped around and found his girlfriend grinning wickedly and he smirked, shaking his head.
"This is war, you know," he grinned, reaching down and making a snowball, but Meredith ducked and the snowball hit Amelia.
"Hey! That's not fair, she did it!" she pouted.
"All's fair in love and war, little sister," he teased. Soon the rest of the family came, some joining Meredith and Amelia, some on the other side of the wall, and there was an all-out snowball fight.
After showering off the snow and cold, Meredith slipped into a green velvet dress with black tights and her black heals from the night before. Blow drying and straightening her hair, she put on her necklace and ring from Derek, carefully doing her makeup. Christmas had been great so far and she was looking forward to dinner and even more Shepherd traditions. Ever since she had met Derek, her life had increased dramatically and she still couldn't believe that this was her life now. Derek was already downstairs and she leaned forward, carefully applying her red lipstick, before deciding she was ready. Heading downstairs she found him in the living room reading a book he'd gotten from one of his sister. She paused in the doorway and smiled, before striding in and taking a seat next to him.
"Hey handsome," she smiled, leaning over and kissing his cheek.
"Hey you, you look gorgeous," he smiled back.
"This has been the best, most perfect Christmas I've ever had," she told him, her smile widening. She knew it would make him happy.
"I'm so glad, even if we had a bad start to break," he said with a small sigh, holding her close. There was nowhere else she'd rather be right now, than on this couch with him and she drew him into a long kiss, hardly daring to believe that the past two days were reak.
Here's Christmas pt 2! I'm kind of on a huge writing streak, so everything is getting updated rather quickly. I'm definitely not questioning, just cranking out updates for you guys! Hope you like this one!