MEREDITH
The party seemed to be in full swing, as the room was buzzing with excited chatter, laughter and loud music.
'This is what college is all about', Meredith thought happily, as she sipped her drink and looked around. Only they weren't actually at a college party, they were at doctor's party, at Derek and Mark's apartment.
Meredith's love life had actually been fairly drama free, over the past couple of weeks. Derek had made it very clear he had picked her over his ex-fiancé Addison and since he had quit his teaching job to focus purely on his surgical career, they had behaved like any other couple. Although, it was all still new territory for Meredith. She had never had the desire to get serious with any man before Derek, but then again no man had ever made her feel quite like Derek had the past few months. Meredith knew her mother would disapprove, saying she shouldn't let her heart rule her head and that her priority should be her career. Meredith had no idea why her mother was so bitter towards men, as far as she knew her parents divorce had been amicable, and she had always had a good relationship with her father. Meredith avoided speaking to her mother though, so for now her mother had no idea just what was going on in her daughter's life, including her complicated love life.
Meredith then smiled giddily to herself, as she thought of Derek, before she glanced beside her, to see her friend Cristina, drunkenly dancing in time to the music, swaying her curly dark hair from side to side. Next to both of them was her other friend and roommate George. He was stood locked deep in a conversation with Owen Hunt, Cristina's boyfriend.
Meredith then groaned as she saw behind George, in the corner of the room was her younger sister, Lexie. Lexie, was still staying with her and had tagged along to the party with them, and as Meredith looked over she saw Lexie was stood gazing adoringly up at Mark Sloan, as he chatted away to her.
Lexie was young and very impressionable and Meredith's instincts didn't trust Sloan, not one bit. She knew exactly what he was like, and she felt it was her duty to protect her sister from his womanizing ways.
But, right at that very moment in time Meredith was starting to get too drunk to really care, as she suddenly spied Dr Bailey her teacher, walking directly past them, ensuring to fix Meredith with a sharp, disapproving look. Meredith knew Bailey frowned upon her relationship with Derek. She had made that very clear with her icy behaviour towards her in class.
"What is Bailey doing here? She's going to hate me even more now." Meredith said, sighing to Cristina.
"She's Bailey, she's the Nazi, she hates everyone." Cristina replied.
Meredith broke in to a wide smile then, as she sensed Derek's presence coming up behind her, and he wrapped his arms around her waist, burying his face in to the back of her hair.
"You smell too good." Derek said, as he spun her around to face him. Causing Meredith to giggle slightly awkwardly, she was still a little uncomfortable with such public displays of affection.
"You invited Bailey?" Meredith said to him, as he leaned in to kiss her neck.
"What?...Oh, no, Mark did, he was in charge of the guest list."
"But, Bailey, she hates me," Meredith protested.
"Bailey, hates everyone, what's your point?" Derek replied, as he moved closer to her again.
Meredith rolled her eyes, as she said, "That's exactly what Cristina said too."
"Relax," Derek said, as he brushed her long hair away from her face and smiling he gazed directly in to her eyes, before he kissed her, giving Meredith a warm glow.
Moments later she broke apart from his kiss, feeling fuzzy, the tequila was definitely taking its effect. As she flung her arm around his neck and slurred. "I need to go and pee. Don't you go anywhere, Derek Shepherd."
"Wouldn't dream of it." Derek replied, as his blue eyes twinkled back at her.
…..
Approaching the bathroom door and putting her hand on the door handle, Meredith paused suddenly, as she heard two voices whispering fiercely, on the other side. She was about to turn and walk away, when she suddenly recognised the male voice, it was Mark Sloan. But the female voice was harder to place. Meredith stood still, trying to make out just what they were saying.
"He's not going to find out, because you're not going to tell him." The female voice said, as Meredith suddenly froze. It was Addison.
"Addie, we were good together, you can't deny that," Mark replied.
"No, Mark, what we were, was a huge mistake. One, that I ran away to New York to forget."
From outside the door, Meredith's hand flew up to her mouth, she couldn't quite believe what she was hearing 'Mark and Addison'. Derek's best friend and ex-fiancé.
"You can't say that? You can't mean that?" Meredith then heard Mark say slightly angrily.
"I can and I do," Addison hissed back at him.
"Addie," Mark pleaded.
"You were with Callie, I was with Derek. It should never have happened, Mark. You know it and I know it."
"I never loved Callie." Mark said.
"Well, I loved Derek and I still do, and I moved back here to win him back." Addison replied sharply.
"I hate to break it to you, Addie, but you're too late." Mark said, his voice getting louder.
"If you're referring to Meredith Grey, she's just a phase. Derek's way of getting back at me," Addison said.
"Well, a couple of months back, I would have agreed with you, but now he's changed. I think she's the real deal, Addie…." Mark replied.
"I got to get out of here. I need some air." Addison said, as Meredith quickly turned and dived in to the nearest door, which happened to be Derek's bedroom.
Alone in the dark empty room, Meredith breathed a sigh of relief, as her stomach suddenly churned and she tried to process exactly what it was, that she had just heard, and also what precisely she was going to do about it.
…
Walking back across the room, Meredith searched desperately for Cristina, she needed to tell someone and Cristina would know what to do, she always did. But instead of Cristina, the only familiar face she could find was Lexie.
"Lex, have you seen Cristina?" Meredith said quickly, as Lexie bounded up to her with a huge grin on her face and drink in hand.
"She was with Owen a minute ago I think." Lexie said, as she added hastily "Have you seen Mark? He said he'd only be a minute."
Meredith sighed, as she took in the dreamy, vacant look in her sister's eyes. She knew only too well, how overly dramatic and carried away Lexie got when she had a crush, and she'd only just finished helping her pick up the pieces of her broken heart over George. Which she now seemed to have very conveniently forgotten, Meredith noted. Having moved her desires on to Mark Sloan.
Lexie then sipped her drink, as she said, "I'm thinking of going all the way with Mark."
Meredith's face tuned to one of shock. She knew her younger sister had been desperate to lose her virginity for some time now, but Mark Sloan would be a disaster. Taking a deep breath and looking her directly in the eye, Meredith said "No, Lex, not with someone like him."
"You can't tell me what to do, Meredith. Is this about drinking? Because this is just orange juice this time, I promise" Lexie said, holding up her plastic cup, as Meredith just looked away and shook her head. Lexie, was one problem she could do without at that exact moment in time.
"To be honest, I couldn't care less what you are drinking. Look, I'm going to call you a cab right now and in the morning, you're going to go back to Seattle. Dad keeps calling, he's worried about you, you need to go home Lexie and forget about Mark."
Tears welled up in Lexie's eyes then, just as Derek walked straight up to them both, saying to Meredith. "There you are, everything okay?" Causing a wave of anxiety to hit Meredith, as she remembered just what she'd heard in the bathroom.
"Yeah, fine, Lexie was just leaving, could you call her a cab? I need to find Cristina." Meredith said bluntly, as she walked towards the kitchen.
…
As she walked in to the kitchen, Meredith twisted her hands nervously as she became lost in her thoughts, when she suddenly spotted George. He was stood on his own by the fridge. He looked a little lost and there was a subtle sadness in his eyes, as he looked over at her. Meredith knew he was still hurting over his break up with Callie. But right now she didn't want to get in to that, she needed him.
"George," Meredith said, placing her hand on his arm. "I need you to be a girl for me okay, because Cristina's disappeared and Izzie's not here."
"Okay," George replied blushing a little.
"I overheard something I shouldn't have. Something bad." She said taking a deep breat as she blurted out. "Addison had an affair with Mark, when she was still engaged to Derek."
"Oh," was all George said in response, and before he could actually say anything further, Meredith continued babbling away furiously at him. "So, do I tell Derek? and sound like I'm trying to stir up trouble to turn him away from Addison for good. Or, do I keep my mouth shut and watch them make a fool out of him? I mean, if I was Derek I would want to know. So what do I do, George?" Meredith said, her eyes pleading with him, as she stopped talking.
"Meredith, slow down, breathe. You know what to do." George said slowly.
"I do?" Meredith replied, more to herself than to George.
"Sorry, I'm late. Emergency surgery" Derek said the following night, as he leaned down and kissed Meredith on the cheek, before sitting down opposite her and swiftly picking up and scanning the menu. It was a beautiful sunny evening and Meredith had been sat outside a little Italian restaurant waiting for him to join her for dinner.
Meredith smiled at him as she replied "Its fine." She'd been raised by a surgeon her whole life, so she was more than familiar with the erratic work patterns they kept. Derek smiled back at her, just as his pager suddenly beeped and he pulled out of his pocked and smirked.
"Who's that?" Meredith said suspiciously.
"Oh, Addison, we were in the surgery together." Derek said casually as he tucked it back in to his pocked and went back to studying the menu.
Meredith could feel her cheeks burn, as she pressed her lips together and said, "has she not got anything better to be doing with her evenings, than sending you messages?" Realizing too late the bitchy undertones that were coming through in her voice, as she looked over at the defensive look on Derek's face.
"Meredith, Addison and I are work colleagues and friends now. You are just going to have to accept that. She was in my life for a long time, so I can't just cut her out. Our relationship might be over, but I will always care for her." He replied, sharply.
Meredith felt her insides churn even more then, as she thought sulkily, that there was no way that Addison saw it like that.
…
After they had ordered, Meredith gulped, as she took a large sip of her wine and she looked directly at Derek, as she said "How long have you known Mark?"
"Since we were boys," Derek said dismissively.
"So, he's known Addison for the same amount of time as you then?" Meredith said curiously.
"I guess so, although, they never really got along. Jealousy thing I think.. Why do you ask?" Derek said, as a puzzled look crossed his face.
"No reason... It's just, do you really think you know Mark? Because….." and she trailed off, unsure of how to find the right words.
"Is this about Lexie? Because I've told Mark to keep away from her, so you have nothing to worry about. Besides, he's not been his usual cocky self recently. I'm fairly certain a new woman is responsible somewhere."
"Oh…. Well as long as he stays away from Lexie," Meredith replied, as she looked away.
"Let's not talk about Mark." Derek then said, as he placed his hand affectionately over hers and added. "I was thinking, it's the end of your first year coming up and I have some vacation days to take. How about we take a little vacation together somewhere? Maybe head down to Mexico?"
Meredith bit her lower lip and stared down at her plate, aware of his eyes burning in to her awaiting her response.
"So, Derek wants to take a vacation together. You know 'his and hers' matching swimwear, candle lit dinners and romantic walks along the beach at moonlight." Meredith whispered to Cristina, as the next day in college, they were sat together at the back of the large lecture theatre, in one of their more tedious classes.
"Big deal, Owen wants me to move in with him." Cristina replied, as she sat with her chin in her hand, doodling a small pattern on the edge of her note pad, as they both listened aimlessly to Dr Bailey talking away about medical ethics at the front of the class.
"You are not moving out and leaving me with the others next year." Meredith exclaimed in response, her mouth wide open.
"Nah….I told him it wasn't going to happen... So, I take it you didn't tell McDreamy about the she-devil and Sloan then?" Cristina said, arching an eyebrow as she turned to glance at Meredith.
"I was going to, but I just couldn't. I couldn't be responsible for doing that. I mean it's not like he's still with Addison anymore. Plus, I don't think he'd understand. He already thinks I'm over reacting about her."
"Okay, but if the situation was reversed, you so know that she would tell him. Sometimes, you have to fight dirty to get what you want." Cristina replied.
Meredith opened her mouth to say something else, but before she had the chance, she sensed the room fall deadly silent.
"Yang and Grey, you care to share what's so important, that you feel that you don't have to listen to my class." Bailey barked loudly at them from the front of the room, causing a sea of faces to suddenly turn around and stare straight at them. Meredith cringed and felt her cheeks turn a very dark shade of pink.
"Sorry," Cristina muttered quietly to Bailey, slightly sarcastically.
"Which brings me to the next lesson, professionalism and I might firstly add, it is certainly not professional to discuss your love life at any time during work hours, especially not in front of your patients, right, Grey?" Bailey then said, as she shot Meredith an angry glare, before turning back to the class.
"Okay, I know you're freaked out about the whole taking a vacation together thing, Meredith. But sooner or later, you're going to have to realize, that's what normal people in relationships do." Derek said, as later that night they were lying in his bed together talking.
"I know," Meredith replied gently, as she nestled her head closer against his shoulder, trying desperately to get thoughts of Mark and Addison out of her head.
"Are you ok? Because I have to say even by your standards, you've been acting a little weirdly recently." Derek said, as he stroked the side of her cheek.
"Okay, so what would you do if you knew something, something that would hurt someone you cared about? Would you tell them? Or would you say nothing and risk them finding out that you knew and that you didn't say anything." Meredith suddenly blurted out, as she exhaled slowly with relief, and studied Derek's face, waiting for his reaction.
Derek then rolled over on to his side, as he propped himself up one elbow, and said "Well, I'd ask myself, what I would want the other person to do, if I was in their position. Would I want them to tell me or not?"
Meredith sighed, as Derek went on to say. "What's this about Meredith? Is this about Cristina and Hunt?"
"Actually, no, its about Mark and…..Addison."
Derek's face dropped, as he looked away and rubbed his face as he simply said "Oh."
"I didn't want to have to be the one to tell you this, but they were together. While Addison was still with you. Don't ask me how I know, I just know." Meredith said, fidgeting with the side of the duvet, as the words tentatively slipped out of her mouth.
"I know." Derek said slowly.
"What?" Meredith replied.
"I know…"
"But ..." Meredith said, her mouth open with astonishment.
Derek went to say something else, just as his pager beeped. He picked it up "911, It's big. I've got to go." He said, as he leapt up and out of the bed, throwing on his clothes as Meredith sighed at the timing.
...
Moments later, Meredith was alone in Derek's big bed. She fidgeted, she sighed, she closed her eyes, then she sat up. It was no good she had to do it…. She reached for her phone.
"Hey," Cristina said straight away.
"Derek knows. He freaking knows, about Mark and Addison, and he's acting like it's no big deal."
"Mer, that's a good thing." Cristina replied, slightly sleepily. "It proves that it's you he really wants."
The next day inside the hospital entrance, Meredith smiled, as she spied Derek walking towards her. He was still in his navy blue scrubs and despite the dark bags under his eyes, his hair was still styled perfectly and he had never looked more attractive Meredith thought, as she swallowed nervously and he smiled back at her.
"What are you doing here?" Derek said, as he approached her.
"Just thought I'd stop by to see if you fancied a drink after work…..and" Meredith paused, before saying softly "I wanted to say, I've been thinking about the vacation, and I think it's a great idea."
"That's great. But I think we need to talk first." Derek replied.
TO BE CONTINUED…
