N/A: Hi! I know it's been long since I last updated my fics, I've just had a really rough time; my dog died and then technology started bugging me. But I am back now and I hope nothing won't keep me away from my hobby anymore :)
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When Derek and Carolyn arrived at Meredith's house, they were greeted by Claudia's laughter and a softer one, Morgan's.
"She woke up in a very good mood today," Derek chuckled as he helped his mother take off her jacket.
"Derek?" he heard Claudia calling from the living room.
"That's me!" Derek announced and led his mother into the living room.
Morgan was sitting down on the floor in Claudia's arms, with the illustrated books she had received for Christmas and some of her toys.
As she turned to look at Derek, Claudia saw the unknown woman. She stood up and as Morgan saw Derek she let out a squeal.
"Did she just squeal?" Derek looked confused at the two women.
"I think she did," Claudia laughed.
Derek took Morgan from Claudia and tossed her up in the air a few times, making her laugh harder. "Was that a squeal, Baby Morgan?" he asked her, cradling her into his arms.
Morgan smiled and hid her face in his chest.
Derek laughed at her, kissing her. "Claudia, this is my mother. Carolyn," he said, introducing his mother to Claudia.
"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Shepherd," Claudia politely shook her hand.
"Please call me Carolyn," Derek's mother smiled. "And this is Morgan," she said turning to the baby.
Recognizing her name, Morgan lifted her head and looked at the unknown person, whose voice she didn't know.
"Hey," Carolyn smiled at her. She wanted to take her hand, but as she got too close to her, Morgan whimpered and hid her face in Derek's chest again.
"She's shy," Derek excused her. "Didn't I tell you that?"
Carolyn chuckled and shook her head, "I think you forgot to mention that."
"She is shy. Or she just plays shy until she gets to know that person better," he explained. "Oh and she also stares. I think that's how she makes impression about people."
"I will be patient then," Carolyn agreed.
Derek lifted Morgan in his arms, so that she could sit upright and went to sit down in the couch. "Why were you laughing?" he asked Claudia.
"Honestly," Claudia started laughing again. "I was laughing of her laughter, but I am not sure what she found so funny. We were just watching over some pictures with animals and birds."
"See?" Derek looked at his mother. "She's special."
Claudia and Carolyn smiled at each other knowingly and as Carolyn sat down next to him, she patted him on leg. "I would be worried if I was you."
"We don't really know what happens in a baby's mind, although we were babies once too," Claudia admitted.
"Did she have dinner?" Derek asked Claudia.
"She did and surprisingly she stayed calm and let me feed her with the spoon," she said. "I think she sees how she stresses us with the mess and that's why she does it. But if you stay calm and ignore her habit, she stops."
"We're about to turn into a spoiled baby, aren't we?" Derek said to Morgan. As he looked down at her, Derek smiled and elbowed his mother. "See? She stares at you."
Carolyn smiled at Morgan, but her smile slowly started fading as she noticed how intense her blue eyes were staring. "That kind of intimidates you," she muttered.
"Doesn't it?" Derek chuckled, kissing Morgan.
Carolyn had to shake her head to be able to tear her eyes from Morgan. "But she's beautiful," she smiled at her Derek.
"She is," he nodded smugly.
"Morgan is Meredith's only child isn't she?" she asked Derek.
"That's right,"
"You should be careful then. I don't know Meredith, but I know you and you tend to spoil the children," his mother warned him knowingly.
"They are spoiling her," Claudia cut in. "But only by good means. Dinner is ready if you're hungry. I'll gather a little bit around here and then I'll leave if you don't need me today."
"We're good now. Thank you," Derek nodded.
Claudia was about to reply when, looking at Morgan, she saw her shyly trying to touch Carolyn's arm. She smiled and motioned for them to look at Morgan.
When she saw all the eyes on her, especially Carolyn's, Morgan quickly pulled back whimpering and hid her face in Derek's chest.
"That's ok. I don't bite," Carolyn said to her, laughing and trying to take her hand.
Morgan pulled her hand away and hid it as well.
Carolyn was now visibly worried. "Why doesn't she like me?"
Derek and Claudia chuckled knowingly. "Don't worry. She didn't like me either at first," Claudia wanted to reassure her. "I almost didn't get the job because she started crying when I took her in my arms."
"And Meredith was quite paranoid at that time," Derek added.
Soothed by Derek's loving caresses and not having all the eyes on her anymore, Baby Morgan had the courage to look up. She looked at Derek – who was cheerfully talking to Claudia and Carolyn about Claudia's first day as Nanny- , then she looked at her Nanny and then at Carolyn. Her stare stayed on the new face. This time, she leaned forward and her tiny finger touched Carolyn's arm with more courage. Morgan started slapping her and laughing, carefully looking for Carolyn's reaction.
Carolyn felt the light touch and saw Morgan's new friendly attitude. "Do you want to be friends now?" she asked her.
Derek took Morgan's hand and waved it saying in a baby voice, "How can we be friends when I don't know your name. This moron that holds me didn't make the introductions."
Carolyn laughed and nodded. "I came to meet you but I ended up by meeting your Nanny. I am Grandma Carolyn," she said, gently taking her hand and shaking it.
Morgan looked at her hand and then up at her before she decided to be friends and start laughing.
"Do you want to come and sit with me now?" Carolyn asked her, holding out her hands.
Derek put her onto his mother's lap and Morgan didn't complain. In the meantime, Claudia finished gathering Morgan's book and she was ready to leave.
"Will you be in town for a while?" she asked Carolyn.
"Only until tomorrow in the afternoon," Carolyn said.
"I'll see you tomorrow, I guess,"
Carolyn nodded. "Most probably I will be around."
"Ok. I am leaving now. Good night, Morgan," she said to the baby, waving at her.
While Derek walked Claudia to the door, Morgan stayed in living room with Carolyn, who was admiring her blonde curls. "You have blonde curls and blue eyes. You're a very pretty girl," she started talking to Morgan. "You might even look a little bit like Derek. He has curls just like you."
"Doesn't she?" Derek chuckled, overhearing his mother.
"Derek, what are you to her?" she asked her. "I mean, when you talk to her and when Meredith talks to her about you, what are you? Derek or Daddy?"
Derek didn't like the question as he knew he had an answer she wouldn't like. He just smiled and walked over to them, picking Morgan into his arms.
"Do you want to see her room?" he asked her, avoiding the answer.
Carolyn shook her head disapproving his answer, but she stood up, ready to follow him upstairs. "I brought her a present," she remembered and quickly turned to the couch, where her bag was. She fumbled through it and took out a plastic bag.
Out of the plastic bag, she took a knit-wear out. "I made it," she smiled, showing him a red pajama, with a rabbit design on the stomach.
"You knit?" Derek started laughing, surprised with the present.
"I've started a while ago," his mother nodded. "I made it with a rabbit as design because you told me so much about her favorite blanket. I only knit small things though. I also made her some bootees," she said, looking inside the bag and taking out a pair of red knitted bootees.
"Won't your other grandchildren be jealous?" Derek chuckled, taking the pajama.
"I made something for everyone," she answered. "Is she my granddaughter, Derek?"
"Mom," Derek gave her a pleading look.
"You know what I mean with this question," she said.
"I know," Derek sighed. He turned and slowly started walking out of the room, carrying Morgan in his arms and being followed by his mother. "You can sleep here tonight. Meredith won't mind," he said.
"Ok," Carolyn answered, but continued waiting for an answer.
"You should consider Morgan as your granddaughter," he said while they walked together in Morgan's room. "You introduced yourself as Grandma Carolyn," he pointed out.
Carolyn sighed, giving up. "Just be careful, ok?"
Derek kissed her and nodded. "Meredith and I are just building our relationship. We've grown a lot as couple lately."
"As long as you're not trying for Morgan," she said.
"It's not for Morgan. Only. It's true that I fell for the baby at first, but Meredith is beautiful, smart and strong despite of her childhood and despite of her life from the past years."
Carolyn didn't doubt that, feeling something in his voice as he said those words. It was the same tremble he had when he talked to her about Morgan. She just smiled and let Derek show her the room and some of Morgan's favorite things such as the blanket.
"Isn't a little bit too late for her to be awake at this hour?" Carolyn asked Derek after they had played with Morgan for a while.
"I think this has turned into a custom. She doesn't go to sleep until Meredith is home. The minute we got her ready for bed, she falls asleep," he answered, smiling while brushing Morgan's hair with his fingers. "We have some trouble when Meredith is on-call at night, because she refuses to go to sleep."
"You say she understands when you talk to her. Did you explain to her the situation and that her Mommy will be back in the morning?"
"I did, but she still cries," Derek sighed. Morgan let out a yawn and sleepily put her head on Derek's chest. "Time for bed, Morgan?" he asked her softly, rubbing circles on her back.
Morgan looked up at him and then at Carolyn and around her. She yawned again and looked at Derek with questioning eyes. Derek smiled lovingly at her, knowing that look. "Let's put the pajamas on and then we'll ask Grandma Carolyn to tell us a story."
"You just told her you're getting ready for bed. I don't see her complaining," she said, not understanding why Derek said he had trouble putting Morgan to sleep while Meredith wasn't home.
Derek smiled and motioned for her to watch him. As he walked over to the table where he and Meredith were changing Morgan's clothes and from the moment Derek put her down on it, Morgan started whimpering. At first, she whimpered, but when Derek put the pajamas next to her and he started undressing her, Morgan started crying from the top of her lungs.
"See?" Derek smiled at her mother. He started talking to the baby then, but his voice was hardly comprehensible. He changed her diaper and then her clothes and only when he took her into his arms, she started calming down a little bit.
"She has healthy lungs," Carolyn muttered, already deafened by Morgan's crying.
"I got used to it," Derek sighed and carried Morgan to her favorite spot, in the rocking chair. The rocking movements didn't help much as Morgan knew what he was trying to do.
"Maybe you should call Meredith and let Morgan hear her voice," Carolyn suggested.
Derek sighed and shook his head. "We tried this once, but she got frustrated because she couldn't see the person and kept crying."
"When Claudia first started as Nanny here?" she asked and Derek nodded. "That was a long time ago, Derek. Morgan has grown in the meantime and maybe now she will react differently."
"We could try," Derek agreed. He looked for his phone and called Meredith. He hurried to explain the situation to Meredith before she could freak out with reason and just then he put the phone on speaker so that Morgan could hear Meredith.
"Hey there, Morgan," Meredith said in the phone. "Can we hear me, sweetie? It's mommy."
Morgan stopped from crying and as she had done the first time, she looked around her.
"That's mommy talking to you on the phone," Derek said, showing her phone.
"Morgan?" Meredith asked again.
For the first time, Morgan noticed where her mother's voice was coming from. She looked confusedly at it and then at Derek.
"Mommy is talking to you. Do you want to talk to her?" Derek said.
"Mommy can't be there with you to put you to sleep, Morgan," Meredith started talking. "I will be there in the morning when you wake up. Now let Derek put you to bed, ok? It's late and little girls like you need to sleep at this hour."
Morgan was no longer crying. But at this point she had an obvious frown on her face. She kept watching the phone while her mother talked to her, until she started hitting it with her tiny fist.
Derek chuckled at her reaction. "I think she either doesn't like your new look or she doesn't like what you're saying to her. Say good night to mommy now, Morgan."
"Sleep well, baby. I will see you in the morning," Meredith said.
"Ok, I am going to try again. She looks… calmer now," Derek said, still worried because of the frown that Morgan was showing. "I will call you later, Mer."
"No," Meredith said quickly. "Let the connection on. I want to hear her and make sure she is calm now."
"Meredith," Derek sighed, smiling at his mother- who had stayed aside in all this time.
"Derek, I am not arguing with you over this," Meredith said sternly.
"Don't you have a life to save?" he asked her and right in that moment he heard her pager. "It sounds like you do," he chuckled.
Meredith groaned. "I'll call you later. Don't go to sleep."
"I won't. Mom is here and we're going to stay and talk for a little while. I hope you don't mind if she sleeps over," he asked.
"I don't mind. Call me back if she refuses to go to sleep," Meredith demanded.
"I will. Bye," Derek said and hung up.
"Don't call her back. I don't think she'll be able to focus on her job if she knows her baby is restless," Carolyn chuckled as she recognized the type of mom Meredith was.
"I won't," Derek laughed. "Besides, it looks like Morgan is calm now," he said, looking at Morgan, who was sleepily resting her head on his chest and sucking her thumb.
"I don't want to imagine how it will be when she will start having teeth growing," Carolyn stated.
"Me neither," Derek chuckled.
"Do you think you can handle her now?" she asked him.
Derek smiled smugly. "Mom, I have done this before."
Carolyn chuckled, rolling her eyes. "Do you want me to tell her a story?"
"No," Derek shook his head. "I don't think she needs other distraction right now."
"Ok," she nodded. "I'll go make something to eat."
"See what Claudia made for us. She is a great cook," he said.
Left alone with Morgan, Derek sat back down in the rocking chair and lay Morgan into his arms, gently cradling her. "See? You can go to sleep even if Mommy isn't home. I am not that scary. Actually, I think I am quite charming," he chuckled and leaned down, kissing her on the forehead. The conversation he had had with his mother about Morgan came back into his mind. "We're in a very complicated situation right now, Baby Morgan," he sighed and smiled down at her. Though sleepy, Morgan was curiously looking at him. "You know, I am sort of a father to you. This means that I do what Daddies usually do, but I don't care if you call me Daddy and Derek. I am sure you love me like a Daddy. Can I tell you a secret?" he whispered. "You already are Daddy's little girl. My little girl," he whispered against her forehead and kissed her.
As he looked at her, Derek saw her smiling at him. "And I keep telling everyone how smart you are," he chuckled. He started rocking her slowly and in a matter of seconds, Morgan was asleep. Derek kept rocking her, although he knew she wouldn't wake up again too soon. He watched her sleeping, smiling proudly at his little girl.
Carolyn Shepherd was an early and very active woman, so she didn't linger for too long in bed once she woke up. The light was dim outside, as she could see through the closed curtains. She pulled her robe on her and slipped in her slippers as she stood out of bed. The house was very quiet at that early hour, when she walked out of her room. Derek's bedroom door was half-open, same as Morgan's. Carolyn wondered what hour Derek needed to be up, but she assumed he was getting for work already.
She slowly walked in Morgan's room, wanting to check on her, and was surprised to hear her prattling and giggling in her crib. As she walked over to her crib and looked down, Carolyn was greeted with a smile from the baby. Morgan had one toe in her mouth, while she was holding her blanket with the other hand.
"Good morning, Morgan," Carolyn smiled, carefully picking her up from the crib. "Why are we so quiet? You didn't tell anyone you were up?" she started talking to her, pacing with her in the room.
Morgan let out a whimper and fixed her stare on Carolyn.
"Why are you staring at me again?" Carolyn asked, confused. "I thought we met already."
Morgan let another whimper out and looked down at her crib.
"You want back down? You're still sleepy?" she asked her, trying to understand what Morgan wanted to say.
Morgan looked at her and whimpered again. Then she looked back at her crib.
"I don't know," Carolyn admitted, defeated, and put her back down in her crib.
Morgan swung a little and reached for her blanket, taking it in her tiny fist and giggling at Carolyn.
"You wanted the blanket?" Carolyn laughed and picked her up again, this time wrapping the baby into the blanket. "You need to give me some time to get used to your language, ok?" she chuckled and gave Morgan a kiss. "You really are a sweet baby. And very pretty too. You have these beautiful eyes, just like your mommy's," she said, while picking up the pace again. Just then she spotted one of the photos Morgan had on one of the shelves. Carolyn took a photo of Morgan and Meredith and looked better at them. "You don't look much like your mother," she noticed and then she looked at Morgan. "Your puffy cheeks remind me of someone," she said thoughtful, trying to figure out who exactly Morgan reminded her of. "It must be one of my children," she concluded. "Babies look alike most of the times.
Morgan liked to stare but she didn't like to be stared at. She whimpered and hid her face in Carolyn's shoulder.
Carolyn smiled and gently patted her on the back.
"Let's see what Derek is doing, ok?" she gave Morgan a kiss and walked out of the room. Carolyn decided to check first if Derek was in his room. She knocked once and pushed the door open, peaking inside.
Derek was lying in the middle of the bed, sleeping deeply. His mother shook her head and smiled at Morgan. "What do you say about him? He was supposed to be up before you."
Morgan looked up at her and then she continued playing with her fingers.
As Carolyn didn't know what time Derek needed to be up and get ready for work, she walked inside, ready to wake him up herself. When she was about to touch him, Carolyn saw the alarm was still set on. Morgan bent in Carolyn's arms and whimpered as she tried to touch Derek. Though her whimper was loud, Derek didn't flinch. "Let's give him a few more minutes," Carolyn whispered to Morgan. "He must be exhausted."
Though she kept looking after Derek, Morgan didn't argue when Carolyn took her out of the room. "Let's see what we can give the baby to eat," Carolyn said. They had just reached down at the bottom of the stairs when Carolyn heard a key into the latch and immediately saw Claudia coming in. "Good morning, Claudia," Carolyn came greeting her. "You're very early."
Claudia smiled, pinching Morgan's cheek, and then she looked at Carolyn. "I woke up earlier than usual this morning, so I decided to come here. Did you sleep well?"
"Very well," Carolyn nodded. "I don't believe Morgan cried last night."
"Oh she's over that phase already," Claudia chuckled. She hung her jacket in the closet and rubbed her hands to warm them up. "She sleeps through the whole night. Meredith says she rarely wakes up and asks for something."
"I noticed she's very quiet too when she wakes up. For instance, I just found her in her crib, giggling and playing by herself," Carolyn said.
"She does that all the time," Claudia confirmed. "She only cries if she's hungry or wet, otherwise you wouldn't know if she's awake yet."
The two women went together in the kitchen and Claudia was surprised to see that Derek wasn't there. "Derek had to leave?" she asked, confused.
"He's still asleep," his mother said while she put Morgan in her highchair. "Stay here while we prepare the breakfast, ok?"
"I'll make a milk formula," Claudia said. "She likes eating solids now, but she needs to have some milk too."
Carolyn agreed. "And I will make the coffee for us and something to eat. Tell me please," she said, hesitating a little in front of the refrigerator. "How do Derek and Meredith get along? I mean, as couple?"
Claudia smiled and didn't mind being asked about them. "As far as I could see, they make a perfect couple; a perfect family, actually. I was surprised when I found out that Derek wasn't Morgan's biological father."
Carolyn hesitated again before she put the next question. She took the milk and some eggs out of the refrigerator first. "Do you know anything about Morgan's father?"
Claudia smiled apologetically and shook her head. "It's not my business, but if anyone asks me, I say Derek is her father." She could read some worry on Carolyn's features and she guessed the reason for it. "I don't think Meredith will ever go back to that man," she said quietly and glanced discreetly at Carolyn, checking how inappropriate her statement was. Carolyn was watching her, waiting more. Claudia took a deep breath to get more courage and looked at her. "I mean, I can see how much she loves him and how attached Morgan is to him. Even if that man comes and asks to meet his daughter, Morgan would stay in Meredith's custody and live with her and Derek. I think she already knows who her father is. Isn't that so, Morgan?" she asked Morgan.
Morgan frowned and let out a whimper, fussing in her chair.
"I don't thinks she's interested in hearing us talking about her Mommy's personal life," Carolyn chuckled. She looked at Claudia and smiled gratefully, "Thank you."
Claudia nodded once. "That's just how I see the things," she said.
While the women were cooking, Morgan started becoming more restless and at one point she started crying. She was hungry now, so no more Ms. Nice.
Claudia pulled a chair next to Morgan and checked the milk's temperature before she gave her the bottle. Morgan had calmed down when she saw Claudia coming to sit with her and looked confused at the bottle as if she was seeing it for the first time. She frowned and slapped it when Claudia brought it to her mouth and then she started crying again.
"Maybe she doesn't like the position," Carolyn suggested.
Claudia agreed with her and put the bottle aside, standing up to take Morgan from her chair. She placed her onto her lap and then she tried giving her the bottle again. Morgan refused firmly.
"Is there something wrong with the milk?" Claudia asked herself, unable to understand why Morgan was refusing the bottle. "Baby, you need to have some milk too. You'll get solids later, I promise."
Carolyn chuckled as she thought she might know what Morgan wanted. Derek had said she was special. "Maybe she expects to eat from her bowl. Maybe she wants to eat like a big girl now."
"You know, you're right," Claudia said and put Morgan back into her highchair. "I don't think they bought her a cup yet," she said, looking through the cupboard. She took out a small cup, the one she thought it was the most proper for a baby. She opened the bottle and poured some milk into the cup. "Let's see now," Claudia showed Morgan the cup. "Here's your milk."
Morgan looked with a frown at the cup and her lips stayed pressed together. Claudia didn't panic, thinking that once she had the cup against her lips, Morgan would open her mouth. Morgan stayed firm with her decision. She didn't know exactly what that strange object was, so she didn't trust it.
"Let me try," Carolyn said and took the cup from Claudia. "Here, baby. Aren't you hungry? We have milk in here," she let the cup lower so that Morgan could look inside.
That seemed to attract her more. Morgan put a finger inside and then she took it to her mouth, tasting it. She giggled and put her whole hand inside.
"She likes it," Carolyn laughed and now she tried to make her drink from the cup. Exactly when she leaned the cup, Morgan whimpered and turned her head away, making the milk pour on her pajamas and on her blanket. "And she's soaked." Carolyn stated and sighed, defeated.
At this point, Morgan couldn't stand it anymore; she was hungry, she was soaked and she was stressed with the two women's struggles to feed her, so she started crying from the top of her lungs.
Claudia grabbed some wipes to clean Morgan, while Carolyn cleaned the milk from the table. "This reminds me of the time when Derek called me asking for my help, because Morgan didn't like any type of milk formula," Carolyn said and took Morgan in her arms. "Baby," she started talking to her and showing her the bottle. "Don't you remember this? This is for drinking milk with it."
They heard some booms coming from out of kitchen and soon Derek ran inside, stumbling, half asleep and panicked. "What happened?" he asked desperately, quickly looking for Morgan. "Why is she crying?" he asked and took Morgan from his mother, slowly rocking her.
"She doesn't want the bottle, Derek," Claudia explained. "And she needs to eat some milk too."
Derek groaned, rolling his eyes and put Morgan back into her chair. Morgan screamed and clung on him, refusing to sit there. Derek didn't listen to her and let her stay in the chair while he sleepily looked for something in the cupboard. He took Morgan's bowl and then he looked for her spoon. He brought them to the table and looked at the two women. "Didn't you think about trying this?" he asked them and poured milk into the bowl.
"Do you want to give her the milk with the spoon?" his mother asked, almost not believing he could come up with that idea.
"No. One of you will do it, because I need my brain to chill out," he said and held out the bowl so that one of them to take it.
Claudia took the bowl and everyone watched how she tried to give Morgan the milk with the spoon. Morgan stopped from crying as she saw her bowl, but she kept sobbing. She looked with a glare at everyone around her while she ate from Claudia.
"This isn't normal, Derek," his mother disapproved. "She'll turn into a spoiled child."
"Why? Because she wants to eat from a bowl?" Derek retorted. "Weren't you saying how hard it was for you to make us give up on the bottle when we were little?"
Carolyn sighed and didn't reply to that.
"This will take forever," he muttered looking at how Claudia was feeding Morgan. "Maybe we should try with the bottle again."
He took the empty bottle from the table to go and prepare more milk, but as Morgan saw it, she started crying and throwing her fist towards him, refusing firmly the idea of being fed with the bottle again.
"That's called tantrum," Carolyn pointed out.
In the meantime, Meredith pulled the car in front of her house. The sun was moving up on the sky and the light was becoming brighter as the sun reflected in the snow. Meredith drew in some fresh air and let the stress of a night shift out. It had been a busy and exhausting night, unfortunately the last one for one of her patients. Meredith tucked the jacket around her body and walked towards her house. She unlocked the door and let herself inside. From the doorway she could hear Morgan's crying. She shut the door and ran to see what was happening to her baby. She stopped at the entrance and looked at all the people gathered around Morgan.
"What's going on here?" she demanded, walking over to the table to check on her baby.
Hearing Meredith, Derek knew they were in serious trouble; nobody was allowed to mess with Morgan's nerves. Derek smiled and pulled her into his arms before she could pass past him.
"Hard night?" he asked her, holding her hair to back and trying this way to distract her from whatever thoughts she had in that moment.
When Morgan was crying like that, Meredith couldn't be distracted. "Yes," she glared at him and pushed him away, walking over to the table to get her daughter.
Baby Morgan calmed down just a little bit once she was in her Mommy's arms. "What's going on here? Why is she soaked?" she asked the others as she ran her hand over Morgan's stomach, soaked of milk.
"She doesn't want the bottle, Mer," Derek answered. "She only eats the milk with the spoon."
Meredith sighed and smiled at Morgan while she patted her gently on the back. "She just woke up and she's full of energy. She only takes the bottle in the evening. You should give her the milk in the evening."
Claudia sighed and nodded as she understood that Meredith was right. "I'll make her something else to eat."
Meredith just smiled at her and put Morgan back in her highchair. "Be patient, ok?" she said to the baby.
Frowning, Morgan stuffed her fingers into her mouth and reached with the other hand for the bowl. Nobody paid any attention to her as Meredith was too tired and she took a seat down at the table, resting her forehead against it and as Claudia was preparing something else for her to eat while Derek took his mother aside for a private chat. Being alone with her bowl of milk, Morgan stopped from crying. She kept putting her fingers into the milk, stuffing them into her mouth then. She looked at the grown-ups as if she wanted to tell them she could feed herself too. Morgan found the act of eating very entertaining; she was definitely proud of herself. She started giggling and slapping cheerfully the bowl. As the bowl was from plastic and it didn't have much milk in it, Morgan's light slaps easily hit it and overthrew it.
Meredith was having her eyes closed and she was trying to back out the unsuccessful cases she had had over the night, when something light hit her and felt warm liquid pouring in her hair.
Everyone turned at the noise, at first shocked to see the Meredith's wet hair and then all of them tried to hide their smiles.
Meredith noticed their amusement immediately. She was tired, her night hadn't been easy, her daughter had greeted her with a deafening crying, so she couldn't stand their smiles. "I've never felt this humiliated in my life," she muttered under her breath. She grabbed a rag for wiping her forehead and stood up from the table. "Thank you," she said dryly to the baby.
Morgan looked up at her Mommy when she stood up, with her finger in her mouth, and as Meredith talked to her, Morgan threw her hand in air and giggled.
Meredith wasn't mad with her daughter, she just felt too tired. She sniffed at the other grown-ups and turned on her heels walking out of the kitchen.
"She had a rough night," Derek excused her to the other women.
Nobody disagreed. Carolyn went to clean the mess Morgan had made with the milk and Claudia hurried to finish the food for Morgan. "I will go cheer her up," Derek stated. He leaned down and planted a kiss on Morgan's head, ruffling her hair. "Behave yourself," he winked at her, smiling and left her alone with her nanny and her grandmother.
"Babies are so unique," Carolyn stated, saying to Claudia. "Each of them has its own personality and habits. After I raised five children, I thought I knew everything about them; I thought I understand them perfectly."
Claudia nodded in agreement. "I spent my entire life surrounded by children and I completely agree with you."
Determined to feed Morgan, Carolyn took her into her arms and sat down at the table with her. "Meredith has a lot of patience with her," she noticed, bouncing the baby on her knees in attempt of distracting her from hunger while Claudia finished the cooking.
"She was shooting deadly glares towards us, though we were innocent," Claudia chuckled. She mixed the food in another bowl and brought it to the table. "Do you want to feed her?" she asked Carolyn.
Carolyn nodded gladly and took the bowl from her. Morgan was either too hungry or too thrilled with what she had done to her mother, so she ate without giving them any trouble. Claudia stayed and cleaned the kitchen, while Carolyn took Morgan upstairs to change her diaper and her clothes.
As she walked past Meredith's room, she stopped for a moment only as she thought she had heard giggles. Giggles and moans were coming from inside. Carolyn smiled at Morgan, shaking her head. "He does know how to cheer her up," she chuckled. She took Morgan into her room and placed her on her hip as she prepared everything she needed for Morgan's toilet. A loud thud followed by a laugher, made Carolyn startle. "I don't think you need to hear that," she said to Morgan. She looked around the table, trying to find something. Luckily, she spotted an interesting toy that might made sounds too. She took a teddy bear and pressed on its stomach to see what its abilities were. Carolyn was lucky because she found a singer toy and not a talking one. Morgan smiled and held her hand out for the toy. Carolyn put it beside her and let Morgan slap it while she started stripping her pajamas off.
"You're a very good baby, did you know that?" Carolyn said to Morgan, smiling at her. "Not many babies stay so nice when they have their diaper changed. Derek was horrible when he was little; he was fussing and crying. He was so bad that nobody was really willing to go and change his clothes." Morgan grabbed her foot and giggled cheerfully. "He was dirty," Carolyn stated with a chuckle, making Morgan giggle again and threw a fist in the air. She picked her up and lay her on her stomach so that she could clean her.
As she did that, Carolyn noticed a spot on Morgan's back, close to the waist. "Look at this. You have a birthmark," she said at first, chuckling. But looking better at it, Carolyn noticed something else. "This looks familiar" she mused. "I think Derek has one too. It's not the same I am sure, but it looks similar."
Because Morgan didn't like the position she was sitting on very much, she started fussing and whining. Carolyn shook her head, clearing it from the thoughts she had and lay Morgan onto her back again. While she put her a clean diaper, Carolyn stayed thoughtful. Something was with this little girl and she couldn't understand what that was. Her hands froze on the diaper as a thought struck her. Could Morgan be Derek's daughter?
She shook her head. That wasn't possible. Derek would have admitted his paternity; he wouldn't have hid it. Besides this, Carolyn gave a second thought; Derek didn't have any birthmark; but then, why was Morgan's birthmark looking so familiar to her? She was sure she had seen it to someone else. She just couldn't remember to whom.
Carolyn couldn't think about it any longer as the door opened and Claudia walked in. "Oh good. You're muffling the noise," she chuckled as she heard the song the teddy bear was singing.
Carolyn laughed and nodded. "Are they always like this?" she asked Claudia.
"No," she shook her head. "There's always one with me and Morgan when they're home. Probably they decided to get off the routine now that they have enough help with Morgan."
Carolyn smiled, shaking her head disapprovingly. "I would have preferred not to hear that."
"I know what you mean," Claudia laughed.
"Hey, did you notice Morgan's birthmark?" Carolyn took Morgan into her arms so that Claudia could see it.
Claudia walked over to them and touched gently Morgan's back. "I did. Meredith says she got it from her," she answered.
"Oh," Carolyn seemed to have understood, though she still knew she had seen it to someone else. Or maybe she didn't. She shook her head and put Morgan back on the table to dress her.
"Do you want me to dress her?" Claudia asked her.
She shook her head, smiling at Morgan. "It's a pleasure to dress a nice baby like her."
"I know," Claudia laughed. "I will go wash some of her clothes then."
Carolyn was with Morgan in the rocking chair, swinging slowly and playing with the teddy bear when Derek walked in.
Carolyn looked up when she heard the door and chuckled knowingly as she saw Derek. "Don't you have to work today?" she asked him.
Derek narrowed his eyes as he walked over to them, checking what his mother's chuckle had meant. "You heard," he mumbled, raising a brow.
"Even the teddy bear heard you," she said, muffling a laugher. She shook her head as she read his embarrassment.
"When you see Meredith, pretend like you didn't hear anything earlier," he asked. He knelt in front of her with a big smile on his face as held his hands out for Morgan.
Though she liked her new grandma, Derek was still Morgan's favorite person. He scooped her onto his arms and kissed her. "We're determined to make a bad impression to Grandma Carolyn, aren't we?" he started talking to the baby. "First we cry after mommy and then we want to eat milk with the spoon and we spill food in mommy's head. What will grandma think about us, huh?" he tossed her up in the air, making her giggle delightfully.
"I think she might try to eat the soup with the fork like you did when she will grow bigger," Carolyn laughed, standing up from the rocking chair. She kept laughing at his amusement. "I am not kidding. You were a difficult baby," she said.
Derek grinned at her and planted a kiss on her cheek, "But you still loved me."
Carolyn smiled lovingly as she ran her fingers through his hair.
"You've been here for long?" they heard Meredith's panicked voice as she sneaked her head inside. She gave a questioning look to Derek and walked inside hesitantly.
"No," Carolyn reassured her. "We just came here to take some toys for Morgan."
"Oh," Meredith sighed with relief and smiled.
"I have to go to the hospital now," Derek stated. He kissed Morgan and gave her a hug before he handed her to her mother.
"Now now?" Meredith asked him, looking at him pleadingly. She had liked his mother the previous evening, but only because they talked for a minute.
"Now now," he laughed and kissed her, whispering. "Morgan likes her." That didn't seem to encourage Meredith so much. "I will see you later, mom."
"You're not eating anything before you go?" his mother asked him.
"No," Derek chuckled. "I woke up too late this morning." He cringed as Meredith elbowed him between ribs. "Be nice to Morgan today," he told them as he ruffled Morgan's hair.
As Derek left them alone, Meredith found herself in uncomfortable silence, smiling nervously at Carolyn. "I want to spend some time with her before I get some sleep," she said, hoping she would spend less time alone with Derek's mother.
"Sure," Carolyn nodded. She easily could see how uncomfortable Meredith was feeling around her, but she was determined to talk to her for at least a few minutes. "I won't keep you long."
Meredith automatically faked a smile and swallowed a lump down her throat. She turned her back on Carolyn as she stepped out of Morgan's room, feeling closely Carolyn's steps behind her.
"Derek told me about the way you met," Carolyn said as they walked into Meredith's room. "It must have been terrifying to you," she added conversationally.
Meredith crawled in the bed and leaning against the headboard she put Morgan onto her lap, holding her hands to help her stay upright. She hadn't given any answer to Carolyn yet and she felt her looking at her expecting.
"It was very terrifying," Meredith finally answered as she kept playing with Morgan's soft hair.
Carolyn smiled and came to sit down on the bed. "You're not feeling comfortable with my presence," she pointed out, keeping her voice calm and gentle.
Meredith looked at her and smiled. "I am just very tired," she tried to excuse herself. She was indeed tired, but she was also uncomfortable with Carolyn; not that for the reason that she was Derek's mother. She really liked Derek's mother. It was rather the fact that Derek's mother knew Mark and it was also because of the secrets she and Derek were keeping from her.
Carolyn smiled knowingly. She could read her better than that. "I know it's not Derek's baby and I am still glad to see Derek happy."
Meredith looked up, surprised with her statement.
"Now tell me more. I don't get to hear about women giving birth into a car very often," she said.
Meredith giggled. "It was very terrifying; so terrifying that I even let a stranger took care of me and my baby. It was like… I was expecting to die anyway," Meredith started telling her about the way she felt that evening when she first met Derek and her daughter.
"You were lucky for finding someone to stop the car and check on you in the first place. I don't know how many people would have stopped and stayed there with you; especially on Seattle's rainy weather," Carolyn answered.
Meredith nodded. "And I was just coming from the hospital that evening."
"Oh," Carolyn looked at her curiously. "I hope you don't mind me asking but… did you work until the due day? I mean, you didn't take a maternity leave before the birth?" she asked Meredith.
Without thinking better at the question, Meredith answered started telling. "I did have a short maternity leave before the birth, but that day I went to sign the contract with the Chief. I wasn't supposed to give birth so quick; I had had one week left until due date."
"I see," Carolyn nodded, but something from Meredith's statement aroused her curiosity. "You're in your second year as doctor and first as resident?" she asked her, though she knew that already.
Meredith nodded. "That's right," she answered and as she didn't feel as uncomfortable with her as before, she went on telling her more, "I finished my first year to New York Presbyterian, but then I …" just then she realized she shouldn't have mentioned that. "I had to move here," she added quietly, avoiding Carolyn's eyes now.
Carolyn didn't reveal her interest and pretended not to have found anything quite interesting in the fact that Meredith had moved from New York to Seattle. "Derek told me you grew up here," she said, smiling. "You brought your daughter home."
Meredith nodded, a little more hesitant now.
Carolyn knew Mark work at the same hospital Meredith used to work. Derek had told her Meredith and Mark didn't know each other, which was obviously a lie as Meredith and Mark were both surgeons. She kept acting as nothing unusual had been said. "That's quite interesting, actually," she chuckled, causing Meredith's heart to start. "Derek left that hospital a year before you started there. You could have been co-workers there, but now you're co-workers here. Fate," she added with another chuckle.
Meredith chuckled nervously, afraid that Mark would come into their talk. But Carolyn's mind was in complete haze at that moment. She stayed composed and continued the flawless conversation. "Morgan is an adorable baby," she said, smiling as she took Morgan's hand. Morgan just smiled at her. "I can sense some trouble with her when she will grow up," she added, laughing.
Meredith laughed too. "I don't know why, but I have the same feeling; especially if she has started throwing things already."
"Exactly," Carolyn nodded. "You need to take some precautions and keep the breakable things out of her way." Meredith agreed with a nod. "She's addicted to you," Carolyn said.
"I am addicted to her too," Meredith said, gently bringing Morgan into her arms and hugging her. "I won't mind that much when she will be spilling food in my hair," she giggled and kissed her daughter's soft cheek.
"Doesn't it feel great?" Carolyn smiled, and she wasn't talking about the food throwing.
Meredith nodded as she knew what she meant to say. "It feels… complete."
"Yes," Carolyn chuckled, nodding. "I think that's the right word." She took Morgan's hand and gently ran her thumb against her tiny, delicate palm. Morgan looked at her and smiled, pulling her hand back and stuffing it into her mouth as she rested her head against Meredith's chest. Carolyn had a thought about who Morgan's father was and she wasn't sure if she wanted to accept that thought. Maybe she was wrong. Without letting Morgan out of her sight, Carolyn hesitantly asked Meredith, "Why did you move back here?"
Carolyn felt her heart sinking as she heard Meredith swallowing a lump.
Words ran through her head and Meredith managed to build a sentence as answer, "I… talked to the Chief Webber and he convinced me to come and finish my residency at Seattle Grace. This is also the place where my mom did her residency," she explained.
Derek had told his mother about how independent Meredith was and how much she hated being compared to her mother or receiving favors for being the daughter of Ellis Grey. Carolyn still refused to accept that thought, although she was very sure now.
"I am going to be a little indiscreet now," she said, looking at Meredith. She could read the panic on Meredith's face. "What if her father wants her back?" she said, talking about Morgan.
"He won't want her back and he won't get her back. He…" Meredith wanted to say, but Carolyn completed the sentence for her.
"He gave up to his parental rights. I know. Derek told me, but still… what if?" she asked her.
"He lost any chance," Meredith answered, with such determination in her voice that Carolyn was sure she wouldn't accept him back into her life.
"Would you let your daughter without a father?" she asked then.
Meredith was getting slightly annoyed with the topic and she even forgot about the embarrassment of lying to Derek's mother. "I grew up without a father. Besides, a father is the one who raises the child, not who conceived it."
Meredith was surprised to see Carolyn smiling. It wasn't a smile of satisfaction; it looked rather as a comfortable smile.
"Derek loves you so much. He absolutely adores Morgan," she stated.
Guilt washed over again and Meredith swallowed a lump. "It looks complicated, I know."
"It just looks?" Carolyn asked her. "How does it feel?"
Meredith looked down, staring blankly at Morgan. "Complicated," she muttered.
Carolyn nodded knowingly. "Do you think there's a way to make it feel less complicated?"
Meredith shrugged her shoulders. "I am not sure," she answered quietly. She felt the mattress shifting as Carolyn stood up.
"I will let you get some rest now," she said. "Do you want me to take Morgan?" Meredith shook her head, without looking up at Carolyn. "I guess I will see you later then," Carolyn nodded. As she walked to the door, she kept glancing at Morgan. She stopped in the doorway and said to Meredith, "Talk to Derek and find together a way of making it feel less complicated."
Meredith looked at Carolyn and Carolyn smiled at her. Meredith answered with a nod only after she had closed the door.
She let out a sigh and lay down in the bed, putting Morgan beside her. The baby watched her mother, smiling as she lifted her foot and tried to stuff it into her mouth. "Do you think she suspects something?" she asked Morgan. Morgan continued keeping herself busy with her foot, wriggling an arm beside her. "Should I worry less?" she asked, trying to find an answer in her daughter's gestures, although she knew she wasn't talking to her for real. Meredith let out sigh and put a big pillow next to Morgan, blocking any attempt of rolling over. She ran her hand across the baby's forehead and planted a kiss on it. "You should turn into a smarter woman than me," she said to her daughter, before she brushed her cheek against her head and closed her eyes.
Meredith couldn't tell exactly how long she had slept, when she felt Morgan's whimper and her warmth leaving her side. Her eyes fluttered open in an instant and frowned as she saw the person in her room. "What are you doing here?" she demanded, letting out a yawn and sitting upright on the pillows.