"So where is he taking you?" Cristina asked Meredith as they were sitting on her bed. Meredith laid back onto her pillows, pulling her hair out of her eyes as it fell awkwardly, "I don't know," she responded.

"He didn't tell you? What are you a little kid?" Cristina asked, deciding for herself that this wouldn't fly with her in dating land. She was much more demanding than Meredith it seemed.

"No," Meredith replied as she stared at the ceiling.

"Well, when is he picking you up?" Cristina asked. Their date was today, Meredith had been looking forward to it since it was talked about with Derek. She didn't mention it annoyingly like other teenaged girls might have and Cristina was grateful for that but the extra spring in her step and the sparkle in her as the day approached, increased infinitely. He had definitely wormed his way into Meredith's life somehow, and Cristina was sure that if he broke her heart, there would be hell to pay. Cristina had decided that it was fate, or something like it that had intervened that summer. Had things gone the way they would have naturally, things would not have unfolded quite like this, Cristina thought. Derek Shepherd and his jock friends were fun to be around but completely unexpected in her mind. Meredith seemed to welcome the unfamiliarity of these people with open arms, she was accepting like that and more over, comfortable with them. They got along easily and to those that weren't attracted to her, she was like a little sister to them. Especially to Mark, who seemed to take Meredith under his wing and explain to her the in's and out's of the high school that she was about to start. He explained to her to trust people out of necessity, not out of kindness- it was like entering a foreign world, Meredith had decided.

"Seven, " Meredith said simply as she sat up on the bed, facing Cristina, a helpless look in her eyes.

Cristina looked at the clock, it was three o'clock in the afternoon. "What are you wearing?" she asked, after deciding that four hours was more than enough hours to completely get ready.

"I don't know. I've never been on a date."

"Well since he's made it so unkindly unclear as to where he is whisking you away to," Cristina half joked, "I think it's open to anything. No little black dress though, please. Save that cliché for when you're 21 and want to look slutty."

Meredith rolled her eyes as she got up from the bed and opened the door to her closet.

"So help me," Meredith offered.

Cristina raised her eyebrows, "This is so out of my element," she said as she got up, throwing the pillow she had had on her lap back onto the bed as she and Meredith glanced through her closet.

Cristina tried remembering the ease with which her mother would choose clothing items, and how easily she would pull outfits together no matter the motif of the party or the dress code of the club where her step father would take her mother.

"Well, you have to be comfortable, god knows what McDreamy has planned."

Meredith nodded, not sure what that meant. Did that mean a skirt instead of a dress or a dress instead of a skirt? She asked herself.

"So…" Cristina continued on, "jeans, nice ones, to start."

Meredith searched through her closet for her nicest jeans, dark denim with a straight leg fit and no embellishments or distresses in sight.

She looked to Cristina for more guidance, she really felt like a rookie in this arena.

:::

After helping Meredith out with an outfit, Cristina had decided to leave Meredith alone to take a shower and get ready. It didn't take long to find something acceptable in Meredith's closet. She had some nice things, a product of occasionally visiting the mall with Cristina, particularly if she was mad at Ellis. Retail therapy wasn't so much therapy as it was revenge on Ellis' credit card.

Meredith stepped out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped around herself as she let her hair air dry, she had a couple of hours to kill and she decided to flip on the TV as she thoroughly got ready. Out of boredom she decided to paint her nails, red is too slutty, she thought to herself as she grabbed the standard black nail polish that Ellis seemed to detest. Meredith however, loved it even more because of this. She waited for her nails to dry as she flipped through meaningless shows on the television that she had muted, she was listening to her stereo instead.

:::

The doorbell rang, announcing Derek's arrival. Why does he always have to be right on time? Meredith asked herself as she glanced at the clock, it read 6:59. Meredith gave herself a once over in front of the mirror. She had put on the dark jeans, a v neck dark grey shirt and a suit jacket that she had to get for a debate last year. With the sleeves rolled up to her elbows, and the buttons open it looked chic. She had to thank Cristina for this later, just because she didn't read Vogue, didn't mean she couldn't mimic the fashionable side of life, Meredith thought about Cristina. Her hair had dried in soft waves, on her way to the door she slipped on black flats she had left there the other day. The beauty of not having her mom home all the time was the luxury of cleaning up only when she wanted to, not when she was demanded to. Meredith let out a breath as she opened the door. Derek smiled immediately as she appeared. She looked perfect. Finally, Derek thought, glad that it had only taken him this long to ask her out.

"You look beautiful," Derek said as he smiled.

Meredith smiled, "Thank you," she said as he handed her a bouquet of flowers.

"These are for you," he said as he handed her a bouquet of lavender and purple asters, tied together by a large purple ribbon.

Meredith held them to her nose, closing her eyes for a second. She loved the smell of lavender. "Thank you Derek, you shouldn't have," she said, hoping that that was what was appropriate in response, she felt nervous in a way, the butterflies in her stomach fluttering as she set them in water, grabbing a vase off of the top of the fridge and hurriedly putting water in it. She left the flowers on the island, and joined Derek back on the front porch. He smiled as she locked the door, putting the single key into her pocket as she walked down the stairs with him. Ecstatic she had decided against heels, no doubt she would fall on t he few concrete stairs her house had.

Derek put his hand on the small of Meredith's back, counting himself lucky to be in her company. He opened the door for her as she stepped into Derek's car, he closed it gently as he walked over to his side. Don't make a fool of yourself, Derek thought to himself.

Meredith, don't be a spaz, she said to herself as she smiled at Derek who was walking around to his side.

Bodies disengaged, our mouths are fleshing over.

It's just an echo game, irises retreating

to ovals of white.

The urge to feel your face

And blood rushing to paint my handprint

A Frisbee one by one

Your vinyl on lamanent

Desperate for some kind of contact.

:::

Sorry for lack of updates. I picked up more hours this week at work, before school starts.

More to come, enjoy.

-Viv