Chapter 7

The next day

Meredith woke up early the next morning. She stood up, went downstairs to make herself a coffee. When she noticed that Andrew was already awake too, she took her cup of coffee with her, sitting down on the other side of the couch.

"Good morning." Andrew greeted her, sitting up on the couch.

"Good morning." She answered with a smile before she took a sip from her coffee, making a grimace at the taste, bringing Andrew to chuckle.

"You should have asked me to make you that coffee." He answered still laughing slightly.

"That probably would have been wiser." She joined him and had to laugh too.

She took another sip, only to make the same face again, bringing Andrew to chuckle once again.

"I'll make some coffee." Andrew stood up from the couch, looking at her with a small smile, offering her to take her cup of coffee and make a new one.

"Thank you." She answered with a smile herself, looking at him for a few moments longer, while he went into the kitchen to make them both a cup of coffee, getting lost in her thoughts, remembering the conversation they had had the day before.

.

"A coffee for your thoughts?" She heard Andrew a few minutes later and only then noticed that she had disappeared in her own mind for some time. He had stopped in front of her, offering Meredith her coffee, looking at her with a small smile.

"I'm sorry, I had been somewhere else with my thoughts." She answered, shaking her head slightly as if to make her thoughts disappear again. She thankfully took the coffee, smiling at Andrew before he sat down on the couch again.

"I noticed." He smiled at her "Do you want to talk about it?" He added gently, waiting for a moment, wanting to give her some time to think about it.

"You said you had or still have plans or dreams for your future." Meredith was fumbling with her free hand in the air trying to explain what was going through her mind before she added more carefully "What dreams do you have?"

"I..." He started hesitantly, taken a little by surprise at her question. He took a minute to sort through his thoughts before he started more determined "There is my career. I just became an attending, and I can't wait to learn even more; to become a better surgeon every day; to do research; to help people." A smile appeared on his lips while talking about his beginning career "And then there is my life outside the hospital, Carina and..." He stopped himself, letting his thought trail off.

"And?" Meredith prompted carefully, having noticed that he has wanted to add more to his thought.

"I don't know..." He said trying to diminish that thought, wanting to convince her, but she knew him well enough to see right through that. And she also knew him well enough to be able to guess what he wanted to add. And it scared her. And yet, she kept looking at him, trying to encourage him to tell her more.

"You." He added quietly after a moment, looking up at her, searching for her eyes. "I had plans with you." He started slowly "But a lot has happened..." He trailed off again.

When he saw her looking at him questioningly, with a mixture of surprise, he started slowly "I... When we were together, you accepted me for the person I was, you showed up when I needed you... and I felt home. And I started to think what my future could look like... And I saw you in my future." He explained.

They stayed silent for some time. And even though Meredith knew how he had felt about her and still does, and even though she could already guess what he had wanted to say, it still took her a little by surprise to hear him say it out loud.

"Do you still have those plans?" She asked, managing to find the courage in herself to look at him.

"I... Yes, I would still like to try and have hope."

"Andrew..." She sighed, slightly overwhelmed by the way Andrew looked at her. But before she could add more, they heard someone coming downstairs, making her turn around to see who it was.

"Good morning, mommy." Bailey appeared in the living room, greeting his mom.

"Good morning." Meredith took her son next to her on the couch, embracing him while giving him a kiss to his forehead.

"Good morning Bailey." Andrew greeted him after their hug, earning a smile from him.

"Buongiorno, Andrew." Bailey answered with a big smile.

"You still remember?" Andrew asked a little surprised with a big smile on his face as well when he heard him speak some of the Italian words, he had taught the kids some time ago.

"Of course." Bailey answered proudly.

"Okay, why don't you go into the kitchen already and I'll be there in a minute to make breakfast?" Meredith asked Bailey, who nodded and then stood up to go towards the kitchen.

"I- I need to..." Meredith started hesitantly not quite sure how to act after everything Andrew has said to her this morning and the last few days.

"Hey." Andrew took her hand, holding it while he brought her closer to him, slightly leaning up to kiss her.

"I didn't get to wish you a proper good morning yet." He answered when he saw Meredith's surprised expression after he pulled away a bit to be able to look at her, making Meredith smile before she leaned in for another short kiss and then went to see what Bailey wanted.

...

Meredith went into the kitchen, preparing breakfast for her kids. They all ate together. Her kids, her sisters, Link and Winston, Andrew and her. Maggie, Winston and Link had to go the hospital, and Meredith was trying to get some things done in the house, while Amelia was watching the kids. And Andrew... He enjoyed being able to spend some time with the kids and Meredith again, while at the same time trying to give her some space. They had talked, they were getting closer again, but they still weren't back together. Not officially at least... They still had lots of small pieces of an in the beginning very high wall between them. But there has also already been a time where they had been able to put all theses pieces down and he wished they would get there again. With time.

.

"Mer, what are you doing?" Amelia appeared in her bedroom, looking confused at Meredith who was pretending to read a book, but held it upside down in her hands.

"He has plans, Amelia." Meredith answered whispering but determined, not wanting Andrew to hear her.

"Okay." Amelia answered still confused, going over to Meredith. She took the book and turned it around before she gave it her sister again, sitting down on the bed as well.

"What kind of plans?" She added, after Meredith rolled her eyes at her attempt to make her realize that she wasn't actually reading the book she held.

"For our future." She said, with her eyes wide open, still not completely processed what that could imply.

"So, you're back together?" She heard her sister asking curiously.

"I'm scared to hear them. And I'm scared I might want the same things."

"You're scared you might want the same things?! You don't make any sense right now. You know that, right?" Amelia chuckled at her, making her roll her eyes in annoyance.

"You're not helping, Amelia."

"Okay. And now? You want to kick him out again?"

"No." Meredith looked at her sister disbelievingly with a confused smile, not even able to be mad at her anymore after that comment. She shook her head slightly, chuckling at where Amelia's mind has gone. If anything, she wanted to be closer to Andrew and not further away.

"Then I think you already have your answer." Amelia answered, making her think about a possible future once again.

End of Chapter 7

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