Authors Note: Hi everyone! I am so sorry for the hiatus. Life, work etc. got in the way. As I mentioned before, I do know where this story is going, and we will be wrapping up part 1 in the next few chapters. I have a sequel to this planned out that I'm excited to get started on.

Please review and let me know your thoughts! It always keeps me motivated.

I'm grateful to have the place to myself this morning. I told my friends that Ellis was going to be here by lunch, and they all made themselves scarce except for Christina who is dying at the opportunity to meet the famous Ellis Grey. Little does she know; she's not exactly going to be embraced or have the opportunity to ask Ellis all of her surgical questions because Ellis will be too busy murdering Derek and giving me her laundry list of reasons, I've disappointed her. Luckily, today is Christina's busy day and she has lab all morning and into the early afternoon. My hands quickly wrap around my protruding stomach. In the past two weeks my pregnancy has really become obvious. I'm due in May after Derek graduates and only have about 4 months to go. I know that it's time to have the conversation with my mom, but I can't fight the pit in my stomach that it's not going to go over well. I'm pulled out of my thoughts by Derek's arms wrapping around me from behind and the hairs on my arms stick up at the feeling of his kisses along my neck and jaw.

"Hi" he says to me sweetly with a slight husk to his voice. His hands stroke my round belly. He can't seem to keep his hands off of me these days, not that I mind any especially with all of these raging hormones. I turn around in his arms so I can lean up and give him a kiss. He eagerly accepts and the passion rises between us. I want him so badly, but I pull away.

"Ellis is coming." I inform him

"Right now?" he asked amused.

"No, but soon and we can't be doing… this" I tell him motioning between us.

"Fine" he relents and pulls away but not before plastering a kiss to my forehead.

"I'll make it up to you later" I tease him

"Oh, you most definitely will." he agrees laughing

I roll my eyes "Maybe it's better if you don't come to the airport with me" I tell him

Derek sighs "Mer, we've been over this a hundred times. I'll do whatever you want me to do but I think I could help things" he tells me

I scoff "You don't know my mother."

"Like I said, I'll do whatever you want me to do." He tells me softly.

After debating for another 10 minutes, I ultimately decide I should pick up my mom from the airport and tell her alone. Derek doesn't need to be a casualty to the Ellis/Meredith showdown.

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The traffic to the airport was a doozy but I honestly didn't expect any less. Ellis was perfectly on time as I predicted. I was nervous picking her up and thanked God that it was still cold outside so I could hide my bump under a sweatshirt.

"Meredith" my mom said entering my car

"Hi mom" I greeted her. "How was the flight?"

"It was a flight. Aggravating and stuffy." She responded coldly

"Right" I replied

"I'm starving and need to eat. Let's get breakfast." She told me

I put the car in drive and racked my brain for the closest decent restaurant. I figured one of the fancy hotels would have a restaurant inside that would likely be Ellis approved. There wasn't one too far away & I figured there was a decent chance it would be Ellis approved.

"How's your grades?" Ellis asked

"Great. All A's last semester."

"Good. Have you decided yet if you're going to med school?"

"No… not yet" I told her

Ellis sighed "It'll be such a waste if you don't"

I said nothing.

"How far is this restaurant?" Ellis asked impatiently

"Not too far mom. Just across the road here."

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Breakfast was awkward to say the least. Ellis and I rarely had much to talk about besides her eternal disappointment in me. Luckily, we had mostly finished the meal and I would be dropping her at her hotel soon.

"So, Meredith."

I looked up and met my mother's cold gaze. It softened for a moment before returning to its usual coolness.

"I'm sure you're wondering why I flew all the way across the country to speak to you."

She didn't wait for my reply before continuing.

"Two weeks ago, I completed my last surgery. I've retired." She told me matter of fact.

"What? Why?" I spit out. My mother and retirement were two words I never thought I would hear in the same sentence.

"I've been diagnosed with Alzheimer's. It's early but the early on-set cases like mine tend to advance fast." She explained coldly. I could see the unshed tears in her eyes.

"Mom" I croaked out and moved from my seat to crouch beside her. I wrapped my arms around her, and she stiffened. Within a couple of seconds, she hugged me back.

"Don't make a scene Meredith" she told me when she seemed to come to her senses.

I moved back to my seat across from her.

"I don't understand." I told her

"What's there to understand? I'm sick. My career over. My life over. My brain is dying and there is nothing anyone can do about it."

I didn't know what to say back to her, so I said nothing. We sat in silence for a few moments.

"I'm going to need you." She told me through gritted teeth.

"Not now, but at some point. I'll need you to make medical decisions for me and long-term care decisions."

I felt like someone knocked the wind out of me.

"Mom, I'm pregnant." I blurted

Ellis sat there with a look on her face half seething half filled with disappointment but then it became void.

"How far along?" she asked as if we were at the hospital, and I was a patient she was getting a history on.

"5 months."

She nodded. "It's your life Meredith." She told me and it seemed to carry a much deeper meaning.

"I'm exhausted. Can you take me back to my hotel now?" she asked.

I nodded & we left.

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Ellis and I had dinner that night and she met Derek and saw my place the next day before her flight back to Seattle. It had all been a little awkward and I was trying to hold back my emotions at the news she shared with me about her health. My mom and I were never close but the idea of her being so sick that she was forced to give up the thing she loved most in the world (surgery) was unsettling to me. This was not at all how I pictured her visit but if anything, it did make breaking the news about my pregnancy easier. Before I dropped her at the airport, she gave me the biggest hug she ever had and told me to take care of myself. I told her to do the same because at this point, I didn't know who needed to hear it more.

When I made it back to my house, Derek was there sitting on my bed watching TV.

"Hi" I told him as I took off my sweatshirt that I had been using to hide my pregnancy bump all weekend. I walked closer to where he was so I could pull a t-shirt out of my dresser.

He smiled "No more baggy clothes I see" he told me as I approached clad in just my bra and the pants I had been wearing. His hands quickly found my round belly, gently stroking it. I leaned down for a kiss which he quickly returned.

"I'm sorry about your mom" he told me sincerely when I broke the kiss.

I didn't say anything. If I started talking about it, I don't think the tears would stop. I think Derek understood that.

"I have a surprise for you that may cheer you up." He offered

"What?" I asked pulling a t-shirt over my head realizing now that it was too little. My stomach stuck out from underneath it, but I was too mentally drained to find another one. I joined Derek on the bed, and he turned towards me

"Will you just trust me on this?" he asked

I groaned "I'm so tired"

"We have time. Take a nap and I'll wake you up."

"Fine" I told him groggily as I faded to sleep on his shoulder.

Derek wouldn't tell me where we were going, and it was annoying me. I was losing what little patience I had left when we pulled into my OB's office.

"Is this some kind of sick joke?"

"Mer" he told me lovingly giving me the McDreamy look. "I thought finding out the gender of our baby may cheer you up."

With preparing for my mother's visit the past two weeks, I hadn't even considered that we could find out the sex.

"I figured you might need a pick me up after the visit and scheduled this last week" Derek told me.

My hands instinctively wrapped around my belly. I had barely wrapped my mind around having a baby let alone what the gender of that baby would be.

"If you don't want to do this today, we can wait"

"No, I want to do this. I'm ready to find out." I told him with a grin. He grinned back at me, and we made our way out of the car and into the office.

We didn't have a long wait before we were called back. Derek never let go of my hand as the doctor moved the wand over my stomach. Instantly, we heard the swooshing heartbeat, and I felt my heart rate quicken seeing the doctor with a knowing smile.

"Well, we can most certainly tell the sex today. Sometimes, they don't want to cooperate, but your little one is not shy." She told us

Derek grinned at me "So, what is it?" he asked her

She smiled at both of us warmly "It's a girl"

"A girl!" I exclaimed

"It's a little girl" Derek told me kissing my forehead, never letting go of my hand.

"I'll go get you two a copy of the ultra-sound a give you a minute to yourselves" She told me wiping the gel off my belly.

When she left the room, Derek kissed me deeply.

TBC….