So, it's been a month since the last installment, I guess. Thankfully, a nice little vacation helped me to get back into the writing mood and I'm actively working on this story again. (Hopefully that will also translate into faster updates again? We'll see.)
In any case, here are Addison, Mark, Annie, and Derek in the New Year. Enjoy!
January 2005
"Oh my God, Addie, where have you been?" he called out as he finally spotted her at the nurses' station on the surgical floor.
She turned around, elegantly lifting an eyebrow as she watched him come closer. "I didn't know that we were supposed to meet?"
"We weren't," he said simply trying to catch his breath.
They had seen each other almost every day since Christmas. She had gone over to his apartment on the 26th, and they had continued with her old nanny's British holiday traditions, although Mark had put his foot down when she had wanted to watch Little Lord Fauntleroy a second time. Apparently once was about all he could take per year, at which point she had started to make up all kind of exotic nannies to force him to him to watch horribly kitschy holiday movies from around the world. Unfortunately, by the time he'd caught on, they had already gotten Annie hooked on it so that she couldn't back out anymore when the princesses and the snow became too much even for her Christmas spirits. He'd teased her mercilessly all throughout the New Year, but they'd had fun making snarky comments about happy endings and hypothetical divorce rates in Middle Ages-inspired fairy tale lands above Annie's head. Once the holidays were over, they had become so used to their new routines that it was just about spending time together: an hour on the ice-rink in the Park here, an afternoon in the museum there, lunch at the hospital cafeteria throughout. She had even stayed over at his apartment once or twice, which she hadn't done since that night in October after she'd taken Annie shopping for the first time.
"So, what's up?" Addison asked, placing a calming hand on his forearm.
"I just got a call from a friend down in L.A. They have a car crash victim with third degree burns who needs a complete facial reconstruction and some skin grafts for the rest of her body. She's seventeen, and because of the pro-bono work I've been doing with children up here, Nolan thought I might be able to help them out. Their plastic surgeon doesn't think that her face can be completely reconstructed but I'd like to try," Mark said.
Addie nodded. "That sounds like a great opportunity for you, Mark!" she encouraged. "I mean, I'm sorry for the girl that she has to go through this, but if anybody can help her, it's you."
"Thank you, Addie," he replied sincerely. "That honestly means a lot to me." He paused for a second. "That's not what I wanted to ask you, though, or it's only part of it. I don't think I can take Annie down to California with me. I don't know if they even have a hospital daycare down there, but I would be in the OR for hours every day for three days, and I'm just not comfortable pulling her from everything she knows here to essentially give her to strangers for a week. So, I guess what I'm trying to ask is, would you take her for a couple of days?"
"I – of course, Mark. If you think she'd be comfortable staying with Derek and me for the week, I will of course take her. When do you have to fly out?" she asked.
"There's a red-eye flight out to L.A. at nine this evening. The plan was that I go up to daycare and explain the situation to Annie now, then you can pick her up when you leave tonight and I go home and pack, and then go to the airport," Mark answered, looking at his watch. "It's shortly after five right now, so that should be manageable."
Addison nodded. "Do you think you could give me ten minutes until you go up there? I'm done with my surgeries for the day, so I would have just finished some files in my office, but I can take them home with me and just do them when Annie sleeps. Then we can just take her home and I'll take care of her while you pack your stuff."
"Sure," he nodded. "Thank you so much, Addie, I truly appreciate it," he said, kissing her cheek in gratitude.
The redhead smiled at him before she hurried over to her office, reappearing again several moments later with her coat, her purse, and a canvas bag filled to brim with paperwork. "Let's go?" she asked.
Mark nodded, putting a gentle hand on the small of her back and directing her over to the elevators. They rode up to the top floor in silence, each lost in their own thoughts until the doors opening brought them back to reality. They entered the daycare center together, with Mark going over to the main desk to inform them of his travel plans and the arrangements while Addison went in search of his daughter. She found the toddler at the coloring table, producing colorful scribbles with some kind of a glitter marker.
"Hi baby," she greeted softly, trying not to startle the toddler.
Annie looked up sharply, a broad grin taking over her features as she saw the redhead. "Aunt Addie!" she shrieked happily, bounding out of her chair and running over to the woman, hugging her excitedly.
"What are you drawing?" Addison asked, standing up with the little girl in her arms and carrying her back to her workstation.
"It's me, and you, and Daddy at the place with the pictures. We goed last week?" Annie explained.
"Oh, MoMA? You mean when we went to the museum?" she asked to which the toddler nodded vigorously. "It's beautiful, honey."
"Hey, are you two ready to go?" Mark asked as he came up to them, carrying Annie's little coat, her shoes, and her backpack.
"Hi Daddy," Annie greeted sweetly as she held out her arms to have him help her with her things, getting her ready within minutes.
"I told them that you'd be by the rest of the week to drop her off and pick her up," he informed Addison as he took one of Annie's hand, the other being held by the redhead. She nodded, smiling at him as she let Annie fill the space between them with excited chatter about her day as they piled into the elevator and then into the back of a cab to go to the brownstone first.
"Are you sure you want to stay at the apartment with her?" Mark asked as they followed Addison into her bedroom.
"I think it's way easier for me to just grab some clothes and toiletries for a few days than to pack up all the toys, numerous outfits, and everything else that Annie will undoubtedly need throughout the week," Addie answered, her voice muffled as she stepped into her walk-in closet.
"And you're sure Derek will be alright with you effectively living in my apartment for a week?" he questioned hesitantly.
She laughed. "Mark, don't be ridiculous. It's just for four days. Also, I'll just be in your apartment, alone except for Annie. It's not as if I was using this to shack up with my imaginary affair for a week. And as Derek's never home anyways, I don't see the big difference between me sleeping alone in the brownstone and me sleeping alone in your apartment." She paused a little. "Don't worry, though, I will call him and let him know, I honestly don't think he'll mind, though. I don't even think he'll care at this point."
"Addie," he sighed a little.
"I'm sorry, Mark, I don't want to be so negative," she just sounded sad. "I just – sometimes I wonder, you know," she said as she came out of her closet again, carrying a leather weekender bag with her. "I'm a good-looking, intelligent – maybe even brilliant – ivy-educated, double-board certified surgeon, so why doesn't my husband see that?"
"Oh, Addie," he sighed again, hugging her to his chest as he caressed her back, trying to ignore the tears he could feel her crying against his shoulder. "Derek only went to Bowdoin for college, which might be good enough for brain surgery but obviously not for appreciating his wife," he joked, trying to cheer her up a least a little.
She laughed; the sound still half choked by tears as she hugged him back. "Thank you, Mark. You don't know how much I appreciate you, you know? You never once blow me off, you let me into your daughter's life, you –"
"Stop it, Addie," Mark interrupted her before her list could get too long. "You're not a charity case. Like you said, you're a brilliant surgeon, and a pretty hot one at that, so it's no hardship for me to go out with you and Annie and have everybody else just assume about us what they want to assume."
She looked at him then, really looked at him, blinking the tears away from her lashes and getting lost in his eyes. She exhaled slowly, feeling him doing the same as his breath caressed her lips. She could feel herself slowly rising to her tiptoes, getting closer to his face, her blood rushing in her ears.
"Daddy?"
Addison jumped back as if she'd gotten burned when they heard Annie come back into the bedroom. She hadn't even realized that the toddler had left before. She felt the awkwardness rushing on but then Mark squeezed her hand, letting her know that it wasn't just her, and the weirdness surrounding them dissipated almost immediately.
"Yes, princess?" he called.
"We go home now? I'm hungry," the toddler asked impatiently.
"Sure, sweetheart. You've got everything you need, Addie?" he wanted to know.
The redhead nodded, grabbing a little pouch from the ensuite bathroom that she added to the clothes in her weekender bag, then she followed them down the stairs and out of the house again. They spent the cab ride to his apartment building discussing logistics, Annie resting against her, her little eyes periodically dropping shut.
"I've got her," she whispered to Mark as they arrived, indicating for him to grab her bag. She followed him through the lobby to the elevator, nodding to his doorman and receiving a friendly smile in return. Sometimes she wondered what the man might make of their situation with how often he saw her coming to Mark's apartment without her husband. She almost had to laugh a little at that. They had to seem very weird any outsiders.
When they entered his apartment, she laid Annie down on the couch, covering her with a blanket. "Maybe you should pack first, and I can prepare dinner for Annie and myself, and then you can tell her goodbye and we can distract her with food when you have to go."
He nodded. "Good idea, Red." He walked towards the back of his apartment, turning once to look at his daughter, his heart already feeling heavy at the thought of leaving her alone, even in Addie's more than capable hands. When he came back into the living area a little later, Addison was just throwing some macaroni into boiling water and melting cheese for cheese sauce to go with it.
"Look at that, you can cook," he teased her gently.
She laughed, bumping her hip into his. "It's just the turkey that's giving me trouble, the rest is just fine. And I still maintain that's only because of a lack of practice." She stirred her sauce and satisfied with the outcome, turned off the flame. "You want to wake her now?" she asked.
"Not really," he answered, "but I don't really have a choice if I want to say goodbye and make it to JFK on time." He walked over to the couch, lightly caressing Annie's hair. "Hey sweetheart, wake up for daddy, please."
Annie rubbed her eyes a little, focusing on her father.
"Daddy has to go help another girl a little older than you for a little while. I'm going to be all the way over in California, but I'm going to be back here before you know it, alright?" He kissed her forehead a little, hugging her little form tightly to him. "Daddy is going to miss you so much, sweetheart, but I'll call you every day. And I asked Auntie Addie to stay with you until I come back, so she'll be here for you."
Annie nodded bravely, her lower lip trembling a bit.
"Don't cry, baby," Addison said, sitting down on the couch next to her, pressing a kiss to her hair. "Daddy is only going to be gone for four days, and then you and I will go to the airport and pick him up again, and he's going to be here with you again the whole time."
The toddler looked back to her father, eying him inquisitively.
"Aunt Addie is right, honey. I'll be back before you know it, and you two girls will have so much fun together." He paused, catching Addison's encouraging gaze. "Alright, baby, can you give me a hug?"
Annie threw herself into his waiting arms, holding on tight until Mark reluctantly loosened his grip and handed her over to Addison. The redhead stood up, settling the little girl on her hip and following Mark to the door where he pressed a final kiss to each of their cheeks. "I'll see you Friday, okay?"
Addison nodded, caressing Annie's back. "Can you wave bye to Daddy for me, honey?" Annie nodded, waving a little with Addie until the doors to the elevator opened and Mark disappeared from their line of vision.
"Alright. Are you still hungry, baby?" Addison asked, trying to take her mind of Mark as soon as possible. They had an uneventful dinner of mac and cheese and watched some cartoons whilst Addison tried to call Derek, all her calls going to voicemail.
She sighed, looking at her watch; it was time to get Annie ready for bed. Addison was just settling into Mark's bed several hours later, still not having been able to reach Derek, when she heard little footsteps in the hallway.
"Aunt Addie?" Annie whispered, hiccupping slightly as if she had been crying.
"Oh, honey," the redhead answered as she took in the toddler's reddened eyes. "Do you want to sleep in here with me, just for tonight?"
Annie nodded, crawling under the comforter and snuggling up to Addison, grabbing a fistful of her pajama top. Addie hummed the melody to some old eighties-ballad, hoping to calm the little girl down as she slowly caressed her hair. Not much later, she had lulled both of them into an exhausted sleep.
**\\*/ *** \\*/**
On Thursday morning she woke up in her own bed in the brownstone, the scent of freshly brewed coffee reaching her nostrils. She had spent the past two nights with Annie in her house since the toddler had refused to go back to her father's apartment when Mark wasn't there. The coffee, however, was certainly new as she hadn't seen Derek at all on either Tuesday or Wednesday.
She turned onto her back, stretching with a yawn as she noticed the small body next to hers. Right, she remembered, Annie had had a bad dream the night before, and she'd let the girl cuddle up to her again instead of making her go back to a strange guest room that was in no way kid friendly.
Addison pried Annie's little fingers off her pajama top and carefully got out of the bed, trying not to jostle the toddler too much. She breathed a sigh of relief when Annie was still sleeping as she went into the bathroom to get ready for the day. Showered and dressed, she stepped out of her ensuite a little while later, deciding to let the little girl drowse a few minutes longer whilst she talked to her husband.
"Good morning," she greeted Derek after she had descended the stairs, walking into the kitchen area and straight to the coffee machine. After taking a sip of the dark brew she went over to the breakfast bar, kissing his cheek softly.
He looked up at her, giving her a distracted smile. "So, we are a day and night care center now?" he asked with a brief laugh.
"What do you mean?" she asked as she sat down opposite to him. She let her gaze wander over the title page of the Times for a second but didn't find anything immediately important to her.
Derek lifted an eyebrow, giving her a 'duh' look. "Mark's daughter staying over and sleeping in our bed when I came home?" he replied, picking up on his previous question.
Addison took another sip of her coffee before she answered. "I didn't know you'd be coming home, otherwise I would have brought her back to the guest room again when she came to our room because of her nightmare. She slept there the night before, but she doesn't seem to like it too much."
"What do you mean, she slept there the night before?" he questioned. "How long has she been staying here? And where the hell is Mark that he passed off caring for his daughter to you?"
Addison looked at him a little surprised. She would have at least thought that he'd realize his best friend wasn't at the hospital this week, and maybe make some inquiries to find out why, but apparently, she'd been wrong about that. Suddenly she wondered if their friendship was deteriorating at the same speed as her marriage. The thought made her even sadder for Mark than for Derek. She cleared her throat a little awkwardly as she realized she'd been silent for a few beats too long.
"Mark has been in L.A. for the past three days," she explained. "He flew out there for a special burn case with a face reconstruction and skin grafts on a seventeen-year-old, probably because of his experience with young burn victims. Anyway, I have been looking after Annie since Monday evening. We have been here for the past two nights, after we spent the first night at Mark's, but she missed him too much, so I decided to turn this into a mini vacation for her. You know, like sleeping somewhere else, big breakfasts, trips to the Park and the cinema after daycare and such."
Derek's face clouded over; he didn't even take in the end of her answer. "You stayed over at Mark's? What the hell, Addie?"
"He wasn't even there, Derek! We just thought it would be easier for me to pack a bag and go over there than for Annie to pack all her things –" she started to explain, getting a little angry now herself at his accusations.
"'We' as in you and Mark? You make joint decisions for his daughter now?" He asked sarcastically.
Addie sighed, standing up from her chair. "Derek, please don't blow this out of proportion. I even tried to call you Monday night to let you know –"
He interrupted her, his voice patronizing. "Yeah, from Mark's bed."
"Jesus Christ, Derek, I was sleeping there alone!" she finally blew up. "Mark was on a freaking red-eye to the other side of the country!"
"Did you wear his shirts to bed too, as you do with mine? Or are those still special husband-privileges?" he continued on, his voice getting progressively louder, his speech colored by sarcasm.
"Aunt Addie?" they were suddenly interrupted before she could make an angry retort. She hurried around the kitchen counter, scooping up Annie and settling her in her arms.
"Good morning, honey," she said, kissing the top of her head softly.
Derek sent his wife a foul look as he brushed them. "Never mind, Addison, I have to go to the hospital anyways. Give Mark my best when you see him," he added aggressively before he went into the den and then out of the house.
She took a steadying breath. How had this been blown so out of proportion so quickly?
**\\*/ *** \\*/**
They were sitting in the arrival hall of Terminal 7 at JFK, waiting for Mark's flight to get in. Apparently there had been turbulences somewhere across the Rockies, causing his flight to be delayed on ground for several hours, which sadly she hadn't had the time to check when she'd rushed out of the hospital way too late for his original arrival time. Her last surgery for the day had taken a turn for the worse when they'd found one bleeder after the other in the surgical field and she'd only just managed to save a young woman's ovaries.
She sighed tiredly. Annie was drowsing on her lap, her teddy bear clutched in her hand under a cheap airline blanket. Addison had contemplated trying to get them lounge access somewhere – her honors status with almost all major airlines should have given them their pick of amenities – but Annie seemed comfortable enough, and she didn't want to move the three-year-old if not absolutely necessary.
The redhead looked at her watch again. It was almost half past ten, and the hall was slowly filling up with more people as they got closer to the updated arrival time for the United flight from LAX. She contemplated calling Derek to tell him that she'd be home late, but she doubted he was even out of the hospital yet. She hadn't seen him since the morning before when he'd figuratively blown up in her face after finding out she'd slept in Mark's apartment. She wondered what he would say if he discovered that it hadn't been the first time she'd done that – not that she made a habit out of it, but still – but that it had been the first time she'd done it when Mark wasn't there.
It was good to see that he at least still cared enough to argue with her, even when the argument was beside the point. At the very least it was beside the point now, after their almost kiss in her bedroom on Monday that had opened a whole new Pandora's box for her – the one that asked her, what if her husband didn't care about her but someone else – Mark – did?
Addison shook her head. She couldn't think about this. Yes, there were instances when their eyes met a little too intensely, or her lips lingered a little too long when she kissed his cheek, or his embrace was a little too tight when he buried his face in her hair, but he was Mark, and he would ultimately break her heart.
"Jack-Jack," Annie mumbled, burrowing her face in the crook of Addison's neck. The woman had to laugh a little, pressing a kiss to the toddler's head. They had watched The Incredibles the day before after she'd gotten out of work, and Annie had been instantly jealous of the superhero-infant who accompanied his family in their fight against evil.
"We don't need any Jack-Jacks," Addie murmured lowly to the sleeping child, "you're a superhero all on your own. You make your daddy so happy, and you make me so happy, too."
An announcement over the airport intercom system ripped her out of their little bubble, declaring that Mark's flight had finally landed. "Alright, baby, let's go to the gate to see your daddy," she whispered as she got up, still trying to keep Annie asleep.
The toddler stirred a little but let Addie wrap her in the blanket a little more tightly as they made their way down the hall where a small crowd had already gathered. They didn't have to wait long before she could see Mark's broad-shouldered form come down the hallway. She waved at him as best as possible, watching as a smile spread over his features as he spotted them.
"Hey," she greeted lowly as he came to a stop in front of them.
"Hey," he greeted back in the same tone, hugging both of them and resting his chin on top of Addison's head for a moment, just breathing them in before he took his daughter from her. She reached for his small carry-on suitcase as he put his hand on the small of her back to steer them out of the airport.
"How did the surgeries go?" Addison asked.
"Pretty good, if I say so myself," Mark said. "It was hard, especially her face, but if their plastic guy doesn't mess up, she'll look pretty normal, which I guess is all she and her parents wanted."
"That's good. I knew you could prove that California wannabe-plastic surgeon wrong," she joked a little.
They were silent for a couple of beats before he turned to her again.
"I missed her so much," he admitted, sounding almost sheepish when he motioned to Annie. "It really shouldn't surprise me much with how much I love her, but it really took me off guard." He chuckled lowly.
She grinned up at him. "She missed you, too, you know. I mean you were so good about calling, but she was really looking forward to hearing your voice all day long." She shrugged. "And to be perfectly honest, I'm sure I'm going to miss her over the next few days."
"Ah, Red, you know you can come by anytime, right?" he asked as he hailed them a taxi at the entrance to the terminal. He opened the door for her, then he handed her Annie whilst he stored his luggage in the trunk of the car.
"Where to?" the cabbie asked, smiling at them in the rearview mirror. Mark was about to give him his address, but she stopped him, quickly naming the address to the brownstone instead.
"You know that we don't have to pick up her stuff tonight, right?" Mark asked.
She nodded.
"And that I wouldn't have minded sleeping on the couch again if you wanted to spend a little more time with her?" he questioned further.
She nodded again.
"Addie, what is going on?" he asked her outright.
She sighed, caressing Annie's hair a little to calm herself down. "I had a fight yesterday, with Derek. He found Annie in our bed when he came home Wednesday night, and he wanted to know why she was with me," she stopped.
"So?" Mark asked, frowning a little. Derek loved his nieces and nephews, and he enjoyed watching Addison with them, so he didn't see how his daughter would be any different.
"So, one thing led to another, and somehow I let it slip that I'd slept in your apartment on Monday, and he flipped out over that, so I don't think it would be a good idea for me to stay over tonight," she replied, keeping her tone as even as she could.
Mark looked at her perplexed. "I – I mean he knows I wasn't even there, right? You were just looking after Annie!" he paused for a moment. "Does he know that you've stayed over before?"
Addison shook her head. "And I don't think it would be a good idea to tell him now. I just – I don't think he even noticed that I didn't come home three times in the two weeks since New Year, so what is that telling me?" She exhaled lowly. "Anyways, I think he might be angry at you, and I don't want that. Our marital problems shouldn't color your friendship with him."
"Addie, you know I can set him straight about that, right? I don't want you to take any heat for me if you don't have to," he said.
Addison shrugged. "That's sweet of you, but I don't even know what I want for myself right now, so please, don't get into any trouble on my behalf."
Mark looked at her inquisitively, trying to figure out what she wasn't telling him until finally he nodded. She would tell him when she was ready, until then he would have to be patient.
They spent the rest of the ride back to the brownstone in companionable silence, mostly watching Annie sleep. When they pulled up in front of her house, Mark directed the driver to wait a second as he took Annie from Addie and placed her on the middle seat before he got out and went around the car quickly, opening the door on her side for Addison.
"What did I do to deserve that?" she asked jokingly.
He shrugged. "Just being you. And maybe I want Annie to expect men doing this for her, because she deserves it for just being her."
"Annie's asleep," she pointed out softly. He only smiled in response before he kissed her check lightly.
"Take care, Addie, and as I said, come by anytime, we'd be glad to have you."
She nodded, touching his hand briefly and casting a last glance at Annie's sleeping form before she went up the stairs into the empty brownstone, watching the cab drive away.
**\\*/ *** \\*/**
Derek wasn't there when she woke up the next morning, and whilst his absence hurt, she thought she felt Annie's absence far more keenly as some kind of hollow sensation that had settled deep in her heart. Addison stumbled into her ensuite bathroom, cursing the hospital plan that had her on call for the entire weekend and required her presence at the hospital today. She was standing under the hot spray of the shower when she got the perfect idea to make her day a little better.
She got dressed, did her hair and make-up, and grabbed her purse, then she was out of the door and en route to her favorite coffee shop. She left shortly after with a tray of cappuccino and juju in her hand, hailing a cab that brought her to Mark's apartment, hoping she wasn't too late yet.
His doorman waved her through with a friendly smile as she went over to the elevators, her red hair trailing behind her. She exhaled deeply as she stood in front of his door, giving herself a couple of moments before she actually knocked on the door.
"Addie?" he asked when he opened the door.
"Hey Mark," she answered, suddenly embarrassed at having appeared at his apartment early in the morning on Saturday. She steeled herself, accepting that she might make a fool out of herself. "You have to go to the hospital today, right?"
Mark nodded, holding the door open a little wider for her to come into the apartment. She offered the cappuccino to him which he took gratefully. "So," he asked as it became clear after a few seconds that she wouldn't continue on her. "What brings you here?"
"Could I take Annie to daycare with you?" she asked quickly before her courage left her. "I just – I woke up this morning and I realized I miss her, so can I just kind of join you this morning?"
He smiled. "Of course. I told you you're welcome here anytime. You have perfect timing, too, we were just on our way out the door. Annie," he called then.
"Aunt Addie!" the little girl exclaimed joyfully as she saw her standing in the entrance way.
The redhead smiled, kneeling down to properly hug the toddler. "Hi baby. Are you ready for daycare?"
Annie nodded enthusiastically as Addison helped her first into her shoes and then into her coat as Mark fetched her backpack for her. When they left his apartment, each of them holding on to one of Annie's hands, she couldn't help but realize that the hollow feeling from earlier this morning was gone, replaced by something that might be love. A feeling that to her utter surprise, absolute horror, and very slight pleasure seemed not only to include Annie, but her father, too.
Please let me know what you think! Any and all reviews are greatly appreciated!