Disclaimer: You all know I don't own these character or the show.

This chapter is going to be LONG, because it covers a pretty big scene. So yeah, it's long.

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Derek's POV:

I reached the hospital in record time and ran Meredith to the ER. Falling down the stairs usually never meant anything too serious, but Meredith was nervous and now what I had the opportunity again, I wanted to take care of her. That meant rushing her to the daughter I didn't know existed, and possibly to a hidden man as well, but right now she needed me. Right now, that was enough.

Reaching the room, Meredith rushed to a little girl sitting on a gurney. Imet the little girl's eyes and felt my heart stopped. I was looking at Meredith's eyes on a small tiny body. The entire face was a mirror image of Mer's, except for the hair, dark and curly, spilling uncontrolled out of her pony tail. The girl's eyes were full of tears and her lips trembled. Maybe it was the resemblance to Meredith but something made me want to sweep the girl into his arms and tell her everything was going to be all right.

"Mommy!" the girl cried as she saw Meredith enter.

"Em!" Meredith said, feeling so much better at seeing her. "Are you okay, honey?"

"I fell down the stairs," Em said through her tears, tearing at Derek's heart strings. "I hurt my arm, and my head hurts a little."

A nurse walked in behind them. "Her arm is broken and it seems she may have a concussion. She's going to need to get a cast, and we'd like to examine her head better, " the nurse paused, "Dr. Shepherd?" the nurse said to me, sounding a little confused.

"Emily's mother is an old friend of mine," I explained, not knowing how else to sum it up. "I'll check her head out," I finished approaching the table.

She cried harder as she saw me approach. "Honey, don't cry. I'm a friend of your mom's." I said, shooting a look over my shoulder hoping Meredith could help me out. She looked so scared, and so very alone. And there was something in her eyes beyond the fear, beyond worry. I wasn't quite sure what it was, but it made me feel like I wanted to cry.

"Emily, it's okay. This is my friend Derek, I know you've never met him before but he is a friend. He just wants to make sure you're okay, and then we'll get a cast on you and we can go home." Listening to Meredith talk to her daughter made his heart melt a little, it made him realize that he was right about her all along. She was an amazing mother.

The nurse started talking to Meredith again. "Before we take her to get the cast we need a little background information. Mother's name?"

I heard Meredith sigh, the normally probably calming her nerves. "Meredith Grey," she answered.

"Father's name?" my heart cringed. I didn't want to know, I did not have any interest in knowing exactly who she had moved on with, even if it meant nothing, I didn't want to think about it. I shone the flashlight in Emily's eyes and waited silently for her answer.

It didn't come.

"Father's name?" the nurse asked again.

"I don't have a daddy," Emily answered as I released her head, feeling confident everything was fine with her. "It's always been just me and Mommy. And she's the best mommy ever, so that's okay." Something inside me clicked when I heard that statement.

Meredith drew in a sharp breath, and I spun my eyes to her. That look, the one I couldn't find a word to describe, it seemed stronger now. I looked back at Emily. "Honey, how old are you?" I asked her, hoping it sounded like a casual question.

"I'm 4 years and 10 months," Emily answered proudly, temporarily distracted from her pain.

This time I swore that I heard Meredith give out a little gasp. And I remembered that night, about a month before she disappeared from my life. That night of the prom, how we had snuck away from my wife and her boyfriend and had finally given in to our feelings on the exam table. I remembered that she had avoided me for a month after, finally leaving without a word of goodbye. And I remembered the conversation I had had with Cristina soon after, finding out that I had been wrong, that she had never slept with the vet.

I gazed at Emily, the dark curls so much like my own. I looked at the stubborn way she held her head, recognizing it from my own childhood pictures. I thought of how I had felt connected to her before even exchanging a word. With my heart racing I turned to look at Meredith. The answer was all over her face.

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Grey," the nurse interrupted their silent conversation, "I need to know the father's name."

I cleared my throat. "It's me," I said, hearing the shock in my voice. "Derek Shepherd. The father is Derek Shepherd," I finished feeling tears running down my face. With that I got up and left the room.

I've got so much honey the bees envy me

I've got a sweeter song

Than the birds in the trees

I guess you'll say

what can make me feel this way

My girl, I'm talking about my girl

Meredith's POV:

The minute that call came from the hospital I stopped thinking. My daughter was hurt. And my car was still at the cemetery, I hadn't even thought about it when Derek had offered to drive me home. But now I needed a ride, and Derek was there, and being McDreamy. So I asked, not even thinking of the implications. I was too worried. And when he offered to examine Emily's head, well he is the best neurosurgeon in the area, I couldn't turn that down. Not with how worried I was. If only I had stopped to think.

That damn hair. The hair that I loved so much, that made my daughter feel like a princess. That every time I brushed it my heart felt tighter thinking of who she had inherited all the dark curls from.

And now I watched Derek's retreating back, not knowing how to fix things, feeling all alone again.

"Mommy?" my daughter interrupted my thoughts. "My arm really hurts."

I smile a side smile at her, wondering if she realize who the man had run away was. "I know, honey, " I said, thinking how funny it was that Derek had chosen the same pet name for her. "Let's go get that taken care of. You can get a coloured cast, and then I'll take you home to meet all my friends."

"Okay," she said still sounding upset. "Mommy, was that my daddy?"

I tried to remember to breath. "Can we talk about that later, Princess Emily? Right now, I just want to get you taken care of."

"Okay," Emily said. She decided she wanted a red cast and soon later we were ready to go. That's when I realized that our ride had abandoned us. So I made a quick call to the number I had called hundreds of times before, but hadn't used in over five years. Soon later George came and picked us up.

"So what happened to Derek?" Cristina asked after all the introductions had been made, and Izzie had settled in to make cookies with Emily. "Get called away on a case?"

"No, no, he just left us."

"Why would he do that?" Izzie asked. Her and Derek had gotten close since Meredith had left, and Izzie knew how badly Derek had been hurting and how badly he wanted Meredith back. How badly he had missed her. She couldn't figure out why he would of left her after all that.

"Because he figured out that Emily was his." I said in a flat voice.

"What?" everyone shouted back at me in unison,

"Emily Isabelle Shepherd. I even gave her her daddy's last name. And the middle name is after you Izzie, she was conceived the night your world fell apart, so it just seemed appropriate."

"Oh, Mer. Thanks," Izzie said giving Emily a kiss on the head.

"She does have McDreamy's hair, now that you mention it." Cristina pointed out.

"Don't I know it," I responded with a small laugh.

"She looks more like you though," George said, trying to be helpful. I loved him all the more for it.

"Thanks George," I said giving him a small hug and a kiss on the cheek. I realized I hadn't seen Callie around and wondered what had happened there.

"You're going to have to talk to Shepherd sometime," Cristina pointed out.

"I know. I know." I responded, dreading the moment when that would happen.

With that I heard a knock on the door, and glancing at the others headed in that direction. I wanted to think it was Burke, coming back with the ingredients for supper he had gone to pick up, but he wouldn't have knocked. I had a feeling that confrontation was going to come sooner than I wanted.

Sure enough, the too familiar dark head was standing on the other side of the door. I looked through the glass. His eyes were rimmed with red, his hair looked disheveled. And he looked scared and confused. I felt my heart strings tug. Years ago, this man had broken my heart and in one night gave it back to me. And I had ran afraid to admit the truth, that I loved him and was pregnant with his child. I had ran to avoid a confrontation.

I guess avoidance only last for so long, I bitterly thought as I opened the door.

"Mer," he started using my pet name of years gone by, that had to be a good sign. "We need to talk."

Please please please review. You know it's what McDreamy would do. And it's what he would want you to do. Right now I have a feeling this is going to be a long one, and will eventually lead to some wonderful Mer/Der scenes so I really would like to know what people think. I'm hoping to update later tonight, and if not tonight on Wednesday (tomorrow I'm spending the day with the boyfriend so no living in my imaginary GA world)