People were talking people were moving, people were laughing Meredith wasn't listening or engaging in any of it she was watching the sun slowly set and wondering how Noah was doing at his first sleepover. Meredith had come for the annual seattle grace hospital dinner an event once a year that Meredith found to be terribly dull. Meredith enjoyed going out with friends and socialising in a small group of friends instead of being part of a large group of people talking loudly in one small space. This combined with the high pitched music made it near impossible for Meredith to talk with anyone without straining to hear what they were saying. The icing on the cake was that her boss chief webber requested every year that Meredith stand next to him during the chief's presentation and speech to the rest of the hospital so in the chief's words he could show off an example of a great surgeon to the other teams, it made Meredith wish the floor would swallow her whole. Meredith looked at the beach watching the waves crash on to the sand and felt her heart rise an octave as she saw with bright eyes a familiar pair walking along the beach. Meredith smiled before she hurried out of the restaurant and made her way down the stairs and on to the sand below.
Ally picked up another shell and rushed to grab hold of Derek's hand, "daddy I found another one."
"Ally" Derek said gently as he looked at the dozen or so shells in his palms, "my hands aren't big enough to pick up every shell on the beach you know."
"Its okay daddy i'll carry some."
"Where are all the sea creatures going to live if we pick up every shell?"
"Daddy" Ally grabbed his hands with a concerned look.
"Ally" Derek whispered, "its alright we can still have some shells and the sea creatures will still have homes just-"
"Derek" a voice called out.
Derek turned around to see Meredith running towards her, "hi... Meredith."
"Hi" Meredith said as she clutched her chest and took a deep breath she stood up and smiled at Ally, "hi Ally."
Ally stared at Meredith with an open mouth before she turned around and ran behind a rock. Meredith chuckled at Derek, "well that was unexpected."
"Ah" Derek muttered as he tried to think of a good reason for the oddness of her daughter's behaviour, "she's just yeah she's..."
"Can't explain" Meredith finished with a smile.
"No funny enough I can't" Derek looked at Meredith wearing a beautiful blue dress and he felt a odd weakness in the knees, "I well you look nice."
"There's a work dinner at the restaurant over there."
Derek looked up at one of the most expensive restaurants in Seattle, "you mds have good taste."
"The music is awfully loud but everything else is nice, have you ever been there I mean" Meredith quickly said as she hitched her smile back on her face, "have you found any interesting shells."
"Quite a few" Derek opened his palms and Meredith stared at several different shells, "Ally's got a good eye for detail."
"Wow" Meredith looked at the rock, "you found some good stones Ally."
Ally poked her head up and nodded before she croached back down and Derek gently chuckled, "how's Noah doing?"
"He's having a good night with his new friends, i'm surprised Ally isn't with them."
"Ally wanted to have a daddy daughter night and I do enjoy it more than watching the telly."
Meredith rolled her necklace between her fingers, "it sound much nicer than what I have to do, the chief wants me to stand next to him and be on display while he gives a speech."
"On display" Derek said, "has he got a big glass box for you to crawl into."
Meredith chuckled, "I wish I didn't have to do it."
Derek grinned softly, "you don't have to do it Meredith this isn't work you can stay with us and look for shells."
Meredith felt a happy feeling hearing Derek's proposal and she felt herself wanting to say yes, "I."
"Come on you know you want to."
"Hey" Meredith frowned as she suddenly felt a arm wrap around her waist and she looked to see Alex standing beside her wearing a sleazy grin, "Alex what."
"We got to get back to the party beautiful" Alex said softly in her ear, "there's so much going on and you need to be on stage in five mins."
"Alex" Meredith angrily pulled Alex's arm away from her backside, "can't you see i'm having a conversation here."
"What with him" Alex nodded in Derek's direction, "he's just after your money."
Derek coughed quietly and looked at Alex with calm eyes, "you must be one of Meredith's friends."
"We probably got different definitions of friend mate."
"Alex" Meredith hissed.
"The cheif is asking for you he's looking to present you with something flash, come to think of it so am I."
Meredith's heart sank into her naval and she stared with apologetic sad eyes at her friend, "Derek, i'm sorry I need to go."
"Yeah" Derek replied, "don't worry I understand."
Meredith watched a little girl running towards her, "bye Ally."
"Where are you going?" Ally said.
"Well" Alex said as he smiled at Ally though it looked more like a leer to Derek, "we've got to get some food and you and your daddy need to find some food you could try over there I saw a nice half eaten hamburger in the bin."
"Alex that's enough" Meredith said with anger.
"Alright" Alex muttered, "i'll wait over there."
Meredith watched Alex walking away before she bent down and smiled at Ally, "I need to go and do something very boring when I would rather be hanging out here with you and your daddy."
Ally took Meredith's hands in he own, "than stay here."
"Its one of those things that grownups have to do."
"Oh right" Ally sighed, "a grownup thing."
"I'll see you soon honey" Meredith stood up and looked at Derek one last time for tonight, "goodnight."
"Goodnight" Derek said,
Meredith smiled and started to walk away she had barely gotten twenty meters when Alex started to walk beside her and put his arm around her shoulders she brushed it off and looked at him in disgust, "don't talk to me."
"Oh" Alex said with a smirk, "what's the matter."
"Do you always treat people like that?"
"No I just think being nice and helping people who refuse to help themselves is a waste of time and money."
Meredith arrived at the restaurant and looked around to see the same scenario that she had left she glared at Alex, "you were lying there are no speeches yet."
"Well I had to get you away from the gardener thought he might be carrying a bucket full of manure."
"Alex" Meredith stared at the man, "do you think i'm interested in you?"
"Well" Alex said with a smug expression, "your a sexy woman and i'm me so why wouldn't you be interested."
"Don't even go there" Meredith whispered, "we're work colleagues nothing more."
"Are you saying you would choose the homeless gardener over me."
"I don't care about his bank account and I would choose a giant cane toad over you Alex" Meredith felt a grim satisfaction seeing the hidden fury in Alex's eyes and she walked away towards Callie and Arizona.
Than night Cristina was vacuuming the living room carpet when she heard the door open and watched Meredith coming in to the house groaning and huffing, "well you came home early."
Meredith threw her purse into a cupboard, "if I had to listen to one more toast of how amazing our hospital is without anyone mixing it up with what we could do to make it better or at least throw in a joke than I would be screaming."
"Meredith" Cristina put down the vacuum and went to sit by the kitchen bench, "are you really that bothered about it."
"I just" Meredith muttered as thoughts of a certain man kept spinning around in her mind.
"You want to get it out in the open."
Meredith sat on a stool and put her head in her palms, "there's someone on my mind."
"Ah" Cristina said with a twinkle in her eye, "I bet I know who it is."
"Is it really that obvious?"
"Well lets see so far you helped him when he was dehydrated at work, he helped your son when he was lost in the shopping mall, you've had dinner with him at his house, he catched you when you fell off the play equipment at his daughter's birthday party and every time I see you together you have a look that suggests I love being close to you."
Meredith felt like someone had just tipped a bucket of ice down her back, "how do you know all these things that have happened?"
"The kids" Cristina said simply, "they tell me everything."
"They remember all these things?"
"They like telling me all these stories and I like hearing them myself it makes my working day that much more interesting."
"Well" Meredith said softly, "I haven't felt this way since..."
"Since Finn" Cristina finished.
Meredith nodded as emotions of longing filled her heart, "I feel."
"Meredith" Cristina said with a emphatic smile, "just ask yourself would Finn want you to move on and be happy?"
Meredith thought of her memories from five years ago of everything Finn had ever said to her and she opened her eyes, "I think he would."
"And what about Derek does he make you feel happy"
"He does, Derek makes me feel listened to he's someone I feel like I can talk to about anything serious while still having a laugh about things. He's so nice and great with kids and i'm so curious to find out what he would be like to be in a relationship with, where it could go."
"Well your at least curious the question is would you want to pursure it."
"I do" Meredith said, "but I don't think he does."
Cristina sniggered, "what do you mean of course he wants to Meredith, you know I think he's just intimidated by your professional success."
"Well this professional success is a murder of my personal life, first it impacted on my ability to be a mother to my child the only people who want to be with me are sleazy arseholes and its scaring the nice people away."
"Your relationship with Noah is something you have addressed and you can do the same thing with Derek."
"Cristina" Meredith sighed, "what would I say tell him not to worry about anything and just ask me out to coffee."
"You can ask to talk" Cristina replied with a soft facial expression, "and than you can tell each other how you feel and see where it goes."
Meredith nodded as she imagined it playing out, "and if it doesn't go anywhere new i'll just have to accept our friendship for what it is."
"You don't know that Meredith so just wait until you've had the talk."
"Your very right."
"Do you think the kids yours and Derek's would be okay?"
Meredith scrunched her face as she thought about it, "Noah I don't know he's always so polite around Derek I don't think he's warmed to Derek yet, and Ally I think she's been trying to get me and Derek together since the moment we met."
"The kids love to talk about you two so believe me they would both be fine." Cristina gently rubbed Meredith's hand and went back to do the vacuuming leaving Meredith alone with her thoughts.
Elsewhere Derek had opened the door to his home and grinned as she felt Ally tugging at the buttons on his shirt, "daddy are you sick?"
"No kiddo" Derek rubbed Ally's head, "i'm just thinking."
"Thinking about what?"
"I'm thinking about stuff."
"Stuff" Ally said with a coy smile, "as in Meredith stuff."
Derek chuckled, "its time for bed ally cat."
Ally turned around and walked to her bedroom while Derek went to the bathroom to look at himself in the mirror as the same thoughts came swimming in his brain, thoughts of a certain woman.
"Daddy" Ally called out, "i'm ready for goodnight stuff."
Derek walked into the bedroom to find his daughter sitting on the bed waving her little legs in the air, "Ally."
"Yeah?"
Derek bent down, "do you, do you like Meredith?"
Ally looked at Derek with a amused smile, "she tickles my feet."
"Really" Derek smirked as he stretched out a hand, "you mean these feet." Ally looked and laughed with Derek as she quickly jumped into bed and covered her soles with her blanket, Derek tucked his daughter in and kissed her forehead, "do you like her daddy?"
Derek nodded, "yeah I do she's amazing."
Ally groaned loudly, "then why don't you ask her out to dinner?"
"Ally" Derek bent down as he mentally prepared himself for one of those tough father to child conversations, "listen to me the reason i'm not going to do that is because I already know she is going to say no thanks Derek I don't want to go out to dinner with you."
"How could you know that?"
"Its because Ally Meredith has a lot of money and I don't, I don't have anything Meredith wants Meredith wants someone who can provide a luxurious life for her."
"What does luxa thing mean?"
"It means" Derek said softly, "Meredith wants a man who can buy her anything she wants."
"So" Ally said slowly, "Meredith will never be your date because you don't have money."
"That's right kiddo" Derek muttered with a sigh, "Meredith and I are not meant to be together understand."
"But daddy money is a bad thing."
"Ally."
Ally sat up in bed, "money is for bad guys bad guys like money bad guys think money is good but its not true."
"Ally" Derek said again.
"Daddy" Ally put her hand in Derek's hand, "you are good and funny and nice and very handsome like a prince." Derek chuckled, "and Meredith would not say no if you asked her out to dinner you just need to take a deep breath hold it, be brave and ask her to dinner." Derek smiled as he sat on Ally's bed and imagined it playing out until Ally herself crawled on to his lap, "daddy are you thinking about stuff again."
Derek hugged Ally close, "i'm thinking I have a very smart wonderful daughter."
The next day Derek was about to start his daily work on the hospital garden when he saw in the distance Meredith walking through the hospital doors. Derek breathed heavily and after taking a swig of orange juice he quickly walked inside, "Meredith."
Meredith turned around and smiled, "Derek."
"Hey" Derek said as he walked over to her, "could I talk to you for a moment."
Meredith nodded, "of course."
"So I" Derek stammered as fear gripped his insides, "well Ally would like to I mean I would like to."
"Yes" Meredith said gently, "you would like to."
"Well I look its like" Derek clenched his own hand tightly, "I... come on Derek."
"Derek" Meredith whispered as a means to reassure him, "take your time."
"Meredith there's a uh pizza place and look I know you might not like it but if you wanted to go there sometime with well me then I wanted to just... check."
Meredith smiled widely feeling her heart soar, "are you asking me out on a date Derek."
"I um" Derek muttered, "unless you don't want to I no I mean yes."
"That would be nice Derek" Meredith said as her smile grew even wider.
"Yeah" Derek said feeling like he had just won a soccer game single handed, "good."
"Well" Meredith said.
"I'll call you soon."
"Good" Meredith whispered
"Great" Derek looked at the doors and smiled, "i've got to go."
"Bye" Meredith said softly she watched Derek walk outside and smiled she hadn't been this happy since she had watched Noah make friends at Ally's birthday. Meredith walked towards her office and saw Arizona standing by the entrance smirking, "so what's with the smile."
"Well its just a nice day" Meredith said casually, "and the people here are lovely."
"So it wouldn't have anything to do with the stud who asked you for a word?"
"Well maybe."
"He asked you out?"
"You guessed it."
"Wow" Arizona said, "the gardner and the doctor what a combination."
Meredith frowned, "Ari its not like that."
"No no" Arizona said quickly, "I mean its great so what's he like."
"He's one of the nicest men i've ever met and..."
"And" Arizona said slowly.
"Well" Meredith laughed, "I haven't gone out with him yet Ari, so wait until we go out."
"I will" Arizona said as she walked with Meredith to their first assignment for the day, "and once it happens you are going to tell me all about it."