A/N: Obviously post-season finale

Heartbreak: Part 2 of 2

When Derek finally came out of the elevator, he wasn't really surprised to find that Addison had left. He had been in the elevator for over an hour, sitting there while people came and went.

Only one thought helped him drag himself to his car: at least he still had Addison.

That was a terrible thought. Like she was some sort of backup plan. Addison Forbes Montgomery Shepard was no backup plan and she would kick his ass if she knew he even entertained the thought of her as one.

He pulled up to the trailor and parked. He sighed, and banged his head on the steering wheel. He didn't deserve her, and he hoped she knew that.

Apparently, she did.

When Derek walked into the trailor, he found Addison calmly packing a bag. "What are you doing?" he blurted.

Addison didn't spare him a look. "Packing," she said casually, as if her heart wasn't broken.

"What?" Derek asked, alarmed. "Why?" But he knew why. The real question was: why hadn't she left him sooner?

Addison turned to him with an incredulous look. "Why? Are you kidding me?" Her gaze was heartbreakingly sad. "The only reason you're here is because Meredith chose Finn."

Derek felt like his world was crumbling around him. Nothing was going right. "You can't leave," he said. At that point, he wasn't above begging her to stay.

"I can and I am," Addison said, turning to resume packing. "You slept with Meredith tonight. Kind of reminds me of my last prom. At least I had little to no feelings for the guy who left in the middle to screw a fellow geek."

Derek stilled her movements as he wrapped his arms around her. "Stop, Addison. Please," he whispered.

Addison almost leaned into him. Almost. "Derek, don't make this harder than it is." She pulled away and reached under the mattress. She pulled out some papers. "I thought these might come in handy."

Derek started breathing heavily, tears gathering in his eyes, unwilling to accept the divorce papers. "Don't do this, Addison. I love you."

Addison's eyes filled with tears, and a single tear made its way down her cheek before she pulled herself together. "I waited for months to hear those three words," she said calmly. "It's too little too late."

She zipped the bag, and turned away. "When you left me in New York, all I could think was that there was still hope. You left, and I waited for the divorce papers. They never came, and, when I got the call from Richard, I was so happy. Then my hopes were crushed when I found you with Meredith."

Addison looked him in the eyes and saw his heart shattering before her eyes. She turned away. "Then you gave me hope again by not signing the papers. Through everything--the looks, the touches, the elevator--the only thing that kept me here was knowing you chose me. You chose your vows. You chose your wife."

Derek nodded. "That's right," he encourage. He hoped that would convince her to stay. "I chose you, Addie."

Addison blinked slowly to keep the tears at bay. "I slept with Mark, thinking I was justified because you were absent. I had an affair. I stayed with him after you left, thinking he was the closest thing I could get to the real thing."

Addison watched his face contort into shock and indignation. "I didn't fall in love with him. I didn't go back to him when he came all the way across the country for me. It felt so good to be loved and fought for. That's all I needed: someone to fight for me." She kneeled beside him as he slowly collapsed. "I wasn't absent, Derek. I thought we were beyond hurting each other. I thought we were on the same page." She shrugged. "I guess I was wrong, but that's no big news." She walked to the door. "Looks like we're finally even." She finally knew how bad an affair could crush someone.

Derek stared at the divorce papers before him as the door slammed behind her. They were signed, and dated...three days earlier. The tears came with a suddenness that left him gasping for air.

In one day, his whole world had fallen apart. He finally knew the heartbreak that Meredith had went through when he chose Addison. He knew the heartbreak Addison had felt when he left without a fight.

He was experiencing both at once.

Heartbreak truly sucked.

END

A/N-This is the saddest thing I've ever written. I wrote this on my dark day. That's why it's sad.