Disclaimer: None of GA is mine. Sad.

A/N: I have to admit, I've been listening to the Walk the Line cd a lot as of late, hence the inspiration for this chapter. I'm not usually a country fan (to put it mildly!), but I loved the movie and the soundtrack. Not as much as I love GA, of course (: Also, I get to try something new by using the lyrics… let me know if it works.

Chapter 7: Ring of Fire

Love is a burning thing/ and it makes a fiery ring/ bound by wild desire/I fell in to a ring of fire...

Meredith Grey sat at the bar, contemplating the truth of the lyrics as she gazed into her beer.

I fell in to a burning ring of fire/I went down, down, down/and the flames went higher.

She had gotten off a little early, surprisingly, and so had arranged to meet Christina here once Christina was done. Meredith had been playing with the jukebox, and having come across the song, hadn't been able to resist it.

And it burns, burns, burns/ the ring of fire/ the ring of fire.

As the strains of Johnny Cash echoed through the bar, Meredith couldn't keep herself from smiling, and even humming along. She did, after all, know all of the lyrics.

"A big Johnny Cash fan, huh? I wouldn't have guessed it," greeted Joe, the well-known and well-loved bartender.

Meredith shrugged. "I have to be able to surprise people somehow, don't I?" she asked with a laugh.

"I suppose so. Are your sidekicks joining you tonight?"

"Just Christina. The others have to work."

"Ah. Sux for them."

"Yes, yes it does."

The taste of love is sweet/ when hearts like ours meet

How true, she thought. How very true. At that very moment, two of her fellow doctors approached her.

"You're a Johnny Cash fan, Grey? Doesn't seem like your thing."

A ring of fire, indeed. For the second time in about two minutes, Meredith shrugged. "Old habits die hard, I suppose."

"I never knew you were a fan. How come?"

"Maybe because you never asked, Dr. Shepherd," Meredith replied smartly, still humming to the guitar, and secretly wishing the Drs. Shepherd would leave her to enjoy Johnny in peace.

"Dr. Shepherd? We're at a bar, Meredith, you can call us by our first names," insisted Derek.

"We're friends, remember? And friends call each other, typically, by their first names. So he's Derek, I'm Addison, and you're Meredith."

"Right. Okay then." Meredith began fervently wishing that Christina would hurry her ass up and show already, because this conversation had no potential to go anywhere but down.

I fell for you like a child /oh, but the fire went wild.

At that very moment, Christina Yang, who was clearly physic, entered the bar. She walked over to Meredith, gave the two Shepherds a strange look, then sat down next to Meredith. "Ring of Fire? Seriously?"

Meredith rolled her eyes and ignored the comment.

"We'll see you later, Meredith,"

"Um, right, see you later, Addison. Derek," the intern replied awkwardly.

"What was that all about?" asked Christina.

"We're friends, remember?"

"Oh yeah, how's that working out? Hey, Joe. Just a beer."

"Fabulous, really."

I fell into a burning ring of fire…

"I'm sure. So seriously, what's the deal with this music?"

"I don't know. I had a friend who liked it in high school and it kinda grew on me. That's all. No big deal."

"Whatever. So I hear you're scrubbing in with Burke tomorrow…?"

"Yeah, should be a great surgery."

"It's Burke. Of course it is."

"But you're not biased or anything."

"Of course not, I'm a surgeon."

"Ok, Christina."

"What?"

"Nothing. I promise."

"Good."

"Good." The two women looked at each other and burst out laughing, both realizing the sheer ridiculousness of the conversation. Joe, who happened to be passing by, just shook his head

The two interns sat there for about another hour, each nursing a beer and making sure to keep close attention to those around them; after all, Joe's was a prime place for gossip material, and nobody who worked at Seattle Grace could resist gossip. After sometime, however, they decided they should probably get going.

"See you tomorrow, Mer,"

"Bye, Christina."

Meredith arrived home, glad to have an empty house for five minutes. She kicked off her shoes and headed upstairs. Entering her messy bedroom, she went into her closet, and rummaging through some belongings (of which there were many), dug out a black cd case. She leafed through it until she found the one she wanted, than threw it in the cd case. Deciding a hot bath would feel good, she went into the bathroom to fill the tub as once again, Ring of Fire filled the air.

The tired woman submerged herself in the warm water, letting the lavender scent (what else?) fill the air. She smiled contentedly as she listened to the depths of Johnny Cash's legendary voice fill her room, and closing her eyes, leaned back against the tub. All in all, it had been a surprisingly pleasant day, even with the nuisance named Derek Shepherd. After some time, Meredith got out of the bath, dried herself off and headed to bed, soothed by the music and easily drifting off to a sweet slumber.

I fell in to a burning ring of fire/I went down, down, down/and the flames went higher./And it burns ,burn , burns/the ring of fire/the ring of fire…