A/N - This first chapter is extremely short, but that is to introduce the story/plot and idea to you.
A/N 2 - Also completely ignoring the fact that Mark, Derek, and Lexie are dead. Because this is a perfect world where they didn't die.
Disclaimer: I do not own Grey's Anatomy. Although, I wish I did like everyone else here. I only have rights to a few select characters and most of the storyline.
Timeline:
May 21, 2014 - Season 10 finale (by my guesstimate)
May 23, 2014 - The double M's went missing
February 17, 2017 - The story begins. Please pay attention to the dates and times! They're important!
February 17th, 2017 - 9:23 AM
For two years, everyone had been walking on eggshells around Derek Shepherd. Two years since his wife and best friend disappeared. Two years since the floor fell out from underneath him. Two years since the world had last made sense.
The nurses immediately came up with the idea that they had run off together. But as time went on, that theory was proven to be more than unlikely. Meredith wouldn't do that to him, no matter how bad their marriage had gotten. Mark wouldn't do that to him...again. Besides, the man had his own relationship troubles.
Derek liked statistics. He stood by them even if the numbers were not in his favor. They were a truth that no one could deny. However, he didn't know what the statistics were for two surgeons who mysteriously disappeared without a trace almost three years ago.
There was only one person Derek would talk to about Meredith, and a separate person he would talk to about Mark.
Cristina had been offered an entire cardiothoracic program to direct before they went missing. She wanted to stay in hopes of Meredith's return, but Derek convinced her to go and advance her career. Dr. Cristina Yang, Director of cardiothoracic surgery at The Klausman Institute for Medical Research. He was proud of the surgeon and woman she'd become. Once she settled in Zurich, they began a regular routine of phone calls; at least once, if not twice a week. They were each other's support systems.
Addison was the person Derek would talk to when it came to Mark. He was also proud of her for all the things she accomplished since she moved to L.A. Not only in her medical work, but in her personal life. Her dream had finally come true, and now she was a mother. Henry was four now. He called her less frequently than he had Cristina. Sure, they were all still friends, but it didn't stop things from being awkward. Addison did cheat on him with Mark, and that would always hang above their heads.
Deep down, Derek was jealous. Everyone had moved on with their lives, except for him. Even Lexie found a way to move forward. She completed her fellowship, and she's been an attending for over two years now.
Everyone was moving forward, leaving him behind. He was still guilt-ridden. The fight he and Meredith had the night before played over and over again in his head.
"You're being selfish!"
"I have to be Derek because you believe that your career is more important than mine."
"At this moment in time, it is!"
"No, not at this moment, always! You will always be that hotshot surgeon, and I will always be that young intern who fell in love with you."
How could he have not seen it? His career was the highest it could be, and DC seemed like the next step forward. But it wasn't. The truth is, there was no step forward; not career-wise anyway. He would have taken Meredith away from her life, her friends, and her family. If she hadn't disappeared, he would have gone. The thought made him sick, but he reminded himself that he didn't go to DC; he stayed. All it took for him to come to his senses was for Meredith to drop off the face of the earth.
"Dr. Shepherd?" the resident asked, pulling him from his thoughts.
"Yes, Edwards?"
"You haven't moved in ten minutes, do you know what you're doing?"
He looked down at the brain in front of him. What a beautiful tumor.
"Ah yes, sorry."
The rapid beeping of the monitor filled the OR.
"What happened?" the resident asked frantically.
"He's herniating. The tumor's swelling. We're gonna have to drain the ventricle."
"Now that you're all here, we need to talk," Callie said to her friends. She was the only one standing up. Her hands were gripped tightly on the back of her chair. It was clear to everyone that she was nervous.
"About what?" Maggie asked, popping a veggie straw into her mouth which she snaked from Jackson.
"Derek."
With his name, they concluded that this was about him sulking for the past two years about Meredith and Mark's disappearance.
"It's absolutely fine for him to wallow at home, but not at work. He almost killed his patient today because he zoned out during surgery!" Callie continued.
"I admit, he has gotten worse over the past few months," Jackson chimed in.
"What do you expect us to do?" Alex asked. He made a gesture with his hands, resembling a shrug.
"We need to stage an intervention. The chances of them coming back are, well...slim. It's time he sees that. We all accepted it, and he needs to as well."
Most of them nodded in agreement, but Lexie sat at the end of the table still as a statue. Callie was on the opposite end of the room, so everyone's back was to her. She was wondering how they could have given up hope. She thought that Maggie would have fought harder for the sister she never met. Or even Amelia, who was almost like a sister to Mark, and a literal sister to Meredith.
Maybe Lexie was biased, since she was one of the closest to both Mark and Meredith. Maybe that made it harder to let go, but then she looked at Callie. She was just as close to him as Lexie was, yet she was the one proposing the idea of an intervention.
"Can we do this tomorrow? He's already gone home," Lexie said, having no intention of being a part of the 'intervention'.
She stood up from her seat, and walked past the large table to the door. Lexie stopped and turned back, "I don't understand how you could forget them so easily."
Lexie shook her head as she walked out of the conference room. She heard their voices erupt into conversation, planning how they would 'intervene' upon Derek's pity party.
After yet another meaningless day, Derek was home at last. He almost succumbed to the welcoming sleep when his doorbell rang.
"Dr. Derek Shepherd?" a man asked when he opened the door.
"Yes?" his eyes scanned the two men who were in uniform. Not military, or police, but they looked to be government agents. Earpiece, sunglasses, tuxes, and all.
"Your presence has been requested at Herald Murphy Medical Center."
Derek immediately recognized the name. After all, it's dedicated to the president.
"Is this about the brain mapping initiative? I denied the last president, do I have to say no to this one as well?"
"We aren't here for the NIH." the second man said. It was then when Derek noticed the somber look on their faces.
"Who's dead?" he asked bluntly. He was prepared this time. Each day that passed, the chances of them being found alive decreased. A second thought occurred, and he felt both hope and sadness: What if it's not about them?
The man on the left shook his head. Derek couldn't tell if it meant he was wrong and no one was dead, or if the man just didn't want to share what he knew.
"We are here in regards to Dr. Mark Sloan, and Dr. Meredith Grey."
His heart skipped a beat, and he stumbled backwards. He wasn't as prepared as he thought. They're dead. They're really dead.
He shook his head and regained his balance.
"They're alive."
One of the men continued speaking, but everything blended together. 'How could they not have come home? What if something happened that made it so they couldn't come home?' The questions ran through his brain as he finally grasped reality.
"They're...alive?" his words faded into the cold, nighttime air. It was true, he knew because they wouldn't be here if they weren't sure. But he wouldn't believe it until he saw it.
February 15th, 2017 - 11:34 PM
He stared at his watch, hearing almost every tick for each second that went by. Taking a moment to observe his surroundings, he saw that there were only a few other people scattered around the seemingly infinite room. This was rare for New York, even at night. The female to his right tapped her foot impatiently, and he chuckled amusedly.
The previously silent room filled with mechanical clunking, signifying that their ride was nearing. The train slowed and the once silent subway station erupted with noise as people poured out of the doors.
After settling in an uncomfortable seat, he began to feel nervous and looked to his companion for comfort. No such luck. She, too, was nervous, he could tell from the way her hands were shoved into her jacket pockets and biting her lip.
To be fair, they were being plunged right back into the center of a changed world. They had a right to be nervous.
He looked down after feeling her hand in his, clutching to him as if he were the only thing keeping her alive. Suddenly, the feeling was reciprocated as the reality of what they were doing began to sink in. He looked into the eyes of his pseudo-sister. It was clear that she was also still trying to wrap her brain around what was happening.
The train was heading in the direction of JFK Airport.
They were going home.
February 17th, 2017 - 10:51 PM
The men instructed him to pack a suitcase, and to fill it with more clothing and toiletries than he thought was necessary. It worried Derek that the men didn't know how long he would be in DC. Even though he was worried, he felt great relief. They were alive, and he would finally find out where they've been for so long.
He remembered that Lexie had been staying in the guest room for a few months, and she would come home to no one and nothing. In the study, he pulled out a piece of paper and hastily scrawled together a few sentences. The only way to make sure she saw it was to pin it on the fridge using one of Zola's numerous butterfly magnets.
The day before, Derek had made plans with Callie for Zola, Bailey, and Sofia to have a sleepover. Some part of him was glad that he didn't have to bring his kids, because he had no idea what was waiting for him.
He took one last look at the house, before heading to the driveway, suitcase loudly rolling behind him.
Derek overheard one of the men say the address. When he put it into google maps, he realized that they were escorting him to a place in Seattle he didn't recognize. From the birds' eye view, he could tell it was a small airstrip.
On the way, he called Bailey, telling her he needed an indefinite leave of absence. Derek was in no way surprised when she didn't question him. It seemed everyone thought he needed time off to get his bearings.
He jumped when he heard a car door close, and realized they had arrived. Derek was led inside a small building, but big enough to hold a few planes.
One of the men took his suitcase, while the other led him to the boarding area. It was small, quaint. Derek noticed that three more men had joined ranks with the others. They too were clad in black. It felt like a floodgate opened because completely different questions rang through his head. All of them had to do with the number of government agents scattered across the seats. Each wore their own 'business' face, and he would occasionally hear one of them cover his ear, and whisper something inaudible. An unsettling feeling quickly settled in his gut, and he knew it wouldn't be going away any time soon.
Soon, the private plane took off, and he was headed for the very place that ruined everything. But that's where they were; Washington DC.
A/N - I have never once been to New York, so any landmarks or subway stations, whatever, are more than likely inaccurate.
If you didn't read the timestamps, you'll most likely be confused. The second to last scene is set two days before the others.
Let me know if you recognize the surgery Derek was performing from Grey's.
Anywho...I'm really excited to finally have my main focus on this work! I'm open to suggestions!
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