A/N: Sorry for the long delay guys but life becomes overwhelming in the summer, even before I had to figure out how to pack a year of stuff in a plane-approved suitcase. No matter where I end up, though, I promise to finish this, just like I finished Hope. It took me forever and a day, but I did, so just keep the faith. I hate leaving anything unfinished, remember that.

Chapter 13

Never in a million years Meredith figured she'd step foot in Toys R Us, and yet, she's lost in aisle six, looking for the perfect present for David Shepherd.

She should have declined. The Shepherd eyes will be the death of her.

And David's aren't even the eyes that worry her the most. When Derek looks at her, she turns into a pile of goo, and that is so not professional.

She's trying to keep her emotions in check around him, but Derek has a power over her. Meredith is spellbound whenever he walks into a room, and she hates that feeling.

Nobody ever made her feel like that, and she's scared to death to figure out what it means. Why she can't stop thinking about his hands on her hips or his tongue in her mouth. Why he makes her so nervous and yet gives her immense clarity when they are together. Why he fills her thoughts at the most inappropriate of times.

She takes a deep breath and decides that she should push aside her feelings for Derek now, and think about his son's present.

What in the world does a five-year-old boy likes?

She was sneaky and asked a couple of her younger patients what she could buy, but nothing they suggested seemed appealing. She knows David is a special boy, and he needs a special gift.

She's a terrible gift-giver. How could she be good at it when she has virtually nobody to give gifts to? Her parents are easy to please, her sister Maggie is even easier, but a little boy? She's out of her element.

The aisles are filled with all kinds of incredible gifts and she groans at the thought that she's spending her only morning off in the week to buy a stupid gift. Maybe she should just buy David food and a juice box and pretend she has no idea presents are customary. It's not like she has celebrated many regular birthdays, both her parents are busy surgeons.

They tried – of course they did – but the fact that her birthday is so close to Thanksgiving doesn't help. The hospital had to come first, and if they had to pick between taking her birthday off or Maggie's, she was the one left stranded. She loves Maggie, but she knows their mother loves Maggie a little more. Richard is also wonderful, but at the end of the day, she's not his daughter. It gets lonely at times, but she has learned how to cope. She has always felt like the odd one sticking out in their family.

Her eyes widen when she sees a special aisle of the store dedicated to educational and sensory toys, and she knows she'll find her perfect gift right there.

She walks out of aisle seventeen with a box in her hands and a smile on her face. A smile that slowly disappears when she walks by the baby aisle, and her heart clenches.

David definitely brings back memories.

She was a lot younger last time she had gone through the aisles of a toy store, looking for gifts for a baby boy. She had walked out with a teddy bear, that time.

A woman chasing after a little girl distracts her from her trip down memory lane and she sighs, blinking back the moisture in her eyes, as she makes her way towards checkout.

She has a party to get to.

David is bouncing off the walls by the time she gets to Derek's house.

The two-storey home is decorated everywhere, starting from the front yard and the porch. Balloons and streamers lead the way for all the guests, and by the time she knocks on the door and Derek opens, she realizes that it's chaos inside.

She can't exactly count them, but there are about twelve kids running around the living room and the foyer, a few adults mingling in the kitchen and what looks like the den.

"Hi!" Derek greets her, his hair a little wilder than usual, but his eyes are sparkling blue. He's dressed in jeans and a t-shirt, and he's gorgeous. She hopes she's not drooling by the time she smiles back and says hi.

"Where's David?"

"Who knows?" Derek chuckles. "He's burning a lot of energy today."

As if he heard his name being mentioned, David breezes by the foyer, chasing two other little boys, one of them looking slightly younger than the rest.

"Meredith!" he exclaims when he sees her, and her heart soars at the smile he gives her.

"Hey, David, happy birthday! I have a gift for you," she smiles, holding out the bag with the wrapped box inside.

"Oh, thank you!" he grins. "I gotta play now, put it on the table! Daddy, show her," he says, running back to his little friends.

She cackles; he's definitely a hoot.

"Sorry about that, I swear I taught him manners at some point," Derek says, leading her inside after grabbing the gift bag from her hands. "Do you want something to eat?"

"Please. I came for the snacks," she winks, and she manages to make Derek look flustered. The man can look like a sex god, but she definitely has a few aces up her sleeve. Oh, how she loves payback.

In the kitchen, Carolyn is fussing around a tray of finger food that looks homemade, and one of the interns, Yang, is scarfing down everything that passes under her nose.

"Dr. Grey," she greets, a surprised look on her face.

"Yang," she nods, grabbing a tiny sandwich.

They continue ignoring each other as Derek sends them a strange look. She shrugs, grabbing a hors d'oeuvre, putting a smile on his face.

Carolyn and Yang walk out together, Yang following the older woman with a quiche, leaving only Meredith and Derek in the kitchen.

"Look, if the gift is terrible, I'm sorry," she blurts, grabbing a glass of juice to hide her embarrassment.

Derek chuckles. "I'm sure you did fine. He's not a tough boy to please."

"I mean, I avoided stuff that makes loud noises and has weird textures, but I just...give it to charity or something if it sucks."

"Charity, really? Is it that bad of a gift?" he grins, sipping whatever he has in his glass.

"It's called kinetic sand," she blurts. "And crap, I know it was supposed to be a surprise but…"

"I'm not the birthday boy," he shrugs. "And kinetic sand, you said?"

"Yes. The box says it looks and feels like real sand, only without the mess."

"I know what it's like, David uses it in occupational therapy. He loves it. It's a great gift."

"It is?" her eyes widen, and she's genuinely surprised she had gotten it right.

"I've been meaning to get it for him, but I always forget. He's going to play with it for hours," he smiles, a faraway look in his eyes.

"Oh wow," she giggles, blushing. "I never thought I'd get it right."

Derek laughs. "You aren't an expert on kids, are you?"

"Not really. My patients don't count, right?"

Derek shakes his head, offering another small tray with some pigs in a blanket. She grabs one, grinning back, as he steals another one.

"Wanna come mingle? There are other adults," he smirks, angling his body so that he can lead her to the living room. She follows him without second a thought.

The party is in full swing, and the organized chaos is almost pleasant. The kids are being kids, and the adults are pretending to like each other, even though Meredith can see it in their faces that they would love to be anywhere but here. Part of her is enjoying the chaos though, the part of her that wonders, late at night, what it would have been like. The sane, surgeon part of her wants to leave and never come back.

For once though, her insanity has to prevail if she wants to get to the cutting of the cake without throwing a fit. So she chats up with Carolyn and she smiles whenever someone new introduces himself to her. She uses a paper plate as a diversive, so that whenever it's empty and the conversation becomes boring, she excuses herself and refills it. The snacks seem never-ending.

Every once in awhile, her eyes fall on Derek, on his easy demeanor, on how perfect he looks as a father, surrounded with a dozen kids. She giggles when they start playing some kind of game all together, and she watches how David seems to blossom slowly, the more he relaxes around his tiny friends.

After the game has ended, Derek comes to stand next to her, looking slightly sweaty and breathless as he drinks some water, though his smile is contagious. He does look really sexy all sweaty and breathless, though. Thank God the million people in the room keep her from jumping him.

"Your kid really knows how to throw a party, eh," she grins, nodding towards David, surrounded by all his friends now, as they play on the floor with a small pile of matchbox cars.

"Probably takes after his mother. I'm no party animal," he shrugs, and takes a deep breath.

"Where…" she starts, though she stops herself, knowing it's rude to ask such personal questions when they're barely friends.

"We met after medical school. I remember there was a party after graduation and Mark dragged me there instead of letting me collapse at home. There was a lot of scotch involved, and I remember she was a vodka girl. Terry. Short for Teresa, but I never really knew it until I had to look through the legal papers."

"So you never saw her again?"

"No. She found my address, dropped off David on my doorstep, legal papers where she gave up all her rights, and she went in the wind. It took me two days to really calm him down. I get why she freaked, he wasn't the easiest newborn."

"I'm sorry," she murmurs, reaching out to put her hand on his forearm before she's aware of what she's doing.

Derek's eyes widen and she takes it away, only, Derek's other hand stops hers from moving, leaving it lingering.

He's so warm.

His thumb rubs slow, gentle circles over her skin, and she feels her own body relax immediately. She can't keep her eyes off him.

The moment is broken when Carolyn comes closer and asks Derek about cake and presents, though she can still feel her skin tingling where they have touched. She thought what happened in the elevator was a fluke, but she's starting to reconsider it. It still scares the crap out of her, that's for sure.

She barely registers what happens in the next few minutes as they set up the cake and light up the candles. She sings happy birthday and snaps out of her haze long enough for David to beg for a picture with her, but the confusion is still gripping her tightly by the time everybody has eaten their cake and all the presents have been opened.

Most of the kids are already leaving while David keeps exploring all his new presents eagerly, the living room and the den emptying as she stands in a corner, lost in thought.

"Kids are toxic. I'm not sure why I'm here in the first place, except for the free food," Yang grumbles, standing next to her.

Meredith gives her an amused look, though she's happy for the distraction.

"What? The guy worked in a restaurant, and his mother loves cooking too," Yang shrugs.

"David is fun to be around, though," Meredith says, winning another strange look from her.

"Why are you even here? You could be in surgery..."

"David invited me, and it's my day off. I was his doctor when he cracked his head open. He probably thinks I saved his life, considering how much he was bleeding," she laughs, her intern joining in.

"Of course Shepherd asked a neurosurgeon to stitch up a cut on a forehead," she rolls her eyes.

"Well, he was concerned, I get it."

"You have brats too?"

"How could I be where I am with a brat?" she admits, gulping whatever she has left in her glass, her heart clenching.

"Yeah, I'm never having kids," Yang nods seriously, as the conversation stalls after that.

Meredith finally jumps into action when she sees Carolyn starting to clean up the supplies, so she uses that as a distraction. She's in now way the best candidate for the job, but at least it keeps her from dragging up even more memories or engage in awkward conversations with one of her subordinates.

"You don't need to help," Derek admonishes as soon as she walks in the kitchen with a stack of unused plates and paper cups.

"You fed me, I can help clean up."

"Seriously, go do something with David, we're fine."

"Later," she nods, going back to the living room to retrieve more stuff.

Each time she goes back out there are fewer people at the party, up to the point when it's just her, Carolyn, David, and Derek. Maybe she has taken this a little too far.

David looks exhausted as he plays on the floor with the kinetic sand she gave him, simply passing it through his fingers, then molding it, before it all falls apart in tiny grains. Derek is sitting on the couch, looking just as exhausted, as he sips one last glass of water. Or maybe he has upgraded to wine, she's not sure. She would have upgraded by now.

"Come on, sit down," he murmurs. "Thank you for your help cleaning up."

"It was a pleasure," she sighs, welcoming the few moments of rest as she sits on the other end of the couch.

"Meredith, your gift is awesome!" David exclaims, tiredness dripping from his voice, even though his eyes are sparkling. He looks just about to drop, but yet he's still playing.

"I'm glad you like it, Davy," she says, smiling down at the boy now making a tower. "Did you have fun with your friends?"

"I did. It was the best party."

"It was indeed."

"Sorry I didn't play much with you, but grown-ups don't like many games."

"We'll have time to play together another time, David, don't worry."

"Oh, good," he sighs, almost relieved. "Can I be a burrito with you for a bit?"

"Of course," she smiles, opening her arms and allowing the boy to crawl up there.

She remembers Derek's advice and even turns to him for help, but he only smiles brightly as David settles his cheek over her breast and she cups his head. She feels his breathing evening out against her neck as he keeps playing with her wrist watch, his body growing slack against her.

By the time Derek has drained his glass, David is already asleep.

"Gotta love exhausting parties," he chuckles, leaving his cup on the coffee table. "Here, I can put him to bed."

They juggle the boy between them, their hands touching again and sending another shiver down her spine. It feels...intimate.

She should run, if it weren't for David's fingers still wrapped around her shirt. She should be fleeing the scene.

She stays put, instead.

After they manage to disentangle, Derek drapes David on his shoulder and moves upstairs quickly, leaving her on the couch.

Meredith takes a deep breath and puts back the sand in the box, smiling at how fun it does look indeed, then she picks up Derek's cup and moves back to the kitchen to throw it away.

"The food was incredible, Carolyn," she says as soon as she spots the older woman loading the dishwasher.

"Derek did most of the cooking. I swear sometimes I feel like I've learned nothing in my fifty odd years of cooking," she giggles. "Then again, when he cooks for people he loves, he's even better at it."

"Are you talking about me?" Derek grins, showing up in the kitchen too. "David is out for the count. We won't see him until tomorrow morning, most likely."

"I was telling your boss that you're a great chef."

"I'm not a chef, Ma," he smiles, looking embarrassed.

"Well, I burn toast, Shepherd, everybody is a chef for my standards," Meredith grins, and his eyes widen.

"They let you cut people open and you burn toast?" he feigns indignation, though he betrays his composure and starts chuckling right after she starts laughing.

Carolyn disappears again from the kitchen, probably checking one last time around the living room and the den, leaving Meredith and Derek laughing together in the kitchen.

"You know, brain surgery is not cooking," Meredith tries to save her cause, though Derek is still grinning and keeping himself from laughing again

"I know that," he chuckles, "brain surgery is supposed to be harder."

"Hey!" she retorts, but they're laughing again before she can say more.

Their bodies move closer as they laugh, until their hips are practically touching. The laughter dissipates.

Derek's hand slowly moves to touch her forearm, sending shivers down her spine. He's still smiling, though his eyes hold a gentleness in them that wasn't there before. He's not teasing her anymore.

He pulls her closer, and she rests her hands on his chest, needing his support as her legs feel shaky at the contact.

"I've tried all afternoon to ignore how beautiful you are today," he murmurs, lowering his face closer to hers.

"We shouldn't," she hums, though she strains her neck to get closer, and wraps her hands on his shoulders, holding onto him.

"I know," he hums, and she can practically feel his voice on her skin.

Her thought process blanks and she leans in, joining their lips.

The kiss is soft, not void of the passion of the elevator, but it is a completely different kiss at the same time. They take their time, tasting and nibbling, their hands holding tightly onto one another, their lips unable to part.

They don't care about oxygen, or who started the kiss in the first place, they simply keep kissing in the middle of Derek's kitchen, the rest of the world falling away.

"Derek," she murmurs, gulping in air, searching his eyes, but he eagerly draws her in for another kiss, stealing her breath away.

"Meredith," he hums when they pull away, this time for good.

They keep staring into each other's eyes, licking their lips, wondering what the hell happened in that kitchen, or why they seem unable to stay apart whenever they are alone.

Derek is about to duck down and kiss her again when Carolyn walks back in and forces them to spring apart. Meredith knows her cheeks are on fire. Luckily, even if she probably suspects something, Carolyn completely ignores them, giving Meredith time to gather her wits and find the proper use of her every limb again.

Meredith gives them a hasty goodbye, watching the panic mirrored in Derek's face, and then she bolts, hoping that the drive home can bring her some clarity. She's so not sure about that, though.

They crossed a line she's pretty positive they can't uncross, and now they both have to figure out how to go on from there. She just hopes she can avoid him for a bit longer.

A/N: And you were worried a pager would interrupt the party :P

So, I'm not scheduling updates anymore, but while slowly, I know this story will be updated. Your kindness in reviews and your patience after every new update are what keeps me going, so thank you!

Stay tuned for more!