Hey guys! I'm so happy with the feedback I'm getting. It really inspires me to know that other people enjoy my work. I do want to let you know that I will start posting once a week in a more regular schedule once mine evens out. Being pregnant, finishing up my senior year of college in December when I am due to give birth and writing so my schedule is kind of hectic, but I'm so glad you guys are reading and enjoying this story, I love you all and I'm glad to see some familiar faces. Enjoy this chapter!
"Mommy, mommy! Get up, it's my birthday!" Scarlett screeched happily as she was bouncing on her mother's bed.
"Scar, it's still going to be your birthday in a few hours, let mommy sleep a little longer," Meredith mumbled.
"No mommy, I want to go eat breakfast," she begged as she continued to bounce on the bed.
"Ok Scarlett, I'm getting up," Meredith groaned as she sat up and wiped the sleep from her eyes. Scarlett smiled and hugged her tightly.
"I love you mommy," Scarlett said, kissing her mother's cheek.
"Love you too Scar, go get dressed," she said and the little girl happily went into her room. Meredith looked over at the boy who was still fast asleep next to her, she shook her head at him before getting up. She brushed her hair and teeth before putting her clothes on. She went over and woke up CJ.
"Sleep mama," he groaned.
"No Bubba, come on. It's sissy's birthday and we are going to get pancakes," she moved the blankets off him and he groggily looked at her.
"No," he reached for the blanket again and she pulled back farther.
"Come on CJ, lets go get you some clothes on," she begged and he shook his head.
"Sleepy," he mumbled as he rubbed his eyes. She shook her head at him, grabbing him up. He groaned and kicked at his feet.
"No mama," he continued to kick.
"Charles Jameson! Stop it now or no pancakes," she scolded. He stopped kicking at her and poked his lips out.
"Pancake?" He looked up at her.
"Yes, now lets go get clothes," she said and he obliged. She went into his room with him, picking out some jeans and a t-shirt. She took CJ downstairs to find his shoes that he loved to leave scattered amongst the living room. Her eyes bulged when she realized how much of a mess her house was.
"I've got to clean this up," she huffed, sitting CJ down. She quickly gathered up the shoes and other mess from the floor and placed them into the coat closet no one ever used. She picked up a magazine from the coffee table to put into the basket of magazines when she froze. Her heart skipped a beat when she realized it was a medical magazine. It dated back three months. She saw one of the sidelines and tears welled in her eyes.
Medical field has major loss.
She almost cried when she saw the picture underneath. It was a picture of Charlie, his bright smile shined with his perfect white teeth. His blonde hair fixed just the way she loved it. His brown eyes shined with happiness. She remembered getting this in the mail and throwing it down before reading it.
"Mama, you cryin?" CJ asked when he noticed his mother.
"No baby," she shook her head, she placed the magazine down and looked at her son. He was a spitting image of his father. She grabbed a pair of rain boots and put them on his feet.
"I love you," he said, grabbing her neck and kissing her cheek.
"Mama loves you too CJ," she smiled, fixing his hair. Scarlett came down the stairs, her hair brushed and fixed how she always does.
"Ready?" She asked and both kids nodded. She picked up CJ and grabbed her purse and car keys. They left and went to the diner that was just down the street. She smiled, the memory of the first time Charlie brought her here flashed in her brain. She wished with all her might that he was here but that didn't change the fact he was gone.
They sat in their usual spot, their usual waitress came to wait on them, already having their drinks on a tray. The kids loved her and she loved the kids. She had known Charlie since he was a child, he had grown up in Seattle and his dad brought him here since he was CJ's age.
"The milk for Charlie Jr and orange juice for the ladies," Patti smiled, handing the drinks out.
"Thanks Mrs. Pat," Scarlett said to her.
"You're welcome. And today is someone's birthday I here," Patti raised her brow at Scarlett.
"It's mine! I'm seven Mrs. Pat!" She said with a smile.
"I know, I remember when your mom use to come in here when she was pregnant with you. She always craved our pancakes," Patti winked at Meredith.
"That's right, and she still can't get enough of them," Meredith chuckled.
"Do I even need to ask what you guys want to eat or just the usual?" Patti asked them.
"The usual," Meredith nodded at her. Patti was an amazing waitress, she remembered everything they always ordered. Charlie always said that if Meredith wouldn't have came around, he was going to marry Patti. She left to go place the order into the kitchen.
"Are you excited for your party?" Meredith asked.
"Yep, I can't wait for you to meet Zoe mommy!" Scarlett said happily. Every since Zoe had came into her class, that was all she talked about. They had became best friends and Meredith never met the girl.
"I can't either, I already know so much about her and I haven't even met her yet," Meredith nodded at her daughter. Their food came out, both kids receiving pancakes with a face made out of chocolate chips while Meredith got French toast with eggs and bacon. They enjoyed their meal, CJ moaning every time he took a bite. Meredith laughed at her son and his sound effects.
"These the best pancakes ever!" He said with his mouth full.
"I know Bubba but don't talk with your mouth full," she said to him.
"Sorry," he said, his mouth still full. She just shook her head. Patti brought the check over and Meredith handed her the card. She left a cash tip and they left. Meredith called Lexie and told her to pick up the cake and bring it over when she could and they went to the house.
"Scar, make sure your room and the playroom is cleaned up please," Meredith said and she nodded, going to clean up. She continued to clean the living room and kitchen quickly. Lexie knocked on the door and opened it after she knocked.
"Cake delivery," she said, bringing in the large box. They went to the kitchen and she put it on the counter.
"What set up needs to be done?" Lexie asked.
"Everything," Meredith huffed, resetting the pillows on the sofa.
"Is Cristina coming to help?" Lexie asked and Meredith looked at her funny.
"Really think she is going to do that?" Meredith laughed. They both shook their head and started to set up for the party. They were both done and people began arriving. The parents were dropping their children off and leaving while Mark and Alex both arrived. Alex brought Jo with him also which was rare. Jo thought it was weird hanging out with her bosses. Cristina also came in as they were with her husband Preston.
"Hey Wilson, thanks for coming," Meredith smiled at her.
"Wouldn't miss it," Jo smiled. There was a knock on the door and Meredith went to answer it. She had to double take when she saw the tall man standing at the door with a little girl next to him. She had brown curly hair like Derek's except it was much longer. She had his bright blue eyes and Meredith felt a shiver down her spine when she saw him with a child.
"Zoe!" Scarlett said, running to the little girl and hugging her.
"Scar!" Zoe giggled, hugging her friend. She had a New York accent which Meredith loved to hear. It reminded her of her childhood in Boston.
"Hey Meredith, i didn't know that Scarlett was your daughter," Derek said awkwardly. He knew the moment he saw the address on the invitation that it was her house. The past two weeks had been pretty awkward between the two with them avoiding anything except work talk. They don't even speak about the bar experience, or what it meant for their friendship.
"Yes, she is," Meredith nodded at him.
"I think I know more about your daughter than I do you," he joked, smiling his very signature smile. The chills came back across her skin as she looked at that smile.
"Me too. Most parents just dropped their kid off but if you'd like to stay you can. Mark and Lexie are here," she said, stepping aside. They both came in, the girls giggling and laughing as they whispered.
"Uncle Mark!" Zoe gasped as she hugged Mark.
"Mark is your uncle?" Scarlett asked. Zoe nodded.
"He is my daddy's brother," Zoe said for confirmation.
"He's my Aunt Lexie's boyfriend!" Scarlett giggled loudly. Both girls then ran off to the other girls there.
"Small world," Derek said awkwardly.
"Yes," Meredith nodded.
"Mama, my head hurts," CJ said, walking to his mother.
"Is it the loud noises buddy?" Meredith asked, picking her son up. He shook his head and covered his eyes.
"Here Mer, I'll go give him his medicine," Lexie offered, reaching for him. He went to Lexie and she took him into the kitchen. Derek was slightly curious, the doctor in him knew something was different about him.
"He gets bad headache," Meredith said casually, seeing the curiosity in Derek's eyes.
"Oh," he nodded in reply but the curiosity didn't leave him.
"So Shep, do you like the city?" Preston said, trying to change the conversation. They talked for a minute and Lexie returned without CJ.
"He's laying down until it kicks in," Lexie said.
"Thanks Lex," Meredith smiled. Everyone was talking and just casually joking around but Meredith wasn't paying attention. Her mind continued to drift to Charlie and her heart ached.
"I'm going to check on CJ," Meredith said before disappearing upstairs and finding the little boy sleeping soundly in her bed. She sat down beside him, running her hand across his hair. It was a lot, she was slightly overwhelmed. She knew if she needed help with anything, one of the people downstairs would jump straight to it but she couldn't ask. She needed to figure life out without Charlie.
"Mama," he said groggily. His medicine always made him sleepy until the headache went away.
"I'm here baby," she said, smiling at him.
"I miss daddy, is he coming home soon?" He said. Meredith felt tears trickle down her cheek as she looked at the fragile boy.
"No sweetie, just go to sleep," she kissed his head and got up. She hurried into the guest bathroom and dropped to the floor. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she curled into a ball. She heard the girls downstairs giggling and she continued to cry. She didn't know how she was going to do it. She felt so alone and all she wanted was Charlie. There was a knock and the door opened.
"I'm sorry," Derek said and he was about to leave before he noticed her crying.
"Are you ok?" He asked, coming in and closing the door. She looked at him, she burst into tears again and shook her head. He dropped beside her and pulled her to his chest. He rubbed circles on her back, mumbling things to her.
"It's going to be ok. You are such a strong woman and you are going to raise those kids. I know it's hard but things will get easier," he said softly, comforting her.
She felt a strange feeling as she cried on this mans chest. She didn't want to pull away, something about it was so comforting. Something in her said to run and never look back but she didn't. She just continued to sob until they didn't come anymore. His voice in her ear was soothing as the tears came to an end.
"I remember Zoe's first birthday without Rose. She was turning three and it was so hard. She asked if her mommy could visit from heaven for her birthday party and I couldn't stomach telling her that she couldn't. I didn't know how I was going to go on but I did because I had people to lean on just like you. You have Mark and Lexie and Alex and Cristina and even Me. I know we don't know a lot about each other but I do know what you're going through," he said to her, looking down into her eyes.
"You keep saying that," she rolled her eyes, wiping the tears, "but I understand you are trying to be helpful."
"It's fine," he shook his head.
"It's just hard. I don't want to ask for help. A year ago, they found out that CJ had a grade II cerebellar astrocytoma and we've been keeping an eye on it closely but the symptoms are getting worse. Nelson didn't want to do surgery until he was five because it is benign but there is still a chance it could turn malignant and that's what I'm scared of because that is what the symptoms are pointing to now. He just asked me if he daddy was coming home," she started crying again. He held her tight again until she stopped.
"I know I don't have a place in asking this but would you want me to take a look? I could do the surgery to remove it if it needs to be," he offered.
"I couldn't ask you to. I haven't ever told anyone except those people downstairs. They are the only ones who know," she admitted.
"I could keep it under the radar. No one would find out. You don't have to, I'm just offering," he said to her.
"I'll think about it," she breathed, trying to catch her breath after the crying stopped.
"Ok," he nodded. She sat in his arms as she continued to calm herself. Something about his arms made it comforting. She hated crying in front of people but she was thankful someone was there to talk with her. She finally got the strength to pull away.
"Thank you," she smiled at him, he nodded.
"Anytime," he stood, helping her come to her feet. She wobbled a bit before catching her footing. He exited the bathroom while she cleaned the tears more. She finally went back down, stopping at Lexie and Cristina.
"How is he?" Lexie asked.
"Sleeping," she replied. The birthday party continued with the birthday cake and gifts. People began leaving and soon only a few were left.
"Mommy, thank you so much for the best birthday party," Scarlett said to her, hugging her mother. Meredith felt her heart full with joy as she hugged her daughter.
"I love you Scar," she said, hugging her daughter tighter. She could only thank God and Charlie for the amazing life she had even if she didn't know what would happen next.