Some weeks later, I found myself still mystified by the petite woman I now knew to be Meredith. I still couldn't figure out exactly where I knew her from, nor did I attempt to find out. I didn't want to scare her off with the whole "you seem really familiar thing." Instead, we would meet up at Joe's, have a few drinks, and end up at her place. The house was huge for one very small person. I guessed it had been her parents' home at one time, but she wouldn't tell me who they were. Hell, I didn't even know her last name. There was just something about her. Something that I couldn't escape. I found myself wondering about the mystical stranger I had grown so fond of. I considered telling her about Addison, but I decided to wait until I knew for sure we shared the same feelings.

"Wake-up!" she yelled, slamming a pillow onto my backside. "I have to go. I can't be late for my first day!"

"Ohh," I groaned. "Why do you always wake me up with so much force?"

"You have to leave now."

"Seriously? What's with the pillow slamming and loud noises?"

"I don't know. I'll meet you at Joe's in a few days. Now, you have to go!"

She shoved my clothes into my arms and began pushing me toward the front door. To be so tiny, she could put up quite a fight. I grabbed her, kissing her deeply. I didn't want to leave her. She brought so much more to my life: things that had been missing for a very long time. It wasn't Addison's fault. She tried, but in the end, we both got busy. I forgot to pay attention to her, and when I did remember, I was too damn tired to try. In the end, I drifted away from her, sometimes I pushed her away, and I forced her to look elsewhere for company. I never thought she would turn to another man. I thought her girlfriends would keep her occupied enough, but I was wrong. We both screwed up, and I became bound and determined to never do it again. I had to tell Meredith. Or at least find out if she was at all serious about me.

"Meredith?"

"What?"

"When do you have to be at work?"

"9 am."

"It's only 7:15. Do you think we could talk?"

"I guess," she replied nervously.

"I like you. I like you a lot, but I don't want to be in half a relationship. It doesn't work out. So, what I need to know is, how do you feel about me?"

"I like you, too, Derek. But I have so many problems you don't even know about."

"Every relationship has baggage. That's just part of it. I want to know things about you."

"I want to know things about you, too."

"Good. You start. Where are you going for work today?" I couldn't quite bring myself to tell her about Addison yet.

"A hospital," she replied after some hesitation.

"What are you going to do there? Are you a nurse?" I quickly realized I had guessed wrong by the expression on her face.

"My turn to ask you now. Where do you work?"

"A hospital."

"Are you a doctor?"

"It's my turn again. Answer my second question."

"I'm beginning a surgical residency."

"I'm a neurosurgeon." I said, and we laughed at the situation at hand.

"Maybe this relationship could work," I thought. "We apparently have some things in common."

"Which hospital?" we asked in unison.

I knew the answer before she even said it. Meredith was going to start her residency at Seattle Grace. It was karma. I answered for her, and she smiled then frowned. Suddenly, I felt very anxious. I really liked Meredith, and I didn't want to lose her to some hospital rules. I also didn't want to cause her problems. Dating an attending would definitely be grounds for causing problems. I looked her in the eyes. The dark expression she wore the first time I saw her in the bar was back. I hadn't seen that expression for almost four weeks. It pained me to see her look sad.

"I don't want to lose you," she began to sniffle.

"You won't lose me. We can work this out somehow. I'll go talk to the chief and tell him we met weeks ago. It'll be alright." I pulled her into my arms.

"Couldn't we just keep it secret for a while?" she asked, a pleading look in her eye.

"I really do like you, Meredith, and I'm going to fight for you. We have to be honest from the beginning. Everyone will know by the end of the week anyway."

"I guess you're right. The rumor mill does seem to keep going in hospitals."

"So, you get ready for your first day. Eat a good breakfast. You'll need it. I'm going to go straight to the chief's office and discuss this with him."

"Okay," she quickly kissed me on the cheek and patted my butt on the way out the door.

As I drove toward the hospital, I wondered what I should say to the chief. I knew he wouldn't be happy to hear that he already had an attending sleeping with an intern. At Mount Sinai, sleeping with an intern marked you with the scarlet letter. I parked in my usual space in the hospital parking garage and took a deep breath. In just a few minutes, I could potentially cause Meredith a lot of problems or end up with a new and fun relationship.

"Chief?" I called out as I knocked on the door. "Can I talk to you about something?"

"Derek, come in. We're getting a transfer patient today. Katie Bryce is sixteen and has been having grand mal seizures. She'll be flown in within the hour. Also, we will be getting all new interns today, as you well know. One of them will be assigned to Katie's case, thus she will be assigned to you as well. Her name is Meredith Grey."

"Damn," I thought as he began telling me all about my girlfriend.