By the end of the day buzz around the office was very strong. The great and wonderful Derek Sheppard was coming back. Meredith knew that Burke would say yes. Derek was an excellent surgeon and it would do wonders for the hospital to bring him back, she just only hoped she wouldn't have to see him a lot.

At the end of her shift she sat in the lobby waiting for Mark to finish up his surgery. She didn't have long to wait, so she sat in a chair catching up on her medical digest magazine. She was intensely engaged in an article when she didn't even notice someone was standing in front of her.

He stood there for a minute just admiring her, before he said anything. God she was still so beautiful, her hair, long and blonde. He could smell the sweet scent of lavender and as it filled his lungs he was taken back to the time when she was his. But she wasn't his anymore. He noticed the ring on her finger and wondered who the lucky guy was. Who was blessed enough to hold this wonderful creature every night before falling asleep, who was allowed to touch her soft skin, kiss her luscious lips. And be filled with her love. He missed her so much. He had tried with Addison, for two years. And yet nothing changed. He was still empty, lost, and alone. Everyday his heart ached for Meredith, and he kept ignoring it. As the days turned into weeks and then months and finally years he knew he could no longer treat Addison like this. It wasn't fair to her. She was living with someone who longed for someone else, who dreamed for her, and only her. Addison knew that she would never get her Derek back and when he finally said he could no longer pretend that they would be the way they were before they parted ways.

Now three years after leaving Addison he finally got the courage to come back to Seattle. He needed to come back. He needed to see her.

She looked up and looked straight into his beautiful blue eyes.

"Hello" he said with a smile on his face.

"Hello" she replied trying to look back down at her magazine.

Hearing her voice was like hearing angels sing again. He felt alive again.

"So I'm coming back to work here tomorrow" he said trying to make conversation, trying anything just to hear her voice again.

"So I've heard" she still wouldn't look up at him again. She couldn't. She was afraid of what she'd see in not only him, but herself as well. She knew she loved Mark, but Derek had a power over her like no other man ever had. She dreamt about him all the time, always wondering what would have been if he had just stayed. But he didn't stay, he left, and that was always the bottom line to her.

She realized that he wasn't going to leave so she finally stood up to walk away herself. "Well, I guess I'll see you around the hospital" she said while walking away.

He grabbed her arm. She turned to look at him. It was the first time in over five years they had touched. She could feel the electricity shoot through her arm and into her whole body. Be strong she told herself you are past all of this. He took a step closer to fill in the gap between them. They're eyes never left one another. As he went to take another step to close the gap completely she closed her eyes. "stop." She said. "I can't do this…I won't do this."

Just then he let go. She turned around to walk away when she saw Mark getting off the elevator. As he walked towards her she felt relieved, relieve that he was saving her from this moment of what could have been dangerous for the both of them. He greets her with a kiss and touches her hair. She smiles at him letting her body fall into his while he hugs her. She loved the way she felt in his arms. Mark was home to her. He was everything. As she turned while holding Mark's hand she noticed that Derek was gone.

"You okay?" Mark asked. "You look like you've just seen a ghost"

"No, I'm fine" she said. "Just tired"

"Perhaps we should get you home and in a bath with a nice glass of wine" mark said.

"I think that would be perfect, as long as you join me" she said with a devilish smile.

It was the exact answer Mark was hoping for. They walked out of the hospital together, and while doing so Meredith never once looked back.