A/N: More than 100 Reviews! Yay! Here's more as promised…
Chapter 23: Comfortable
They were about to go downstairs when Derek stopped Meredith from opening the door, "You don't have to go downstairs right now. I do, because it's my family, but you can stay up here." Meredith smiled, "So, I can take a nap?" Derek laughed, "Yeah, you can. Do you want me to bring anything up to you for lunch?" "No, I just need some sleep. Wake me up in an hour okay?" she said. He kissed her forehead, "I love you." Derek went downstairs to spend some time with his sisters and mom and dad while Meredith rested.
When he got downstairs, his family seemed really relaxed and not at all upset that he and Meredith had missed lunch. "Where's Meredith?" his dad asked, putting the leftover food in the refrigerator. "She's taking a nap. Running around with the kids outside really wore her out." After he helped put the rest of the stuff away, Emily pulled him aside. "Derek, we talked to mom. She promises to be nice to Meredith. And she said that she's sorry for being like that she just doesn't want you to get hurt." Derek knew deep down that his mother had good intentions and that she wasn't trying to drive Meredith away. She had done this with all his girlfriends especially since Addison. It reminded Derek of how Jason had treated him when they all first met.
An hour later, Derek went upstairs to wake Meredith up. She looked so comfortable that he felt bad waking her but he knew that she wanted to spend more time to get to know his family. He sat down on the bed next to her and gently tapped her on the shoulder, "Meredith, wake up." She woke up easily and sat up, sleep still in her eyes, "Hey Der." He smiled realizing that she was only half awake, "Ready to come downstairs?" She nodded and he helped her out of bed, and they headed downstairs holding each others hands.
They came downstairs and sat down on the couch next to each other and they all started talking. "So," Derek's dad asked, "Tell us more about being a teacher Meredith." Meredith had liked Billy since the moment she met him. He seemed like a really warm person. Her mother had seemed the same way but didn't end up that way. Meredith couldn't hold it against Katherine though, because she was just doing what a mother is supposed to do. Meredith loved Derek too much to hold anything against any member of his family. Meredith told her father how she had become a teacher. She hadn't always wanted to be one but when she found out that her brother was having a baby and met the baby, she decided that she wanted to be around children.
They all enjoyed their conversation. Katherine even participated in the conversation without having anything bad to say to Meredith. "Karen's going to be here for dinner, so, what do you all want to have? I don't really want to cook again," she said. They decided to order a pizza and Meredith offered to make a salad. She went into the kitchen with Jen, who could tell her where everything was. "Thank you Jen. For giving me a Derek some alone time this afternoon. We really need it," Meredith said as she took a big bowl out of the cupboard. Jen got the lettuce and other vegetables and sat down on one of the stools at the counter, "No need to thank me. I know what it's like bringing somebody home and having your family interrogate them it's not a good feeling. Derek loves you and wants you to be comfortable here. It's the least I can do." Meredith smiled, and didn't know what to say. She really liked Derek's sisters because they knew they cared about him and wanted him to be happy.
Meredith finished making the salad and put it in the refrigerator while they waited for the pizza to come. Derek came in as she was finishing and gave her a big hug. "What was that for?" she asked. "For putting up with my family," Derek answered. "Derek, I really like them. Despite you're mom's doubts, everybody has been so welcoming so there is no need to apologize," Meredith said. Derek kissed the top of her head, and then took her hand and walked them back into the living room. "Thank you for making the salad, honey," Derek's mother said. Meredith smiled at Katherine with a feeling that things were going to get better.
Just as they were starting to talk, the doorbell rang and Derek got up to get it. He went and opened the door to let his sister Karen and her family in. Her husband, Jack, couldn't come because he was on a business trip but she brought her too kids, Joshua who was 5 and Chelsea who was 2. Derek gave each of the kids of a kiss as they ran in to the den to play with all their cousins. "Meredith, this is my last sister, Karen," he said introducing them. Meredith gave her a hug, "It's so nice to meet you." Karen agreed, "You too. Sorry about my kids, not saying hello, Joshua is 5 and Chelsea is 2." Meredith laughed, "Don't worry about it, their kids, they want to play." Karen knew immediately that she liked Meredith.
About 15 minutes later, the pizza was delivered and everybody went into the dining room and sat down at the table to eat. Meredith served that salad that she had made and was glad that everybody was enjoying it because it was just about the only thing that she knew how to make. They ate almost all of the pizza and had a lot of fun talking and laughing during dinner. Every couple of minutes Derek would reach over and squeeze Meredith's hand or put his arm around her. This was the first night since they had gotten to Maine that Meredith felt comfortable.
A/N: I'm not sure if I'll have another update tonight. Depends on a few things so…review!