A/N: Beware the angst. It's coming. Along with the arrival of Addison. Purely coincidence, I swear. Okay, so maybe not. My Addie rocks though. She's strong and independent and she doesn't waste time with men who don't want her. She's moved on, just like Derek. That doesn't mean these two won't be toying with each other though. A simple misunderstanding will cause a lot of conflict and Derek will play on Addison's weakness for him to his advantage. Updates are coming a bit slower now, due to the fact that I am starting an outline that Grand Delusions has been kind enough to help me co-write. We'll be putting out a brand new Alternate Universe soon! If you haven't read her stories yet, I highly recommend you do. She was one of my biggest influences to start writing for Grey's.

Derek returned to work the next day amidst the chaos that was now ensuing. Word about him and Meredith had spread like wildfire. Whenever he and Meredith were even in the same vicinity of each other, the looks and the whispers abounded. She, for the most part, took it in stride. He caught her many times rolling her eyes at the immaturity of their co-workers and peers. Of course tongues wagged even more when Izzie came around. It was just his bad luck that he happened to be stuck in the same elevator with Dr. Stevens at the current moment. He didn't so much as acknowledge her presence, just viciously stabbed the button for the floor he was going to.

" What you're doing is wrong you know, " Izzie spoke after a brief moment.

" I beg your pardon? "

" You and Meredith. It's wrong. You shouldn't be leading her on. She actually thinks you two have a relationship and that you're in love with her. "

Derek quickly hit the emergency stop button, startling the blonde haired woman beside him. The bell rang loudly, but he paid it no attention.

" Not that it's any of your business, Dr. Stevens, but I'd like to clarify a few things. I'm not leading her on. I'm not using her. We do have a relationship. And I am in love with her. We're not ashamed of it. We just kept it out of work because we are professionals and we didn't want people like you passing judgment on us."

That said, he started the elevator back up, not sparing the other woman a glance. Izzie wisely kept her mouth shut.

" Can I talk to you? "

Meredith whirled around to find Izzie standing uncomfortably behind her.

" I'm busy right now."

" It'll only take a minute, I promise."

" Okay, you have sixty seconds. Make it quick. I have patients to check on. "

" I'm sorry, Meredith. Really sorry. I jumped to conclusions without knowing all the facts. I just assumed that you were with him to get ahead in your career. I guess I just never thought you two might actually care about each other. "

Meredith softened and looked at her kindly.

" We do. I tried to tell you. It's not about the surgeries or the sex. It's just about us."

" I know that now. Dr. Shepherd made that very clear."

" Derek talked to you? "

" We were in the elevator together and I said something stupid. He clarified a few things for me."

Meredith smiled, amused. Derek didn't like hospital gossip anymore than she did. Well, at least not when they were the topic of choice.

" Anyways, I just wanted to say I was sorry. You're right. I was jealous. "

" Apology accepted. Friends? "

" Friends, " Izzie said, relieved.

Derek was standing at the nurse's station looking over a chart when he saw Burke approaching from the corner of his eye. Great. Just who he wanted to see.

" I've got to hand it to you, Dr. Shepherd. You sure do know how to liven up a hospital, " Burke said with a smirk.

" Ah. Dr. Burke. I see you listen to hospital gossip."

" Are you denying it? "

" Not in the slightest. I just choose to keep my personal life personal."

Burke nodded thoughtfully and Derek waited for him to give him some kind of lecture on impropriety.

" That night at the hospital. She was the girl waiting at your office."

Derek nodded.

" I thought she looked familiar. I didn't want to say anything though."

Now, Derek was puzzled. Burke gave him a slight nod before continuing on his way.

" Dr. Burke, " He called after him.

Burke turned around, a questioning look on his face.

" Why didn't you say anything? I mean surely, that would have helped clinch your getting Chief of Surgery. "

Burke didn't answer right away, just looked at him for a moment.

" You're not the only attending to have made this mistake, " He said before walking away.

Derek watched after him, lost in thought.

" So Izzie apologized to me. " Meredith had crept up on him from behind as he was coming from a patients room. She fell in step beside him and he feigned surprise.

" Huh. Imagine that. Wonder what brought that on, " Derek's voice betrayed nothing.

Meredith laughed and shook her head at him, both of them knowing exactly what had brought up on Izzie's change of heart.

" Have a good day, Dr. Shepherd, " She said teasingly as she slipped into her own patient's room.

" You too, Dr. Grey. "

Cristina Yang considered herself to be a lot of things, but the maternal type was not one of them. So when the stick turned blue on her, there was no doubt in her mind what she needed to do. She couldn't have a child. She was a surgeon and just starting her internship, there was no possible room for motherhood. She felt a small pang of sympathy for the child that would never get a chance at life. She wasn't a cold hearted person, she just simply couldn't afford to have this baby right now. Especially not a baby that was conceived with her boss.

It was one of the reasons she didn't have a problem with Meredith and Derek. How could she be angry at Meredith for sleeping with her boss when Cristina was sleeping with Burke? At least Meredith and Derek were in a relationship, as opposed to Cristina and Burke who were just in Cristina's mind, scratching an itch. Dragging a child into that wouldn't be fair and she couldn't afford to lose the time at work.

Cristina tossed the two tests into the trash can with a sound of disgust and went to bed.

One week later:

Hitting the button on the alarm, Meredith reached behind her and came in contact with Derek's leg. She shook it gently, attempting to wake him. His eyes opened blearily and he threw his arm over them. Meredith rolled towards him and he pulled her onto his chest, kissing her collarbone.

" It's five thirty and I have pre-rounds. You have to get up, " She told him groggily. He groaned against her shoulder and before rolling over and pinning her underneath him.

" I am up, " He leered at her.

She laughed and playfully pushed him off her and reached for her clothes.

" I'm serious. Bailey will have my head if I'm late, " Meredith quickly moved out of the way as he reached for her again.

" I'll tell Bailey you were assisting me with a complicated procedure, " Derek offered.

Meredith snorted.

" I don't see her buying that."

Derek sighed sadly and sat up in the bed.

" Yeah. Me either. "

This was not turning out to be a good morning for Derek. Meredith had refused his offer that they conserve water by showering together, saying she didn't need to be any more late than she already was. He didn't have to be in for another hour or so which allowed him to take his time getting ready. Richard wanted to meet with him this morning and Derek assumed it had something to do with the rumors abounding through the hospital of his personal relationship with Meredith. Richard had always hated gossip.

It made him glad that he had informed his boss of his relationship with Meredith before it became public knowledge. He didn't want to imagine what kind of wrath he might have ensued otherwise. At least he knowing Richard wouldn't have been blindsided. He had nothing but respect for his mentor. It would have been a slap in Richard's face had he kept it a secret.

He turned to leave the bathroom when a bright shade of blue caught his eye in the trashcan. Bending down to examine it more closely, he realized instantaneously what it was. A home pregnancy test. Gingerly, he lifted the box from the trash and shook it. It rattled. Opening it up, two tests fell out. He looked at the results, stunned.

Meredith was pregnant?

He was still in shock when he arrived at the hospital. The more he thought about it though, the more it made sense. They'd thought she had the flu, but even now she still had trouble keeping food down. She was consistently tired, but he had blamed that on the hours she was working. It wasn't possible though, was it? He could only recall a few times in which they hadn't been careful, but Meredith had told him herself she was on the pill.

Which brought him to next his next question. Why hadn't she told him as soon as she found out? Was she afraid of how he would react? Was she even planning on telling him? Kids weren't exactly something the two of them had discussed. It just hadn't seemed necessary. They were both using forms of birth control, so it was obviously something neither one of them really were expecting. He just knew as soon as his meeting was over he needed to find her and they needed to talk.

Richard's secretary had waved him in, but she'd looked at him oddly when he first arrived. Apparently, gossip made it's way up here too. He opened the door to Richard's office feeling a lot more confident than he felt.

" You wanted to see me, " He said when Richard looked up at him.

" Ah, yes. Come in and have a seat. There's a few things we need to discuss, " Richard said seriously.

" Look, Chief, I know what you're going to say and I'm sorry I turned this hospital into something resembling General Hospital for a couple of days, but it's taken care of , " Derek apologized as he took a seat.

" Actually, I didn't bring you in here to discuss your love life. We both know you two weren't going to be able to keep it a secret forever. "

" Oh. What'd you want to see me about then? "

" A couple things. I'm really hoping one won't affect the other here, Shep, " Richard joked half heartedly.

" Okay. Lay it on me."

" I'll start with the first problem. It doesn't leave this office either. I've been having headaches, trouble focusing, along with blurred vision. I dropped a retractor in the OR this morning. It just simply slipped from my hands. "

The doctor in Derek took over and the two proceeded to discuss what type of counter measures to take. Which is why he noticed his boss looked extremely nervous about the next thing they had to discuss.

" I also brought you in here because I wanted to give you a head's up, " Richard's voice changed from professional to one of a kind friend.

Derek didn't like where this was going.

" I'm bringing in someone to helm the T.T.S case admitted earlier in the week. I need the best, Derek, and she is the best, "

He didn't have to say who "she" was. He already knew.