AN: Thank you to the reviewers! I loved your notes and comments. Here is chapter 2

The rest of the week passed by, and I only had to see Mark one more time during Thursday's lab. He wanted to set up more plans, but I was over it. I thought about Derek way too much and figured seeing him again would only make my attraction to him worse. I loved Fridays because I had no classes and Cristina, Izzie and I always grabbed drinks after Cristina's late-night class got out. Later our friends Alex and George were going to join us, and we typically hit a party or two after that. It was always the best initiation into the weekend.

We were a few beers deep when I saw Mark enter the bar and groaned. Of course, Izzie and Cristina were all over it and I regretted ever telling them anything.

"That's him, that's the guy?" Cristina bellowed. She was already way too buzzed for how early it was.

"Ooooo him? Oh Mer, he is very very Steamy." Izzie chimed in nursing her beer with a loud giggle. Izzie drank the least out of all of us, so she was usually on mom duty, taking care of the group and making us food so we wouldn't throw up.

"Shut up please! I already have to deal with him in class. I don't want him to come over." I told them harshly.

"Why not? How is he in bed? He looks like he would be good." Cristina pondered looking him up and down.

"I told you, nothing happened, and nothing will ever happen between me and Mark Sloan."

"That's because Mer likes his friend. Dylan or whatever his name is." Cristina told Izzie as if I wasn't sitting there right beside them.

"In that case, I call dibs on McSteamy." Izzie told us and she was checking him out way too hard. If only she knew what a pain in the ass he could be.

I rolled my eyes "He likes someone else. Don't waste your time."

"How do you know?" Izzie responded

"Yeah Mer, how do you know?" Cristina chimed in.

"Why do I tell you guys anything?" I muttered right when Mark saw me and bee-lined over to our table.

"Meredith Grey" his voice boomed in typical Mark fashion. It was accompanied with a huge smile. God, why did he have to see me.

"Hi Mark" I greeted through gritted teeth only allowing a small, annoyed smile out.

"How's my girlfriend doing?" he asked taking a seat in our booth beside Izzie. This guy could never read the room.

"We're not around your friends." I informed him with an eye roll.

"Not yet, they're on their way over now. How fortunate that I ran into you here." He teased and his eyes glistened with mischief.

"Oh, this is gold" Cristina replied, and Mark turned his attention to her.

"Hello" he greeted grinning at her like a wolf hunting their prey. Typical Mark.

"Oh, don't look at me like that. You're in love remember? With Mer" she piped with a hard laugh. She was loving the predicament I was in.

"Right" he responded with a slight nod.

"This does put me in a tough spot Meredith, I'll have to tell them we broke up if we're both at the same bar and not hanging out with each other." He reasoned.

"So, tell them that." I responded bringing my beer bottle to my lips and taking a sweet swig.

"Oh come on, just play along. It's fun." He continued.

"Yeah, Mer Bear, just play along." Cristina piped again with a laugh. I narrowed my eyes at her. She was after all supposed to be on my side here.

"I want to see Dylan." Izzie chimed in watching the door.

"Derek" I muttered correcting Izzie.

"Seems our little Meredith has feelings for my best friend Derek." Mark told the group.

"As if you're not in love with your best friend's girlfriend." I hit back.

"I'm not in love with anyone other than you, darling. That's why I'm here meeting your friends. You two should tag along for the night."

"Okay" Izzie responded quickly with a grin.

"I'm so down" Cristina told him, and he smiled at both of them.

I was about to protest when Derek and Addison suddenly popped into view getting close to our table. I didn't even see them come in.

"Hey" I heard Derek greet us and looked up to see him looking at me.

"Hey" I offered with a smile.

Cristina started laughing and I kicked her under the table.

"Is this Dylan?" Izzie asked hopefully.

"Derek" both Mark and I corrected her at the same time.

Derek and Addison looked puzzled.

"I invited Meredith and her friends out too. I hope that's not a problem." Mark told his friends.

"It's fine." Addison replied quickly and Derek smiled at me again.

"Good to see you again Meredith." Derek told me softly.

"You too, Um both of you." I replied nervously to both Derek and Addison.

"Derek, I need a drink." Addison told him nudging to the bar and ignoring what I said.

"We'll be back." He told the group looking around, but his eyes landed lastly on me, and he offered an apologetic smile.

"She's McBitchy" Izzie told everyone with a grin pleased with her nickname and characterization of Addison.

"She has the hots for Mark and I'm in the way of that so" I told Izzie seriously.

"She does not." Mark groaned.

I gave him a look and rolled my eyes.

"Darling, can I get you another beer?" Mark played. I could tell he was trying to pull me out of my annoyance, and I decided to play along.

"Yes and hurry up because I'm almost done with this one." I told him and watched as he scurried off to the bar easing up beside Derek and Addison.

"Okay, so I have no idea why you're not into him Mer. He is perfect!" Izzie exclaimed.

"He's really not." I told her looking over at Mark with Addison and Derek. Derek had his back turned to me and was talking to the bartender. I heard him laugh and run his hand through his hair. God, why did I have to run into him again. He turned to the side and caught me looking at him and offered me a grin. I smiled back and when Addison caught him looking, he quickly averted his gaze.

"What was that?" Cristina asked looking between Derek and me.

"What?"

"I knew you liked him but Mer, I think he's into you." Cristina exclaimed.

"He's not. He's with Addison."

"For now. I caught that look too and let's just say McDreamy has the dreamy eyes for Mer" Izzie chimed in.

"Will you two please just shut up." I told them exasperated. All I wanted was a fun night with my friends.

"Here you are babe" Mark said setting a beer down in front of me with Addison and Derek tagging along.

"Thanks" I told him with a forced smile. I can't believe I got conned into this all over again.

"Izzie, will you kindly let me sit next to my girlfriend?" Mark asked. He was really laying it on thick.

Izzie moved out of the booth to let Mark sit next to me and it annoyed me slightly when he put his arm around me.

"Well, isn't this cozy." Addison remarked as her and Derek squeezed into the booth with Izzie now on the outer end.

"So Mer, how did you and Mark meet again?" Cristina asked with a shit eating smile.

I rolled my eyes "Lab" I answered shortly.

"How did you ask her out Mark?" Izzie asked with a smile playing along with Cristina's game.

"Meredith was the one who asked me out. It was cute really." Mark chimed and pulled me closer to him annoyingly.

This guy was pushing his luck.

"Really?" Derek asked in disbelief.

"Yeah… I did. I couldn't resist his charm or whatever." I told the group.

"Where did you go on your first date?" Addison chimed seemingly taking pleasure in this conversation that was making me very uncomfortable.

"Uh, I don't remember babe. You tell them."

"We got lunch on campus." Mark filled in. Lying was getting easier and easier.

"Romantic" Addison chimed sarcastically.

"It was actually. Mark surprised me with flowers and strawberry ice-cream and afterwards he walked me to class." I lied easily taking pleasure in Addison's anguish.

I kissed Mark on the cheek to further my point. My eye caught Derek's and for some reason I felt guilty when I saw how he looked between us.

We chatted for a while longer and all finished our drinks.

After a while we all decided to make our way over to Derek and Mark's place and our friends George and Alex were going to bring beer and meet us over. As the night went on, we got drunker and drunker. Cristina and I danced on Mark and Derek's table, and we seemed to somehow get the whole group to take Tequila shots with us.

Around midnight, Cristina ended up calling her boyfriend Owen and they left early. Izzie and Alex left together, and George got too drunk and passed out on Mark and Derek's couch.

Addison and Derek got into a massive fight, and she ended up leaving to meet with some friends. The more Mark drank the worse mood he seemed to get into, and he eventually went to his bedroom leaving Derek and I alone with a snoring George on the couch.

I wasn't sure if I should leave as well, but I couldn't leave my friend alone and I was still buzzing from all the Tequila consumed.

Derek headed to the fridge and handed me a beer and I sat down on his living room floor bringing the bottle to my lips. He joined me and smiled at me deeply nursing his own beer. My free hand toyed with the carpet. This place was pretty clean for a guy's apartment. We didn't speak for a good moment, both deep in our thoughts, both nursing our beers.

"Are you okay?" I asked leaning closer to him and breaking the silence.

He ran his hand through his hair and looked up at the ceiling. I followed his gaze seeing what was up there, but it was just the fan. He looked deep in thought.

"Why wouldn't I be, okay?" he finally answered looking back at me with a sheepish grin.

"Your fight with Addison? The thing with your sister?" I supplied. We talked as if we had years of friendship built up and not that we were still two strangers who had just met a week ago.

"Addison and I fight all the time and my sister is doing better." He answered smiling at me.

"Good. I mean about your sister. Not so good about the whole fighting all the time with your girlfriend" I rambled and heard him laugh.

"You ramble and it's very cute, but I knew what you meant."

I couldn't help but grin at him catching his eyes and looking deeper than I wanted to into them. When I realized we were staring at each other a little too hard, I physically pulled my body away from him and I saw him do the same.

"Derek, I think I might be drunk." I told him and he looked back over to me dreamily.

"Meredith, I think I might be too." He answered and I could hear the slight slur in his voice. We had drank a lot tonight.

"Do you know what I like to do when I'm drunk?" I asked him seriously.

"What?" he asked looking at me again with this look in his eyes that I can't explain. It was as if I was the one who set the moon.

"Dance" I told him playing with my phone and pulling up my favorite music APP.

When the song started playing, I stood up and twirled around with the music. I watched Derek looking up at me with a grin on his features. He didn't take his eyes off me, and I couldn't keep my eyes off him as I danced around the living room. My short lavender dress made a circle as I twirled, and I wasn't thinking about the fact that Derek probably saw my thong as I did it. It was a very flowy bohemian style halter dress with an open back. It already didn't leave much to the imagination. He followed my every move around the living room floor with his gaze and seemed to stare hungrily at me. I watched him look at my legs, my chest, my face all while his eyes held a stormy look. At one point, I was in my own world feeling the music and having a blast. Derek's laugh was its own music to me and I hadn't been this happy in a long time. Derek never took his eyes off of me as he drank her beer and enjoyed my company dancing around his living room.

The song ended and a slower one started playing. I should have probably changed it or sat back down but instead I invited Derek to dance with me.

"I don't dance" he protested but his eyes were smiling even if his lips were refusing me.

"Oh, come on, one song." I begged and pleaded with my eyes.

He took a deep breath. "One song" he told me, and I giggled with excitement reaching down to pull him up. He grabbed my hand and accepted the help.

I felt Derek wrapped an arm around my waist and held my hand with his other free hand. Derek pulled me so close to him that I could feel his heartbeat rapidly in his chest. I was sure that mine was doing the same. He danced me around the living room, and I could feel his hands moving lower and lower as his eyes held mine. It felt good to be this close to him, but I was afraid of how alive he made me feel. Time seemed to stop and all that mattered was how close and in sync our bodies were to each other. We couldn't tear our eyes away and Derek looked at me as if he wanted me against his bedroom wall.

The song seemed to go on forever, but time sped up when you were in the arms of the person who you wanted to be with. Or atleast, it did for me.

"It's probably not the best idea to be dancing with my best friend's girlfriend like this." He muttered huskily looking between my eyes and lips. If I closed the distance, our lips would meet, and I knew there would be no more self-control between us. We would tear each other's clothes off and fuck the rest of the night away.

"Probably not." I replied matching his tone. I wondered if he could tell what I was thinking about.

"Tell me you're not in love with Mark" he whispered, and I felt his grip tighten almost possessively. There was a shred of self-control left.

"Tell me you're not in love with Addison" I challenged him staring deeply into his eyes and seeing a wanting in them.

Hearing her name seemed to bring him back to reality and he straightened dropping his hands almost reluctantly from around me.

"We've had a lot to drink tonight." He muttered turning around and picking up his beer from the floor.

"Seriously?" I challenged him. He was going to blame this attraction on the alcohol when truthfully, I knew it existed between us even sober.

He turned back and looked at me and the look on his face was of one being tortured.

"Meredith I- When I'm around you, I feel-"

"I know" I replied knowing exactly what he was going to say and exactly what he felt. I couldn't explain this either. It was more than attraction, but he was with Addison, and he didn't know that I wasn't really with Mark.

"But, we're friends. We're just friends."

"Just friends" I repeated crestfallen.

"Yeah" he told me and the look he held again was of agony.

"Mark and I are just pretending. We're not together." I told him

"Okay" he answered with a faraway look in his eyes as if he was somewhere else.

"Since we're friends, I just. I wanted you to know that." I told him as I watched his face.

He nodded. "I have to see this thing through with Addison." He told me as if he hated himself for saying it.

"Okay" I told him nodding. My heart was broken.

AN: Please review!