Disclaimer: Don't own either show. Never will and I don't intend it to be. I wanna be on both, though… Can you really blame me?
A/N: I will continue to have a chapter summary, if you guys want that. I have explained everything in my own private review for this story in the "Grey's Anatomy" category so if Brennan cries too much, read that. I can't guarantee the chapters will be shorter or that it will be finished some time this year or maybe even next year but what I can say is that it's going to be a thrill ride! Cheesy but yeah… Oh…and another thing I thought I should mention. Brennan, her team and Booth are all roughly 26 - 28 to fit Meredith's age since they were born on the same day, Temperance and Meredith, I mean. Just so you know.
A/ON: I have shoulder and neck pain which is killing me, maybe even making this story have an even longer time till it's finished ! I will try to get this story finished and for all those people who want cookies and chocolate, they're over there (points to a table with 6 boxes of cookies and chocolate)
Chapter 4: Daddy?
It had been a long week for everyone, especially for Temperance and her team with some hardship for Meredith and co.
The lead for Rory's murder ended at Calvin's disappearance 14 years ago, which came as no surprise to anyone, especially the whole of the Grey-Brennan family.
Chelsea and Sean popped over to the house often, always unexpected but never unwelcome. They both supplied additional help about the case and emotional help for Temperance.
Temperance, although she cried, had slowly and steadily regained the person she was comfortable being here, in Seattle, Washington, with her family and friends to support her in every decision she made.
Today was a weird day. How it was, no one knew. But something everyone sensed in the morning told them that it would be.
Booth woke up and the first thing he did was check up on Parker. That was his thing and he smiled as he watched Parker sleep. It was 6:30 after all.
He, then, walked inside Temperance's room to watch her sleep. He was mildly surprised at the light purple walls and the creamy purple queen sized double satin sheeted bed. He didn't really take his partner as a satin sheeted girl.
What shocked him, however, was the fact that Temperance wasn't actually sleeping, as her empty bed indicated.
He knew that he couldn't control her. She was the most independent woman he had ever met in his whole life but that didn't mean that he didn't worry all the more.
He admired her. That itself was obvious enough for anyone to see, even for strangers. He had a fierce loyalty towards her, often interpreted by her as an "alpha male" characteristic, often very annoying, especially when it came to boyfriends.
Both of these things were easy enough for her to see. What was unable to be seen was he love and dedication for her. Reason? She had the exact same feelings.
Booth frowned deeply as he made his way downstairs on a mission to find what Temperance was doing out of her bed at 6:30 am when everyone else, to the great extent of his knowledge, were asleep.
He was about to go insane when he didn't find her downstairs when he heard song "What goes around…comes around" by Justin Timberlake, blaring in the garage.
He, with all his stealth skills, crept to the garage and found Temperance and Meredith practicing gymnastics on the bars and on the mats.
A smile formed gently on his lips as he watched them before he spoke.
"I never took you as gymnast who sleeps in purple satin sheets, Bones." Booth grinned, almost making the pair fall off the bars in shock.
Temperance and Meredith quickly regained their balance before they landed on the mats, in perfect rhythm, both shooting glares at the FBI agent.
"I have a lot of secrets, Booth. I don't expect everyone to know everything I do, save maybe Merry, my family, Sean and Chelsea. Not even Angela knows everything about me." Temperance replied softly, doing the splits which made Booth wince.
Booth nodded when a whole cabinet full of trophies and medals caught his eye.
The two women watched as he made his way towards the cabinet and opened it.
"They are all our medals that we've achieved over the past 20 years. We started all our things when I was 6, the time dad brought me and Russ here to Seattle, out of foster care." Temperance and Meredith made their way towards the cabinet.
Booth observed the awards, medals, trophies and cups that were all on display and found most were for archery, horse riding and gymnastics, which surprised him a lot.
"Most of the gymnastics are for the both of us. We competed as a double act most times, unless one of us was not up to the whole tournament one year. That was usually me so Tempe went. Never missed a year." Meredith smiled proudly at Temperance who beamed widely back, giving Booth the idea of how strong the connection between the two sisters was.
"Merry never competed in archery so all the archery ones are mines, as well as the taekwondo, judo, karate and all the various martial arts. We competed in gymkhanas, though." Temperance put in as Booth picked up an archery trophy with Temperance's name in big, gold lettering.
"I can understand why. So, you started everything at the age of 6?" Booth replaced the trophy back in its original place as he turned towards the sisters.
"Yeah. Our whole family wanted to master at something so all the girls started gymnastics at the age of 4-6 while the boys mastered martial arts. I'm the only girl who opted to do both." Temperance shrugged. She was always called a tomboy at school. At home, it was no different.
"She's also good at shooting, as you probably know. She tells me that you were an army ranger." Meredith smiled before she turned her haunting grey-blue eyes towards Booth who gazed simply back.
"I was. Why do you ask?" Booth smiled back, his chocolate brown eyes twinkling.
"Tempe here always lamented that she has, as yet, found a match for a shooting competition." Meredith replied, receiving a glare from Temperance.
"Well…I don't know. Bones is very good at what she puts her mind to. But I don't mind having a shoot out competition." Booth agreed slowly. He wasn't so confident at the moment. He had never seen how good Temperance was so he kept being wary.
"Good! Mama and papa are throwing a party today and they wanted Temperance to have fun. It's a pool party and they've invited everyone." Meredith spoke brightly and happily. She was quite certain that this would be quite a competition.
By this time, everyone had woken up and Angela and Izzie wandered out.
"Hey guys…WOAH! Temperance Allegra Brennan! Why didn't you tell me you did gymnastics?!" Angela asked before she spotted the gymnastics gear.
Temperance and Meredith looked sheepishly on the ground as everyone wandered out at Angela's shouting and gathered around the garage, their mouths all open.
"It's all my past. Oh, by the way. Mom and dad are throwing a pool party tonight and you guys all have to be there. Meredith had the great idea that I would verse Booth in an all out shooting competition." Temperance crossed her arms as she looked at her sister pointedly, annoyed that she had to do this.
Everyone in the Jeffersonian team almost fell over while the interns and Derek frowned, all confused at the whole shock factor.
"I used to be an army sniper for 8 years." Booth explained, making their mouths to all form a perfect o shape.
"And Tempe is the national champion in archery and shooting and has been for the past 8 years. She started when she was 6 years old. This is going to be good." Meredith grinned, making Temperance glare before rolling her eyes.
Temperance turned to face everyone else, knowing that Angela would have to have a few words with her about her past, which was so well hidden that things were only unraveling now.
"You are coming upstairs into your room, right now, Bren!" Angela took Temperance's arm and the two of them ran back inside the house, quickly followed by Meredith and Izzie.
The four of them ran upstairs and into Temperance's room before they slammed the door, locking it in the process.
"Ok. I know you are a very difficult person to know what exactly they're thinking but this just takes the cake! You have being doing archery, shooting and gymnastics for how long?" Angela sighed, running her hand through her hair as Temperance watched her best friend rant on from her place on her bed.
"It's been 20 years. I started a lot of thing when I was only 6 years old. It's a thing that runs in the family. We pick and choose what we wanna do at the age of 6. I chose about 15 things." Temperance explained gently. She decided that Angela did need to know all the things she kept hidden.
Angela gaped open mouthed at her best friends like she was a corpse or something really bad on that line.
"20 years! And you never though, for a single minute of college or work at the Jeffersonian, that you'd tell me until now?" Angela tried her best to be calm for her best friend but right now, she was in total shock and that would take a while.
Temperance shrugged before gazed at Meredith and Izzie in the "you-could-help-me-, you-know?" look.
"Angela. Temperance has her reasons for keeping that secret from you and everyone she works with. You know, as well as I do, that she perceives the past as often someone's downfall and she sees it everyday in her day to day work. It's kind of inevitable for her to do this." Meredith reasoned gently, trying to save Temperance from Angela's friendly glare.
Angela huffed, rolling her eyes and pursing her lips before she spoke.
"Why didn't you tell me and this time, Meredith, don't speak for her. I know she's a strong person who kicked a mafia boss." Angela spoke low, irritated that her best friend, the person she suffered college with, never told her so many things.
Temperance took a long breath and exhaled it slowly, knowing she would have to say this sooner or later to someone not in her family and it might as well be Angela.
"It's always been something that I don't like to say, which you as well as everyone else I know, are a long list of things that I keep to myself. So what if I can shoot at a target while diving into a pool? Those things are unimportant if you want to know the real me. They're just side things that might or might not be good to everyone else around me. I come from a family of heirs and heiresses. It's important to keep a secret as long as possible and so far, I'm the only one who can walk to work and never say a thing while working. It's who I am. Ask anyone in my family. They'll tell you exactly the same things. Telling secrets to people I work with, when I know I don't trust them, is not me. Please try to understand me, Angela." Temperance spoke slowly and in a low voice.
Angela sighed before she crushed Temperance in a loving, friendly hug, squealing low when she felt Temperance return the hug.
"I wish you told me earlier, Bren. We after all, college buddies. Hell, you're the reason why I have my job! I'm really sorry that I was so mad at you just then." Angela smiled wide. She owed a lot to Temperance. She felt really bad for yelling at her.
Temperance gently prized Angela away from her, smiling before she spoke.
"Don't be. You have every right to be angry at me, Ange. I should have told you in college. After all, I did tell you about…him." Temperance smiled, faltering as she got to the end.
Angela nodded but Meredith and Izzie looked confused, making Angela happy that she was the only one who knew that secret.
"Who is he?" Meredith placed her hands on her hips as she faced her step sister with a raised eyebrow.
Temperance bit her lip slowly, gazing at a nodding and smiling Angela who knew exactly what the story was because Angela was the one who comforted her when this whole mess began so many years ago.
She took a deep breath and started to speak, dreading the reactions she would get from Meredith and Izzie. Even worse was how the hell she would tell Booth about this.
"It was when I was at Northwestern, completing my masters and moving onto my doctorate. I met Angela at the start of the year and she and I became best friends. The reason why she has a job at the Jeffersonian was the fact that I was there and Dr Goodman told me that we needed a forensic artist. I had a boyfriend before Michael. Dean Taylor, a 3rd year med student. He was everything I wanted in a guy back then. Smart, charming, funny and gallant. We had a year long relationship and at the end of the year, he proposed to me. Me, being the fool I was, accepted readily. I, by that time, already obtained a job at the Jeffersonian and had a steady income and 22 years of age wasn't a bad age to get married and have children. One day, after class, I got back to the apartment we were sharing. I found clothes strewn haphazardly on the floor, bright pink clothes. I knew at once who would be with Dean, fucking him on our bed. Sure enough, I found Dean and Candy Ryan, my enemy at college, fucking each other on the bed, the satin sheeted bed I gave myself to Dean the previous year. I threw Candy out of our bed by her hair, packed my bags and left. The apartment was mine anyway so I got my landlord, who knew me well and we were close friends, to throw Dean out onto the street the following week. I sold me engagement ring and bought a dress and matching shoes. I still have them. Dean begged me to reconsider, that his time with Candy was only one night but I shut him out. I knew otherwise that he wasn't right for me after we go engaged. Something changed for the worse. After that, I threw myself into my work to get where I am now." Temperance explained, her voice wavering dangerously close to bursting into tears at times.
Meredith and Izzie listened closely, both of them understanding why Temperance had only told, at the present moment, only Angela.
"Why didn't you tell mama, papa or even me before?" Meredith asked gently. She was seething with anger at Dean for breaking her sister's heart.
"And what? Yes, mama and papa donated a large amount of money to Northwestern, therefore we held great power over there but, this was my problem. Dean was my fiancé and like it or not, Candy also comes from a high profile family line. Her family owns three of the major oil companies in the world. She ran to her parents after I threw her out by the hair. Mama and papa helped me then but we had a just-help-but- no-say agreement so they don't know either." This was my problem, Merry, and I dealt with it." Temperance flared angrily back. She hated that point in life.
"Candy Fontana Ryan, the heiress to 3 of the major oil companies, was your enemy in Northwestern?" Izzie frowned softly, her platinum blonde hair almost covering her sky blue eyes.
"Yes. Her parents couldn't do a thing once mama and papa got involved. Oil can have a limit but shipping never does. We have very affluent connections which the whole world does not need to know." Temperance spoke meaningfully and thoughtfully, her sapphire blue eyes blazing with determination and something more.
Meredith gazed at her sister with pride and a touch of awe. She loved that Temperance was so forward and Temperance loved that Meredith was so understanding and worldly.
"True. Some things are best left unsaid until such words are needed. Now is not the appropriate time to discuss such matters." Meredith nodded slightly.
The four women trooped downstairs to find Booth and Derek in the kitchen, cooking edible food as everyone else watched, to their great amusement.
"Look, Dr Bones! Daddy's cooking!" Parker shouted happily in his childish innocence as he spotted Temperance walking downstairs.
The four women watched, smiling at the duo's antics before Angela piped up.
"Are you going to make a move on the knight in shining standard issue FBI body amour or can I take him? 'Cause I will and I might steal McDreamy away from you too, Mer." Angela raised her eyebrows suggestively, making everyone laugh.
"I have worked hard to love Derek as my own. No, Ange. He's mine." Meredith smiled wide with joy and pride. She knew Angela was joking and that gave her comfort.
Derek and Booth spotted the four women, both grinning proudly when they saw the objects of their affections smiling and laughing.
"They're so beautiful." Derek smiled wide as he and Booth leaned on the counter at exactly the same time and similarly.
"Amen. I wouldn't trade them for the world." Booth agreed, his fixed on Temperance's flushed face. He loved her, especially now.
The two men walked up stealth fully and kissed the on they loved on the cheek, sending the twin sisters to jump sky high with the shock.
"Derek!"
"Booth!"
The two men grinned at each other when they saw the stunned and shocked looks on the girls' faces. It was a cheeky but that the hell? You only lived once.
Temperance shot her partner a half-hearted glare. She could never be truly angry at him for doing something so childish with Derek.
Temperance half-heartedly punched Booth on the shoulder, rolling her eyes at him as he gave her a puppy-dog look in return.
"Sooky baby." Temperance replied with a smile nudging on her lips.
Everyone laughed when Booth continued to give Temperance a pouty look as she turned away, mostly to stop herself from laughing.
Eventually, she gave in and laughed along with the rest of them, making Booth and all her team to gaze in shock at her musical and carefree laugh.
"Bones…" Booth was the first to speak, not at all trusting his voice.
Temperance smiled at him before raising her eyebrows to question.
"You were laughing…" Booth replied finally, berating himself about how stupid his own words sounded out of his mouth but he knew that Temperance trusted him the most to give her a straight forward answer.
"So?" Temperance asked lightly. She didn't mind that Booth's question was weird. She was just glad that he asked the question because she trusted him with her life.
"You never laugh at anything, that's all." Booth finally spoke. He knew that Temperance was always going to listen to his words, no matter how they sounded to anyone around them.
Meredith gazed worriedly at her twin sister who smiled even wider.
"I am different at work. You have to be if you want to survive." Temperance replied simply as she ruffled Parker's blonde curls affectionately.
Booth nodded and smiled. He was comfortable with that explanation, for now. He knew that she wasn't the most open person but he was patient. Besides, she was bonding extremely well with Parker so that had to be a good sign.
"What are you doing today?" Meredith asked her twin sister as everyone sat down to eat breakfast of pancakes which Izzie made.
"Angela and I might go down to the mall and pick up some clothes for the pool party or we could go into your room. I don't know about everyone else. I just want to relax today and my publisher is going to kill me if I don't get my book finished." Temperance smiled back, spreading honey over the small butter lump on top of her pile of blueberry pancakes.
"When she realizes who you are, not even heaven will stop mom and dad's wrath." Meredith replied with a wide smile, relaxing in Derek's arms.
Temperance laughed again, trying not to choke on her pancakes.
"Leanne will die either way. She told me over the phone, when I told her that I had to go to Seattle for family business, that she would publish an autobiography because I kept on dropping massive bombshells of shocking information onto her." Temperance finally replied, swallowing deeply on her orange juice to prevent herself from choking.
"Well, you shock everyone with the amount of hidden bombshells you drop, especially us." Angela pointed out; sprinkling chocolate flakes on her pancakes and watching them melt because of the heat.
"That's true. Sorry about that…" Temperance shot Angela her best puppy dog look, making Angela smile wide before hugging her.
"That's OK, Bren. Everyone deserves to have secrets, especially you. As long as you say you're sorry and mean it, that's ok." Angela nodded before releasing Temperance so they could resume eating breakfast.
After breakfast, it was time for Meredith, Izzie, George and Derek to go to work.
"I'll see y'all at the pool party." Meredith smiled, giving her sister a kiss.
The four of them drove in Meredith's SUV to get to Seattle Grace Hospital.
"I'll see you later." Derek smiled as he gave Meredith a gently yet passionate kiss.
"Mmm." Meredith replied, smiling at the kiss and everything she has accomplished this morning with Temperance and Angela.
George, Izzie and Meredith had barely entered the intern locker room when Cristina approached them, a frenzied look on her face.
"Thank god! Mer! Come with me!" Cristina instantly pulled Meredith inside the sleeping room, locking the door behind them.
"Whoa! Where's the major surgery?" Meredith raised her eyebrows, gazing at Cristina with concern as she started to pace.
Cristina continued to pace before she stopped and gazed at Meredith.
"You cannot tell McDreamy about what I'm going to tell you now because he's Burke's friend and Burke will be hurt if I don't tell him directly… Oh god, oh god, oh god!" Cristina blurted, wringing her hands in anxiety.
"Ok! Ok! Tell me, Cristina." Meredith practically yelled. She was stunned. She had never seen Cristina this nervous.
"I'mamom." Cristina spoke rapidly, almost confusing Meredith. Almost.
"What? Are you pregnant again? Because I can't cope with Rory's death, let alone this." Meredith frowned deeply.
"No! I would've said that I'm going to be a mom if that was the case." Cristina corrected herself, getting gradually calmer.
"You have a kid…" Meredith spoke, a question more than a realization.
"So sue me. I have an 11-year-old teenage girl by the name of Cathryn Joan Yang. Here's a photo of her." Cristina handed a photo from her purse to Meredith, a photo that was obviously cherished by Cristina.
Meredith gazed at the picture of an Asian girl with slightly wavy black hair, brightly lit extremely dark brown eyes and a beautiful and genuine smile.
"This was taken last year. Cathy's with mom and my step dad up in Beverley Hills in San Francisco. She sends me emails every week, how she's dying to be a vet and how she wants to come down here and see me…" Cristina explained, taking the photo back.
"But you haven't told Burke about Cathy and you have no idea how to go about telling him that you already have a kid. What about this? Cathy comes over but she stays at my place? No one would mind and George and Izzie can keep their mouths shut, as well as Derek. How good is Cathy with kids?" Meredith suggested lightly.
"She would be a teacher if she couldn't go into veterinary. Why?" Cristina replied proudly. She was always proud of her daughter.
"Because Booth has a kid, Parker and he's staying with us. If I can get Temper and Booth together, we can have a double wedding and Tempe will be Parker's stepmom." Meredith explained, a smile growing as she spoke.
"Cathryn can do that. I want to tell Burke so I can enroll her into a school here. Don't worry; my parents are going to pay for it." Cristina nodded brightly. She was so glad that Meredith could solve her dilemma.
The two of them walked out of the room with matching smiles.
"Oh, that reminds me. Mom and dad are holding a pool party after work. Everyone's going to be there. You an invite Burke if you want. There's dinner provided and Tempe and Booth are going to have a shoot off." Meredith informed Cristina just as they spotted the other with Dr Bailey.
"Sure, I'll be there. I'll tell Burke once I see him." Cristina agreed. She was secretly excited about the pool party, especially the shoot off.
For the remainder of the day, Meredith had an awesome day. She was assigned to Derek for the day and the couple went around to the various neurology patients, further cementing her passion for neurosurgery.
They arrived at their normal place for lunch and found that there was no one there. Not that they really cared.
Ten minutes later, everyone else appeared with their lunch and bored looks on their faces as they sat down to enjoy their lunch.
"What happened to you guys?" Meredith rose an eyebrow as she ate her spaghetti Bolognese she had requested Temperance to make for her in the morning.
"Nothing. There were no surgeries. No nothing." Callie replied dryly. She had been accepted into the group since she was George's girlfriend and Meredith had convinced Izzie to be civil. The pair had found a lot in common and became close friends ever since. It was kind of hard why they didn't think of it earlier.
"Today has been the single most draining day ever." Cristina yawned before someone's pager beeped loudly to alert their owner of their presence.
After rapid fumbling, they saw that the offending pager belonged to Meredith.
Everyone gazed at her as her smile slowly disappeared and a look of panic replaced it.
Meredith hastily packed up her lunchbox, snatched it up and ran back inside the hospital, prompting her friends and Derek to follow her.
After 5 minutes of running, they finally reached a room with a 50-ish woman with long, flowing dark brown hair and emerald green eyes, filled with tears as she gripped the hand of a man lying unconscious on the hospital bed.
As soon as the woman saw Meredith, she let got of the man's hand and flung herself in Meredith's arms, sobbing.
"Oh Meredith!" The woman choked out, tears seeping into Meredith's scrubs.
"Deanna…I'm so sorry…" Meredith comforted the woman as best as she could but everyone could see her barely concealed tears.
Something clicked inside of Derek's mind as the name Deanna registered. He knew exactly who was on the hospital bed and why both women were as distraught as they were.
Suddenly, Jesse and Ellis entered the hospital room, both with stunned looks on their faces, horrified that something tragic had happened to them.
"Jesse…Ellis. You shouldn't have come…" Deanna gazed painfully at her husband's ex-wife and her new husband.
"No…I owe it to Thatcher, to both of you, really. You two helped out when we were in trouble. Now, it's time to return the favor" Ellis shook her head sadly, trying hard to conceal her tears.
Deanna gave Ellis and Jesse a watery smile as she moved to hug the couple.
"Thank you." Deanna whispered softly as she let the tears flow.
"No, thank you. You have been looking after the kids to well, not to mention your own children." Jesse kissed the side of Deanna's cheek affectionately.
The three of them talked while Meredith, Derek and their friends watched with a small smile on their faces.
"What happened to Thatcher, Deanna?" Ellis asked after a while of talking.
Deanna took a shuddering breath, smiling when Meredith nodded. Everyone loved Meredith dearly for how supportive she was to them.
"Thatcher and I had just come from Boston to see Tempe and her team. We're worried about her as well and we heard that you found Rory. Anyway, we were driving to the hospital from the airport when…when a black car ran a red light and slammed into us, critically damaging the driver's side. Thatcher was driving after…after I said I was tired! I can't forgive myself for this!" Deanna took shuddering breaths as she recounted the story, glad that both Ellis and Jesse were with her to help her get through this turbulent time.
Ellis enveloped Deanna into a comforting, 100 genuinely concerned hug. She and Deanna were exceptionally close friends, as close as blood sisters and anyone who gazed at the pair of them would say the same.
"Deanna, there was nothing you could have done to prevent this. The world is not something we can control." Ellis soothed her best friend as she cried for her husband, lying on the hospital bed next to her.
Meredith, Derek and their friends took their leave, Meredith kissing Jesse, Ellis, Deanna and Thatcher on the cheeks before leaving.
Once they walked out of sight and sound of the four, Meredith's shoulder started to heave, making Derek instantly envelop her in his arms.
"Why does this happen to me, Derek? I've already lost dad once before. He had his faults but he and Deanna still love me. Our family has 2 moms and 2 dads, even our youngest siblings…Oh my god, this will hurt Tempe so much, I know it! She's closer to Deanna and Thatcher than I am. She doesn't need another knife in her heart." Meredith sobbed angrily as Derek did his best to comfort her.
3 hours later, they returned to work as normally as they could. Obviously, Meredith was still shell shocked about the accident involving her father and her stepmother that left her father in a coma.
It wasn't long before Bailey noticed something was up with Meredith and she sought her out. Thankfully, she was with Derek on the ceiling of Seattle Grace, trying not to cry but failing miserably.
As soon as Meredith spotted Dr Bailey, she ran and hugged her. What startled Derek even more was the fact that Bailey didn't even hesitate, like she normally would do, as she returned the hug.
"Oh Dr Bailey!" Meredith sobbed as Bailey did her best to comfort her.
"Shush child. What's the matter, hmm?" Bailey replied with a gentle look that most people would never see and no one ever associated with the 'Nazi'.
Meredith sniffed as she gazed at Bailey with puffy eyes and jewel like tears in her haunting grey-blue eyes.
"Dad's here…with a coma, auntie." Meredith explained, even more tears rolling out of her eyes onto her already tear drenched face.
Derek got the impression that there was many folds in Meredith's life that were, quite frankly, extremely hard to explain properly.
Bailey's face instantly morphed into one of shock and sympathy as she gazed once more at Meredith, something Derek had never seen before.
"Oh sweetie! You parents must be devastated, not to mention Deanna. You be brave for them, won't you? Tempe should be told about this." Bailey soothed as she stroked Meredith's honey blonde hair gently.
Meredith nodded in reply. Her problem now was how she would tell Tempe.
Derek, Meredith and Bailey walked down to the interns' locker room, Bailey and Derek talking about things that, they hoped, would keep Meredith's mind off her comatose father in a hospital bed.
They continued to talk until Meredith and Derek's shifts were over. Luckily, none of the trio was paged during the 30 minutes, which, they suspected, was due to the notification of the news to the chief.
Meredith, Derek and their friends went back home in the SUV, changing into their bathers and drove to Jesse and Ellis' mansion.
"No one is to mention anything about mom and dad to Tempe. She needs to hear it from me or otherwise, I know she'll be so hurt." Meredith informed everyone as soon as they reached the gates of Tesla mansion.
Everyone nodded. They knew that it they were in that situation, they would be the most grateful if a family member told them.
They found the team from the Jeffersonian and Parker near the pool, laughing about things. They saw Cristina and Burke there as well, both of them relaxed as they talked to Angela and Jack about all kinds of things.
"Hey Mer! How was your day?" Temperance rushed over to her sister, a wide smile gracing her lips and her sapphire blue eyes sparkling.
"Excellent! There were some really amazing surgeries today. You should really come!" Meredith smiled as best as she could, a smile that she knew Temperance would believe as she had used this exact smile many times before.
The hours ticked by fast. Booth and Temperance had 6 draws in their shoot-off. Temperance even demonstrated her jump into a pool and shoot trick, hitting the bulls eye every single time, making Parker shout happily.
After dinner, Meredith and Temperance decided to take a walk about Tesla mansion to enjoy the night air.
"What a beautiful night." Temperance breathed softly, her sapphire blue eyes sparkling brightly as she surveyed her surroundings.
"Yes…it is." Meredith replied wistfully, sitting down on a marble chair that faced the pool and all its beautiful surroundings.
The two sisters watched the stars twinkling, enjoying the view as they said nothing.
"Tempe…please listen to me about what I have to tell you now." Meredith started to speak, tears reappearing in her eyes as she played with the hem of her shirt.
"Ok…" Temperance replied cautiously.
"I saw dad today, as well as Deanna. They were in the hospital. They're here because they wanted to see you but…something happened to them. Tempe, I don't know how to say it but…Deanna and dad was involved in a car accident and now…now dad's in a coma, lying in Seattle Grace." Meredith spoke softly, tears making their way down her face and splashing onto her shirt.
Temperance was silent as she closed her eyes, trying to absorb her sister's words. She didn't want to believe those words but…
"You're lying! You're…you're playing a game with me, just like Booth does!" Temperance gasped, tears appearing in her eyes, hastily standing up from her seat.
"Tempe! Oh Tempe! I wish I was! I really wish I was! But, you know I can't lie to you, not ever! It's true! Mom and dad aren't here because they're at the hospital with daddy and Deanna…I'm sorry!" Meredith screamed, tears falling rapidly for the 3rd time for her today.
At Meredith's words, Derek and Booth ran to find the two women, tears drenching their faces as they were in a tight hug, pain clear in their faces.
"Why did daddy have to be the one hurt? He's so nice, so happy!" Temperance sobbed as Booth helped her up and hugged her.
"I don't know, Bones. I'm so sorry." Booth whispered, trying to calm her down as Derek did the same with Meredith close by.
When it was time for everyone to leave, no one spoke. They heard what happened while the news was broken to Temperance.
Booth comforted Temperance all the way home, Parker helping the best he could. Booth helped her out of the car, tucking Parker in to bed before helping Temperance into her own room.
As he turned to leave, Temperance grasped his arm.
"Don't leave me too, Booth." Temperance whispered hoarsely, making Booth wince at the pain in her words.
Booth nodded, taking off his clothes save his singlet and his boxers before sliding into bed with Temperance, holding her like he would with Parker when he got too scared. He wished this had happened in better circumstances, lying in bed with Temperance and watching her as she slept.
Some day. Booth thought to himself before he slept.