Early the next morning, after the talking and the drinking, Meredith found herself waking up with an arm wrapped tightly around her waist. She hesitated for a second, but as soon as she realized that it was Derek grabbing onto her she snuggled up closer to his warmth. She knew that there was a chance this was going to end how it had before, but she was ready this time. She had never been ready before, but this time she was. She was ready. She was ready to give all of herself to him.
As she started to doze off again when she woke up to the sound of her pager going off on the nightstand next to Derek. He grunted, grabbed the pager, and handed it to her. She looked at it, unable to read it at first. She squinted her eyes to see that it was for Derek's sister, but not bad news. She had woken up.
"Derek," she rubbed his shoulder lightly to which he grunted again. "Der, wake up."
"It's early," he moaned. "So early."
"I know, but Nancy woke up," she sat up, "Do you want to go see your sister?"
He nodded his head and sat up next to her, taking her hand and pulling her closer to him so he could kiss her. Of course staying in bed and spending the morning together sounded great, but they needed to get up. "Enough," she giggled between kisses. He didn't say anything, just pressed her back down and pinned her between him and the mattress with a smile plastered to his face.
"We have a few minutes," he said kissing her neck, sending a shiver throughout her body. He ran his hand up her naked thigh.
"Derek," she whispered, her breath hitching as she felt his hand sneak between her legs. "We shouldn't."
"I think we should," he kissed her again. He knew how to make her melt. He could keep her in his arms forever if he wanted to.
He gently rubbed her, making her want more. He slipped a few fingers inside and she shifted her hips towards him. It didn't take long for her to come from his talented hands. As soon as she regained control of her body, her shaky hands found his chest and pushed him onto his back. "We shouldn't be doing this," she informed him.
"I don't see us stopping," he joked. She smiled, and took his erection into her hands, feeling him. She shifted up, and slid onto him. He groaned from the early morning contact. "God, Mer," he moaned. They didn't hold back, moving quickly, frantically focused on reaching the high. As soon as they did, they both knew they had to get up and get ready.
They showered and grabbed a bowl of cereal, eating faster than usual, but they had already wasted any extra time they had in bed. They were about to walk out of the house when Derek turned around, "This is for real, right?"
"What?" she looked confused.
"Us. We are for real. This is really happening." It was a statement, but more of a question.
"This is really happening."
He pulled her into him for a hug. He softly kissed the top of her head. It was almost hard for him to believe that this was reality, and not a dream.
"We better get going," she motioned towards the car. It didn't take long for them to reach the hospital, and as soon as they reached the surgical floor, Christina looked at them, knowing that something was up.
"Meredith," she grabbed her arm, and pulled her aside. "What are you doing?"
"Going to see Nancy. I got a page, she's awake," Meredith confirmed.
"No, what are you doing with McDreamy? You look all atwitter with love again. You're walking in sync and he is looking at you like…like he's sleeping with you." It was quiet for a second as she searched her friend's eyes for a reason to believe she was wrong, but there was none. "You're sleeping with him."
"I'm sleeping with him."
"And Trevor?"
"I'm going to talk to him."
"I can't believe this, Mer. We came here to get away from our problems, and you're letting him ruin that."
Meredith knew that her friend was right, but it was different this time. It was something she couldn't explain. "I know, but I just…I can't stay away from him."
Christina gave up, "Alright," she said defeated. "Go to your McDreamy." It put a small smile on Meredith's face.
She walked back over to where Derek was standing, waiting for her, "Alright, let's go."
"What was that about?"
"Christina intervention."
"Ah, and what's the conclusion?"
"She knows. Apparently I look too happy," she laughed. To anyone that knew her they knew it was out of the norm for her to look 'too happy'. "I think she's ok with it."
"Well I'm glad she's ok with it."
She felt a sense of relief. She didn't want to have to keep this from her best friend, "Me too."
They walked slowly to Nancy's room. They both were in no rush, taking each other's presence in. It was something that they both wanted to last. The feeling was new, but familiar.
They entered Nancy's room, and even they could sense the happiness radiating from the two of them. Carolyn looked at Derek and gave him an approving smile.
"How are you feeling?" Meredith asked Nancy.
"My head hurts, but I think that's to expect."
"It is," Derek interjected. He went over and personally checked up on Nancy's stats. "You look like you're doing well, though. Everything looks great."
Meredith sat back and watched him take charge. He really was her knight and shining whatever.
"When can I get out of here?" Nancy asked.
"Not for a few more days," Meredith told her. "We are going to need to monitor you for the next couple of days, but it shouldn't be too long."
"Good. I've never been a fan of hospital food," Nancy joked.
"Nobody is," Derek laughed. He turned to his mom, "You can go home, get some rest. I'll stay here with her for the day until Kathleen gets here tonight."
His mom nodded, "Alright." She walked over to her daughter and kissed her. "I'll be back tonight."
Nancy quickly fell back asleep. "You don't have to stay," Derek told Meredith.
"It's fine. I want to stay. I start work in an hour anyways."
He nodded and sat down on the couch that was in the room. Meredith sat down next to him, and leaned against his shoulder. They turned on the tv and both drifted asleep. They both were beyond happy that they were there, together. It was something they wouldn't ever again take for granted.