Chapter 8 – Happy together

Imagine me and you, I do

I think about you day and night, it's only right

To think about the girl you love and hold her tight

So happy together

(Happy together – The turtles)

If Meredith had seen herself like she was acting right now one year ago she would have laughed. This was not her. This prancing and whistling woman was clearly a doppelganger, planted by the president to gain access to some secret medical files or whatever. She was acting like the kind of people she ridiculed on a daily basis for being too cheery and lovey-dovey.

"Wow, someone got laid last night," Christina's snarky voice broke through her thoughts when she walked in to throw some stuff into her cubby. Mer rolled her eyes but couldn't quite hide her smile.

"So, I gather you and Dr McDreamy decided to leave the land of Friendzonia last night," she said and smirked. Meredith giggled slightly.

"You… could say that," she responded cheekily. The sex last night had lasted a long time and was followed closely by two other rounds. Truth be told she felt a bit sore in her body and her head clearly felt the downside of getting too little sleep. She was also feeling conflicted in her head. After the second sex she and Derek had lied for hours and just talked. They confessed their innermost feelings for each other and cried about their lost marriages in each other's arms. It had been magical, but also slightly frightening. This intensity felt unfamiliar to Meredith. She didn't really know what to think.

"Cool," Christina stated and closed her locker, putting an end to that awesome conversation.

"So, how's Owen?" Meredith asked as they left to make their rounds.

"Oh, you know... Sexy, wild, desperate for my touch…" Meredith snorted at Christina's response.

"To be honest I wouldn't take Hunt for a no strings-kinda guy. He seems to like commitment and safety, you know?"

"Yeah well…" Christina trailed off and looked around discreetly to find something that could turn the attention away from this particular conversation. Meredith watched her. Then her eyes widened.

"Oh my god! You like him!" she said a bit too loud, turning a few heads as they walked down the corridor.

"What? I do… n-NOT." Christina's usually composed features turned annoyed and Meredith smiled at this fact. Her friend was clearly in denial.

"Oh, you so do. Don't worry, I won't tell. Just… you know… think of me when you're speculating about baby names." Meredith laughed and ducked away from the chart Christina aimed at her head.

"Shut up, dirty mistress," Christina replied dangerously, but couldn't quite hide a smile.

Meredith hurried down the corridor inconspicuously. She had worked super hard today, removing a very large tumor placed in a woman's stomach. She had been constantly paged and grabbed for consults and she just needed a break from it all. Which explained her rush and need for a hiding place. She concentrated so hard on not meeting anyone's gaze that she didn't see the muscular scrub-wearing form walking right towards her before she crashed right into his warm chest.

"Hey there! Slow down! What's got you in such a hurry? You look like Satan's hot on your heels," Derek's voice was amused and Meredith smiled warmly at the sound. Then she tensed again as she looked around for any onlookers. When she saw the chief resident walking around the corner and heading in their direction, she panicked. Without an explanation she dragged on Derek's arm, pushing him into an on-call room and following closely behind before locking it tightly and breathing a deep sigh of relief. She looked back at Derek and saw his surprised face.

"Oh my god! I can't do this, Derek!" she sighed tiredly before he had a chance to ask. "They're everywhere! Don't they have anyone else to bother about their wrongly diagnosed diagnoses and crap? I mean, there's more than one general surgeon in this hospital, and just because I'm the best doesn't mean I have the time to run around like an ostrich to save their asses! Plus, I haven't even gotten a full night's sleep because we spent all night having sex and my body needs it's rest, for god's sake! I think God hates me… Or… someone does. Because clearly God doesn't exist, because if he did I think he would have the decency to just clear my schedule for a few minutes to heave my breaths!" Meredith was pacing as she rambled and Derek tried to follow her nonsensical sentences but failed miserably.

"W- who are you talking about? And how did this become a discussion about God's theoretical existence? And I thought you liked the sex?" he asked with a confused facial expression and tried to coax her into a more harmonic state with his warmest smile. It worked wonderfully. Meredith's knees weakened considerably and she walked straight into Derek's open arms to put her head on his muscled chest.

This feels so right.

"I did! I mean, I do… But I'm tired, Derek," she whined as Derek's calming hands began to stroke her hair. He found that this motion was especially effective to make her calm down and felt it working when she leaned heavily against him. Derek smiled softly and led her to the bed to the right.

"What are you doing?" she asked as he pushed her down on the covers. She looked absolutely adorable looking up at him like a child.

"You are going to lie down for a bit and sleep, Meredith. You've earned yourself a break," he said and pulled a blanket from the foot of the bed before laying himself behind her and covering the both of them with it.

"Oh…" was all Meredith said and then she burrowed comfortably into the mattress as the little spoon, reveling in the feeling of Derek's strong arms around her waist.

So, so right.

The following weeks felt like pure oxygen for Meredith. The stifling pressure she had had on her heart after the Mark and Addie-incident lifted slowly more and more until she could hardly feel its existence. She knew it could never have happened without Derek's help, but also; the more distance she put between herself and Mark, the more she realized how utterly wrong they were for each other.

They had been too alike in many ways, what with the both of them having had bad parents and their joined incapabilities to communicate with each other. It was sad, but in the parts of their marriage that really mattered, they were rubbish and Meredith questioned whether she had even liked him that much in the end. He was always following behind her and asking her advice, as if he had no idea how to live his life without her in it. She knew with certainty that she had loved him, after all, she had married the man… but did she like him? No. Meredith wasn't sure.

She hadn't felt this carefree in weeks. Meredith and Derek had spent so much time together just doing the things they could never do before. Both enjoying each other's company and bodies, making love more times than they had done to either of their spouses in a year. It was magical. Heart-fluttering. Beautiful. Ridiculous.

This was too good to be true. Good things like this just didn't happen to Meredith. People left. People sucked. People cheated, and it was too good to be true. She said this out loud to Derek one evening.

"Mer, stop it," he sighed tiredly one day when they were laying naked in her bed after an earth-shattering love making-session. "Can't you just enjoy what we have and stop over-analyzing everything?" Meredith looked skeptically at him. He was so goddamn naïve. Of course this wasn't the end of the badness. But then again…

Maybe… a traitorous voice whispered in her head. She swallowed.

Maybe this is it. Maybe the fuck-upped-ness that has been my life has ended. Meredith took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

Maybe the up-hill-battle is over. She smiled. Derek regarded her expressions and drew patterns absently on her shoulder with his long finger.

"Maybe…" she whispered into the pillow.

"What did you say?" Derek asked.

"Err, nothing," she responded and smiled easily at him.

"Do you want to go to dinner with me this evening?" Derek asked Meredith as they stood in the elevator on their way home from the hospital. Their shifts had just ended and they were both in a good mood.

"You're asking me out on a date, Dr Shepherd?" Meredith enquired coyly. Derek winked at her with a smile.

"Perhaps," he said flirtily and put his hand discretely on her ass.

Meredith jumped and gaped at him. "Oh, you dirty, old man!" she exclaimed. Derek's smile vanished and he turned mock-offended.

"I'm not old!" he said indignantly. She giggled.

"Aw, Derek. It's okay…" Meredith teased. "I like you anyway. It gives you an air of… wisdom. Plus, your denial is very cute!"

"I am not old!" he said and shook his head confidently. Meredith nodded at him understandingly and tried to hide a smirk.

"Whatever you say, sir…" then she screamed in surprise as she was tackled into the wall and tickled from every side. He growled loudly and she giggled and yelled for help. His fingers dug into her poor flesh and her attempts to push him away were futile. Derek didn't let up until the lift dinged, telling them they had arrived on their destined floor. Meredith breathed heavily and leaned on the railing.

"Oh my god, Derek… You have to stop tickling me when you're losing an argument. It's cheating!" she sighed and glared at Derek where he stood laughing on the other side of the elevator. Meredith's eyes sparkled.

"Besides, your frail body might break," she sighed and looked sympathetically at him. Then she sneaked out of the elevator like a lizard before Derek's hands could capture her again.

He hunted after her giggling form as fast as he could walk without actually running. They were in a hospital, after all.

"Meredith. I am only five years older than you!" he argued behind her.

"You're right!" she yelled back. "You're not old, Derek." At this, she stopped abruptly, turned and walked back towards him. She snaked two hands into his raven curls and kissed his cheek soothingly.

"Thank you," he said smugly.

"These gray hairs are only there for show, I get it," she pointed at a couple of whitening strands on his temples. The devil was back in her eyes. "Salt'n'pepper is undeniably sexy, pops…" This time, before she had the chance to escape, Derek grabbed her tightly and silenced her with a passionate kiss. Her muffled protests faded out slowly as she began to respond. His tongue begged entrance to her mouth and she gladly let him in. Without Meredith noticing them moving she was pressed towards the wall of the corridor. Thankfully it was late in the evening and this particular part of the hospital was abandoned, or the rumor mill tomorrow would have a field day.

Their hands were everywhere. Meredith explored Derek's back and shoulders through his blue shirt and his one hand was buried deep within her hair while the other was placed possessively on her firm ass. Their panting and moaning grew louder as Derek's mouth left Meredith's to leave a trail of kisses down her neck towards her collarbone. Nails dug into his scalp and he let out a soft growl, which made her shudder in want. Meredith's blood pumped loudly in her ears and her only thought at that moment was the man in her arms. She couldn't believe the reaction he brought out of her. The fact that she was currently making out rather wildly in a public hospital corridor was exhilarating, and certainly nothing she would ever have done before getting involved with Derek Shepherd. Her thoughts were interrupted when Derek's lips crashed down on hers once again. His hands were now underneath her blouse and kneading her left breast through the bra. She moaned loudly and was just about to bite his lip teasingly when she heard a piece of glass crash onto the floor.

In a flash, she tore her mouth from Derek's and turned her head towards the sound. She froze instantaneously. Derek looked questioningly at her before turning around himself. When he saw who had caught them in the act his muscles tensed and his facial expression turned dark as the night. The silence around them was tangible.

"Addison." Derek's voice was stone.

I knew it was too good to be true. Meredith thought bitterly. This was just great. There was a long pause.

"What am I? Invisible?" Mark Sloan said from where he stood beside Addie. His eyes were glued to Meredith where she sat, still perched in Derek's arms with his hands under her shirt. She sighed heavily.

Crap.

A/N: Okay, I know this cliffhanger was not super-unexpected. We have seen this before, you don't need to tell me. Still, I would like it for you to not sigh in exasperation and give up on me. I know what I'm doing!

Thanks for the comments and stuff! If you want me to continue I need some more encouragement though. I love to write this story, but it's funnerer (let's pretend it's a word) when I know you like it too!

Peace out.