"Thanks for helping me out today, Derek," Michael sighed as he opened cash register behind the counter in his store. "I know you probably had plans with your girlfriend, but it's the week before Easter, it can get busy. And with Will sick, I'm short a person on the floor."

"It's no problem, Dad," Derek smiled as he reached for a guitar. "And Addison's not my girlfriend."

"Right," Michael nodded, a smirk playing on his face. "She's just your friend. Who's a girl."

"Dad," Derek groaned. "Stop."

"Stopping, I'm stopping," Michael laughed, heading into the back. "I got a shipment of tuners in, can hold down the fort out here?"

"I think I can handle it," Derek said, gesturing to the empty store.

Michael laughed as he disappeared into the back of the store. Derek looked down at the guitar, his hands moving easily over the fret as he tried not to think about the last time he'd played. New Year's Eve, when Meredith had given him what had probably been the hottest sex ever. Not that he only missed the sex, he missed everything about her, but he could only hold out for so long.

Addison was nice, he was enjoying spending time with her. But he would never call her his girlfriend, he hadn't even kissed her. She was just someone who was nice to be around, someone who he could talk to. She had already gotten several ear fulls about Meredith, and she knew that he wasn't looking to date her. He just wanted to be her friend.

The door swung open and Derek automatically looked up from his guitar, his heart stopping when he saw Meredith enter, giggling as she clutched the hand of the man standing beside her. He clutched his guitar tightly, if for no other reason than to make sure that he didn't punch the jackass in the face.

"Can I help you?" he asked politely, standing as he set his guitar aside.

"Derek," Meredith breathed, her eyes widening and her smile fading as she stepped away from Andrew. "I…what are you doing here?"

"This is my dad's store," Derek replied. "I'm helping him out."

"Oh," Meredith nodded. "It's good to see you."

"You too," Derek said curtly.

"I just need some new strings for my guitar," Andrew said, glancing between Derek and Meredith carefully.

"Sure," Derek nodded, walking over to the shelf with guitar accessories.

"I'm…I'll just go wait in the car," Meredith said carefully.

"Are you okay?" Andrew asked with concern in his eyes. Derek sighed as he watched them, at least glad that Meredith had someone who took care of her.

"I'm fine," she nodded. "I'll just let you do your…music thing and wait outside. Fresh air, you know."

"Okay," Andrew frowned as he watched her leave before he turned back to Derek. "So you two know each other?"

"We dated," Derek sighed. "It was a long time ago."

"Oh," Andrew nodded. "Well, I guess that explains the speedy get away."

"I guess," Derek nodded, holding up a pack of strings. "These are the best we've got. I use them myself."

"Perfect," Andrew smiled.

Derek moved around the counter, his fingers lingering over the buttons for a moment before he looked up at Andrew.

"Are you okay?" Andrew asked as he looked carefully at the soft smile on Derek's face.

"She likes lilies," Derek said softly.

"What?" Andrew asked.

"Meredith," Derek said. "She likes lilies. She says she hates flowers, but…she loves lilies. And she hates seafood, especially lobster because she can't eat anything that looks like it did when it was alive. And she insists that the right side of the bed is hers, but even if you sleep on the left…she'll end up curled around you anyways. If you open her car door, be prepared for a very long lecture on feminism. And she says she can cook, but she burns the toast every time. She insists that it's her conditioner that smells like lavender, but I'm convinced that she wears some kind of perfume or something, because there's no way that conditioner can be that completely captivating. She's been hurt a lot and now…now she just wants to be loved."

Andrew frowned as he reached for the strings that were sitting on the counter. "Thanks for the advice," he said hesitantly. He started to walk out the door, stopping when he heard Derek's voice again.

"I hurt her," Derek said softly. "I didn't mean to, but…I hurt her. Badly. So just…don't be like me. Don't hurt her."

Andrew turned to look at him, smiling slightly. "She doesn't need to worry about being hurt anymore," he said before he disappeared out the door.

Derek sighed as he sank onto the chair behind the counter, suddenly exhausted. Being the bigger person was not exactly easy.

XXXXX

Meredith smiled softly as Andrew walked her up to her doorway. "Thanks for taking me home," she smiled softly. "I'm sorry I'm not up to going out tonight."

"Hey, it's okay," Andrew smiled softly, brushing some hair out of her eyes. "I just hope you feel better.

"I'll be fine," Meredith said. "Just lots of rest."

"You want me to stay and keep you company?" he asked.

"No, Lexie and Izzie are home," she smiled. "We'll probably just have a girls night. You know, watch movies, talk about boys."

"Well, I hope you have nothing but good things to say," Andrew smiled.

"Of course not," Meredith giggled. "I'll call you tomorrow."

"Okay," Andrew smiled, kissing her softly.

Meredith sighed as she walked into her house, collapsing onto the couch and staring up at the ceiling, wondering why the world apparently seemed to hate her. There was no other possible explanation for the way that she had run into her ex boyfriend while out with her new boyfriend. Hate. The world hated her.

"What are you doing here?" Izzie asked as she appeared in the doorway, a bowl of popcorn in her hands.

"This is my house," Meredith replied.

"Don't you have a date with the hot teacher?" Izzie asked.

"I did," Meredith sighed. "But we happened to walk into a music store that just happened to be owned by Derek's father. And guess who was working behind the counter?"

"Oh no," Izzie sighed.

"Yup," Meredith nodded, leaning back into the cushions. Because the world hates me."

"Was it horrible?" Izzie asked.

"It wasn't too bad," Meredith sighed. "I just wish that Derek didn't have to see us together. It's too weird."

"You had to know that you're going to run into him eventually," Izzie pointed out.

"I know," Meredith started, frowning when the doorbell rang. "I'll get it."

She sighed as she dragged herself towards the door, stopping short when she saw Derek standing on the other side of the glass.

"Derek," she frowned as she opened the door, crossing her arms over her chest. "What are you doing here?"

"I just wanted to say I'm sorry," Derek said, looking down at his feet. "For everything. You're amazing, Mer, and I never meant to hurt you. I loved you a lot, and I can't help but think what would have happened if I'd never gone to the hospital that day."

"Derek…" Meredith started, but he shook his head.

"I'm glad you're happy," he continued. "Andrew…he seems like a great guy. And he'll be good for you, so I'm happy for you."

"Thank you," Meredith whispered.

"And I'm sorry for stopping by unannounced," Derek continued. "But I just wanted to give this to you."

Meredith looked at him suspiciously as she took the offered envelope, keeping her eyes on his as she tore the paper open. When she finally looked down at the contents of the envelope, her breath caught in her throat and she looked up to meet his eyes. "Derek…"

"It was your Christmas present," Derek said softly. "So you should go. You and Andrew. They're your tickets, Mer."

"Derek, I can't keep these," Meredith whispered.

"Please," he said softly. "I want you to have them. Even if you don't use them, please just take them."

Meredith nodded as she shoved the tickets back into the envelope, tears building in her eyes. "Thank you," she whispered. "That's…really great of you."

"I know you hate me," Derek whispered. "And I'm going to leave you alone, I promise. Next time you're in my dad's store…I'll have someone else help you."

"You don't have to do that," Meredith whispered.

"I do," Derek nodded. "But can I…Can I just hold you? One more time?"

Meredith smiled as she moved closer, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck and burying her face in his neck.

"Oh," Derek breathed, closing his arms around her and leaning down to breath in the familiar scent of lavender.

"Derek," she whispered into his neck.

"Oh, Mer," Derek breathed, squeezing her tightly for a long moment, neither one of them really wanting to let go.

Long before she was ready, Meredith pulled back and smiled shakily.

"Thanks," Derek breathed. "I needed that."

"Me too," Meredith smiled softly.

"Good bye, Mer," Derek whispered, his eyes lingering on her face for a moment.

"Bye Derek," she whispered back, watching as he stepped out of the house and made his way down the sidewalk.

"Did he just do what I think he did?" Izzie asked as Meredith walked into the living room and collapsed onto the couch again.

"He gave me the tickets to Europe," Meredith whispered, holding up the envelope. "Said they were my present and I should enjoy them. He wants me to go with Andrew."

"That is so sad," Izzie breathed.

"What the hell am I supposed to do?" Meredith asked.

"I can't tell you that," Izzie shook her head.

"It's Europe," Meredith whispered. "Europe, Izzie."

"I know," Izzie nodded. "If Derek wants you to go, maybe you should just go. It would be amazing."

"It would be," Meredith nodded softly. "How am I supposed to tell Andrew that I'm taking him to Europe with Derek's money?"

"You don't," Izzie shook her head. "Just tell him that a friend gave them to you."

Meredith nodded slowly. "Is it the right thing?" she asked.

Izzie sighed as she sat up. "Look, I didn't think this really matter, but a couple days ago, I saw Derek out with another girl. They were at the coffee shop, and they looked pretty close, Mer."

"Oh," Meredith whispered. "I…"

"I'm sorry, Mer, but I didn't think it was a big deal, you've been seeing Andrew, so I didn't think you'd care if Derek was dating anyone."

"You're right," Meredith nodded. "I know you're right, I guess it's just weird to feel it."

Izzie smiled sympathetically at Meredith. "You can't be angry at him if you were dating someone first," she said softly.

"I know," Meredith nodded. "It's just weird to think about anyone else being his girlfriend."

"I had a point," Izzie stated. "If Derek wanted to go to Europe, he would have gone. He wants you to use the tickets, Mer, he wants you to enjoy them."

"You're right," Meredith nodded. "I should use them. They were my present. And I…I never asked for the watch I bought him back."

Izzie laughed. "Exactly," she said.

"I'll call Andrew," Meredith smiled, reaching for the phone and moving towards the stairs.

Izzie shook her head as she watched her friend move towards the stairs. Meredith Grey had a lot to learn about love, a lot to learn about trust, and everything to learn about forgiveness.

XXXXX

"You just…gave her the tickets?" Addison frowned as she sat on the counter in Derek's kitchen later that evening.

"What else was I supposed to do?" Derek asked as he dumped some vegetables in the frying pan.

"I don't know, maybe that you still love her, that you never were going to take the money, that you're a stupid idiot and you would do anything to get her back," Addison rolled her eyes.

"She's happy, Addison," Derek said. 'What else was I supposed to do?"

"You really are the dumbest guy ever," Addison rolled her eyes as she grabbed a pepper off of the frying pan. "I can't believe you just sent the woman you love on a romantic European vacation with her boyfriend."

"I promised myself that I'd make her happy," Derek shrugged. "And she's happy with him."

"Look, Derek, I've never met this girl," Addison sighed. "But it sounds like she's got some problems with trust."

"Meredith doesn't have problems, she's perfect," Derek murmured.

"To you," Addison nodded. "But from everything you've told me about her mother, I'm surprised she's not like…a prostitute."

"That's not funny," Derek sighed, leaning against the fridge as he watched the vegetables sizzle.

"Fine," Addison rolled her eyes. "What are you going to do?"

"What do you mean, what am I going to do?" Derek asked.

"You have two months before she goes off on her Euro trip with the all too perfect man," Addison rolled her eyes. "You have to do something to get her back."

"Addison, it's over," Derek shook his head. "I appreciate your help, but…it's over."

"It's not over," Addison shook her head, jumping off the counter. "I'm a spoiled brat, remember? I always get my way."

"You don't really have a way in this situation," Derek pointed out.

"Sure I do," Addison smiled, patting his shoulder. "My way is your way. Which means that you're going to get Meredith back."