AN: Hey, so I had initially posted this chapter, but I took it down as I wanted to make a few more edits, so this is a revised version. As a reminder, do expect some angst throughout this story. Chapter title is a lyric from Natasha Bedingfield's "Little Too Much": "Sometimes we get on like fire, sometimes we stopping like rain." Sorry for any confusion!

Whispers and stares follow Meredith and Derek as they walk hand in hand out to his car, and she has an inkling as to the reason why. People already assume that Meredith gets a leg up in law school and life because of who her mother is. Now that she's dating- and not just "screwing", but dating one of their previous lecturers, one of the most well-respected lawyers in Seattle… well, that was enough ammunition for everyone to speculate and gossip about her and her intentions.

"Is it just me, or are people staring at us?" Derek leaned down to jokingly whisper in her ear.

Meredith sighed. "To some people, I'm persona non grata for dating you. And I'm pretty sure people blame me for you no longer conducting the moot court, so… I understand if you don't want to be public with me right now." She said half-jokingly, but honestly, she would understand. She wouldn't like it, but she's pretty good at keeping secrets when needed.

"Meredith, wait. I'm not ashamed. Are you ashamed?" Derek stopped, a concerned look on his face.

Meredith smiled and burrowed her head into his shoulder. "No," she said, the words muffled against the softness of his sweater. "I'm not ashamed." She was happy. Really happy. And even though things may get dark and twisty again- and they surely would, because she's Meredith Grey and darkness and twistiness seemed to follow her around like a shadow, she's going to try to enjoy whatever sliver of sunshine she can find. She was in a bubble, a happy, shiny bubble and she was going to try and be a happy, shiny person.

"They don't matter," Derek said in a sure voice as he squeezed her hand firmly. His eyes creased in a comfortable smile, one that looked so natural on his face, as if in his capable hands, any of her hard edges could be smoothed out; as if in his hands, the bubble wouldn't burst.

Meredith nodded her head. "You're right. They don't. But you should know, I'm declaring a McDreamy moratorium. I'm not seeing you again until every single one of my finals are over. I am prepping and studying- we all are prepping and studying together, and I don't have time time for any funny business. No distractions."

"A McDreamy moratorium, huh?" Derek laughed, before he kissed her cheek and moved to nibble her ear, murmuring,"I could help you study. I have to tell you, I did exceptionally well in law school."

Meredith laughed and twisted away from his caresses. "I don't think we'd be doing a whole lot of studying."

He sighed. "Fine. I'm not sure a whole moratorium is needed, but I can wait. Good luck with your finals," Derek grinned. "I'm sure you'll do exceptionally well." He punctuated each word with a kiss.

Meredith smiled brightly. "Thank you. I'll see you after they're over, ok?"

"Alright. I-" Derek hesitated, eyes flitting over her face, before he ultimately sighs and shakes his head. Swallowing whatever he'd been about to say, he only said, "I'll see you later."

Surviving their first semester's final examinations was going to be more difficult than Jackson had initially anticipated. He'd done so well in undergrad, and did not have too much trouble adjusting to his post-grad work experience at the political science think tank. He had to work hard, but Jackson had never been too worried about failing his final exams. However, even though he had grown up around the law, he had really learned over the course of the semester how different legal thinking truly was. The first years had been consumed with their outlines, with various case studies, trying to prepare as much as possible for their multiple final examinations. They would have to not only be able to recite different laws; rather, they needed to offer quality analysis and depth in their answers to get full marks.

Bailey's Civil Procedures class was the one many of them were most nervous about. Miranda Bailey was highly respected within the Seattle law community. Dean Webber had been her mentor, and together she and Webber had connections in both the private and public sectors. A reference from her would help Jackson and the others get the best possible summer internship. They were all reacting to the stress differently of the past couple weeks differently; Cristina had become even more hyper-focused than she usually was, Alex was snapping and scowling at everyone, and April was nervously chattering all the time. Jackson couldn't let himself be distracted or psyched out by any of his peers' nerves. He had enough of his own.

Bailey stands at the front of the auditorium; the exams distributed and face down on everyone's desk, "As you know, the exam consists of two questions. The first is worth 40% of your grade, and the second is worth 60%. You must answer both questions to the best of your abilities. Don't screw this up, people. You have four hours to write. And your time begins…" She glanced down at her watch. "Now." Bailey finished, gazing around the room.

Jackson could feel the tension radiating off of April in the seat next to him. He turned to her; she was gulping nervously. Her eyes met Jackson's for a brief moment. Good luck, he mouthed, lucky pencil clenched in his fist. April nodded and took a deep breath.

And with that, they began.

"We survived. No matter what happens, we survived, and that's the important thing." Jackson said, leaning back in his chair. Finals were finally over, and he and April were getting coffee with Reed and Charles before flying home for the holidays.

"Barely." April bit out, angrily tearing apart bits of a napkin. "We survived. Barely." She looked up and noticed the others exchanging wary glances. "Sorry, I know I'm being a grumpus," she murmured.

Charles, the Seattle native of the group, was the only one not heading to the airport after their hangout. It'd been too long since they had all been able to get together, he had reasoned, so he would drag himself out of bed to see them.

"So how are we going to ring in the year?" Charles asked, seeking to change the subject as he looked around at the others. "You guys are all coming back before the 31st, right?" At their nods, he continued. "Are we still thinking about going to Red Light?"

"Oh yeah, man. For sure." Jackson and Charles exchange a high-five while Reed rolled her eyes.

"Are we sure we want to go to Red Light?" April wrinkled her nose. She'd never actually been to the popular club herself, but she'd heard enough crazy stories to be wary of spending their New Year's Eve there.

"Come on April, live a little. We'll have fun," Reed said, before she's distracted by the barista calling her name. "Our pastries are ready. Charlie, Jackson, go get them please."

Charles scoffed. "Are you kidding me?

"What? I said please. Plus me and April need some best friend catch up time. So shoo!" Reed waved the guys away.

"Come on, man," Jackson said to Charles, before turning to April and Reed. "We see how it is," Jackson leaned forward and whispered to them, chuckling as he stands up.

April watched the guys head to the counter before she sighed and turned back to Reed. While overall she's enjoyed getting to know her new roommates and classmates, it feels comfortably like old times when it's the four of them.

"Anyway, so you were saying about finals?" Reed asked. She knew if would be better if April could just get this off her chest.

"Well, I'm freaking out. Jackson I think feels a bit better… It's just hard. There are no other grades, basically!" April cried out in frustration. "We had one midterm for one of our classes, but for the rest? These finals determine our entire course grade. All our work this semester has been leading up to three or four hour exam for each class. If we screwed this up, if I- if I screwed this up…" April trailed off. "I can't fail, Reed."

"You won't! You just need to stop worrying so much, there's nothing more you can do to affect your grade. Finals are done, now you just need to relax and enjoy your winter break as much as you can." Reed pointed out as she poured some cream into her coffee.

April scoffed. "That's easy for you to say. We have to wait weeks at least before we know what our grades are. You'll find yours out a lot sooner. Plus, this is your fifth semester of med school; you're at least used to what finals are like in med school."

Reed nods, conceding the point. "OK, I get it. You're worried and you're going to stay worried. Far be it from me to stop you."

April took a sip of her mocha, warming her hands on the mug. Reed in general seemed so much more calm and poised. "How are you not always freaking out too? I mean, med school is just as insane."

Reed smiled wryly before she responded. "Because this is my fifth semester at it and because I'm the best." Reed said, her voice ringing with conviction, and her determination is clear. While her words are confident, her tone is just on this side of arrogant- Reed sounds so sure of herself. "I'm going to be the best doctor I can be, the best surgeon I can be. And you're going to be an amazing lawyer. If I ever get sued, or need a lawyer, I'm going to call you. Are you sure you don't want to go into medical malpractice?"

April laughed and clinked her coffee mug against Reed's in toast. "I'm pretty sure that no, I don't want to. But I'm not worried. You're not going to need a malpractice lawyer. And if I never need to have a surgery, I'm calling you."

"Has April mentioned anything? About me and Reed, or if Reed's dating anyone?" Charles' anxious voice distracts Jackson from the cute barista eyeing him. Jackson feels a wave of sympathy wash over him for Charles and his obvious affection for Reed. They're waiting for the rest of their order, but Charles keeps glancing back at the girls.

"No, she hasn't. Dude, you have to get over her. I'm sorry, I don't mean to be harsh, but you and her might not ever happen." Jackson said as he took another sip of his coffee.

"Oh ye of little faith," Charles replied with a stubborn look on his face. "I don't want to get over her. I want to be under her."

Jackson laughed. "I know you do, that doesn't mean it's going to happen. She calls you Charlie." Jackson continued with a wry grin. "Do you remember what happened when I kept calling you Charlie? You flipped out. You literally flipped my mattress in our dorm room."

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that." Charles chuckled. "Well, Jackson.. I don't want to hurt your feelings. See the thing is, while I know you're considered by some people to be very pretty-"

Jackson opens his mouth in protest. He doesn't need to hear this- "Oh, whatever man."

"I know you've got a pretty face," Charles persists as he begins to chuckle even harder. "But I hate to break it to you, but Reed's a whole helluva lot prettier than you. You're not my type. And while guys named Charlie usually never get the girl, I am. So for right now, she can call me whatever the hell she wants, Avery."

Jackson shakes his head, trying to still be pissed but failing miserably as a smile breaks through. "Alright, fair enough."

The barista brings the rest of their danishes. "Here you go. If you need anything else- and I mean anything else at all," she smiled at Jackson, the implication clear in her voice. "Let me know." One of the napkins she handed over had her name and number on it.

"Thank you." Jackson smiled politely. He probably won't do anything with it, but he doesn't want to be a jerk and throw it away.

Charles shook his head as he trailed after his friend back to their table. "I hate you sometimes."

"I know."

Christmas carols play softly over Callie's stereo system as she works on some paperwork. She had decided to bring some work to home instead of spending more hours at the office. While baseball season is over, that means Callie still needs to help negotiate the contracts for the players whose previous contracts were up, and work on landing new players the general manager of the Mariners had his eye on. She loved her work, she truly did. Any time she entered a contract negotiation, it gave her such a thrill. She's trying to get the player for as little as possible, working with the scouts and the gm, keeping in mind their history of injuries. It's… exhilarating and exciting, and so that's why, occasionally, Callie doesn't mind taking her work home with her. Mark had been looking at apartments all day and had periodically texted her updates; one read "this one's painted red all over, we'd have to paint it. when can we find out if this peanut's going to be a chick or a dude?" and another had read "way too much glass and too many sharp corners. not good for baby. i'm gonna kick ass at this dad thing" Her heart had melted a little; she truly does care about Mark and she appreciates how he'd been so determined to make this co-parenting thing work.

The doorbell rings, once, twice, and startles Callie from her intense focus. She carefully sets aside the contract she'd been poring over. Coleman, their star third-baseman, and all the details of his $7 million a year contract could wait for a few minutes.

"Coming!" She called out as she unfurled her legs from the couch and padded across the living room barefoot. She opens the door, expecting to see Mark standing tall, gripping Chinese takeout in his hands. He had texted her once again that he had a whole lot to tell her about his misadventures while on the apartment hunt.

But maybe she should have expected this instead. Maybe Callie should have expected that instead of the father of her child, Arizona would show up at her front door. She had expected to cross paths with her once again, at alumni events or things like that, but Callie is still shocked at the sight of her blonde ex-girlfriend. Arizona Robbins was a noted attorney at law at the Lebackes & Stark law firm, though recently Arizona had talked about striking out on her own. Arizona was ambitious, and while she liked Oliver Lebackes, Arizona had had numerous conflicts with Stark since she had started at the firm. Their styles, their approaches to law were just too different. Callie had talked about Arizona's options with her over pizza and wine, laughing together. At this moment in time, with Arizona standing on her doorstep, that moment felt so far away.

Arizona brushed her hair way away from her face as she stared at Callie intently. "OK. You think we don't see the same things, but we do. Maybe I didn't before, but I do now. I see you, Calliope. I see you as a mother, and I see me as a mother, and I see ten kids, ten beautiful children, and I can't live without you and our ten kids," she said on one breath. "I miss you. I miss you everyday. I miss you all the time."

Callie stood as still as a statue, frozen in surprise and fear and a multitude of other emotions. "Arizona-"

"Wait, Callie, just wait. I had a mother in my office today. Her husband had abused her for years, and no one did anything about it. She finally found the courage to leave him, but now he's wanting full custody. I've been working with her, working on the angles of how to keep that from happening." She shook her head, glancing down at her feet. "I know you said you had tried envisioning a future without kids, and I do appreciate that. But you were right, you were meant to be a mother. You would be the strongest, fiercest, most loving mother. I see that, and I see us." she repeated, her bright smile growing on her face.

It may have been partly the pregnancy hormones. It may have been the fact that Callie had been really worried lately, wondering how to tell her bosses and the general counsel at the Mariners that oh, by the way, she's pregnant and will have to go on maternity leave. It may have also been the fact that Arizona was standing in front of her, so beautiful with her magic smile that Callie would swear could light up the whole world. But whatever it was, Callie burst into tears, sobs wracking her body. Arizona's face becomes alarmed, and she reaches out to Callie an attempt to comfort her. Callie tries to stifle her sobs. Of course Arizona shows up at her front door, wanting to give Callie the world, everything she wanted, just as Callie has found out that she's expecting a baby with her best friend. Of course.

"Callie? Callie, what's wrong?" Arizona reached out and rubbed Callie's arms with her hands. "Can I come in? Can we talk?"

Callie shudders in a breath, steeling herself to break this news. Callie had always suspected that Arizona had some underlying issues with the fact that she was bisexual, even though she professed to be ok with it. And now...

"I'm pregnant." Callie blurted out and bit her lip. And with that, two words and a conjunction changed everything.

Arizona's face fell by incremental degrees. "Wait, what?" She asked incredulously.

The holidays had passed without much drama for their little group. Derek had had to fly home to spend Christmas and New Years with his mother, sisters, and various nieces and nephews. Izzie had helped Meredith host a low-key Christmas for those that stayed behind, and April had invited their roommates and Cristina out to celebrate New Year's Eve with her, Jackson, Reed, and Charles. She hadn't really expected them to agree, but was pleasantly surprised when they did. She was making friends, slowly but surely, which was a comfort. Jackson, Reed, and Charles were all running late, but they had texted that they would be here before the clock struck twelve. The club was teeming with people and the music was pounding. They had found a coveted booth in one of the dark corners and were saving seats while Meredith was waiting at the bar for another drink order.

"Thanks." Smiling, Meredith tipped the bartender. Working on New Year's Eve at Red Light couldn't be the easiest job. She turned around to head back to their booth when she bumped into someone.

"Oh, excuse me- wait, Lexie?!"

"Oh, hi Meredith!" With her dark hair, the resemblance between Lexie and Meredith wasn't instantly obvious. All things considered, that made sense, as they were only half-sisters, and Meredith did look a lot like her mother. But there was enough resemblance for Meredith to feel it like a jolt.

Meredith had met her younger half-sister a handful of times previously. While Meredith had tried to never be outright rude to the younger Grey, she didn't necessarily enjoy seeing her. Lexie served as a constant reminder of Thatcher Grey and the way he had abandoned Meredith. leaving her with only her mother. Considering Ellis and Richard Webber's affair, Meredith could understand Thatcher's motivation in getting divorced from Ellis, but how could he just turn his back on her too? He had left her with her intense, perfectionist, workaholic mother and went on to create a whole new happy, perfect family. And the thought that lingers at the back of her mind, the one she doesn't like to acknowledge, is the question of why was Meredith so easy to leave behind.

"I just wanted to say hi, because I thought if we saw each other and didn't say anything, it'd be even more awkward than it is right now." Lexie laughed brightly, but it soon trailed off when Meredith was non-responsive.

Meredith pursed her lips. For her, it felt like the walls were closing in on her. "What are you doing here? I thought you were living in Boston. Harvard, right?"

"Well, I was. I'm here with some friends." Lexie nodded and gestured vaguely to two guys and a girl standing about ten feet away from them. She continued, "It's- well you see, the thing is, Meredith- Seattle Grace is a good law school, one of the best law schools, actually, and my parents live in Seattle, and I grew up here as a kid, so I-"

"Lexie. Stop. What are you saying?" Meredith asked, interrupting Lexie's nervous rambling. She doesn't need to hear any more about the other Grey family. "You're applying to Seattle Grace Law?"

Lexie swallowed nervously as she stared at the sister she'd desperately like to know. "I just graduated early- a couple of weeks ago, actually, instead of in May with the rest of my class. I applied early admission to Seattle Grace Law, and, well, I got in. I decided to go ahead and move to Seattle, find a place, get a job somewhere... because I got into Seattle Grace Law and I've decided to attend. I'm entering next year's class in the fall. I know you're going there, and I don't want it to be awkward. Actually, I was thinking, this might be a chance to get to know each other, if you'd like."

"Listen, Lexie, congrats on getting into law school." Meredith started to walk away with a brittle smile on her face. "Really. Have a great time at Seattle Grace. But you'll be busy, and I'm already busy, so maybe we should just both be busy separately." She turned around completely and began to weave her way through the crowded dance floor. No matter how hard you try and escape the past, no matter how happy you are in your little present bubble, the past always comes back and bites you in the ass.

Meredith finished explaining her encounter with Lexie to the others before she sighed and took a healthy swallow of her drink. "Can't she get her own life?"

"She's your sister, she wants to get to know you. Maybe you should give her a chance," Izzie answered with a shrug. "I'd always wanted a brother or sister when I was a kid."

"Trust me, they're overrated." George mumbled.

April, thinking back to some of her sisters' teasing, replied, "Well, I have three sisters, Izzie. If you want one of mine, go ahead. Take one. Any of them." She punctuated her words with a wild wave of her hand, already a little tipsy.

Izzie giggled. "I think I'm good, thanks though, April. All I'm saying is, you have the opportunity to be the bigger person here," She said once again to Meredith.

"Is being the bigger person really that great?" Cristina remarked, tilting her head in consideration. "I'd rather be small. And petty. It's a lot more fun."

"OK, enough about estranged family members. Give it a rest." Alex said and Meredith felt an immense amount of gratitude towards him. Alex was probably the only one of her friends who really understood where she was coming from. They both came from not ideal family circumstances.

However, Izzie drew her head back, offended. "Okay, I wasn't trying to get too involved or anything." She said quietly.

"Really? That's funny, because you always do." Alex retorted.

"They're here!" April interrupted Alex and Izzie's arguing at the sight of Charles' tall form leading Reed and Jackson through the club, weaving through the partygoers. She had thought Alex and Izzie were doing better…

At one minute 'til midnight, everyone was on the dance floor, watching a projection of a countdown clock near the front of the club.

"Happy New Year!" Raucous cries fill the air as all around them couples drunkenly kiss each other in celebration to ring in the New Year. Jackson looks around at his friends. Charles is trying to kiss Reed on the cheek as she laughs; Meredith has an arm slung around Cristina's shoulders as Cristina wryly grins. For a customary new year's kiss, he doesn't have a girlfriend or a date, but he does have a best friend. He leans in to give April a friendly kiss on the cheek, and she smiles up at him.

"Happy New Year, April. We're going to have a great year, right?" He quickly squeezes her arm.

"Yeah, we are. The rest of 1L is going to be great, and we're going to get the summer internships we want. Everything's going to be fine. Right?" And with that, her anxiousness returns, her wave of confidence receding.

"Right. Listen, I'm gonna go get another drink," he smiled before heading to the bar alongside Charles.

April can still feel where Jackson had touched her when she's startled, once again, by words whispered in her ear. "What was that?" April turns around to find Reed with an inquisitive look on her face.

"What do you mean?" April asked.

"Here, let's go to the bar," Reed said, and they fought their way through the crowd, squeezing in and waiting for barstools to open up.

"So, did that reignite any old feelings for you?" Reed asked with a quirked eyebrow, stirring her cocktail casually.

"What? No, that's- that's crazy talk. Jackson and I are friends, that's all." April said. If she could just ignore the burning in her cheeks, that'd be great. She didn't have a ton of experience, so being kissed by anyone was going to induce some blushing, even if was just a kiss on the cheek from a friend.

"Come on April, you can't tell me you don't remember your crush from freshman year. You would get so flustered around Jackson our first semester." Two seats opened up, and Reed, confident as ever, quickly claimed them before a tall blonde could.

"Sorry, these are ours." Reed smirked before she turned to April. "You were saying?"

April glanced around at their friends, making sure no one was nearby. "You promised you wouldn't mention anything about the you-know-what! Ever again."

April had harbored a crush on Jackson for the better part of her freshman year, and seeing Jackson with a new girl on his arm every week had always dampened her spirits. But really, who could blame her for having a harmless little crush? She was 18, fresh off the farm, and he was funny and handsome and while he could be a bit of a jackass sometimes, overall Jackson Avery was a very charming and nice guy. April had never met anyone like Jackson back in Columbus. Luckily, she got over her crush by sophomore year, and so she was able to stop being so nervous around him and they were able to develop a friendship that had gotten stronger over the years. Now he was just Jackson, who left cereal bowls in the sink at their house, and Jackson who was her favorite study partner, Jackson who loved the Boston Celtics more than anything. He was Jackson, and she was April, and they were friends. Close to best friends, actually. And that was enough. So she really doesn't appreciate Reed bringing up something from so many years ago, which was really not relevant. At all.

Reed chuckled and reached out a placating hand to April. "And I won't tell anybody, come on. You know I won't, but I'm just saying… I remember how googly-eyed you were. And if you are having feelings for Jackson again-"

"It was a puppy crush." April mumbled.

Reed continued on, undeterred. "If you are having any feelings for Jackson again, just… be careful, ok? I like Jackson, I do. He's a good friend, but he can be a bit of an idiot sometimes. And you should be with someone who knows how awesome you are."

"You don't have to worry, I grew out of that! Jackson and I are friends. Just friends. Anything else is ridiculous." April said with a nervous laugh. She thinks Reed's concern is also a little ridiculous, but she appreciates it nonetheless; it's nice knowing that her best friend has her back and is looking out for her best interests. "Honestly. Now, the question is, speaking of some people who actually may be more than friends, what about you and Charles?" She wriggled her eyebrows.

Reed is silent for a moment. "Ok, now I know you're drunk," Reed mused before she signals to the bartender for another two shots. April starts giggling again so hard she almost falls off her stool, which causes Reed to go into hysterics.

Further down from the laughing pair sat Cristina and Meredith.

"So, do we hate her?" Cristina asked Meredith. "That's all I need to know, who we hate and who we don't. I have to start a list I think, to keep track of everyone."

Meredith groaned, taking another shot. "Can you just give me the tequila bottle? No?" She asked the bartender. He grinned and shook his head. "Ugh. No, we don't hate her. We avoid her though. I can avoid her, right?" She looked to Cristina for reassurance.

Cristina considered that for a moment. "Sure, we can avoid her. Avoidance is possible, even if it's not the healthiest or most well-adjusted route to take."

Meredith laughed. "Who said anything about me well-adjusted?"

"Good point." And Cristina starts chuckling as well, but then she noticed Jackson leaning over Lexie in the corner, his mouth close to her ear as she giggled.

"Well, we can avoid her at least. It's no guarantee that your roommates will." Cristina said as she nodded her head subtly towards the pair.

Meredith turned and scowled at the sight. "You have got to be kidding me. I'm going to kill Avery."

"I'm Jackson Avery." Jackson said, extending his hand to the pretty brunette. They'd met by the bar, and Alex had pointed her out earlier as one of the sources of drama for the night. While Jackson didn't want to piss off Meredith, he wasn't going to outright avoid someone just because of her not clearly defined drama.

"Lexie Grey." She smiled confidently and shook his hand.

"You're Meredith's sister, right?"

Lexie froze and an uncertain look grew on her face. "I… am? I guess? She is my sister. Well, half-sister, technically, but who's counting, right?" She laughed nervously. "Anyway, how do you know Meredith?"

"She's my landlord. We're roommates," Jackson smiled back at Lexie, his eyes roaming over her body in that quick scan that it seems every guy does, lingering on her long legs and dark shiny hair.

"That's nice," Lexie raised her voice to be heard over the pounding music. "I've seen that house before, it's nice."

"Yeah," Jackson shrugged and put a hand up on the wall. "It's convenient. Are you from Seattle?"

"Well, I grew up here, and I just graduated early from Harvard. I'm moving back here. I'm going to work here in Seattle for the next few months before I start my first year of law school at Seattle Grace."

"Oh, really? I'm a first year at Seattle Grace Law myself."

"You're Harper Avery's grandson, right?"

Jackson nodded his head, but then he paused. Is she a stalker or something? Either stalking him, or stalking her half-sister and all her roommates? "Yeah, I am… wait, how did you know that?"

Lexie smiled. "I have a photographic memory. I remember reading an article on your grandfather, and it mentioned that he had a grandson named Jackson, who was planning to attend Seattle Grace Law, and I mean, what are the odds?..." She trailed off at the look of astonishment on Jackson's face. "It comes in handy sometimes."

"You are going to crush law school," he said in awe. He can't deny that he's a little jealous. If he had a photographic memory… damn. It'd sure help a helluva lot. It's not like he's really struggling, it could be worse. But the fact remains, with all the reading law students have to do, having a photographic memory is an undeniable advantage.

"Hey, do you want to get out of here?" Jackson asked. "Get some fresh air?" Lexie Grey was gorgeous, and seemed funny and nice. He'd like to get to know her more.

Lexie hesitated for a moment, her eyes flickering over to Meredith at the bar, but then she grinned back at him. "Lead the way."

"Hey, I'm heading out. Happy New Year guys, stay out of trouble," Jackson said to the group as Lexie stood not far behind him. April rolled her eyes, before she shook her head, laughing at herself a little. Right now she sounded ridiculous, she thought. She and Jackson were friends, best friends even, she reminded herself.

"Looks like someone's getting lucky," Charles shouted. "Go forth, my friend, copulate!" Jackson and Lexie are quickly walking out of the club, hand in hand. Jackson turned around to glare at his friend.

"I'm sorry, who are you? I swear, I've never met him before in my life," Jackson joked to Lexie as she laughed at his side. Her gaze wavers over the group before finally landing once more Meredith's slight form, but then both she and Jackson are gone.

"Oh God, Charlie is really wasted. I'm gonna go ahead and get a cab home with him," Reed said to April. Both she and Charles lived in the opposite direction of the "frat house" as Meredith's house had been deemed. "Are you going to be okay getting home?"

April opens her mouth to respond. "I am an independent woman. I can get home by myself, I can pass my finals by myself, and I'm going to pass the bar when the time comes. All by myself. And another thing-"

"I'll make sure she gets home alright. We live together, after all." George interrupted April's drunken tirade.

Reed had been watching April bemusedly. She'd always known April was a bit of a lightweight; it didn't take much to get her drunk, but when she did, it was always interesting.

"Thanks." She said to George gratefully as she began to usher Charles towards the exit. "Happy New Year, by the way!" George nods his head in salute and April waves goodbye wildly. "Bye Reed!" She called out. Meredith and Cristina were still huddled, drinking and talking in low tones, joined at the hip as usual, while Alex and Izzie were speaking in heated tones.

"I thought things were better with them." April bit her lip as she turned to George. His brows were furrowed in concern as he watched his best friend currently arguing with Alex.

"So did I." He finally said as he looked down at the bar.

"Why are they together?" April asked. George lifted his head in surprise. Since she didn't drink that often, few people knew that she had a tendency to be a bit more abrupt when she was drunk.

"They do care about each other. Really," George said defensively. "It's just… complicated, I guess."

"But that's not enough, is it? Caring about someone." Whatever drunken high April had previously been on is currently waning. She hadn't heard yet what her final grades were, and while that was a definite worry, there was this unexplainable pit in her stomach.

George sighed. "You're right. Sometimes, caring about someone? Loving them? Sometimes, it's not enough. You know, you can be pretty insightful when you're drunk."

April shrugged her shoulders. "What can I say? I'm amazing."

"Come on," George said, chuckling. "We'll dance it out, then go home."

"Dance it out? What do you mean?" April stands up from the bar stool and trailed after George.

George grinned crookedly. "When you're friends with Meredith Grey for this long, dancing it out becomes a thing. You'll get used to it eventually."

"Are you alright?" It was a few days after New Year's, and Derek was back in town, getting ready for work at Meredith's house. He'd slept over the night before and was preparing his briefcase in between bites of toast. Meanwhile, Meredith was trying to enjoy the last few days of winter break before the spring semester started.

Meredith smiled wanly. "Yeah, I'm fine. We should be getting our grades back tomorrow, that's all. I'm just nervous about that." She'd decided not to tell Derek about her most recent sighting of her half-sister. A few walls were healthy, right?

"OK, well, have a good day. Do you want to get dinner tonight? We can go to that one taco place you like." He grinned cheekily.

"Sure." She kissed him on the cheek. "You should go, you're going to be late." Derek grins and walks to the front door as Meredith's phone rings. Not looking at the caller id, Meredith picks up.

"Hello?"

"Ms. Grey?"

"Yes?" Meredith asked as she turned her head to follow Derek's retreating form. He grinned and gave one last little wave before he began to make his way out to the car.

"I'm Michelle Robinson, one of the caretakers at Roseridge Home for Extended Care. I've called you a couple times, but we've had trouble reaching you."

The center where Ellis currently lives has been calling Meredith repeatedly over the past week, and when she tried to call them back, she'd been interrupted by the others coming into the house. She wasn't ready for everyone to know about her mother's disease. It felt too personal, too intimate. Meredith would sooner take off her clothes, talk about her sex life, before talking about her mother's Alzheimer's.

"Yes, I know, I apologize. I'm a first year law student, and the schedule can be very hectic. I visited at Christmas, but I had finals before that, and I've been… I've been busy." Meredith trails off lamely. She can hear for herself how it sounds like she's making excuses, but it's the truth. She tries to be there for her mother as much as possible, but it's not easy being the one making all the decisions for her mother's care. It's all on her shoulders.

"I've been trying to get in touch with you recently because your mother's condition is deteriorating rapidly. I strongly recommend that you come- as soon as possible." Michelle's tone was enough to tell Meredith that something was seriously wrong.

Meredith looks out the window at the sight of Derek's retreating back, as she clenches her hand on the windowsill so hard it hurts. Fuck. That's the thing about your past; you can never really outrun it. And bubbles always, inevitably, burst.