Meredith

"Have you seen Alex?" I ask rushing past the elevator as Nathan steps off.

He shakes his head, "What's the rush?"

"I'm late to pick up Zola from ballet and I haven't even started cooking for tomorrow," I say as I continue my descent out of the building.

Dr. Riggs follows behind me, "Grey, you know you were supposed to start cooking Thanksgiving dinner like days ago."

"Oh, shut up, Riggs. I don't see you at home in my kitchen cooking so you can't comment," I say making my way out the lobby doors before turning around to him, "Where's Maggie anyway?"

"Oh, I almost forgot. She said her surgery was running late and she'd be home to help cook right after."

"I'm never going to get this done. Who volunteered me to host Thanksgiving anyway?" I sigh heading out towards my car. I hear Nathan laughing as he heads back inside the hospital.

Apologizing profusely to her instructor I pick up Zola from class and we rush home. It's a miracle I even got the shopping done this past week balancing the kids and work… I miss Izzie… I knew if I had no one, Izzie would be home in the kitchen cooking. She was the one person that could actually get the whole family together… I'm not meant for this… Where is Izzie when I need her?

I make my way upstairs to my room and I flop down on my bed on top of something rough, "Aah! Alex?!"

"What the hell, Mer?"

"Alex? Oh!" I chuckle, "Wait, I've been looking for you all day."

"I've been here," he says sitting up, "I've been sleeping."

"All day?"

"All day," he nods.

There's something he isn't telling me. I look at him skeptically, "What's going on?"

"Jo and I broke up."

"She still wouldn't accept your proposal?" I say as my pager goes off, "Holy fuck, I'm never going to get this meal cooked."

"I'll get started on it."

"Really?" I ask sarcastically, "the only thing I've ever seen you ever cook was grilled cheese… and you burnt it."

"Oh, shut up," he shoves me.

I laugh making my way out the door, "Thanks, Alex."

Turns out, an old patient of mine came into the hospital with a ruptured appendix. The surgery didn't take long at all and by the time I walked out, I ran into Maggie. It looks as though she's just coming out of surgery as well.

"Hey, Mer, I thought you'd be at home cooking?"

"I was but I got paged back in for an emergency appendectomy," I shrug as we walk down the hall together, "Alex volunteered to help out so he's at home getting started."

"Oh okay, well, I'm done for the night so I'm about to head home too," she says and as we round the corner, I see Callie and Addison over at the Nurses' Station.

I nod heading towards them, "Okay, I'll, uh, see you at home."

"Oh, hey, Mer," Callie smiles once I make my way over to them, "Addison was just telling me that she's spending Thanksgiving alone with the kids."

"Oh, no, you can't do that… It's Thanksgiving and plus, I'm hosting this year so you guys should come over."

"Oh, no, I wouldn't want to intrude."

"I insist… If I have to be at this dinner tomorrow, so do you," I joke.

She laughs, "Fine. I know the kids would love it and the only thing I've made so far is the green bean casserole."

"That settles it then," Callie smiles grabbing her chart and walking away, "See you guys tomorrow."

"You do realize that was a setup, right?" Addison shakes her head, "Callie has ulterior motives…"

"Even so, she's right. You can't spend Thanksgiving alone… you're supposed to spend it with your loved ones… and trust me, there'll be so many people at my house tomorrow… there's ought to be someone you love there," I laugh, "Plus, if you bring the green bean casserole, that's one less dish I have to make."

"What time is dinner?"

"Six."

"Okay, we will see you guys tomorrow… at six," she smiles, grabbing her chart and finally walking away.

I smiled to myself as I put away my chart and made my way up to my office. I change out of my scrubs into my street clothes, grab my bag and head out of the building. By the time I make it home, Alex just finished peeling the potatoes and Maggie is just putting the candied yams into the oven. Alex made three things of cornbread, one is for the dressing that we'll make in the morning. It's getting late so I just help Maggie peel the sweet potatoes for her casserole before I head to bed. I asked the people who volunteered to help cook to come over tomorrow morning at nine a.m. so I have to be up early tomorrow to get everything ready.

"Gratitude, appreciation, giving thanks. No matter what words you use, it all means the same thing. Happy," I say to baby Ellis who's playing with her breakfast in her highchair as I fill the sink up with hot water, "We're supposed to be happy. Grateful for friends, family, happy just to be alive…"

I drop the turkey down into it then I grab all the recipes I printed out and the two books I'm going to use. I'm so not in the mood for this right now. I hear footsteps coming down the stairs and I look up to see Alex sneaking past the kitchen.

"Hey!" I call out and he turns around to me, "What do you think you're doing?"

"Uh…" he thinks as the doorbell rings, "answering the door."

"You're going to the hospital?" I ask, noticing his work bag on his shoulder.

He nods, "Yes but afterㄧ"

"Alex, everyone is supposed to be in the kitchen by nine a.m. to help me make dinner. It's Thanksgiving."

"I'm really not in the mood plus I made the mashed potatoes and cornbread last night."

"But it's like a family… oh , who am I kidding…?" I finish as the doorbell rings again.

Alex points, "Doorbell."

Alex disappears out of my sight and then I hear Nathan's voice, "Hey, guys!"

"Hey, I'm just…" is all Alex gets out before he runs out the door.

I shake my head, "Alex, I'm serious! You need to be back here for dinner at six! I mean it!"

"Hey, Nathan," Maggie says coming down the stairs dressed in her coat.

I look at her quizzically, "Where are you going?"

"I'm just running out… Nathan and I are going to get some booze…" she says walking past the kitchen, "Do you need anything else from the store?"

"Okay, wait, wait!" I call after her, "I can't make dinner by myself. Who's going to help me?"

"Promise we'll be right back," she says as she runs out behind him.

Sighing, I go ahead and get started on the greens… luckily, there isn't much to them but boiling water and seasoning. While I'm still ahead, I start on my marinade for the turkey while it's still defrosting. I didn't notice how much time had passed before the doorbell rang again. It's probably Owen and Amelia… if it were Maggie or Alex, they would've let themselves in. Either way, they should've been here an hour and a half ago…

"It's half past 10! You're late! I've had to try to do allㄧ" I stop instantly when I realize that it's not Amelia and Owen, it's Addison and the kids. I smile awkwardly, "Addison! Sorry, I thought you were Amelia."

"No problem, it's fine. We didn't have anything to do this morning and figured I'd come by and help cook while the kids play," she smiles offering up her green bean casserole.

The kids run in past her and Henry hugs my legs, "Hey, Mama!"

"Hi, baby boy. Zola and Bailey are upstairs," I say as he and the twins go running off upstairs.

Addison walks in behind them, "Why is it so quiet in here?"

"Uh, Alex went to the hospital and Maggie and Nathan are out getting alcohol," I say closing the door behind us.

She walks into the kitchen with Everett on her heels, "So it's just me and you?"

"And Amelia and Owen, if they ever show up."

"Is something burning?"

"Oh god yes!" I ran into the kitchen and grabbed the burning pan out the stove just as the doorbell rings again, "Shit."

"Oh," Addison asks, taking the smoking pan away from me as I run to the door, "What is that?"

"It was supposed to be my marinade," I call out as I open the door. It's actually Owen and Amelia this time. I frown letting them in, "Hey guys. You're late."

"You've never made a Thanksgiving dinner before…" Addison says from the kitchen.

I whisper to myself closing the door behind them, "I really miss Izzie."

"Meredith can't cook. She's worse than me and I can't boil water," Amelia says walking into the kitchen. She sits down at the counter and asks, "Where is everyone?"

"Alex went to the hospital," I say walking into the kitchen, "Nathan came and took Maggie; they said they'd be right back…"

"I can be of some assistance," Owen offers up.

Addison throws away the burnt marinade, "We surely need it."

"You can get started on the squash," I tell Owen and he nods heading over to the sink to wash his hands.

Amelia jokes, "Okay that's it. If there's gonna be no food, I'm going home."

"Amelia, I have this," Addison says then turns to me, "What are you using as a reference text?"

"'The joy of cooking'," I motion over to the recipe book on the counter as I make my way over to the sink, "I also printed up some recipes from the internet but they all seem to contradict one another and I can't figure out which side of the turkey is up and which is the bottom."

"Okay… Okay, um, I'm gonna need the basing brush, a bowl, uh, a clove of garlic and ah, do you have any fennel?" Addison lists as Owen and I start looking madly for the ingredients.

I grab the fennel bringing it over to the sink, "Uh, yeah, right here."

"Ah, okay, well let's get this turkey up and running," she says holding out her hand, "Garlic."

"Garlic," I say while slapping the garlic into her hand.

The doorbell rings and I go to answer it. It's Callie, Arizona and Sofia. Callie smiles, "We brought the mac & cheese and a couple of pies."

"Great. The kids are upstairs and we're all in the kitchen. Maggie is…" I pause as a car pulls up in the driveway. Joe and his husband get out of the car and I smile waving before I turn back to Callie, "supposed to be on her way back in with the booze."

"Sounds like a party to me," Arizona smiles as they make their way in.

Joe, Walter and their twins walk up to the door only seconds later, "Happy Thanksgiving!"

"Joe, thank god! Tell me you brought liquor," I smile over to his husband, "Hey, Walter. Hi, girls."

"I brought pie; Pumpkin," he smiles holding out the pie, "And your favorite…"

"Tequila!" Walter smiles pulling out the bottle from behind him.

I happily take the tequila, "Everyone's in the kitchen."

A few shots and a margarita later, I'm in the kitchen chopping celery with a large knife on the kitchen island. Arizona, Owen and Walter are drunk entertaining the kids while Joe, Callie and Amelia sit at the counter watching us cook… They were supposed to be helping. Addison is standing over my shoulder and I feel as though I'm in the OR. It makes me laugh a little.

Addison sips on her margarita, "Hmm. You have to cut the celery into finer pieces, Grey."

"Uh huh," I nod, cutting a few more pieces then I hold one up to her, "Like that?"

"That'll do. Put them in with the onions," she instructs as I grab the chopped pieces and place them in a bowl of chopped onions, "Now, what should you be concerned about?"

"Um…"

"The turkey, Grey. I expect you to know that."

"Right. I need to check the turkey to see if it's cooking at the correct temperature," I nod as we head over to the oven.

Addison nods, "And how do we do that?"

"Meat thermometer," I say holding it up in the air.

Joe whispers loudly, "Ten bucks says she dries out the turkey."

"Twenty says she pulls it off," Callie says sipping her drink.

Amelia laughs, "Seventy-five says they'll totally make out."

"I'm with you on that one," Callie scoffs and I roll my eyes.

Addison opens the oven and pulls out the turkey a bit. I think aloud, "Hmm."

"Okay Grey, let's see what you can do." I start to insert the meat thermometer and Addison nods along, "Alright. More pressure. Turkey has a tough shell. Dig in."

I push the thermometer in further, "I'm in."

"Damn, she got it in," Joe sighs.

Callie laughs, "Told you she was going to pull it off."

"Good, not bad," she nods, "Now all you have to do is get the thermometer deep enough to get a temp. But be careful not too…"

"Oh!" we both shouted at the same time.

She shakes her head at me, "You hit the bone! The pan is filling with juice and you're losing moisture. What do you do?"

"Uh…" I say panicking, "um…"

"Think!"

"This is ridiculous," Amelia laughs as I pace around the kitchen.

Addison shakes her head, "Suction, Grey! Use the baster for suction!"

"Oh, right," I say, grabbing the baster as Maggie and Nathan walk into the kitchen.

Maggie smiles waving two bottles of liquor in her hands, "I brought Tequila!"

Everyone in the house starts to clap and they all make their way into the living room leaving Addison and I alone in the kitchen. We're getting started on the dressing since just about everything else is done. Dr. Bailey and Ben are bringing some chicken just in case my turkey isn't big enough for everyone then we'd have our entire Thanksgiving feast. Thank God for Addison or none of this would've been ready in time.

I start tossing some onions around in a pan as Addison puts the corn into the boiling water. She looks over my shoulder to the pan in my hands and says, "You want the butter to melt, not to boil."

"Oh, okay," I stop with the onions, pick up a wooden spoon and start mixing the butter in another pan before looking over to her, "Addison, how did you learn to cook like this?"

"Honestly?" she says, picking up the pan of onions and starts mixing them, "A lot of time and patience. I was terrible… One Thanksgiving, Carolyn broke her wrist the day before and Derek invited all thirty-four of his family members over to our house… Let's just say Carolyn wouldn't let me step foot in the kitchen after that and blamed me for Kathleen getting salmonella… She says I tried to poison them… But, I guess, Henry changed things. At first, it was just me and him so, I had to learn how to cook… watched a bunch of cooking shows while I sipped my wine and eventually, after years of practice…"

"Seriously?"

"Seriously," she nods.

I sigh, "How do I still suck?"

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Grey. You were spoiled with people who could actually cook."

"Was that an insult, Dr. Montgomery?" I ask.

She grins sipping her drink, "No, no, not at all."

"Mama!" tiny voices come yelling into the kitchen.

I smile down at the kids, "Yes, little ones?"

"Look at the turkey hat I made with Aunt Arizona!" Bailey says as he holds up his creation to me.

The twins smile holding up their hats, "We made hats too!"

"Sofia and I made turkey glasses!" Zola shouts.

I smile down at them, "Wow, that's so neat! You guys did an awesome job!"

"I made a centerpiece," Henry holds up his work and smiles, "Aunt Arizona said that we could put it on the table when we eat."

"That's a great idea," I nod, "You guys wanna help me set the table?"

"Yeah!" they all bounce up and down.

I turn to Addison and she nods, "I'll finish up here."

"Thanks," I say, heading to the cabinets.

I hand Bailey a big cup of silverware, and the older ones get to help with the plates. I didn't want a huge accident to happen so I only give them three plates each as we make our way into the living room. We have a long table seating sixteen but I'm assuming Jo isn't coming anymore so we have two extra seats… and we have the kids table right next to ours. We set up their table with the same silverware and plates so they'll feel 'fancy like us' as Zola would say it.

When we're done, I headed back into the kitchen where Addison is checking on the turkey in the oven, "The kids and I have just about got the table set up in the living room. How's our bird?"

"He needs about another hour," she says and I sigh, grabbing a few more plates from the cupboard, "Why did you plan this big dinner if you knew you couldn't cook?"

"I just like Thanksgiving," I shrug.

She looks at me knowingly, "You just like Thanksgiving?"

"Doctor-patient confidentiality?"

"Doctor-patient confidentiality."

"Okay… it was Izzie. She said to me once back during intern year: 'We work eighteen hours a day, six days a week, fifty weeks a year… We don't really have any time for our families. We don't have friends that aren't doctors, but we have this one day, where we don't have to cut anyone open… one day, where we get to be like everybody else… one day to be normal; a day where nobody lives and nobody dies on our watch. It's like a gift.' So I just thought we should appreciate it. That's all," I shrug, closing the cabinet, "Gotta finish setting the table."

"Okay," Addison slowly nods and smiles, "A day without surgery."