Chapter 19: Birthday

Summary: Addison shows up in Seattle for Olivia's birthday. Meredith babysits Olivia solo for a bit while Derek and Addison go visit the land.

"Addison?" Mark asked after seeing her name flash across his phone and answering the call.

"It's nice to hear from you, too, Mark," Addison said sarcastically.

"I just figured you'd be calling Derek with all the party planning that's been going on," Mark chuckled.

"Oh, I've heard from him plenty," Addison commented.

"He can't decorate, can he?" Mark said it more like a statement than a question.

"No, he can't," Addison giggled.

"So, what's up?" Mark asked.

"I may have a good idea of what the party's going to look like, but what I don't know is where it's going to be," Addison started.

"Oh, they're just gonna be at the house," Mark said.

"At Meredith's place?" Addison asked, wanting confirmation.

"Well, it's technically their place now, but yeah," Mark confirmed.

"Yeah, well, if it were up to me, my daughter's father wouldn't be living in a frat house full of residents," Addison joked. Mark laughed along.

"You know she has her own room, right?" Mark reminded her.

"Barely. And I'm assuming someone else sleeps there sometimes," Addison countered.

"Sloan and Sofia sometimes. But Liv has a trundle bed so the bed pulls out. They sleep on that if they need to," Mark replied, letting her know that Liv's room was just hers.

"How many people live there now, anyway?" Addison asked, genuinely curious.

"Six. Seven, if you count Liv," Mark said, doing the math in his head.

"So, what you're saying is it's a madhouse," Addison joked.

"Pretty much," Mark chuckled.

"And how often are you living there?" Addison asked. She knew Mark stayed over with Olivia sometimes. As well as the occasional sleepover with a certain intern.

"Liv loves it there, by the way. April and Lexie help her get dressed and Alex helps her with her hair. Plus, Jackson and April know how to cook," Mark pointed out, ignoring the question she asked.

"Yes, I'm well aware my ex-husband does a fine job taking care of our kid, and that he needs six different people to help Liv do everything I do on my own here. But thank you for the reminder," Addison said sarcastically. Mark chuckled.

"So, does this mean you'll be at the party?" Mark asked, going back to why she originally called.

"Yes. But don't tell Derek. I don't need him to ruin the surprise," Addison said. Derek was notoriously bad at keeping secrets from Olivia. She knew Mark could at least stop himself from telling his best friend for another two days.

"My lips are sealed," Mark promised, even closing an imaginary zipper over his mouth, despite the fact Addison couldn't see him.

"Thank you. I'll see you on Saturday," Addison said before hanging up the phone.

Mark chuckled. Olivia would be thrilled to see her mom. That would beat anything Derek had planned for her.

"Dad, do I really have to go to Olivia's party?" Sloan asked, looking at Mark.

"Yes, you do. You can give up one Saturday to go to your cousin's birthday," Mark said.

"She's not my cousin. And she's seven! Do you not understand how embarrassing it is to tell my friends that I went to a seven-year-old's birthday party?" Sloan asked.

"I guess you need better friends then. We're going. End of story," Mark said sternly.

"Ugh, Dad! You're so unfair!" Sloan exclaimed. Mark chuckled.

"Would you be having the same conversation if this was your sister?" Mark asked, pointing across the hall.

"She's a baby," Sloan deadpanned.

"Still," Mark pointed out.

"Well, that's different. Sofia's my actual sister. Just because you and Derek call each other brothers, it doesn't mean you're actually brothers. Liv isn't my cousin," Sloan pointed out.

"You're going. And that's final," Mark insisted, tired of fighting.

"You're so unfair!" Sloan exclaimed again before storming upstairs.

Mark rubbed his face, wondering what exactly he did wrong. Even after having a hand in Amelia's upbringing, he still wasn't prepared for his own teenager.

"Welcome to parenthood," Callie joked as she entered the room. She'd seen Sloan pass her by on the way here.

"You heard?" Mark asked, slightly embarrassed.

"The back end of it. But even if I didn't, that was the face of a teenager giving you a hard time, if I've ever seen one," Callie commented.

"How'd you know?" Mark asked sarcastically.

"I've seen that face before," Callie commented pointedly. Mark looked at her, confused.

"Where?" Mark asked.

"On my mother's face. When I was a teenager," Callie chuckled.

"What did she do, anyway?" Callie asked again.

"She said Olivia wasn't her cousin and just because Derek and I call each other brothers doesn't make Olivia her cousin," Mark relayed.

"Well, she's got a point there," Callie muttered.

"Gee, thanks for the help," Mark said sarcastically. Callie chuckled.

"You'll get the hang of it eventually," Callie said.

"Easy for you to say. Sofia's still a baby," Mark pointed out.

"True. But I do remember what it was like to be a teenage girl. So, I still have the upper hand," Callie said. Mark chuckled, accepting defeat.

"It's not like I have any family. The Shepherds are the closest thing I've got. They want to be her aunts and grandmother. Why can't she accept it?" Mark complained after thinking about it some more.

"Because she's a teenager. And she didn't grow up with you," Callie pointed out, much to Mark's disappointment. He was hoping she'd be on his side, but that was almost never the case.

Mark just groaned in defeat. He was never going to win.

Very quickly, Saturday arrived. Olivia had no clue about her birthday party, and Derek hoped to keep it that way. He took her out for the day to distract her under the guise of her going home that night to her mom. When they got back to the house, Derek couldn't hide it anymore. There were more cars in the driveway than usual, and Olivia definitely noticed.

"Why's there so many cars here, Daddy?" Olivia asked as Derek pulled into the driveway. Thankfully, everyone left enough room for Derek to park in his usual spot in the garage.

"Well, I told everyone it was your birthday," Derek started, parking the car and turning off the ignition.

"Everyone's here for my birthday?" Olivia asked excitedly.

"Yup," Derek confirmed, chuckling as he got out to let her out of her car seat.

Derek carried her all the way to the door inside, and once they opened the door, Olivia gasped upon seeing the decorations. It looked like the house was a true tea room.

"Is this all for me?" Olivia asked, wide-eyed, looking around.

"Happy birthday, Peanut," Derek smiled, gently brushing through Olivia's hair before she took a few steps forward to get a better look at everything.

"Woah," Olivia gasped, looking at everything. It looked amazing.

"Olivia!" Lucy, one of her daycare friends, ran over.

"Come play!" Lucy exclaimed, grabbing her hand so she could follow her.

"Dr. Robbins is giving us princess makeovers!" Lucy whispered loudly, amazed.

Derek smiled, watching the girls for a minute before he made his way over to the crowd of adults in the kitchen. He kissed Meredith as a thank you before going back to watching the small group of little girls.

"I couldn't have done any of this without you guys. Thank you," Derek smiled.

"You could've. Don't be so hard on yourself, Derek," Meredith whispered.

A bunch of little girls in her house wasn't something she would've liked, but she was learning. Olivia had been around for a long time, but she'd never done the whole playdate thing yet.

The party was going smoothly with no hiccups, Only Derek was seemingly disappointed that his sister didn't show up. She said she'd come along with her friends and the little boy, Mason, but maybe they weren't coming after all. He only hoped Olivia wouldn't notice because she was having too much fun.

"Hey, Olivia. Happy birthday," Mason said while Olivia's back was turned toward him.

"Hi, Mason!" Olivia exclaimed, immediately hugging him.

"Sorry, we're late. Amelia said we had to stop for your present," Mason said when Olivia pulled away.

"Lia's here?" Olivia's eyes lit up. She hadn't seen her yet, but with everything going on, she almost forgot.

Olivia looked at the door and saw Cooper, Charlotte, and Amelia, who was holding a gift bag. Amelia's smile widened when she saw the little girl. Even more so when she started running towards her. But Olivia remembered the incident back home and stopped herself before tackling her, and stood and looked up at her when she got to her.

"Happy birthday, Livvy!" Amelia exclaimed, putting the bag down momentarily to hug the girl.

"What'd you get me? What'd you get me?" Olivia asked excitedly, practically jumping.

"Well, why don't you look and see?" Amelia teased, giggling as she pushed the bag closer to her. After she yanked the tissue paper out, Amelia helped her lift the box. When they put it down on the ground, Olivia gasped loudly.

"What did you do?" Derek asked. He couldn't see what it was from where he stood, but he knew it was something big.

"Look, Daddy! I can be a mermaid now!" Olivia giggled.

Derek, by then, had walked up and finally saw the box. It was a mermaid tail for kids, one that Olivia could wear for fun or even in the pool. Derek chuckled. He knew there was a chance she'd wear it a few times before getting tired of it (after all, she couldn't do much other than swim or suntan in it), but he couldn't deny the smile on her face.

"Hey, the kid loves mermaids. I took a chance, and it turns out I'm right," Amelia shrugged with a smirk. She knew Olivia loved anything mermaid related, so it was a no-brainer that she had to get a mermaid tail.

Olivia hugged her aunt, thanking her over and over.

"Go play kiddo, your friends are here," Amelia redirected her a few minutes later.

"See? I told you she'd love it," Amelia taunted Cooper before walking away. Cooper and Charlotte had been around the hospital enough this past week where they'd gotten to know some of the other doctors. So, now, Amelia didn't feel bad about leaving them alone.

"How is she always right?" Cooper grumbled, mostly to himself.

"Yeah, it's annoying when she's right." Derek sympathized with the man.

It turned out the party was super successful. All the kids had a blast, even Mason who complained it was for girls. Sloan was a big hit with helping control the kids.

She showed them the proper way to have a tea party. Mark wasn't even aware Sloan knew how to drink tea properly. But he was thankful that she didn't complain once during the party.

As Olivia opened the last present, she felt someone tap her on the shoulder.

"Having fun?" The person asked with a smile on their face.

Olivia dropped the gift, turning around with a gasp. She'd recognize that voice anywhere.

"Mommy!" Olivia shouted excitedly, hugging her tight.

"You're here! In Seattle and in Daddy's house! On my birthday!" Olivia exclaimed.

"I am! You didn't think I'd miss your birthday, did you?" Addison asked, squeezing her little girl tight.

"Daddy, look! Mommy's here!" Olivia exclaimed when Addison let her go.

"I see that," Derek chuckled.

"Thanks for telling me, by the way," Derek added jokingly. Addison stood up and gave her ex-husband a hug as well.

"What fun would that be?" Addison teased.

"Have you been here the whole time?" Derek asked.

"Yes," Addison confirmed.

"And you didn't…wanna come out to say hi or anything?" Derek asked, chuckling.

"Well, I figured I'd give you guys your moment. I know this is your time with her," Addison said.

"Thank you, Addie," Derek said, giving her that McDreamy smile he was known for.

"Looks like McDreamy's back," Alex snickered after noticing how Meredith was staring.

"He's always been McDreamy," Meredith said, her eyes still not wavering from staring at Derek, Addison, and Olivia.

"Yeah, well, it looks like he's her McDreamy now," Alex joked.

"He's my husband now," Meredith pointed out.

"Barely," Alex snickered before walking away to get another mini sandwich to snack on.

"Who told you? Amy or Mark?" Derek asked, knowing either his sister or brother would spill everything to Addison. It was never anyone else.

"Actually, I haven't spoken to Amelia since last week. It was Mark; I called him to get details, just in case I was able to make it. Plus. I didn't want to be away from her on her birthday," Addison admitted, holding Olivia in her arms.

"Did you bring me a present, Mommy?" Olivia asked cheekily.

"Am I not good enough for you anymore?" Addison asked in mocked outrage. Olivia giggled.

"You're the bestest present ever, Mommy! You came to my birthday party at Daddy's house! Now you can come see my room! It's so pretty. Izzie decorated it a long long time ago but then she moved away," Olivia informed her.

"I'd love to see your room, baby. But after your party, okay? But hey, you know what? I left my present for you at home because I couldn't fit it on the plane," Addison teased. Olivia's eyes widened as Addison walked towards her coat; she couldn't wait to get home to open it.

"But when I told Dr. Jake I was gonna see you on your actual birthday, he wanted me to give you his present," Addison added, grabbing a gift bag hanging by her coat on the rack.

"Gimme, gimme!" Olivia jumped excitedly.

"Liv, patient," Derek chuckled.

Addison knelt down at Olivia's level and handed her the bag. Olivia pulled out the tissue paper and eventually found a stuffed orange cat toy.

"He looks like Milo!" Olivia exclaimed.

"Yes, he does," Addison giggled. She reached into the bag while her daughter admired the toy to get the note Jake left for her.

"You wanna read the note?" Addison asked, knowing she'd say yes. Olivia nodded back.

"Dear Liv, I know you probably miss Milo back here, so I thought I'd get you another Milo for you to keep in Seattle. Keep him safe for me. From Dr. Jake," Olivia read aloud.

"Suck up," Amelia muttered while standing next to Charlotte. She laughed back in agreement.

"He's gonna have to be a suck-up to her as her future stepfather," Charlotte added.

"Says the woman who tried to bribe Erica to disappear," Amelia commented.

"That's how I know you have to be a suck-up," Charlotte joked.

"Are Jake and Addison getting engaged?" Cooper asked excitedly. Something about love and weddings made him happy.

"Don't be ridiculous, Coop. They haven't even been together a year," Charlotte pointed out.

"How am I the ridiculous one? You said stepfather," Cooper said.

"Yeah, 'cause we all know it's gonna happen one day or another. But it doesn't mean it's gonna happen now," Charlotte replied. Cooper crossed his arms, frustrated.

"It is Milo!" Olivia gasped.

"Yeah. Jake thought you might be lonely without Milo when you're here, so he got you another Milo that could stay in Seattle so you won't miss him so much when you stay with Daddy," Addison said. Olivia giggled happily.

"We'll call him later so you can say thank you," Addison added before kissing her forehead.

"Nice job, by the way," Addison commented to Derek after Olivia ran off to go play with her friends.

"Thanks. I had a lot of help," Derek smiled as he walked to stand beside her to join in on watching their little girl.

"I'm guessing this tea party was her idea?" Addison gathered. Derek chuckled and nodded. Of course, it was Olivia's idea.

"And the teacups?" Addison asked. She knew Derek didn't get them. His mother had some nice china, but they'd left those with Nancy when they moved to Seattle. And she knew he wouldn't have bought a small set just for this party.

"April," Derek said. His ex-wife knew him too well.

"And I'm guessing the cupcakes and sandwiches were also April? And Lexie?" Addison guessed.

"Yup," Derek chuckled.

"Are you done?" Derek asked sarcastically.

"One more. The dress-up station. I wanna say…Arizona?" Addison asked.

"Correct again," Derek laughed.

"But really, thanks for reminding me how completely inept I am at throwing our daughter's birthday party," Derek said sarcastically. Addison laughed.

"Yeah, well, I used to be the one who did all this. And you are a great father, but we both know that you're also a terrible decorator," Addison joked.

"Well, thank you." Derek chuckled, before getting serious.

"I tried before, you know? When Amy was her age. Someone had to try to give her that magic back, but uh it didn't work. I never tried again after her seventh though. You threw some great parties though and I'm sorry, I never said it before," Derek said, his voice far away as he was remembering his attempts at making his baby sister happy in wake of the tragedy their family endured. Addison smiled back appreciatively.

"Mommy, Mommy, look!" Olivia came barreling back, a wrinkled mermaid tail in her hand. Addison could tell what it was in its disheveled state, but just barely.

"You're gonna be a mermaid now?" Addison asked, giggling. This new mermaid tail would result in plenty of instances where Olivia would lay out in the backyard pretending to be a mermaid.

"Yeah! Lia got it for me!" Olivia said excitedly.

"I saw that," Addison laughed.

"Can we put it on?" Olivia asked anxiously.

"Maybe not right now," Addison said, turning her around and pulling her in for a snuggle.

"You have a lot of people here right now for your birthday, remember?" Addison asked softly, her head resting on her daughter's head.

"We can put it on and call Daddy when we get home tomorrow," Addison whispered before kissing the top of her head.

"Okay. Do you wanna see me play dress-up?" Olivia asked, quickly moving on from the mermaid tail subject.

"I would love that," Addison giggled, grabbing the mermaid tail and handing it back to where she knew Derek was still standing before, letting Olivia lead her back to the dress-up station.

Amelia walked over, loosely hugging her brother from behind.

"You did good, big bro. And I'm sorry I didn't appreciate it when you tried for me back then," Amelia said, softly, a tint of regret in her voice.

"You overheard me and Addie, didn't you?" Derek asked, chuckling.

"Of course I did. I hear everything," Amelia replied teasingly.

"But seriously, thank you. I didn't appreciate it then, but I do now," Amelia added.

"I know. Now, go enjoy the party," Derek pushed her off. Amelia walked away backward and stuck out her tongue before she turned around. Their moment was over.

Derek rolled his eyes playfully.

As the last of the guests left and the clean-up was done, Olivia was sitting happily beside her mom, talking her ear off.

"Hey Addie, are you busy?" Derek asked, hating to break up his ex and their daughter.

"Not at all. Why?" Addison asked.

"Well, since you're here, I wanted to show you something," Derek said.

"Think we can sneak away for an hour?" Derek asked her, nodding toward Olivia.

"You guys go, I got her," Meredith told them. She knew her jealousy was stupid, so to show she was better, she was letting them go out together.

"So, where are we going?" Addison asked after they got in Derek's car.

"To the land," Derek replied.

"The house is almost ready, and I wanted to show you around while you're here," Derek added.

"So you're showing me? Your ex-wife?" Addison asked.

"Did you not want to see where your daughter lives part-time? If not, you're free to leave," Derek joked.

Addison rolled her eyes and clicked her seatbelt in. Derek chuckled and started the car.

They sat in comfortable silence for the next 30 or so minutes as they drove to the land. When they arrived, Addison looked at the house in awe. He really built a house.

"Wow," Addison commented.

"Hopefully, that's a good wow," Derek joked as he turned off the car. He got out first and met Addison in front of the car as they took a moment to admire the house.

"You really built a house, like you said you would," Addison commented in awe as Derek offered her a hand. She could see a bunch of Olivia's big toys she's said no to in the past scattered all around the area as she walked to stand in front of the car.

"What do you think?" Derek asked.

"It's gorgeous," Addison commented.

"Wait until you see the inside," Derek teased, walking toward the door.

She followed Derek into the house, looking around.

He happily showed her all around the house, pointing out the different things he did with it.

"And this is one of the guest rooms. Specifically for Amy, when she's here, I know we have our moments, but she does a lot for us," Derek said.

"Well, I'm just glad you guys are finally getting along," Addison commented.

"We have our moments. But it's kind of hard to stay mad at her when she flies across states for our kid and takes over my job so I can have time with our kid," Derek admitted.

"And the last room. Olivia's," Derek led her down the hall and opened the door to what would be the little girl's new room.

"What do you think?" Derek asked.

Addison looked around and saw the lavender-colored walls, a twin-sized bed with pink bedding and a white headboard, a small desk for Olivia to do homework, some pictures framed on the desk, and a wooden decal of Olivia's name in cursive above her bed.

"It's beautiful, Derek. She'll love it," Addison commented.

Derek's smile widened as Addison walked into the room to further inspect the details. She walked by the desk and saw a picture of their cat, Milo, who was currently back in L.A. with Jake. The other photo she saw on the desk was an old picture of the three of them in the Hamptons when Olivia was just barely one-year-old.

"I haven't seen this picture in a while," Addison commented, picking up the frame.

"Yeah, well, she misses you when she's here. Milo, too," Derek said jokingly, pointing out the other picture of Olivia and Milo.

"I guess it's a good thing your friend got her that toy," Derek added, chuckling. Addison bit her tongue and decided not to correct him by calling him her boyfriend.

"He misses her, too. Believe me. He sleeps in her room and meows at me when he realizes she's not around like I can magically make her appear," Addison chuckled. Olivia had that cat wrapped around her little finger.

Derek chuckled, thinking about it. He wasn't a huge cat fan, but Addison and Olivia were very fond of Milo, so he liked the cat alright. Maybe once they moved and got settled, he could finally get the dog he always wanted.

"Still thinking about that dog?" Addison teased.

"Always. I wanted one for so long. My parents finally agreed we'd go looking 'cause they thought Amy was finally old enough to not get hurt by the dog if something happened. And then…you know," Derek trailed off.

"Yeah, I know," Addison said gently, reaching out to squeeze his arm in a soothing gesture.

"Anyway," Derek cleared his throat.

"Liv hasn't seen it yet. It should be ready soon, but we're gonna wait to surprise her when she comes back," Derek added.

Addison smiled, looking around once more. Olivia would love it, and she knew it.

When they get back to Meredith's place, Olivia surprisingly wasn't napping like she was supposed to. And Meredith wasn't that happy about it. She thought she was starting to get the hang of watching Derek's kid, but apparently not.

"Mommy!" Olivia exclaimed, running over to Addison as soon as she and Derek walked through the door.

"Hi, baby. What are you doing up?" Addison asked.

"You're supposed to be sleeping," Derek reminded her gently.

"I don't wanna sleep. It's my birthday!" Olivia said.

"I know it's your birthday, but you still need a nap," Addison chuckled.

"No, I don't," Olivia said stubbornly.

"Seven-year-olds don't take naps," Olivia added.

"Yes, they do," Derek said. Addison looked over at him and silently thanked him for stepping in. She hated always being the bad cop with Olivia.

"No, I don't! " Olivia insisted.

"Okay, why don't you show me your room?" Addison asked, readjusting the girl in her arms. Olivia's eyes lit up.

"Okay!" Olivia said as Addison let her back down.

Olivia ran to her room with Addison following behind. Derek stayed behind with Meredith, knowing his ex-wife had it handled. When he turned around, he could see Meredith was a little on edge.

"So, how'd it go with Liv?" Derek asked, chuckling.

"It's not funny," Meredith said, frustrated.

"What happened?" Derek asked.

"She just wouldn't go down for her nap. And when I kept telling her she'd get in trouble with her daddy, she just went, no I won't, and stuck her tongue out at me!" Meredith complained. Derek couldn't help but laugh.

"It's not funny!" Meredith said again.

"I'm sorry. You're right, it's not funny. You'll get the hang of it eventually. It just takes time," Derek said.

A/N: So Our time in Seattle is almost over. Then we're back to LA again and it's going to get heavy and sad so buckle up everyone. We're sorry in advance.

Chapter title inspired by the song, Birthday by Selena Gomez.