A/N: I can't figure out why, but I'm not thrilled with the way this chapter came out. Still, it accomplishes everything I needed to get done in this chapter, so I'm going to go ahead and post it. I'm sort of testing the waters with the end of this chapter - as much as I love Mer/Der and I'm having so much fun writing their successful relationship in my other story, every time I come back to this story, I just don't find myself as thrilled with their relationship here as I think I should be. So, I guess I'm just giving myself another option, if that makes sense.
"Well, are you just going to stand there all day and stare?" Catherine Shepherd asked as Derek stood in the doorway of the elevator, unable to move. "Come here and give your mother a hug, Derek."
Derek obliged silently, embracing his mother as Mark stepped onto the elevator behind him.
"That's much better," Catherine smiled. "Now, I certainly hope that you don't have plans for tonight. Your sisters and I are going to take you out to an early dinner, then you can bring us out to your land, show us this infamous trailer we've heard so much about."
"Actually, I…" Derek began.
"And if you don't already have it free, you should see about getting tomorrow off," Catherine continued. "No one should have to work on their birthday, dear. Your sisters and I are here to make sure that you actually celebrate this year. Forty is a big one, you know."
"Mom, I…" Derek tried to get a word in.
"Oh, there's no need to thank us," Catherine assured him. "We're just looking out for you, you know that. Now, you should get changed so that we can get out of this hospital and start celebrating."
"Mom, I can't leave," Derek said.
"Of course you can," Nancy piped up. "Really, Derek, this place isn't going to fall apart if you leave for a day to spend a little time with your family. We flew all the way out here just for you; the least you could do is take a day off to entertain us."
"I didn't ask you to come," Derek argued. "And maybe you can just pick up and leave your patients without notice, but mine need me here. You know, if you all had called before coming I might have been able to arrange for some time off. But that would just be too much of a normal thing to do, right?"
"The sarcasm is highly unnecessary," Kathleen said. "Really, what's the big deal with taking a few hours away from the hospital, Derek? This work-centered life that you're living, it really isn't healthy. Mark agreed to take time off to spend with us. I'm sure you could do the same."
"He did, did he?" Derek asked, glaring at Mark, who shot back an apologetic stare. "Well, Mark's patients aren't going to die if their boob jobs get pushed back a day. My patients don't have the luxury of time, and I don't have the time to stand in this elevator arguing with you about it."
At that moment, the elevator doors opened on the surgical floor. With his family still hot on his heels, Derek quickly moved to step out of the elevator, nearly colliding with George in the process.
"Dr. Shepherd," George said, clearly a bit out of breath. "I was just coming to look for you. I booked us in OR 4 for Molly's surgery; Debbie says that they'll have it prepped and ready for us in forty-five minutes."
"Good," Derek nodded. "Thank you, Dr. O'Malley. Go find Dr. Bailey and let her know; then you can go assist whoever is prepping Molly. Be ready to scrub in when you're done there."
"Yes, sir," George said, sidestepping around Derek's family into the elevator, staring curiously at them as the elevator doors closed.
"See?" Derek asked, turning to face his family. "I have surgeries to attend to. Surgeries that can't wait while I go off gallivanting around the city with you all."
"You could have just said so," Nancy said indignantly. "There's no need for all this hostility, Derek. Is it an emergency surgery?"
"Yes, it is," Derek said. "Look, you all are just going to have to find something else to do tonight, because I have no idea how long I'm going to be. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go talk to my patient's family and tell them that I have to take her in for another surgery."
With that, Derek turned and hurried off down the hall, leaving his mother and sisters to stare at his retreating form.
Addison hummed softly as she nestled Laura against her chest and walked slowly through the hospital corridors. Although she had, at least temporarily, given up her quest to become a mother, she had to admit that she still relished the feeling of caring for a child.
Turning a corner, she came to an abrupt halt as she eyed the five women standing with Mark at the end of the hall. Knowing that there was little chance of slipping away without being spotted, Addison braced herself for the onslaught of hugs and questions before continuing on down the hall.
"Oh my God, Addie!" Kathleen practically squealed as she saw her former sister-in-law heading their way. "Mark, why didn't you tell us Addie was still here? I thought you moved to L.A., sweetie!"
"I did," Addison said, quickly shifting Laura to her hip so that Kathleen wouldn't crush her with her hug. "I'm just back for a few days to handle a case. I'll be heading back to L.A. any day now."
"Well, you look wonderful, dear," Catherine said, stepping forward to hug Addison. "Now, why on earth did no one tell me that you'd had a baby? This is fabulous, dear, and that child is absolutely gorgeous."
"Oh, no, she's…" Addison began to protest.
"She really is cute, Addie," Amanda piped up. "She doesn't look a whole lot like you, though. She must take after her father's side."
"Is he here too?" Nancy asked eagerly. "I'd love to meet the man who finally did right by you."
"Guys, calm down," Addison insisted. "She's not my baby; I'm just watching her for a friend for a little while."
"Oh," Catherine said, clearly disappointed. "Well, I suppose that's a more reasonable explanation, anyway. Now, we're all headed out for a big dinner tonight to celebrate our arrival. You must join us, Addison, Derek and Mark will both be coming along."
"Does Derek even know you're here?" Addison asked.
"Of course he does," Catherine said. "He's off talking to a patient's family right now."
"Hey, do you know if he's still seeing that slutty intern?" Nancy asked. "You know, the one he was so gaga over the last time I was here."
"Oh, um, well…" Addison muttered, noticing Mark taking this opportunity to silently slip off around the corner. "I don't work here anymore, so I really wouldn't know. I haven't kept in touch much with anyone up here."
"What about you, Mark?" Kathleen asked, turning around to find Mark gone. "Hey, where'd Mark go?"
"He must have been paged away," Addison suggested.
"I'm sure," Nancy said, rolling her eyes. "You know what we need right now is a nurse. Nurses know everything in a hospital."
"Hey," Derek said softly as he walked into Molly's room to find Meredith and Lexie sitting numbly by the empty bed, tearstains evident on their cheeks.
"Where's Molly?" Lexie asked anxiously. "Is she alright?"
"The CT showed a clot in her brain," Derek said. "That's probably what caused the seizure earlier. Given her reaction to the first seizure, I want to go in and remove the clot before it causes another."
"How soon?" Meredith asked.
"George is prepping her for surgery now," Derek said. "We're booked for an OR as soon as he's finished."
"How big is the clot?" Meredith asked.
"Big enough," Derek said vaguely, not wanting to alarm either sister with too much detail.
"How long do you think you'll be in surgery?" Lexie asked.
"It's hard to tell without being able to see how entrenched the clot is," Derek admitted. "I'd say at least three or four hours, possibly more if there are any obstructions."
"We should head up to the surgical waiting room," Meredith decided. "It'll be easier for George to come give us updates there."
"You could also wait in one of the conference rooms," Derek suggested. "They're still close to the OR, but they might give you some more privacy than the waiting room."
"Okay," Meredith nodded. "Um, I guess we should head up there, then."
"Alright," Derek nodded. "Just let one of the nurses know which room you'll be in so that George knows where to find you with updates."
"Nancy, really, maybe you guys should just let Derek tell you about his personal life," Addison said as she hurried along behind the women.
"What's he got to hide?" Amanda asked curiously. "That one right there looks gossipy. Ask her, Nance."
"You," Nancy called out as she walked up to the nurses' station with her mother and sisters. "Come here."
"Are you talking to me?" Rose asked, arching an eyebrow in surprise at being ordered about by anyone other than Seattle Grace's cocky surgeons.
"Yes, you," Nancy said. "Get over here."
"I don't work for you," Rose said. "If you're here to see a patient, I'd be happy to direct you to the appropriate room. If not, I've got work to do."
"I just have a few questions I was hoping you could help me with," Nancy said. "You know, just clear up a bit of gossip."
"I may be a nurse, but that doesn't mean I like gossip," Rose said. "As I just told you, unless you're here to see a patient, I can't help you and I'd appreciate it if you'd let me get back to work."
"Excuse me, Rose?"
Everyone in the group looked over to see Meredith standing on the other side of the nurses' station.
"Yes, Dr. Grey?" Rose asked, turning her back to Derek's mother and sisters.
"Um, well," Meredith stuttered a bit, having caught sight of Nancy in the group behind Rose. "Someone is supposed to come update Lexie and I on Molly's surgery in a little while. Could you just leave a note or something here so that they know that we'll be in conference room 3?"
"Of course," Rose said. "And Dr. Grey? I don't think I've had a chance to say it yet, but I'm really sorry about…well, about everything, really."
Meredith smiled weakly, understanding exactly what Rose was talking about. "Thanks, Rose. I appreciate it."
"Just let me know if you need anything," Rose said, nervously twisting her thumbs.
"I will," Meredith nodded, feeling about as awkward as she thought Rose looked. Noticing Addison standing in the back of the group with Laura, she turned her attention to her niece.
"Thanks for watching Laura, Addison," Meredith said as she walked over and took the baby out of Addison's arms. "I hope she wasn't any trouble for you."
"She was a perfect angel," Addison assured her. "Are they taking Molly back into surgery?"
"Yeah," Meredith said sadly. "Derek said the CT showed a clot, which is probably what caused the seizure. It might also explain why she never woke up."
"How's Lexie?" Addison asked.
"Still pretty shaken up," Meredith sighed. "She's had a lot to take in; it's going to take a while for her to adjust to everything."
"And you?" Addison asked. "How are you holding up?"
"I'm used to it," Meredith shrugged. "I've never thought of Thatcher as a good guy, so I'm used to him letting me down. And as for the rest of it…well, I guess it wouldn't be my life if something weren't going wrong, right? Like I said, I'm used to it."
"Excuse me, Dr. Grey?"
Meredith looked up to find Rose hovering in the doorway of the conference room. It had only been thirty minutes since George had stopped in to let them know that Molly's surgery was progressing as well as could be expected, so she wasn't expecting any news for another hour or two. Quickly glancing over her shoulder to see Lexie sleeping in the corner, curled up against Alex's shoulder with Laura in a playpen by their side, Meredith stood up and stepped outside the room to avoid disturbing them.
"I'm sorry to bother you," Rose said as Meredith softly shut the door behind her. "There's a man here to see you."
"A man?" Meredith asked in confusion.
"I think he's from the army, so maybe he wants to talk about your brother-in-law?" Rose offered.
"Right," Meredith nodded. "Where is he?"
"He's waiting at the nurses' station," Rose said.
"Thanks," Meredith said, pausing for a moment. "Um, and Rose, about what you said earlier…I'm sorry too."
"You didn't do anything," Rose insisted. "He just loves you. I can't blame you for that. I mean, I think I knew when I started…there's no way to compete against the legend that is Derek and Meredith."
"There's no legend," Meredith said. "And even if there were, well, legends are just that…they're dreams and stories, not reality. Sometimes that's not enough. Sometimes, even love isn't enough."
"I can understand that," Rose nodded, gently fingering the engagement ring around her neck.
"Um, so you said this guy is at the nurses' station?" Meredith asked, breaking the awkward silence threatening to descend upon the two women.
"Ooh, check out the hot soldier," Amanda Shepherd laughed as she wandered down the hall with Nancy and Kathleen.
"Mandy, now is not the time to be drooling over men," Kathleen said. "We have a major situation here."
"I still don't understand what the problem is," Amanda said.
"The problem is that that baby Addison was holding clearly belonged to that Meredith girl," Nancy said.
"And you're sure that that girl is Derek's intern?" Kathleen asked her sister.
"Of course I'm sure," Nancy insisted. "So, Mandy, do you see why we have a problem here?"
"No," Amanda said. "So Derek's dating a girl who has a kid. So what? I dated a guy with a kid once and you all didn't freak out about it."
"You are a bit dense, you know that, Amanda?" Kathleen declared. "That child is only a few months old."
"And how is that important?" Amanda asked.
"You've got to be kidding me," Nancy sighed in exasperation. "Let me spell it out for you, dear: that child has to be Derek's."
"Now that really doesn't make any sense," Amanda insisted, shaking her head in confusion.
"Okay, what part are you having difficulty with?" Kathleen asked.
"Well, for one thing, Derek may have been a bit distant lately, but don't you think he would have at least picked up the phone and called if he'd had a child?" Amanda asked.
"Maybe he's not sure if it's his," Nancy suggested. "I mean, the girl did have an affair with a married man. Her moral judgment is probably questionable at best. Who's to say he's the only man she was sleeping with?"
"Alright, even if I believe that Derek would be involved with someone like that – which I don't buy even for a second – but for the sake of this argument, let's say I do," Amanda said. "The child is what, four months old? Five tops? Right?"
"Right," Kathleen said.
"So seven months ago, you were here in Seattle, Nancy," Amanda said. "You met that girl. Don't you think you, with your fancy medical degree and OB license, would have noticed that she was at least six months pregnant?"
"Well, she was wearing a coat the first time I saw her," Nancy said. "And then she had on a lab coat the second time. That could have hidden it."
"Maybe if she were big to start with," Amanda said. "But that girl is tiny, Nancy. Coat or no coat, you would have noticed that she was pregnant. I don't think the baby's hers."
"She's probably right, Nance," Kathleen sighed. "You wouldn't have missed something like that."
"Fine," Nancy conceded. "But one of you has to tell Mom that Derek hasn't finally given her a grandchild."
"Excuse me," Meredith said as she walked up to the soldier. "Um, I was told that you were asking for me? Do I know you?"
"I don't think so, ma'am," he replied. "You're Molly Thompson's sister?"
"I am," Meredith said. "Who are you?"
"I'm Sergeant Evans," the man said. "Your brother-in-law was in my brigade in Iraq. The other guys in our unit, they elected me to stop by, see if Molly needed anything. They're all real anxious to do something to help; we're not used to losing a man like this, not at home."
"I appreciate the thought, Sergeant," Meredith said. "Right now, there's not a lot that we can do, unfortunately. Molly's actually in surgery again right now, so we're just waiting for news."
"Well, I've got some time, if you want some company," Sgt. Evans offered.
"That's very nice of you, Sergeant, but I'm sure you've got more important things to be doing," Meredith said.
"Maybe, but right now, I can't think of anything more important," Sgt. Evans said, his deep blue eyes locking with Meredith's.
"Alright," Meredith nodded. "You can stay, Sergeant."
"Jason," he said, holding out his hand to her.
"Meredith," she replied, flashing a weak smile as she shook his hand. "I'd suggest that we go back to the conference room, but my sister's asleep in there. She hasn't been doing much of that lately, so I don't really want to disturb her."
"Wherever you need to be is fine with me," Jason said.
"What I need right now," Meredith sighed for a moment. "Right now, I think what I need is coffee, Jason."
"I saw a coffee bar in the lobby," Jason offered. "Why don't you let me buy you a cup?"