A/N: So much for the Mondays and Fridays plan... I'm beginning to realise my updates come in twos. Not sure if you should expect another one for a couple of weeks.

I'm increasingly happy with the reaction to this story! Although I do get a whole host of emails per day informing me that my story alerts are growing, but there are many less reviews. Come on, be even nicer, take the time to write me a comment too.

A huge thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far, I've decided to try to reply to every review from now on. Please forgive me if real life gets in the way, it's a rather pesky business I'm sure you'll agree.

Feel free to message me discussing season 5 of Grey's, I reeeeally need to talk to somebody about what's going on but none of my 3D friends watch it -cries-

So sorry about this chapter. I'm not sure what to think of it really. There's a lot of rambling and 'in Meredith's head' kind of stuff so if you can decipher what I'm trying to portray then you might like it. I'm very nervous about posting this.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the update. It's the one where I break the pattern of beginning every chapter with Cristina. Don't know why I'm so upset about that.

Disclaimer: After watching the previous episode of Grey's Anatomy I have come to the conclusion that I could never be that cruel to a pig. So there you have it, I obviously don't own.

Chapter Four: Whoa

'No shit. That tunnel goes your way too.' Mark's eyebrows rose a few centimetres and he sniggered slightly, 'We never even thought of going further than here. Then again, it took us about six months to find our little escape route, yet you find it within hours. Good going, Grey.'

Meredith and Izzie, after being hauled up off the ladder and spending the last few minutes explaining to Mark exactly how they'd ended up there, were still looking around the room in awe.

'This is crazy.' Izzie finally stated, 'Undeniably awesome, but crazy all the same. Does anyone else even use this place?'

'Not that we know of. We've kept the whole weird secret passage thing on the down low.' Mark cleared his throat and glanced over at the trapdoor.

Meredith followed his gaze and furrowed her brows, 'We... as in you and-'

'Derek, yeah. We've been coming here since freshman year, only place we get to hang out. It's quiet. Of course this year it's gonna' be more difficult. Head boys and all, got so much crap to do.'

Meredith gulped twice. Once at the mention of him and again at the reference to heads' duties. She had to get out of here, and fast. If he turned up while she and Izzie were still here she'd probably drown herself. It would be pretty easy, 'cause it just so happened they'd ended up in a swimming pool. An amazing majestic swimming pool with white tiled walls and floors, secluded changing rooms and a huge ceiling engraved with several giant cherubs. The pool was clean, which was odd considering that Mark had just told them nobody else came here, and the huge gold-leaf double doors were bolted shut with a thick plank of wood.

'But, um.' Izzie bit her lip in an attempt to stifle her giggles, 'It's only you here.'

Mark looked confused. 'Derek had something to deal with. Or someone, I guess.' He glanced across at Meredith but his expression was unreadable and she couldn't tell who he might've meant.

'But we heard voices.' Izzie provoked.

'Just one voice, me. All aloney on my owny. So glad you could join me.' He winked at them both. Izzie made a face of disgust and muttered something that sounded like 'arrogant pig'.

'Look, ain't a guy aloud to sing to himself?'

Izzie sniggered. Meredith raised a sceptical eyebrow. Mark looked something vaguely resembling embarrassment.

'Anyway, I'm going to do what I came here to do. Now I see you didn't exactly come prepared. I don't have a problem if you're gonna' find those clothes a bit impractical to swim in, you can leave them over there.' He gestured to the changing rooms and took a dive, only to resurface straight away and begin doing lengths.

Meredith and Izzie exchanged a withering look. Meredith shook her head fast and decisive, no way was she swimming, especially not without clothes, with Mark Sloan (whom, she had gathered in the short while she'd known him, was a manwhore to the highest degree) in the same room. Meredith Grey didn't swim, especially not with men she hardly knew. Then again, Meredith Grey was doing many things she'd never done as of late. Still, she didn't think it was quite time to break the mould in this situation.

At that moment a shuffling noise sounded from underneath the trapdoor. Meredith immediately froze. She couldn't breathe, move, or think anything but Derek Derek Derek. And then Derek without a shirt, swimming. Delicious images flitted across her mind, replaying again and again in slow motion and different angles and zooms. She was screwed. Good old fashioned teenage lust was doing her no favours. Because that's all it was right? Lust. Meredith finally gave a juddering nod intended for herself, and received a look of concern from Izzie as she wrapped her arms round her own waist and began to shiver.

'Just cold.' She insisted, continuing to nod, for her own reassurance rather than anyone else's.

And then he was there, right in the vicinity. He didn't seem at all taken aback to see Meredith and Izzie leaning against the side of the pool. Izzie watching Mark do lengths with fleeting interest and Meredith, wide eyed and jittery and looking a lot less cool and collected than she would have liked.

He shot a friendly grin across at Meredith and a nod to acknowledge Izzie as he shimmied his way up from the darkness onto the tiled floor. This action didn't help Meredith's state of mind in the slightest, as all she could focus on was the movement of his hips, and that brought about many thoughts that she really could do without. She tried to focus on the floor, but in that moment everything just led to sex. Every thought could be connected to something to do with Derek. Want. Now. Her train of thought was illogical and that of a crazed sex-addict but she just couldn't help herself. He was just... he just was.

And then he was talking again, and just like before his mouth was moving but Meredith could hear no words because all she could think about was his lips. And then she realised he was saying her name which in her opinion meant life could get no better. He was saying her name and she was smiling stupidly. She realised this but didn't stop herself. She had more important things on her mind, like him.

All of a sudden she was feeling very uncomfortable in her clothes and a part of her mind that made no sense at all was telling her to take Mark Sloan up on his offer of swimming if it meant clothes. Off. Now.

And then she remembered.

Derek. Boyfriend. Girlfriend. Rose.

Meredith suddenly found herself wishing she had brunette ringlets and a perfect smile.

She closed her eyes to collect her thoughts and tried to retune to the here and now but couldn't quite grasp the frequency. Everything was weirdly fuzzy sounding and the words kept ringing in her head. Derek. Boyfriend.

She wanted to throw up. She tried to snap out of it, she never reacted this way around guys, especially guys who were-

Crap. Taking off their shirts.

Girlfriend. Rose.

She was beginning to get dizzy and it sounded crazy even in her head because this was stupid and immature and not the best way to make a good impression on your fellow school head. Because that was all he was.

Derek. Boyfriend.

She found herself wondering things about them. Were they in love? Was it arranged? The result of a dare? Maybe it wasn't serious. Why did she care?

Girlfriend. Rose.

Rose. Rose... Rose? Why had she never seen this girl before today? Was she younger? A Junior? Sophomore perhaps. No, she looked older than sophomore. Why didn't Cristina know her? Cristina knew faces. She knew faces like she knew every single fact they'd ever covered in class. And why was she already Derek's girlfriend when they'd only arrived a few hours earlier? Did they know each other beforehand? This was crazy. Meredith wasn't meant to didn't care. Because Meredith Grey doesn't care. Not about trivial teenage issues like guys and friends and relationships. She especially didn't care about Derek and his girlfriends' personal life, or their past. No way. Not her.

She decided to try the door, and as she started to walk her clothed arm brushed against Derek's bare one and despite the fact the material was there to act as a barrier she still got a flush of warmth spreading across her body. She wanted to get out of there.

She needed to get out of there.

She carried on walking swiftly across the tiles, her doc martens click-clacking against the cold, hard surface. A thin sheen of sweat was beginning to cover her forehead and she could tell they were all looking at her but she couldn't bring herself to turn around because that would mean seeing him, topless. With pecs and abs and maybe chest hair.

Well done Meredith you can recite several parts of his anatomy from memory.

Not that she cared about his chest, it's just, well. It was perfectly natural for a woman to react in... certain ways. It wasn't just this particular guy. It was all guys. Meredith Grey liked men. It was perfectly within her rights to appreciate the male anatomy.

'But you didn't react that way to Mark,' a contrary little voice in her head reminded her. Meredith didn't listen because Meredith Grey doesn't hear voices.

She needed Cristina. She needed her sanity. She needed to get out of there.

She'd admit to Cristina she was right, she'd give Izzie back the jeans she'd borrowed forever ago, she'd stop doing whatever it was she was doing that seemed to make the gods hate her!

She just wanted out. But she couldn't have it because it suddenly dawned on her frazzled little brain that the door was bolted shut. The only way out would be the trap door and she knew that there was no way she was getting down that ladder right then.

So she stupidly turned around...

...And was met with the most heavenly sight she'd been trying to erase from her imagination. But this time she managed to stop panicking and just breathe for a second. Her eyes dragged slowly across his naked torso and took in all the pure male goodness. He was perfect everywhere, it seemed. She could hardly contain her need to see more.

He could probably see her looking. For some reason Meredith couldn't bring herself to care. She was breathing again and her mind was clear again and she could see perfectly well again. Oh she could see again. And she couldn't imagine herself not seeing the man in front of her.

Crap. He was walking towards her.

'Meredith? You alright?' He bent down slightly so his eyes were aligned perfectly with hers. His blue eyes. She could probably gaze into them for hours. They were blue. She decided she liked the colour blue. She gave a nervous girlish giggle.

And then she clamped a hand over her mouth. She had to stop this whole giggling thing. It couldn't be healthy.

'I'm... I didn't feel so great. Now I'm amaz- good. I'm good.' She could hardly believe the rambling garbage that was rolling off her tongue.

Mark Sloan finished off with one final length and lifted himself onto the edge of the pool. Spinning round in one smooth motion he stood and strode over.

'I'm off to change.' He patted Derek on the back, 'Good luck with that hard on.'