A/N: So, here we are…the sequel to 'One Day Closer to You', which was in itself a sequel to my first Grey's story, 'Lost & Found'. If you haven't read either of those stories, I suppose you could still jump in and follow this one fairly well, although there will be a number of references that you may not be able to understand as clearly as you would if you had the background from the first two stories.
In terms of timing, this story picks up in early November, approximately five months after the epilogue in 'One Day Closer to You'. As far as the content goes, you'll just have to read to find out, won't you? This first chapter is a bit shorter than most of the chapters will be, but I really wanted to open with this one, because if it didn't happen right at the beginning, I just wasn't going to write it...and I really wanted to write this chapter! It basically is just designed to ease us back into this little Grey's universe, reintroduce our main characters and set the scene. The main plot developments that are going to drive this story won't start until the next chapter.
And as far as updating - I'm anticipating being able to post an update about once a week. I know this is less often than I was updating 'One Day', but things in my "real" life are much busier than they were then, so I don't want to set up any unrealistic expectations.
Disclaimer: I claim no rights of ownership to, and derive no profit from, any of the characters in this story. If you didn't already know that…well, now you do.
"Oh God, I look like a freaking cupcake in this thing," Cristina Yang groaned as she walked into the small dressing room in the back of the church.
"You do not," Izzie Stevens insisted. "You've just got quit fiddling with it, you're messing up the skirt."
"Yeah, well, I wouldn't have to mess with it if wasn't so damn uncomfortable," Cristina complained. "Seriously, I never made you guys wear dresses like this. Why do I have to wear one?"
"Because you're the maid of honor and it would look kind of stupid if all of the bridesmaids were wearing them and you weren't," Callie Torres-O'Malley pointed out.
"You don't have to wear one," Cristina said. "How'd you manage to get out of this, anyway?"
"Um, hello?" Callie laughed, pointing to her stomach. "I'm eight months pregnant, Yang, there's no way in hell I'm fitting into one of those dresses."
"Lucky," Cristina mumbled.
"And that, my friends, is probably the only time you will ever hear Cristina Yang call a pregnant woman 'lucky'," Lexie teased as she joined them in the room. "Where's Meredith?"
"Next door with Molly," Izzie said. "She said they'd be a few minutes more."
"Alright, you've got your something blue?" Molly asked, stepping back after fastening the last button on the back of Meredith's dress.
"My garter," Meredith said.
"Something new?" Molly asked.
"The earrings," Meredith said, brushing her hair back to show Molly the elegant pearl earrings hanging from her ears. "Derek's sisters gave them to me last night."
"That's so sweet," Molly smiled approvingly. "What about something old?"
"Um…the dress, remember?" Meredith reminded her sister.
"Oh, right," Molly said. "Sorry, I forgot. I still can't believe how perfectly it fits you, Mer."
"Neither can I," Meredith said. "But I'm really glad it did…do you have any idea how hard it would be to find a dress like this today? I'd probably have to have it custom-made or something. I can't wait to see Derek's face when I walk down the aisle in it."
"He still doesn't know that you're wearing his mother's wedding dress?" Molly asked.
"As far as I know, he doesn't have a clue," Meredith said. "I've been refusing to tell him anything about the dress. The only people who've even seen it on me are you and Maggie. Derek's sisters haven't seen it, but they know I'm wearing it…I called to make sure they wouldn't mind."
"I can't believe none of them ever wanted to wear it," Molly said, shaking her head in disbelief as she readjusted the bottom of the dress.
"I think Abby did," Meredith said. "But she's too tall, so the dress didn't work on her body. Kathleen's the only one who really has the right body type for it, and she and her husband eloped."
"Well, I guess there was a reason for all of that, because you look absolutely phenomenal in that dress…it's like it was made for you or something," Molly said. "So, that's something old. Now, something borrowed?"
"I was just going to count the dress as borrowed too," Meredith said. "Maggie said I should keep it, but I think I ought to at least try to give it back to her, so that makes it borrowed, right?"
"You can't double-count things, Meredith," Molly said sternly. "You need to have four separate things."
"It's just a superstition, Molly," Meredith pointed out.
"You never know," Molly said, shaking her head in mock disapproval. "It's a good thing you have me, you know."
"Why's that?" Meredith asked.
"Because I brought you something borrowed," Molly said, turning around to retrieve a rectangular jewelry box from her bag of supplies. "Now, don't open it just yet, alright?"
"Okay," Meredith said, taking the box from Molly's outstretched hand and watching in confusion as Molly stuck her head through the door into the adjoining room.
"Hey Lexie, can you come in here for a second?" Molly asked, opening the door just enough for Lexie to slip into the room before quickly shutting it behind her.
"Oh Meredith, you look gorgeous," Lexie sighed as she caught sight of her sister in her wedding dress for the first time. "That dress…you said it was amazing, but this is just…wow…"
"Okay, now you can open it," Molly interrupted.
"Oh, is it time for the 'something borrowed'?" Lexie asked, catching sight of the box in Meredith's hands. "Well, go on, open it."
Meredith slowly cracked open the lid of the box, a gasp escaping her lips as she caught sight of the exquisite strand of antique pearls resting on the velvet lining.
"Molly, are these yours?" Meredith asked in confusion.
"Not exactly," Molly said.
"They were Mom's," Lexie piped up. "Her mother gave them to her just before her wedding."
"She wore them when she married Dad," Molly said. "Then she loaned them to me to wear when I married Eric."
"When she…when she died, she left them to both of us," Lexie explained. "I'm going to wear them when I marry Pierce…"
"…And someday, Laura will wear them when she gets married," Molly added. "Lexie and I, we just thought…well, we thought you should wear them too."
"I don't know what to say," Meredith said, a few tears trickling down her cheek. "I can't…this is your family tradition…"
"And you're a part of our family, Meredith," Lexie interrupted. "You're our sister, and we want you to wear them."
"Mom would have wanted it too," Molly said. "I know she wasn't your mom, but she cared a lot about you, Meredith, and she wanted you to feel like part of our family…she would have been so happy to see you wear them."
"Well, now you're just making me mess up my make-up," Meredith said, smiling slightly as she wiped the tears from her cheeks.
"Don't worry, I've got plenty more to touch you up," Molly laughed, reaching up to pull back Meredith's hair as Lexie removed the pearls from the box and gently hooked the clasp at the back of Meredith's neck.
"There," Lexie declared, stepping back as Molly let Meredith's hair down. "Perfect."
"I'm up next," Cristina said, turning to face Meredith as they waited at the back of the church. "You need my speech before I go?"
"What speech?" Meredith asked in confusion.
"I wrote a 'kick-Meredith's-ass-down-the-aisle' speech," Cristina said, holding up her hand so that Meredith could see the tiny words scribbled on her palm.
"In that case, no, I don't need your speech," Meredith said.
"Are you sure?" Cristina asked. "Because my speech is a hell of a lot better than the one you gave me."
"I'm sure," Meredith insisted.
"Yang, are you coming?" Mark Sloan asked impatiently as he waited near the doors.
"I still can't believe you're making me walk with McSteamy," Cristina said, glaring at Meredith.
"You're the maid of honor, he's the best man," Meredith pointed out. "It's just how it works, Cristina. Now get going, you're holding up my wedding."
"Okay, but if you change your mind, just wink at me or something," Cristina said, grabbing her bouquet from the nearby table. "I've got a car waiting just around the corner."
"Seriously?" Meredith laughed. "Get your ass down the aisle, Cristina. I swear, you are the worst maid of honor ever, you know that?"
"Whatever," Cristina scoffed, reluctantly slipping her arm through Mark's as they headed into the church.
Meredith sighed as she nervously fingered the ribbon that held her bouquet together, watching her person disappear into the church, the doors closing behind her as the music slowed to prepare for the wedding march that would play when Meredith made her entrance.
Derek Shepherd smiled in relief as he saw Meredith take her first step down the aisle. He hadn't really thought that she'd bolt, of course, not after everything they'd been through to get to this day. Still, he hadn't quite been able to breathe normally until his eyes met hers and she began slowly closing the distance between them.
Taking a moment to take in her appearance, Derek's eyes wandered over her dress, taking in the intricate crystal beadwork, the handspun Italian lace, the gently way the fabric rippled around her ankles as she walked. There was something extremely elegant, yet at the same down to earth and familiar, about the dress.
It took him a minute to place exactly why the dress looked so familiar, and even when he did, he still couldn't quite believe what he was seeing. He knew the dress, sure – there wasn't a day that he spent in his mother's house that he didn't stop at least once to look at the photograph of his parents' wedding day on the mantle in the living room. And by the way his mother's eyes were glistening with unshed tears as she watched Meredith, there was no denying that Meredith was wearing his mother's dress. Sometimes, even he was amazed by how quickly and how deeply the woman he loved had integrated herself into his tight-knit family.
Derek's smile increased as Meredith handed her bouquet to Cristina and turned to join him at the altar.
"You look beautiful," Derek whispered in her ear, squeezing her hand gently as they both faced the priest and listened as he began the ceremony.
Thirty minutes later, Derek and Meredith were both grinning broadly as the priest turned them toward their friends and family, announcing for all to hear, "Ladies and gentlemen of the congregation, I present to you Derek and Meredith Shepherd."