Okay, so...here's my new story! I first want to say how much I appreciate all the support from Can't Help Falling in Love. I'm so glad that you guys love my writing, and I really hope you'll enjoy this one as well. It's MerDer (of course) and starts off with an extended Post it wedding before going into post Season 5 finale. I hope you'll enjoy it. And, as always, if there's any suggestions as to what you'd like to see at any point in this story, please let me know and I'll do my best to work it in. Enjoy!

Derek smiled against Meredith's lips after a moment, releasing one arm from around her waist to reach into his pocket.

"I have something for you," he whispered.

"You do?" Meredith asked, smiling softly as she reached up to gently stroke his cheek.

"I do," he said, placing a silver chain in her hands.

"What…" Meredith breathed as she held it up. "Your mom's ring?"

"I know you don't want to wear it," he said. "And that's fine, I'm not going to make you wear it on your finger. But…I'd really like for you to wear it around your neck. It means a lot to me."

Meredith stared at him for a moment before she whispered, "What about you?"

Derek smiled softly as he reached into his pocket again, pulling out a white gold ring. "When my dad died," he whispered. "My mom made sure to give me his wedding ring. She said that he would have wanted me to have it, to wear it when I found a woman I felt the same way he felt about her."

"Oh," Meredith said, reaching out to take the simple silver ring. "So you…this was the ring you wore with Addison?"

Derek laughed softly as he took her hand. "With Addison I wore a fancy gold ring that matched hers," he sighed. "She didn't…this ring wasn't good enough for her."

"Oh," Meredith repeated. "Did you…I mean did you try to give her your mom's ring too?"

"No," Derek said, smiling slightly. "Mom never even told me that Dad wanted me to have it for the right girl until after she met you."

"Really?" Meredith asked.

"Apparently Addison was very clearly not the right girl for me," Derek said. "And you are."

"She said that?" Meredith breathed. She had been sure that Carolyn Shepherd had hated her.

"She did," Derek smiled. "I told you she liked you."

"Yeah, but….better than Addison?"

"Meredith," Derek said, laughing softly. "I'd rather not talk about my ex-wife at our wedding."

"Right," Meredith said, smiling softly as she looked down at the diamond in her hands.

"Don't feel pressured," Derek said softly. "But…I'm going to wear my dad's ring."

Meredith bit her lower lip. "Are you…am I supposed to put it on your finger or something?" she asked.

"You can," Derek laughed. "Do you want to?"

Meredith reached for his left hand, silently taking the ring out of his fingers and slipping it onto his ring finger. She smiled as she ran her thumb gently over the ring before reaching for the chain with his mother's ring on it, biting her lower lip as she thought carefully.

"Mer?" Derek prompted, tilting his head to the side as he looked at her closely.

She sighed as she shook her head slightly. "When did you get so good at reading me?" she asked.

"About the time you let me," Derek said, reaching out to tilt her chin up to meet his eyes. "What's going on in that head of yours?"

"I…I know I said I didn't want to wear it," Meredith said as she unhooked the chain, sliding the ring off. "But I think I'm changing my mind."

"Oh," Derek said, smiling widely. "You want to wear the ring?"

"It's okay, right?" she asked.

"Oh, Meredith," Derek breathed, taking the ring from her hands and slipping it onto her left ring finger. "It's more than okay."

"It fits," she said, lifting her hand to examine it closely.

"Perfectly," Derek smiled as he pressed a kiss to the back of her hand.

Meredith sighed as she leaned into him, resting her forehead against his. "Is it wrong to say that you should hurry through John Doe's surgery?" she asked, her hand stroking the smooth skin of his cheek.

"Definitely not," Derek smiled. "We need to consummate."

"Good," Meredith giggled. "Now go get changed so we can go home sooner."

"Well, you've got the bossy wife thing down," Derek laughed as he kissed her again then moved towards the door.

"Derek?" Meredith asked, causing him to stop in the doorway. "This Post it thing…it's perfect. But when Izzie's better, or when we have time, we can do it for real, right? Be legally married instead of just in our hearts or whatever?"

Derek smiled as he offered her the McDreamy look he knew she couldn't resist. "Definitely," he nodded. "I promise, Mer."

Meredith smiled as she turned back to her locker, unable to stop the incredible wave of happiness that washed over her at the sight of the blue Post it note hanging from the back of her locker.

Love me, even when you hate me.

No running.

Forever.

She reached out to smooth it onto the surface of her locker again, her ring catching the light of the locker room, causing her to smile even further. It may not be legal, but they were married. She was Derek Shepherd's wife, and she didn't think that anything could bring her down from her high.

It would be only minutes before she realized how wrong she was.

XXXXX

An hour later, Meredith sat on the floor in the corner of the scrub room, her arms wrapped tightly around her legs that were crushed against her chest. She couldn't believe that it had been only an hour before that Derek had scrawled their vows on a Post it and slid his mother's ring onto her finger.

And now George was dead.

"Meredith," the sound of her husband's voice infiltrated the internal ramblings in her head, and she turned to look at him with wide, vacant eyes.

"We should go home," he murmured.

"No," she shook her head.

"Okay," Derek said. "Christina and your friends…you can't stay here."

"No," Meredith breathed. "Izzie's memory is gone. We'd have to tell her every ten seconds that George…" her voice trailed off, unable to say the words.

"Mer," Derek breathed, and suddenly she couldn't help herself any longer. Her lips were on his, her hands desperately clawing at his scrub pants as she pressed her body against his.

"Derek…" she gasped.

"Mer," Derek said, placing his hands on her hips as he pulled back, his eyes searching hers frantically. "We can't…"

"We can," she said, tears filling her eyes as she looked at him with wide eyes. "Please, Derek, I just need…I need to escape."

"I get it," Derek nodded, feeling the same urge he'd felt his first night in Seattle. Mark and Addison hadn't died, but he was still mourning his relationship with both of them. He'd needed to escape, and now it was his turn to repay the beautiful woman he'd approached that night, who had given him such sweet escape from his grief. "But Mer… we can't do this. You need to see your friends, check on Izzie."

"I just want my husband," Meredith whispered, and he felt his heart tearing between soaring as she referred to him as her husband and breaking for her obvious heartbreak.

"We can escape," he nodded, reaching out to pull her close. "But we can't here. Do you want to go home?"

"Can we be newlyweds at home?" Meredith whispered, looking down at the ring on her finger. "Can we just be newlyweds and happy and worry about all this horrible stuff tomorrow?"

"We can," Derek nodded. "If that's what you want."

"It is," she nodded, tears filling her eyes as she reached for his hand. "I just want to be happy with my husband."

"Okay," Derek nodded. "Let's go to the locker room and get your things and then we can go home, okay?"

"Okay," she breathed, inhaling deeply before she took his outstretched hands and allowed him to pull her to her feet and into his arms. "I love you," she whispered. She had to say it. Because on the way home he could push her out of the way to take a bus for her, and he had to know that she loved him.

"I love you too," he whispered into her hair, obviously needing to say it as much as she did.

"We can…home," Meredith said softly.

"Home," Derek nodded, allowing her to lean on him as they walked into the hallway.

She didn't usually like to advertise their relationship. Although the entire hospital knew their entire roller coaster of a love story, there was something wrong with a second year resident showing PDA with the head of neuro. But now she didn't care. Now he was her husband, and she needed him, because her friend had died and she wasn't sure she could stand without his strong frame supporting her.

They entered the residents' locker room and she sighed as she looked at George's empty locker. He'd already cleaned it out, anticipating on bringing the pictures and other various items in the small space to the Army. He'd been going to Iraq, and now he was dead before he could even get there. Talk about irony.

The door swung open and Christina stood there, staring at the two of them for a moment before she collapsed onto the bench. "You heard?" she asked, staring at the lockers in front of her.

Owen must have told her. "Yeah," she said, stepping away from Derek as she sat down beside her best friend on the bench. Derek stepped back, understanding that the two women needed some time alone.

"I can't believe it," Christina breathed. "One moment you're alive and breathing and then you're just…"

"Gone," Meredith finished.

"I guess the funeral's going to be next week."

"Oh," Meredith sighed, shaking her head slightly. "I…I hadn't thought of that."

"I guess Alex talked to her mom…"

"Alex?" Meredith frowned, and Derek stepped forward, obviously taking a new interest in the conversation. "Why is Alex planning George's funeral?"

"George?" Christina frowned. "Why would George be…George's funeral?"

Meredith blinked back tears as she reached for Derek. They had each been talking about another member of their team, but two different ones. "John Doe," she whispered. "Is… was George."

"Oh," Christina said, turning to look at her hands. "I…George is dead."

"And so is Izzie," Meredith stated, her hand clutching Derek's tightly.

"I don't even know," Christina shook her head. "She was DNR, but the Chief said to ignore it, but it didn't matter."

"She's dead," she whispered. "And so is George."

"How can this happen?" Christina asked, turning to look at her.

"I don't know," Meredith breathed, looking up as the door burst open again and Owen stepped in, his eyes hard.

"Owen," Christina said, standing and moving towards him, the two of them whispering quietly as Meredith turned to Derek.

"Oh, Mer, I'm so sorry," he whispered, pushing her hair behind her hair. "Do you still want to go home?"

"No," she shook her head. "Izzie and George…It was the three of us that lived there."

"Hmm," Derek nodded slightly. "Do you want to go to the trailer?"

"Yes," she said, nodding eagerly as tears spilled down her face. "Yes."

"Okay," Derek nodded, leaning forward to kiss her forehead. "Do you need help changing?"

"No," she shook her head, reaching into her breast pocket and slipping her ring onto her finger. "Your ring?" she whispered.

"Right here," Derek said, sliding his own ring onto his hand.

"Thank you," she said, taking a deep breath before turning to her locker, her hands shaking as she changed out of her scrubs. The scrubs that were still covered in George's blood, that she had been wearing as she had watched him die.

XXXXX

"Do you need anything?" Derek asked as they stepped into the cold trailer an hour later. "I just turned the heat on, so it should be warm soon."

"It's fine," Meredith whispered, cuddling into him. "You said we could be newlyweds."

"We can," he nodded carefully. "But Mer…if you're too tired, it's okay."

"No," she shook her head, pulling her sweater over her head and snapping her bra off, quickly kicking off her shoes before she slid her jeans and panties down her hips. "I need you to make love to me," she whispered.

"I can do that," Derek nodded, pulling his own sweater over his head as he stepped towards her. "Mer," he whispered, taking her face in his hands. "I know that you need to escape. But if you change your mind, just tell me. I won't be mad."

"Thank you," Meredith whispered, kissing him passionately as he gently walked her back to the bed, his mouth never leaving hers. When her knees hit the back of the mattress, she collapsed onto the soft surface and sat up quickly, reaching for his belt buckle. When she had succeeded in discarding his pants and boxers, she gently pulled him on top of her, scooting up on the bed so her head rested on the pillows. "Make love to me," she whispered.

"Of course," Derek breathed, kissing her softly before moving to reach into the bedside drawer.

"No," Meredith shook her head.

"No?" Derek replied. "Mer…condom."

"I don't want one," she whispered. "I just want you and me, nothing in between. Please, Derek."

"Okay," he nodded, letting his erection brush against her. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," she nodded, wrapping a leg around his waist and causing him to gently enter her. "Oh…"

"Meredith," he breathed as he sank into her, his body pressing hers into the mattress.

"Deeper," she whispered, spreading her legs further and tilting her hips up. "Deeper, please."

"Deeper," Derek nodded, his breath already coming out in short pants as he slid deeper into her, her walls spreading to accommodate him. "Oh, Mer…"

When she was sure he couldn't go any further, Meredith clenched her muscles, wrapping her legs tightly around his waist and holding him in place as she cupped his face in her hands. "I love you," she whispered. "I know…I know I don't tell you enough, but I really do. I love you so much, and I don't think I've ever not loved you."

"Oh, Mer," he sighed, burying his face in her neck, inhaling the lavender that engulfed her hair. "I love you too. More than you know."

"Good," she whispered, running her hand along his back and he smiled as he felt the cool metal of her wedding ring against his hot skin. "Are you starting to hurt yet?" she murmured a few moments later.

"A little," he admitted.

"You can…" Meredith sighed, loosening her legs from around him and leaning up to kiss his neck. "Please, Derek."

Silently, Derek hoisted himself up and pulled out of her, slowly moving back in as he began to make love to her at a torturously slow pace. They were completely silent, save for their deep panting and the occasional smack of their lips, but they were quiet. Slow and quiet was not what they were used to, but this time it was different. They were married. They were married, and they were escaping from the horrible events that had happened.

"Meredith," Derek muttered as he laced their fingers together. "I love you."

"I love you too," she replied, rocking her hips up to meet his.

"So much," Derek replied, his body starting to tremble as she felt her walls tighten around him.

"Derek," she moaned, wrapping an arm around his neck as he buried his face in her neck, gently nibbling at the skin there. "Yes…"

"Mer," he breathed as her powerful orgasm pushed him over the edge, spilling into her before he collapsed on top of her, both of them breathing hard as she wrapped her arms around him, keeping his now flaccid penis still nestled deeply inside of her.

"I love you," she whispered again, unsure of how many times she had said that that day.

"I love you too," he replied automatically.

"And I'm happy," she whispered, running a hand through his hair. "I mean, I'm not happy happy, because…well, you know. But with you, I'm happy we got married."

"Oh," Derek said, kissing her shoulder gently. "Me too."

"Can we add another vow?" Meredith whispered.

"Always," Derek nodded, looking up at her expectantly.

"It's kind of apart of the love me when you hate me one," she whispered. "But can we say it everyday? Because I don't want to get hit by a bus or have a tumor take over my memory thinking that you don't love me."

Derek nodded as he pressed his lips against hers. "Every day," he murmured. "I promise. Mrs. Shepherd."