Hi friends! Welcome to my next fic, which is pre-Grey's AU. This story takes place about a year before Grey's starts, before Derek catches Mark and Addison. Meredith is attending Columbia for med school instead of Dartmouth, and we'll see what happens when a married Derek meets a mysterious Meredith. I love getting feedback from you guys! I write these stories for you guys to enjoy, so if you have an ideas as to how I can improve or what you'd like to see in this story, please please let me know. That's pretty much it, so...enjoy!
You save me
Kenny Chesney
Every now and then I get a little lost 'Cause when I'm a bullet shot out of a gun It's hard lovin' a man that's got a gypsy soul 'Cause when I'm a bullet shot out of a gun I know I don't tell you nearly enough When I'm a ship tossed around on the waves When I'm a bullet shot out of a gun
My strings all get tangled, my wires all get crossed
Every now and then I'm right upon the edge
Dangling my toes out over the ledge
I just thank God you're here
'Cause when I'm a firecracker comin' undone
Or when I'm a fugitive ready to run, all wild-eyed and crazy
No matter where my reckless soul takes me
Baby you save me
I don't know how you do it, I'm not sure how you know
The perfect thing to say to save me from myself
You're the angel that believes in me like nobody else
And I thank God you do
When I'm a firecracker coming undone
When I'm a fugitive ready to run, all wild-eyed and crazy
No matter where my reckless soul takes me
Baby you save me
That I couldn't live one day without your love
Up on a highwire that's ready to break
When I've had just about all I can take
Baby you, baby you save me
When I'm a firecracker coming undone
When I'm a fugitive ready to run, all wild-eyed and crazy
No matter where my
Baby you save me
Derek sighed as he walked into his favorite coffee shop, desperately craving a cup of coffee. Addison had left the house before he'd woken up for an early surgery, and he was trying to ignore the feeling of contentment he'd had getting ready for work without her fluttering around.
He hated the fact that the most exciting part of his day that he was going to be able to get a normal cup of coffee instead of the gourmet coffee grinds that Addison had special ordered and sent directly to their brownstone. It was probably a reflection of his life such as it was right now, but he didn't have the energy to think about anything besides the appealing cup of coffee that he was about to consume.
He and Addison had been married for ten years now. He'd proposed after they'd found out that they had been accepted into the same internship program, and two weeks after they had graduated from med school they had gotten married. They'd been happy, with a two week honeymoon in Hawaii before they'd settled into their internship, into the real world that Addison had quickly become enamored with.
He couldn't pinpoint the exact time that she had changed, but one day he'd woken up that he was completely miserable in the world of private practice and ballets every weekend, married to a woman who couldn't get enough designer clothing or elegant seven course dinners.
Now, he was just trapped. He hated that he felt that way, because ten years ago he had been completely head over heels in love with Addison. His wife was amazing. He knew that. She was a wonderful surgeon, and a strong woman that he knew he would hate to hurt. So now he wasn't sure what to do, how he had ended up getting so excited about a simple cup of coffee before he went to work in the practice that he hated.
"Oh my God!"
Derek was suddenly pulled out of his thoughts when he felt someone crash into him, following quickly by the burn of hot liquid on his skin. "What the hell?" he cried as he jumped back.
"I'm sorry!" a petite, brown haired girl exclaimed, reaching down to pick her now empty coffee cup from the floor. "Are you okay?"
"I…yeah," Derek inhaled deeply, stepping out of line to reach for a pile of napkins. "Are you?"
"Yeah," she said, looking down at her white blouse. "Although there goes looking presentable for my interview today."
"Here," Derek said, thrusting some napkins out to her and trying to ignore the way the blouse now clung to her breasts.
"I'm really sorry," she said, mopping at the stain on her shirt before she gave up and pulled a worn black sweater out of her bag.
"It's okay," he shrugged, looking down at the stain on his shirt. "I never liked this shirt." Addison had bought it for him for Christmas last year.
"Oh," she nodded. "Well…you have to let me buy you a coffee."
"What?" he frowned.
"Coffee," she said, moving to stand in line again. "I spilled on you, so it's only fair that I buy you a new one."
Derek felt a smile tugging at his lips, wondering why he was so captivated by this girl. "Fine," he said. "But only if you let me replace the one you lost."
She giggled, the sound melodic to his ears. "Okay," she said.
He examined her closely as they waited in line, taking in her green eyes, the soft curls of her hair, and the mysterious aura about her. She was beautiful in a way that Addison never could be, her face not covered by make up, completely natural and satisfied with the way she presented herself.
"Regular coffee, milk and sugar," she ordered. Addison drank French pressed lattes.
He shook his head slightly. He couldn't compare this woman he'd known for less than five minutes to his wife. It wasn't fair, and it was completely ridiculous.
"It's your turn," her voice said as she stepped closer to him, moving away from the counter.
"Oh," he said, clearing his throat as he stepped to the counter. "Regular coffee, extra cream."
They were silent as they stood side by side waiting for their coffee. Derek felt himself strangely comforted by her presence beside him. He had no idea what it was, but he wasn't sure he wanted to lose the feeling.
"Okay," she said, reaching for her coffee as it was placed on the counter. "Well, thanks for the coffee. And…I'm sorry about your shirt."
She was leaving. He didn't want her to leave quite yet.
"Wait," he blurted out, causing her to turn from where she stood in front of the door. She looked at him expectantly, and he realized that he had absolutely nothing to say. "I…do you want to sit down?"
She flashed him a bright smile. "Are you asking me on a date?"
Derek swallowed hard as he buried his left hand in his coat pocket, concealing the platinum gold wedding band that Addison had insisted that he wear. This was wrong, he knew it was completely wrong, but in that moment he didn't care. "If I was asking you out, it wouldn't be for coffee in a place we just happened to be in," he said.
She examined him closely for a moment, then smiled as she turned back to the door. "I'm late," she announced.
"At least tell me your name," he said.
She flashed another smile at him over her shoulder. "I come here every morning," she informed him before she turned and disappeared out the door, leaving him standing in the middle of the coffee shop completely abandoned.
After a moment, he grabbed his own coffee and left the shop, walking the few blocks to his practice all the while trying to get the mysterious coffee girl out of his mind. He ran a hand over his face as he stood in the lobby waiting for the elevator doors to slid open, trying to recall the patients he was seeing today, what Addison had planned for them that night, anything to distract himself from the interaction in the coffee shop that morning.
"Well you look like hell," his best friend's voice came from behind him and he turned to look at him.
"Mark," he said, taking a long sip of coffee. The two of them had ended up working in practices in the same medical complex, with Addison's three blocks away.
"So have you made reservations for Addison's birthday yet?" Mark asked.
Derek froze, coffee cup halfway to his mouth. He hadn't even remembered that Addison's birthday was fast approaching, less than a week away. "Is it November already?" he asked, completely aware of how stupid he sounded.
"Really, Shep?" Mark asked. "She's your wife. It's her birthday, and you can't even remember her birthday?"
"I'm not going to take marriage advice from you," Derek rolled his eyes as they stepped onto the elevator. "Who are you going to be taking to dinner for her birthday?"
Mark shrugged as he glanced at the ceiling. "No one," he said.
"No one?" Derek raised his eyebrows. His best friend usually had a different woman every night.
"Not interested," Mark shrugged.
Derek looked at him closely for a moment. "Is everything okay?" he asked.
"Fine," Mark coughed slightly. "Damn this elevator's slow."
Derek frowned, knowing that something was up, but before he could say anything else the doors slid open on his floor. "I'll talk to you later," he said. "Lunch at the deli later?"
"Don't forget to make the reservations!" Mark called after him as the doors slid closed.
Derek shook his head as he walked into the office, greeting the receptionist and the nurses with a smile before he unlocked the door to his office, shrugging out of his trench coat and settling down behind his desk. The tie that he wore every day felt like it was choking him, but he ignored it as he reached for his phone, dialing the number of Addison's favorite restaurant, quickly making a reservation for the following weekend in their usual table. He made a note to pick up a present, anything from Coach would do, and then reached for the chart that the nurses had left on his desk, preparing him for his days appointment.
And as he flipped the chart open, the smiling face of the blonde coffee girl flashed through his mind, and he couldn't help but smile at the thought that maybe, just maybe, he would stop in the coffee shop tomorrow morning.
XXXXX
"Addison?" he called as he closed the door to their house later that evening. "You home?"
"Hi," she smiled as she came out of the kitchen a few moments later, her hair slightly messy. She smiled as she leaned forward to press a kiss to his cheek, her hand on his arm. "How was your day?"
"Good," he said as he flipped through the mail. He glanced over at her, stopping to look closely as he took in her slightly scattered appearance, not usual for her usually perfect appearance. "You okay?"
"Yeah," she said, her hands going to tug at the hem of her blouse. "I was just helping Mark fix the sink."
Derek blinked in surprise. "You helped Mark fix something?" he asked.
"Yeah," she shrugged. "You kept saying that you would do it, but he stopped by to see if he left his leather jacket here, and I was trying to fix it, so…he helped."
"Oh," Derek nodded. "Well, good."
"Are you hungry?" she asked after a long moment. "I wasn't sure when you would be home, but I was going to heat up some steaks."
"That sounds perfect," he smiled, squeezing her hand. "I'm just going to run upstairs and shower, then I'll be down to help if you want."
"Okay," Addison nodded slowly. "Derek?"
"Yeah?" he turned to look at her from halfway up the stairs.
"I'm really glad that you're home for dinner tonight," she said softly.
Derek nodded, offering her a smile that he desperately wished wasn't forced. "Me too," he said, trying to ignore the part of him that was telling him that he was lying.
She smiled widely before turning to walk back into the kitchen. Derek made his way upstairs, quickly stripping out of his clothes and turning on the shower, still wondering about the coffee girl that had been lingering in his head all day. And as he wondered what her name was, what her story was, he couldn't hear the sounds of his wife's giggles mixing in with his best friend's hearty laughter that was drifting out of the kitchen.
XXXXX
The alarm went off much to early the next morning, and he sighed as he pulled himself out of bed, moving towards the bathroom as Addison stirred in bed. He showered and dressed quickly, offering her a smile as she finally sat up in bed. "Morning."
"Morning," she said softly. "You went to bed early last night."
"I have a long day ahead of me," he shrugged. "Two surgeries, a couple consults…you know how it is."
"Yeah," Addison nodded slowly. "I just…I was hoping that we would get a chance to talk or something."
"Oh," Derek nodded. "Well, how about tonight? I'll take you out to dinner, we can talk and spend the evening together."
"Really?" Addison's eyes lit up.
"Really," he nodded.
"Okay," she giggled. "And I'll see if I can get some last minute ballet tickets. To that show we went to with Savvy and Weiss last year, we loved that."
"Yeah," Derek said with a tight smile. "We did."
"Thank you Derek," she said as she jumped out of bed, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck. "I love you."
"I love you too," he said automatically.
"So I know you have surgery, but do you have time for breakfast?" she asked, reaching for her robe.
"I was just going to grab something quick on the way," he said, pressing a kiss to her cheek. "I'll see you tonight, Addie. I'll make reservations for seven?"
"Perfect," she smiled. "Have a good day."
"You too," Addison said, and he was aware of her eyes on him as he walked down the hall towards the stairs.
He was an awful husband. A terrible awful husband who was taking his wife out for dinner to a place where he hated the food and a show that he had fallen asleep during two times already. And he was an even worse husband for rejecting breakfast with his wife in favor of going to the small coffee shop on the corner in hopes of running into the coffee girl whose name he didn't even know.
But not going didn't seem like an option.
He walked into the coffee shop, looking around eagerly for a moment, disappoint falling over him as he realized that she wasn't there. He stood still for a moment before he shook his head and moved to stand in line, deciding that this must be a sign. A sign that he shouldn't have been completely enamored by a perfect stranger that and should start paying more attention to his wife.
"So you decided to take the bait?"
Her voice came from behind him, and he turned to see her, looking completely perfect in jeans and a purple sweater that hugged her in all the right places.
"Maybe I just like the coffee," he flirted, or he hoped he flirted. He hadn't hit on a woman since his first year in medical school when he'd met Addison at a party.
"Somehow I don't believe you," she giggled as she stepped into line beside him.
"So do I get to know your name yet?" he asked.
"Maybe," she shrugged.
"Is there a magic word?" he asked, tilting his head to the side as he looked at her.
"We'll see where we are after we have coffee," she shrugged.
"You…you're staying today?" he asked.
"For awhile," she nodded. "Can you?"
Derek sighed as he looked down at his watch. He had about an hour and a half before his first surgery, he could spare a little time. "I can," he nodded.
"Good," she said, following him to a small table in the corner of the shop.
"So," Derek said as he settled in across from her. "Have you spilled coffee on anyone today?"
She giggled slightly, and he couldn't ignore how the sound made his entire body relax. "No I only reserve that for annoying men who are in my way," she said.
"Touche," Derek held up his coffee cup in surrender.
"So," the coffee girl said as she took a sip. "Did you come here because I told you I'd be here?"
"Maybe," Derek said coyly. "But maybe it's just close to my office and the coffee is good."
"I think you came here for me."
"And why do you think that?"
She smiled as she leaned forward. "Because yesterday was the first time I was ever here," she whispered loudly.
"And you came back because?" he prompted.
She shrugged as she leaned back into her chair. "The other customers are very friendly."
"Right," Derek nodded slowly. "So what's your story?"
"I don't have a story," she shook her head. "Just me."
"And you are…"
"Not telling you my name yet."
He let out a sigh of frustration. "You're very infuriating," he informed her.
"And yet you came back to find out more about me."
"Like I said, maybe it's the coffee," Derek countered.
"You're kind of annoying too."
"You have to get to know me to love me." He had no idea where those words came from. He was definitely flirting now, and he was trying to ignore the fact that he was wondering what it would be like to have the coffee girl love him.
"So saying if I know you I'll love you?" she raised her eyebrows in disbelief.
"Exactly."
"Wow, you really like yourself, don't you?" she asked.
"It's part of my charm," he said, offering her a warm smile.
She smiled at him for a moment, their eyes holding on the other's gaze. He breathed her in for a moment, loving the way her sweater hugged her body. "So I have to go," she said, reaching for her coat. "Will you be in the mood for coffee tomorrow?"
"Most likely." He wanted to keep her interested. "I have to go too."
She offered him a smile as they walked towards the door, and he moved towards the direction of his office. "I'm this way."
"Me too," she said, falling into step beside him.
"Where are you headed?" he asked, hoping to find out any other morsel of information about this girl that he could.
"Uptown."
Derek fought the urge to roll his eyes. This girl was completely frustrating and he should end it before anything started. But she was a constant mystery, one that he wasn't going to give up until he found some real answers.
"Well, this is me," he said, stopping in front of the medical complex.
She glanced up at the building before she asked, "You have an appointment?"
"Something like that." He liked being able to return some of the mystery.
"Let me guess…you're in the neurology office."
His jaw dropped in shock. "How did you know that?"
She giggled as she handed him a piece of paper. "This fell out of your pocket yesterday," she said, backing away from him with a smile playing on her lips. "Have a good day, Dr. Shepherd."
He watched in fascination as she walked away, their gaze separating after several moments when a group of people came between them. He looked down at the paper in his hands as he walked into the lobby of the complex. His business card. He shook his head, smiling softly as he turned the card over, his eyes widening when he saw one simple word scribbled on the back.
Meredith.
Meredith. He tested the word around in his head as her image flooded his mind again, and he nodded. Meredith. She was Meredith, and her name completely suited her.
Meredith. She had a name.
"Who the hell was that?"
Derek turned to look at his best friend, approaching the elevators from behind him.
"Who was who?" he asked.
"That girl you were eye sexing outside," Mark replied. "You're married, Shep."
"I know that," Derek rolled his eyes, although he'd spent the past hour desperately wishing that he wasn't married. He would already have asked Meredith out. "I wasn't eye sexing her."
"It looked like you were," Mark argued. "What about Addison?"
"Addison's my wife, Mark," Derek sighed. "And I'm not eye sexing anyone. Not that you would understand that concept."
"Hey, I'm just trying to protect my friend," Mark shrugged. "She doesn't deserve a husband who flirts with other girls."
"I wasn't flirting with anyone," Derek said, hoping his voice sounded confident enough in that statement.
"Well the who was she?" Mark asked.
Derek smiled as he looked down at the business card in his hands. "Meredith," he said softly. "She's Meredith."