A/N: I own nothing.

You don't always think you belong in their family. The sweet, clumsy, sweater-wearing man that is your father, your warm and affectionate likes-to-bake step mother, your bubbly, smart little sisters. Sometimes, with a sinking feeling you realize you are darker and more awkward than they are. And yet, when you make yourself book the ticket and make the six hour flight to visit, your stomach a flip-flopping mess of mixed emotions, it still shocks you, nearly every time, how well you fit there.

It shocks you every time but it's instant, immediate, that feeling of belonging. Something about it seems right, regardless of your earlier reservations. The way your father is beaming from the moment you walk out of the terminal and hugs you tightly before nervously, but excitedly, rattling off a list of questions and comments ("how was the flight?" "Did you eat?" "Here, give me your bag" "We got pretzels while we were waiting…I saved you one.")

The way Susan squeezes you close, the smell of her perfume familiar and comforting "we've missed you!" she exclaims, and you know without a doubt that she means it. She steps back to look at you fondly, before adding, "you look thin, are you eating?" her eyes narrowed in concern, causing you to laugh. "Yes" you insist, rolling your eyes, knowing that heaps of food will be practically pushed on you throughout the duration of your stay.

The way that you almost get knocked down by your sisters as they race to greet you, flinging their arms around you and refusing to let go for several moments, Molly exclaiming "you've been gone forever Meredith" which makes you squeeze her a bit more. And how they fight over who gets to sit next to you in the car, until you finally tell them you will sit in the middle, appeasing them both, and awarding you a grateful smile from Susan.

Susan makes all of your favorite foods for dinner and your sisters eagerly pour over your pictures from Europe and listen intently, eyes wide, mouths ajar, to your stories. Susan lets them stay up hours after their normal bedtime (especially Molly who is still little enough to have a strict bedtime) and only declares it bedtime when it's well past eleven, and Molly has fallen asleep with her head on the table, resting on your pictures from Budapest.

Before you go to get ready for bed yourself, Susan kisses you on the cheek, taking your hands in hers "I'm so glad you're home sweetheart" she says- and it almost makes your eyes sting a little, because it's sincere-100%- and because you've missed her too.

A while later you're lying in the bed that has been yours since you were six, in the room that has been yours since you were six (there are a few ratty stuffed animals in the corner, and a light pink color on the walls to prove it) letting the familiar sounds of the house going to bed wash over you in comfort.

You're just beginning to feel drowsy when you see a slight shadow and sense a presence lingering outside your door. You have to smile as you call softly "You can come in Lex." Her figure materializes in the doorway just for a moment before she crosses the room and climbs into bed next to you. She turns towards you, propping her head up with her hand "how did you know I was there?" she asks with a blush.

"You've been sneaking out of your room to come sleep in mine for at least ten years, it's like a sixth sense now" you say dryly, still looking up at the ceiling. But when you turn slightly towards her a moment later and see her smiling, you smile too. "I'm glad you're home" she says with a content sigh. You think about this for a moment- she is the second person in the past hour to, not only say this, but call Seattle your home.

And, after all, you reflect, you feel just as at home here as you do in Boston- if not more. You've spent every summer, and most Christmases and spring breaks here for as long as you can remember. Seattle is stable. In so many ways, it is your home.

"Me too" you agree with a small smile into the darkness, and with the soothing sound of Lexie's soft breathing beside you, you fall asleep.