Alison's House of Grey - Many the Miles - Chapter 1A

Meredith sighed as she recalled the last time she'd heard his voice. It had been almost a week – the longest they had gone without speaking since meeting online at a neurosurgical discussion board. Meredith had been researching hemispherectomies, and Derek had managed to steer the conversation away from medicine and into a more personal realm. And because she was tired, lonely and temporarily giving up three-dimensional men, she let him.

But now he was going to become a real person with a last name and a face, and her stomach was tied in knots at the prospect. She’d already spent five months chatting, texting, writing, and calling, building him up to be the ideal embodiment of a man. If the real life version was less than she imagined, she'd have a hard time abandoning the fantasy.

She was starting to regret her agreement to meet him.

She pulled a black dress and heels out of her locker and began changing out of her scrubs. While her encounter with Derek wasn’t scheduled for a few more hours, she did have other things to do. The chief had encouraged her to come to a reception being held for some presenters at the symposium the following day, and she couldn’t exactly get out of it. Seattle Grace was hosting some of the foremost surgeons in the world for a series of presentations, and Meredith was interested in what they had to say.

Still, the transition from scrubs to a dress was a challenging one, and Meredith struggled to finesse the zipper on the back, tangling her long hair in it in the process.

“Jesus, Mere, dress yourself much?” Cristina said as she came into the locker room. "Here." She pushed Meredith’s hair off to the side and slid the zipper the rest of the way up. “What’s got you so dressed up?” she asked.

“Surgepalooza,” Meredith said. “Chief wants me to stop by the reception.”

Cristina stuck her tongue out at Meredith in a fit of juvenile jealousy. “My shift doesn’t end until after the reception. Have fun with that." She placed her hands on her hips and stared at Meredith. "Drinks later?”

“Um, maybe. I’ll have to see,” Meredith evaded. She dug through her locker for some lip gloss.

“What? Expecting some hot doc to whisk you away?” Cristina said.

Meredith spun around, wide-eyed. She wondered what she had heard.

Cristina seemed just as surprised by Meredith's reaction. “Did I touch a nerve or something?”

“No. I’m fine,” Meredith said. “Just uncomfortable being dressed up and stuff. I might just want to go home and change rather than going to Joe’s,” she said, fidgeting with her dress as if to prove her point. “That’s all I meant.”

“Okay, well call me if you want to go,” Cristina said. She grabbed an apple out of her locker and walked back towards the door.

“Okay,” Meredith agreed. Relief flooded over her as she realized that she had covered up her plans with Cristina. She wasn’t ready to explain her online affair to anyone, and that included Cristina.

Meredith finished brushing her hair and applied a little clear mascara before closing up her locker and heading towards the reception area. She couldn’t say that she was excited about going, but it beat watching the clock tick away the hours in anticipation of meeting Derek.

The private reception area was decorated with white table cloths and trays of hors d’oeuvres. A man in a black tie and vest stood in the corner pouring glasses of white and red wines, and syncopated jazz music played in the background – a stark contrast from the beeping and pulsing of machines throughout the rest of the hospital. There was a good sized crowd present – close to 50 people – and within moments Meredith had located the Chief talking to a few men. She took a deep breath and started off in that direction, deciding that she may as well let him know she had listened to his suggestion and stopped by. Even if she decided not to stay, he needed to know that she was there.

“Good evening, Dr. Webber,” Meredith interrupted politely as she stood behind the Chief. Two of the men in the conversation drifted off towards the food table, leaving Richard with an attractive younger man beside him.

“Ah, Dr. Grey, I’m so glad that you could join us.” He smiled as he gazed upon the younger image of Ellis Grey. “Dr. Grey, meet Dr. Shepherd, one of the foremost neurosurgeons in the country.”

Meredith’s eyes caught the intense blue eyes of the stranger before her, and she remained captivated as he reached for her hand.

“Please, just call me Derek,” he said.

Meredith’s heart began to race and her palm felt sweaty as she slipped her hand in his.

“Derek?” she repeated, certain that she must have misunderstood him.

He flashed a swoon-worthy grin at her and nodded, expecting her to reveal her own first name.

“I’m Meredith. Meredith Grey,” she stammered. She heard the words coming out of her mouth, but she had no idea what she had said or if she even knew her own name anymore. This was too much of a coincidence.

Derek’s eyes sparkled with recognition as she announced her full name, and he held onto her hand, shaking it a little longer than normal introductory protocol would dictate.

“Derek is going to be our keynote speaker tomorrow,” Richard explained, oblivious to the sparks flying before him. “You could learn a lot from him, Dr. Grey.”

“And I’d love to have the opportunity to teach you,” Derek said with a lascivious smile.

“I’m sure,” Meredith said. She was still in shock. She could feel heat spreading through her body, turning her cheeks a deep crimson that could've matched Derek’s shirt.

“If you’ll excuse me, I see someone else that I need to talk to, but Derek – we’ll continue this conversation later,” the Chief said as he started off towards another group of doctors.

“So, Meredith,” Derek said. His smile stretched to the outer corners of his eyes.

“Yeah.” She bit her lip, and despite the jittery sensation that turned her legs to jell-o, she managed to roll onto her tip-toes. Maybe from a different vantage point, she'd come up with something to say.

“I have to admit that I’m surprised to see you here,” Derek said. “I expected that I would be suffering here at least three hours in a room full of old men before I got the reward of seeing you.”

Meredith took a glass of wine from a passing waiter, relieved to have a distraction to occupy her fidgety hands. “You know," she said. "You could've mentioned that you were speaking at this conference.”

His eyebrow lifted. “Would you have wanted me more if you knew that in advance?” he asked.

Meredith nearly choked on her chardonnay. “Who says that I want you now?” she said after clearing her throat. She needed to diffuse the conversation before it went anywhere too awkward.

“You do," he said with just enough arrogance to appeal to her. "I’m irresistible.” He leaned towards her. A brief scent of his crisp aftershave radiated from his body and overwhelmed Meredith’s senses, making her attraction to him build.

She turned away, trying to regain her composure. “You’re pretty sure of yourself, aren’t you?”

Derek shrugged. “I’m just sure that I’m glad I suggested we meet,” he said. “What do you say we duck out of here early?”

Meredith flashed a lopsided grin at the suggestion. “I don’t know,” she said.

“C’mon, you’ve already been spotted by Richard. How many other people did you want to talk to here tonight?” Derek said. He moved in closer, to a level that entered her personal space and made it look like they were more than colleagues, but Meredith didn’t bother to step back. If anything, she was tempted to push the boundaries and move in even closer.

“I guess we could go,” Meredith whispered. She set her drink on a nearby table.

“Great!” he said. He moved his hand to the small of her back, sending electric chills through her body as they walked towards the door. “Do you have a coat or anything?”

“It’s in the locker room, I think,” Meredith said.

“Okay. Lead the way.” Derek followed behind her.

Meredith walked through the corridor towards the elevator. The hallway was relatively empty for a Friday night, and she was relieved that they had some privacy as she tried to regroup herself. She pressed the button to go down to the second floor, and shifted as the elevator made its way up to them. Derek continued to let his hand linger against the fabric of her dress, and the nearness of his body to hers made her pulse race.

“You know, you never mentioned how stunningly beautiful you are,” Derek said. “I told you that I was good-looking, but you never said anything about yourself.” He leaned in closer to her, hovering near enough that she could feel his warm, moist breath against her skin, leaving goosebumps in its wake.

Meredith tried not to melt at the compliment. It wasn't often that guys said things like that to her, and if they did, it was to get her into bed. She didn't sense that was the agenda with Derek, at least not exclusively.

The elevator doors opened, and Meredith broke away, moving into the empty steel cavern. Derek strolled in beside her, his gaze fixed on her body. The feel of his eyes on her was enough to take her breath away, and she found herself having to remember to inhale and exhale – the actions weren’t involuntary anymore.

“Meredith, are you okay?" Derek asked, interrupting her thoughts. "You seem a little distracted.” The elevator door closed in front of them, giving them complete privacy.

Meredith blinked, waking up from her memory. “Yeah, I’m fine, it’s just…you’re here,” she said.

Derek turned towards her, bracing his hands against her arms and caressing soft circles of warmth up and down her bare skin. His eyes gazed on her longingly, as if they were asking a million questions but hoping for a single answer.

After what seemed like years, Derek leaned in and kissed her, nipping softly at her lower lip to test her interest. Her body relaxed, and she wrapped her arms around his waist, pulling him towards her. She spread her lips and felt his tongue press into her mouth, triggering a wave of sensation throughout her body. She was floating away into a world of complete bliss, and she never wanted to land. It was passionate, erotic, and personal, and when the elevator door announced their arrival and swung open, it was over.

Meredith stepped back, trying to catch her breath. Her skin was flushed and sensitive, and Derek smiled warmly, a combination of pleasure and surprise mixing in his features. He reached for her hand, as if he was unwilling to eliminate the physical contact between them as they started walking towards the locker room.

If this wasn’t the indescribable spark Derek had alluded to, then Meredith wondered if she’d ever find it. This was the most intense first meeting she had ever experienced, and she was already thankful that they were starting the evening together so much earlier than they had planned.

“So, this is the legendary Seattle Grace,” Derek observed as he escorted Meredith through the corridor. More than a couple nurses craned their necks and arched their eyebrows at the mystery man accompanying Meredith Grey. If Cristina hadn’t suspected anything before, she would after the gossip trickled back to her in some discombobulated mess of facts and speculation.

“It is,” Meredith said. The kiss in the elevator was still rendering her relatively speechless.

“Do you like it here?” Derek asked.

Meredith turned to look at him, trying to sense what kind of information he was looking for.

“I like it a lot, actually," she said. She pushed her way into the locker room, relieved to find it empty. "The program is excellent, and I’ve met some wonderful people.”

Derek surveyed the surroundings as he followed Meredith to her locker. Posters and stickers littered the walls as if it was an extension of high school and not a serious realm for students practicing medicine.

“I hear that the locker rooms for residents and attendings are much nicer,” Meredith said, reading his mind.

He laughed. “No, this is fine. It has a certain charm about it.”

Meredith withdrew her hand from Derek’s to work the combination lock on her locker. She always wondered why she even bothered to have it. It wasn’t as if she ever kept anything valuable at work, and now, it seemed more of a nuisance as it held up her contact with Derek. She yanked the steel door open and retrieved her coat and purse, draping each over her arm so she could close the locker again.

Derek's smile reflected her own feelings of giddiness. He took the coat from her arm and opened it up for her, guiding her arms through the sleeves and smoothing the fabric over her shoulders. The sensation of his fingers gliding over her body provided far more warmth than the dark blue trench coat. She spun towards him, hair flurrying behind her, and was surprised when he grabbed onto the ends of the belt, using them to pull her towards him. He tied the belt snugly against her waist, allowing the fabric to hug her slender curves. His line of sight trailed up her body, burning a path of desire along the way before meeting her eyes. He slid his hand around the nape of her neck, lifting any stray hairs trapped below her collar.

She wondered if he could feel the hairs standing on end at his touch. She had never felt so entranced by anyone. If this continued, they’d never make it through the night without ending up in bed together (not that she had firmly decided that was a bad thing).

“Okay, you need to stop,” Meredith said.

Derek withdrew his hand, his expression dropping in disappointment. “Stop what?” he pouted.

She huffed. “The looks.”

“What looks?” he said, still confused.

“The looks like you’re imagining me naked. In bed. With you.”

Derek grinned like a cat that had ensnared a mouse.

“There will be no sex tonight," she said. "We just met, and you’re apparently some hot shot neurosurgical god who is amazingly attractive, but there will be no sex. Not tonight.” She wondered if he could sense from the tone of her voice that her proclamation was more to convince herself.

“Whatever you say, Meredith,” he said. She detected from his wry expression that he was mocking her, but she couldn’t confidently call him out on it. She couldn’t do much of anything with confidence right now.

She needed to change the subject.

“So, I was thinking we could head over to Joe’s,” she said as she walked back into the hallway.

“Joe’s?”

“Emerald City Bar. Joe is the owner. It’s just across the street,” she explained. “They have good food and darts and music.”

“Sounds fine with me,” Derek agreed.

The two walked side by side down the stairs to the lobby level of the hospital and through the main entrance. While they tried to remain casual as they walked, they found themselves bumping into each other, as if there was some magnetic attraction drawing them closer and closer. By the third time that it happened, Derek laughed and reached for her hand, rationalizing that they could steady each other.

Meredith showed no signs of resistance.

Joe’s was starting to get crowded, but Meredith managed to find a table near the bar. She scanned the room for her friends and was relieved to see that they weren’t there to witness her first date with her mystery man. Joe smiled and waved at Meredith, nodding in Derek’s direction, and she smiled back, appreciative of the encouragement. Meanwhile, Derek waited beside her, oblivious to her telepathic conversation with the bartender.

“What can I get you to drink?” Derek asked as she removed her coat.

“Tequila,” Meredith replied. “No, wait…just a water with lime,” she said. It would be better if he made it through the evening without witnessing the impact tequila could have on her—or how many shots it could take to do so.

Derek tilted his head, surprised by her amended request. “You’re not going to drink?”

“No, we might drive somewhere later," she said. "And I want complete control of my faculties with you,”

“Okay, one glass of water coming right up.” Derek ambled toward the bar while Meredith watched. It didn't take long for Derek to strike up a conversation with Joe. She detected from their occasional glances in her direction that they were talking about her, but she couldn’t quite make out what was being said.

Derek took two glasses from Joe and walked back towards her, meandering through the crowd. She grabbed a couple peanuts to shell so it didn’t look like she had been watching him the whole time.

“Your water,” Derek said as he placed the tall glass in front of her and sat in the chair beside her.

“Thanks,” she said. She racked her brain for a conversation starter but drew a blank. Whenever they were on the phone, Meredith felt like they could talk for hours. Now that he was inches away from her, she was at a complete loss for words. Maybe it’s a sign…

“Did you have dinner already?” Derek asked as he looked at the menu of bar food at their table.

“Yeah, I had a bite at the hospital cafeteria before the reception,” she answered. She swirled the ice cubes in her beverage with the long red straw.

Derek nodded and set the menu down. “Yeah, I guess I ate too. It wasn’t anything terribly exciting. Maybe we can get pizza or something later?”

“That sounds good,” she said. She looked up from her glass and made eye contact with him, watching as an equally nervous smile stretched across his lips.

“This is weird isn’t it,” he said.

Meredith nodded. “A little.”

“It’s like it’s our first date, but I already know you so well," he said. "I just can’t get my bearings.”

“Me, neither.” Meredith sighed, relieved that he felt the same way.

“And we’ve already had our first kiss, so we know that the physical chemistry is there,” he said. He turned his wrist so the scotch flowed like waves around the sides of his tumbler.

Meredith blushed. Saying they had physical chemistry was the understatement of the century. Now that they were together, she couldn’t abate the conflicted feelings welling inside of her. On the one hand, she wanted to wrap her arms around him and ravage his body in mind-blowing sex. On the other hand, she didn’t want a sample of something she couldn’t keep. Derek would be back on a plane soon, and the goodbye would be difficult enough without sex thrown in the mix. Still, she couldn’t help but entertain the possibility despite her protestations to the contrary. He could always come back to visit.

Derek took a deep breath and reached for a couple peanuts of his own. His fingers worked at the shells, breaking them open and exhuming the contents in record time.

“So, how long have you been in Seattle?” he asked.

“Most of my life, actually," she said. "I grew up between here and Boston, and I travelled a bit.”

“Do you still have family here?” Derek prodded. She avoided the subject of her family in their previous conversations, a decision that wasn’t unintentional. She just never felt comfortable bringing it up.

“My mom is here still," she said, "but I don’t really know my dad.”

Derek nodded, clearly deciding not to push the daddy issue. “Well, I’m sure your mom is happy to have you back in Seattle. And proud of your neurosurgical aspirations.”

Meredith laughed. “You obviously don’t know my mother.”

He looked at her, surprised by the reaction.

“She was a surgeon as well, and she leaves some pretty big shoes to fill,” Meredith said. She took a long swig of her water, watching Derek’s reaction.

His expression glossed with confusion. "Grey…Grey…" Realization struck. "Ellis Grey?”

Meredith nodded. “You got it!”

“Wow, I can’t believe I never made the connection that you are Ellis Grey’s daughter," he said. "I met her once, you know.”

“How did that work out for you?” Meredith asked. She was terrified of the horror story potential of anyone’s encounter with the unstoppable Ellis Grey.

Derek laughed. “I was younger and perhaps a bit too arrogant about my skills – eager to show off. She was quick to put me in my place,” he recalled.

“That sounds like my mother,” Meredith said.

“Huh. So what’s it like to grow up the daughter of a legend?” Derek asked.

“It’s about as miserable as you might expect," she said. She had no desire to delve into her dark and twisty past. It was on a list of off-limit first date topics just below ex-boyfriends and future plans for marriage and children. "And to get me to say more, I would clearly need to be drinking,” she teased.

He grinned. “I can fix that, you know.”

“Maybe later,” Meredith said.

They continued to banter and talk about places to go and things to do in Seattle while they finished their drinks. They had managed to break through the awkward conversation phase of the evening, and before long they were laughing and joking like old friends. It was only ten o’clock, and the bar was crowding with hospital workers finishing their shifts. Meredith and Derek concluded that they should move on and find somewhere else to go. Derek paid their tab and walked her back to the hospital parking lot.

“So, what's the next stop on my grand tour? For all I know, you could be taking me back to your place to keep me hostage,” Derek said.

Meredith pointed out her car, unlocking the doors so they could get inside. “I have a few ideas, and I don't think you'll protest. Just sit back and enjoy the ride. I promise it'll be worth it.”