The Seventh Sense is Love

Wedding Day

It's my wedding day and life changes now. That was Meredith's first thought the next morning when she woke up. She is wide awake and it's only eight. She gets up and notices that Lexie and Molly are still sleeping. She grabs her cel phone and sneaks out onto the balcony to call Derek.

"Good morning," he answers after only two rings.

"Hi," she sighs happily into the phone and giggles again. "We're getting married today."

"We are," he answers with a chuckle of his own. "I missed you last night."

"I know, I missed you, too. These wedding superstitions are kind of lame."

"So come have coffee with me."

"And say what - exactly - to my sisters when they wake up and I'm not here? The first thing they'll do is come bang on our door and read me the riot act."

"I thought you said the superstitions are lame," he teases.

"They are, but the wrath of well-intentioned sisters is all too real. As much as I want to come have our morning coffee on the lanai - I am not in the mood to deal with angry sisters."

Derek laughs and then says, "I love you Meredith Grey."

"Soon-to-be-Shepherd," she answers with another giggle. "And I love you too, Derek."

"Mer," he says, with a slight tinge of awe in his voice, "are you really changing your name?"

"Yes," she answers. "I know it sounds a bit old-fashioned but I want people to know we're married. And I feel like it shows respect for our marriage for me to take your name. Does that sound stupid? Especially for a surgeon?"

"No, it doesn't sound stupid at all. Thank you. I know it's just a name, but I feel strangely humbled my your decision."

"You're welcome."

"Meredith?" comes Molly's voice from inside the room.

"I have to go. Molly's awake," she says to Derek.

"Bye," he laughs, "have fun."

"Okay, bye."

"Lexie, please go get Derek."

"What?" Lexie and Molly ask together.

"I asked you to please go get Derek. This doesn't feel right to me."

"Oh Mer," Molly says gently, "it's completely normal to feel jittery right before the ceremony."

"I don't feel jittery at all," Meredith says. "I'm completely calm and happy about marrying Derek."

"I'm confused. You just said this doesn't feel right," Lexie states.

"Lex, how do you suppose Derek feels right now? Waiting out there for me to walk in but he can't see me? Do you think it's right that everyone else knows how I look in this dress but he doesn't?" Meredith has tears pooling in her eyes as she speaks to her sisters.

"We're sorry," Molly states. "We didn't think about that."

"It's okay," she says. "You don't have to but I do. He's mine. I have to - want to - think about how he feels. I went along with staying away from Derek last night but now we're about to get married. I went along with the superstitious part. Now the ceremony has to happen in a way Derek and I are both comfortable with. So please, bring him to me and then let the minister know we'll be coming in together in a few minutes."

Molly and Lexie hug Meredith and leave the little room. Molly tells the other eight guests that all is well while Lexie takes Derek to Meredith and then leaves them alone.

"Mer," Derek says as she wraps her arms around him. "What's going on?"

"It just didn't feel right Derek," she says as she takes his hands in hers and brings them up to her hair. "You should see me before everyone else."

Derek gives a sound of surprise as his throat tightens in emotional response. "Thank you," he whispers as he runs his hands through her lose and wavy hair, down her bare neck and collarbone, over the spaghetti straps of her dress.

"I love you," he says, feeling the way her dress dips and gathers but covers an appropriate amount of her breasts with fabric and beads.

"I love you too," she whispers in response as tiny little goose bumps of emotion cover her skin. "I promise that I always will."

"I know," he says, trailing his hands over all of the soft, exposed skin of her back. "I promise to always cherish every inch of you."

"And I promise to always make sure you see the world."

"I already do," he answers, dropping to his knees and wrapping his arms around her waist. "I see everything clearly and vividly again with you in my life."

Meredith has tears falling down her cheeks as Derek trails his hands down the rest of her dress and to her legs. He traces down her calves and chuckles at her bare feet.

"We're having a beach wedding," she giggles. "You should go bare foot, too."

"Okay," he laughs and removes his socks and shoes. "Did you paint your toenails, too?"

"Of course," she giggles. "They're a bright coral color called 'Maui Sunset.'"

This causes Derek to erupt in laughter as he gets back up and offers Meredith his arm to go get married. "You're beautiful," he tells her before they leave the room.

"Thank you," she answers, believing it deeply since he's the one telling her.

They have a simple but elegant ceremony with the traditional vows and exchanging of their rings. Within minutes they are married and going with their guests to have an intimate, celebratory dinner on one of the hotels patios.