peace

chapter 13

"Are you going to let me carry this box? It's really light." Meredith asked as she lifted a box from Derek's car.

"No."

"Come on. I am pretty sure there are just pillows in this."

"I am not letting the pregnant mother of my child carry my boxes up three flights of stairs."

"I am 8 weeks pregnant. I am not even showing. I can help you move into my house."

"I am sure you can. But you don't have to. You already work crazy hours, you don't need to help me move on top of that."

"Derek."

"Meredith."

"Come on."

"No. That's the final answer." He stated.

"Please." She begged.

"Why do you want to help me move so much?" He asked confused.

"Well I didn't until you told me I couldn't." She conceded.

"So if I didn't tell you, you couldn't help me. The begging and pleading wouldn't have happened?"

"Basically."

"That's ridiculous." He said as they walked upstairs. She was behind him and he couldn't see that she had snuck a box in her hands.

"Calling pregnant women ridiculous is never a good idea, Derek."

"Even if you are being ridiculous?" He asked.

"Even if. Although I am not being ridiculous. You can't tell me what I can and can't do."

"In this case I can, It's my stuff you are asking to carry. Plus I am your boss." He added.

"This is my house, you are not my boss here." Meredith stated.

They reached the top of the steps and Derek placed the box down. He turned to face her so he could continue the argument. But instead of speaking, he gave her a disapproving look at the box in her hands.

"Seriously?" He asked, pointing at the box.

"Shouldn't have told me what to do." She said defensively.

"Me not having you help me move is supposed to be a kindness." Derek argued.

"Well it doesn't matter now. This was the last box." She said proudly.

"You're gonna keep my life interesting, aren't you." Derek said as he started to walk down the stairs. "Want to order dinner."

"Yea I'm starving. All this hard work moving you in has made me hungry." Meredith taunted him.

"Whatever. I am buying dinner and there is nothing you can do to stop me." Derek said

"Wanna bet?" She asked.

"Call it a thank you for you helping me move." Derek smirked.

Meredith laughed and then sat down on the couch. Derek sat down next to her and kicked his feet up onto the table.

"So I heard a rumor that you and I are sleeping together." Meredith said.

"I heard that rumor too." Derek sighed. "Apparently you are very good in bed."

"Well that part isn't a lie. I am extraordinary in bed." Meredith smirked.

"I am not going to fight you on that one."

"Good. You are too, by the way." Meredith responded.

"I am what?" Derek asked,

"Extraordinary in bed."

"Oh" He grinned. "I knew that."

"I could say something very mean right now, so be nice to me so I won't."

"Oh now you have to say it." Derek stated.

"Nope. It's really not nice."

"Well I am pretty sure I once accused you of enjoying killing patients, so it might help even the score." Derek said.

"Fine." She looked at him nervously. "If you were so good in bed in the past, your wife wouldn't have slept with your best friend."

"Oh." Derek sighed. "I don't think the quality of sex was our problem."

"What- what was the problem?" She asked.

"I think it was more of a quantity issue than a quality. Before Mark, it had been over a year."

"You went over a year without sleeping with your wife!" Meredith exclaimed.

"I guess. I wasn't really thinking about it at the time." Derek said.

"If you go over a year without thinking about sleeping with your wife, there is a big issue." Meredith said.

"I know there was a big issue. You can also tell you have a big issue in a marriage when one of the members sleeps with someone else." Derek said.

"Did- Did she want to sleep with you?" She asked.

"I think. I remember her trying to a couple times but I never-" He trailed off.

"So the marriage ending wasn't completely her fault." Meredith said quietly.

"No. It wasn't. But the cheating was still cruel. I think I am more angry at Mark than I am at Addison."

"That makes sense."

"Also when I told my family what happened, one of my sisters already knew. She said she had caught them before, but out of loyalty to Addison she didn't do anything about it."

"What?!" Meredith asked astonished.

"I had basically raised Amelia since she was a kid, and she chose Addison over her own brother. That. That killed me." Derek said shakely.

"I can't even imagine." She said putting her hand on his shoulder.

"So I got out of there and started a new life."

"And now you have a new family." She smiled.

"Yea. God I am so excited to meet blueberry." Derek said.

"It's actually raspberry now. And I am your family now too." She stated.

"Really?" He said with a smile.

"Really. And I promise I will do everything in my power to not hurt you like those people did."

"Thanks Meredith." He said with a smile, putting his arm around her. "I'm glad you are my family."