Untouchable face

20.

Meredith hadn't grown up with a sister, she had been an only child for years and years, so she wasn't exactly sure what all the protocol was with little sisters. She wasn't sure how the bonding thing worked or...anything really. But she did get that she loved these nights with Lexie, when they could just lay around and drink and eat. She never really had had that before. She was a loner when she was little and by the time she had really started making some friends, nights of drinking were always done at parties and had more to do with boys than they did bonding. So she wasn't sure the first time Lexie suggested it but it was a lot of fun. It was a really good way to relax and with their jobs...relaxing was beyond important. So every once in a while, they did this. They got out the tequila, the ice cream, the junk food, and just laid around the living room in their sweatpants. And somehow, this was sisterly bonding.

Before she had met Lexie, Meredith never would have figured that tequila could be part of sisterly bonding but apparently it was. And she needed this tonight. In a matter of weeks, her life had gone crazy and right now she needed a night to relax with her sister. Everything in her life was all spinny and...soap operaish. Because only in soap operas did a doctor fall for her patient, her very taken patient, and then go to see him every day and bring him magazines and chocolate. That just didn't happen in real life because most doctors realized it was crossing a line. Meredith apparently didn't care about lines. She had until Derek had come along but he had changed everything. And she really liked crossing the line with him. It was the stupidest thing. No matter how many times she told herself not to go to his room she always found herself there. And at no point when she was with him did it feel wrong.

They weren't actually doing anything, just talking. Derek liked to talk, he was actually really chatty. And she really did like being able to talk to him. It all just felt so natural and right. It's not like she was sleeping with him or anything. She was keeping his spirits up and he was really happy about that. So it wasn't a line. They were just friends or something. It wasn't like she should be friends with her patient but he seemed to need a break from his family sometimes and she could give him that. They got along really well somehow and she was enjoying it. She figured they were both enjoying it.

And there was nothing weird going on. She was Derek's friend. Derek's friend who was attracted to him and fought the need to kiss him a lot, but that was it. And anyway, he was with Maggie and she...she had gone out a couple times with Aaron, who was a really good guy and pretty good in bed. It was weird that she was kind of seeing someone, but Aaron really seemed to get that they weren't dating and he didn't demand too much so right now it was working. She liked him. She didn't like him in the way that she liked Derek but she figured this was at least something. So that was all that mattered. She wasn't trying to wreck Derek's relationship or anything. They were friends and that was all that mattered. Which was what she was going to tell her sister when she came back from the kitchen with the margaritas.

"Got the drinks!" Lexie called as she walked in.

"Good," Meredith giggled from her spot on the floor on top of a couple pillows.

"I made them strong but..."

"But we can always have more."

"Exactly," Lexie giggled.

"I have all the food," Meredith nodded to the huge pile of chips and dip in front of her.

"Good," Lexie grinned.

"Definitely good."

"We're going to get very fat tonight."

"That's okay. We'll go to work tomorrow and run it off."

"True," Lexie giggled.

"So I'm not worried," Meredith shrugged as she sipped at her drink.

"Still...fat."