Let It Go

74.

"All patients are in their rooms?" Derek asked the neurosurgery unit's charge nurse. "Yes Dr. Shepherd," she replied. "All employees are in safe rooms?" Derek continued. "All of them except me," she replied pointedly. Derek nodded. "Go," he said. The nurse didn't need to be told twice. She turned and quickly rushed away. The sound of a freight train could be heard in the distance. "Dammit," Derek cursed. The tornado was on it's way.

"Derek! Come on!" Mark called from the door of a safe room. Derek sighed heavily and glanced around one more time for a sign of Meredith before joining Mark in the crowded room. He did a mental head count then added the number of employees who had stayed with patients in their rooms. Everyone on his unit was account for. Except for Meredith. He pulled out his cell phone and speed-dialed her number.

"Shep, there's a tornado going on outside. Do you honestly think Grey is going to answer the phone?" Mark asked. Derek glared at him as he listened to the phone ring in his ear. "Shouldn't you be on the fifth floor, making sure your department is secure?" he asked. Mark didn't say anything. Technically, Derek was right. But he and Alex had been on their way down from the eighth floor and had taken the first exit they'd come to without really thinking about it. He'd go check on things as soon as the tornado was over.

"Come on Mer...," Derek muttered into the phone. "Hi, this is Dr. Meredith Grey..." "Dammit!" Derek cursed, snapping his phone shut. He sent her a text, hoping she'd get that. "She's fine," Mark said in a low voice. "I know," Derek answered. Mark just shook his head. In Derek's head, the woman he loved was in danger and he needed to save her even though he knew, logically, that she was fine. Had everything with Addison never happened, he wouldn't be worried sick. He'd have his wits about him enough to know that Meredith was safe and if truth be told, was probably no match for a tornado once she got good and fired up about something.

The room started to shake as the freight train sound drew closer. Derek leaned against a wall and closed his eyes. He felt his chest tightening. Now was not the time for an anxiety attack. He had a hospital to run, a lot of people counting on him. He really need to hear from Meredith. Hearing from Meredith would go a long way in helping him calm down. He focused on his breathing, somehow tuning out the croded, shaking, noisey room.

"Derek?" came Mark's voice. Derek's eyes flew open. "It's over," he stated, realizing the room had stopped shaking, the noise was gone, and people were filing out. Mark nodded. "Yeah. It's over. You okay?" Derek just nodded, looking down at his phone. Nothing from Meredith, not a phone call or a reply to his text message. He dialed her again and was met with the sound of static. "Dammit!" he cursed. He seemed be full of cuss words today.

"The phone lines are down," he informed Mark. "Figures. There is a natural disaster going down outside," Mark replied, more concerned with Derek's current state of mind. "You had an attack didn't you?" he pressed. Derek shook his head no. "I'm fine," he said. "Or I would be fine if I could get Meredith on the phone." Mark sighned, knowing Derek was lying. It hadn't been an all out anxiety attack but it had been something.

"Let's get out there, make sure everyone's okay," Derek directed. "And find Meredith," Mark finished. "That too," Derek admitted. Derek led them out the room. He stopped in the hallway and made a sweep around the area with his eyes for Meredith. Mark told him something about going down a floor to check on his unit, make sure everything was okay. Derek took in the chaos as nurses rushed to reassure patients and doctors started checking for injuries. He cheked his phone one more time then stepped into the middle of the mess.

*************

The noise around them seemed to stop as suddenly as it had started. The room quieted down as the people stashed in the small space realized they were safe. Meredith gave a sigh of relief and looked around the room. It was full of patients, visitors, and employees, whoever had been in the lobby at the time of the warning. Maria was still clinging to her though her grip had loosed every so slightly.