Bright and Shiny

Chapter 81

"Dr. Shepherd…Meredith..." George called as he ran into the pit out of breath and slightly scared to broach her.

Meredith was suturing up a patient when she glanced back and saw the doctor with a crush rushing towards her with an envelope of test results.

"Give me one second Dr. O'Malley." Meredith called out to behind her to finish suturing her patient. He was a member of the local high school hockey team that all stupidly got into a fight on ice and ended up with a gash from a skate when the benches emptied and they all piled on top of each other. Meredith thought that only happened in football, apparently she was wrong.

As she finished, she stood giving the patient instructions on his stitches and giving him a prescription before signing the discharge papers. She was had to move onto the next hockey player in the meelee, but first had to see what George needed. Hoping he wasn't doing her mothers bidding for her since he was on her mother's service.

"You needed to speak to me?" Meredith turned and asked George.

"I need to trade with you." He rapidly blurted out while glancing around behind him in a way that showed he was scared of who could hear him.

"Trade with you?" Meredith asked confused at his words and behavior.

"I'll stay here in the pit and you can take these" he said as he shoved the envelope towards her before continuing, "and you can be Dr. Grey's intern."

Meredith put the pieces together and couldn't help but start to laugh at the scared look on his face. "I'm sorry Dr.O'Malley, but Dr. Bailey has me in charge of the pit and I can't just leave and trade with you."

"In..In charge? That's residents or attendings jobs." He rambled out.

"I know, but today they're short staffed or something. I don't know, but all I know is that she put me in charge and I can't leave to save you from my mother. I can however, give you some advice. If you want it." She offered sweetly feeling bad for the fellow intern.

"I guess."

"She likes a challenge, she likes people that are sure of themselves. Don't stutter, and don't back down. Even if you're wrong and you think you're wrong. Stick to your guns and fight back. She wants to break you down to show you can't hack it, she'll respect you for standing up to her." Meredith explained to him.

"That she will, it explains why she loves me so much." Derek cockily interrupted with a booming voice as he swiftly approached the two standing by the pit main desk. Coming to stand behind his wife, placing a chaste kiss on her head and placing his hand on her lower back, pulling her towards his body like two magnets connecting. To remind the intern with eyes for his wife that she is very much taken.

"She does..." Meredith nodded to George seriously. "She loves him much more than me" she laughed as she picked up the envelope of test results and handed it back to George. "You'll be needing these, good luck." She told him as George just nodded an embarassed good bye to Derek and muttered a thanks to Meredith as he slowly walked towards the exit.

"You are so bad." She chastised as soon as she knew George was gone. She turned around to see Derek leaning slightly against the desk behind her with a smirk.

"What?" he asked faking innocence.

"You and the hand on the back and doing the whole marking your territory thing." She huffed out at him in feign annoyance as he laughed at her reaction.

"I like my territory, and I like marking it to people who need reminding." He winked at her as he kissed her on her check and strode with confidence out of the pit and back towards his original destination before he had caught a glimpse of his wife talking to George out of the corner of his eye.