A Dream Or A Nightmare?

14

Derek carried Meredith up to her, and finally put her in her and Dereks bed. Derek didn't change their bedroom at all. He had hung the post it back up, and he had even found a way to keep the tumor on the wall.

Her side of the bed was cold and hard, a sign no one had slept there in years. She slowly managed to get herself into the bed, and pulled the covers over her body.

She was home.

Derek shortly after climbed into bed, and tentatively wrapped his arms around her. "You okay?" He asked into her ear. "I think so." She replied.

•••

Derek woke up to screaming. Well, at first he thought it was in his dream. But then he opened his eyes, blinked a few times, and the screaming was still there.

He looked over to his wife, who looked still asleep, yet she was sobbing and screaming. "Mer." Derek said, realizing she was having a nightmare.

"Meredith, wake up." Derek said, nudging her slightly. ""Meredith." He said louder. Nothing. Derek decided to roll on top of her and straddle her, careful of her leg and arm .

"Mer, wake up! It's Derek. You're safe here." He said loudly. Merediths eyes snapped open, eyes locking with dereks and she panted for breath.

"D-Derek." Meredith whispered as she looked around the dark room. "I'm right here." He said softly.

Derek rolled off of her and moved on his side. "It's okay. It was just a dream." He whispered, grabbing her hand gently.

"Y-you y-you-he-I c-Cant." Meredith stammered, on the verge of a panic attack. "Hey. It's just me and you here. Everything is okay. We're at home, and I locked all the doors and windows like you asked. You have to breath." Derek said sternly, yet soft enough to not scare her.

"I-I'm safe." Meredith said, trying to reassure herself. "You are. No one is going to hurt you." Derek said soothingly. "I'm safe." She repeated.

"I'm sorry." Meredith whispered, ashamed of herself for waking up Derek. "There's nothing to be sorry for. Do you want to try to get some sleep?" He asked softly.

"Don't t-think I can. What time is it?" Meredith replied. "It's almost 5. If you want we can go downstairs. The sun will rise soon, we can watch it like we always did." Derek suggested with a grin.

"Okay." Meredith replied. "Ow." Meredith groaned as she pushed herself out of bed. "Come here. Your chair is still downstairs." Derek said.

He picked her up very gently and walked down the stairs. "Want to sit outside?" He asked. "Hammock." Meredith nodded.

He put her down gently and then stood up. "I'll go grab your meds. You okay?" He asked. "Yeah." She replied as she settled herself.

Derek ran up quickly and grabbed the meds. "Here." He said, handing her the pills and a glass of water. "Thank you." She said, taking them.

Derek settled in behind her on the hammock and felt her relax into his chest. "I missed this." Meredith admitted. "I did too. The kids and I did this before school sometimes." He replied.

"I'm sorry I woke you up." Meredith said quietly. "It's not your fault. Don't worry about it." He replied. "IM used to waking up at 5. They made sure I was up by then." She said.

"Do the kids still get up at 7?" Meredith asked. She felt so guilty not knowing the most basic facts about her kids.

"Yeah. Zo sometimes sleeps a little later. My mom is gonna be up soon." Derek replied. Meredith hummed in acceptance and sighed.

"You okay?" He asked softly. "I'm sick of the nightmares. I want to sleep through the night." She admitted. "You will eventually. You went through a very traumatic event, it's normal." Derek said.

"I don't want to talk to Dr Wyatt." Meredith groaned. "I know you don't, but it's gonna help you. I'll go to a few with you if I'm allowed to." He offered.

Meredith nodded and opened her mouth to speak when the sound of little feet interrupted her. "Mommy." Bailey said, flashing bis fathers grin as he climbed onto the hammock and carefully nuzzled himself in between his parents.

"Hi baby boy." Meredith murmured, wrapping her good arm around him. "Not a baby." Bailey mumbled. Bailey was much like Meredith in the mornings, quiet and cuddly.

"You'll always be my baby. Where's your sister?" Meredith asked as she ran her fingers through his blonde curls. "Talking to grandma." Bailey replied.

As if on cue, Carolyn and Zola came out. Zola ran over to them and also joined the hammock. "That must be a strong hammock." Carolyn commented with a grin.

"Apparently." Derek chuckled. "How did you two sleep?" Meredith asked. "Good mama. I like having you home." Zola said with a smile.

"I like being home." She replied. "What time did you two get up?" Carolyn asked knowingly. She heard the screaming in the early early morning.

"A few hours ago." Meredith honestly replied with a shrug. "It's only 730." Carolyn pointed out softly. "I had a nightmare." Meredith said. Carolyn smiled sadly.

"You should take a nap later." She suggested. "Maybe." Merecitn replied. She would definitely not do that. Taking a nap, closing her eyes meant nightmares. It meant waking up in a cold sweat screaming. And she didn't want to do that.

"For now I just want to cuddle with my babies." Meredith said, sighing contently as she nuzzled further into dereks arms, holding the kids close.

Hey guys! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and hope your all doing well. If you guys have any ideas feel free to let me know. Let me know if you liked this chapter.