Back To Seattle

Chapter 9

She'd not heard from Jordan again in the past week. He hadn't tried to call or left any messages for her, and it felt off. Something just wasn't right, but she was too scared to try and contact him. She'd found a different hotel to stay in and had thought about finding herself a small apartment near the hospital. She could get her own apartment in her name, he wouldn't have any ownership to it, no hold over it. She just had to make sure he didn't know where she was living.

She sat at a table in the back of the cafeteria, near one of the windows as she scrolled through listings on her iPad. A soft sigh escaped her lips, not really finding anywhere that met the requirements she was looking for.

"Meredith? What are you doing here?"

She looked up as she heard the familiar voice, her eyes widening slightly as she recognised the person stood in front of her.

"Mark Sloan?" she breathed.

"The one and only," he chuckled softly as he sat across at the table across from her.

"Why are you here in Seattle?"

"Why are you here in Seattle?" he retorted.

"I... my mom. I'm here to help my mom," she shrugged.

"You're wearing scrubs and a Seattle Grace lab coat, I'm not an idiot."

"I'm doing my fellowship here, it was easiest."

"You got Jordan to move out to Seattle?"

"He's back in Boston," she lowered her gaze, avoiding eye contact with him.

"Long distance?"

"Something like that," she shrugged, taking a sip of her coffee, "So what are you doing in Seattle?"

"Cleaning up my mess, the usual," he chuckled.

"And what mess would that be this time?" she narrowed her eyes at him.

"Well, you know that woman I used to tell you about, my best friend's wife?"

"Yeah, what was her name again?" Meredith asked with a slight frown as she tried to remember. Alison? Abigail?

"Addison," he said with a sigh, "We kind of ended up having an affair, he found out and left her, but when she received the divorce papers she disappeared, basically ghosted me, so I've come to make amends with my best friend, I mean, he's practically my brother.

"Right, but is he not back in New York?" her frown deepened as something about the name rang a bell, but she couldn't think why, "Why are you in Seattle of all places you could go? It's cold, it rains all the time."

"Oh no, I wouldn't choose to come here. But apparently, this is Derek's city of choice," he shrugged taking a sip of his own coffee, "he's run away to live in the woods."

"Wait, Derek? As in Derek Shepherd, head of neurosurgery?" her eyes widened slightly.

"Yes! You know him?" Mark grinned at her, clearly not quite registering the shock on her face.

"I mean," she took a deep breath, "Yeah, he is my boss. I just... you're the best friend that slept with his wife?"

"Yeah, and I feel terrible about it, I really do," he plead.

"I'm sure you do," she said with a hollow laugh, her hand brushing hair away from the small bandage she still wore over her stitches.

"Woah, what happened to your forehead?" Mark frowned at her.

"You know me, clumsy, fell into a wall," she shrugged, not meeting his gaze again, "Derek stitched it up actually."

"Speaking of Derek..." he looked over her shoulder and she turned to see Derek approaching them.