The Call

8

A/N: Thanks everyone, for your support! Love you all!

Meredith made it back to her bed emotionally exhausted. She collapsed into it as Zola and Bailey curled up beside her. On the tray by her bed there was a brown paper bag, snacks that the nurses had brought. She dug into the bag, her kids were probably hungry. There was a large blueberry muffin wrapped in plastic. "You guys want some muffin?" she asked as she tore the plastic off. Zola nodded, Bailey hummed and reached for it.

She broke the muffin into quarters and gave them each a piece. Bailey mashed half of his into his mouth and smacked his lips loudly while still playing with his car. Meredith smiled and kissed his blonde head. He was such a funny kid.

A quarter of a blueberry muffin was shoved in front of her face, she reeled back, startled.

"Eat." Zola said, offering up her piece of muffin. "Mommy, eat." Meredith looked over at the other pieces of muffin on the tray and picked up a piece. For once, in a very long time, she actually felt hungry.

"Kay," she replied simply, taking a bite. Zola nodded and took a bite of hers too.

"Mommy, why did you yell at Auntie Amy?"

Meredith chewed on her muffin. She didn't want to talk about it. What she said to Amelia, she didn't even know she felt. She held it in so long, for the kids, for survival. Because admitting anything- even to herself meant that it was real, that he was gone and never coming back. She swallowed her muffin and gazed at her beautiful daughter. One day when Zola was old enough, she would tell her how it was Zola that kept her and Derek together during the most challenging times of their lives. For now, though she would try and explain what happened in that room, because Zola loved her Aunt and deserved to know. "You know sometimes your feelings get hurt, like when someone calls you a name or takes something from you?"

"Yeah," Zola said. She played with her piece of muffin.

"And how do you feel when that happens?"

"Mad."

"Yeah. So Mommy got mad and yelled."

"Auntie hurt your feelings." Zola said in her simple childlike way. She put her muffin piece in her mouth and chewed.

"Yeah," Meredith sighed, "but Mommy shouldn't have yelled at Auntie."

"Why?"

"Because Auntie was sad and Mommy was supposed to help."

Bailey whined a little and Meredith gave him half of the last piece of muffin.

"But you're sad too, cause Daddy's gone." Zola said. Daddy's gone. The words echoed in her head. She remembered Derek at the door of their house, that little grin on his face. Stay right here. Don't go. Wait for me. She looked back at Zola, falling into her black eyes. Daddy's gone. Meredith drew Zola closer to her and lay down on the bed.

Meredith thought about Amelia. Seeing her on that bed earlier she had never seen anyone look so lonely before. This whole event brought back terrible memories of her mother and Derek but somehow she had managed for a little while to put them aside and hear Amelia. Because even if it hurt Meredith to be here, it was worse to be alone. Amelia needed someone.

She didn't know that Amelia had talked to Derek that morning. She had already been fraught with worry, the plane crash heightened her emotions to an almost unbearable level. Everything had happened so fast that day. And when the Sheriff arrived at her door, all she could think about was her kids.

Honestly, after seeing Derek hooked up to all those machines- she hadn't even thought about Amelia. She was just in shock. She remembered looking at his chart, looking at the monitors that hung over his bed and all of the machines, and thinking where was he? Where did he go? He's not here on this bed, dying. He can't be.