NEVER LEAVING YOUR HEART ALONE

Unnecessary Panic

Meredith slowly rose out of bed. She was tired. But then again, she was always tired. She slowly went to the bathroom and brushed her teeth and ran the brush through her hair. This was her new thing, jogging in the morning. She wanted to be healthier. She knew chasing around twins and a six year old was going to be the hardest thing in the world. She pulled her pants, and slid her tank top over her large baby bump.

The air was crisp, but it felt good. It seemed lately she was either too hot or too cold. This morning she was way too hot. Meredith feet walked on the wet grass, leaving footprints on the dew. The sun was just starting to peek out on the horizon. She liked this time of the day. It was before all the noise and chaos came. It was when everyone rested. It was her time to think.

She started jogging her familiar route. Derek had it made so that there were two separate paths so she wouldn't get bored. She had some extra time and decided to take the longer on today. She had so much going through her head. Today was the day when they would find out each baby's sex. She wasn't sure that she wanted to know, but Derek convinced her otherwise. She knew he was right. Before they knew it, a nursery would be underway, and it would be nice to know what they had to do.

Meredith picked up her pace as she started to get warmed up. As she jogged she heard the familiar sound of birds chirping, and the animals starting to wake up. Then she heard something that didn't fit in. It was a cracking sound. She slowed down a little and turned her head. Nothing was there. She brushed it off, figuring something had broken a branch. Then she heard pounding footsteps.

Oh my god. Footsteps. Someone is running. What do you do? What do they say? Keep going. Don't look back. Every time you look back, it slows you down. They are getting closer. Crap. Don't panic, don't panic! You're not even halfway out. You will never make it back. Just run...

Meredith began running as quickly as she could. She wanted to look back. One person kept going through her head, Marty. Seriously. She had met the guy one time. One time and now the first thing that snaps into her mind is him. Addison told her that he was okay. But did Addison really know?

The pounding footsteps weren't going away as she continued to run her heart out. She was starting to get a shooting pain in her abdomen. Her legs were starting to ache. Then she felt the arm grab her. It was all over.

"Jesus, Mer! Are you trying to kill me?" Derek asked as he grabbed her shoulder.

"Oh my god!" She said, her voice full of relief. She stopped running and doubled over.

It's Derek. How stupid are you? Your husband is following you and you run. Don't look back. Stupid advice. Very stupid. Now Derek is going to think I've lost my mind.

"What the hell were you doing? At first I thought it was a joke, but you just kept going." He panted as he spoke to her.

"I didn't hear you." Meredith said quickly.

"You didn't hear me?" He said, not believing her. "What are you trying to do?"

"What do you mean?" She asked as she panted along side of him.

"Are you trying to kill yourself, or our children?" He asked with an angry tone.

"Derek- I- I'm sorry, I guess I got a little carried away..." She explained, not wanting to tell him the truth. Not telling him she was convinced he was an attacker.

"A little carried away?" He said, shaking his head. "I think you need to stop jogging."

"Why?" She asked as she started walking.

"Because you are overdoing it." He said as he walked along side of her.

"I think I know what I can handle." She said as she quickened her pace. She knew she had pushed it. But she had been running for her life. Or so she thought. "Ahh!" She cried out as she grabbed her stomach.