iLove

Chapter 7

Meredith and Christina took Katie up for another MRI and waited in the room for the results, when Dr. Shepherd walked in, fresh out of surgery and stared at the screen with a deep scowl on his face. The images finally popped up and the radiologist pointed to something on the top right of the screen.

"Right there." he said.

"I'll be damned." Derek muttered as he squinted to see the small abnormality. Meredith gulped when he glanced up at her "It's minute but it's there."

"I was right." she mumbled to herself in disbelief. Derek stood up straight and let out an irritated sigh.

"Does she need surgery?" Christina asked eagerly.

"Obviously." Derek muttered as he scribbled on the chart. "But it's a minor procedure, I won't need an intern."

"So we did all that work for what?" Christina snapped. Derek cocked his head up and looked sharply at her.

"For the satisfaction of figuring out what was wrong with the patient Dr. Yang. That should be plenty for an intern!"

"Fine." she huffed and stormed out the door but stopped and glared at Meredith "I knew I should never have worked with you."

Meredith just gulped, still in disarray that she'd figured out what was wrong, that she was right. Derek turned and stepped out of the room but stopped in the doorway and let out a soft sigh before glancing at her.

"Way to look for the obvious Grey." he said "If you can manage to think before you act like you did just now, you might actually make something of yourself."

He walked out of the room and let out a huge sigh of relief. He hated being hard on her, but at the same time he couldn't help it. When he looked at her he saw and felt so many things, they both excited him and scared him. He gave up on feeling those things after his wife left him, he gave up on being happy, and he told himself that focusing on his career and helping build better doctors would be his life's ambition from then on. He was suddenly distracted by a noise coming from his coat pocked, and smiled to himself as he slipped into the linen closet.

MEG216: Ok, so you were right.
DASH109: I usually am right, but about what exactly?
MEG216: There's that flaring ego again! ... and you were right about looking for the obvious.
DASH109: So did you fix your mistake?
MEG216: Yes, the person I hurt should be better by the time the sun rises tomorrow.
DASH109: Fantastic! I knew that you could do it.
MEG216: I feel like you're the only person that really does.
DASH109: That can't be true. Still having problems with your mom's shadow?
MEG216: Like you wouldn't believe...I almost thought I saw some light earlier today, but then as soon as the people working with me didn't get the benefits they wanted they threw me back into the darkness.
DASH109: That's not right. I'm sorry. Just keep doing what you're doing, and soon enough they'll see who you really are.
MEG216: And somehow you do see who I really am?
DASH109: I can tell that you're the kind of person that wants to work for what they get. You don't come off as the type to look for an easy way in.
MEG216: Thanks Dash, I really appreciate that. Oh! I think my boss almost paid me a compliment today.
DASH109: Really?
MEG216: Yeah, of course it was no better than any compliment my mother's ever given me. But it was the most positive thing he's said to me yet.
DASH109: Give him time, I'm sure he'll warm up to you soon enough. I bet he's just trying to see what you can do.
MEG216: How is your day going?
DASH109: It's looking up actually. My employee surprised me with excellence, and I think the job will turn out to be ok. I feel very relieved.
MEG216: Amazing how people can surprise you sometimes, isn't it?
DASH109: Absolutely....well I hate to go.
MEG216: Me too, I have lots of work to do still.
DASH109: I will be looking forward to talking to you again J
MEG216: Me too Dash...have a great day!
DASH109: You too.

***SIGN OFF***




***************



"Hey Mer." she heard in the locker room as she was putting her scrubs in her locker.

"Hey Iz." she smiled "Oh, sorry about lunch. I had.."

"I heard." she smiled while untying her shoe laces.

"I didn't get the surgery though."

"I heard that too."

"What are you the eyes and ears of the hospital?"

"No." she giggled "But hanging out behind the nurses station desk you hear a lot."

"Ah." Meredith nodded "Well did you hear that Christina almost started to like me but now hates me more. And that Shepherd paid me a compliment?"

"Shepherd paid you a compliment?" she gasped "Wow. What did he say?"

"He said that if I keep thinking before acting I might actually make something of myself." Meredith replied. Izzy frowned and looked at her sideways.

"Meredith, how is that a compliment? It's almost insulting."

"I don't know." Meredith shrugged "It's as good as any compliment my mother's ever given me."

"Oh." Izzy looked at her softly "You really didn't get the easy way in this door did you?"

"No." Meredith shook her head "If anything I had to work harder, you have no idea how hard my mother is to impress. And her influences are everywhere."

"I'm sorry."

"I just wish everyone else saw that." She shrugged "But I'm used to working my ass off so it's nothing new."

"Maybe we should go get a drink."

"Alright." she smiled "And maybe you can finally tell me what George did."

"Oh right."

"There will be no talk of what George did." they hear behind them and both turn and giggle "But there will be lots of drinking tonight."

"Let's go." Izzy giggles and rolls her eyes.

They all three walk out of the hospital and go across the street to the Emerald City Bar. It wasn't a big place, but it was littered with medical personnel, at least everyone in there had a mutual understanding of how the other's day went. They sat down at the bar since all the tables were taken and ordered beers.

"I think we're going to need something stronger than beer." Meredith said.

"Why?" George frowned "Do you like being in pain in the morning?"

"Why not." she shrugged "We're being drug through the mud on a minute by minute basis anyway right?"

George smirked and then turned to the bar tender "Joe, we'll take three shots of tequila!"

Meredith giggled and listened quietly as George and Izzy struck up a conversation, picking at the people in the room. Her mind was halfway on something else at the moment, for some reason, despite her fun time with her new friends she couldn't help but wonder where Dash was at the moment, and part of her panicking at the thought of him online waiting for her. Then again, if he spent all his time sitting around online maybe he was a creep and she shouldn't have anything to do with him..

"Who's the boyfriend?" George asked while taking a sip of his beer.

"Huh?" she mumbled "What boyfriend?"

"Whoever you're thinking about right now. Your mind is totally somewhere else, usually that happens when you're thinking about a boyfriend."

"I'm an intern," she mumbled "I don't have time for a boyfriend."

"Well then who were you thinking about?" Izzy asked curiously.

"No one." she mumbled, but looked to see unconvinced expressions "He's not a boyfriend...or prospective boyfriend in the least, I've never met him... I just talk to him about my bad days."

"Oh don't tell me you're so desperate that you're dating someone online." George asked.

"I never said anything about dating." Meredith rolled her eyes "It's just nice to talk to someone who doesn't know you, ya know?"

"No." Izzy frowned "I don't know."

"I don't know why we're event talking about this, he's just a guy I chat with from time to time. It's nothing more than that."

"Then why are you staring off into space thinking about him?" George asked.

She started incredulously at him, Joe came up to them and set three shot glasses on the bar, she lifted one quickly to her lips and downed it. George shook his head and chuckled then he and Izzy downed their shots and went back to their nitpicking conversation. Out of the corner of her eye Meredith saw someone squeeze between the bar stools and approach the bar and set an empty glass down with a large bill. She tossed him a sideways glance and gulped as her posture stiffened.

"You should go home." he muttered after a few moments of uncomfortable silence "You'll need some rest. So you don't go making anymore mistakes."

She looked up at him with wide frustrated eyes and he returned a cold stare before walking away and out the doors of the bar. Meredith stared after him in disbelief before letting out a sigh and turning to her friends.

"Unbelievable isn't it?" Izzy said.

"I just don't get it, why is he so cold and cruel?"

"If you think it's just you you're wrong." George said "Apparently he came here that way, something about his ex-wife screwing him over and someone dying. And from what I hear he's only the hardest on the people he sees the most potential in."

"So what," Meredith frowned "I'm supposed to take his bitterness as a compliment?"

"Maybe." he shrugged. Meredith shook her head and felt her head spin a little from the tequila.

"Well maybe I should get home." she sighed "I do need some sleep, I have a strong feeling tomorrow is going to be an unbearable hell."

"Whatever, you just want to go home and chat up some cyber sex with your iBoyfriend." Izzy laughed.

"You're sick." Meredith hissed "Thanks for the drinks George."

"Goodnight Mer." he smiled "See you tomorrow."

"See ya."


***SIGN ON***

DASH109: I see you made it through the rest of your day alive.
MEG216: Barely...but I tried to go and relax, or recoup after work.
DASH109: How did it go? Do you feel relaxed.
MEG216: I do now...for some reason I kept thinking about you.
DASH109: Were they good thoughts?
MEG216: This may sound weird, but I feel pretty excited to talk to you at the end of the day.
DASH109: Well I find myself feeling the same way Meg.
MEG216: I saw my boss after hours...it was weird, and he was pretty rude, which is nothing new. I just don't see why he has to be so...inhuman towards me, even outside the work place.
DASH109: Hmm...sounds like a real asshole.
MEG216: That's a good start.
DASH109: Not a lot of people must tell him that.
MEG216: I don't know, what would it change?
DASH109:Well for me, there's a line. A line between being hard to push someone to be who they need to be. And being an outright asshole. And it's nice sometimes when there's someone there to tell me, hey you're being an asshole.
MEG216: You want me to tell my boss that he's being an asshole?
DASH109: Well....yes.
MEG216: As much as I love the though, I think the action would land me on my ass.
DASH109: You strike me as one of those ballsy girls, I'm sure you can handle it. You never know, his reaction could surprise you.
MEG216: You're right... tomorrow I'm going to march right up to him and tell him what I think of him.
DASH109: Oh that'll be interesting.. Make sure you fill me in on the details.
MEG216: You'll be the first one I'll want to tell.
DASH109: And I'll be looking forward to it all day long.
MEG216: I better get some sleep then, since I've got a big day tomorrow.
DASH109: Sleep well Meg, and dream big.
MEG216: Goodnight Dash.

**SIGN OFF***

___________________________________________________________________________

<33