Driving Sideways

24.

Derek pulled into the driveway of the house and parked just as his phone began to ring. He pulled it from his pocket and smiled softly. "Mom..." He said, glancing to Ellis, who was still glaring at him. "Oh, wipe that look off your face... my mom likes me..." He said as Ellis turned her head.

"Derek... are you talking to Ellis that way?" Marion said into the phone.

"No ma'am." Derek said as he raised his eyebrows, listening to Ellis chuckle from beside him.

"So are you going to tell me what's going on, or not? Is she alright? You never called back last night. Meredith said that you talked to her, but you didn't tell her anything, did you? She didn't mention anything... Derek?"

"Mom... geez... you're rambling... you've been hanging out with Meredith too long..." He chuckled slightly.

"Stop fooling around and tell me what's going on!" She snapped.

"Sorry... Mom, Ellis is..." Derek could feel something sharp on his arm. "Pinching me... ow... don't pinch me..." He said, swatting at her hand. "Can't you see that I'm talking on the phone?"

"Don't you dare..." Ellis said, her eyebrows rising as she dared him.

"Ellis is sick..." He exclaimed as he leapt from the car, nearly falling out onto the ground, his leg was caught as Ellis reached across angrily.

"Derek!" Ellis exclaimed.

"Ellis is sick... and she won't get treated..." He said, pulling his leg from the car.

"Derek... what on earth is going on?"

"I think she was going to hurt me..." Derek said as he watched Ellis climb from the car.

"I'm confused... Derek... please tell me what is going on..."

Ellis opened the back seat and Richie climbed from the seat. He walked over to his father and reached up for his hand as Ellis walked towards the house. "Ellis is... she... Ellis has an aneurysm." Derek said softly.

"An aneurysm?" Marion gasped. "Derek..."

"It's a very large... very precarious aneurysm... and she doesn't want to be treated..." He said as he looked up to see Ellis glaring at him from the porch. He stuck his tongue out at her and turned around, pulling Richie into him.

"Oh... oh my God... oh... oh, Derek..." Marion said as she started to panic. "Meredith doesn't know? You have to tell her, Derek! You have to tell her! Oh... is she... can I talk to her, please?"

"She's in the house, mom... don't worry... I'm still talking to her about..."

"Meredith is going to be so upset! Why did she go so far away! What was she thinking? Oh... this is just... this is just..."

"Mom... sit down... mom, please sit down..." Derek said softly as he held Richie's hand as the little boy looked up at his father's worried face as he leaned against the car and looked up to the sky. "Mom... mom, please just sit down..." Derek whispered, his voice panicking as he listened to his mother talking so nervously.

"Oh, Derek... you have to do something... Derek, this is just horrible...I just can't believe that she doesn't want to have it taken care of... I don't understand...what is she thinking?" Marion lamented nervously over the phone.

"I'm not sure what she's thinking, Mom... all I know... is that... she was told by three different doctors that it is inoperable..."

"What do you think?" Marion whispered.

"I think... that if she's going to have any chance of surviving, she's going to need to have it taken care in the next week or two..." Derek said softly.