Seven Thousand Hours

Chapter 2| It wasn't me

"Looking fresh"

Meredith flinched away as the man continued to grope her breast. "Back the fuck off!" Meredith shouted before she threw a punch straight into the man's jaw. The man stumbled against the bar and cupped his jaw. "You little bitch" he hissed before straightening himself up, towering over her. Meredith balled her fists, ready to punch him once again as he cornered her against the bar.

"Go home, man" she heard another male from a distance away, but she didn't dare turn away or back down. "What's it to you? She just punched me!" The man spat back as his focus was no longer diverted on Meredith. "It looked like you deserved it. Go home." The deep voice spoke again. Meredith took the opportunity to dip under the guys arms and escape.

Suddenly she felt him grab her arm again. "If I see you around, or you pull that stunt again, you'll be the one with a bloody jaw" he hissed in her face, reaking of alcohol. Meredith brought her other arm round and pinched his tricep hard, making his knees buckle and his body flinch. "I'd like to see you try" she laughed before bringing her knee straight into his balls.

The man limped out the bar as others shoved him out the door before everyone turned to Meredith and applauded her, making her laugh. Joe slid a shot across the bar. "Take this as an apology" he smiled, Meredith nodded. "I'm going to be very sorry in the morning, Joe" she laughed as she sat back onto her barstool and cleaned herself up.

She could sense a pair of eyes watching her so she turned her head to see a man sat at the end of the bar. He had dark curls and a red shirt on, roughly his early 30s. Meredith smiled to herself before moving down the bar.

"Hey!" She smiled when she reached the man. She finally got to see his face clearly and his eyes shining blue, and boy was she in trouble. "Thanks for standing up for me" she said quietly as she tried to catch his gaze which was focused on his drink. He finally looked up at her. "That wasn't me." He said before looking down to his drink again. She watched him carefully, a part of her convinced it was his voice, yet another part of her disappointed that maybe it was the wrong man. Not that it mattered. He was exactly Meredith's type and introducing herself wouldn't be the worst thing to happen tonight.

"Oh, sorry. Well anyway, I'm Meredith" she smiled at him but frowned when he ignored her. "And you're ignoring me" she laughed a little before tuning to face the bar. She heard him sigh and watched him rub his hand down his face. "Derek" she heard him mumble before turning her attention back to him. "Well Derek, can I buy you a drink?" She asked but he shook his head. Meredith sighed, accepting the fact that maybe this man just wanted to be left alone. She stood up and straightened out her clothes, ready to leave, when she heard him mumble something to Joe.

"Single malt scotch and a tequila, please"

Meredith stopped and turned to him with a bright smile. He nodded slightly. Spinning on her heels, she sat back down onto the bar stool. "Thank you, Derek" she watched him again, this time noticing the sadness in eyes. "Are you okay?" She asked quietly after a few minutes had gone by in silence. He shook his head and looked at his empty glass, his chest tightening at his thoughts.

"I'm okay" he said before picking up his new drink, she followed suit, and they clinked their glasses together before throwing it back. "Why are you miserable?" She asked him carefully. His head shot up and searched her eyes for any chance of humour but it appeared she was being truthful. "I'm not." He said back which made her laugh. "You've got the conversational skills of a cardboard box. Here," she reached into her bag and pulled out a blue post-it, scribbling something down. "Here's my number, call me when you feel more up to it" she smiled sincerely at him. He took the post-it from her before dropping a few bills on the counter.

"Let me walk you to your cab" he mumbled has he mindlessly helped her lift her jacket on. She looked at him surprised but he shook his head. "Incase that creep is still about" he mumbled before standing at her side. "I thought you said it wasn't you?" She smiled at him, amused by that fact she'd finally got him talking. He rolled his eyes at her. "Come on" he mumbled.

She climbed into her cab and waved goodbye to Derek. "Thanks for kind of saving me tonight, Derek" she said through the cab window. He shook his head, "I told you, Meredith. It wasn't me" he said to her before the cab engine started and the vehicle started moving. "Goodnight, Meredith" he said before they drove off.

The whole ride home had Meredith's stomach doing flips. The way he said her name had her heart in her throat and butterflies in her stomach.

The cab pulled up to her house and she paid quickly before throwing herself out and running up her lawn before leaning over and vomiting.

"Jesus Mer, you're 27" Alex laughed as he came to her side and rubbed her back soothingly. She only glared at him before wiping her mouth and walking up to her front door. "If you say anything-" she mumbled before dashing inside and up to bed.

Meanwhile Derek stayed outside the bar in the cool September fresh air, finally feeling like he could breath today.

"Did your precious little girlfriend ditch you?" Derek looked over and saw the man from earlier, sighing as all he wanted to do was go back to his trailer and sleep. "Do you realise how uncomfortable it makes women when you hit on them when you're drunk and you have a ketchup stain on a shirt that doesn't look like it's been washed in years?" Derek retorted back with a sarcastic laugh. The man squared up to Derek but Derek didn't rise. He wasn't a violence type of guy unless it was absolutely necessary when words could no longer defuse the situation.

Before anything else could be said, Dereks cab pulled up but he stopped for a moment. "If I see you speak or lay your hands on a woman like that again, I will put you in the hospital this time." He said through gritted teeth before climbing in his cab and finally heading home.