Seven Thousand Hours

Chapter 52| Extraordinary

Just want to say that this chapter is sad, confusing, humorous and heartbreaking. My grandfather has Alzheimer's so I tried to incorporate the realities of it; which is sometimes funny yet incredibly sad. I just didn't want to take this chapter the wrong way x

"Hey!" Derek called across the hospital entrance as he saw Meredith sat in one of the chairs. "Hey" she smiled as she stood up and walked over to him, kissing him gently. "How was your day?" She asked as she began slipping her jacket on. He dropped his bags to help her as he straightened out the lapels. "Okay. Tiring, hard to get used to being useless, but okay" he smiled at her.

She reached down and picked up his bag. "You're not useless" she objected as she grabbed her things too. "Come on, let's get going" he smiled as they walked out the door and out towards her car. She put everything in the trunk and Derek was there to hold her door open for her. "Such a gentleman" she kissed him as she climbed in the passenger side.

Derek climbed in and started the car. They'd made it a few blocks in comfortable silence. "Your driving is coming along well" Meredith noted. "Yeah. It still hurts my wrist but it feels good to be doing something by myself" he said as they drove along.

"Derek..." Meredith suddenly turned serious. "Meredith..." He countered. "My mom- she's- she has ways- so just say when you want to leave-" Meredith said as she began picking at her fingers. "There's no need to worry, Sweetheart." He quickly glanced at her with a smile before he pulled into the parking lot of the care home.

She took a deep breath before she climbed out the car and they made their way to the entrance. She signed them in and she grabbed his hand as they walked into the visiting lounge.

"Hey Mom" Meredith smiled as she sat down on the sofa next to her. Derek couldn't get over how similar they looked- worlds apart in personality but they couldn't be mistaken for mother and daughter. Ellis hadn't really aged since Derek had met her his intern year, however the blank stare in her eyes as she looked at Meredith was enought to tell him how rapidly she'd declined.

"Mom? It's Dr Grey to you." Ellis said frimly as she scolded Meredith. Derek looked at Meredith, both their minds casting back to that first day they worked together, where Meredith said almost the exact same thing to Derek. "It's me, Mom. It's Meredith." She said quietly as she grabbed her mom's file and flicked through it to see if there was much change. She shrugged as she handed it to Derek, letting him get to know her mother's condition. He was the first and only person she'd told about her mom. Casting back she had mentioned it briefly to Amelia but Derek was the only one who truly knew. Her friends never got to find out, even when she drowned, she never divulged her motives behind that incident.

"Mom, i want you to meet Derek" she smiled as she showed her Derek. Ellis rolled her eyes. "Dr Derek Shepherd" Meredith corrected herself. Her mom barely recognised her, but Meredith always found she got a better response when she spoke like a colleague at the hospital.

"Shepherd. Shepherd?" Ellis looked up to Derek's outstretched hand. "Shepherd..." She mumbled, trying to think of where she recognised the name. "Carolyn and Christopher." She nodded as it finally clicked. "Christopher, how are you doing!" Ellis smiled at Derek. "Carolyn and Christopher are my parents. I'm Derek, their son." Derek corrected politely as he shook her hand.

"Oh Derek! Christ you've grown up so much since I last saw you!" Ellis jumped out her seat and hugged him suddenly. Derek awkwardly stood there as he accepted the hug. Meredith was absolutely gobsmacked. How could her mother remember Derek and his family, but not her own daughter? And be so affectionate with him.