I Won't Let Nobody Hurt You

24

"Well, I want your ex husband dead." Arizona deadpanned, breaking the silence she and Addison had fallen into while watching Meredith sleep.

"You and me both, but if we go to prison for murder then we leave her and she's already terrified of losing me so unfortunately he gets to live." Addison sighed. "When Mer stopped talking to me after prom, I just assumed it was because she felt guilty for sleeping with Derek. I never would have imagined that Derek threatened to hurt me if it meant getting her all to himself."

"When she woke up this morning she started panicking when she saw you weren't in here so I asked her if she ever gets scared that I'm going leave her the way she does you and she admitted that she's scared everyone's going to leave her, but especially you. That's how I knew that she knew about prom. She told me that Derek didn't like the two of you being friends." Arizona confessed. "What do you think she meant by he called her mean names? Did she ever say anything to you about that?"

"No, but before prom the three of us were all trying to be friends. Things went well for a while, then Meredith started dating our dog's vet. Derek found and became extremely jealous. She and I still got along great, but there was a very obvious tension between them to the point I asked her if she was sleeping with him, she told me no and even though I was still suspicious I could tell by her eyes that she was telling the truth." Addison explained. "It was only when she told me that she was dating the vet that I realized that Derek was jealous and still in love with her. That's what prompted the great big 'I'm not Meredith Grey!' Speech on the catwalk. I was so embarrassed, but she was actually the one who comforted me afterwards. I told her that he was in love with her, but she said it didn't matter because she wasn't in love with him. When I found her panties after prom, I was upset but not with her. I had a feeling that even if she wasn't in love with him, she wouldn't be able to resist if he pulled her back into his orbit so I didn't hold it against her. I wish I made an effort to talk to her instead of letting her ignore me and letting her think she hurt me." She sighed.

"Addie, this isn't your fault. None of this is your fault." Arizona stated firmly, cupping Addison's cheek. "Derek scared the crap out of her, even if you tried to talk to her she may have just avoided you to keep you safe."

"He probably knew what he was doing and that if I found out that he raped her, not only would I not let her anywhere near him, I'd kill him with my bare hands." Addison growled protectively. "She is two years old and she has memories of big Mer being raped. How is that fair?"

"It's not fair, it's not fair at all. I'm so angry and I'm heartbroken. I just want her to be okay." Arizona admitted quietly.

"Me too, but she will be. We'll make sure of it. We're a family." Addison kissed her softly. "I need to call Richard and figure out what we're going to do about work. I don't want to risk Thatcher getting to her there, I would really prefer to have a restraining order in place first."

"I agree. I just wish we knew how long it'll take for it to go through." Arizona sighed. "After what we found out today, I definitely think if she's going to stay home a few extra days you should be the one to stay with her."

"I was really hoping you were right and that she was just a mama's girl." Addison shut her eyes and took a deep breath. "You've been home alone with her before while I've been at work, was her separation anxiety bad?"

"Yes." Arizona stated simply. "Honestly I never told you how bad because I didn't want you to feel bad. I'm sorry I shouldn't have kept it from you."

"It's okay, I understand." Addison assured her with a smile. "How bad is it really?"

"She cries for you." Arizona confessed quietly. "We still have a good time, but she's on edge until you get home. It's one of the reasons I let her get away with going off her routine sometimes. I just want to distract her. I come up with fun games and that helps a lot, but eventually she always remembers that you're not home."