I Tried To Hate You (But Somewhere Along The Line I Fell In Love)

Chapter 2

If she was being honest things with Addison's marriage hadn't been easy for months before Derek left New York. Even in the chaos of med school and residency her and Derek used to be able to find time for their marriage, they could put time aside to have dinner together every weekend and she used to be able to count on seeing her husband at least once during the day but over time things had gotten worse. Dinners were cancelled in favour of surgeries and Addison found herself falling asleep next to Derek's empty side of the bed almost every single night with him at the hospital. They had let things slip past the point where they could save it.

This had taken a toll on Addison emotionally. It left her feeling unwanted and alone in a house that once felt like a home to her. Derek barely gave her more than a quick brush of lips against her cheek and it had started to make her feel undesired. It's what she would blame when she slept with Mark Sloan, her husband's best friend. Mark had been there for her, had seen her, brought her dinner on nights when Derek wouldn't come home and he had told her she was beautiful when she was starting to doubt it. It was also what lead to the end of her marriage when Derek caught her in bed with Mark.

Derek hadn't flown into a fit of rage like Addison had imagined he would, and perhaps even hoped he would if it meant he still cared enough about their marriage to be angry. Sure he yelled, but it was more just at Addison to get out than anything else. After that, he had taken his things and left for Seattle.

Part of her had hoped that despite Derek's reaction he still cared, that he still wanted her and so she gave him some space before trying to fix her marriage. Before leaving New York Addison had a plan for arriving in Seattle. Her plan had been to work the case Richard had called her in for and finally talk to Derek, finally get him to listen to her about what happened that night and the problems their marriage had before heading back home to New York. Of course, that plan became a thing of the past rather quickly after landing in Seattle.

Addison still had some friends in Seattle - and by friends, she meant Richard of course - who had warned her about the young, doe-eyed, blonde intern her husband was now seeing. The first time she met her was in the lobby of Seattle Grace Hospital her first day in town. She had made a scene, and she knew that. Part of her had immediately felt guilty about the biting comment she had made to the intern. "And you must be the woman who's been screwing my husband." As soon as she had seen the look on Meredith's face it was clear she hadn't known Derek was married. It wasn't Meredith's fault. If anyone was to blame it was Derek and admittedly herself.

She had quickly realised she didn't blame Meredith at all and in fact, felt sorry for her. After only a few days of working in the hospital, she had quickly learned that gossip spread fast and she had unintentionally placed Meredith right in the middle of it all. It all seemed to be for nothing as well. Derek was back to acting the same way he had in New York, and possibly even worse with the new title of Adulterous Bitch that he had taken to calling her.

She was starting to slip back into that same mindset she had been in back in New York but this time the person who pulled her out of it was someone she least expected.

Meredith had been on her service for almost a week straight and she was starting to enjoy her company. She was a quick learner and always seemed curious about Addison's work, always watching everything she did closely. Meredith listened carefully when she spoke and it made her feel like the work she was doing actually meant something when it came to teaching the interns.

She had found herself starting to care more and more for the young intern. She felt seen by Meredith and she had to admit she could see why her husband had fallen for her. Not only was she sweet but her beauty hadn't gone unnoticed by Addison. She often found herself staring at Meredith when she was leaning against the nurse's station filling out charts or in the cafeteria when she was sitting around laughing with her friends. Normally Meredith's eyes were almost the colour of steel - her intense concentration reflected in her eyes - but in those moments they would soften and the pale grey was stunning.