Chapter 111: 111. Chapter 111
"You sure you want to do this?" Derek asked his sister as they stood together at the doorway to the wedding hall.
With her arm hooked around his, Lauren easily elbowed him in the ribs. "I never should have picked you for this."
"Why not? I'm an excellent aisle walker. I have an exceptional aisle walking gait." He bounced on the balls of his feet to emphasize his point.
Lauren laughed. "You're a dork."
He bumped her hip with his, and asked again, "You sure you want to do this? I have the getaway car all ready outside. Just say the word and-"
She elbowed him again. Harder.
"Ouch," he complained.
"Serves you right. Are you going to be like this tomorrow?"
He shrugged. "Of course. Today's the rehearsal. Therefore, I'm rehearsing what I'm going to do tomorrow."
"Great; that gives me about twenty hours to replace you."
"You can't replace me. I'm the centre of the show. They're all here for me," he motioned to small scene taking place at the bottom of the aisle. Their three sisters, Jane, and Nathan's mother were trying to decide exactly who would stand where during the ceremony. All three Shepherd sisters were bridesmaids and would stand with their sister, along with Lauren's daughter, Emily. Nathan's brother and two of his long time friends were standing with him. The four men were currently standing to the side in a semi-circle, chatting with Nathan's father. Meredith and Brian were sitting together a few rows back, acting as 'guests.'
She laughed out loud and leaned against him. "Thank you for being here."
He kissed her on the cheek. "You're my baby sister. I wouldn't not be here for the world."
She smiled at him. "I like the new you."
"The new me?"
"Yeah." She nodded, and then cocked her head as she studied him. "Or, maybe not new. Maybe just...uncensored."
"Uncensored?"
"You didn't used to be like this. Well, you did; a long time ago. And then you stopped. I thought you changed. But now I think you just limited yourself for a long time. It's like you're you again."
"I like being me again." He smiled at the thought. Months and months ago, when Nancy had surprised him with a visit to Seattle, he hadn't been certain of who he was, and her comparisons to his previous life had sent him into a tailspin. He hadn't been able to handle her pointing out the many, many differences between his 'old' life and his 'new' life. He understood himself much better now, though, making him able to understand how his family saw him. He'd learned about himself, and he was actively learning how to interact with his family again; as him and not the censored person he had made himself into for so many years.
Some of his progress he attributed to leaving New York and starting fresh in a new city and a new hospital. The rest he attributed to Meredith. She had given him the strength, support and understanding he needed to break free of his own constraints. She had loved him for him without any additional expectations. And that was what he had needed. He no longer felt the need to be someone he wasn't. He no longer felt the need to keep himself at a distance.
And now he was at his sister's wedding, feeling reconnected with his family. He felt like he could finally breathe properly.
"I like that you're you again. I missed you."
"I won't stop being me ever again," he promised.
Lauren smiled at him. "Good. She's good for you, you know?"
"Meredith?"
"Who else?"
He laughed. "She is good for me."
"Did you feel like this?" Lauren asked. "Before you got married, I mean."
"Feel like what?"
Lauren sighed. "That may be my answer."
Derek studied his sister's tense face for a moment. Her lips were set in a thin line and her eyes couldn't seem to stay focussed on a single point. He had been joking with her in an attempt to calm her down, but now he realized she needed someone who could talk with her about her uncertainties. "Tense, but more anxious than nervous?"
Her eyes fixed on his for a long moment. "You did feel it."
He nodded. "I didn't doubt what I was about to do, but I wasn't perfectly calm leading up to the wedding. And it must be worse for you, seeing as you've been planning this thing forever, and Mer and I only had to wait a few days. It's the anticipation."
She took a deep breath. "You're a genius for eloping, do you know that?"
He laughed out loud, "I do know that I'm a genius. Thank you for finally recognizing it."
Lauren elbowed him again.
"Okay, seriously, stop doing that. I'm going to have a bruise soon."
"I'm really nervous," she admitted quietly.
"It'll stop before the wedding," he assured.
"It stopped for you?"
He nodded. "It did. The waiting is the problem. But once it's time, you'll stop being nervous. You'll become sure of what you're doing."
She took a deep breath and then nodded. "Thank you."
"I'm glad you're happy," he told her. "You deserve it."
"We both do."
"Well, we both are."
She smiled. "Yes, we are."
"Nathan's a good guy, and as long as he keeps you happy, I won't have to kill him."
Lauren laughed. "He will, don't worry." She paused and took a breath. "I'll be sure tomorrow?"
He nodded. "And if you're not, I'll have the getaway car ready."
"Derek!" She hissed, elbowing him again.
He laughed. "You'll be sure," he reassured.
"I just wish I wasn't so nervous."
"What can I do to keep your mind off it?"
"We're at my wedding rehearsal, Derek. I sincerely doubt there's anything you can say to take my mind off the fact that I'm getting married tomorrow."
"Then don't think of just the wedding," he suggested. "Think of what happens after. The wedding is only one day. Then you'll have a marriage. That's the point, right?"
Lauren met his eyes for a long moment. She offered him a soft smile. "I really do like this version of you."
"Yeah?"
Her smile grew. "Yeah. You're happy. I've never seen you like this."
"I've never felt like this," he said honestly, glancing towards his wife. Her back was to him as she spoke animatedly about something with his stepfather, her hands flying around for emphasis seemingly perfectly at ease with the fact that she was at his sister's wedding rehearsal and surrounded by his family.
"I'm still mad at you for moving across the country, but I'm glad you did it. She's kind of perfect for you."
"She is," he agreed.
"And she must have oodles of patience to put up with you."
Derek rolled his eyes in good nature. "I'm not that bad."
Lauren nudged him playfully. "No, I guess you're not. She's clearly head over heels for you, so you must be doing something right."
Derek's eyes landed on his wife again. She and Brian were laughing now, and from the direction they were facing, they were probably laughing at the on-going argument amongst the bridesmaids and mothers. He turned back to his sister and sighed at her expression. Like him, she focused on others when she didn't want to face what she was feeling. As much as he enjoyed listening as someone pointed out how much he and Meredith meant to each other, he knew he shouldn't let Lauren avoid her thoughts anymore. He had slowly begun to learn to face his feelings, and he knew from experience that it helped.
"Are you having second thoughts?" He asked quietly.
She stared into his eyes for a long moment, before very slowly shaking her head. "No. I don't think so. I... I love him, Derek. And he loves me. And he loves Emily."
Derek nodded, knowing Emily was the single most important thing in Lauren's world. She had given up everything for her daughter once upon a time. "He's good with her," he agreed. "And she's clearly very attached to him."
"He's going to adopt her," Lauren stated.
"I know."
Lauren released a shaky breath. "I just want this to be over. I want it to be a week later."
Derek carefully withdrew his arm from hers and pulled his sister into a hug. "You're allowed to enjoy this weekend. It's your wedding; you're supposed to enjoy it."
"I just feel like...something's going to go wrong," she whispered. "Like something bad is going to happen. Or...I don't know. I just feel like if I let my guard down, I'll be sorry."
"I felt like that for a while," Derek admitted. "After Addison. I was afraid to let myself be happy. When I first met Meredith, I spent a lot of time refusing to allow myself to look further into the future than a month or two. But then I couldn't imagine my life without her, so I had to get over it." He paused. "Then I almost lost her, and I was a complete basket case for weeks."
Lauren's eyes narrowed at his comment.
Derek sighed. "She almost died," he said quietly. "There was an incident at work." He shook his head. "She made it, but I couldn't stop dwelling on how close I came to losing her. I stopped letting myself imagine a future. And I became a little...crazy."
"Crazy?"
"She was a home recovering. I tried to go into work, but it was a disaster, so I went home and demanded we drive to Vegas and get married."
Lauren blinked once, twice, three times. And then she laughed. "I don't believe you."
Derek laughed as well, shaking his head at how crazy he had become. "It happened. I wanted everything to happen right away, just in case we didn't get a chance in the future. But she made me see reason. And I got through it; we got through it."
"But you still eloped."
"That was different. We wanted to get married then. When I was crazy, I thought I needed to get married."
Lauren's expression tightened.
Derek offered her a warm smile. "My point is; I was there when you went through hell. I was there when your world fell apart. And I know how easy it is to think all you have is right now. And I know how hard it can be to look into the future and see yourself being happy." He paused for effect. "But I also know that you deserve good things, Lauren. You're going to have a wonderful life with Nathan. Your world isn't going to fall apart again."
Her eyes filled with tears, so Derek pulled her into another tight hug.
"You're allowed to be happy. This is your weekend. So, enjoy it. This is something to celebrate, not simply get through."
Lauren was silent for several moments before she pulled back and met his eyes. "I'm so glad you're here."
He laughed. "I wouldn't miss this."
"It's really going to be okay?"
Derek nodded. "I promise." He nodded towards the front of the wedding hall. "They're up there fighting about placement right now because they want this to be perfect for you. Why they think you'll care about exactly where everyone is standing, I don't know, but it's the thought that counts."
Lauren laughed out loud at his comment. "We're totally the normal ones."
"Totally."
She bumped his shoulder.
He bumped her shoulder back. "And if that's not enough to convince you, look at that perfect little girl of yours." Emily was standing with her aunts, seemingly overjoyed with be included.
Lauren smiled as her focus fell on her daughter. "She is pretty perfect."
He nodded. "And happy. You've been the perfect mom to her, no matter what. So, let yourself be happy, now, too."
"Okay."
He smiled and hooked his arm around hers. "Come on, you know they're never going to stop if we don't interrupt," he said as he tugged her towards the aisle.
After an initial moment of hesitation, Lauren went willingly.
"Okay," Derek said, as they reached the base of the aisle, "This is the part where we make a dramatic pause. The music will start. Everyone will rise. I'll be looking dashing in my tux, so most of the focus will be on me," he added as a joke, knowing to use as much humour as possible to keep Lauren as calm as possible.
Lauren laughed. "Fine with me. I hate being the center of attention."
"Next, we'll walk confidently down the aisle together." He tugged her forward again. "The girls will be in their very specific places," he joked as he shook his head at the scene they were approaching. They were so wrapped up in their discussion that they hadn't even noticed Derek and Lauren's approach yet. "And Nathan will be waiting for you. I'll shoot him one last older brother warning glare, just to make sure he knows I'm serious about him treating you right."
She laughed again. "You're not really going to have that talk with him, right?"
He shrugged. "We'll see if it comes up."
Having nearly reached the altar, they stopped. "Here, we'll stop. I'll remind you one more time about the getaway car." He flinched as she elbowed him again. "And then I'll-"
"Derek!" Nancy hissed, having finally noticed their presence. "We're not ready for you yet. Get back down there."
Derek rolled his eyes. His sisters could be far too girly for his tastes sometimes. "Lauren," he said loudly, addressing the mob in front of him and not Lauren. "Do you care exactly where people are standing?"
"Nope."
He nodded sharply. "It's settled then. Bridesmaids over there," he said, motioning to the left. "Groomsmen over there." He motioned to the right. "Mothers on their respective sides." He motioned to the front benches on both sides of the aisle. "I give away the bride." He kissed his sister on the cheek and then gave her a slight push towards Nathan, who was stepping forward now that he realized they were finally getting started. "And we begin." He sat on the front bench closest him.
Nancy, Kathleen and Meg were glaring at him and Nathan's mother looked shocked. But Nathan, his father and his groomsmen looked happy with the turn of events, Emily was laughing, and his mother was shooting him an amused smile. And, most importantly, Lauren was smiling.
"Dude, why couldn't you have done that twenty minutes ago?" Nathan's brother asked, clearly amused with Derek's actions.
"Okay, mister I-can't-be-bothered-to-plan-a-wedding-of-my-own-so-I-got-married-on-vacation," Kathleen said dryly, "Some of us think these things are important, so get off your ass, take Lauren back down the aisle and wait until we figure this out."
Derek opened his mouth to respond, but was cut off before he could say a word.
"Uh-oh," Emily said. "Auntie Kat said a bad word."
The adults all laughed at the comment, even Kathleen.
"She's sorry, honey," Lauren said, glancing at her sister, "Right Auntie Kat?"
Kathleen sighed before smiling down at her niece. "I didn't mean too, sweetie. I just find your Uncle Derek frustrating sometimes."
Emily huffed at her aunt. "But Uncle Derek is awesome!"
Derek beamed at the compliment from the eight year old, and then laughed as Emily jumped into his lap and hugged him. "Thank you, Em."
Still kneeling on his lap, she leaned back and smiled at him. "You're welcome, Uncle Derek."
"Emily," he began, "Do you think it matters exactly where your aunts stand?"
The eight-year-old shook her head. "Only Mommy and Nathan."
"The boss has spoken," Derek stated.
Emily giggled. "I'm not the boss!"
Lauren laughed at their interaction before turning to her sisters. "Derek's right. It's really not important that everyone stand in any particular spot, just the right side."
"But-" Nancy tried to argue, but was cut off.
"The waiting was making me a crazy person," Lauren admitted. "Let's just get through this so we can go eat."
Derek gave Emily a nudge towards her mother. "Go give your mom a hug."
With a giggle, Emily did as he requested, and Derek couldn't help but smile at the sight. Emily was a very happy and very loved little girl who loved her mother very much. He could only hope his and Meredith's kids would be that happy one day.
Despite their reluctance, the girls did concede to Lauren's request and got started with the rehearsal. Derek, having completed his job, stood and walked back several rows to join his wife and stepfather.
Brian, who was sitting closest to the aisle, clucked his tongue as Derek stepped past him to sit next to Meredith. "You should know better than to anger them when they're like this, Derek."
Derek chuckled as he collapsed next to Meredith, leaving her in the middle. "It was worth it to see the looks on their faces. Plus, Lauren wasn't handling the delay well."
Meredith laughed. "Well, it was very entertaining from here."
Derek laughed as well. "That's what I was going for."
"I've never seen you like that before."
He reached for her hand and threaded their fingers together, smiling at the sight of her colourful nails. The girls had planned a spa trip for that morning and Meredith had been included, although she hadn't been given much warning. She had been reluctant after breakfast when she had been told to be ready in five minutes, but when she'd returned hours later, complete with painted fingernails and toenails, she'd admitted to having a good time being pampered.
"Lauren needed it," he repeated. Had Lauren felt the placement was important he would have played the dutiful brother and waited as long as she needed. But she had needed something else entirely from him.
Meredith leaned against him. "I'm glad we didn't have to go through this," she whispered.
He smiled and squeezed her hand. "Me too." Their wedding had been perfect for them. No stressing over details that they felt were unimportant. No rehearsing. No undue stress or anxiety.
"But it is nice how much your family cares," she murmured. "Even if Lauren doesn't care about certain details, your family just wants everything to be perfect for her."
Derek nodded, feeling his heart swell at how well Meredith could read the Shepherds already. "They do care," he agreed, as he watched his sister get fake-married.
"It's nice," she whispered again.
Derek smiled and leaned his head against hers. It was nice, especially after knowing what Meredith had grown up with. He had taken for granted that he had always felt like he had a family, even if he had felt isolated from them for so long. "They would have done this for us," he murmured for only Meredith to hear, knowing she would understand what he was saying. His family weren't upset they hadn't been invited to the wedding, but if there had been a wedding, the Shepherds would have done anything and everything they could to help. Because they cared that much.
She squeezed his hand. "Thank you for giving me a family, Derek," she whispered back.
"You're going the wrong way."
Derek shook his head before meeting his mother's eyes in the rear view mirror. After the rehearsal had finally ended, the Shepherds had left the church in a small caravan of vehicles. As Meredith and Derek would be returning to Jane and Brian's house Sunday night before flying home on Monday, the four were driving together. The resort hosting the reception was about forty minutes drive from the church on the main road, but Derek was certain he could do it in thirty. "I'm taking a shortcut."
Jane clucked her tongue. "Such a man; never admitting to needing directions."
"That's because I don't need directions," Derek insisted. "I know exactly where I'm going. I did grow up in this area."
"So did your sisters," Jane said dryly. "And none of them followed you."
Derek huffed.
"Dinner is in an hour and a half. And we need time to change and take the family picture," Jane reminded.
"We'll be there in plenty of time." He glanced to his stepfather, sitting in the passenger seat, for support, but Brian raised his hands and shook his head, signalling he was staying out of it.
Jane sighed and leaned back in her seat. She turned to Meredith, who was sitting next to her in the back of the car. "Meredith, really, how do you put up with him?"
Meredith giggled. "He's never gotten us lost," she said honestly. "There was one time I was a little worried after driving for hours into the woods, but we ended up at a horse ranch."
"It wasn't hours," Derek retorted.
"A horse ranch?" Jane raised her eyebrow. "Derek, you rode a horse?"
He nodded. "Yes, I did."
"You're scared of horses."
"I am not."
"When your sister was riding, you never went near the barn."
"I wasn't afraid. I just didn't like being around my sisters."
Jane rolled her eyes in good humour. "You were afraid."
"I have proof," Meredith spoke up, pulling her phone out of her purse. She scrolled through the menus to display the picture they had had taken on their riding adventure. She handed the phone to Jane.
Jane laughed at the picture and then handed the phone to Brian. "I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes."
"You have so little faith in me, it hurts."
"You've been scared of horses your whole life," Jane said dryly, before laughing. "I should have known it would take a woman to convince you to get over your fear." She turned to Meredith. "How long did it take you to convince him?"
Meredith laughed as well. "Not that long."
Derek huffed. "I didn't need any convincing. It was on the list."
"The list?"
Derek nodded. "We have a list."
"Care to expand?"
"We have an ongoing list of things we want to do or try," he explained. "It gives us something to look forward to and reasons to do things outside the hospital."
"That's a good idea," Jane said. "It must be too easy to lose weeks of time in the hospital."
"Mmm-hmm, it is," Derek responded, suddenly distracted by the fact that he wasn't sure where he was. When he had turned off of the main road, he had been certain of his short cut, but now... Now he wasn't quite so certain.
"What else is on your list?" Jane asked.
When Derek didn't respond right away, Meredith stepped in. "Uh, not too much new right now. We've kind of checked off a lot in the last few months; horseback riding, going on vacation, snorkelling, getting married, finding a place to live... I'm sure once we've finally settled into the new house that we'll be able to sit down and think of some new things, right Derek?"
"Right," Derek said on instinct alone, not having processed his wife's words. This definitely wasn't the road he had thought it was. And, to make things worse, the road was gradually narrowing and becoming more and more bumpy. He definitely needed to figure out what he was going to do before things got any worse and his mother noticed. Brian had already shot him several concerned glances, but Derek had ignored them.
"...with all the time you two have had off, I hope the hospital is okay with it," Jane was saying.
"We've both been working a lot of extra shifts to make up for it," Meredith answered for them both. She met Derek's eyes in the rear view mirror and shot him a concerned look.
Derek tried to offer her a smile, but looked away. He was not ready to admit he was lost.
"Derek, is everything okay?" Jane asked. "You've gotten quiet."
"Its fine, Ma," he said quickly.
"I know that tone. What's wrong? Are you ready to admit you don't know where you are?"
Had his mother not sounded so much like she was gloating, Derek may have admitted he was lost. Really. He may have. But now he couldn't. He was lost, and he knew it. And his mother probably knew it. But he wasn't going to admit to it. "Nothing is wrong. I just think I may have missed my turn."
"You mean you made the wrong turn when you refused to follow your sisters."
"No. I mean-" He cut himself off when he spotted a small side road to his left. He signalled, despite the lack of any other vehicles on the road and slowed down. "See? I know exactly where I am."
Jane clucked her tongue and turned her attention back to Meredith. "So, Meredith, seeing as your husband it clearly intent on getting us good and lost, we have lots of time to talk. How's your second year of residency treating you?"
"I'm not lost," Derek argued, despite the fact that he knew, as he turned onto the new road, that he had never been on the road before in his life. All he knew was that it was going in the general direction of the resort.
"Meredith?" Jane prompted, ignoring her son.
"Oh, uh," Meredith stammered slightly, trying to decide whether to focus on Derek or focus on Jane. Derek met her eyes in the rear view mirror, begging her not to say anything to him. She cleared her throat and pasted a smile on her face as she turned back to Jane. "My second year is going well. Really busy, but well."
"You have interns of your own this year?"
Meredith nodded.
"And how is that working out?"
"Well, I wanted to kill them for the first month or two, but apparently that's normal. I kind of feel bad for my old resident now." She and Jane laughed together. "But seriously, my interns are doing a lot better now."
"That's good. It's nice when people actually listen to you and admit when they're in over their heads."
"Very passive aggressive, mom," Derek spoke up.
"Good. That's what I was going for," Jane said smartly before turning back to her daughter-in-law. "Have you operated alone yet?"
Meredith shook her head. "Not for another six months, probably. And even then it'll be highly supervised."
"Such a long process," Jane commented. "Have you chosen your specialty yet?"
"Not yet. I don't have to declare a specialty until the end of my third year."
"But we know what it's going to be," Derek spoke up.
Meredith laughed. "I don't know that I'm choosing neuro."
"I do."
Meredith rolled her eyes.
Jane smiled at the exchange. "It's probably smart not to follow him into neuro," she smirked at Derek in the rear view mirror, "He'll probably get you lost."
Derek shook his head. "I'm not lost."
"Did I say you were?"
"You implied it," he said dryly, before turning his attention back to the road he'd never driven on before. With any luck, he would find a way to a main road and arrive within a comparable time with his sisters.
"We're supposed to be taking the family photo before dinner," Jane reminded. "We can't miss that."
"We won't."
"It's okay if you're lost, Derek. We have time to go back."
"I'm not lost," he said through gritted teeth, praying he was right.
"Sure you aren't."
Derek spotted a sign up ahead and bit back a smirk. "I'm not lost," he said with much more confidence that before as he pulled the car to a stop at the side of the main road. "The resort's just south of here, right?" He asked as he made the turn.
"I..."Jane trailed off as soon as she started. "How did you possibly know to use that road?"
"Like I told you; shortcut." He passed a sign for the resort and allowed himself a smile. "You were saying?" He gloated.
Jane met his eyes in the rear view mirror. "Do you know how many times I drove out here while Lauren planned the wedding? Why didn't you tell me about this shortcut months ago?"
Derek shrugged. "You never asked."
A few short minutes later, he turned down the quiet road that led to the resort. He'd never been there before, but his sister had sent him a link for the resort's website months earlier. Situated away from main roads, on the edge of a lake, it was quiet and removed from the rest of the world. Lauren and Nathan's family and friends would be the only guests for the weekend.
"Here we are," Derek announced as he pulled into the parking lot. "The girls are a good ten minutes behind us, if not more."
"Let it go, Derek."
Derek chuckled as he put the car into park and turned off the ignition. "All I'm looking for is a little recognition..."
"Fine, good shortcut, Derek," Jane said flatly. "I'm sorry I ever doubted you."
He smiled. "You're forgiven."
Jane rolled her eyes as she opened her door and got out of the car.
Derek got out of the car as well and stretched before meeting everyone at the trunk. He helped pull all of the suitcases and bags from the vehicle and then reached for Meredith's hand as the four of them headed towards the front doors of the resort.
"You are so freaking lucky," Meredith hissed.
"I don't know what you're talking about," he hissed back.
She giggled. "You were totally lost," she said. "You may have fooled your mother, but I saw the fear in your eyes."
He bumped her shoulder with his as they walked together. "Please don't tell on me."
She laughed. "You owe me."
He shot her a smirk. "I'll make it worth your while."
They fell silent as they reached the front doors and stepped into the lobby. Jane and Brian stepped up to the front desk to check them in. Instead of immediately following suit, Derek and Meredith hung back.
"Wow, this place is really nice," Meredith commented, leaving her suitcase by the side of the lobby and taking several steps forward to take in the room. Sun shone through three flights worth of glass windows and a huge skylight above them. A spiral staircase wove its way up all three stories with one complete twist between each. At its base was a small sitting area of antique furniture. The walls that weren't made of glass were covered in framed photos of nature, making the entire room seem both fancy and down to earth at the same time.
Derek followed his wife into the centre of the room and wrapped his arms around her waist. "You know, this is the third time in four months that we've been away together."
Meredith sighed and relaxed into him. "Mmm, I could get used to this."
"Me too," he murmured into her hair before pressing a kiss to the side of her head.
"We should come up with some new places we want to go and add them to our list. We've let it get short," she told him. "I couldn't come up with anything left to tell your mother about that wasn't porny."
Derek chuckled. "There's got to be something non-porny left..."
She giggled. "See, you can't come up with anything either."
"Tobogganing," he said. "We haven't done that yet."
"Fine we have one thing left that is G-rated. But we can't do that until it snows anyway."
"We'll come up with some new G-rated things," he promised. "Like buying appliances. And furniture. And painting our new home."
Meredith leaned back in his arms and met his eyes. Hers were sparkling.
"What?"
She smiled. "Nothing. It's just...I guess we have new types of things to look forward to now. We're past the getting-to-know-you stage and on to the..." She trailed off.
"Building-a-life-with-you stage?" He substituted.
Her smile grew. "Exactly. I still want to do fun things like horseback riding with you, but this new stuff, like painting our new house, is kind of awesome, too."
He pecked her on the lips. "You're kind of awesome."
She laughed and rolled her eyes. "Corny."
"Maybe, but it's true."
She placed one hand on his chest. "You're kind of awesome, too."
"Now who's corny?"
"I blame you," she accused. "I was never like this before."
"Well, I for one am glad you're like this now," he murmured. "And I'm glad you put up with me being like this."
She smiled at him in the way that made his heart tug in his chest, but they were interrupted before she could say anything.
"Derek Shepherd!" An excited voice called across the lobby.
Derek turned and smiled as he recognized his mother's sister heading towards them. "Hi, Aunt Julie."
Julie smiled warmly as she hugged him. "It's been far too long, Derek."
He hugged her back. "It has." His Aunt Julie had always been a favourite when he was growing up. She was younger than his mother, by several years, and had taken pride in doing her best to corrupt her sister's kids before she had her own. She had always been the 'fun' aunt.
"You look good, kiddo," she said as she pulled back. "Where are you living now? Seattle?"
He nodded.
"That's a long way for a weekend."
"It's for Lauren," he said simply. "I would have been here no matter what."
Julie smiled warmly at him before her gaze caught on Meredith. "And who is this lovely lady?"
Derek smiled back as he hooked his arm around Meredith's waist. "This is my wife, Meredith. Mer, this is my Aunt Julie. She's my mom's sister."
"Wife?" Julie asked, glancing between the two of them. "Since when?"
"Uh, about three and a half months."
"Well, congratulations!" She said brightly. "I didn't know." She offered Meredith a hand. "It's so nice to meet you. You won't do better than my nephew, here."
"It's nice to meet you, too," Meredith said, shaking Julie's hand. "And...I know."
"Jane," Julie called to her sister as Jane and Brian approached, "Why didn't you tell me Derek got married?"
"I told you."
"No, you didn't."
"Yes, I did. I sent you an e-mail."
"You know how much I hate e-mail."
"Then why do you have it?"
"Because."
"That's not an answer."
"Yes, it is."
Derek chuckled as he watched his mother and aunt banter. "Now I know where we get it from," he commented, referring to himself and his sisters.
Jane glared at him, and he flinched. "We're going to go check in," he said, as he reached for Meredith's hand and tugged her towards the check in counter.
"Welcome," the receptionist greeted.
"Thank you." Derek said with a smile. "We're checking in under Shepherd."
"There's a few of those this weekend," the receptionist joked.
He nodded. "Yes, there are. But we're the best ones."
"That's what I hear."
He laughed. "The reservation's under Derek Shepherd." He pulled his wallet out of his pocket and passed the receptionist his credit card and driver's license.
"For two?"
He nodded, and felt the corners of his lips tug upwards. He could remember checking into the New York hotel alone four months ago after he had arrived without Meredith. For one, the receptionist had asked when Derek had checked in. Alone. At the time he had been depressed and afraid he had made the wrong decision by telling Meredith to get on the plane to Hawaii with Cristina and Izzie. But now, he was nothing but happy. Meredith was leaning against the counter beside him, clearly comfortable with his family and happy to be there. She wasn't going anywhere without him. "For two," he echoed, hooking his arm around Meredith's waist and pressing a kiss to the side of her head.
"Lake view or garden view?"
Derek glanced at Meredith.
"Lake view," she said. "With a balcony, if possible."
"You are in luck. We have one lake view with a balcony left." After a minute of processing the request, she passed a set of key cards across the desk to Derek and Meredith. "Third floor, right at the end of the hall," she said, motioning to the right. "There's an elevator about two thirds of the way down the hall."
"Thank you," Derek said.
"Thanks," Meredith echoed.
"Enjoy your stay."
They rejoined Jane, Brian and Julie. "All checked in?" Jane asked.
Derek nodded. "Last lake view room with a balcony."
"That's a very coveted room, Derek," Julie said. "Your sisters will be jealous."
He shrugged. "Serves them right for taking the long way here."
Beside him, Meredith laughed, causing him to laugh as well. He glanced at his watch. "Picture's in a little less than an hour. Where are we meeting?"
"Out by the lake. I think that's the best backdrop," Jane said.
He nodded. "Sounds great. We're going to go get changed. We'll meet you there."
After retrieving their suitcases, they made their way to the elevators and then up to the third floor. As expected, their room was right at the end of the hall. "Here we are," he announced, pulling the key card out of his pocket. He swiped it three times, unsuccessfully, before Meredith pulled it from his hands and swiped it successfully on the first try.
"Smartass," he muttered.
She giggled and stretched up on her tiptoes to kiss him. "I'm a woman of many talents."
He snaked an arm around her waist and kissed her again before ushering her into the room first.
"Okay, I could totally live here," she announced as she stepped into the room. Tastefully decorated and airy without being too large, the hotel room was laid out like a small, open concept apartment. The door opened up into a living area, complete with a small kitchenette and floor to ceiling windows overlooking trees and the edge of the water.
Derek followed Meredith into the bedroom to the left. Glass doors across the bedroom led to the balcony overlooking the lake. "We're going to have an even better view at home soon," he told her as they stepped out onto the balcony together.
"That's true," she said as she leaned against the railing and stared out at the view. "I can't wait."
Derek tucked himself behind her, his arms around her middle and his chin resting on her shoulder. "Me neither." He rubbed his cheek against hers. "We'll be able to look out at a view like this every day," he murmured.
She leaned back into his chest and sighed. "I love you."
"I love you, too." He ducked his head to pressed several kisses to the crook of her neck. "And my family loves you."
"I kind of love them," she admitted.
He tightened his arms around her.
"I feel stupid for being nervous."
"This is new for you," he reminded. "It's normal to be nervous."
"I guess." She turned in his arms and snaked her hands around his neck. "I'm not nervous anymore."
He pressed her back against the stone railing of the balcony and kissed her. "I'm glad," he whispered against her lips.
She mumbled something unintelligible, but he had already closed his lips over hers again, and by the time he pulled away they were both breathless. "Derek," she moaned.
He pressed his forehead against hers as he fought to catch his breath. "We don't have much time."
She hooked her fingers into the collar of his shirt and pulled him down for another long, deep kiss. Derek pressed even closer as he lost himself in the kiss. She tasted so good and felt so good. He needed to be even closer. He scooped her up in his arms and blindly carried her back into the bedroom without breaking the kiss. She moaned as he set her on the bed, but he quickly closed the space between them again. His lips found the sensitive skin of her neck.
Her fingers threaded their way into his hair as she turned her head to grant him the most access to her neck. "Derek," she said.
"Mmm," he moaned against her soft skin.
"Derek," she said again. "Stop. We need to...stop."
Breathing hard, he stopped, but remained hovering over her body, his face pressed into her neck.
Her fingers released their hold on his hair and her hand slid down to the back of his neck. "I...I...We need to stop," she whispered.
"Stopping," he mumbled.
"Sorry. But we have like half an hour until we need to be dressed up and outside with your family. There's no way we can do...this and be ready in time."
With a groan, Derek rolled so he was resting on his back next to his wife. "We could be really fast," he suggested, knowing it was a lost cause. There was no way they could have sex and be ready in time.
She laughed. "I wish. But we'd lose track of time and they'd have to come and find us... That would be mortifying. Or we'd be quick enough, but they'd know."
"How would they know?"
"I'd have sex hair."
He chuckled. "Sex hair?"
"Mmm-hmm," she agreed. "I spent like an hour on my hair before the rehearsal." She'd made is wavy like he liked. "And you'd go and destroy it and make it look all crazy."
"They wouldn't know," he bantered. "You could just say it's a look."
"I'd know."
"So?"
"Derek, there's this family picture thing, which your family is including me in. And they bought this beautiful frame and everything... And that picture is going to hang on our wall for the rest of our lives. So, even if they don't know it's sex hair, I'll know. And I'll know every time I look at the picture, which will be every day for the rest of my freaking life."
"You over think things."
She giggled. "I do not. It's true. I've never done this before, and I'd rather my first family picture be taken without sex hair."
"This is your first family picture?"
"Do I really need to remind you of my lack of family before you? Whose family do you think I was taking pictures with?" Her tone was light and teasing, but still managed to tug at his heart.
He turned on his side and propped up his head on his hand. "I'm sorry."
She smiled and mirrored his position. "It's okay."
He reached for her hand and threaded their fingers together. Her strength never ceased to amaze him and made it easy to forget how this all was to her. "So, you're like a family picture virgin."
She giggled, but scrunched her nose. "Don't make it dirty."
Derek chuckled. "Sorry. My incredibly sexy wife is lying beside me in bed talking about sex hair; I can't help myself."
Meredith sat up. "I'm removing myself from the situation before we lose control."
Derek groaned, but followed suit. "Good idea." He pressed a relatively chaste kiss to her cheek. "I'm going to have a quick shower."
"Okay."
With a sigh, Derek stood and headed into the bathroom. After a quick – and cold – shower, Derek wrapped a towel around his waist and stepped back into the bedroom. He immediately groaned at the sight that greeted him. Meredith stood with her back to him, rifling through the suitcase she had put on the bed, dressed only in a bra and panties. "Seriously, Mer, are you trying to kill me?"
Meredith turned to face him and smirked. "Says the guy who's wearing only a towel."
He glanced down at himself and then smirked at his wife. "I guess we're not being very efficient today."
She laughed. "No, we're not." She pulled her makeup bag out of her suitcase. "I'm going to snag the bathroom to do my makeup. You get dressed. If we avoid all contact, we may make it out of here on time."
Derek laughed as she passed him. "You don't need makeup," he called after her. "You're gorgeous without it."
"Not helping!" She called from the bathroom.
He chuckled and shook his head as he turned away from the bathroom to focus on getting dressed. He smiled as he spotted his suitcase on the bed next to Meredith's. She was always so thoughtful. Pulling out underwear and a pair of pants, he quickly replaced the towel around his waist. Next, he pulled his bag of toiletries out of his suitcase and headed into the bathroom.
"I told you to get dressed," Meredith said flatly as he joined her next to the mirror. She was leaning over the counter, as close to the mirror as possible, applying mascara.
"I'm dressed."
"You're naked from the waist up."
"And you're still only wearing a bra and underwear."
"In what was the privacy of the bathroom."
He ducked his head to press a kiss to her bare shoulder. "It doesn't matter. Just knowing that you were in here mostly naked was enough for me."
"Derek..."
"I had to come in here. You know I have to get stuff in my hair before it starts to dry."
She laughed. "You and your hair products." She finished with the mascara. "Good thing I'm finished here. How do I look?" She stepped back and offered him a smile.
"Very sexy."
She rolled her eyes. "Seriously, Derek, focus. Do I look presentable for a family photo?"
He allowed his gaze to trail down her barely covered body and then back up to her eyes. He shook his head. "Absolutely not."
She playfully swiped a hand across his bare chest and left him alone in the bathroom. By the time he had finished with his hair, she returned to the doorway of the bathroom dressed in a medium length skirt and a navy blue top. "How about now?"
He smiled warmly at her. "You look beautiful."
She smiled back. "Family picture presentable?"
"Absolutely. Me?"
She tossed his light blue button down at him, catching him off guard. "You will when you put a shirt on."
He obediently donned the shirt and began buttoning it up as he joined his wife in the bedroom. "Okay, we've managed to retain control. I'm proud of us."
Meredith giggled as she completed her look with a pair of earrings. "I'm proud of us too."
"And we even have time to spare..."
She shook her head, but couldn't hide her smirk from him. "Yeah, like three minutes."
Derek smiled softly as he moved towards his wife and pulled her into a hug.
She hugged him back, but sighed. "Seriously, Derek, we really only have about three minutes and I really don't want to take the picture with-"
"Sex hair," he finished for her. "I know, and I get it. I'm not trying to start anything; not now, anyways. First picture, then dinner, and then we can come back up here and give you sex hair."
She giggled. "Deal."
"Deal," he echoed.
Derek ran his hand up and down along her spine. "Have we gone through our three minutes yet?"
"Probably."
He sighed and pressed a kiss to her cheek as he released her. "Let's go."
"Okay." She smiled at him before sitting onto the side of the bed and pulling on a pair of shoes. "Are you okay being in charge of the key card?" She asked.
"I think I can handle that," he said, tucking it into his pocket.
"Good, then I won't have to take my purse," she said as she stood.
He smiled and stepped in to kiss her again. "Heels," he murmured between soft kisses at the realization that he didn't need to lean down at all to kiss her.
She nodded. "Just little ones."
He pecked her lips one more time before stepping back slipping on his own shoes. "Shall we?"
Meredith giggled and lead the way to the door. They took the elevator down to the main floor and followed the hallway back to the lobby, and then through the back doors to the outside patio. Most of the family was already there, and they were swarmed with nieces and nephews until Jane took control of the masses and started placing people by the lake for the picture.
"Is there anything about family photo taking I should know about?" Meredith asked quietly.
"Well, it's a very complex event. I don't know that I have time to go over all the technicalities-" He cut off when Meredith elbowed him in the side. "Okay, I deserved that."
"I've never done this before and you're making fun of me. That's not very husbandly."
"Maybe not, but you're stuck with me," he retorted.
She laughed, but leaned into him. "I'm okay with that."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah," she confirmed. "I've grown kind of attached."
He chuckled and couldn't help but place a kiss to her cheek. "You know what? I've grown a little attached to you myself."
"Good."
"Derek!" Jane called, pulling them both from their quiet moment.
He glanced at his mother.
"Please, pay attention."
"Sorry, Ma," he called back. Clearly, Jane had had to call them more than once.
"You two get in on the right," she said, pointing.
"Of course," he said, taking Meredith's hand as they made their way towards the spot, joining most of the family. The couples stood together, but the kids were scattered and not necessarily closest to their parents.
"This is a little crazy," Meredith whispered for only him to hear as Jane and Brian joined the placement last.
"Why?" He whispered back.
"It's just...I'm dressed up, in a field, about to take a family picture with your massive family."
"So?"
"So?" she echoed. "So, it's just...it's not scary. And that's a little weird."
"You know why it's not scary anymore?" He asked as the photographer told everyone to smile.
"Why?"
"Cause they're our family now," he told her, right in time for the photograph to be taken.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone