Help is Around the Corner 14

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Help is Around the Corner

Addison and Derek's trailer catches fire, and Meredith offers them a place to stay for a while.

"Rrrr," says Doc, as he scratches Meredith's door.

"Doc!" says Meredith, as she goes to pick him up.

"Rr!" says Doc.

"Yes, yes, I'm sorry I forgot you downstairs," says Meredith.

"Rr!" says Doc.

"Yeah, I know..." Meredith sighs.

"Rr?" says Doc.

"Addison's not here," says Meredith.

"RR!" says Doc, perking up at Addison's name.

"No, she's not coming," says Meredith grumpily.

"Rr..." says Doc.

"I know, she's supposed to be here. She lives here now, but we'll have to make do," says Meredith.

"Rr?" says Doc.

"Yes, I'm fine," says Meredith.

"Rr?" says Doc.

"Yeah, I know I don't look fine, but I'm fine," says Meredith.

"Rr." says Doc.

"Yeah, it's bedtime. I know it's less than ideal, but you can keep me company," says Meredith, while she pats Doc's ears.

"Rr..." says Doc.

"Yeah, sleep, it's late," Meredith sighs, and tucks Doc under the covers next to her.

Doc settles in the middle of the bed, as always, and Meredith takes Addison's pillow because it smells like her, and falls asleep once more.

Still, it's not the same fantastic sleep that Meredith has been getting the past little while, so Meredith wakes up groggy, and drags herself out of bed.

"Good morning?" George says tentatively.

"Morning..." Meredith yawns.

"Late night?" says Izzie.

"Couldn't sleep well," Meredith yawns again.

"What's wrong with Mer?" says Alex.

"Couldn't sleep well," says Meredith.

"Ah, no pillow talks from your girlfriend?" says Alex.

"She's not my girlfriend," Meredith grumbles, but she's secretly happy that Alex is teasing her about it, and not Izzie.

"But no pillow talks, and cuddles, and telling each other your hopes and dreams to put you to sleep?" says Alex.

"Right-" Meredith mumbles, not enjoying exactly how accurate Alex's assertions are.

She slept just fine before Addison, but now she felt so lost without her she wanted to run to the hospital just to see her for a minute again-

"Well, you'll have to have a second cup of coffee at the hospital," says Izzie. "Because we gotta go."

"Alright," says Meredith, as they load themselves into the car.

Cristina meets them at the hospital on her motorcycle, and she sees Meredith's distraught expression as soon as the blonde is within eyesight.

"Do you sleep when Burke's at the hospital?" says Meredith.

"Huh?" says Cristina.

"Can you sleep when he's not there with you?" she asks her.

"Well, I miss him," says Cristina.

"Right, but does your body just rejet the idea of sleep because he's not spooning you?" says Meredith.

"Well, Burke doesn't always spoon me, I mean-" Cristina says, and she cuts herself off when Meredith sighs exasperatedly at her.

"Right, but do you miss him deeply at night, like your whole body aches for him? And not like, in a sexual way, just in a comfort way, like you need him?" says Meredith.

"Okay, are we talking about me here? Or are we talking about you here?" says Cristina knowingly.

"Well..." Meredith says sheepishly.

"Out with it-" says Cristina.

"Addison was at the hospital last night, and I was tossing and turning. Usually, when she's there we talk, and if I'm restless she'll rub my back, and she's warm, and it's so cozy, and I know Alex keeps teasing me about being co-dependent, but what if I am!? What if when Addison leaves, I'm destined for a lifetime of insomnia!?" says Meredith.

"Okay, okay, slow down," says Cristina. "So you had a bad night, everyone has those from time to time," she shrugs.

"But this is more than that, this is enough to give me a crisis-"

"You have a lot of those-" says Cristina.

"Okay mean, but still-" says Meredith.

"Anyway, so you have a co-dependency to Addison. Why don't you talk to her, and see if she feels the same way?" says Cristina.

"Isn't that weird? She's married," says Meredith.

"You're not asking her to marry you, you're just telling her you like being petted at night," says Cristina.

"That sounds kinda dirty..." Meredith blushes.

"Only in your kinky brain," says Cristina.

Meredith rolls her eyes at her friend.

"I don't want her to think I'm weak, or get overly worried about me," says Meredith.

"Come on, what's the worst that could happen? She doesn't want to cuddle you back? Because that seems unlikely," says Cristina.

"How are you so okay with this?" says Meredith.

"It gets your mind off of McDreamy," says Cristina.

"Oh right, Derek, shoot, I think I'm on his service again!" Meredith groans.

"See that reaction? So much progress from a few weeks ago," Cristina analyses.

"Ugh, I'm getting coffee. I need coffee if you're gonna keep talking like this," says Meredith. But underneath it all, she's started smiling.

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***** END OF CHAPTER 14

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