Bright and Shiny

Chapter 167

"You did not?" Nancy laughed at Meredith while the girls all sat around a big booth at a local breakfast restaurant they always used to go to together. The second the 5 of them walked in the familiar hostess smiled at Meredith being back and welcomed her home, offering them their usual booth and instantly knowing what they all wanted to drink.

"I did I told her off right in the middle of the locker room, she accused me of marrying Derek just cause I knew he was going to be my attending, I had to say something" Meredith laughed telling the story of how the interns reacted to the news she was married to Derek.

"What idiot would marry a guy just because he was an attending?" Carly wondered.

"Well between us, and I can't even remember if I told Derek yet this or not, but Cristina is hooking up with Dr. Burke and it's no doubt in my mind because he's the head of cardio and that's where she wants to be. And it's working for her, she's getting more requests from him.

"Bet she is." Kathleen mumbled as all the girls laughed.

"Works for me though because it's less time I have to work with him, I can't stand that guy. He's after Derek all the time because he knows Derek's got the Chief of Surgery job in the bag for when Richard retires."

"So you're staying out West there for good? What about when you're done your internships and gets new offers" Sam asked her.

"Well I'm sure Seattle Grace will give me a good offer, we built the house and the land is just perfect. We're really happy there and with the baby coming and everything we don't want to keep moving. He's got his dream job just waiting for him there too." Meredith trailed off seeing Sam go quiet with something on her mind. Kathleen noticed too and would never resist a moment to go psych on one of her sisters.

"What's on your mind?" she asked her before anyone else could do it.

"I got an offer." She said quietly. Sam was another surgery junkie in the family. She had specialized in general because she enjoyed doing everything. She was now a fourth year resident and like all the other Shepherd sisters minus rebelling Carly, she was married and little girl.

"Where?"

"What?"

"Where?"

"What kind?"

They all asked at once, Meredith didn't say anything realizing that Sam keeping this quiet from all of them meant it had been a heavy decision weighing on her mind and it had to be a recent turn of events."

"Yesterday, I got an offer for a general surgery fellowship. Really really good pay."

"What are you not telling us, Samantha?" Kathleen prodded. "You'd be jumping for joy at an offer like this."

"It's not in New York is it?" Meredith finally spoke up softly.

"Los Angeles." She said as all their eyes god wide, Meredith also got a sly smile on her face at the thought of them being so much closer plane ride wise. She couldn't even hide her excitement, she quickly blurted out "we'd be on the same coast!" As Sam laughed and shook her head.

"Only you Meredith would see the good in this." Sam laughed. "Let's change the subject, it's on the table, you all know, Jason is thinking about it and seeing about law firms out there looking for lawyers. It's LA they must need a lot of those and if he gets an offer then we'll cross that bridge. So new topic."

"Avoidance." Kathleen smiled as a joke.

"Shut up." Sam laughed throwing a sugar packet at her.

"How's your med school mid terms going Carly?" Meredith asked to change the subject.

"Awesome thanks to all the study notes you and Derek left behind, then I texted Mark for his and Addis. I'm flying while the rest of the class is all freaked!" she boasted with confidence.

"Humble as always." Nancy retorted.

"Hey, not my fault the rest of my class doesn't have brilliant family members to take notes off from." She laughed.

"I enjoyed used those notes too and it did benefit me just as well, so I have no room to comment." Meredith joked.

As their food came and they all continued to go around the table telling stories of the past few months, laughing and chatting away.

"Ummmm that looks really bad." Sam laughed as Nancy made her way out of the changing room.

"That's not the one for you Nanc," Kathleen added more diplomatically to not offend her sister. While Carly and Meredith both just stared at her wondering what to say.

"What's wrong with it? It's Valentino." Nancy asked back looking at herself in the mirror.

"Well for one you look like big bird" Meredith blurted out seriously while the others turned to look at her and they all started laughing at once.

"What?" Meredith squealed. "I'm serious."

"Big Bird, Mer?" Nancy laughed. "I have missed your lack of filter."

"I'm meant you're the tallest and the yellow is just not right, especially with the short hair."

Carly had kept laughing and couldn't now look at Nancy with a straight face as she stood in front of the group in a canary yellow ball gown that she was trying on for a hospital benefit that was coming up for her. "She really does look like big bird." Carly laughed out as Nancy gave up and went to change out of it and move onto the next option.

After breakfast they had piled in Nancy's SUV and headed to the city for a day of shopping. Meredith was looking for some vacation dresses for dinner, Nancy and Kathleen both had hospital benefits. Sam and Carly just never missed an opportunity to shop for anything at all.

Meredith separated from the group and knew that Derek wasn't going to want to come out shopping with her, so while everyone browsed for themselves she headed towards men's to grab some things for him. Things she knew would be amazing on him and that he wouldn't get in Seattle. Some latest collection shirts for works, solids and stripes, a few sweaters to wear over top and some other v-neck sweaters to wear alone. She quickly realized she had more clothes for him than she had intended and better stop or she'd end up buying him out the entire designer men's department then he'd be mad. She paid for the bags of stuff she bought him and ran it back to Nancy's SUV so the girls wouldn't tease her for buying Derek all that stuff before heading up to the woman's formal dresses.

Meredith had grabbed a few short dresses that seemed good for warm climate and they were the new short flowy trend so she didn't even need maternity ones. They hid her bump perfectly. She could buy her normal size and wear them even when she wasn't pregnant. They all ended up loving everyone she tried on when she reunited with the group, so she was going to get them all, now it was Nancy's turn.

"I can't believe you're having a tougher time finding a dress than the big pregnant one." Carly laughed still as she yelled out towards Nancy's dressing room.

"Hey!" Meredith slapped her arm jokingly offended.

"Shut up and look at Meredith, she'll have that baby and be right back at a size zero the next day. She fits perfectly in regular dresses."

"Thanks Nanc, hopefully you're right." Meredith yelled back. "I'm too lazy to want to exercise." She laughed as they waited for the next option Nancy had for them to critique her on.