Love gives hope

Chapter 23 "he misses you"

Meredith's Point-of-View

"Say Ahh."

Izzie hummed to me like I was five as she stuck a large wooden stick at my lips. I glared at her with a lack of enthusiasm and opened my mouth. She compressed my tongue with the popsicle stick and shined a light down my throat.

"Your tonsils are normal, so is the rest of your throat." She sighed as she removed the objects from the inside of my mouth, "You don't have an ear or sinus infection."

"Yet, my temperature is still over 100 degrees." I groaned.

"Let me runs some tests."

"I don't need tests." I hissed "I need this stupid ass fever to go away."

"A little blood work won't hurt; it might tell us what's going on with you... Well, other than the obvious."

"The obvious?"

She smirked as she pulled out the phlebotomy kit.

"You've been at his bedside every hour that you're not busting your ass at this job." She shook her head "You've been running non-stop, and your body is just telling you to slow down."

"Just take my damn blood, Izzie." I sighed as I pulled my sleeve up, "For your information, I have rested, I've taken fever reducers, and drank so many fluids that I am running to the bathroom every ten minutes."

"Maybe you need a vacation." She giggled, I glared back at her and winced as she shoved the needle into my vein "Hey, I'm just saying...I don't know Derek, but he seems like a nice guy. Like the kind of guy that would want you to take care of yourself."

"Taking care of him is taking care of myself." I said "As long as he makes it, I will make it. So, hurry up with that blood work. I don't want to give him anything."

"His transfusion went well by the way." She said, "Just a few more days and his immune system should be kicking in."

"That's a few days too long."

"I will hurry then."

"That's all I ask."

I hopped up out of the chair and held the ball of cotton to my elbow to clot the blood, I walked down the stairs and into the lobby and plopped myself into a chair as I tried not to worry myself to death. It had been four days since I saw Derek. Everyone and their mother could tell me that he was doing well, but until I saw for myself, I wouldn't rest.

"You look much too worried to be sitting."

I heard the familiar voice and turned to see the warm brown eyes of Derek's mother settle into the chair next to mine.

"Mrs. Shepherd." I said, "Uh yeah well... I thought I would give the floor a break."

"Of course." She giggled. Please, call me Carolyn."

I smiled and gave her a nod in agreement.

"Thank you for calling me about Derek."

"I thought you would want to know that he is alive." I said, "I know I would want to know."

She nodded with a distant smile as if she had something on her mind... and then she turned and shared it with me.

"You love my son?"

"I...I...uh.." I stuttered as I gasped for some sort of half normal answer, "I eh."

"Oh come on, Dr. Grey." She rolled her eyes. "The way you two look at each other is something out of a harlequin romance novel, it's almost sickening." She giggled and shook her head, "It's also the way that Derek's father and I used to look at each other."

My shoulders slumped over in defeat, and I pouted. "I'm sorry, you must think the worst of me right now."

"I think..." she sighed as she reached over and took my hand to give it a squeeze, "I think, you are the woman who saved my son's life, you are the woman who gave him a reason to fight, to live. I think...I think that I owe you, my life."

I nodded as I batted back tears. "I just want to know how he is?"

"He misses you." She smiled.

I gulped and squeezed her hand back as I whispered "I miss him too.