How Sweet It Is

2

The sun was shining into Derek's bedroom as his eyes fluttered open and he turned to look at the clock on the night stand. He had been home for a couple of days and nothing felt better than sleeping in his own bed, instead of a cot. He stretched as he got out of bed and pulled on a pair of sweatpants, still a little groggy from sleep. He could smell the coffee and breakfast his Mom had made as he headed downstairs into the kitchen.

"Good morning." Derek yawned, as he walked into the kitchen, to see his Mom, and a petite woman with blonde hair with her back to him.

"Good morning Dear." Mrs Shepherd said from the counter bar stool. "How did you sleep?"

"Great." Derek smiled.

"Derek Dear, this is Meredith, she's going to be an intern at New York General." His mother then smiled at the petite blonde in front of her. "He's the new Neurosurgery attending there."

"This must be the girl Mark..." Derek said, his words caught in his throat as Meredith turned around.

"Hi." The blonde smiled, taking a deep breath as she turned around. "I'm Meredith."

"Derek Shepherd." He smiled, holding out his hand to shake hers.

"Meredith...I already said that." Meredith breathed.

"Meredith tends to ramble." Mrs. Shepherd replied.

"Rambling..." Derek grinned.

"Sorry...it's I don't mean to and it's annoying but I do it sometimes but my point is my name is Meredith...Grey...Meredith Grey and I don't know why I told you that."

"It's nice to meet you, Meredith Grey."

"Derek I'm going to get you a shirt from the laundry room so Meredith doesn't think you're a caveman." His mother stood, leaving the room.

"Oh...Sorry about that." Derek chuckled, looking down at this bare chest.

"It's really alright..." Meredith breathed, eyeing his bared chest in front of her. He was in shape, not over built, but definitely well shaped. "I um...your Mother said you were in Africa."

"Yeah...I was in Ethiopia for a year." Derek replied.

"That's....wow."

"Yeah."

"A year, that's a really long time." Meredith breathed, taking a sip of her coffee.

"It was...I was in Seattle and then...Africa and now...I'm here." Derek nodded, sitting down on the stool his Mom had just left.

"Seattle?"

"Rain and all."

"I um...I actually grew up there...well until college."

"Really?" Derek smiled. "In the city...or...?"

"Yeah....I was born there."

"I worked at Seattle Grace."

"Oh...." Meredith smiled, before breaking out into a small giggle. "Sorry..."

"What?" Derek laughed.

"It's...my mom worked there."

"Wow...Small world."

"Small."

"Derek Darling." Mrs. Shepherd walked back in, holding the phone to her chest. "Mark said he won't be able to go to the bar with you tonight."

"Great." Derek rolled his eyes.