Opposing Forces

28

"Dad here yet?" Derek asked while walking in the door and setting his keys down on the bar.

"No, he said before leaving the hanger earlier he would just meet us at Zorba's at 7." Mark said with a beer in hand, winding down after the stressful day of pack out and the conversation with William. He was reading the Navy Times they had gotten in the mail the day before.

"At least some peace until then." Derek mumbled under his breath as he went to get his own beer out of the refrigerator. He had to unwind a bit from the events of the day. Derek walked into the living room and sat down in one of the black leather chairs with an ottoman. He took a deep breath and put bottle to mouth taking a long gulp.

Mark looked over to him after a minute or two of watching him sit back with his head cocked back, "rough day?"

"You could say that." Derek took another long sip very quickly.

Mark looked to Derek and just shook his head letting out a sound of disgust.

Derek noticed, "What?"

"Nothing." Mark rolled his eyes not wanting to get into it with him now . . . not before dinner.

"Fuck you. How's that for something?" Derek getting angry very quickly; today wasn't the day to be screwed with.

"Ok then . . . what happened today at lunch with dad?" Mark wasn't going to play games with Derek.

Derek just looked at Mark with fire in his eyes. Nothing needed to be said, they both knew what was going through Derek's mind.

Mark stared intensely at Derek not sure if now was the time, but he needed to know. He looked to Derek very seriously and his voice matching, "He knows."

"It is my fucking life and everyone needs to stay out of it." Derek was pissed and didn't want to hear about this from anyone. He knew he needed to listen to Mark . . . to his dad . . . to run the other way, but he couldn't.

Mark took a drink of beer not sure what to say next. They decided to sit in a somewhat tense environment for what seemed like hours, but in reality was no more than 5 minutes until Derek got up to get another beer, "Another one?" Derek grumbled to Mark.

"I am good." Mark had a feeling it was going to be a long evening. He glanced back down to the Navy Times in his hands, Ways to Prepare for a Natural Disaster in the Military. He had no idea how it had landed on this page, but he was trying to get his mind off of the conversation with William as well as past conversations with Derek about Meredith Grey.

Mark decided it was best to change subjects and to somehow get out of this thick fog that had surrounded them in the short time Derek had been home, "Hey, did you get the list in your email this morning with the flight times for Sunday?" Mark knew sometimes the newer guys were left off of certain email lists, not purposefully, but it happens.

Derek immediately slammed his beer down on the bar that he had gotten out of the refrigerator, "I know how to do my fucking job."

Mark knew he had hit a nerve hearing the strain in his voice, "Look, I have no idea what the fuck is your problem, but you need to knock it down a few notches. I know that sometimes things don't get sent out when you are new." Mark said in a raised voice not letting Derek get away with being an ass.

Derek stood with both hands heavily sitting on the bar that separated their kitchen and living room/dining area with his head between his shoulders looking down. He knew Mark was right, but he didn't know what he was going to do. He has never been like this but, she drove him crazy. She is all he could think about and he had to clear his head. He breathed heavily, "She is . . ." Derek thought for a second . . . What exactly was Meredith Grey to him?