27. Chocolate Cake

Disclaimer: I do not own Grey's Anatomy. I just wish I did.

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After Derek brought Laura back into the room, they tried to find out what was bothering the little girl, so they could get her back to sleep.

"Sweetie, do your teeth hurt?", Meredith asked softly as Derek hold the whimpering baby in his arms.

"Teef", Laura mumbled, burying her face into Derek's chest.

Meredith peeled back the blanket and got up out of bed. "I'll go get her a teething ring from the freezer."

"Get her little blanket out of the crib too", Derek said softly, substituting his finger for a teething ring until Meredith returned.

"Okay", Meredith nodded, making her way out of the room and down the hall.

"Shh… it's okay. It's okay", Derek soothed. He leaned over as best he could while holding Laura, his finger in her mouth, and grabbed a tissue off Meredith's nightstand so he could wipe off her little tear covered face.

"You're alright, Princess", Derek said softly, gently brushing the tissue over her wet cheeks.

Meredith walked back into the room with a teething ring and the blanket. "How is she?", she asked, getting back into bed.

"She's still upset", Derek sighed sadly. He didn't mind being up with the baby, he just didn't like to see her in pain.

"Here. Try this", Meredith said, handing Derek an orange teething ring. "This should help you, pumpkin", she cooed, rubbing Laura's dark blonde hair.

Laura accepted the teething ring and began chewing on it, wincing slightly at the coldness. "No", she cried, letting go of the teething ring.

"Laur, it's going to make you feel better", Derek said softly, trying to give it to her again.

"Deh", she whimpered, reaching for Derek's finger again. Derek smiled and let Laura grab his finger to put back into her mouth.

As soon as his she had Derek's finger tucked away in her mouth, relieving the pain on her gums, her crying ceased. Laura sighed softly and laid her head on Derek's chest.

Meredith put the teething ring on her nightstand and looked at Derek, kissing his cheek softly. "You're a miracle worker."

"All part of my charm", he joked, holding Laura in place while he lay down in the bed with his head against the pillow. Laura stretched out on Derek's chest and stomach, turning her head to face Meredith, her eyes still big green orbs slightly glossed over with unshed tears.

"You're okay", Meredith said with a smile, caressing the baby's cheek.

Laura spread out her little fingers and laid her palm on top of Derek's hand to make sure he kept his finger in place. Meredith laid the little pink blanket over top of Laura's back and kissed her forehead.

"Do you want Uncle Derek to tell you a story?", Meredith asked with a slight giggle. Laura nodded and smiled slightly, enjoying the peaceful lull of Derek's breathing.

Derek turned his head and looked at her. "You want me to make one up?", he laughed.

"I thought that would qualify as part of your charm", Meredith smirked, snuggling closer to her fiancé and her niece.

"Fine", Derek chuckled, leaning over to kiss the top of Meredith's head. "I'll make up a story."

"Get ready for the corniest story you'll ever hear, Laur", Meredith giggled as she began rubbing Laura's back.

Derek looked at her and smirked. "Hey."

"Fine. Sorry", she said, unable to hide the smile on her face.

"Okay…once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess named Meredith…", he began.

Meredith sighed out loud. "Here we go…"

"Can you stop interrupting please?", Derek asked with a chuckle. "Laura wants to hear the story."

"Fine, go on", Meredith smiled, pulling the blanket up over herself.

"Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess named Meredith. She moved back to the land of Seattle from Boston where she spent her childhood…to begin her ye old internship—"

Meredith laughed. "Ye old internship?"

"Yes, to begin her ye old internship at Seattle Grace Hospital. The night before she began her new job, the fair princess decided to go have a few shots of…apple juice… at the bar. She was wearing a beautiful black dress that—the princess, she looked hot. She was approached by a handsome stranger in a good looking, red shirt who not so subtly flirted with her. After a few drinks and a few laughs, they decided to leave the bar together…"

Meredith eyed Derek and shook her head. "This little fairy tale is already getting sick and twisted. Can you at least keep it G-rated."

"Do you honestly think I'd corrupt this beautiful little girl?", Derek asked with a laugh, shifting Laura slightly to make her more comfortable on his chest.

"Hmm…no. But if it was just me in here with you, I'm sure it would turn p-o-r-n-y", she giggled.

Derek laughed and kissed the top of her head. "I'll tell you the adult version of this story tomorrow", he teased.

"Fine", she said with a small smile. "Now continue…I'm curious to see where you're going with this."

"Okay. So Princess Meredith and her nameless prince went back to the royal house and kissed…a lot. Before they knew it, Meredith's fancy black dress was...not on her anymore, nor was the handsome stranger's good looking shirt."

Meredith looked at him amusedly as she waited for him to continue. She knew what came next in the story, and wanted to know how he would baby-censor it.

"Meredith and her prince spent the night…having…", he said slowly, looking to Meredith for help.

"Cake. Lots of chocolate cake", Meredith said with a nod.

"It was some very good chocolate cake", Derek said with a smirk, glancing to Meredith.

Meredith giggled. "It was."

"So the next morning, Princess Meredith found out that the mystery man's name was Derek. She kicked Derek out of the royal house so she could take a shower and get ready for work", he said softly before continuing.

"Ready for this, Laur? This is a good part", Derek chuckled. Laura smiled slightly at Meredith, her eyelids becoming heavier as she began to feel better. Derek still kept his finger in the side of her mouth, taking the pressure off of her sore gums.

"As it turns out, the next day, Princess Meredith found out she works with the charming Prince Derek. Derek asked Meredith if he'd like to have some more chocolate cake with her that Friday, but the fair Meredith turned him down, claiming he'd taken advantage of her the night before. But Prince Derek didn't give up. He courted the Princess until she finally accepted a date with him. Meredith and Derek were falling in love", he said softly, leaning over to kiss Meredith's temple.

"Then…some things happened that I'd rather not get into…", he sighed.

Meredith kissed his cheek, silently encouraging him to skip over the not so nice memories of the past and jump to the happiness. This was a fairy tale after all.

Derek cleared his throat and went on. "Then came the night of the royal ball…"

"Royal ball?", Meredith asked confusedly. By this time, Laura was well on her way to falling asleep, but Meredith was interested to see where Derek went with this strange little story.

"Royal ball...a prom…same thing", he chuckled. Meredith put her tongue in her cheek and looked at him amusedly.

"Without getting into specifics, Princess Meredith lost her royal panties that night…", he said, attempting to stifle a laugh as to not disturb the baby.

"Derek", Meredith hissed.

"It's part of our story", Derek said simply. "Anyway…the next night Prince Derek declared his love for the beautiful princess." Meredith smiled softly at the memory and cuddled closer to him.

"I'm going to skip around a little bit…you're falling asleep on me and I want to fit in the engagement", he joked, brushing some wispy strands out of Laura's eyes with his spare hand.

"So one night, Meredith and Derek were sitting in this very bed talking about all sorts of things…houses, futures, you know…when all of the sudden, the handsome prince asks the beautiful Meredith to marry him. She of course said yes and the two spent the night having lots of chocolate cake. Eventually, they decided to build a beautiful castle on a hill where they would spend the rest of their lives, raising their own little princesses…"

"Or princes", Meredith giggled, amused by the fact that they weren't even expecting a baby, but somehow Derek knew they'd be having girls when they decided to start a family.

"Princes and or princesses", Derek corrected, smiling softly.

"Then what happened?", Meredith whispered.

Derek kissed her temple. "And they lived happily ever after."

"How did I know that would be the ending?", Meredith asked with a smirk.

"That's how you end a fairytale", Derek said, smiling slightly. "Even though ours is far from over."

"That was corny…and wrong on so many levels, but somehow, it works", Meredith giggled.

"I'll take that as a compliment, so thank you", he chuckled.

Meredith looked at Derek and Laura, who was now sleeping peacefully on his chest. "I think your story did the trick. She's asleep", Meredith said with a smile.

"Well now we know to use that story when we have our own", he grinned.

"I love you", Meredith whispered, leaning over Laura to kiss Derek softly.

Derek smiled against her lips. "I love you too."

"So what are we going to do about her?", she asked, pointing to the sleeping baby on top of him.

"She can just stay like this. I don't want to risk waking her up", he said softly.

"Is it okay if she's in here with us?"

Derek nodded. "She's our niece, and we're taking care of her. Besides, she still has my finger hostage in her mouth, and I'm not leaning over the crib all night."

"Are you comfy enough?", Meredith asked.

"Yeah, I'm good", he said softly.

Meredith looked over at the digital clock on her nightstand. "It's 9:00. Are we just calling it a night?"

"I don't think we have a choice. Well, I don't. You're free to go if you'd like…", he said with a chuckle.

"I'm good right here", she whispered. She propped herself up on her elbow and kissed Laura's cheek before kissing Derek again. "I love you."

"I love you, too", he whispered back. Meredith cuddled her body close to his and pulled the blanket over them. It wasn't long before the three of them were all sleeping soundly, completely content and happy.

--

Meredith woke up the next morning to find Laura still sleeping on Derek's chest. Somewhere over the course of the night, Laura's little thumb had replaced Derek's finger and she was making soft sucking sounds with her mouth. Derek rested one of his hands gently on Laura's back, and had the other arm holding Meredith close.

It was something Meredith would never forget. Laura looked so peaceful as she slept on top of him, knowing that her Uncle Derek was keeping her safe and warm. She had never seen this side of Derek before. He had always been so loving toward Meredith, but seeing him show such affection for his little niece was something that brought tears to her eyes. She knew that he'd make a beautiful father one day; the kind of father that was protective and nurturing, and who would hold their own children in the same way.

Meredith kissed his stubble covered cheek. "I love you, Derek", she whispered almost inaudibly.

"Hmm…", Derek sighed softly, opening his eyes and adjusting to the light that was pouring into the room.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you. Go back to sleep", she said softly.

Derek looked over at her and smiled. "I was already sort of awake. She was moving a little bit and woke me up", he chuckled.

"When did she let go of your finger?", Meredith asked with a soft giggle.

"A few hours ago. I didn't want to put her in the crib though. She looked so peaceful…", he explained, kissing Meredith's forehead.

"I think she just wanted to spend her last night here with us", Meredith said with a smile.

Derek smiled back at her. "I think you're probably right."

"I sucked my thumb too", Meredith mentioned softly, admiring the sleeping baby.

"You did?"

Meredith nodded. "Yeah. Up until I was seven or eight. Did you?"

"Nope. Nancy and Amy did though. And Mark."

"I can't see Mark or Nancy sucking their thumbs", Meredith said incredulously.

"Yep. And feel free to use that as blackmail by the way", he joked.

"I'll be sure to do that", Meredith giggled.

Laura's eyelids fluttered open and her green eyes looked to Meredith. "Good morning, Laura", Meredith said softly, rubbing Laura's arm with her finger.

Laura stretched out on Derek's abdomen before yawning and attempting to sit up. Derek scooped the baby up in his arms and sat up, wincing slightly at the pain he felt from lying on his back all night. "Morning, Princess", he said with a smile, propping her up in his arms.

"Lub Deh", Laura said softly, giving Derek a kiss on the cheek before leaning over to kiss Meredith's cheek as well. "Lub Meh."

Meredith felt her eyes sting with tears. Their little niece had just told them she loves them. It was so sweet and innocent, and they found themselves even more in love with the little girl. Meredith kissed Laura's soft little cheek. "We love you too, sweet pea."

Laura reached out for her aunt and Meredith accepted the baby into her open arms. "Do we really have to give her back today?", Meredith frowned.

"She'll be back", Derek said with a smile. "Won't you?"

Laura nodded slightly and smiled. "Back."

Derek tickled her belly. "See, I knew it", he chuckled.

"You better come back and visit us. We love your visits", Meredith giggled, kissing the top of Laura's head.

"We still have few hours until she leaves. How about we get dressed then go out to breakfast, then to the toy store or something? Does that sound like fun, Laur?", Derek asked excitedly.

Laura clapped her hands and giggled. "Toy!", she said happily.

"Okay then, let's get ready", he laughed. Laura would be going back home in a few hours, and they wanted to make the most of the time they had left with her.

--

After getting dressed, the three went out to breakfast at a little café before taking the short drive to the toy store. Meredith and Derek would have gotten Laura anything and everything she wanted, but the only thing that caught her eye was a soft cotton little baby doll in a pink dress.

"Ba", she said with a smile, pointing to the little doll on the shelf.

"You want this baby, Laur?", Meredith asked, walking over to get the doll for her to see.

Laura nodded enthusiastically, opting to be held by Derek rather than to sit in the cart.

"Okay then. She's yours", Derek laughed, bouncing Laura slightly in his arms as she admired the doll Meredith was holding for her.

They walked up and down every aisle, letting Laura look at all of the toys. But still, the only one she wanted was the baby doll she had chosen.

"Do you just want your doll baby?", Meredith asked her.

Laura nodded. "Ba", she pointed, smiling at her new doll.

"You're a cheap date, Laur. The guys are gonna love you", Derek joked as they made their way to the registers to pay for the toy.

As soon as they got in the car, Meredith opened the box containing the doll and handed it to Laura. "Here you go, sweet pea", she said happily.

"Ba", Laura squealed, hugging the baby doll close to her chest.

"You like your baby, Laur?", Derek asked with a smile.

"Pitty", Laura beamed, staring at her new dolly.

Meredith giggled. "Your baby is very pretty."

"What's her name, Laur?", Derek asked as they made their way back to the house.

"Meh", Laura said with a smile.

Derek chuckled. "Your baby's name is Meredith?"

"Ba Meh", Laura said, pointing to her doll.

Meredith laughed, turning around to the backseat and tickling Laura's belly.

Laura squealed in delight and cuddled her baby doll close to her. Derek took Meredith's hand and squeezed it gently. "I'm going to miss her, Derek", Meredith said with a small smile.

"We're the involved aunt and uncle now. I'm sure we'll see her again soon", Derek said comfortingly.

"I hope so", Meredith said softly, turning back to look at the little girl. She was clutching her doll in the crook of her arm while she sucked her thumb, staring out the window with a contented smile on her face.

--

When they got home, they packed up all of Laura's things and put them by the entryway of the house. Eric, Molly, and Lexie would be arriving soon to pick her up, and they wanted to be ready for them.

"Meh", Laura said happily, pointing to the doll in her hand as she, Meredith, and Derek sat on the soft rug of the living room floor.

"Well, I'm flattered, Laura. Thank you", Meredith giggled. Laura stood up on her feet and toddled the few steps over to where Meredith was to sit on her lap.

"Meh ba?", Laura asked, pointing to Meredith's belly.

Meredith giggled softly and looked over at Derek. "No. Aunt Meredith isn't having a baby. One day though."

"Lub ba", Laura whispered, kissing Meredith's flat, baby-less stomach.

Derek kissed Meredith's cheek. "This'll be all over the hospital before you know it…", he said with a chuckle.

"The gossip of our non-existent baby?", she asked with a giggle.

"Laura seems very gossipy. Aren't you Laura?", he joked, tickling the bottom of Laura's socked foot.

Laura nodded and smiled before reaching her arm up to play with Meredith's hair. "Do you like my hair?", Meredith asked amusedly.

"Pitty", Laura said softly.

"Aunt Meredith's hair is very pretty", Derek smiled, kissing the side of Meredith's head.

Eventually, they heard a knock on the door, signaling the arrival of Laura's family coming to pick her up. "I'll get it", Derek offered, hopping up and walking to the entryway to answer the door. Derek led them 

into the living room where Meredith was sitting with the baby. Laura looked up at them with wide eyes. "Ma! Da! Leth!", she squealed happily.

Meredith scooped Laura and her doll up into her arms and handed Laura over to Lexie. "Hey Laur! Did you have fun with Aunt Meredith and Uncle Derek?", Lexie asked excitedly.

Laura nodded and smiled. "Ba", she said happily, showing off her doll to all of them.

"They got you a dolly? That was so nice of them. Did you say thank you?", Molly asked, kissing her daughter's cheek.

"It was no problem", Derek said with a smile. "We loved having her here. Both of us fell in love with her. We didn't want to give her up."

"We really appreciate it", Eric said genuinely. "It's nice to have family we can count on to take care of her for us."

"She was great", Meredith said with a soft smile. "We loved every minute of it."

They spent the next few minutes chatting about their little vacation to Spokane, and some of the things Meredith and Derek did with Laura. But Meredith could only avoid the inevitable for so long.

"So how is…Thatcher doing?", she asked softly.

Lexie smiled. "He's doing a lot better. He's getting back to being healthy again. He's had some counseling, and it's seems to be helping a lot with the grief. Actually, they think he'll be good to go in a couple months."

"Oh, that's good", Meredith said softly. "I'm glad."

"We talked about him moving into an apartment. That house is just too much for him to manage on his own. And his counselors told us there's probably too many memories there of…our mom…and that he might revert back to the drinking if he were to stay there. They said an apartment will give him a fresh start…", Lexie explained, trying to sound optimistic though the mention of Susan obviously upset her.

"Fresh starts are good", Derek agreed with a nod. "I think that'll be for the best."

"We think so, too", Molly said with a smile. "Actually, Eric and I are thinking about moving into the house. We want to be closer to the family. Eric is taking a new position at work that prevents him from being sent overseas for at least the next few years. There's a lot of reasons why it'd be good for us."

Meredith smiled. "Oh, well, good."

"Meh", Laura interrupted, reaching out for her other aunt while holding her dolly in her hand.

Lexie laughed and handed Laura off to Meredith. "Hey, sweet pea", Meredith said with a smile, kissing Laura's cheek. "I am going to miss you so much."

"She seems so attached to you guys", Molly said with a pleasantly shocked smile.

"Believe me, we're just as attached to her", Derek laughed.

"Well now that we're moving closer, you're more than welcome to babysit whenever you'd like", Eric said with a nod.

"Oh we'd love to", Meredith said happily. "She's the sweetest little girl we've ever met."

"We want you guys to be involved in her life…in all of our lives. We'd really like to give this whole family thing a try", Molly said softly, watching as her daughter laid her head on Meredith's shoulder. "It's just that…Eric's family lives out in Wisconsin, so we don't get to see them much. And you two are really the only family living close by", Molly explained, taking her husband's hand.

Family. The word scared her. Her last attempt at having a family left her feeling even more alone than when she was family-less. But now, after spending the past two days with her little niece, the idea of having a family suddenly seemed okay, great even. She knew that she'd always have Derek, and Cristina, and her hospital family, but to have an actual family connection with two sisters, a brother-in-law, and a little niece she adored was something she wanted. And she knew Susan would have wanted it too.

"Yeah", Meredith said softly, a slight smile on her face. "We'd really like that."

"Yeah?", Lexie asked, her voice filled with hope.

Meredith nodded. "Yeah."

"Besides, we don't think we could go without seeing her again for more than a week", Derek laughed, tickling Laura's belly. Meredith silently thanked him for attempting to lighten the conversation by taking his hand and squeezing it gently.

"We don't get much time off, but when we do sometime…we'd really like to take her out to the park or whatever. We really loved spending time with her", Meredith said with a smile.

Molly nodded. "That would be great. She seems to love you guys."

"We love her too." Derek grinned. "Don't we, Laur?"

"Lub", Laura giggled, patting her cheeks. Meredith and Derek leaned in as they always did and kissed Laura's soft little cheeks. The baby squealed in delight and cuddled her doll close to her.

Lexie beamed at her niece. "She doesn't do that for just anyone, you know."

"So we're part of the special few, huh?", Derek asked with a chuckle.

"Yes you are", Eric laughed.

"She's very intelligent—talking the whole time. She understands what you're talking about. You're raising a very bright little girl", Derek said, complimenting the baby.

"Thank you", Molly said with a smile, beaming with pride for her daughter.

"She's going to be a doctor like Aunt Lexie. Aren't you Laur?", Lexie asked.

Laura nodded and smiled as she played with Meredith's shirt.

"Do you want to tell Aunt Meredith and Uncle Derek bye byes?", Molly asked her daughter.

"Lub Deh", Laura said, leaning over in Meredith's arms to give him a kiss on the cheek just as they had done to her. She then placed a kiss on Meredith's cheek. "Lub Meh."

Meredith hugged the baby close to her and kissed her forehead. "We love you too, Laura."

--

After the four of them said their goodbyes, Meredith and Derek were left sitting on the couch with nothing to do.

"I'm bored", Meredith pouted.

Derek laughed and kissed the top of her head. "Me too."

"So I think it's good…it's good that they're moving into my father's house", Meredith said softly.

"So do I", Derek nodded before speaking again. He knew any mention of her father was delicate territory, but he knew she was thinking about it. "I'm glad Thatcher is doing okay."

"Yeah…so am I", she said quietly.

"Hey, you okay?", he asked, taking her hands in his own.

Meredith nodded. "I'm okay. This is…it's a good thing, Derek. I want to have a family. And I just…this is good, right?"

"It is", he agreed with a nod.

"It's just that…I don't have the best track record when it comes to this sort of thing."

Derek offered her a soft, comforting smile. "That doesn't mean you don't deserve a family. And you know you will always have me, but Meredith, this is good. And Lexie and Molly…they're not like your father. Susan would want you to have sisters. She loved you, and she'd want you to have a family."

"I love you, Derek", she whispered, putting her hand on his chest. She tilted her head up and gave him a passionate, tender kiss.

Derek rested his forehead against hers when they broke the kiss. "I love you, too."

"You know what I'm in the mood for?", she asked with a giggle.

"Hmm?"

"Some chocolate cake", she said, running her fingers through his thick, dark curls.

Derek looked at her confusedly. "Chocolate cake?"

"Yeah. You know…like the kind Princess Meredith and her handsome stranger had in your fairy tale", she said with a smile.

"Oh. That kind of chocolate cake…", he grinned, leaning in to nibble on her earlobe.

"Mmhmm", she sighed.

"I'd love to have some chocolate cake with you", he laughed; his breath making the hair on her neck stand on end. "I'd like to have chocolate cake with you for the rest of our little vacation."

Meredith tipped her head back to give him better access. "I'd like that too."

"Let's go then", he said, scooping her up into his arms and proceeding to carry her up the stairs.

Meredith looped her arms around his neck. "I really could go for some chocolate cake though", she giggled.

"We can make one later", he laughed, gently dropping her onto the bed.

Meredith pulled him down on top of her. "Okay", she whispered. "Love you."

"I love you too, Meredith."

The two spent the remainder of the day making love, just enjoying the rare time off and spending it together. All in all, their little vacation had been a success. They loved Laura and babysitting her had been an absolute joy, and they looked forward to being involved in her life. And of course, the newfound family she had gained through the little girl was something for which Meredith was extremely grateful.

Family may not be so bad after all.

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