49. French Braids & Family Dinners

Disclaimer: I wish, but no. It's not mine.

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An hour or so passed, during which time Meredith continued to play hairdresser with her little nieces and Derek played video games with the boys. The girls had since taken out Meredith's pigtails and were now determined to braid Meredith's entire head of hair. She didn't care though; it was nice to be pampered, even if her hair could turn out to be a knotty, frizzy mess when it came time to shower.

"Can you do French braids?" Sammy asked with hopeful eyes as she tied a hair band to the end of Meredith's braid to secure it. "Mommy can't do them good."

Meredith smiled. "I can, actually. Do you want me to do them for you?"

"Yeah!" Sammy exclaimed, grabbing two hair ties off the couch and sitting on Meredith's lap.

Derek looked back briefly and smiled at his wife. Meredith always claimed that she wasn't good with little kids, but she was certainly wrong about that. Their little nieces absolutely adored her, and Derek could tell she adored them too.

Meredith separated Sammy's hair into equal sections for pigtail French braids and began combing through the five year olds light brown hair, her nimble surgery fingers making sure that every hair switch and cross-over was precise, pulled tightly and securely. Derek was stunned by how quickly she finished. Apparently Meredith's surgical brilliance could also be useful in doing French braids.

"All done," Meredith smiled when she had finished, handing the little girl the mirror.

Sammy gasped as she admired her new hair-do. "Wow! They look so pretty! Thanks Aunt Meredith!" she laughed, giving Meredith a hug.

Meredith hugged the little girl back. "I'm glad you like them, sweetie."

"Oh, you're here!" they heard Linda exclaim from the foyer. Meredith wasn't sure who it was she was talking to, but then remembered that Amy and Tom were coming over with the baby around dinner time. Derek must have been thinking the same thing because he got up from his spot on the floor and smiled. "Mark, Mer...wanna go..." he asked. "We'll be back," he said to the little kids. "You girls can finish Aunt Mer's prom-do in few minutes, okay?" he said with chuckle.

The three adults left the room and made their way to the foyer to greet even more members of the Shepherd family. "Derek! Mark!" Amy said excitedly, holding the baby close to her chest as she kissed and hugged both of them. "And Meredith, it's so nice to meet you," she grinned, hugging her too. "I can see you were the latest customer at the little girls' beauty salon..."

Meredith forgot about the twenty or so braids currently in her hair and blushed slightly. "Yeah, I couldn't say no."

"They krimped mine once. Consider yourself lucky for the braids," Amy laughed jokingly.

Tom, Amy's husband, hugged Derek and Mark before hugging Meredith as well. "It's so good to finally meet you, Meredith. Mom just raves about you. I think you're the favorite," he teased, setting the baby's bag on a nearby chair.

"It's nice to meet you both, too," Meredith smiled. "He's adorable..."

"Can I?" Derek asked with a grin. He looked like a little kid at Christmas. His nieces and nephews were so important to him, and Meredith knew he loved each and every one so much.

"Oh, sure," Amy nodded, passing her baby over to her older brother. "Tom and I are going to go say hi to the family. Feel free to get to know him..." she giggled, kissing both her son's and her brother's cheeks.

Derek smiled as Kyle rested his head on his chest. "Okay."

"The next baby in this house had best be yours, Derek, " Linda joked, kissing the top of her one month old grandson's head before leaving the room with Amy, Tom, and Mark.

"Was she serious?" Meredith asked as she ran her finger over the back of the small baby's hand.

Derek laughed. "It wouldn't surprise me..."

"He looks like you from your baby book--the one your mom gave us when she visited," Meredith said softly as she and Derek walked to the nearby empty den so they could sit somewhere quiet.

"He does," Derek agreed, shifting the baby so he was lying in the crook of his arm.

Babies were never Meredith's forte. It's not that she didn't like them; she was actually quite good with them. But she just never thought she'd actually get the chance to have her own one day. As she watched how Derek held the newborn with ease, and seemed so natural with him, she tried to imagine how she'd feel when he held their own child. She and Derek often had the "when we do" conversation about kids, but Meredith knew that when the day actually came, the reality was going to be a million times greater than the thought.

Meredith rested her head on Derek's shoulder. "Hey Kyle," she whispered to the blue eyed baby who was staring up at her. "You look just like your Uncle Derek did when he was little..."

The small baby scrunched his nose, a disgusted look on his face and Derek laughed. "Well, that wasn't so nice."

Meredith mirrored her husband's laugh. Their nephew really was adorable. "Where do they live?" she asked.

"Kathleen, Liz, and Amy all live close. Nancy lives in Connecticut, so she's staying here. But everyone comes back in the morning. Good thing my room has a lock, so you and I can sleep in..." Getting the chance to sleep late was always a welcomed luxury of being away from home, and they planned to take advantage of the opportunity.

"I'm sure it'll be easy to sleep with kids running around down here," Meredith teased, curling up closer to Derek on the couch.

Derek smirked, kissing her temple. "Well, you and I will be so sexed out, that we'll sleep right through it," he grinned.

Meredith just laughed. Getting in her pants was never far from Derek's mind. "Right..."

"You want to hold him?" Derek asked with a smile.

"Yeah, sure," Meredith nodded. Derek supported his hand behind Kyle's head and handed the baby over to Meredith, who cradled him in her arms. Kyle turned his face towards Meredith's chest and held onto her shirt, his eyes sleepily opening and closing.

Derek smiled at how comfortable she was with their nephew. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. "I love you."

Meredith leaned in to kiss him. "I love you, too," she whispered before pressing her lips against his. "And I think I already fell in love with him..."

"He must feel comfortable around us. Most babies scream when anyone but their mom or dad holds them," Derek chuckled, watching how Kyle cuddled into Meredith, still keeping a tight grip on her shirt.

"You know...this really isn't helping with the whole waiting until July to start making a baby thing," Meredith pointed out as she gently rubbed the baby's back.

Derek smiled softly. "We'll make it," he assured her. As much as they wanted to have a baby, it was too soon. Life kept them plenty busy these days, and having the responsibility of raising a child as well as taking care of Charlie was just too much to handle right now.

Meredith nodded slightly. "Yeah." She leaned down and kissed the small baby's hand. "He's so tiny. I never want to put him down. Oh, maybe instead of partaking in the Shepherd family football game, I could watch him. Win win."

Derek laughed. "You don't wanna play?"

"Not exactly good at sports. My hand eye coordination is only good in the bedroom," Meredith pointed out before gasping slightly. "Sorry, Kyle. I'm a bad, bad influence..."

"You are very flexible..." Derek agreed, cupping her face and kissing her sweetly.

Meredith smiled against his lips. "I know."

"You're fresh meat though. They might make you play..."

"Well, good thing my husband can get me out of it then," she giggled, looking down at their nephew as he whimpered, nuzzling his face into Meredith's breast. "I think he's hungry. Is Amy breastfeeding?"

Derek chuckled. "Bad images, Mer. She's my baby sister. But yeah, she probably is."

"That's a beautiful thing, Derek," Meredith said with a smile, cradling the baby closer in her arms. "Okay sweet pea, let's go find Mommy..."

As Meredith went to raise up off the couch, Amy walked into the den. She smiled when she saw her sister-in-law holding her son so tenderly. "I think he's hungry. He was doing the nuzzling thing..." Meredith explained, rubbing the baby's back.

"Do you need to?" Derek asked vaguely, pointing to the vicinity of his own chest awkwardly. It didn't matter that they were all grown up. Talking about breast feeding with your little sister never got any easier.

Amy rolled her eyes and laughed at her older brother. "They're called boobs, Der," she said, much to Meredith's amusement. "I figured people would want to hold him and feed him, so I pumped a few bottles. Do you two want to feed him?"

"Yeah. Sure," Meredith replied immediately while she fixed Kyle's bootie.

Amy smiled. "I'll go get his diaper bag and grab one for you." She kissed the back of her son's head and made her way into the living room.

"Your sister is adorable, Derek," Meredith giggled, adjusting the baby to her other shoulder.

"She's my favorite," he joked. "Just don't tell anyone."

"I heard that, Derek," Amy announced as she walked back into the room. She handed Meredith the bottle and a bib then patted Derek's shoulder. "I always knew I was your favorite anyway...by the way, Mom wanted me to tell you that dinner is in twenty minutes or so."

"Okay," Derek smiled. "Thanks, Ame."

"What kind of doctor is she?" Meredith asked after Amy left the den, her nieces calling her into the living room.

Derek grinned. "She's a pediatrician. Very fitting," he pointed out with a laugh. "You need help?"

"I got it. Just hold the bottle for a sec while I get him situated," Meredith said. She moved to the end of the couch so she could better support the baby. "Okay Kyle. You ready to eat, peanut?" she whispered softly to the baby as she laid him in her arms. Kyle immediately snuggled into her, feeling completely safe in his aunt's arms. Meredith took the bottle from Derek and put it in Kyle's mouth. He began sucking without any hesitation, clutching onto Meredith's shirt once again.

Derek was amazed at how natural she was with him. It seemed as though Kyle could be her baby, she was so at ease. Meredith looked over to her husband, noticing how he was staring at her as she fed him. "What?" she asked curiously.

"Hmm? Oh, nothing. It's just...you're so good with them. Kyle, all of our nieces and nephews...you're amazing," he said in awe.

"Feeding a baby isn't that hard," Meredith said, wiping some milk from the baby's chin with the elephant bib Amy had given him.

Derek took Kyle's tiny bootied foot in his hand and smiled at his wife. "You know what I mean," he laughed, kissing her cheek. "You're going to be a damn good mom."

"We'll let little Derek and Meredith Jr. be the judges of that one," she replied jokingly. Since finding out about the multiples that ran in Derek's side of the family, Meredith could only hope that the gene passed over them. They wanted two or three kids, but having more than one at once would without a doubt result in her one way trip to the psych ward.

"Aah...our inevitable twins," he assumed, laughing. "Twins would be fun," Derek said musingly.

Meredith rolled her eyes. Her husband could always be counted on to find the silver lining. "A blast."

"Double the toys, double the cute little outfits..."

"Double the poop, double the throw up," she countered sarcastically, giggling a little when Kyle gave her a small smile as he drank his bottle. "See? Kyle agrees with me."

"He just thinks his aunt is being silly," Derek grinned. "I'm pretty sure twins are genetically determined by the mother though. So if we do, it'll be because your egg split, nothing to do with me..." he said with a laugh.

Meredith smirked. "Yeah well, when I'm nine months pregnant with two babies working their way out of my body, don't be surprised when I hold your sperm accountable."

Derek laughed at her comment. The thought of a laboring Meredith threatening to perform his vasectomy with her bare hands was entirely too amusing. "Fair enough." He looked up when he heard footsteps approaching the doorway.

Mark entered the den with Andrew, a four year old nephew, hooked onto him for a piggy-back ride. "What are you two talking about?"

"Poop and throw up," Meredith said with a dry smirk.

"Eww!" Andrew squealed, laughing.

"Hmm...nice," Mark nodded. "On that note, Mom wanted me to tell you that dinner is done," he explained, hoisting the young boy up higher so he wouldn't slip. "If you want a good seat, get in there."

"Okay," Derek replied. "Ready to go in, Mer?"

Meredith nodded, keeping hold of the baby as she got off the couch. Kyle opened his eyes curiously and looked to her, the bottle still between his lips. "I'm sorry to disturb you, pumpkin," she giggled. "We're just going to eat."

"Since when is Grey mushy and cheerful?" Mark asked Derek playfully. It seemed as though Meredith's dirty mistress side had been replaced with permanent bright and shiny-ness.

Derek smiled as they entered the large dining room with the specially made table, complete with three extra leafs needed to accomodate the lare family. "Around babies, she gets like that. It's cute."

"I don't know...drunk and scary Meredith is fun sometimes," Mark pointed out. Andrew hopped off his back and ran to find a seat next to his brother, much to Mark's appreciation. "God, my back is gonna hurt tomorrow."

"Gettin' old, Mark," Derek mocked, pulling back a chair for Meredith, who was still feeding the baby.

"We're the same age. If I'm getting old, you are too," Mark said, moving to take a seat next to Derek before Meredith stopped him.

She grabbed onto his shirt and shook her head. "Sit on the other side of me. I need you both to keep me safe."

Mark grinned and Derek just laughed. Obviously they didn't understand the horror of being the new kid on the block. She needed them to shield her from the possible interrogation. "Fine," Mark conceded, taking a seat in the empty chair on Meredith's right.

"They're not going to throw food at you, I promise," Derek chuckled as he leaned in and kissed her cheek.

"I know. It's just that Mark is my friend, and I'd like him to sit next to me," Meredith shrugged, rubbing Kyle's cheek softly with her finger.

Derek smiled knowingly. She was nervous. The first family dinner was like being on trial, at least in Meredith's eyes. "Okay."

"Uncle Derek, can I sit next to you?" Sammy asked, hopping up into the chair before Derek could give her an answer.

"Sure, Princess," he laughed. He kissed the top of his niece's head, and Meredith smiled at her husband. "You girls still need to finish Aunt Mer's hair-do."

Sammy looked over to Meredith with hopeful eyes. "Can we, Aunt Meredith?"

Meredith, although she was hoping the girls had forgotten about "Project: Braid", simply smiled and nodded. "Sure, sweetie."

Nancy walked into the room holding a pot of mashed potatoes and looked to her daughter. "Sam, who did your hair?"

"Aunt Meredith," Sammy said, pointing to her. "Aren't they pretty?"

"They're very pretty," Nancy said, kissing the small girl after setting the food on the table. "Thanks, Meredith," she smiled genuinely. "That was really nice of you."

"Oh, sure," Meredith responded, taking a sip of her ice water. Nancy was the one she was the most worried about; if she was being friendly, maybe this wouldn't be so stressful.

More and more of the family filtered into the dining room, and Meredith was hoping she could survive it without rambling or spilling something on herself. Derek must have sensed her nerves because he brushed a soft kiss on her lips. "It's just dinner," he whispered.

"I know," Meredith nodded, kissing him again.

"Love you..." he whispered, wishing desperately that they were alone so he could kiss her the way he wanted to.

"Love you, too," she said. Meredith rested her forehead against his momentarily before pulling back. She didn't want the family to think they were going at it at the dining room table, especially while she held a month old baby.

Linda was the last to walk into the dining room behind her daughters and took her seat at the head of the table. "We're all hungry, so I'm not going to make a speech," Linda laughed. "But I just want you to know that I feel blessed to have all of you here, and that I love you all so much. Who wants to say grace?"

"I will, Mom-mom!" Sammy called out. All of the Shepherd family joined hands and listened to the five year old say the prayer before meals that she had most likely learned at school. Meredith smiled; her husband really did come from a close-knit family.

After the short prayer, everyone began passing around the many dishes scattered about the table. Coming from a small family, Meredith was shocked by how much food there was, but for everyone else, it was completely normal. Because she was holding the baby, Derek scooped food onto her plate for her. Amy looked over to her sister-in-law and smiled sympathetically. "Want me to take him, Meredith? I feel bad..."

Meredith shook her head. "Oh, it's fine. I don't mind holding him. He's so tiny, I still have a free hand," she smiled. "Unless you wanted to..."

"By all means, you can hold him. He seems to love you. Most of the time, he cries after being away from Tom or me for this long," Amy laughed.

"He's been holding onto Mer's shirt the whole time," Derek grinned, looking lovingly to his wife and their little nephew cradled in her arms.

"When can we expect a little one from you two?" Kathleen asked with a smile.

Linda looked to her oldest daughter and shook her head. "Kath, leave them alone. They're newlyweds."

"We're all wondering," Liz added in defense of her sister. "And that's going to be one beautiful child."

Meredith blushed slightly and bit her lip. She was half expecting this conversation anyway, but the fact that Derek's family seemed sincere, and was happy for her and Derek was a welcomed surprise. "Oh, I...we um..."

"Not...for a while," Derek answered for them. "Life is a little crazy right now between getting fully situated in the house and going to work, and we have Charlie, so we're good for now."

"But eventually?" Linda asked, her eyes hopeful.

Meredith smiled and nodded. "Eventually, yeah."

"Now we just need to get Mark married off," Amy said with a smile before taking a bite of chicken.

"Sweetheart, are you dating someone and didn't tell me?" Linda asked, refilling her granddaughter's juice cup.

Mark ran a hand over his face and groaned. Apparently, he had gotten asked this question dozens of times over the years. "Nope, I'm not."

"No one? Surely there's a nice doctor working at Seattle Grace. Oh, Nancy, what about your friend, the one who just started working there?" Linda suggested, her inherent need to mother making itself known.

"Oh, Michelle--Dr. Jensen, the OB attending. I went to med school with her. She's nice, Mark," Nancy agreed, taking a sip of iced tea.

Derek looked over to his friend and smirked. He really did feel sorry for him. Ever since high school, Derek's mom and sisters wanted to be informed of any girlfriend both Mark and Derek had, which made Derek thankful that he had Meredith, effectively ending the meddling.

"Yeah, maybe," Mark said quickly, shoveling some mashed potatoes into his mouth in vain hope that his dating life would no longer be the topic of discussion.

Meredith, being a good friend, stepped in. "Amy, do you want me to burp him?"

"Sure, Meredith. Thanks," Amy nodded. "He might do a little spitty-uppy, though."

"I'll go get you a burp cloth," Tom offered, leaving the room momentarily and returning with a little blue cloth for Meredith's shoulder.

"Thanks," Meredith smiled. She set the cloth on her shoulder before lifting Kyle into her arms and putting him against her chest. "There we go," she said softly, gently rubbing his back.

Linda looked to her daughter-in-law and smiled lovingly at her. There was no shred of doubt in her mind that Meredith was the love of her son's life. And seeing how she was so sweet and loving toward her grandson made her even more appreciative for her.

Eventually, the conversations branched off into small groups, and Meredith was thankful. She expected to be put through the ringer, and asked all sorts of questions that she probably wouldn't enjoy answering. After she was done burping Kyle, she switched the baby to her left arm so she could eat more freely. Kyle didn't mind at all being in Meredith's arms. He just looked around at what was going on, occasionally glancing across the table to make sure his mom and dad were there. But for the most part, he just sucked his thumb contentedly.

Meredith giggled at his little suckling sounds, and kissed the top of his head before taking a bite of her pasta. "Want me to hold him while you eat?" Derek asked.

"I'm good. We're bonding or whatever," Meredith said while chewing. "I might give him to you after dinner though. I promised some of the girls I'd do their hair like Sammy's."

"Okay," Derek laughed softly. "You're quite the hit with the kids. How'd you learn how to do French braids anyway?"

"Taught myself when I was ten or eleven," Meredith shrugged. "I was bored one day."

"Very impressive," Derek nodded, stealing a bite of potato salad off her plate. Meredith looked to her husband and smirked. "You steal my food all the time," he laughed. "Besides, the bowl is on the other side of the table. By the time they passed it down here, it'd be morning."

Meredith giggled. "I don't mind. I think it's cute. You're always welcome to share with me," she pointed out. "As long as I get to share with you..." She took a bite of his biscuit then set back down on his plate.

"Fine with me," he grinned, noticing how yawned slightly. "Tired?"

"A little," Meredith confessed. "That bed up in your room sounds pretty good right now."

Derek nonchalantly dropped his napkin onto the floor, and as he bent over in his chair, whispered "What happened to taking my bedroom virginity?"

Meredith couldn't stifle the laugh that passed her lips, kissing Derek's cheek as he sat back up. "Family dinner," she reminded him. "Inappropriate."

Kyle kicked the bootie halfway off his foot and Derek went to put it back on it so Meredith could keep eating. "Just a question," he pressed, fixing the knitted blue sock.

"We'll see," Meredith said noncommittally. Truth be told, she was a little horny, probably from sitting on the plane all day and having nothing better to do than think about what she and Derek could be doing if they were at home, which was basically having sex. But the flight had also tired her out. "It depends on how convincing you are..."

"I'm convincing. I'm always convincing," Derek grinned, the playful arrogance clearly evident in his voice.

"You two are lucky it's me sitting next to you," Mark interrupted. "I'm an inch away from Grey. I can hear things."

Meredith bit her lip, feeling the redness build in her cheeks. Mark was like a big brother to her, not someone she wanted hearing their sex conversation at the dinner table. "Good thing you won't say anything then," Derek shot back jokingly.

"Whose room are you staying in, Mark?" Meredith asked, effectively changing the subject. Talking about her and Derek's sexcapades wasn't exactly something she wanted the other members of the family getting wind of.

Mark took a sip of his soda. "The guestroom way down the hall from yours. Thank God. I'm exhausted and would rather not hear...it," he winced.

"What are you guys talking about?" Sammy asked innocently as the five year old hopped out of her seat and planted herself on her Uncle Derek's lap.

"Unicorns," Mark answered quickly, causing Meredith to giggle.

Sammy laughed. "You're silly, Uncle Mark. Unicorns aren't real..."

"What? No one told me," he replied, pretending to be surprised.

"It's true," Sammy nodded. "Aunt Meredith, after we do your hair, can we play Pretty Pretty Princess?"

Meredith had no idea just how much her new little nieces would enjoy playing with her. It was nice having a family. She hoped now that Molly, Eric, and Laura were moving closer, Laura would look up to her one day, too. "Sure, hun. After I help clean up, we can play, okay?"

"Okay," Sammy said happily, kissing Derek's cheek before climbing down off his lap and running into the living room with her cousins.

"I never pegged you for a Pretty Pretty Princess kind of girl," Derek chuckled.

She swatted his arm playfully. "I should tell them that Uncle Derek wants to join in, too. I'm sure they'd let you," she retorted.

"I've played that game a thousand times. It's fun. You'll like it," he assured her.

Mark gave his friend a supportive pat on the shoulder. "The Black Ring is bad. Keep that in mind," he told her. "If you have the black ring, you can't get any more jewelry until someone else lands on it."

"You seem to know a lot about it, Mark," Meredith teased, balancing the baby in her arms as she sipped her water.

"We take our uncle roles very seriously," Derek chuckled. He thought back to the days in college when he and Mark were recruited as babysitters when they came home for Christmas or spring break. They spent nearly every day playing board games and Barbies with the kids. "Oh, and never put the crown back. The crown is the most important piece."

Meredith eyed the two suspiciously. They were world class surgeons. The image of them wearing clip-on earrings and sporting princess crowns was almost too much to handle. "Got it, thanks."

--

The remainder of the evening was spent with the Shepherd family, people scattered about the house. In the kitchen filing in and out for desserts. In the den watching television. Or in the living room for games of Go Fish and Pretty Pretty Princess, and more beauty salon. By the time three of Derek's sisters and their families said their goodbyes for the evening, it was nearing eleven o'clock, and Meredith couldn't wait to curl up in bed with her husband. She had to admit, she enjoyed the family time. Hanging out with their nieces was a blast, even if her hair had been braided to the maximum, and she had to wear plastic green jewelry for over an hour. She was thankful for it--thankful to all of them for making her feel so welcomed.

"I'm exhausted," Meredith giggled through her yawn as she stepped out of the bathroom attached to Derek's bedroom--one of the perks of being the only son. Having four sisters constantly hogging the bathroom caused his parents to build him his own, which Meredith certainly appreciated right now.

Derek laid the high school yearbook he found on the shelf down on his lap and smiled at his wife. "Me too," he chuckled.

Meredith ran her fingers through her wet hair and smirked at him. "Yeah, well, my hair is going to be a frizzy mess tomorrow. I'm surprised I got all the braids out," she teased. As she rummaged through her suitcase for some sweats to wear to bed, she let her bath towel drop to the floor. Derek grinned; Meredith had no qualms about nudity in front of him. And he loved her even more for it.

"Are you trying to be cruel?" Derek joked, forgetting all about his high school yearbook so he could admire his wife's curves.

"What?" she asked as she turned her head to look at him. Quickly reminded of her nakedness, Meredith laughed. "Oh. Yeah. Not happening tonight," she said, grabbing a pair of panties from her suitcase.

Derek watched as she pulled the frilly pink panties up her long legs, the elastic band hugging low on her hips and molding to her body. "Not even if I can convince you?" he asked with a cocky grin. "Because I'm very good at that."

"Your room has lock, right?" Meredith asked, remembering what he had told her earlier in the day. She pulled on some sweats and a long sleeve shirt before walking over the bed and crawling in next to him.

"Yeah..." he replied. "Why?"

Meredith shimmied closer next to him under the covers and ran her fingers through his hair, which was still slightly damp from his own shower. "We like long, slow morning sex...when it's like a cocoon...all warm and dark and quiet..." she said with a smile that he couldn't help but return.

"Quiet?" Derek asked, raising his eyebrows and smirking.

"Well, it starts out quiet. By the end, not so much," she giggled. "You should take that as a compliment."

"So should you," he pointed out. Derek wrapped his arm around her shoulder and kissed her temple. "I love you, Meredith."

Meredith leaned into him and smiled. "I love you, too," she whispered, lacing her fingers with his. "So what's on the agenda for tomorrow?"

"Well, we're sleeping in," he grinned. "We haven't done that in a while."

"Since the honeymoon..." Meredith giggled, rolling her eyes. "It feels like we haven't slept past six since then." Since entering her third year of residency, she had moved up on the surgical food chain of course, but the workload had since been doubled. And having an active puppy at home who enjoyed spending his nights in their bed, and waking up at the crack of dawn to go outside wasn't exactly allowing them much more sleep.

Derek combed his fingers through her wet waves of hair and nodded. "That's because he haven't," he laughed. "That's what this trip is for...sleeping in, sex, good food..."

"You make this place sound like a bed and breakfast," Meredith teased, reaching her arm over to the nightstand. "Crap. I forgot this isn't our room," she giggled, flinging the blanket off herself and walking over to her bag next to their suitcases. After retrieving her lotion, Meredith rejoined him in bed. "So what are we doing tomorrow? We got off track."

"We can do anything you want...go shopping, go out to eat. Doesn't matter to me," Derek replied with a shrug.

Meredith pushed up her pant legs and squirted some of the lightly scented lotion into her palm. "Your mom doesn't care?" she asked, smoothing the lotion onto her legs thoroughly before massaging the excess into her hands.

Derek shook his head as he breathed in the scent of the lavender lotion that he had come to identify as uniquely her. "No, she's not too strict," he teased, resulting in a playful nudge from Meredith. "All of the kids are on fall break, so if my sisters or their husbands are working, they'll probably drop the kids off over here. Nancy and John are staying here though, so they'll be able to help out. You and I can probably sneak away," he grinned.

"You don't want to watch the kids? So mean..." she scolded jokingly.

"It's Wednesday night. We're here until Sunday. We have plenty of time to do that," Derek laughed.

Meredith set the lotion on the nightstand and noticed the yearbook in Derek's lap. "Your high school yearbook!" she gasped, sliding it over to her own lap. "I want to see this."

"This is my senior year one. Probably the least embarrassing," he said with a chuckle as Meredith flipped through it in search of his photo.

"I want to see the others eventually, too," she giggled. When she spotted his picture, Meredith practically squealed. "Derek! You're so handsome in this picture!"

Derek just laughed, surprised that she wasn't making fun of him. "Recognize the guy on my right?" he asked.

Meredith studied the page for a moment before gasping. "Mark! Oh, you two are so cute," she said, smoothing out the glossy page with her hand.

"I think he dated every girl on this page," Derek said amusedly. "Homeroom was fun that year."

"Any of your girlfriends in here?" Meredith hinted, scanning the pages for hearts or love notes written on any pictures.

Derek shook his head, smirking. "How did I know you were going to ask that?" he asked rhetorically.

"Aah, so they are in here..." Meredith deduced. "Well, show me."

He knew there wasn't much chance getting out of it, so Derek began flipping through to find one of the few girls he dated in high school. After finding one, he pointed her out. "Tiffany Davidson. We dated for a month or two. Satisfied?" he asked with an amused grin.

Meredith looked the girl over for a moment. "She's cute. The perm is a bit much though..." she giggled.

"You never had a perm?" Derek asked. "I thought all girls had perms at that age."

"I had more of the teased hair look. Not really curls, just...big," she explained. "I have pictures."

"I look forward to seeing them," he replied, kissing the crown of her hair and giving her a gentle side hug.

Meredith laughed. "You want to see all of my old boyfriends?"

"How many of them are there?" Derek asked playfully.

"Uh...in high school? Probably like ten-ish," Meredith said plainly as she searched the yearbook for any more pictures of her husband.

"Ten? Someone was popular..." he teased.

Meredith giggled when she saw a picture of Derek in his marching band uniform. "Popular? Not exactly. By the way, I like your band uniform," she laughed heartily.

"I'm guessing you weren't in the band?" he guessed knowingly. Derek couldn't imagine Meredith partaking in anything that boosted school spirit. It just wasn't her thing.

"Pssh...no. I wasn't in any clubs. But I was in the Honor Society," Meredith said, faking arrogance. "I ranked third in a class of four hundred."

Derek's eyes grew wide in astonishment. "Seriously?"

"What? Are you surprised that I was a good student?" she questioned teasingly.

"No, you're brilliant. I've known that since the day we met. It's just that I graduated third too," Derek grinned. "Danny Ferris beat me for salutatorian. I hated that kid..."

"Aw, still bitter?" she asked in mock pity. "I didn't want to be second. There was no way in hell I was giving a speech..."

Derek smiled. "I'm sure you would have kicked ass."

Meredith closed the yearbook and placed it gently on the nightstand before kissing Derek's cheek. "Thanks."

"Ready for bed?" Derek asked, noticing the tiredness in her eyes.

"Uh huh," Meredith yawned. She and Derek laid down in the bed, and Meredith laughed when she noticed one of the pillowcases.

Derek looked at her curiously after turning off the lamp on the nightstand. "What?"

"The Spiderman pillowcase...it's adorable," Meredith smiled playfully, laying her head next to his and running her fingers through his hair.

"I guess my mom used everything else for Mark, Nance, John and their kids," Derek laughed. "I used this when I was five."

Meredith leaned in and kissed him softly. "It's sweet. As long as the sheets aren't covered with Sesame Street characters...I don't think I could have sex with you in this bed if Elmo and Big Bird were staring at me."

"Me either," Derek said in agreement. He wrapped his arm around her like he always did when they slept and Meredith smiled sweetly.

"Do you think Charlie is okay?" she asked, trailing her hand from his hair down his spine so she could rub his back. They both enjoyed intimate moments like this, just being together without the pressures of work and every day life. There was something so relaxing about just lying in bed with the person you love, and they knew the feeling would never falter.

Derek nodded. "I'm sure he's fine...probably making himself comfy on a couch or a bed. We've spoiled him beyond repair," he chuckled.

"He's our baby boy. How can we not spoil him?" Meredith asked with a giggle. "I want to call home tomorrow so we can talk to him."

"Okay," Derek smiled. To anyone else, that may have sounded a little strange, but Meredith loved their dog so much. Derek was surprised she didn't insist on bringing Charlie with them to New York.

"I want him to hear our voices. But I know Alex and Iz are taking good care of him. She's probably baking dog treats or knitting him a doggy sweaters," Meredith giggled.

"I'm sure she is," Derek said, echoing her laugh. "Not sure how Karev feels about him hopping into bed."

Meredith smirked. "Charlie is sort of cockblock-y..."

"Sex in the laundry room is fun though..." he grinned naughtily.

"It was," Meredith sighed, unwittingly moaning at the memory. "We need to do that again..."

Derek gave his wife a gentle squeeze and kissed her forehead. "We will."

"Hmm...okay," she smiled tiredly, her eyelids slowly succumbing to her sleepiness. "Love you, Derek."

"I love you, too," Derek whispered, happy to be back in his childhood home surrounded by his family. And of course, having the love of his life there to share it with him made it perfect.

Hope you liked it! Reviews make my day. :)