125. One Step Closer

Disclaimer: Not mine.

So sorry for the delay between updates. Life has been busy, so fic writing has taken a back seat. Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter! :)

Meredith sat at the desk in Derek's office, scrolling through a Halloween costume website. So far, there weren't any front runners, and with October 31st only three weeks away, the deadline was fast approaching. "How about Snow White?" she said.

Derek looked at her from his spot as he lay on the couch, Lilly sitting on his stomach, supported by his arms holding her up. "As in the princess?"

"Kyle suggested it yesterday. I told him I'd run it by you," Meredith said.

"Hey, I have no problem with it. I just never pegged you as the Disney princess kind of girl," Derek smirked. "You're more of a blood and gore type."

Meredith rolled her eyes. "I'm a surgeon. Blood and gore are way cooler than fairy wands and glitter," she said. "No offense, Lilly. If you turn out to be a princessy kind of kid, I'll get on board. I promise."

"Wanna be Snow White, Lillybug?" Derek asked his daughter. Lilly scrunched her nose at him and laughed as though she were giving her opinion, and he chuckled. "Okay, no princesses, then."

Meredith clicked on the next page of the website, and smiled when the first costume displayed caught her eye. "Got it!" she all but cheered, selecting the picture to enlarge it.

"What?"

"Baby surgeon," Meredith said, turning the laptop toward him. "Comes with blue scrubs, a scrub cap, white coat, and a mini stethoscope."

Derek grinned, swinging his legs off the couch and into a sitting position so he could look at it more closely. "That's adorable," he said. "We could even clip your ID badge to the pocket."

"I went through eight pages on this website, and we're both literally sitting in the outfit," Meredith laughed. "I think Lilly would make a very pretty, little surgeon. What do you say, Lilly? Should we order it?"

Lilly smiled at Meredith from her place on Derek's lap, and Meredith smiled back at her. "That looks like approval to me," she said. "Should we go with extra small?"

"What's the age on it?" Derek asked.

"Three to six months, but the site says all of the costumes run big," Meredith read off the page. "She'll be almost five months by the end of October, but she's tiny, so she'd probably be swimming in a small."

"I say extra small, then," Derek agreed.

"Okay," Meredith said, reaching for her bag next to Derek's desk to retrieve her wallet. She pulled out her credit card, then typed the information into the site. "Okay, one pair of adorably expensive baby scrubs should be arriving within a week."

"They'll make comfy pajamas, so at least she can wear them again," Derek said.

"Oh, good point," Meredith smiled, tucking her credit card back into the slot after printing the order confirmation.

Derek sniffed the air around him and scrunched his nose, then peeked into the back of Lilly's diaper. "Okay, the scrubs you can wear again. But this diaper needs to come off."

"There's diapers in her bag," Meredith said, pointing to Lilly's purple travel bag sitting on the couch.

"I'm pretty sure it's your turn," Derek said as he slid the bag toward himself. "I changed the middle of the night poop."

"That's because I had to get up at six and you didn't," Meredith countered.

Derek held Lilly in one arm, rolling out her changing pad with the other. "Rock, paper, scissors," he challenged.

"What? No."

"Why not?" he asked.

"Because every freaking time we do that, I lose," Meredith said, slipping her feet back into her shoes.

Derek looked at her and smirked, gently laying Lilly on the couch. "Hmm, I know."

Meredith narrowed her eyes at him playfully as she got up out of Derek's comfy swivel chair behind his desk. "Mean."

Just as Meredith walked around the desk to change Lilly, there was a knock at Derek's office door. Mark poked his head in and waved. "Am I interrupting?"

"No, just in time," Derek said, pulling Lilly's pants off her legs.

"For what?" Mark asked.

Meredith smiled, catching onto Derek's plan in seconds. She pulled a diaper from Lilly's bag, and handed it to him. "Diaper change."

"What? Why me?" Mark asked.

"Right place, right time," Derek said. He smiled at Lilly, then kissed her forehead. "Don't worry, Princess. You're in good hands. Plus, he needs the practice."

"Hmm, fine," Mark agreed, taking Derek's spot on the couch after Derek got up. He set the fresh diaper on his lap, and peeled back the adhesive tabs on the old one.

Meredith handed him the pack of diaper wipes. "How's that going? Did you and Bridget make a baby yet?"

"It's a work in progress," Mark said, holding Lilly's legs up while he cleaned her. "Oh, God. How can such a bad smell come from someone this cute?" he said, burying his nose into his shoulder.

"That's my girl," Derek said proudly before taking a sip from his coffee cup. "So, why'd you come up here?"

"Not to do this. No offense, Lilly," Mark said. "I was just wondering if Amy and Tom had any news yet."

"They're down there now with the social worker again. Karen suggested that Kyle come along, so he feels included, too. I think they actually got to meet with Adam for a few minutes today."

"Sounds like they have a pretty good chance then, right?" Mark said, sliding the fresh diaper under Lilly's bottom.

"Seems like it's going their way. And the good thing is that Adam is technically ready to be discharged. He's at a healthy weight, and finishes all of his feedings. Dr. Halloran is just holding off because the adoption thing came up," Derek said.

Meredith smiled, watching as Mark gently sprinkled Lilly with some powder. "We still don't know how long it'll take, though. The standard wait for the paperwork to be processed is six weeks, maybe longer. But we're hoping that because they've already passed their clearances, they'll be given temporary custody while they wait for the hearing. Otherwise, he'd either have to stay here or be put in a temporary home. He's already been through more crap in the few weeks that he's been born than most people go through in a lifetime. He deserves to be with Amy and Tom."

"Everything's gonna work out. There's a reason he was born here, right?" Mark said, fastening the tabs on Lilly's diaper.

"Mark Sloan has an optimistic side?" Meredith said.

"How can you not be optimistic when you look at this face?" Mark pointed out, picking Lilly up off the couch after he shimmied her pants back on. He kissed her cheek, and Lilly smiled at him, making one of her happy cooing sounds. "You're gonna be a heart breaker one day, you know that, kid?"

"And you are a damn good diaper changer," Meredith complimented him, taking the dirty diaper and tossing it in the trash.

"I've changed her diapers before."

"Not number twos. I'm impressed," Derek said.

"See? I'm competent father material," Mark said, sitting Lilly on his lap. "So, what're you both doing here? I thought you worked opposite schedules."

"I had to work a ten hour from seven to five, and Derek got paged in for an emergency craniotomy at twelve. I scrubbed out, Derek handed me Lilly, then he scrubbed in. Now we're both just running out the clock, hoping neither of us gets paged for anything, so we can make it out of here on time," Meredith explained.

"In the ye olde days before parenthood, I would've walked in on you two running out the clock by having sex on this couch," Mark said with a grin.

Meredith rolled her eyes. "Yeah, it's kinda frowned upon to do that with your baby in the same room. Instead, we ordered Lilly's Halloween costume."

"Oh, yeah? What did you decide on?" Mark asked.

Derek turned the laptop around on the table to show him. "Baby surgeon. She's gonna look adorable."

"Third generation Dr. Grey, huh?" Mark asked Lilly, who just yawned and put her thumb in her mouth. "Are you gonna be a neurosurgeon like your parents, or part of Uncle Mark's plastics posse when you grow up?"

"Plastics posse?" Meredith echoed.

"She's a neurosurgeon in the making. One day, we spent an hour watching a show on new advances in neurological microsurgery. She was hooked. Literally didn't look away from the TV once," Derek boasted.

"It's true. We were going to give her a bath, but she was so engrossed that we waited until it was over," Meredith added.

"I'm sure she'd be just as intrigued if I showed her a face transplant," Mark said.

"That may be true, but she's still our little neurosurgeon," Derek upheld, smiling at his daughter.

"We'll see," Mark said.

Derek laughed, crossing his arms over his chest. "Mer and I made her, so challenge accepted."

There was another knock at the door, and Amy opened it a crack. "Hey, have a minute?" she asked.

"Yeah, of course. Come on in," Derek said. "How's it going?"

"Good, so far," Tom said, setting Kyle on his feet.

"Hey, little man. Long time, no see," Mark said, giving Kyle a high five.

Kyle hopped up onto the couch next to Mark. "Hi, Uncle Mark," the little boy said, then waved to Lilly, who smiled at him.

"Sit down wherever. There's my chair, or the couch. Or you can sit on the table. I didn't pay for it, so until they give me a decent sized office, I don't care," Derek joked, leaning against his desk next to Meredith.

"My office is right next door. I proposed knocking the adjoining wall down, so we could share one, big mega-office, but Derek declined. Apparently, it would be weird if I was at my desk while those two were busy having S-E-X on this fancy pull out couch," Mark said, patting the cushion.

Meredith blushed, burying her face into Derek's shoulder. "Really, Mark?"

"At least he spelled the word out," Derek sighed.

"You got to see Adam, right?" Meredith said in an attempt to change the subject.

"We did. He's so perfect. And you guys were right; he looks like a Shepherd," Amy said, putting her hand over her heart. "We were with him for ten minutes, and we're already in love. If this doesn't work out..."

Derek waved his hand in dismissal. "Don't think like that. Positivity is a powerful thing."

"When I was trying to get pregnant, Derek used to tell me the same thing," Meredith said.

Derek held up Lilly's framed newborn photo sitting on his desk. "Lots of positivity and lots of you know what, and nine months later, six pounds, seven ounces of the most beautiful baby girl I've ever seen."

"It's annoying, and very Hallmark, but optimism works," Meredith agreed, looking at her daughter, who laughed every time Kyle made a funny face at her.

"Did they say anything about being granted temporary custody back in New York? They should at least consider the fact that you're putting your lives on hold to be here," Mark pointed out.

"That's the hope. Dr. Halloran actually did her fellowship at Mount Sinai in New York before moving here permanently, so she's seeing if she can pull some strings to have him stay there for a few weeks in case we're not granted temporary custody, just so he wouldn't be put in a foster home. She seems to think there's a good chance because he's still a newborn," Tom said.

"Newborns don't bode well in foster homes, especially ones that were preemies. You need to be even more vigilant, because of possible apnea and issues with feedings. I don't think that pertains to Adam, but social services has to be sure that whoever is responsible for the care is qualified," Amy explained.

Derek nodded in support. "Well, you're both parents already. And Ames, you're a pediatrician. Social services couldn't find anyone more qualified if they tried."

"If all goes as planned, when would he be yours permanently?" Mark asked, wiping some drool off Lilly's chin with the sleeve of his white coat.

"Karen and Michelle said the goal is between Thanksgiving and Christmas. It would be much longer, except we've been through all this before," Amy answered.

"I know that seems like a long way off, but it'll go by quick. And whether he's with you guys, here, or at Sinai, he'll be well taken care of," Derek said, noticing how stressed his sister looked. "I think we could all use a night to take our mind off everything and have some fun. Mark and I finished building the pizza oven outback last weekend. How about we put it to use before it gets too cold outside?"

"Sounds like fun," Mark said, taking hold of Lilly's feet. "Your Aunt Bridget bought you a pair of Elmo slippers that she's been dying to give you. But I probably wasn't supposed to tell you that, so act surprised when she gives them to you."

Meredith laughed. "Pretty soon, Lilly is going to need a second bedroom for all of the stuff Aunt Bridget buys her."

"She knows how much Lilly loves Elmo. She couldn't help herself," Mark grinned.

"We appreciate it. And so will Lilly's warm feet. Thank you," Meredith said. "Derek and I will be done work in about an hour, so we can stop at the store on the way home." She peeled a Post-It off the stack on Derek's desk. "What kind of toppings does everyone like?"

"Are you guys sure? We know we're staying at your house, but we don't want you to feel obligated to do this. You already watched Kyle for us last night," Amy said.

"Yeah, and he helped us do the dishes and give Lilly a bath. If you'd let us keep him, we would," Derek teased. "We love having you guys here. Now, pick some toppings."

"I like pineapple!" Kyle chimed in.

"You do? Since when?" Tom asked.

"Aunt Meredith likes it," Kyle shrugged.

"We got it last night, and he asked to try some. Kyle's a fan now," Meredith said proudly. "And one day, I'll convert Lilly to pineapple, too."

"Pineapple on pizza sounds terrible," Mark said.

"Don't knock it until you've tried it," Meredith said, shaking her head.

"That's the same thing she told me about her pregnancy cravings, and I still have no intention of eating apples and ranch dressing," Derek laughed.

"Ugh, you actually ate that?" Mark asked, visibly cringing at the thought.

Meredith smirked, writing pineapple on the Post-It note. "I was pregnant at the time. And for the record? It's delicious."

...

It was warmer than a normal October night in Seattle with a faint breeze in the air as the fall settled in, and the sun was slowly setting beyond the backyard. Derek, Mark, and Tom stood outback, manning the pizza oven, Kyle eagerly helping. Meredith opened sliding glass door that led to the back porch, wrapping the blanket she had around Lilly a little more snugly to keep her warm.

"Hey," she said. "Smells good out here."

Derek smiled when he saw her and Lilly, and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "Good," he said, kissing her temple. "First time using it, and I'm already impressed."

"Hmm, that's because you did a good job building it," Meredith complimented.

"Hey, I helped," Mark reminded them before downing the rest of his beer.

Meredith rolled her eyes. "Yes, and you saved us from having to pay professionals, so we're grateful," she giggled.

"That's all I'm saying," Mark said. "I'm gonna go get another beer. Anyone want one?"

"No, I'm good," Derek said.

"I'll come with you," Tom said, picking Kyle up and following Mark back into the house.

Once they were alone, Meredith leaned into Derek, taking in the quiet. "Lilly loves her new slippers," she said, lifting up the blanket to show Derek.

Derek grinned at how cute they looked on his daughter's tiny feet. "I'm pretty sure Lilly owns enough Elmo merchandise to open a museum," he joked.

"Bridget has baby fever. Until she has one of her own, Lilly will be reaping the benefits," Meredith said. "It's funny. Bridget's talking about all the baby making and everything that comes with it, and she's reminding me of how I was back when we were trying. Excited and hopeful and nervous. They've only been trying for a couple months, though. I told her to just relax, and it'll happen."

"And you say I'm the corny optimist," Derek teased her. "But you're right. Soon enough, they'll get the plus sign."

"I already lent her all of our conception books. I highlighted all of the best sex positions, too. You know, legs on the shoulders and that spoony thing."

"You talked about all of this with my little sister in the room, too?" Derek guessed.

"She was doling out sex tips of her own," Meredith said. "Good stuff, too. Stuff I plan on using on you the next chance I get."

Derek winced as he opened the door to the pizza oven to check on their food. "Please don't share those details with me," he begged. "I mean, by all means, use it in bed. Just don't tell me from where and whom you learned it."

"Deal."

"Are you thinking about making another baby?" Derek asked.

"Wow. Didn't expect that question. But no; a little more time has to pass before I can build up the energy to push another baby out of my body. Not yet," Meredith laughed. "Why? Are you?"

"No. One perfect baby is enough for right now," Derek agreed.

Meredith smiled, rocking her hips from side to side because she knew Lilly liked the motion. "Adam is pretty perfect, too. Is it bad that I already think of him as my nephew?"

"So do I."

Just as Meredith was about to raise her head to kiss him, her pager went off in her pocket, and she quickly reached in for it. She frowned in worry when she read the message. "Damn it. 911 for Adam."

"What? What happened?" Derek asked, taking Lilly from her so she could call the hospital.

Meredith sighed as she dialed and waited for someone to pick up. "I don't know," she said. As soon as the nurse on the phone answered, Meredith jumped right in. "Hi, this is Dr. Grey calling. I was just paged 911 for Adam Mackley. Any idea on what happened?"

Derek could hear the murmur of the nurse's voice on the other end, and saw Meredith chewing on her lip nervously as she was given the information. "He was taken off the apnea monitor a week ago, and hasn't had any problems," she said.

When the nurse told Meredith everything she could, Meredith ended the call, and put her phone back in her pocket. "I need to go in. Apparently, Adam's been fussy all night, and might have some respiratory distress. It's off and on, but if they think it's serious enough to page me, I don't want to risk holding off until morning."

"We'll be fine. Go make sure he's okay," Derek encouraged calmly.

Meredith took Lilly again and hugged her. "I love you, peanut. I promise, we'll hang out all weekend. I'm not leaving your side," she said, kissing the top of her head as she tried to suppress her mommy guilt. But she knew that Adam needed her, and that Lilly would be fine for a few hours.

"What should we tell Amy and Tom?" Derek asked, sliding open the back door.

Meredith stepped into the house and sighed, peeking into the living room. "Let's not worry them until we have to. I'll go in and see what's wrong, and I'll call you."

"Okay," Derek agreed, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and giving her a small squeeze. "I'm sure it's something minor, and you'll be back in no time," he said. "I'll keep the pizza warm for you."

Meredith smiled slightly, handing Lilly to Derek so she could get going, and kissing them both. "Thank you."