129. New York Bound

Disclaimer: I don't own TV shows. That would be nice, though.

My school semester is finally over, which means more writing time. Yay! I'm going to try to bank as many chapters as I can before I start nursing school at the end of August. As always, thank you for your patience!

Like every year before, the holiday season had snuck up on them. Between work and Lilly, life had kept them busy, and most of November had flown by in a blink of the eye. And now, it was time to head to New York for the Thanksgiving holiday, which meant lots of packing. Normally, the task wouldn't be so challenging. But traveling with a baby took it to a whole new level. Clothes, bottles, food, blankets, toys, diapers, wipes, soap, and even portable furniture all had to be taken along. The list was a mile long, and by the time they'd finished, a mountain of suitcases and bags sat by the front door, waiting to be loaded into Mark's car tomorrow.

Derek made sure their plane tickets and ID were accounted for, sitting on the table in the foyer, then finally went upstairs. He walked quietly down the hall toward his bedroom, so he wouldn't wake Lilly in case she was asleep. "Hey," he said softly after walking in.

Meredith looked up from Lilly, who was peacefully nursing. "Hey," she returned. "Everything all packed?"

"Think so. I just hope it all fits in Mark's car," Derek chuckled, gently sitting down on the bed.

"They don't mind picking us up, right?" Meredith asked.

Derek shook his head. "No, not at all. They know we have to get Lilly ready," he said. "Mark said they're gonna be here at seven. Our flight doesn't leave until ten, so we should have plenty of time."

"Yeah," Meredith said, before letting out a yawn. "I just called Izzie. She said Charlie's fine. He's currently lounging on the couch, watching TV with Alex."

Derek laughed. "Sounds like he made himself feel at home, then," he said. "I'm relieved they volunteered to watch him. Otherwise, he probably would've been camping out at Cristina and Owen's, and Cristina doesn't really strike me as an animal person."

"She probably couldn't handle a fish, let alone a dog," Meredith joked. "Izzie and Alex are animal people. He'll have fun."

"Yeah, he will," Derek agreed as he finally caught her yawn. He glanced at the clock on his nightstand. "It's only 9:23. Why does it feel like midnight?"

"Because we have a five month old," Meredith smiled tiredly, smoothing her fingers through Lilly's dark hair, still a little damp after her bath. "How do you think she'll be on the plane?"

Derek smiled at his daughter, whose eyelashes kept fluttering as she tried to stay awake. "She'll be fine. Mark and Bridget will be in the seats in front of us, so between the four of us, I think we can keep her entertained," he said.

"That's true," Meredith giggled. "I'm glad they decided to come."

"Me, too. Maybe they can get in some good parenting practice while you and I renew our Mile High membership," he hinted.

Meredith rolled her eyes, amused. "Sure, let's do that," she played along, patting his thigh. "But hey, with a house full of people dying to meet Lilly and make a fuss over her, that should give you and I some time to sneak away for a quickie."

"Really? What about your 'no sex at my mom's house' rule?" he asked.

"I always end up breaking it, anyway. Besides, I kinda like that I'm the only girl you've ever slept with in that bed," Meredith admitted, biting her lip.

"The one and only," Derek said.

"Well then, as long as there aren't Batman sheets on it, I'm all yours," Meredith said, turning her head to kiss him.

Derek smiled against her lips. "Hmm, what about race cars? I think I still have those."

"That's kinda hot," she said, just as she felt Lilly unlatch from her breast. Meredith pulled away from the kiss and smiled at their baby, who was looking up at the two of them with half-closed eyelids. "Oops. You caught us, Lillybug."

"Are you tired, Princess?" Derek asked, taking Lilly from Meredith so she could fix her shirt. He held her to his chest and began patting her back. "How about you give Daddy a few good burps, then we can all go to sleep. We're going to see Grandma and everybody tomorrow, and they're all so excited to meet you."

Lilly let out a tiny burp, and Meredith giggled, setting Lilly's nursing pillow on the bench at the foot of the bed, so they would remember to bring it with them. "I think that means she's excited to meet them, too."

...

Holiday weekends at airports were as bustling as a busy day in the pit, only without the blood and gore. And while the five of them sat tucked away in their own little corner of the airport terminal, Meredith was still doing her best to shield Lilly from any germs. She pulled a diaper wipe from Lilly's bag, and gently cleaned off Lilly's hands in case she put them in her mouth.

Derek watched her, unable to keep from smiling at his wife. For someone who used to have a penchant for tequila and one night stands, the doting mommy that Meredith had become always amazed him.

"You're cute," he said, taking a sip of his coffee.

Meredith looked up from her extensive cleaning between Lilly's fingers. "Shut up," she smirked. "Airports are dirty. And it'll be even worse on the plane. All of that recycled air and everyone packed together like sardines. It's like a germ carnival."

"You should've stolen some surgical masks from the scrub room," Mark said.

"Yeah, because a five month with a surgical mask wouldn't look suspicious," Bridget pointed out with a laugh as she checked her phone for the time. She smiled at Lilly who sat on Meredith's lap across from her. "But you'd still be the cutest baby ever."

Derek noticed to Lilly's eyelids were getting heavy, and he tickled her belly. "We need you to stay awake, Princess. Just a little while longer," he said, smiling when the baby laughed in response.

"Why are you keeping her up?" Mark asked.

"It's a six hour flight. The goal is that she sleeps through most of it. When she's bored and cranky, she'll make sure you know it," Derek teased.

"I'm worried about her ears popping, too. The books said to use pacifiers, but she doesn't like them. At least she'll take a bottle or nurse, though. And she always sucks her thumb when she's tired. Plus, I have baby earplugs, which are supposed to work," Meredith rambled as she finally finished cleaning Lilly's hands.

Mark leaned back in his chair, raising his eyebrows in surprise. "Wow."

"What?" Derek asked.

"I didn't realize there was so much... planning involved," he shrugged.

"You mean with a baby? Always. There's no such thing as get up and go anymore," Derek chuckled, reaching for Lilly on Meredith's lap to put her on his own. "I'll save you before Mommy decides to break out the Purell and disinfect you."

Meredith narrowed her eyes at him playfully. "Do you want me to go back on my sex promise? Because I will," she threatened.

"What sex promise?" Mark asked.

"I told Derek we could have sex while we were away... you know, as long as Lilly was in good hands for twenty minutes," Meredith said as she put Lilly's wipes back into the diaper bag.

"Just say the word. Bridget and I will watch her while you two go knock one out in the Spiderman sheets," Mark promised.

"You make it sound so romantic," Meredith said dryly. "But sure, that would be nice."

"Attention passengers of Flight 297 bound for JFK airport in New York, your flight will now begin boarding. Please gather your belongings, and make your way to the gate," said the voice of the flight attendant over the airport intercom.

"Finally," Mark sighed.

The four of them walked toward the gate, making it there before the larger groups, so they would be able to board more quickly. After the flight attendant scanned all of their tickets, they were allowed onto the plane where another attendant directed them to their correct seats, smack in the middle of coach.

Derek glanced to Meredith when they reached their row with three seats. "Window or aisle?" he asked.

"Window, I guess; just in case I have to nurse her, I'd rather be shielded a little," Meredith said.

Derek nodded in understanding. "Yeah, sure," he said. "I'll put her car seat in the middle seat, then."

"That works," Meredith said as she scooted into the short row with her bag and Lilly's diaper bag. After setting them on the floor under her seat, she reached for Lilly. "Come here, peanut."

Lilly tilted her head upward as she looked around the plane, fascinated by the change of scenery. Derek strapped the baby's car seat in the plane seat between them, tugging on the buckle after fastening it to make sure it was secured tightly.

When he was satisfied with his work, he dropped down into the aisle seat and buckled his own seat belt. "Isn't this fun, Princess?" he asked his daughter.

"She's very into all of this," Meredith laughed, gently laying Lilly in her car seat and buckling her in. She wriggled around and kicked her legs, much preferring to be held. "I know, Lillybug. We'll take you out as soon as we're in the air. We just need to keep you safe and snug for takeoff, okay?"

Mark turned around from his seat in front of theirs. "If you need us to hold anything up here, we have the room," he offered.

"And if you want to pass Lilly up here for a bit, we'd be more than happy to entertain her," Bridget added.

"Thank you," Meredith said gratefully.

"We're gonna hold you to that," Derek teased, taking off Lilly's baby-sized Uggs. "There we go. May as well be comfy, right?"

Meredith took one of the pacifiers she'd packed out of Lilly's bag, and held it to her lips to see if she would be willing to suck on it. "I know you're not a fan of these, but I need to try, anyway."

Lilly tentatively accepted the pacifier, sucking on it curiously for no more than a few seconds before spitting it out in disinterest. Derek picked it off of her belly where it landed. "Okay, then," he chuckled.

"I would try the earplugs, but she's already not liking the car seat. I don't want to risk a meltdown in the middle of a crowded plane," Meredith said, kissing Lilly's forehead. "If she seems uncomfortable, we can try them."

"Yeah, that's all," Derek agreed. He made a funny face at Lilly in an attempt to cheer up her car seat woes, and she let out a tiny giggle. "Tell Mommy there's nothing to worry about it. You have us to keep you entertained for six hours."

Lilly's smile was interrupted by a big yawn, and Meredith laughed at the timing. "I think she's tired of your usual material. She wants new stuff."

"Hey, if I have to tap dance in the aisle, I'll do it," Derek joked.

Mark turned around in his seat again. "I'd pay good money to see you do that."

...

The first three hours of their flight had gone off without a hitch. Lilly had slept through most of it, waking briefly when she was hungry. Meredith had dozed off after nursing her, and now, Lilly sat peacefully in Derek's lap as he paged through a neurosurgical journal with his free hand.

When he smelled something familiar, he tucked the journal into the seat pocket. "Uh oh. What've we got?" Derek asked, discreetly peeking into the back of her diaper. "Someone needs a diaper change," he said. He carefully reached for Lilly's bag under their seats, contemplating his next move.

"Mark," Derek said.

"Yeah," Mark said, pausing the game of Angry Birds he was playing on his phone, Bridget sleeping in the seat next to him.

"Can you do me a favor?" Derek requested. "Lilly needs a new diaper. I need you to hold her stuff while I change her in the bathroom. Mer's asleep, and I don't wanna wake her."

Mark's initial reluctance dissolved when Lilly smiled at him. "Fine, let's go."

Derek got up out of his seat with Lilly, and Mark followed him to the back of the plane where there were two small bathrooms flanked side by side. "Here, can you take this?" Derek said, handing Mark the diaper bag.

"Yeah," he said, catching the disapproving look of an older woman seated near the back of the plane. He quickly showed her the diaper bag and pointed to Lilly. "It's for a diaper change. We're not lovers having a quickie; relax."

He and Derek both peered into the cramped bathroom, and Mark shook his head amusedly. "Yeah, there's no way we can both fit in here and change a diaper at the same time," he said.

"I know," Derek said, pulling down the small changing table station from the wall while Mark held the door open. Derek tested the weight of the changing table with his hand. "I don't feel safe laying her on this. It's as flimsy as cardboard. You're gonna have to hold her while I change her."

"You're lucky I love you, kid," Mark told Lilly, holding her under her arms after Derek swapped her for the diaper bag.

Derek set the diaper bag on the sink ledge. "As her uncle and godfather, I'd say it's pretty much an obligation," he said as he took a fresh diaper and wipes out. He pulled Lilly's pink pants off her legs and slung them over his shoulder. "I should be letting you do this. You're gonna need the practice for when you have your own. What better practice than a stand-up diaper change in an airplane bathroom?"

"Nice try. I'm good holding her at arm's length," Mark said.

Derek peeled back the adhesive tabs on Lilly's diaper, doing his best to clean her despite the less than ideal changing position. When she started bending and swinging her legs, Derek had to laugh. "Now's really not a good time for the aerobics, Princess."

"That's not a pee dance, is it?" Mark asked worriedly.

"She pees in a diaper, so there's no pee dance yet," Derek said, tossing the dirty diaper in the trashcan. He managed to put the fresh diaper on her, then shimmied her pants back up her legs. "How'd we do?"

Mark turned Lilly from front to back, surveying their work. "Not bad," he said with a satisfied nod.

"Thanks for helping. Lilly and I appreciate it," Derek said, drying off his hands with a paper towel after washing them in the small sink. He zipped the diaper bag and picked it up. "Alright, let's get out of here before we get more dirty looks."

"Some people just have their minds in the gutter. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against airplane sex. Just not with you. And I wouldn't bring your kid along for it," Mark said, bouncing Lilly in his arm.

Derek turned off the light and closed the door after they stepped out. "Glad you cleared that up," he chuckled.

When they walked back down the aisle and reached their row, Mark kissed Lilly's cheek and handed her back to Derek. "Here you go. Fresh as a daisy."

"Thank you," Derek smiled. He sat back down in his seat, settling Lilly on his lap once again. She leaned into him and rested her head against his chest. "I love you, Lillybug," he said softly.

Meredith shifted in her seat, her eyelids heavy as she woke up. "Hmm, hey. How is she?"

"She's fine. Mark and I just had a diaper changing adventure in the bathroom, and now, we're just hanging out," Derek said.

Meredith giggled. "You two tag teamed a diaper change?"

"Yep. And we did a damn good job," Mark chimed in. "Bathroom's free now, if you two wanted to get some action," he joked.

"We're good, but thank you," Meredith declined, rolling her eyes playfully. She kicked off her shoes and twisted her legs into a pretzel. "I actually did it in college. Trust me, it's overrated."

"Did you really?" Derek asked.

"Yeah. Spring break. A bunch of us took an overnight flight to Cancun. It was a dare, and I was bored and horny, so I figured why not. It was quick; in and out in ten minutes," Meredith said, pointing her finger at Mark when she noticed the smirk on his face. "No pun intended. Don't even say it."

"Who was this with?"

"My boyfriend at the time, Scott. It wasn't all it's cracked up to be. It was cramped and dirty and... oh, that reminds me! Lilly didn't touch anything in the bathroom, right?" Meredith asked, armed with a travel pack of wipes next to her.

Derek smiled at Lilly when she yawned into his shirt and closed her eyes. "No, she didn't," he assured her.

"Wait, wait. I want to hear more about this plane hook-up," Mark interrupted.

"There's nothing to tell. It was just sex on a plane," Meredith shrugged.

"I gotta admit, I'm kinda jealous that you've actually done it, but not with me," Derek said.

"Tell you what, if we're ever on a private plane, I'd be more than happy to do you on it," she promised him.

"Okay, then," Derek grinned.

"Now, before this conversation gets any more inappropriate, how about we switch to a new topic. I have Mad Libs, or we can take turns reading Pat the Bunny. It's one of Lilly's favorites," Meredith suggested, pulling both options from her bag.

"What the hell is Pat the Bunny?" Mark asked.

"It's interactive. It helps babies learn senses," Derek explained.

Meredith flipped the book open and pointed to the soft, white fur on one of the pages. "See? You literally pat the bunny."

Mark raised his eyebrows in equal parts shock and amusement. "Is this really the same girl who had dirty sex on an airplane?"

"That was a long time ago. I'm a Mommy now," Meredith said. "So, what'll it be? Mad Libs or bunny book?"

Lilly's sleepiness seemed to wear off when Meredith showed her the book cover, and she smiled at it. "Okay, bunny book it is," Meredith said.

Mark slowly turned around in his seat, withdrawing his inclusion in the activity. Derek laughed as he draped a blanket over Lilly's legs to keep her warm. "You're missing out, Mark."

Mark raised his hand in a small wave. "Mhm..."

...

The final hours of the flight passed slowly. Six hours in the OR passed by in an eye blink, but six hours spent sitting on a plane wasn't so exhilarating. After reading the whole library of books to Lilly that Meredith had packed, the baby fell asleep on Derek's lap. And without Lilly awake to keep them entertained, there wasn't much else to do but resort to doing Mad Libs, playing Go Fish, and chowing down on complimentary airline pretzels.

Just as Meredith was about to start a crossword puzzle in a one of the trashy tabloid magazines she'd bought before their flight, the pilot came over the intercom to announce that they were beginning their descent into JFK airport. Meredith shut the magazine and tossed it into her bag. "Oh, thank God," she said.

"I know," Derek chuckled, gently laying Lilly back in her car seat and buckling her in, so she would be more protected when they touched down on the tarmac. "There we go. All set for when we land."

Lilly's eyelids fluttered open briefly and she yawned, blinking tiredly as her eyes got adjusted to the light. "Hi, Lilly. You did so good," Meredith praised her daughter.

"She really did," Derek said as he helped Meredith pack all of their bags up. He leaned in to kiss Lilly's forehead. "We always knew you would, though."

The plane experienced some mild turbulence as it descended, and Lilly's lower lip began to quiver as the plane jostled slightly, startling her. Meredith noticed and went into action, attempting to quell what could potentially turn into a loud crying fit.

"Shh, you're okay. It's just little bumps. We're almost on the ground," Meredith said softly. Though she knew Lilly has no idea what she was saying, she hoped her voice and smile would be enough to comfort her. She held out her finger by Lilly's hand. "Here, hold my finger, peanut."

Lilly grabbed onto it and gave Meredith a small smile in return. Derek noticed the exchange between the two of them, unable to keep from catching both of their smiles. "Crisis averted?" he asked.

"I think so," Meredith nodded, using her free hand to rub circles over Lilly's belly.

Derek put the last of Lilly's items back into the diaper bag and zipped it shut. "Well then, I'd say this was almost a success."

"Almost?"

"There was no Mile High-ing," he joked.

Meredith patted his arm in mock sympathy. "At least you and Mark had fun in there."

Derek laughed. "Changing Lilly's diaper? Oh, yeah. Definitely the highlight."