166. A Speech and a Sick Day

Disclaimer: I don't own TV shows.

Summer is here! Now that graduation is over and I have more free time, updates should be more frequent. Hope you enjoy this one!

December was upon them, and so, too, was the cold weather and desire to stay under the covers all day. But with Meredith on her way home from a night on call, and Derek up early to get ready for work, lounging in bed would have to wait. He finished buttoning his shirt, Meredith's favorite blue one, gave his hair a final coif in the mirror, then walked down the hall toward Lilly's room.

He peeked through the door and smiled in relief when he saw her sleeping soundly in her crib, her bottom raised in the air. "Daddy loves you, Lilly," he whispered, careful not to wake her up.

Charlie poked his head in Lilly's room, too, eager to play with her, and Derek chuckled. "She's still sleeping, buddy. Another hour or so, and she'll be all yours."

Once they went downstairs, Derek put on a pot of coffee, then headed into the laundry room. "Your sister has a lot of clothes, Charlie," he said as he dumped a full basket of her tiny clothes into the washing machine. "We're gonna need a second washer once the baby comes."

"Hey," Meredith said, walking up behind him.

Derek turned around and smiled. "Hey. I didn't hear you come in."

"I was trying to stay quiet. Is Lilly still sleeping?" she asked, unable to keep from tracking him from head to toe.

"Yeah," he nodded.

"Good."

"Good?"

Meredith bit her lip, smoothing her hands over his shoulders. "You're wearing the blue shirt I love and doing laundry. I'm getting kind of turned on."

"It's seven in the morning. I have to leave for work in twenty minutes," he chuckled, the end of his sentence coming out in a moan when her hand grazed the front of his pants.

"And I'm pregnant and horny," Meredith said, hopping up onto the washer. "Quickie?"

"Quickie," Derek agreed without hesitation.

"Pants off only. Saves time," Meredith said as she shimmied hers off effortlessly.

Before Derek even had the chance to unzip his pants, Lilly began crying over the monitor, her timing always impeccable. He dropped his head on Meredith's shoulder, sighing in amusement. "Guess not."

"We've lived here for three years, and have never had sex on top of the washing machine. That's just wrong," Meredith said, regretfully pulling her pants back on. She took Derek's hand as she jumped off the washer. "I know it's only the beginning of December, but having laundry room sex is my New Year's resolution."

"Mine, too."

"I haven't seen her since yesterday. I'll get her," Meredith offered.

She took the stairs two by two, eager to see her daughter and find out the source of her tears. When she got to Lilly's room down the hall, she opened the door and saw Lilly already reaching over her crib, wanting to be held.

"Hey, baby girl. Mommy missed you so much. Come here," Meredith said. She picked her up and hugged her close, smiling when Lilly hugged her back. "What's the matter? You don't seem like yourself."

Meredith noticed Lilly's sniffles, coupled with her rosy nose and cheeks, and she frowned. "Uh oh. Do you have a little cold?"

"Mama," Lilly murmured.

"Mommy's here. I'll be here all day. We can hang out and have girl time," Meredith said, smoothing Lilly's curls away from her face. "Want to go see Daddy before he goes to work?"

"Dada," Lilly echoed.

"Okay, let's go see him. He has to give a fancy speech about brains to a bunch of med students today. That's why he looks extra handsome in his blue shirt," Meredith said. She slowly walked downstairs, her center of gravity off balance with Lilly on her hip and a baby in her belly.

Once they reached the kitchen, Meredith couldn't help but smile when she saw that Derek was picking up where he'd left off with the laundry. He turned around when he heard footsteps, setting one of Lilly's folded shirts atop the pile. "Good morning, Princess. You okay?" he asked.

"I think she's feeling a little crummy today," Meredith said as he gently switched Lilly to his arms.

Derek pressed his lips to her forehead. "Hmm, she doesn't feel warm. Probably just a twenty-four hour bug."

"Yeah. Sucks, though. I hate when she's sick," Meredith sighed, rubbing her hand over Lilly's back. "I promised her we could have girl time today. Vegging out in bed with a movie and some snacks. How's that sound, peanut?"

"Sounds like fun. Wish I could join you," Derek said.

"Then it wouldn't be a girls' day," Meredith reminded him playfully. "Besides, you have your big, important speech to give."

Derek smirked. "Mocking me now?"

"A little bit. So, how long is this thing anyway?" she asked.

"Couple hours, probably. First, we have the meet and greet brunch. Then, an attending from each department gives a five minute talk on his or her specialty," he said.

"Wait, there's going to be a brunch? No one told me that. I would've volunteered if I knew they were serving brunch," Meredith said, her pregnant self always enthusiastic about breakfast foods.

Derek nodded, pouring coffee into his travel mug. "Yeah. U-Dub supplies us with some of the best residency candidates, so Richard wanted to make a good impression, I guess."

"You better steal me food, then. Waffles, muffins, those egg cupcake thingies," Meredith requested.

"Quiche?"

"Yeah, that," she said, taking Lilly's oatmeal from the cabinet. "I'll show my gratitude later."

The offer piqued Derek's curiosity, and he leaned against the counter with interest. "Really?"

"Well, we haven't had that tubby yet..." Meredith hinted.

"I'll steal a thousand quiches for a tubby with you," Derek promised.

Meredith laughed. "That's the strangest thing you've ever said to me. But I appreciate the romance behind it, so thank you."

...

As much as Derek valued the opportunity to share his love of neurosurgery with anyone, especially a group of eager, enthusiastic med students, he had to admit that he'd much rather be home with his wife and daughter as he approached the large conference room. But because he'd volunteered weeks ago, he decided to make the most of the day, and most importantly, snagging Meredith the breakfast food she desired.

"Hey. About time you showed up. We thought you bailed," Mark greeted him from the buffet as he stacked pancakes on his plate.

"Nah. Lilly's sick, so it took me a little longer to get out the door this morning," Derek explained, surveying the wide array of breakfast options. "Wow, Richard went all out for this, huh?"

"Yeah. There's even an omelet station over there," Mark said, pointing to it with a pair of tongs. "What's up with Lilly? Nothing serious, right?"

Derek shook his head. "No, just a cold. And Meredith's tired from working overnight, so I wanted to get stuff done around the house, so they could hang out and sleep," he said, loading his plate with quiches, much to Mark's curiosity.

"Jeez, hankering for eggs this morning?"

"Meredith told me I have to steal her food. Still haven't figured out how I'm gonna sneak out of here with all of it, though," Derek admitted. He filled the other half of his plate with two muffins and three waffles for Meredith, then walked with Mark back to the table where all of the attendings were seated.

When Cristina saw the pile of food on Derek's plate, she smiled in instant realization. "So that's why Mer called me and told me to bring a big purse to this thing. She wants to smuggle her breakfast out of here inside it and eat from it like a trough."

"Don't question the pregnant lady. Just do what she says," Izzie advised.

"That's my M.O. until the baby is born," Derek agreed, holding up his coffee in agreement. "Except when it comes to baby names. Then I need to use my veto power."

"How's that going? Any more contenders?" Mark asked.

"Nothing set in stone yet. A few days ago when she was working, she texted me the name Atticus. I thought she was joking, but she wasn't. I vetoed that real quick," Derek said.

Mark cringed, slathering his pancake with butter. "Atticus? Where'd she find that?"

"The baby name book. She wants to flip through it again today while she's off, so that should be... interesting," Derek replied just as his phone vibrated. He reached for it in his pocket, smiling when he saw a text from Meredith. "Oh, she just sent me another one."

"What is it?" Arizona asked.

"Ruby. That's actually a good one. I like that," Derek smiled, texting back his approval to Meredith.

"How far along is she now?" Owen asked.

"Twenty-four weeks. We picked Lilly's name at twenty-five weeks, so I guess we're kind of on par with last time. It's tougher naming the second baby, especially when you don't know the sex. We may end up flipping through the baby name book as Meredith's pushing," Derek said.

Bailey joined them at the table, taking the seat between Cristina and Izzie. "So, this is the big meet and greet? Not much meeting and greeting going on."

"We're discussing nameless Baby Shepherd, a topic that's oddly more appealing to me than chatting with a group of med students," Cristina admitted.

"Still no name picked out?" Bailey asked.

"No. Meredith has an ultrasound next week, so maybe seeing the baby again will spark some inspiration. Right now, the only one giving us ideas is Lilly. She came up with Nemo, Elmo, Squirrel, and Peach. Really, all of those are better than the ones Meredith suggests," Derek teased.

"When you find the right name, you'll know, just like you did when you named Lilly," Bailey promised.

"Maybe, but I think Lilly's onto something. Peach Shepherd is kinda catchy if you have another girl. She might end up on a stripper pole in twenty years, but still... catchy," Mark shrugged.

Derek sighed in amusement, slicing his blueberry muffin. "I'm all for suggestions, but for the sake of my possible future daughter, no stripper names."

...

Back at the house, Meredith and Lilly were having their girl time as promised. Meredith lay on her side of the bed, while Lilly occupied Derek's, her dark curls fanned out over his pillow as they watched Monsters, Inc. per Lilly's request.

"Guess what, Lilly? Dada likes the name Ruby," Meredith said as she wrote it down.

"Uby," Lilly repeated, cuddling Dr. Squirrel in her arm.

"Yeah. That makes three girl names on the list, but still no boy names. If you have a little brother in here, he might be nameless for a while. It is fun messing with Daddy, though. He still thinks I'm serious about Atticus. Like I'd really name my son that," Meredith said.

Lilly sneezed twice, and the stuffy feeling in her nose made her fuss in discomfort. "Mama," she whined.

"I'm sorry you don't feel good, Lillybug. The medicine should be kicking in soon," Meredith said as she wiped Lilly's nose with a tissue. "I know I promised you a tubby. How about we do that?"

"Ma tubby," Lilly agreed.

"Okay, let's go," Meredith said. She scooped Lilly out of bed and onto her hip. "We'll be back, Charlie. Keep the bed warm," she instructed, scratching the top of his bed before walking into the bathroom.

Meredith put Lilly down, then turned toward the tub. She smiled when she saw how many rubber duckies lined the edge, and made a mental note to move them before she and Derek took their own bath later that night. Even though being pregnant made any kind of bathtub intimacy off limits, there was something about a rubber ducky audience that killed the mood.

After turning on the faucets and making sure the temperature wasn't too hot, she squirt in some of Lilly's lavender baby soap, then plugged the drain to let the tub fill. "Okay, let's take off your jammies," Meredith said, kneeling down in front of Lilly. She unzipped her footie pajamas and tossed them in the hamper, now empty thanks to Derek's laundry doing.

"Have I mentioned how much I love Daddy lately? Because I really, really do," Meredith told Lilly.

"Lub Dada," Lilly said as Meredith took off her diaper.

"Dada is the best," Meredith laughed, shedding her pants, panties, and t-shirt. "Okay, I'm going to put you in the tub first, then I'll join you," she said as she picked Lilly up and set her on her feet in the tub.

Without letting go of Lilly's hand, Meredith swung her legs over and sat down. "Come here, peanut," she said, bending her knees, so Lilly could rest on her thighs. "I would let you sit on my lap, but Jellybean doesn't leave much lap space these days."

Lilly didn't seem to mind, though, happy just to be in the water. "Bean baf?"

"Yeah, are you going to help me give Jellybean baths once he's born?" Meredith asked.

"I do," Lilly promised.

"Okay, good. Thank you," Meredith giggled. "You know, Dada would be very jealous right now. In the olden days, we used to spend our days off in the tub," she said before biting her lip. "Probably shouldn't be sharing those kinds of things with you, so I guess it's a good thing you're little and this won't scar you for life."

Meredith smiled, rubbing a warm washcloth over Lilly's shoulders. "I wish you felt better, but I really love hanging out with you. Sharing Cheerios and watching movies... no better way to spend the day off, just me and you."

"Me Mama," Lilly said.

"Yeah. You know, my mom didn't do stuff like this with me when I was sick. Or ever, really. I mean, I know she had her reasons, but still, I could never do that to you. I love you way more than I'll ever love surgery," Meredith said as she felt the baby kick just under her ribs. "Yes, you too. We may not have your name picked out yet, but we're working on it."

Lilly splashed her toes in the water, sending drops flying onto Meredith's face. "Thank you, Lillybug. I needed a spa day," she said, wiping her face with a dry towel.

"'Pa."

"Maybe that's what Daddy should get us for Christmas. We could get facials with those eye cucumbers, pedicures, massages, all those girly things..." Meredith sighed contentedly. "What are we gonna do if Jellybean is a boy, Lilly? Daddy is a handful enough as it is."

"Dada boy," Lilly nodded.

"Yeah, can you imagine? Two boys in the house," Meredith said, looking at her rounded belly covered by the water. "I kinda think it's a girl, though. The fact that Dada is a boy is a miracle. I mean, the girl-boy ratio in the Shepherd lineage is like eight to one."

Meredith smiled as she poured water over Lilly's legs. "Let's just keep that miracle comment between us. If he finds out I said that, his ego will get even bigger."

...

Derek took his place at the podium to give his speech, his notes open on his phone for backup. But he knew he wouldn't need them, considering Meredith was his topic. He didn't tell her that part, though, because he knew she'd probably kill him.

Once he had the attention of the med students, he cleared his throat and began, choosing to make the most of the next few minutes.

"Good morning. I'm Derek Shepherd, the Chief of Neurosurgery. I remember when I was in med school, the thought of residency was so overwhelming that I barely thought about what I would eventually choose as a specialty. Once I started my internship, I did the usual rotations. But the only one that ever felt right was neuro. There was something about the brain that just attracted me to it... the fragility, the complexity, the unknown. When I told my head of neuro that I was declaring it as my specialty, he told me he'd known since I scrubbed in on my first neuro case. At the time, I didn't see how he could have. It wasn't until six years ago that I knew what he meant," Derek said.

"On her first day here, Dr. Grey, one of the surgical interns, diagnosed an aneurysm without a single scan. She picked up on something so minor in the patient's history that anyone else probably would've overlooked it, myself included. It was a gut instinct. It was brilliant—she was brilliant. I knew she was a neurosurgeon before we scrubbed out of that OR," Derek shared, the memory so clear that he wondered how six years had passed.

"My point in telling you that story is that a few months from now, you'll be starting your internships. Maybe here, maybe on the other side of the country. Wherever you end up, I want you to enjoy it, even on the bad days when you want to quit. And believe me, you'll have days like that. But then one day, you'll get your first save. You'll be the reason someone lives. And eventually, you'll find where you belong. It might take a while, and you may not even realize when it happens, but you'll get there. So if I can offer you any advice, it's to remember that. You can read every textbook cover to cover, but it's not worth anything without that passion," Derek told the group sitting before him.

A picture of Lilly and Meredith in their bath robes popped up on his phone that sat on the podium, and Derek smiled. "Six years later, Dr. Grey is now an attending neurosurgeon here at Seattle Grace. And she still gives me a run for my money every day," he said sincerely before exiting the small stage.

Once all the speeches were given, the attendings stayed behind to help clean up, which for them, meant divvying up all the leftover brunch. Fortunately for Derek, he had the added bonus of Cristina's purse, which he'd been entrusted in delivering to Meredith.

"Meredith gets the banana nut muffins. I made extra, just for her. She's tiny and carrying my godchild. She needs the carbs," Izzie insisted, putting the Tupperware container into the purse.

"Any bagels left?" Alex asked.

Izzie nodded, setting some aside for him. "Yeah, I'll take a few."

"Score. Now I have dinner tonight," Alex said as he munched on a waffle.

"You have bagels for dinner? That's just sad," Cristina mocked him, pouring herself a cup of coffee from the pot.

"What? Throw some spaghetti sauce and cheese on it, and it's a free pizza," Alex shrugged. "Mer taught me that. She's pretty clever for someone who sets off the smoke alarm in the lounge at least once a week toasting a Pop-Tart."

"When we first met, she tried to cook breakfast for me once at the trailer. She blew a fuse heating oatmeal in the microwave. She's come a long way since then," Derek said in her defense.

Mark picked up a danish from the tray and bit into it eagerly. "Speaking of... does she know your speech was about her, or did you leave that out of the breakfast conversation this morning?"

"She knew it was about neuro, so maybe she figured she'd be included in the context. As far as being the topic? No, she would've killed me," Derek laughed.

"Oh, that was a secret? I already sent her the video," Cristina replied.

"You took a video?" Derek asked.

Cristina nodded. "Yeah, she asked me to, since she couldn't be here to see it in person. She texted back 'I'm gonna kill him' with a smiley face emoji. Without the emoji, I'd be concerned. But she included it, so I think you're okay," she assured him, showing him the text on her phone.

"Oh. Well that's good, I guess," Derek said.

Cristina handed Derek her bag, now full to the brim with food. "Just in case the smiley face wasn't sincere, give her this as soon as you walk in the door. She's pregnant and loves breakfast foods. Use the waffles to your advantage."

...

Lilly lay sleeping on Derek's side of the bed, still clad in her ducky robe. Over an hour had passed since her bath, and she'd been snoozing before Meredith even put a diaper on her.

Meredith, whose energy was running on fumes, lay in her robe, too, replaying the video Cristina had sent her. She should've been annoyed at Derek's bragging over her, but between the genuineness of his voice and that damn blue shirt, she found herself swooning.

"If you really are a boy and end up looking exactly like Daddy, I'm in trouble," Meredith told her belly. She set her phone on the nightstand and closed her eyes, hoping to squeeze in a catnap before Lilly woke up and wanted to nurse.

Just as she was slipping into sleep, Meredith felt Lilly wiggling around next to her, and she reluctantly opened her eyes. "Hey, baby girl. Up already?" she asked.

Lilly crawled into Meredith's lap, wiping her nose on Meredith's robe. "Mama," she murmured.

"I know, Lillybug. How about you eat, then I'll give you some more medicine?" Meredith offered as she opened her robe for Lilly to nurse.

Though Meredith still nursed some nights, and continued to pump so she wouldn't lose her supply, the normally easy routine of breastfeeding was becoming increasingly complicated with a growing belly. And with the added obstacle of Lilly's fussy mood, getting her to latch on was a challenge.

Lilly cried in frustration as she tried to find a comfortable position, and after several attempts, Meredith gently eased her away. "I know it's hard with Jellybean in the way. Let's try this," she said, lying down on her side. She patted the space next to her and Lilly followed her lead, lying down, too.

"Okay, let's try again," Meredith encouraged once Lilly's head was at the level of her breast.

This time, Lilly latched on with ease, draping her arm over her mom. Meredith did the same, hugging Lilly to her, and she kissed the top of her head. "See? We did it," she said softly.

Meredith ran her fingers over Lilly's back as she nursed, finally letting herself surrender to the much needed nap. Nearly an hour had gone by before she woke up to a sweet, syrupy smell, making her stomach grumble in hunger. When she opened her eyes, she found in a Post-It where Lilly had been, a note scrawled on it in Derek's handwriting.

Didn't want to wake you. Lilly and I are downstairs. Love, us

Too tired to get dressed and too hungry to delay food any longer, Meredith went downstairs, following the smell of breakfast into the kitchen. She smiled when she saw Lilly in her highchair, a piece of waffle in her small hand.

"Hi, Ma!" she greeted.

"Hey, you. You look like you're feeling much better," Meredith said, combing her fingers through Lilly's hair. She walked over to the counter where Derek was cooking, the sight of him wielding a spatula and wearing the blue shirt making her so hot and bothered that she would have attempted washing machine sex again if Lilly weren't in the room.

"I gave her another dose of cold medicine when I got home. That and the waffles seem to be doing the trick," Derek said with a grin. "You should wear your robe around the house more often."

Meredith plucked a muffin from the container, then took a seat next to Lilly at the table. "Too lazy to change. Plus, why waste an outfit when I'm going to take it off for our bath, anyway?"

"So, that's still on, huh? I wasn't sure after Cristina said she sent you my speech," Derek admitted.

"I thought it was sweet," Meredith replied, surveying the counter. "And you stole food for me."

"Everything you asked for, plus extra. I'm heating it all up again. Figured you'd be hungry," Derek said.

"I am; thank you," Meredith smiled. She peeled the wrapper off the muffin, moaning when she bit into it. "Izzie made this, didn't she?"

Derek chuckled, amused by her heightened sense of taste. "Yeah. She said you needed to eat more carbs to grow her godchild. Her words, not mine. So, what did you two do today?"

"Not much. We watched movies and ate applesauce. Which reminds me, our bed sheets are covered in applesauce," Meredith said. "We browsed through the baby name book for a while. Pretty uneventful."

"Anything good?"

"I wrote a few of them on a Post-It. Hang on," she said, rummaging through the pocket of her robe. "Here it is. First one is Ethan."

Derek contemplated the name for a moment before nodding. "Ethan. I like that. Good one."

"Okay, next I have Mia."

"I like it, but we can't. The Princess Diaries," Derek said, as though it were a simple explanation. When Meredith looked at him in confusion, he decided to explain further. "You know, that movie with Anne Hathaway. Girl named Mia becomes a princess. Her best friend's name is Lilly..."

"Doesn't ring a bell, but I'll take your word for it," Meredith said, crossing Mia off the list. "How do you know so much about a princess movie?"

Derek chuckled, turning down the burner under the pan. "Nine nieces. I had to watch that movie with them so many times I could quote it from memory," he said.

"Fine, not Mia. What about Nolan?" she suggested.

Derek shrugged in indifference. "Nah."

"Nah," Lilly echoed, licking syrup off her arm.

Meredith laughed. "Okay. Looks like I've been overruled."

Derek grinned at Lilly's opinionated input, never shy about speaking her mind. "Lilly takes her big sister duties very seriously."

...

With Lilly finally feeling better and fast asleep, Meredith was removing all of the rubber duckies from the perimeter of the bathtub while Derek put a new set of sheets on the bed, swapping them out for the applesauce-covered ones currently being washed.

After turning off the faucets once the tub had filled, she found Derek standing behind her, shedding his clothes. Meredith bit her lip when he stepped out of his boxers, leaving him naked in front of her.

"If there weren't a cantaloupe-sized human in my uterus throwing off my center of gravity, I'd mount you right now," she said, unable to keep from looking at his groin, her favorite part of him.

"Really?" Derek asked.

"Really."

"How about bath first, mounting later?" he amended.

Meredith smiled, taking off her robe and placing it on the hook. "Deal."

"I'll get in first. I don't want you to fall," Derek said as he stepped over the tub ledge.

"I did this with Lilly a few hours ago and survived," Meredith reminded him, still letting him help her. "But thank you; I appreciate it."

They carefully lowered themselves into the warm water until they were seated, Meredith leaning against his chest. She sighed happily when Derek wrapped his arms around her and rested them on her belly. "Why don't we do this more often?" she wondered out loud.

"One word, five letters, and she's sleeping down the hall," Derek teased, though it was the truth.

Meredith laughed, tapping the water surface with her fingers. "I guess that means we should enjoy them while they last. Once the baby comes, you and I may not get a bath together for years."

"I'll make sure we get baths and shower quickies at least once a month," Derek vowed. "And as many on-call room visits as we can, too, since we'll have a baby in the bed again."

"Probably both babies. If Lilly knows Jellybean is in the bed, she'll want to be there, too. Oh, and Charlie. You and I will probably end up on the floor," Meredith predicted.

"Our first night together was spent on the floor. Six years later, and look how that turned out," Derek grinned, pressing kisses to her neck.

Meredith's skin prickled with goosebumps. "Six years," she said before turning around the face him, her legs wrapped around his waist. "So, did you really mean what you said in your speech? About knowing I'd pick neuro from day one?"

"Every word of it," Derek nodded.

"Yeah?"

"I've trained hundreds of residents over the years. They all worked hard. They all studied their asses off. Only a handful had that gift that you have. And even then, none of the others proved that to me within hours of meeting them the way you did," he said.

"Hearing you say that... it means a lot to me," Meredith smiled. "Thank you."

"I might be biased, but I'm a hundred percent sure Lilly inherited that gift from you, too," Derek said confidently. "What other one year olds can identify brain lobes?"

Meredith looked down at her belly between them, covered by the water. "We need to make sure Lilly teaches Atticus the brain lobes once he's born."

"That name is staying on the vetoed list where it belongs," Derek upheld, watching as her lips turned upward. "What?"

"Oh, come on. Really?"

Derek's eyes narrowed in realization. "Were you messing with me this whole time?"

"Of course I was. Do you really think I'd name our sweet, innocent baby that?" she asked.

"I didn't know. You were pretty convincing," Derek admitted.

"Lilly was in on it, too. We planned to keep it going on for longer, but I felt bad," Meredith said.

"Evil. Both of you," he accused.

Meredith laughed, playing with the wet curls on the nape of his neck. "I'll make it up to you later with all the mounting."

"I can accept that."