"Wise Up" 6/?
Author's Note: Well, I had intended to work on this during the three-day weekend, but I was unable to for various reasons. Got it done now, hope you enjoy. Please let me know what you think-I'm not overly pleased with this chapter myself.
Title: Wise Up ch. 6
Rating: PG-13, I guess. Adult themes. Some swearing.
Summary: Derek and Addison are trying to come to terms with their feelings for each other and their behavior towards each other. Will they be able to face their demons and be stronger or will they give up? Circa end season 2, with my spin on things.
Disclaimer: Fanfiction, only. No infringement intended. ABC, Touchstone Television, Shonda and Co. own Grey's Anatomy.
Previous chapters may be found here:
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Addison merely stared at Derek who was standing in her office, hands on his hips, a determined look on his face. He has some audacity! she thought to herself.
"Well, what's going on Addison?"
Callie re-positioned herself, blocking his view of his wife who surreptitiously moved her hand to the floor where he would not see that blood was being drawn. This wasn't her typical behavior, but right now Addison didn't care. Derek didn't have any right to storm into her office.
"You have some nerve, Derek Shepherd. Barging into my office while I'm in the middle of a consult with a colleague, demanding answers from me. Ever heard of knocking on a door, Dr. Shepherd? Or did the common courtesy of basic manners slip your mind once you moved into trailer-park land?"
Derek crossed his arms over his chest.
"Well," said Addison this time.
"What?"
Shaking her head, she said. "Figures. You really have lost all of your etiquette here, haven't you?"
Derek started to come up with a retort when he looked down and noticed a trickle of blood dripping onto the floor.
Forgetting everything for the moment, Derek rushed by Addison's side. "You're bleeding!" Horrified, he looked for the source of the blood and that's when he spotted the tube of blood attached to a vein in her hand.
"Addison! Why are you having your blood drawn? And why is it being drawn by an ortho resident?"
Callie glared at him. "Look, Dr. Shepherd. I may be just a "resident ortho" as you pointed out, but I am more than qualified to draw a patient's blood."
"Patient? Patient? Since when are you a patient? Addison?"
His wife didn't answer her.
"Dr. Torres…I am your superior."
"Doctor-Patient Confidentiality," reminded Addison, "Or have you managed to forget that concept as well, Derek?"
Sighing, Addison told Callie to finish with the procedure. The vial filled up quickly and then Callie removed it and put gauze on Addison's hand.
"Be sure to let me know when those results are in, Dr. Torres."
"Of course I will, Dr. Montgomery-Shepherd." Emphasis on Montgomery.
Quietly, Addison said, "Thank you, Dr. Torres. We'll talk later."
Callie nodded and then left the tension-filled office for the lab, intent on getting the results as soon as she could.
"Addison…"
"Don't, Derek. Just don't. Shut up and get out of here. I cannot believe your attitude-or maybe I can. First you rudely storm in here with demands and then you get all high and mighty with Dr. Torres, who is not," she reminded him with sarcasm, "a mere intern like your precious Dr. Grey."
"Meredith has nothing to do with this."
"Doesn't she? I have my doubts."
Derek was growing agitated with his wife's attitude. "I'm not here to talk about Meredith, Addison. I'm here to find out what's going on with you."
"What's going on with me? Well isn't that the loaded question. What 'isn't' going on?"
Shaking his head, Derek told her to, "Stop deflecting, Addison. I'm talking about your health."
Snorting, which was very un-ladylike, Addison said, "What are you doing here, Derek? It's obvious you don't give a damn about me or my health. This is so rich. Don't all of a sudden act like you care-"
"I do care about you, Addison!" Derek's voice was firm, surprising Addison and startling Derek.
He took her hand which was covered in gauze and peered at it.
"You always did prefer to get blood drawn from your hand," he commented, gently stroking her hand.
Addison was unnerved by the contact from her husband. "It's less painful that way," she shrugged.
Quietly continuing his ministrations, Derek turned to look at his wife and he noticed the dark bags under her eyes, the exhaustion clear on her face. Scanning her body, he said, "You've lost weight."
Addison didn't say anything, and Derek thought about the times he'd heard her getting ill in the trailer, coupled with what Burke and O'Malley told him. Her face was pale and suddenly she appeared younger to him. Her beautiful blue eyes which used to tell him so much were clouded, he couldn't read them, he couldn't read her. When had that happened? A niggling voice in his head said that it happened a while ago, but he was too stubborn to do anything.
An unintentional shiver came out of Addison as her husband looked at her with surprising softness in his eyes, his face full of worry and confusion.
"When's the last time you ate, Addison?"
She shrugged and he shook his head at her. "You need to take care of yourself."
Inwardly, she giggled. That was, as she told him earlier, rich.
"If anything happened to you," he began, but she cut him off.
"What? I'm sure you'd be thrilled that Satan was out of your life, freeing you for Meredith."
"Isn't that what you want, Derek? Your adulterous whore of a wife to be permanently out of your life?"
Derek mulled that over. For a long time, he thought that was what he wanted. When he caught her in bed with his best friend, he'd run away that night to Seattle and he didn't look back. No, he went to a bar on his first night in town, met Meredith Grey and went to bed with her. He romanced her, all the while deleting any and every message his wife had tried to relay to him, and he moved on. Or at least he tried to. To be honest, Derek didn't give Addison much thought in the months he'd been away from her. He compartmentalized his life into New York and Seattle. By doing so, he'd become a lousy son, brother, uncle, and friend-to those who mattered to him in New York. At the time, however, distancing himself had been necessary to allow him some sanity. All of that changed the minute he heard the click of Addison's heels and saw her flaming mane.
When he first saw her, he was so angry. Angry that she dared come to Seattle-to the one place he thought was his. The place he tried to start anew. The place where he was dating an intern twelve years his junior. But there she was, as confident, determined, and gorgeous as ever. After he got over his initial shock of her appearance, he turned his anger outward, calling her Satan, Adulterous Whore, and many other things to her face and behind her back. But then she did the unexpected: she presented him with those papers, those divorce papers. She told him she'd let him go, all he needed to do was sign him. He'd be free. Free to be with Meredith. Free to never think of Addison or Mark again. She dangled the carrot he thought he wanted, but in the end, he told her that he wanted to try with her. But he hadn't tried, not really.
Running a hand through his hair, Derek sighed. Addison looked at him expectantly, wondering why he wasn't jumping for joy saying "I want you gone. Forever."
Even if he hadn't physically cheated on Addison, he had cheated on her emotionally, mentally, and otherwise. If she was out of his life, things would be easier, right? But they wouldn't, not really. They would temporarily mask his true feelings. Derek didn't know if he could pull himself together to really try and make things work with her but what he did know was that he couldn't let her go. He couldn't let her be sick.
"Is your mind imagining all the things you'd do upon my demise?"
Whipping his head up, his voice was soft, "No. I was just thinking about…a lot of things. I don't know a lot anymore, Addison, I really don't. I've fucked up. You've fucked up."
She nodded; at least he was willing to acknowledge something.
"I know that there is something wrong with you. In truth there's a lot wrong with you, with me, with us. But can't be the priority right now. Your health has to be. Now, are you going to tell me what's wrong, Addie or am I going to have to…"
"To what, steal my lab results? That would be professionally wrong, Derek."
Derek paced her carpeted office floor. She was really driving him crazy. Why was she being so damn aloof?
"What were the blood tests for?"
Closing her eyes, Addison rubbed the bridge of her nose. She was so tired. Of everything. How much more could she put up with? And why was he finally taking an interest in her health? Why was his tone soft, his touch gentle?
Changing his tactic, Derek moved to stand behind Addison's chair and he started to rub her neck. "God, you're so tense," he commented.
Don't do this her voice pleaded.
He kneaded her shoulders and whispered in her ears "Remember that time when you pulled a muscle in your neck? You were in agony for quite some time. Your neck was so inflamed. They wanted you to get some physical therapy, but you wouldn't go because you stubbornly thought you could handle the pain on your own."
"I did."
"At first. But then it got to be too much and it was 'Derek, please' whenever you wanted a massage and I couldn't stand the whin-"
"Shut up, I wasn't whining. I just wanted you to take care of me."
Derek actually smiled. "Yeah. Let me take care of you now, Addie" He continued to massage her and he closed his own eyes, inhaling the scent of her expensive citrus shampoo.
Unconsciously, Addison let out a soft moan. "Please, Addie…"
Biting her lower lip, she sighed and then relented. "I might be pregnant," she confessed.
It didn't register at first. "Derek?"
Opening his eyes, he realized what she said. "You might be…pregnant?"
Nodding, she said, "Yes. The blood was for a pregnancy test."
Pregnant. She might be pregnant. That means…
Derek had stopped the massage and his hands rested atop Addison's shoulders. She was afraid to turn around and see the look on his face.
"You might be…pregnant. Pregnant," he repeated.
It was the last thing he'd expected her to tell him. He didn't know what could be wrong with her but her being pregnant never crossed his mind. His mind which was swirling a mile a minute.
"I don't know," she offered. "That's what I'm trying to find out. The symptoms are there though."
"Symptoms," he repeated. Then his mind recalled her vomiting, her paleness, her irritability, her lack of appetite. God, she really could be pregnant.
Addison was about to say something when her beeper went off. She looked at it-911.
"I have to go," she told her husband as she stood up and straightened herself.
"Addison, we have to talk."
"Not now, Derek," she said, using one of his favorite phrases for her.
She left her office with Derek behind. He slumped in a chair and tried to let the reveal sink in.
A few hours later, after Addison successfully delivered twins, she received a 411 call from Dr. Torres. She went back to her office for privacy to take the call and Derek was long gone by then, having to work on a patient who suffered a subdural hematoma.
"Do you have the results?" She asked, twisting the phone cord.
"Yes. It's positive. You're pregnant."
Title: Wise Up ch. 6
Rating: PG-13, I guess. Adult themes. Some swearing.
Summary: Derek and Addison are trying to come to terms with their feelings for each other and their behavior towards each other. Will they be able to face their demons and be stronger or will they give up? Circa end season 2, with my spin on things.
Disclaimer: Fanfiction, only. No infringement intended. ABC, Touchstone Television, Shonda and Co. own Grey's Anatomy.
Previous chapters may be found here:
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Addison merely stared at Derek who was standing in her office, hands on his hips, a determined look on his face. He has some audacity! she thought to herself.
"Well, what's going on Addison?"
Callie re-positioned herself, blocking his view of his wife who surreptitiously moved her hand to the floor where he would not see that blood was being drawn. This wasn't her typical behavior, but right now Addison didn't care. Derek didn't have any right to storm into her office.
"You have some nerve, Derek Shepherd. Barging into my office while I'm in the middle of a consult with a colleague, demanding answers from me. Ever heard of knocking on a door, Dr. Shepherd? Or did the common courtesy of basic manners slip your mind once you moved into trailer-park land?"
Derek crossed his arms over his chest.
"Well," said Addison this time.
"What?"
Shaking her head, she said. "Figures. You really have lost all of your etiquette here, haven't you?"
Derek started to come up with a retort when he looked down and noticed a trickle of blood dripping onto the floor.
Forgetting everything for the moment, Derek rushed by Addison's side. "You're bleeding!" Horrified, he looked for the source of the blood and that's when he spotted the tube of blood attached to a vein in her hand.
"Addison! Why are you having your blood drawn? And why is it being drawn by an ortho resident?"
Callie glared at him. "Look, Dr. Shepherd. I may be just a "resident ortho" as you pointed out, but I am more than qualified to draw a patient's blood."
"Patient? Patient? Since when are you a patient? Addison?"
His wife didn't answer her.
"Dr. Torres…I am your superior."
"Doctor-Patient Confidentiality," reminded Addison, "Or have you managed to forget that concept as well, Derek?"
Sighing, Addison told Callie to finish with the procedure. The vial filled up quickly and then Callie removed it and put gauze on Addison's hand.
"Be sure to let me know when those results are in, Dr. Torres."
"Of course I will, Dr. Montgomery-Shepherd." Emphasis on Montgomery.
Quietly, Addison said, "Thank you, Dr. Torres. We'll talk later."
Callie nodded and then left the tension-filled office for the lab, intent on getting the results as soon as she could.
"Addison…"
"Don't, Derek. Just don't. Shut up and get out of here. I cannot believe your attitude-or maybe I can. First you rudely storm in here with demands and then you get all high and mighty with Dr. Torres, who is not," she reminded him with sarcasm, "a mere intern like your precious Dr. Grey."
"Meredith has nothing to do with this."
"Doesn't she? I have my doubts."
Derek was growing agitated with his wife's attitude. "I'm not here to talk about Meredith, Addison. I'm here to find out what's going on with you."
"What's going on with me? Well isn't that the loaded question. What 'isn't' going on?"
Shaking his head, Derek told her to, "Stop deflecting, Addison. I'm talking about your health."
Snorting, which was very un-ladylike, Addison said, "What are you doing here, Derek? It's obvious you don't give a damn about me or my health. This is so rich. Don't all of a sudden act like you care-"
"I do care about you, Addison!" Derek's voice was firm, surprising Addison and startling Derek.
He took her hand which was covered in gauze and peered at it.
"You always did prefer to get blood drawn from your hand," he commented, gently stroking her hand.
Addison was unnerved by the contact from her husband. "It's less painful that way," she shrugged.
Quietly continuing his ministrations, Derek turned to look at his wife and he noticed the dark bags under her eyes, the exhaustion clear on her face. Scanning her body, he said, "You've lost weight."
Addison didn't say anything, and Derek thought about the times he'd heard her getting ill in the trailer, coupled with what Burke and O'Malley told him. Her face was pale and suddenly she appeared younger to him. Her beautiful blue eyes which used to tell him so much were clouded, he couldn't read them, he couldn't read her. When had that happened? A niggling voice in his head said that it happened a while ago, but he was too stubborn to do anything.
An unintentional shiver came out of Addison as her husband looked at her with surprising softness in his eyes, his face full of worry and confusion.
"When's the last time you ate, Addison?"
She shrugged and he shook his head at her. "You need to take care of yourself."
Inwardly, she giggled. That was, as she told him earlier, rich.
"If anything happened to you," he began, but she cut him off.
"What? I'm sure you'd be thrilled that Satan was out of your life, freeing you for Meredith."
"Isn't that what you want, Derek? Your adulterous whore of a wife to be permanently out of your life?"
Derek mulled that over. For a long time, he thought that was what he wanted. When he caught her in bed with his best friend, he'd run away that night to Seattle and he didn't look back. No, he went to a bar on his first night in town, met Meredith Grey and went to bed with her. He romanced her, all the while deleting any and every message his wife had tried to relay to him, and he moved on. Or at least he tried to. To be honest, Derek didn't give Addison much thought in the months he'd been away from her. He compartmentalized his life into New York and Seattle. By doing so, he'd become a lousy son, brother, uncle, and friend-to those who mattered to him in New York. At the time, however, distancing himself had been necessary to allow him some sanity. All of that changed the minute he heard the click of Addison's heels and saw her flaming mane.
When he first saw her, he was so angry. Angry that she dared come to Seattle-to the one place he thought was his. The place he tried to start anew. The place where he was dating an intern twelve years his junior. But there she was, as confident, determined, and gorgeous as ever. After he got over his initial shock of her appearance, he turned his anger outward, calling her Satan, Adulterous Whore, and many other things to her face and behind her back. But then she did the unexpected: she presented him with those papers, those divorce papers. She told him she'd let him go, all he needed to do was sign him. He'd be free. Free to be with Meredith. Free to never think of Addison or Mark again. She dangled the carrot he thought he wanted, but in the end, he told her that he wanted to try with her. But he hadn't tried, not really.
Running a hand through his hair, Derek sighed. Addison looked at him expectantly, wondering why he wasn't jumping for joy saying "I want you gone. Forever."
Even if he hadn't physically cheated on Addison, he had cheated on her emotionally, mentally, and otherwise. If she was out of his life, things would be easier, right? But they wouldn't, not really. They would temporarily mask his true feelings. Derek didn't know if he could pull himself together to really try and make things work with her but what he did know was that he couldn't let her go. He couldn't let her be sick.
"Is your mind imagining all the things you'd do upon my demise?"
Whipping his head up, his voice was soft, "No. I was just thinking about…a lot of things. I don't know a lot anymore, Addison, I really don't. I've fucked up. You've fucked up."
She nodded; at least he was willing to acknowledge something.
"I know that there is something wrong with you. In truth there's a lot wrong with you, with me, with us. But can't be the priority right now. Your health has to be. Now, are you going to tell me what's wrong, Addie or am I going to have to…"
"To what, steal my lab results? That would be professionally wrong, Derek."
Derek paced her carpeted office floor. She was really driving him crazy. Why was she being so damn aloof?
"What were the blood tests for?"
Closing her eyes, Addison rubbed the bridge of her nose. She was so tired. Of everything. How much more could she put up with? And why was he finally taking an interest in her health? Why was his tone soft, his touch gentle?
Changing his tactic, Derek moved to stand behind Addison's chair and he started to rub her neck. "God, you're so tense," he commented.
Don't do this her voice pleaded.
He kneaded her shoulders and whispered in her ears "Remember that time when you pulled a muscle in your neck? You were in agony for quite some time. Your neck was so inflamed. They wanted you to get some physical therapy, but you wouldn't go because you stubbornly thought you could handle the pain on your own."
"I did."
"At first. But then it got to be too much and it was 'Derek, please' whenever you wanted a massage and I couldn't stand the whin-"
"Shut up, I wasn't whining. I just wanted you to take care of me."
Derek actually smiled. "Yeah. Let me take care of you now, Addie" He continued to massage her and he closed his own eyes, inhaling the scent of her expensive citrus shampoo.
Unconsciously, Addison let out a soft moan. "Please, Addie…"
Biting her lower lip, she sighed and then relented. "I might be pregnant," she confessed.
It didn't register at first. "Derek?"
Opening his eyes, he realized what she said. "You might be…pregnant?"
Nodding, she said, "Yes. The blood was for a pregnancy test."
Pregnant. She might be pregnant. That means…
Derek had stopped the massage and his hands rested atop Addison's shoulders. She was afraid to turn around and see the look on his face.
"You might be…pregnant. Pregnant," he repeated.
It was the last thing he'd expected her to tell him. He didn't know what could be wrong with her but her being pregnant never crossed his mind. His mind which was swirling a mile a minute.
"I don't know," she offered. "That's what I'm trying to find out. The symptoms are there though."
"Symptoms," he repeated. Then his mind recalled her vomiting, her paleness, her irritability, her lack of appetite. God, she really could be pregnant.
Addison was about to say something when her beeper went off. She looked at it-911.
"I have to go," she told her husband as she stood up and straightened herself.
"Addison, we have to talk."
"Not now, Derek," she said, using one of his favorite phrases for her.
She left her office with Derek behind. He slumped in a chair and tried to let the reveal sink in.
A few hours later, after Addison successfully delivered twins, she received a 411 call from Dr. Torres. She went back to her office for privacy to take the call and Derek was long gone by then, having to work on a patient who suffered a subdural hematoma.
"Do you have the results?" She asked, twisting the phone cord.
"Yes. It's positive. You're pregnant."