Reaching Forward

8

Growing up, Meredith rarely got sick; sure, there was the occasional strep throat and ear infection when she was in elementary school but after that she couldn't remember a time when she vomited, except in her freshman year as an undergraduate when a combination of Raman noodles and only three hours of sleep caused her to be the sick the first time in years and the occasional hangover, of course.

Now, in her eighth week of pregnancy, she was quite sure that in the past eight weeks she had thrown up more than she had ever before in her life. All she knew was that whoever made up the name 'morning sickness', undoubtedly a man, was thoroughly mistaken. For Meredith, it was everyday and anytime of the day, in the morning, sometimes during rounds, and forget about eating lunch since any type of food besides saltines and water had her running to the bathroom. And, whenever he was around, Derek was sure to be by her side to either hold her hair or to have a paper towel ready to wipe her mouth. After all, he was half responsible.

But, he didn't care; it was all worth it, especially today. Today was Meredith's first appointment with her OB/GYN, which was why they were both still in the bed at 7:23 in the morning. Derek lay on his side watching her sleep. Within the last month, he had practically moved in with her except for a few miscellaneous things that he left back at the trailer. He didn't want to miss anything, not just with the pregnancy but with the little things in Meredith's life, waking up beside her and how long it took her to shower. He had missed so much when he had chosen Addison so he couldn't help but stare at her.

She was lying on her side with her back to him. So as not to wake her, he slowly moved closer to her and wrapped his arm around her abdomen. Apparently, even when he was asleep at least according to Meredith, he would put his arm around her and his hand would go straight to her stomach where the baby rest. Perhaps, it was his fatherly instincts starting to kick in; wanting to be sure that his child was safe.

His peaceful contemplation was soon interrupted by a buzzing noise. Looking over to the alarm clock it only read 7:27 and it wasn't due to go off until 7:30. Averting his eyes from the clock, he saw Meredith's phone ringing. It was at this time that the phone had slightly awakened her causing her to roll over and snuggle into Derek's chest. Wanting nothing more than to just lie there with her he knew that whoever was calling Meredith at this time in the morning must have something important to say. Reaching over her, he picked up her phone and looked at the caller I.D. It read 'Incoming Call From...Nursing Home.'

Gently, he began to shake Meredith awake, "Meredith, it's your Mom's nursing home calling."

Groaning, she rolled over onto her back and flipped open the phone, "Hello?"

Figuring he needed to get out of bed anyways, Derek pushed back the sheets and began to get ready for the day. First, he walked over to Meredith's side of the bed and turned the alarm clock off. As he was doing this, he listened to Meredith's conversation that caused her expression to go from tired to one that was a mix of concern and annoyance.

Meredith sighed, "Well, I have an appointment this morning." She listened as the person on the other end of the phone continued to talk. Pulling back a few strands of her hair that was in her face, she responded yet again to the person's request, "Alright, I think I can manage to stop by for a few minutes. Okay, you're welcome." Closing her phone, she threw it at the foot of the bed and lay back down on her pillow.

"Is everything ok?" Derek asked as he began to remove his shirt in order to take a shower.

"Apparently, my Mom's not eating. And the staff at the nursing home insisted that I come over this morning." She told him while finally getting out of bed.

"Are we going to have time before your appointment?" He asked walking into her bathroom and began to brush his teeth.

Following him, she leaned against the doorway, "We'll if we manage to get ready in an hour that'll leave us about an hour before my appointment."