You're Like Coming Home

42.

Meredith sighed as she walked into their room a couple nights later, closing the door softly behind her. "You think they're going to stop anytime soon?" she asked, referring to the soft moans coming from Mark and Addison's room.

Derek smiled softly as he looked up from his book. "I'm pretty sure they haven't even left their room all day," he said. "Lucky bastard."

Meredith smiled as she turned the overhead lights off and climbed into bed beside him. "Aw, honey, is someone jealous of all the sex Mark's getting?" she asked as she ran her hands through his hair.

"Maybe a little," Derek murmured, leaning up to kiss her.

"I think we can take them," Meredith murmured as she moved her lips down to his neck.

"Hmmm...me too," Derek replied. "Especially if you do that thing I love so much."

"I could probably be convinced," Meredith giggled as she moved down his body.

Derek sighed as he looked at the ceiling, trying to get himself into the mood. It was rare that he could concentrate on real life while Meredith was littering kisses up and down his abdomen, but at this point, he could only think of the letter he'd gotten in the mail earlier that day.

"Mer," he murmured, tugging gently at her hair as he felt the need to look her in the eyes. "I need to talk to you."

"Hmmm...dirty talk?" Meredith murmured as she ran her tongue along the waist of his pants. "We've never really tried it before, but as you know, I'm very...flexible."

Derek smiled slightly, trying to focus on what he needed to talk to her about. "Not that," he said softly. "But...later we can definitely do that. Please let us do that. But now...I need to talk to you."

Meredith could hear the seriousness in his voice, and she leaned back to look at him with concern in her eyes, still straddling his hips. "Derek, what is it?" she asked softly.

"I got something in the mail today," he sighed.

"What?" Meredith asked, worst case scenarios running through her head. Thoughts of medical tests he hadn't told her about, summons to court, and financial crises all ran through her head. "What is it, Derek?"

"Columbia accepted me," Derek murmured. "And I just...when I got the mail I didn't see a letter for you, and it's just been bothering me all day. I know we're applying to a lot of different schools, but we already know that you got accepted to Sanford and I didn't, and I'm just terrified that we're not going to get into any of the same schools."

"Oh," Meredith sighed, moving to sit to his side. "Derek, I got my letter yesterday. I didn't mean to not tell you, I just...I had that big test this morning and I was concentrating on that, and then I had to come home this afternoon and listen to Mark and Addie, and...I didn't mean to not tell you, I swear."

"Didn't mean not to tell me what?" Derek asked, fear in his voice.

Meredith bit her lower lip as she looked at him, trying to decide how to tell him her news. "I um...I got in," she said softly.

"Really?" Derek asked, the worry fading from his eyes. "Oh, Mer, I'm so proud of you."

Meredith smiled as she leaned forward to kiss him. "I'm proud of you too," she whispered. "I know that's a dream you've had for a long time, but...I still want to wait. To hear from Dartmouth and Seattle. But you should go. To Columbia, because it's your dream."

Derek shook his head softly. "You know, ever since I can remember, I've wanted to go to Columbia. My dad went there, and when I was five or six, he used to take me to walk around campus, show me where he'd lived, where he'd had classes. But now...it just doesn't seem as important. Now you're the only thing I need."