Derek was sitting outside on the patio, he really needed some fresh air but he got lost in time as suddenly his parents drove onto their driveway
"Hey son." Christopher was the first to get out, Derek didn't even move an inch until he heard his mom's voice
"Hi honey, is everything okay?" Carolyn worriedly asked
"Sorry, I got distracted." He quickly got up
"Maybe we should talk?" Christopher suggested
"Go ahead, I'll check on Meredith and Charlotte." Carolyn nodded and headed inside really quick
"Nana!" Charlotte smiled and hugged her grandmother right away
"Hey sweetie, how are you doing?"
"Fine.." Charlotte shrugged sadly
"Where's your mom?" Carolyn looked around
"Kind of asleep on the couch." Charlotte grabbed her grandma's hand and led her to the living room
"Hmm.." Meredith winced suddenly
"Hey honey." Carolyn softly stroke her hand over Meredith's cheek
"Mom?" Meredith looked confused, curling up as pain was starting to overtake slowly
"Are you doing okay?" Carolyn asked, seeing Meredith's body stiffen up
"Fine." Meredith nodded but didn't wanna move. She didn't wanna sit up
Charlotte quietly sat down next to her mom, holding her close
"S-Sorry-" Meredith hurried off
"I'll go." Carolyn quickly said and hurried after Meredith, seeing the blonde head to the bathroom where she started gagging. "Sweetie?"
"Mom.." Meredith whimpered in pain
"Shh, it will get better." Carolyn rubbed her back
"Mer?!" Derek suddenly ran inside
"Kay.. It's fine." Meredith nodded
"Probably those meds were a little rough on your stomach." Carolyn muttered
"Yeah." Derek sighed, knowing this was probably the cancer's doing, he could only hope the chemo wouldn't be too hard on his wife's body
"Wanna say hi to dad." Meredith said softly, attempting to push herself up
"Easy on yourself, sweetie." Carolyn said as Derek helped her up
"Hey honey." Christopher pulled Meredith in for a hug
"Hi dad." Meredith muttered, hating to see her parents so sad. "Maybe we should talk about some happy things."
"Mark and Addie are on their way." Christopher explained, leading Meredith go the couch where they all sat down
"Nana, did you bring some cookies?" Charlotte asked but suddenly felt almost guilty for asking
"Of course I did. I bought a whole box." Carolyn replied, seeing the girl backing off a big
"I'll steal some." Derek winked at his daughter
"Are we still moving?" Charlotte asked her father out of the blue, seeing how everyone's faces changed
"Honey, I don't know.." Derek muttered and looked at Meredith who wasn't sure either. This had always been Derek's dream but she didn't wanna move states, especially now
"Monkey.. Let's talk later." Meredith muttered
Charlotte sighed and nodded, going quiet again until Addison and Mark had finally arrived
"Hey guys!" They walked inside, Addison immediately hugging Meredith and Charlotte tight
"Hey, thanks for coming." Meredith muttered
"Are you doing okay?" Addison asked while Charlotte was hugging Mark
"Meh.." Meredith sadly muttered
"I'm sorry." Addison hugged her again before Mark took over
"I love you." He whispered
"Love you too, Markie." Meredith chuckled a little but a tear slipped down her cheek anyway
During dinner Meredith had to pass, she decided to take a nap and eat something on her own, mainly because she didn't want her family to see how much trouble she has with eating.
So there she was lying on the couch, still visible by everyone at the table as she felt everyone's eyes on her. She knew everyone meant it in a good way, they just wanted to look out for her, to be here but it was hard. Meredith has never been used to being in the middle of attention with her parents neglecting her
Luckily for Meredith she partially grew up around the Shepherds during her teen years when she started dating Derek so she finally had a family that loved her
"She's struggling.." Derek muttered
"Mom's gonna be okay." Charlotte demanded
Everyone nodded, not really knowing what to say
…
"Hey Mer, are you ready to head to the hospital?" Derek asked as he had just eaten some fruit to make sure she had something in her stomach
"Sure, let's go." Meredith muttered
"Charlie, are you ready to go to school?" Derek asked her
"No, I wanna come with you!" She frowned
"Honey, that's really not a smart idea." Meredith interrupted
"I promise uncle Mark will pick you up and drive you home." Derek said
"Fine." Charlotte was stubborn and clearly didn't agree
"Go put on your shoes, please." Meredith asked, also getting up to get herself ready
The car ride was quiet, they dropped off Charlotte at school and drove to the hospital. Derek parked as close as possible and they headed inside
"Hey.." Bailey was waiting for them. "I got you your own room, we thought it'd be a little more comfortable."
"Thanks." Meredith nodded but looked down, reaching out to hold Derek's arm
She didn't really remember what happened next as she was so overwhelmed. She was suddenly laying down and felt Bailey attaching the chemo to her central line. As soon as it started dripping it caused her discomfort, only distracted by her phone beeping
She quickly opened it and saw she had gotten a text from Charlotte
'I love you, let me know how it's going please. <3'
Meredith took a shaky breath and quickly replied.
'All is going well, focus on your class, I love you too. X'
YOU ARE READING
Strong enough
FanfictionDerek wants to move to DC but Meredith and their 13 year old daughter don't really agree. Will some tragedy keep them in Seattle?
