This was not happening to him... It was a bad dream surely. He would open up his eyes or pinch himself in the arm and the nightmare would be over.
No, it wouldn't, he sighed scratching his head. He thought his bad luck finished the previous day the moment when he connected with Meredith. Nope, it seemed as if his problems were just beginning. And all because of his kind heart.
He heard Meredith's footsteps as she was going downstairs from her loft and he didn't know if he was more relieved or horrified. Thank God Izzie wasn't here yet.
"Oh, you're here early," she greeted him from over her cup of coffee. That was progress, there wasn't even a trace of the usual irritation about her.
"Hey," he breathed out. "Listen, I was wondering about... the pharmacy. How do you do it here?"
"We are the pharmacy," she answered sitting behind the counter. "We have a constant supply of medicines."
"Oh, okay, I need something..." he trailed off grimly.
"For yourself? What's wrong?"
"I... Bert, my dog, has... a little itching problem," he finished euphemistically, unable to utter the exact issue.
Meredith didn't have such scruples. "Oh. Lice? Fleas?"
Rip off the band aid, Derek. Rip off the band aid. "Lice."
"We have a shampoo. You know if you're planning on keeping him you should bring him over for a check-up, vaccinations and all that stuff," she said standing up and beckoning him to follow her.
Yeah, now he realized that he should have.
"There you go."
"It's... it's for animals," he muttered quickly scanning the label.
"Of course it's for animals. Isn't Bert a dog?" she laughed. "Why would you even need one that is not for animals..." she trailed off, a thought dawning on her. Suddenly she jumped away from him, her eyes involuntarily shooting towards his hair.
"I'm sure you're fine," she smirked. "But... maybe you should skip practice hours today..."
"I... I was going to," he sighed, knowing this was probably the most humiliating moment of his life. More than Meredith leaving him at the gas station. More than a patient's bowel erupting at him during surgery. Did he mention he hated this place?
"This is for people," she passed him another bottle stretching her arm out as far as she could and backing it quickly.
"You have to leave it on your hair and then rinse profusely," she bit on her lip. "Or you can always cut your hair."
"I'm not going to cut my hair," he narrowed his eyes at her.
"Don't need to be so defensive. It's not like I gave you the lice," she shrugged, her face scrunching up convulsively.
His lips went into a thin flat line. "I think I'm gonna go now."
"You do that," she nodded resolutely. "And... good luck!"
He shot her a glare and left the practice shutting the door loudly behind him while Meredith broke into soft giggles.
UNDER THE NIGHT SKY
A deep calming breath. Derek stared at his reflection in the bathroom mirror, the bottle of shampoo in his hand, only a towel around his middle. He was feeling worse than before his first solo brain surgery. No joke, it was his hair on the line, his hair that was one of the biggest advantages of his physique. Not that he would be no one without it, but he certainly would be less himself. Not to mention that he would look ridiculous. The hair lessened the effect of his crooked nose.
He was just about to get into the bath and subject himself to the treatment when he caught a glimpse of Bert strolling along the corridor.
"Hey!" he shouted hurrying after him. "You are supposed to stay outside! How did you get in?"
He half dragged the dog downstairs muttering with annoyance, "You are not setting your paw into this house again, get it? And if you cost me one hair of my head, I will sell you to a Chinese restaurant!"
Bert growled at his empty threat and resisted being pushed out from the house with all his might. His paws scraped the deck of the porch as he tried to free himself from Derek's grip and sneak back in.
"Oh, no you're not!" huffed Derek. "Hey, stop!" he yelped shrilly as Bert started to pull at his towel, the only thing that kept him covered.
"Bert! Stop that now!" he gasped, struggling with the dog. "Sit, I said sit! I've been feeding you, you ingrate!"
The spaniel growled again through his teeth and tugged violently at the material, making it slip though Derek's fingers.
"No! No!" he gasped, breathing heavily and trying to gab the towel back but Bert ran away already carrying off his victory. "Bad dog!"
He had no intention of chasing the animal naked, it was just a towel anyway. Besides, he had more pressing matter on his head, literally. And at least, Bert was out of the house. He quickly turned back towards the door but a new jolt of panic shot through him. He pressed the handle but the door didn't open. It was locked. It must have automatically locked after he ran outside after Bert.
He gulped heavily, his pulse quickening in fear. And he thought he was in deep shit where he discovered he had parasites in his hair this morning. At the moment, he was naked and shut out of the house where he left his phone. He didn't know anyone in the vicinity and no one would help him anyway. And he still had parasites in his hair. Life just couldn't get any perfect. He bit himself in the tongue. He shouldn't be complaining. He had complained earlier and now he was paying for it.
UNDER THE NIGHT SKY
It was a slow day for Meredith. She had only one patient. It happened sometimes. They were days when she was on her feet non-stop and then dry spells when she was boring her brains out. There was even no Derek Shepherd around to irritate the crap out of her. A lazy grin spread on her face. Well, Derek Shepherd was probably busy with something else right now. That man just had a knack for trouble.
Her cell phone rang breaking the silence of her office.
"What's up, Miranda?"
"I think you should come here. There's a kind of situation."
"A kind of a situation?" repeated Meredith with a concerned frown. "Is it Tuck?"
"Nah. How to say it, it involves the wellbeing of the neighborhood."
Meredith sighed in understanding. "Let me guess, the situation involves the idiot from the house across the road from you, doesn't it?"
"I guess the word idiot sums it up just fine," said dryly Miranda.
"What did he do again? And why am I held responsible for his misdeeds?"
"Well, it's your fault he's here," Miranda said with blatant honesty.
"What? There's no one else that wants him gone as much as I do," she argued hotly. "And it's not my fault William chose him for his legacy!"
"True, but if it wasn't for you, the Shepherd guy would have been long gone."
"I don't know what you're talking about-"
"Oh, please," snorted Miranda. "Why do you think he's still here. For tourism? I don't think so. Just come over."
Before Meredith could respond in any way, she had disconnected.
UNDER THE NIGHT SKY
"So, I'm here. Where's the fire?" Meredith parked her jeep in front of Bailey's house and approached her friend who was waiting for her on the porch. "What did he do?"
"He locked himself out, I believe."
"What?" she gasped. "He locked himself out and I had to drive all the way down here to open the door for his majesty? And you're helping him? You should have told him to come to me for the key, not the other way round," she hissed.
"Well, that would be a problem," remarked lightly Miranda. "And I want that problem solved fast, like really fast."
"Why would that be a problem?" Meredith asked suspiciously, she knew well enough the disgruntled look Miranda was sporting had to be there for a reason.
"Go and see for yourself. Tell me when it's safe to go out," the short woman shrugged and disappeared into the house, all the blinds shut down.
Taking a long calming breath, Meredith quickly crossed the road and approached William's house. What did the idiot do now? He was just supposed to wash his hair. He was nowhere in sight but his dog was sitting on the paved way to the house, biting on a towel. Meredith frowned and stopped to look around for Derek.
"Shepherd?" she shouted. Silence. She went around the house. "Shepherd, I don't have time for this! I have the key, I can let you in the house!"
Okay, now he must have heard her. She was hollering. "Fine, asshole! I'm going back. And I'm not coming again for nothing!"
"Wait, wait!" came a muffled call. She turned around to notice him slowly peek out from a clamp of bushes.
What the fuck? "Are you playing hide and seek or what?" she asked, her eyebrow raised.
"Er, no... I've... I've had a little accident," he cleared his throat. Even from a certain distance, she could clearly see a wild blush appear on his face.
"Yeah, you're one big accident waiting to happen," she quipped sourly. "Get out from that bush, I'm gonna let you in."
"I... uhm... I..." he stammered.
"What?" she snapped.
He decided to cautiously come out of a bit more. "Can you just... can you unlock the door and leave it open for me? Please?"
She stared at him in disbelief. He was shirtless. He was almost begging. Derek Shepherd was begging her. She took a second look at him and the abandoned towel on the pavement suddenly made sense.
"You're naked, aren't you?" Meredith's voice was not at all harsh now. The corners of her lips started to twitch dangerously.
"This is not funny," he gritted through his teeth, his jaws clenching.
That was all it took to make Meredith double in laughter. "Oh, my God!" Her whole form shook violently as she was having fun at his expense. "You're unbelievable! And no, it's not a compliment!"
"I told you it was an accident!" he hissed. "I was trying to stop Bert... Okay, now, you've had your fun. Are you done?"
"No," she shook her head wiping the tears from the corners of her eyes. "Not even close!"
"You know, fine," he said, incredibly annoyed. "I don't care, I have nothing to be ashamed of. I'm coming out and you can open the door for me."
"No!" she squealed turning away from him. "Stay, stay! I'm gonna bring you something to... eh, cover yourself."
She was back in a flash. "It's the only thing I could find," she said throwing him another towel over the bushes.
"Thanks," he muttered wrapping the material around himself. "Everything else is in washing."
He finally walked from the trees with a deeply disgruntled expression, his pride in shreds.
She giggled again at his misfortunes. "You're lucky no one called the sheriff-"
"Meredith," he cut her across rather sharply. "This idiot here," he said pointing at himself, "he is really humiliated. I assure you he feels like a complete moron already."
"Sorry," she cleared her throat and took a closer look at him, feeling something similar to sympathy. It really wasn't a good day for him. First the hair, then this, and everything in front of her, practically his nemesis. "Have you... have you used the shampoo yet?"
"No," he replied sourly. "The damn dog made me chase him outside and... you know the rest."
"Okay," she hesitated for a fleeting moment but finally decided to throw the caution to the wind. "I'll help you out. Just wear something than can't slip down any moment."
"What?" he gaped at her as she followed him into the house.
"Go and get dressed, I'll be upstairs."
UNDER THE NIGHT SKY
"Meredith?" he eyed her suspiciously when he joined her in the bathroom.
"That's all you've got to wear?" she scoffed at him. Just a pair of boxers was hanging low on his hips. And that pair of boxers unfortunately didn't prevent her from getting an eyeful of his broad chest, tight abs, the biceps... and the muscular thighs. And, damn, judging by the front of his boxers, he wasn't lying when he told her he didn't have anything to be ashamed of.
"I said everything's in washing," he rolled his eyes. "What, haven't you ever see a naked guy?"
"Shut up, I'm doing you a favor, here," she admonished feeling a little hot in the face. She pointed at the stool sitting close to the sink and ordered, "Sit down."
With a highly puzzled face, he did as he was told. He wasn't going to stop her if she willingly subjected herself to his presence.
"Lean your head back," she said softly and guided his head with her hands on his neck. An involuntary shiver ran down his spine. Her delicate palms were touching his very skin, so close to his chest. He expected to feel the cold edge of the sink but she had spread a towel for his comfort.
"Close your eyes." Her voice was so smooth, so delicate right now. The last thing he gazed at before closing his lids were her emerald eyes. Beautiful, calm and attentive. "Just don't fall asleep. I don't think I would manage to catch you from falling to the floor and splitting your skull open."
"Mhm," he breathed out, feeling more and more relaxed. And excited. He could barely believe Meredith offered to do this for him. She presumably hated him.
"It's just water now," she said quietly and he felt warm water soak his hair down to his scalp and the side of his neck.
"The shampoo." She applied the silky liquid and massaged it into his black locks and down to the skin of his head. Derek had to stifle the moan of appreciation at her handwork. Her touch felt so good. It would be almost erotic if it wasn't for the unpleasant circumstances. He knew what he would be dreaming about that night.
"Are you okay?" she asked quietly. Her voice became so intimate and throaty when she was in a good mood.
"Oh, yea- I mean, yes," he cleared his throat.
She shampooed his scalp once more and then rinsed it abundantly. She turned the tap off but waited before giving him the towel. She combed his wet hair with his fingers. It was so thick and soft. No wonder he wasn't keen on shaving it down. His eyes were still closed, he seemed to be perfectly calm. Before she could realize what she was doing, her fingertips curiously traced a little scar on his forehead.
"That's why I don't ride motorbikes anymore," he said gently knowing she was hesitant with posing any questions.
"Oh," she breathed out and quickly took her hands away which made Derek finally open his eyes.
"Thank you," he smiled at her gratefully as she handed him a clean towel.
"You're welcome. You should repeat that just for precaution. You sure your... other hair's safe?" she smirked mischievously. "Because I won't go down there."
"Yes, I'm sure," he chuckled shaking his head.
Never say never. Meredith was a living proof of that.
UNDER THE NIGHT SKY
After he took a proper long shower and trotted downstairs, he noticed a stack of clothing on the table in the hall. Two pairs of t-shirts and jeans. It wasn't the clothing he usually wore but Meredith must have brought it from town and he was exponentially grateful for that. A laughter reached his ears from outside. He peered through the window to see her trying to keep Bert in a metal basin as she sprayed him with the water from the hose.
He quickly put on the new clothes and hurried out to help her. Maybe Bert knew what he was doing after all.