Chapter Text
Meredith looked around at her mother’s house. It looked cleaner than it had when she arrived, but otherwise it was still exactly the same and for one reason or another, she wanted to change it, change the memories she had from the five years she had lived there with both her parents. She was restless.
Sitting at home was slowly driving her crazy. She still felt quite some pain in her body after her dive into the harbor the week prior. However, generally, she felt better than she did a few days before, which wasn’t that difficult, seeing she had been clinically dead. It was mostly her ribs that weren’t healed yet and she still tired quite easily. That was probably why she hadn’t been cleared to go back to work yet after the ferry boat accident.
She knew they were extremely cautious, as she had flatlined for a long time and she couldn’t fault them for that. However, sitting alone in her mother’s house wasn’t doing wonders for her mind either. It allowed her to keep on mulling over things. Things she had done her best to push back to the corners of her mind.
The blonde had already begged Bailey and the chief for her to come back to work, even if it was in minimal shifts or to do scut, but they had refused. Thus she was cleaning her house once more, for the fourth time in a few days. The house had never looked better than it had that week. Usually it looked more like a frat house, especially with two housemates that also worked crazy hours. However it was probably cleaner than it had been in years. Meredith even couldn’t remember it being that clean when she had lived there with her mother and father.
Before she could start cleaning the imaginary specs of dust from the windows or counter tops once more, she got a call on her phone. Looking at the display, she was a bit surprised to see that it was actually chief Webber that was calling her.
Meredith hurriedly picked up the phone. “Good morning chief.” She greeted him, while she was also putting back her cleaning supplies, hoping he’d let her come back to work.
“Morning Grey. I was wondering if you would be interested in attending a medical conference for two weeks. That way Seattle Grace is adequately represented and you get to do your hours for your internship while still recuperating.” The chief suggested and while normally Meredith wouldn’t want to go to a conference, if it was choosing between a conference or sitting at home twiddling her thumbs, she knew her answer immediately. Especially since Bailey had told her she wouldn’t be allowed back for at least ten more days.
“I’ll do it chief, anything to not sit at home, watching the dust fall or the grass to grow.” Meredith immediately replied, a little bit excited that she’d be allowed to actually do something. She had probably answered a bit too enthusiastically, but she had even watched all of her mother’s old surgery tapes and that hadn’t helped to tame her boredom.
There was a small pause in the conversation that Meredith didn’t understand first. “I hope it’s not a problem that doctor Montgomery will also be attending the conference?”
That was the catch that Meredith was waiting for. She didn’t answer immediately, actually letting herself think about the added complication. To her surprise, she didn’t feel any dread or anything about the fact that she’d be spending two weeks with her ex-boyfriend’s ex-wife. “That won’t be a problem sir, if doctor Montgomery doesn’t oppose this?”
“She was the one that suggested asking you when the dilemma came up that we had to have two representatives at the conference. She was also asked at the last minute and we needed another doctor to join her.” This did surprise Meredith, as she had thought that Addison Montgomery wasn’t her biggest fan, especially seeing that Derek had chased her from the moment their divorce had been signed. Plus the neurosurgeon hadn’t even stopped flirting with her while he was still trying to make his marriage work.
“Then I see no problem in attending with doctor Montgomery sir. When do I have to leave and where is the conference?” She politely asked, hoping it was sooner rather than later.
“It starts tomorrow evening in Phoenix. There’s a flight this evening or tomorrow morning. You’ll just have to pick up some papers at the hospital before you leave and tell us which flight you want to take so we can book it.” As the chief was saying this, Meredith’s mind was already turning, glad that she’d be able to at least stimulate her mind while she couldn’t get back to work.
Then she thought about how to get there and the crappy place she’d have on the plane if she let the hospital book her a seat. It wouldn’t do her still healing body much good. “I’ll take the flight this evening chief, but I’ll book my own flight if that’s alright.”
She wasn’t surprised that Richard didn’t oppose this, as he knew more about her background than most in the hospital, or anyone for that matter as he had known her mother very well, better than she even wanted to think about. “The hotel will be to your liking and you’re in the same hotel the conference is organized at. However the rooms available are sometimes suites with separate bedrooms.”
“I’ll be fine Richard,” Meredith replied, failing to uphold the professional addressing she normally used. She had grown up with the man when she had been a small child, so sometimes she forgot to address him as the chief. At times, he had been there more than her own mother, even though they were both doing their residencies at the point.
As they finished their conversation, Meredith already started to think about what she should take with her for a two week conference, knowing that she’d have to follow it with none other than doctor Montgomery.
Looking through her closet, she decided to forgo her usual clothes and dug a little deeper to the back of her closet where her more upscale or tailored clothes hung. Grabbing her large suitcase, she started to carefully pack all the clothes she’d need as well as other utensils. It took her little over an hour and a half to make sure she hadn’t forgotten anything.
Once she was done with that, she took her phone so she could book her flight and then call a cab to bring her to the hospital. From there, she’d take the cab to the airport, so she wouldn’t have to park her car for two weeks at the airport, knowing it was an unnecessary and high cost. Plus finding actual parking space for that long wasn’t easy short notice.
Taking care of everything was a little bit taxing on her body, which also informed her that it was actually a good thing she wouldn’t have to work twelve or more hour shifts in the next two weeks. It would give her body the chance to hopefully fully recover. That way she’d be able to get back to her feet and when she returned, she’d be ready and not overdo her body.
Since the cab would only be there in an hour, as she’d otherwise be too early at the hospital and then airport, she grabbed something to eat and drink and went to rest a little before she’d leave. Her ribs were really bothering her, so even though she didn’t like taking pain medication, she took something, knowing she still had a plane ride to look forward to.
A bit more than an hour later, Meredith stood in front of the hospital, her suitcase in one hand, her hand luggage fastened on top of it. Making her way through the hospital, she saw a few doctors and nurses looking at her strangely, but she ignored them, knowing it could be because of multiple reasons they were looking at her like that. She had almost drowned not that long ago, her mother had died the same day, she was the dirty ex-mistress of doctor Shepherd or the fact that she was rolling a large suitcase with her. She wouldn’t break her head to try and figure out why they were watching her. She just let them stare, trying to keep her head up and show that she wasn’t bothered by it.
The chief had told her to meet him in his office, so once there, she announced herself to Patricia, his secretary, and then took a seat as she had been informed that he was still in a meeting. Even being in the hospital already made her relax, as it was a space she could truly relax. She blamed it on the fact that she had practically grown up in hospitals while her mother had been working.
Five minutes later, she saw the door open, with a suitcase coming out of it first followed by none other than doctor Montgomery. The redhead nodded towards Meredith and then looked at the suitcase that stood next to her. “Want to share a cab to the airport Grey?”
If Meredith was surprised by the offer, she didn’t show it on her face as she thought about the offer. It wouldn’t make sense to drive separately, especially seeing they were both ready to leave once Meredith had gotten all the papers.”I’d like that doctor Montgomery, thank you,” she replied and she saw some surprise flicker over the redhead’s face.
“I’ll call a cab and meet you out front in fifteen minutes,” the neonatal surgeon merely replied before she took her leave, walking gracefully in her high heels that made Meredith a bit jealous. She’d never be able to walk as elegantly as the older doctor and especially not with high heels. She’d sooner faceplant against the ground than walking a hundred yards with heels.
As doctor Montgomery left, Meredith could see the chief watching their interaction intently with an unreadable look on his face, before he waved her inside.
He motioned for her to sit down, which she did and then looked at him expectantly, knowing that if he had just wanted her to have all the documentation she’d need, he could have given them to doctor Montgomery. So she knew he had some questions for her and already steeled herself to answer them, or hear them in general.
“How are you doing Meredith?” He asked her and she couldn’t help but almost sigh. Ever since she had almost drowned, everybody walked on eggshells around her. She wished he’d just ask what he wanted to ask. “I’m fine doctor Webber, still recovering mostly from the CPR, but I’m getting there.”
She saw the chief droop a little before he rightened himself again, taking a deep breath and actually grabbing his desk, as if to get some extra support from it. “I’m glad to hear that and I’m sorry that I have to ask you this, but there are some questions about how you actually fell in the water and what happened next.”
Meredith should have realized that this was the reason she had been called in his office. “I was helping a patient that was laying at the edge of a steep docking point. When I started working on him, he wasn’t reacting and seemed unconscious. After a couple of minutes, he surprised me when he woke up, quite agitated. He managed to get up and in his agitation, he pushed me in the water as I had been close to the edge. I hadn’t expected this and the smack my body made with the ice cold water paralyzed me for a moment, especially seeing it was a fifteen or twenty feet drop. I remember that I went under and by the time I had been able to swim up again, my foot had gotten stuck.”
Taking a deep breath, because she could once again feel the panic she had felt at that moment. She had done her best that week to push it all out, but talking about it once again brought it back like it was just happening. “I tried to free my foot, but I couldn’t breath and it was so cold. I remember I kept trying, but it didn’t work. My limbs felt so heavy and sluggish, probably because of the cold water and I just couldn’t make them move correctly. The next thing I know, I woke up here in the hospital.”
Relief was evident on Richard’s face as she explained what happened. “I’m sorry I asked Meredith, I had just gotten a message from a worried doctor that feared something else had happened.”
“You mean that Derek told you he thought I actually wanted to drown myself on purpose.” Meredith told him like it was a fact and she knew she had guessed correctly when she saw him unconsciously already nodding. “He already accused me of this before I had even been released to go home. I had only woken up a few hours I think, since the first days were a bit hazy to be honest. I told him my foot had gotten stuck, but apparently he had never noticed why I couldn’t get it loose that easily.”
“I see, I’m glad this is cleared up then.” Richard merely said while he was frowning a little and Meredith was glad he didn’t ask any further. He held out a package for her which she accepted and placed inside her hand luggage, not wanting to lose the information she’d need for the conference. “I’ll see you in three weeks as you get a week free after the conference. Seeing it takes up quite a lot of your time. If you pass your examination by doctor Bailey, you can start working again after that.”
“Thank you doctor Webber, I’ll see you in three weeks.” Meredith replied, not bothering to try and convince him to let her start working immediately after the conference. She knew they’d all be very protective over her in the next foreseeable future and hoped it would quickly stop, especially if they saw she was actually ready when she started to work once again.
Grabbing her luggage, she made her way out of the chief’s office and started to walk towards the parking lot. She had already called Cristina, her person there at the hospital, while she had waited for her cab earlier, to inform her where she’d be going, getting quite the sympathetic reaction from the Asian woman. Her person knew that she was itching to get to work again, but Meredith was already glad she’d be able to do more than rewatch her mother’s tapes or try to cook and almost burn down her kitchen. She had been lucky since she had only barely managed to avoid having to call the fire department.
As she arrived at the parking lot, she already saw doctor Montgomery standing at the waiting area, watching as the cab driver put her luggage in the trunk. The OBGYN saw her approaching and nodded at her, already saying something towards the driver who had just finished with the redhead’s suitcases.
Immediately, the driver walked her way and took her suitcase as she neared the cab, only just giving her enough time to let her take her hand luggage, as she preferred to keep that with her.
Once they were both seated in the car, an uncomfortable tension was building a little between her and doctor Montgomery, as both women kept silent. Meredith had no idea what she should or could say towards the other doctor. The past few weeks, they had managed to work together without problems as the other doctor always was completely professional, but she hadn’t seen the other woman since she had taken a dive into the harbor.
The fifteen minute drive happened in complete silence and the driver kept looking at them in his rear view mirror but luckily didn’t mention anything. Meredith almost wanted to break the silence when Addison already held out the money to pay for the cab, but she knew it would be futile to try and pay herself or to pay half.
However as they stepped up to security, she realized the problem with having shared a cab with the other doctor. They had already checked in their suitcases and were by then in line to get through security. She cursed herself silently for not having foreseen this, but there was nothing she could do about it at that point.
She already took out the documents she’d need and as she walked up towards the security officer, she gave them to him which he promptly read and motioned for her to walk through the scanner after having given them back.
Not to her surprise, the alarms sounded, but she ignored them as did others as clearly the security officers weren’t surprised by this. She had gone through that process quite some times, so she was used to it by that point. However she couldn’t bear to look behind her where she knew the redheaded doctor was waiting to also go through security.
They asked her if she preferred to have the screening in private but she waved them off, not wanting to waste more time than necessary. So they started screening her with portable metal detectors and once that was done she had to roll up her pants a little and a part of the sleeve that always covered her leg.
Like she had expected, they swiped her leg as was standard procedure and once she got the all clear that there weren't any traces of explosives on her body she could walk through and collect her hand luggage once more.
Knowing that she couldn't evade doctor Montgomery in the next two weeks, she realized it would be better if she just waited for the other doctor and faced the questions that would come, as it would only become more uncomfortable if she avoided the neonatal surgeon while they waited for their flight. So she stopped where it was a bit calmer until the other doctor had gotten through security.
"Everything alright Grey?" The older woman questioned once she had reached her, a confused and questioning look on her face.
Meredith nodded. “Nothing I’m not used to,” she didn’t know if she should say more, but the other woman, to her relief, didn’t press for actual answers.
They walked in silence towards the waiting room and when Meredith merely followed Addison towards the lounge for first class travelers, the neonatal surgeon raised an eyebrow, but the blonde merely smiled cheekily, knowing that the attending didn’t expect her to follow. As their tickets were checked, the eyebrow rose even more into her red hair, but Meredith merely ignored it as she took place in a comfortable seat.
It was still a bit more than an hour and a half before their flight would start boarding, so she took a book from her bag and started reading so the tension would hopefully not be that palpable as in the cab.
She saw from the corner of her eye how the redhead took a lounge chair next to her, while throwing some looks towards her. It was almost ten minutes later that the surgeon actually spoke, her posture tense and her face an emotionless mask that gave her more away than anything else about how uncomfortable she felt. “What did Derek say about the fact that you were leaving so soon after…”
Addison left her sentence unfinished, but it was clear she had wanted to say after her near drowning. Meredith shrugged a little, knowing her mother would be rolling in her grave as she really couldn’t stand someone showing such unbecoming behavior. “I wouldn’t know, I only told Cristina I was leaving for two weeks.”
“Why didn’t you tell him? I thought you and Derek…” And once more the doctor didn’t finish her sentence, but once more Meredith knew perfectly well what the redhead meant and she only just managed to stop herself from flinching at the thought of the neurosurgeon.
“Derek and I aren’t together. He wanted to try again, but I didn't. After your divorce he kept on trying to date me, charming me with his stupid hair and smile so I'd change my mind. In hindsight, I’m especially glad that I rejected him as he actually accused me of drowning myself at the harbor. He didn’t even bother asking how I was and he did this during one of the first times I woke up afterwards. I told him to get lost once again and have thankfully not heard from him since then.” Meredith said, but she couldn’t keep the anger out of her voice at what Derek had done. Especially since that was definitely not the only reason she was pissed at the man, there was a quite long list at that moment already.
Seeing that Addison had a question on the tip of her tongue, Meredith merely decided to answer it herself, knowing the woman wanted to ask what had happened at the harbor that caused her to practically drown.
She rolled up her pants again and then removed the sleeve a little that covered her prosthetic leg. “I was knocked into the water and the shock of falling into the water immobilized me for a few moments, especially since it was at least a fifteen feet drop. During that time, I sank into the water and my leg became hooked around something, a cord I think. I couldn’t get it loose. The last thing I remember is not being able to keep my breath in anymore and my lungs filling with water that tasted horrible. The next thing I know, I wake up with Cristina announcing she is engaged to Burke.”
“Why didn’t you explain this to Derek?” Addison questioned and Meredith couldn’t help but be glad for the fact that the older woman had managed to control her reaction about her leg.
“Firstly, I don’t really think I owed him an explanation. However he didn’t let me when he accused me and during the short time we dated before you entered the picture, he apparently didn’t pay enough attention to actually find out about my leg, so…” Meredith shrugged, even though it hurt her ribs. “He doesn’t really pay much attention to anyone other than himself.”
She heard Addison let out a humorless chuckle. “I’m sorry, that was insensitive, but…”
“But he did the same to you in the last years of your marriage.” Meredith completed the sentence, knowing what had happened and knowing it to be true since she had experienced it herself.
Till that point, she still didn’t understand why she had started something with the neurosurgeon that has an ego bigger than his head, even if she hadn't known that he was married at that time.
After that, it was silent once more, both of them clearly at loss how to proceed in the conversation. It was only when their flight was called for first class boarding that they started moving again, both having been deep into thoughts.
It was of course their luck that they had their seats next to each other, which could make it all awkward again like it was in the waiting area. And it was, for the first half an hour until the plane took off.
“I’m sorry you know, for prom and everything else.” Meredith pointed out when she couldn’t stand the silence anymore.
Addison didn’t respond immediately and Meredith thought she actually wouldn’t. “I’m sorry too. I should have done a lot of things differently. And I’m sorry for how he treated you.”
At that, the youngest of the two couldn’t help but laugh. It took her a bit before she could control herself. “I’m sorry, but you shouldn’t be the one to apologize for how he acted. I just don’t understand how he didn’t see what he had and neglected you for years. I can understand finding your career important, but even my mother took the time to visit me once a year or two years, plus she sometimes made the time to call me on my birthdays and such.”
“Your relationship with your mother seemed as complicated as mine... I’m sorry for your loss, you know.” It was awkwardly said, not as eloquently as the doctor usually talked.
Talking with the ex-wife of her ex-boyfriend, Meredith realized she actually liked it and was starting to be glad that they were going to the conference together. Especially after the awkwardness had faded away. It actually almost made her want to talk about herself, since she felt like Addison wouldn’t judge her. Tell the redhead everything she had been hiding in Seattle Grace because she didn’t want to be treated even more differently. “How is your relationship with your mother complicated? If I can ask?”
“I call my mother Bizzy, if that doesn’t tell you enough…” Addison said with a small upcurve of her mouth. “She’s extremely demanding and me becoming a doctor wasn’t in the grand plan she had made at birth for me.”
“I’ve lived in Australia for four years because I wanted to get away from my mother, though she did visit three times during that time like I said. She always criticized the fact that I lived there and every life choice I made, but at least she tried.” Meredith replied, testing the waters a little to see how much she could say. Although she suspected that the neonatal surgeon didn’t talk that often about her family either.
“I never pegged you for an Aussie.” Addison pointed out and Meredith couldn’t help the smile on her face, mirroring that of the redhead.
Meredith merely smirked a little before she responded. “There are a lot of things most people don’t know about me to be honest.”
“Like?” Addison questioned and the blonde was surprised that she actually wanted to answer the woman even if she had the flitting thought already to talk about her life towards the woman.
“I went to medical school at the University of Harvard and graduated a year before I started my internship at Seattle Grace. I would have started my internship at Mayo, but I got in a car accident and lost my left lower leg, which caused me to not be able to start, but they reserved a spot for me this year. So I did my rehabilitation and then I traveled around in Europe a little as I needed some time for myself and then was called back to the States and then to Seattle because my mother had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.” Meredith said, enjoying seeing the widening of Addison’s eyes like she couldn’t believe everything the blonde was willing to tell her.
“That explains a few things,” the attending merely said and Meredith raised an eyebrow at that, having expected a more elaborate reaction. “Who knows about this?”
“Only the chief, other than that nobody knows. I didn’t really want to explain the few reasons why I’m actually older than most interns and surprisingly nobody actually ever asked. I’m not really that eager to tell them to be honest.” Meredith explained, feeling relieved to be able to talk about it after not saying anything for almost a year. “Most people just look at you with pity after finding out. Cristina knows about my leg, but she’s actually the only person. I don’t know how, but she actually cornered me during our first week of our internship about my leg. I just told her I lost my leg in an accident.”
“So you gave up a spot at Mayo to come back to Seattle for your mother who didn’t even appreciate you.” Addison pointed out, having put together what she hadn’t said, not going further on the topic of Meredith’s leg, something she still had trouble wrapping her head around. “I can’t believe nobody knows about this Grey.”
“You should call me Meredith, seeing that I’m spilling my darkest secrets to you.” Meredith replied with a dry chuckle, settling a little in her seat, feeling the last tension between the two of them bleed away. It was surprising seeing who they were towards each other, but it also felt surprisingly nice not to feel on edge all the time around the ex-wife of her ex-boyfriend while she was the ex-mistress of her ex-husband. It was a lot of exes and a bit confusing in her head, especially as the older woman didn’t blame her apparently, not even for prom, or so she said.
“Then call me Addison,” the redhead merely replied, also clearly a lot more at ease than when they had started on their trip.