March 2003

Addison Shepherd waited impatiently for Mark to be finished his surgery. She needed to talk to him, to pour out what was on her mind.

Derek had become more and more distant lately and she had no idea what to do about it. She just wanted him to talk to her damn it, but he wouldn't. It was driving her crazy and Mark seemed to be the only person who understood. He'd always understood, maybe because he wasn't just Derek's best friend, he was hers as well.

Just then, a pretty blonde woman approached her, jolting her out of her reverie. "I'm looking for Dr. Mark Sloane." She said with a smile. "Do you know where I can find him?"

"He's in surgery." Addison told her, looking over the young woman. She didn't look like she was in need of Mark's services, but you never knew... Young woman were doing stupid things because of body image and society pressure every day. Still, the idea of the captivating young woman in front of her thinking she needed plastic surgery bothered Addison.

"I don't know whose idea it was for you to come here--your mother, your friends, your boyfriend, but whoever it was, you shouldn't listen to them." Addison told her, before she could stop herself. "You're a beautiful young woman and you don't need to change a thing."

She didn't know why she was saying it, she knew better than to interfere with Mark's patient, but there was just something about the girl...

The young woman looked surprised and then laughed. "You think I'm here to get plastic surgery?" She asked, sounding amused.

Addison was embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I just..."

"It's okay." The woman told her. "After all, I am looking for one of the best plastic surgeons in the country. It is natural, I suppose."

"Still, it wasn't my place to jump in like that and I'm sorry." Addison apologized. "I'm Addison."

The woman's face broke into a large smile. "Addison Shepherd? Mark's told me a lot about you. I'm Meredith."

Meredith, why did that name ring a bell in her mind?

"Merry, Addie!"

Addison turned at the sound of Mark Sloane's familiar voice. A smile flittered across her face as he came into view.

"My two favourite women together, what a wonderful sight." Mark said with a grin. "I see you two have met."

Now, Addison knew why the name had clicked and her smile faded a bit. Meredith, that was the name of the girl Mark had been telling her and Derek about, the medical student he had met a few months earlier and whom he had been seeing ever since.

Addison had been distinctly uncomfortable every time the girl was mentioned, because it just seemed different this time, like this wasn't just one of Mark's flings. He sounded almost serious about this girl and for some reason that really bugged Addison.

"We were just introducing ourselves." Meredith said with a smile.

Mark smiled in return and embraced her in a warm hug. "That's good."

Just then he noticed something in the distance and his grin widened. "Derek, over here!"

Addison stiffened slightly as her husband joined their little group.

"Derek, I'd like you to meet Meredith Grey." Mark introduced, wrapping his arm around Meredith's shoulder. "Merry, this is Derek Shepherd, my best friend."

Derek held out a hand to Meredith. "Nice to meet you, Mark's told me a lot about you."

Meredith beamed at him. "He's told me a lot about you as well." She turned to Addison, that warm smile on her face. "And you too, of course."

Addison smiled in return, but the smile was a little forced. There was something off-putting about watching Mark with this girl, the way he touched her and smiled at her. Mark had had lots of women, but this felt different and Addison wasn't sure she liked it...

It sort of reaffirmed her own opinion of marriage. She didn't think she was the marriage type. Hell, six months ago, she hadn't thought she was really the relationship type. She'd tried it once in college and it had been disastrous. A string of one-night stands and flings had suited her much better.

Or at least it had until the night she picked up a gorgeous plastic surgeon up in a bar in Boston and everything changed. It was supposed to be one night, but somehow it had become more than that. In four short months, Meredith had fallen pretty hard for Mark Sloane, harder than she thought possible and it scared her.

She was tempted to run away, yet, something always stopped her. The same something that had lead to her agreeing to come to New York to meet his best friends.

"So you're a medical student?" Derek asked her.

"Yes, I'm in my third year." Meredith confirmed. "I'm already thinking about my internship."

"Are you going to go surgical?" Derek asked, with a tone of what Meredith termed as "surgeon's arrogance", implying that anything else was subpar.

"Yes." Meredith said with a smile.

"Do you have any idea where you'll be doing your internship?" Addison asked. "Do you think you'll stay in Boston?"

"I'm not sure yet. I haven't really given location a lot of thought yet, I'm still going through all my options. Nothing really stands out yet." Meredith told her, pushing her hair back.

That wasn't entirely true. Mark had mentioned the possibility of New York to her a few times and her mother kept mentioning Seattle, as if for some unknown reason she actually wanted Meredith to come home. Meredith couldn't really understand why, it wasn't like they'd ever been even remotely close. No, she doubted she'd be going to Seattle, no matter how amazing a reputation Seattle Grace had, but New York might be a possibility... Depending how things went with Mark, of course.

"I've still got plenty of time, right?" Meredith asked with a smile.

"Of course." Addison told her. "What made you decide to go to medical school? I'm always curious about other people's motivations."

"It was like the first question she ever asked me." Mark confirmed with a grin.

Meredith shrugged. "I never wanted to be anything other than a surgeon. Maybe, it's because my mother was one and it occupied so much of her time, maybe that's where I got my initial fascination."

It was more than she normally revealed about her relationship with her mother, but it had just sort of slipped out. Mark squeezed her hand slightly, aware at least some of the back story there.

Derek paused and then looked at her. "Grey? Your mother's not the Ellis Grey, by any chance?"

"Yes, she is." Meredith said, forcing a bright smile. "The one and only."

Addison looked impressed. "I've met her a few times. Your mother's a legend. She must be thrilled that you're following in her footsteps."

Meredith had to refrain from laughing out loud. Thrilled? Ellis thought it was a horrible idea, but that was nothing new.

Luckily, Mark saw her expression and changed the subject to a case that he and Derek had been working together on.