Disclaimer: If I owned Grey's Anatomy… Well, lets just say Patrick wouldn't be with Jill.

She thought back to the words of her mother, the famous Ellis Grey, "Love is for the weak… if you want to get ahead, there isn't time for love, or any other kind of relationship. You won't last in this field." If only everyone else knew her as the estranged shrew she really was. Her life was the hospital and what little time she did spend with Meredith was horrid. She made Meredith worry about things a young girl shouldn't have to worry about. Fifteen years later, things still hadn't changed.

"Meredith Grey, I told you not to go to Dartmouth! It's too tough for you… first weak and you're too sick to go to school. When I went to that school, I went to class while I was running a 104 degree fever! You won't last, Meredith. I'd advise you to pick a profession more suitable for you… like a salesperson!"

She groaned at her mother's ability to make her feel incapable of doing things right. She was lying in bed with the flu; she couldn't get herself a glass of water, let alone go to hours of classes. "Okay mom, obviously calling you wasn't my brightest idea… I'll see if I can get someone else over."

"Don't burden other people, Meredith. They have lives that don't revolve around you. The sooner you learn that, the better." Her mother really wasn't personable, not even to her own daughter.

"Thanks mom, I'm sorry I'm such a burden. Goodbye." Sighing and slamming the phone down on the receiver, she decided never to talk to her mother again. Not like she was much of a mother, anyways. She then realized that everyone she knew had class so she closed her eyes and went off into a deep sleep.

She awoke to her roommate Cristina poking her on the arm. "Hello? Earth to Meredith. Okay seriously, wake up!" She then felt herself rollover. After what felt like minutes, she gained the strength to pull herself up.

"How long have I been out?" Meredith asked, curiously, stretching as much as possible.

"Well, lets see… since I got home yesterday!" There was a bit too much bitterness in the remark. "I couldn't watch TV because I was afraid I'd wake you up and for some odd reason, I felt slightly inclined to help. Embrace it, it won't happen again." Scooting Meredith over, she continued, "I think we should get you to the hospital and see what this is, though. I'd rather not catch it as I don't want to get behind in my studies."

"I just have the flu, it's fine."

"Nope, we are going to the hospital. Do you have a doctor here?" She asked as Meredith shook her head. "Ugh, alrighty, lets get you to urgent care." She began to pull her up.

"I don't think urgent care is necessary!" She said with resistance.

"Well you don't have a doctor here so yes, it is." She gave one final pull and Meredith was up, leaning against her shoulder.

They made their way to the hospital within 20 minutes, only because Cristina had a hard time carrying Meredith all the way to her car, which was inconveniently parked. The urgent care room was full of idiot college students who got hurt by one idiotic thing or another. Just another Friday night…

Two hours and too many complaints by Cristina later, they were in an exam room, waiting for the doctor to come in. "Can they take any longer?" Meredith came to the conclusion that Cristina was sarcastic by nature.

"It's a Friday night… We shouldn't have come!" Meredith moaned.

"I'm not risking getting sick less than a month into med school because my new roommate wouldn't go to the hospital!"

She was beginning to believe her mother when she said she was simply a burden to all. "I'm sorry, okay. Do you think I'm enjoying this?"

Cristina sighed and looked at her. She might actually like this girl. Her last roommate was so afraid of her, she wouldn't even look in her direction. She pretty much stood in her corner of the dorm and seized. This one had a little more spunk. She decided to leave the room and wait for Meredith in the waiting room.

The second their eyes met, it was as if thunder roared and earthquakes shook. It was well, intense. Her grey-green eyes met his electrifying blue ones and in that moment, the world stopped and there were two people left, for the first time in their lives, willing to explore love and nurture and hope.

It felt like forever before he was finally able to gain enough composure to speak. "Hello Ms. Grey. I'm Dr. Shepherd, what are you here for today?" He sighed; glad he was able to say that without jumping her bones. He had never lacked this much profession since he'd started this job. He wasn't a physician, but tonight the hospital called him begging him to come in because two doctors were out sick and one was on his honeymoon. Derek Shepherd was one of the best neurosurgeons there was. He was only 35 years old but he was better than most.

She began getting lost in his eyes again and finally replied with a mere, "flu." She was thankful Cristina had left at this point.

He smiled as he could tell he was making her fidgety. "Okay. It says here that your temperature is 104.5… That's awfully high." He sighed looking at the vulnerable look on her face. "So you go to Dartmouth?"

She finally began relaxing, "Yes, I do. First year of med school." For once she knew that line wouldn't help her get the guy as he was already a doctor.

"Oh, ouch. I was out for the second week of med school. Catching up is really no fun, I'm sorry." Usually, he wasn't this personable with his patients, but there was just something about her vulnerability that made him think it went beyond the sickness and he couldn't help but be intrigued by that.

"Yeah, I'm a little worried, but I'll just put a few extra hours in to get caught up fast." She looked down, knowing she was saying this to try to convince herself. Missing out in the beginning of med school was the worst thing a student could do.

"Ah, you'll be fine trust me. Med school isn't as bad as people say it is. So I can't help but wonder… but, uh. Well, your last name is Grey." He looked around the room, avoiding eye contact. When he looked to her though, instead of the annoyance he'd expected to find, her face flashed with pain and rejection.

"Yeah, Ellis Grey is my mother." She looked away from him, incapable of seeing his face light up after the discovery. Every being in the medical field worshiped the ground Ellis Grey walked on. Looking back to his face, she didn't sense excitement at all. Oddly enough, she had never seen the look on his face.

Within the next fifteen minutes, they concluded she had they flu, and she was instructed to take medicine to help lower the fever and drink lots of liquids. Derek had a hard time letting her walk out of the room without a number or anything, but that was part of the job, and he agreed to be a professional and help others to the best of his capability.

Five days later, Meredith was feeling much better. She had been lying in bed, watching TV for an entire week, getting in as much sleep as she could bear. The one constant thing flashing through her mind was him. She couldn't help but have flashes of his electrifying blue eyes, or his warm, inviting smile. She remembered the way his muscles pushed against his shirt in a way she'd never seen. She couldn't help but think of him and it was killing her. She decided to order a pizza and get started on making up work. She had emailed all of her teachers the previous day and asked for assignments and the previous lesson plans. She picked up the phone, ordered a chicken pizza, and curled up on the couch with her laptop.

Derek had just gotten off his 36 hour shit at the hospital. He got into his car and pulled out of the parking lot, pulling a small piece of paper with that somewhat messy handwriting only doctors could achieve out of the glove compartment. The light turned red and he began fiddling with the paper, obviously contemplating something continuously. He sighed and shoved the piece of paper in his shirt pocket and accelerated, as the light had gone green without him noticing. Thankfully, the road was virtually empty. All the college kids were out partying, or in studying. He finally reached his destination and sighed, leaning back into the seat. He hadn't a clue what force had driven him here, but he wasn't about to give up after all the emotions he had gone through on the way.

The doorbell rang and she quickly set the laptop down and jumped up, grabbing the $20 bill off the coffee table on her way. She pulled the door open, expecting to see the pizza man, but instead saw the image that had been going through her head too often lately. "Um hi?" She was very confused; she didn't normally have amazingly attractive men standing in her doorway.

"Hey. Um, I know this is odd and very unprofessional of me but well…" He stood there contemplating what to say. He knew saying "I haven't stopped thinking about you since the moment you left the office" wasn't adequate yet couldn't think of anything else. They both stood there silently.

Moments later, a man carrying a bag with a mouth-watering aroma entered the hallway and Derek moved aside.

"That will be $15, please." The guy said softly, obviously shy. He had very boyish, soft features.

Derek looked at the kid and almost laughed. The second that kid's eyes met Meredith's, his eyes shot down to the ground and he became a vulnerable looking child. He obviously didn't get many women.

Once the pizza-man left, Meredith stepped aside. "So Derek, are you hungry?" Smiles formed across both of their faces.