A/N: I don't own them. And this is part 2 of the series. So go read the first part. It won't make too much sense if you don't. Just in case some people are feeling a little lazy...
RECAP: Derek and Addison did not reveal the details of their relationship when Addison first came to Seattle. Alex develeoped a little cute! crush on Addison, and they banter. Everyone plays poker. Addison told everyone that Mark Sloan was her husband. Callie and George are together, but they aren't really into each other. Izzie was feeling 'lonely'. Cristina had an abortion, and Meredith and Derek were together in happy land. And then-- Derek tells everyone that Addison is is wife.

Elizabethan Love: Taming of the Surgeon

Petruchio: Who knows not where a wasp does
wear his sting? In his tail.

Katharina: In his tongue.

Petruchio: Whose tongue?

Katharina: Yours, if you talk of tails: and so farewell.

Petruchio:What, with my tongue in your tail? Nay, come again,
Good Kate; I am a gentleman.

"Addison is my wife."

Derek's eyes rested on the floor, until they trailed up from the floor and cautiously met Meredith's. She was silent and scared, her breath caught in her throat.

Alex shook his head, "Not possible." He looked at Addison. "You're married to Mark Sloan. You said that." He laughed. "It's a joke." He touched Meredith on the arm. "Meredith. It's a joke. They're kidding."

Meredith didn't say anything, just stared at Derek.

Addison turned her body, and held on to one of Derek's arms. "Alex. It's not a joke. We're married." They looked like a married couple, although Addison's boxers and jacket didn't really match Derek's sweater and pants.

"He doesn't have a ring." Alex was desperately trying to prove them wrong. He wanted to hold on to the denial a little longer, but he had a sinking feeling in his stomach that she wasn't lying.

"It's at the trailer." Derek explained carefully, frozen in his steps. "Technically, we're separated, so I didn't wear it." Addison was relieved that he had kept it. She had been secretly afraid that he might have thrown it into a large body of water, or destroyed it somehow. She shot Derek a glance before locking eyes with Alex.

His eyes clouded, and he spoke firmly, "I don't believe this." His mind was literally rejecting the idea.

Derek and Addison stepped back a little.

Alex hesitated, and then fisted a hand in his hair. He decided that he'd better get out of there before his anger got the best of him. He left, slamming the door to the garage behind him.

They heard his car start, and speed off.

Meredith was standing, her arms crossed against her abdomen, and her eyes welling up. Derek winced; he hated to see her cry. He shook Addison off, and tried to put his arms around Meredith. "Shhh. I'm sorry. I should have told you."

"Get off." Meredith moved a little in his arms. "Get off. Get off. Get off." She repeated in a flat voice. She couldn't pull away from him. She could never voluntarily pull away from Derek. He was McDreamy. "Get off. Get off." He took the hint, and stepped backward.

Tears were streaming down her face, and she knew her skin was all splotchy. It was only now that she noticed Addison's beauty, when she felt like the ugliest, most worthless person in the world. She didn't realize it before, but with Addison's pretty hair, and soft features, she could easily be mistaken for a model. And well, Meredith was just...Meredith. Completely average in every way.

"How could you do this to me?" She had to know. Meredith had been royally screwed over by the person she trusted most. How could she have been so blinded by his charming personality and good looks? She wasn't like this; she hated those girls who let one man consume their lives. This was not her.

"I didn't want to hurt you." Derek gave her his puppy-dog eyes, and Meredith made a mental note not to let them affect her. "Please, Meredith. Believe me. I love you. Addison and I are separated. And I though she was leaving, and there was no point in telling you and getting you all upset."

Meredith turned away from him, walked to the doorway, and then stopped. "This is worse, Derek! You lied to me. I trusted you."

"Actually...I never lied to you." Derek was hoping to get off on a technicality, but he knew he was just digging a bigger hole for himself. He reasoned that it probably wouldn't get any worse. "I never said I wasn't married, and Addison is my friend."

Meredith whipped around. "Mark Sloan?!" Did he think she was stupid?

Derek pointed at Addison, who had backed away trying to give the couple some privacy. "That was all her! I never said anything."

Meredith rubbed her eyes with her palm. "It doesn't matter, Derek. Lying by omission is still lying!"

"I was doing it for you." Derek defended. He leaned against the counter, trying to give her some space.

Addison stood by, quietly witnessing their conversation, and hoping that no one would address her. She looked at the ceiling, pretending that she wasn't hanging on their every word.

Meredith waved her hands around in the air. "I thought we were getting serious! You opened up to me."

"I did!" Derek stressed. "I told you how I felt! Only...the, uh, details of the situation were never fully...made known."

"Meaning?" Meredith raised her eyes in anticipation. She wanted to know, she hated being kept in the dark.

Derek couldn't find his voice. He stuttered, "Sh-she didn't cheat on my best friend. She cheated on me." Derek shut his eyes a little, and when he looked back up, Meredith was staring at him, annoyed. "But you...got...that."

Meredith paused for a only second, and then took a step towards Addison. "You're an idiot." She looked between the two of them. "I can't believe you did this. It's insane. You guys...have problems." She hit Derek lightly on the arm. "You made me a mistress! I'm a slutty mistress."

"You're not slutty." He grabbed her hands. "I was completely committed to you the entire time. I haven't slept with anyone else since leaving New York."

"All mistresses are slutty!" Meredith was pacing the kitchen in circles now. "And I'm supposed to feel better because you remained faithful to your mistress?"

Addison bit down on her fingernail, and impusively tapped Meredith on the shoulder. "That's not exactly true." She was probably asking for trouble, but she needed to have it all out in the open.

"Addison..." Derek warned her. "Don't," he whispered.

"We have to. No more lying." Addison looked up at him with her serious eyes, and he groaned reluctantly. He kept his head down while Addison told Meredith calmly, "We kissed."

Meredith shook her head in disbelief, and pointed between them. "You two kissed?" They hated each other. It didn't seem feasible that they would want to express anything other than their mutual animosity.

Addison had tears in her eyes, but her skin remained clear, and she appeared elegantly tragic. "So, I kissed him. It's not a crime to kiss my husband." She needed to feel morally content with her decision. She needed to blame Meredith because she wasn't quite sure who the victim of this whole situation was. "But you slept with him! That's one of the ten amendments!"

"Comandments." Derek reminded her.

"Who's side are you on?" Addison snapped at him. If it wasn't for him, they wouldn't even be in this situation.

"Meredith's!" He exclaimed. "Was that not clear?" He turned back to Meredith. "It was a good-bye kiss!" Derek declared. Meredith looked as if she was about to storm out, but Derek stopped her. "She kissed me. I didn't do anything. Please."

Addison sighed. She supposed she should apologize. After all, she lied too. "Meredith..."

"No!" Meredith growled, and gripped the counter, facing Addison. "You're even worse than Derek! How can you lie to someone you don't even know? You have no idea how much this hurts." She ran her hands through her hair. "I know this is really stupid, but I had this little thing where I thought you could be with Alex, and I could be with Derek, and we would all be friends, and maybe something like a family. " She wanted to belong to a family so much, but now she would never have that chance. All of a sudden, she had to remind herself to breath. "Why didn't you just leave? You obviously don't give a shit about Alex, which is stupid because he likes you and he can be a decent guy when he wants to." Meredith took offense at the way Addison had treated Alex, especially now that she could see Addison's behavior in a different light.

"I don't know what to say, Meredith." Addison walked in an uncertain half-circle around the kitchen. "I was willing to come here and divorce Derek, but then I saw him," She paused, "and I remembered how much I love him." She smiled a little at Derek, and hoped Meredith wasn't really watching.

Meredith was angry at Derek, but she was at least willing to fight for her right to love him. "She's taking advantage of you! And Alex! Can't you see?" She flung her arms out to gesture to Addison, but her fingers were closer to Addison's face than she had though, and her nails scratched across Addison's cheek. Meredith stepped back, surprised by the tingle she felt in her fingertips.

Seriously? Addison held a hand to her burning skin. "Ouch." She winced, and looked at her hand. She was bleeding a little. "Did you just hit me?"

Meredith put a hand over her mouth. "I didn't mean to!"

Derek stopped her. "Meredith! I know you're angry, and you have every right to be, but that's not necessary."

"I didn't do it on purpose! I swear!" Meredith pushed the bangs out of her face, and stood on her tippy-toes to get a glimpse of Addison, but Derek was blocking her.

Derek smiled to himself and ruffled Meredith's hair. "Don't worry. I believe you."

"I can't believe you hit me." Addison pouted. Before, she hadn't thought Meredith had the guts.

Meredith's eyes softened at the small splotches of red on Addison's hand. It wasn't like Addison was bleeding perfusively, but there were a few red lines on her cheek from Meredith's nails. Finally, Meredith realized the absurdity of what had just happened. She accidently hit her superior, her boyfriend's wife, and her possibly soon-to-be boss. "Damn it. Sorry." Her face fell as she bolted out of the room to grab her jacket. "I'm going to work." Her hair fell into her face. "I can't deal with this right now. I've got to get out of here."

"No. Meredith!" Derek nearly tripped over himself trying to catch her.

"I really have to go. Now." Meredith pushed a chair in front of her to distance herself from him. "I probably won't see you at work today. So. Bye."

Derek fell on the chair, and sighed, defeated.

They sat across from each other at the table. Addison pressed a white paper towel to her cheek, and closed her eyes, sleepily.

Derek drummed his fingers on the table. "You shouldn't have done that."

Addison sighed wearily, and it wasn't even nine o'clock. "What?" She could feel a long, tiring conversation ahead of her, one she wasn't ready for. She stuck her fingertips into her hairline, rubbing the inevitable headache away.

"You shouldn't have told Meredith about the kiss. It wasn't necessary."

Addison opened her eyes, and saw him staring back at her. His cold eyes rested on an indefinable spot in front of her on the table. "She would have found out somehow, and then she would never have forgiven you. You only get one second chance."

"Well, now, I might not even get that!" Derek's fist hit the table. They were sitting so far apart that it didn't startle her.

She noticed that he was wearing a blue sweater, but she didn't recognize it. He must have bought it in Seattle to go along with his new life, and his new girlfriend. The life she wasn't apart of.

But she thought he looked attractive in blue.

She was still wearing Alex's jacket, and boxer shorts, which wasn't exactly sending Derek the message she wanted him to hear.

They were so far apart.

She moved to the chair closer to Derek, and he scooted away. "I thought it was nice. The kiss."

Derek scoffed and looked away. "It didn't mean anything. Just because I'm being nice to you doesn't mean I've forgiven you."

"You said that you had changed, that you were different, and I was the same." Addison wasn't about to be deterred by Derek's hurtful words. During the past couple days, she learned to live with it, and bounce back. Really, she was just ignoring him, but she told herself it was getting easier to hear these things from him. "I'm not the same. I'm not the same person I was in med school."

"Addison, you are exactly the same-"

"I'm not!" She insisted. "You just can't see it because you never spend any time with me."

"I wonder why?"

He was infuriating! "Derek..." she paused, "Don't you remember when we were a family?" She felt a special connection to him, one that was deepest and darkest love she ever felt. She was so afraid of losing him.

Derek was still turned away from her. He wouldn't look at her, and she was talking to his profile. He brushed a few crumbs off the table. "Yeah- until you slept with my best friend, and then, I didn't really feel like a family anymore." People who were in love didn't do that to each other.

She sighed, annoyed by the hint of sarcasm in his voice. "I don't know what you want me to say. I've apologized hundreds of times. I didn't mean to hurt you. That's the last thing I wanted. But you don't know what it felt like."

"I don't want to know what it felt like, Addison." He spoke angrily through his teeth. "Can we just stop talking about it?"

"Sure." She felt the tears that were to come in her sinuses, and the front of her cheekbones. She breathed a little harder, and she stopped. She didn't want to cry in front of him because she knew he wouldn't feel compelled to comfort her, and she didn't want to face that.

He turned around, and grabbed her chin. "Let me see your face."

"You can see it just fine." The paper towel was still over her cheek. She didn't want him to see it. He could easily point out her flaws without seeing the ugly red marks on her skin.

He grabbed the paper towel out of her hand. It rubbed against her skin a little.

"Ow."

"Sorry."

She was fine. Derek was sure that no one would even be able to see the scratches, with a little bit of makeup. "You're fine."

It was her turn to be sarcastic. "I know. Thanks."

"It wasn't a compliment." He went back to looking away.

It was impossible for him to be genuinely nice to her, without sucking up to Meredith. And now that went to hell, so she was just left with hostility. "We should probably get a divorce."

He took in a sharp breath, and then let it out. He was still, his hand resting on the table. "Yeah."

She didn't think he would actually agree. She entertwined her fingers tightly, and brought them up to her lips, almost like she was praying. She was glad he couldn't see her. Only a single tear rolled down her face, but it was all the more painful, burning into the sore skin. "Okay," she said shakily, almost whispering.

"Fine." There was a tight pain in his stomach, the kind he got when he was so nervous that he threw up. "I'll call our lawyer."

"It's all right." She took a gaspy breath. "I can do it."

"I'll do it." He was insistent. He wanted to make sure this was done, and done carefully.

Addison shook her head. "Why won't you look at me?" He heard a sob from her general direction, and he felt badly. He waited for a moment before slowly turning in his chair. She was facing him, with her arms stretched out on the table. Her eyes were red, and he almost forgot that she was the woman who cheated on him.

He used to enjoy looking at her. She was pretty, and who didn't like to look at pretty things? But she wasn't a thing, and she had the thoughts and dreams of a person, and those were beautiful too.

Now, his eyes barely focused on her for a second before spontaneously darting away. He really couldn't think of anything, except seeing her and Mark in bed together. He groaned. It got worse every time. He shut his eyes, only for a moment, but she noticed.

"You can't look at me, can you?" It made her want to crawl in bed, and sleep all day, just to forget how much he hated her.

"I can." He tried really hard, squinting at her a little. It worked. She was blurry, but he could look at her when he thought about how much she hurt when he wasn't looking at her. It was just hard to be with her alone, sometimes, but it was getting better.

She would take that. She would take anything that he could give her, along the lines of a relationship.

He even went as far to saying, "We could be friends." He thought it would make it less hard, because he wouldn't see her as a cheating wife, but as a friend who was simply making a mistake.

"I already drew up the divorce papers," she confessed. She wasn't sure if he would be angry or not.

He thought about it, and was sad for a second that she had thought about not being married before he did, but he got over it. It wasn't that big of a deal. "Oh, okay. I suppose I should thank you for not making me go through the trouble."

He was thanking her for drawing up divorce papers? Somthing didn't seem right. "We should be friends, though. After we get everything sorted out."

He clasped his hands together, and set them on the table next to hers. "So, where are the papers?"

"At my hotel room." She wanted to hold his hands, but she didn't think he would approve. "I haven't signed them yet, so..."

He was glad that she hadn't signed them. If she had, she would have been making the decision without him, and he liked to have his imput considered. Still, he was disappointed. He thought she had come to Seattle to make amends, and win him back. Maybe Karev actually had a shot.

No. Bad thoughts.

"So...are you going to bring them to work and we can sign them there?"

Addiosn acted surprised. It was awfully fast. Weren't they supposed to mourn or say one last goodbye to their marriage? It frightened her to think that they would never have another date, or make love again. She supposed that it wasn't appropriate, and that most soon-to-be couples wouldn't want to be around each other enough to have one last night together. Maybe the fact that she wanted to be around him was a sign that she shouldn't get divorced. But they had to. There was no other choice.

So they couldn't stay married, and they couldn't get divorced.

It didn't make any sense.

"I'll go and get them when I go home tonight. And we can sign them tomorrow." She wanted to tell them that she was probably going to love him forever, and that he'd better get used to it, regardless of his feelings for her. She decided to focus on moving on instead.

"You're not going back now?" He realized that he may have come off as anxious to get the divorce over with. This was probably the best attitude for them. They needed a clean break.

"Why would I?" She didn't want to get divorced right away. It seemed that the signing of their names was rather final.

"Are you wearing that to work?" He looked down at her attire.

She glanced down with him, and touched the edge of her boxers. "Oh. No. I can go get them." She hesitated. "Just to make it clear: I didn't sleep with Al- him. I mean, these are George's."

"Okay." He couldn't be anything but passive about this.

"I just didn't want you to think that I did. I haven't slept with anyone since Mark."

"Thanks, Addison." Was that supposed to make him feel better? He swallowed, as he realized she was trying to make the same argument that he had an hour earlier with Meredith.

When he looked away again, she grabbed his hand, and he turned his attention back to her, surprised. He jolted, but he didn't pull away. He told himself that he was just startled. She stared at him, her eyes wide, "I'm assuming Meredith was the only one. Right, Derek?"

He couldn't move. He didn't really want to tell her, but he supposed she had the right to know. "I don't think that's any-"

"Of my business?" Was her husband really trying to convince her the number of women he slept with wasn't any of her business? "It doesn't matter. We're getting a divorce anyway."

"She was the only one," he confessed.

Addison didn't know if this was a good or bad thing. She kept trying to convince herself that it didn't matter anymore.

He changed the subject. "Can you get the papers?"

She took a deep breath, and stood up. "Yeah."

They were going to get a divorce today.

Mrs. Phillips went into distress in the mid-afternoon. Addison had cringed throughout the entire surgery, as Alex had stood right beside her the entire time. She couldn't tell if he was mad or not.

He remained professional, only speaking about the surgery, not mentioning the previous events at all.

He was freaking her out. Were they just going to ignore the elephant in the room?

She stood over Mrs. Phillip's in a recovery room, checking on her vitals, and he was standing on the opposite side of the bed. He wasn't saying anything, just standing there and watching Mrs. Phillips. Like he was supposed to.

After a unimaginably long fifteen minutes of making quiet, insignificant conversation, she decided she should leave. They weren't going to get anything accomplished if he didn't have anything to say.

It was disappointing that he didn't actually care. Maybe she had lost the right to be disappointed, after she had lied to him and all.

She was about to put away the chart and leave, when he said, "I suppose I shouldn't be mad at you."

She turned around slowly. "What?"

He smiled that cocky smile of his, and placed his hands on the bed. "Well, I guess you warned me, so I shouldn't be mad."

She set the chart down on the bed cautiously. "I did warn you..." Was he seriously going to give her a free pass on this one? "What do you mean?"

"I'm not saying that I wasn't shocked out of my mind. But after thinking about it," And punching a locker... "I figured that I probably should cut you some slack." He added, "And it would be easier to go up against Shepherd, than Mark Sloan."

"Thanks." Addison smiled.

He shook his head. "Sorry. I probably shouldn't have said that."

"It's okay." She didn't care if he called Derek names, or even hit on her. She was just glad he wasn't yelling. It was nice to know that someone was actually thinking about her.

He stood there honestly, without shading his eyes or looking away. "No. I didn't mean to lead you on. I wanted to tell you that his whole thing- relationship- whatever, it's over."

It was her turn to be startled. So he wasn't thinking about her. What happened to his drive, his desire for her? He had been so stubborn, and now, nothing? "Oh. You don't want to see me anymore?" He was just like Mark Sloan. Never truly committed. She almost thought he had wanted to be with her. Thank God she missed that mine field of a relationship.

"Oh, no. We can still talk at work and stuff. I just don't feel that way about you anymore." He was lying, of course. But it was always better to reject than be rejected, he thought.

She considered telling him about the divorce papers in her locker, but, in the end, decided against it. She didn't want to put him in an uncomfortable position.

"Can I just ask you one thing?" His hands were placed awkwardly on his hips, like he was trying to be strong, but it wasn't working out too well. His eyes did the squinty thing, and the wrinkles by his eyes became more prominent.

She sucked in a breath. "Sure."

"Why are you still with him? He's your husband, and he hurt you."

So, he did still care. It was a nice thought, Addison decided. Even if they couldn't be together, it was a nice thought. "I guess the good times in the beginning were enough to hold on to." She patted him on the shoulder. "But they're not anymore, and I know that. We're going to change. Even if it means that our marriage fails."

Truth be told, he was a little confused. Obviously, Addiosn liked to talk in puzzles that made no sense at all. "Well, okay. Thanks for clearing that up." He laughed in his head at his quick-witted sarcasm, but she thought he was completely serious.

She picked the chart back up. "So...I'll talk to you later."

He nodded, "Okay." When she was out of the room, he let out a large sigh.

"A married woman, Dr. Karev?" Mrs. Phillips slowly opened her eyes. She didn't look happy.

"We're not together." He muttered. He really didn't have the time to be compassionate with his patients right now. He had to move on. He needed a beautiful woman now.

"Listen to me." Her voice was soft and cold. "If she has a chance at saving her marriage, you can't change her mind. Trust me. I have experience with this sort of situation."

Alex smiled mockingly. "I'm sure you do." He started to leave.

"Dr. Karev."

He turned around impatiently. "What?"

"Please let her stay with her husband. She needs to, if there's a possiblity that her marriage could work out. There's too many marriages that fail to waste an opportunity like this." Mrs. Phillips eyes were wistful, and she clung to the blanket. "Please. There needs to be hope for the rest of us."

He grabbed the railing of her bed. "I wasn't going after her anyway, so mind your own business!" He started to walk away. "Your babies are fine, by the way."

She didn't even care enough to ask.

Cristina was sitting in an on-call bed when Meredith finally found her, tired and weary-eyed. She took off her lab coat and sat down next to Cristina. "You will not believe the day I just had."

Cristina didn't say anything, but just watched her.

"Derek is married." She kept talking. "He's married to ADDISON. And it's killing me."

Cristina looked at her, puzzled. "I don't know who Addison is."

"Well, she used to be Alex's person, but now..." Meredith shook her head. "...it doesn't matter. She's just pretty much perfect, and she's married to Derek. I don't know what I'm going to do. I thought I was going to marry him, Cristina."

Cristina was trying her best to be supportive. She really was. "So marry a different guy."

"He liked me for my personality! Guys don't just like me because of me. They like me because I can pound just as many tequila shots as them, and then have hot dirty sex with them. That is why guys like me."

"But McDreamy was different."

"He was! He loved me!" Meredith crossed her arms. "I can't go back to him, but I still love him, despite everything. What am I supposed to do?" She sat cross-legged on the bed, across from Cristina.

"Screw another slutty boy."

"What is with you today? You're unusually bitter, even for you."

Cristina took a deep breath. "I had an abortion."

Meredith resisted the urge to drop her mouth open, and explode into some kind of lecture about responsibility. Then, she resisted the urge to full-out police station interrogate Cristina on her well-being, and other details (the identity of the father included, of course). She calmed down for a good minute, and then wrapped her arms around Cristina. "Does anything hurt?"

Cristina was very stiff. She shook her head.

They laid down, and fell asleep, feeling like they both belonged to something.

A/N: I'm not entirely happy with this chapter. I think it's a little boring, because, basically you've already seen it already. Hopefully, I put enough of a twist on it to make it better.

Next chapter, it really starts to get different. I don't want to give anything away, but in the next few chapters, some of the guest stars pop up in weird places. And it's like, "Oh! I wonder what would happen if we put this person here, and said 'Go!'" Yeah, that makes no sense, but it's really fun anyway.

I want to tell you more so badly, but I'm restraining myself, so you can be surprised when the actual chapter comes. I'm excited, if you can't tell.

Thanks for the BEST reviews ever. Seriously. Let's see if you can top yourselves. I know you can do it!