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Meredith’s mouth dropped in astonishment. “Oh my God,” she whispered to herself, turning her face away from the man she had loved so many years ago.
“Everything okay?” Derek asked nudging her.
She turned around, giving him her sweetest smile. “Of course,” she beamed. “I’m just happy for Alex; it’s great he’s getting married.”
“I know,” he grinned grabbing her hand.
She tangled her fingers with his, but refused to look up. If Mark ever saw her, especially like this, everything would be so much more complicated than it needed to be.
“Oh Mark, I cannot believe your cousin is married to that handsome man!” an older lady exclaimed.
Meredith slowly inched her head towards the voices and tried her best to hear the conversation.
“I know, I remember changing Izzie’s diapers. It’s crazy,” Mark smiled shaking his head.
“Cousin?” Meredith mouthed, her eye brows furrowed. There was no way Mark Sloan could have been Izzie’s cousin! She had been to every family function involving Izzie and Alex, and not once had she seen him!
“How about you Mark?” the lady continued. “When are you getting married?”
“Addison and I were thinking the fourth,” he replied instantly.
Meredith gasped, clasping a hand over her mouth.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Derek leaned in concerned.
“Of course, I just need some…fresh air,” she shrugged, taking great care in covering her face with her long hair.
“Mer…we’re outside,” he said bluntly, a smile playing on his lips.
“Oh…” Great, Meredith, just perfect. “Right.”
“And who is that handsome man?” the old lady questioned, tilting her head towards Derek. “Are you another cousin?”
Oh shit.
“Me?” Derek asked, pointing to himself. “Oh no, I’m just hear with my-“
“DOG!” Meredith screamed, her back still facing Mark. “Look, there’s a dog.”
“What?” Derek asked, turning around. “I don’t see anything.”
“Oh great, let’s go.” She grabbed his hand and dragged him out of his seat.
“What the hell are you doing?” Derek said flabbergasted. “That woman was asking me a question!”
“SHHH!” she warned.
“What is going on?” He stopped, his feet digging into the soft sand.
She closed her eyes, hoping desperately no one was witnessing the spectacle she was creating. “I just, we just, let’s just go.”
“Meredith,” he said firmly, forcing her to turn around. “What is going on?”
She looked down, twisting a piece of hair in her fingers. What kind of lie could I use? “Uhm, you see…I just realized, watching this wedding, that uhm…I want to get married soon.”
Derek’s eyes grew wide. “You do? I thought you wanted to wait a year.”
“I did,” she blurted out. “But maybe we could push it forward, you know?”
“Uhm…okay? If that’s what you want…”
“Great! Now can we please go?” she pressured, knowing that she would soon be caught…
“Meredith?” Mark asked, sneaking up behind Derek
Oh this is just perfect.
She looked up, letting out a small smile. “Hi…Mark.”
“Oh my God,” he breathed, completely taken back. “Wow, I can’t believe I’m seeing you.”
“Small world huh?” she laughed nervously.
Derek cleared his throat, staring between the two.
“Oh right,” Meredith blinked, never taking her eyes off of Mark. “This is Derek…”
“Her fiancée,” he finished, shaking Mark’s hand firmly.
“Oh, you’re…engaged,” he nodded in complete shock.
“Yeah,” Derek continued, “We’ve been dating for 3 years.”
Mark was about to speak until a very tall, very beautiful red haired woman slipped her arm around his waist and smiled. “Hi, I’m Addison.”
“Oh yeah,” Mark stuttered, still gaping at Meredith. “This is Addison…my fiancée.”
“So you’re getting married too?” Meredith asked, a stinging pain running through her veins. “That’s great.”
“Yep,” he nodded, looking around him. “Well this is awkward…”
“Yeah,” Meredith agreed, “Is there a bar around here?”
“Oh right over there!” Addison beamed, snuggling closer to Mark.
“Thanks,” Meredith replied coldly, turning towards the bar.
Derek caught up with her and inquired, “Who was that?”
“Just a guy…he was a friend 10 years ago.”
She quickly poured herself a glass of wine and downed it in no time. “Isn’t it funny?” she laughed, drinking another glass, “I mean, like, you never expect to see a person 10 years later!”
“Right,” he nodded, taking the cup away from her. “Don’t get drunk; seriously, Alex would hate you forever.”
“No he wouldn’t,” she stated taking the glass right back. “He’s fine with me getting drunk.”
“Well I’m not. Come on, what’s so bad about meeting an old friend?”
The glass was cold against her bare hands. A chilly wind ripped through the beach, causing the grains of sands to swirl around them. She shivered, slowly putting down the wine. It wasn’t worth it. “You’re right, it’s not bad.”
“Good.” He wrapped his arms around hers and kissed the top of her head. “Now let’s get to that reception.”
“Okay,” she sighed, looking back at Mark who was already returning the gaze.
“I’m fine,” he replied, looking around the crowded ballroom. He hadn’t seen Meredith since they last spoke on the beach, and he still could not believe their paths had crossed again.
“You don’t know what you’re missing.” She took a long, drawn out bite of the strawberry and quickly licked her fingers. “We are so having a chocolate fountain at our wedding.”
“Okay,” he responded, not paying any attention to his girlfriend. He wanted to, but that image of her, of Meredith, was still planted in his mind, refusing to go away.
“Are you okay?” she asked, wiping away the chocolate stains on her cherry lips. “You’ve been so out of it.”
“I’m okay, just tired,” he shrugged, tracing his fingers along the thin cloth resting on the table.
“Who was that girl earlier?” Addison asked nonchalantly, her eyes penetrating towards him.
“What?” he questioned, facing her for the first time. “Meredith? She’s, she’s no one.”
“Didn’t seem like no one,” she responded, shaking her head annoyed.
“Well it was!” he defended himself, taking another shot glass from a passing waiter. “She was just a friend from 10 years ago.”
“Right…well she seems sweet,” she stated coolly, reaching for another strawberry.
“Hey guys are you enjoying the party?!” Izzie exclaimed, popping up behind Mark.
“Definitely,” he replied, hugging his cousin. “Congratulations!”
“I can’t even believe it! I mean look at this ring!” She flashed a huge diamond square cut ring in his face, squealing the entire time. “Isn’t it gorgeous?!”
“Oh my gosh!” Addison grinned, taking her hand. “Iz, it’s wonderful.”
“I know!” she laughed, “Oh and before I forget, Dr. Rosenberg wanted to talk to you.”
“Oh man!” Addison groaned. “He wants me to do some consult. I’ll be right back.” She quickly kissed Mark’s cheek then disappeared in the swarm of guests and photographers.
“It’s really pretty Izzie,” Mark smiled, sipping on his tequila. “But I need to ask you something.”
“Okay, shoot.”
“How do you know Meredith Grey?”
“She’s Alex’s friend,” Izzie replied, sticking a few marshmallows into her purse. “But she’s really nice. You would like her.”
“No kidding,” he mumbled. “Well, like I said, congrats.”
“Thanks big cousin,” she mocked, playfully pushing him. “I just can’t wait to come to you and Addison’s wedding!”
“Oh yeah, that should be fun,” he said sarcastically, downing the rest of his shot.
“You don’t seem that enthused?”
“She’s taking over everything!” he exclaimed reaching for another glass. “I can’t have one say…”
“Aw, well I’m sure she’ll let you if you just ask…”
“Doubt it,” he murmured, “But this is your day. Go have fun.”
“Okay, okay,” she rolled her eyes. “But remember, your saying that speech thingy.”
“Already covered,” he assured her, tapping at his pocket. “Wrote it last night.”
“Great!” She gave him the thumbs up before ducking into the crowd.
“Yup, great,” he breathed, staring into his empty glass.
“Some party huh?” Derek asked, planting a hand on Mark’s shoulder as he rounded towards the fountain.
“Oh,” Mark jumped surprised. “Didn’t see you there.”
“I had to check out this thing,” he teased, sticking a finger into the drizzling chocolate. “So how do you know Meredith again?” he asked, sucking the sweet chocolate off his finger.
“Oh uhm…we were sort of friends I guess…” he cleared his throat, all those amazing memories coming back to him.
“10 years ago?”
“Yeah, 10 years ago,” he clarified. “She’s, well, you’re lucky.”
“I am,” he agreed, though something was off. “Are you sure you guys were just friends?”
Mark looked up, not sure how to respond. “Uhm yeah…just friends.”
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