Chapter 24

                                    

                                          
Trigger warning: sexual assault 
The cold hard truth.
Derek groaned as he sat up in the unfamiliar place, his head pounding and nausea settling in his stomach. It was still dark outside but there was a small kitchen light on, glowing the room softly. "What the-" he mumbled as he looked down, realising he was naked.
He shot up, stumbling to the rooms to check to see if there was a woman somewhere in this apartment but he breathed a sigh of relief when he found he was alone.
Despite the raging hangover, his mind instantly wandered to Meredith and he felt his chest ache. 
It's had been 5 weeks since their argument and they hadn't spoken since. Derek hadn't even bothered collecting anything other than his scrub cap and left Seattle as quickly as possible without looking back. He'd found himself in D.C, accepting the job offer as he boarded his plane without a second thought. He was heart broken and angry, and he needed to get away.
He sighed as he grabbed the can of beer on the coffee table of his new apartment and taking a big gulp. Whilst neurosurgeon Dr Derek Shepherd had his life together and thriving with the new brain-mapping project, Derek Shepherd was not. His nights were spent wasting away in front of trash tv and crates of beer; anything that helped him forget that he'd just abandoned his girlfriend across the country.
He switched on the TV and grabbed the half-eaten lucky charms, tossing them in his mouth one by one.
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Meanwhile Meredith was also spending her night drinking. Maybe not wallowing in depressing thoughts, but she certainly had her own way of handling things. "3 more shots, Joe!"
Since the morning of their argument, Meredith hand no choice but to accept that he was gone. She'd tried calling him, she visited his trailer, checked the ferryboats, but he'd really fallen off the face of the earth without a trace.
And she had no choice but to accept that because she now had a hospital to run. Every day she just wished Derek was there with her. She always loved Seattle, but it wasn't until he was gone that she realised that he was her reason to stick around. Seattle was Derek and Derek was Seattle, and neither felt like home without the other.
Tonight was her first night out since she landed the big job, and Lexie had to drag her away from the confines of her office to get her out with Jo and Izzie too.
"Hey there" she heard a man speak next to her and a hand settle on her lower back. She tensed a little as she looked over to see the tall guy next to her with light hair and a slightly crooked smile.
She smiled awkwardly. "Hi" she said quickly as she waited for her shots to be poured. "What brings the Chief of Surgery out on a Tuesday night?" The man tried to flirt but it only made her feel uncomfortable that he knew her.
"You are?" She trailed off, not really wanting to speak to him. "Nick, Dr Nick Marsh, I'm one of the temporary transplant surgeons you have in for the program" he explained. "oh right, sorry Dr Marsh, I'm still getting to know everyone" she said nervously.
Joe poured her drinks whilst Nick leaned against the bar, closer to her. "Tequila girl? That's pretty hardcore" he laughed as he watched her throw back one of her shots. She just smiled awkwardly. Please can you just go away.