The Chief darted in front of the elevator doors, blocking Meredith from entering.
"Wait, um, wait. No. You uh, you can't take that one," he stalled.
"Why not?" Meredith asked.
"I said, don't take it," he ordered.
"I will take the elevator I want to take," she told him.
The Chief stayed in his position, clearing blocking her way, and she sighed, jabbing the button for the other elevator. The elevator next to the one Richard was blocking opened.
"Well, go on."
Meredith gave him a funny look, then stepped into the elevator. She glanced up and saw Derek.
"Hey!" he greeted. "Come on in."
He held up a document.
"This is a CT of Katie Bryce. 15 year old female severed aneurysm."
"From a fall during rhythmic gymnastics," Meredith replied. "I remember."
"It was the first surgery we ever scrubbed in together on right? Our first save," he said, then held up another photo. "Right here is a cerebral cyst. Tough save, but we did it. I kissed you in the stairwell after the surgery."
A smile slowly spread across Meredith's face as Derek continued, holding up different photos each time.
"And this right here is where Dr. Bailey kicked you out of the surgery because she caught us in your driveway in my car. And right here, this was a 7 hour craniotomy and you held the clamp the entire time, never flinched. That's when I knew you were going to be an incredible surgeon. Beth Monroe, made our clinical trial a success by surviving. You talked me into putting her under. That's when I knew I needed you. And this is today. The post op head CT of Izzie Stevens. See that, right there? Tumour free. Because of you. You got me into the OR. If there's a crisis you don't freeze. You move forward. You get the rest of us to move forward. Because you've seen worse. You've survived worse. And you know we'll survive too. You say you're dark and twisty. It's not a flaw. It's a strength. It makes you who you are. I'm not going to get down on one knee. I'm not going to ask a question."
There was a long pause.
"I love you Meredith Grey. And I want to spend the rest of my life with you."
"And I want to spend the rest of my life with you," she smiled.
Derek wrapped his arms around her, pulling her body against his. He grinned down at her and lay a kiss across her lips.