McDreamy will forever stay in Meredith's heart.
Warning: Do not proceed if you have not watched Thursday’s episode of Grey’s Anatomy.
More than a year after Derek Shepherd’s death on Grey’s Anatomy, his presence is still being felt.
Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) has a moment of vulnerability on Thursday’s episode, revealing in a touching moment with her potential new flame, Nathan Riggs (Martin Henderson), that she thinks about her late husband daily.
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“You ever have that dream? A miracle dream?” Riggs asks Meredith.
“I’d roll over in bed and there she was, asking me to go make coffee. So real,” Riggs continues, referencing his former love, Megan Hunt, who disappeared during a helicopter rescue. “And then I’d wake up.”
When Riggs asks Meredith if she ever thinks about something she knows will never happen, she adamantly denies ever having a “miracle dream” and leaves the scrub room.
Several moments pass before she returns to tell the truth, and it’s absolutely soul-crushing.
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“He knocks at the door,” admits Meredith, referring to her one true love, Derek, affectionately known as McDreamy. “Says he forgot his keys and says he’s sorry for being gone so long.”
Cue the tears.
Grey’s creator Shonda Rhimes, who was live-tweeting the episode, echoed MerDer fans’ sentiments following the heartbreaking moment.
“’He’s sorry for being gone so long,’” Rhimes tweeted. “This scene makes me cry. Every time.”
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"He's sorry for being gone so long." ...This scene makes me cry. Every time. #TrueLove #GreysAnatomy
— shonda rhimes (@shondarhimes) October 7, 2016
In April 2015, Derek -- played by Patrick Dempsey -- was killed off the show in dramatic fashion after he was hit by an oncoming semi-truck and improperly-trained doctors cost him his life.
"Derek Shepherd is and will always be an incredibly important character -- for Meredith, for me and for the fans. I absolutely never imagined saying goodbye to our 'McDreamy,'" Rhimes said in a statement at the time. "Patrick Dempsey's performance shaped Derek in a way that I know we both hope became a meaningful example -- happy, sad, romantic, painful and always true -- of what young women should demand from modern love. His loss will be felt by all.”
Grey’s Anatomy airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.
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