Epsilon Timeline
Author: Krys Yuy
Summary: Completed for 1sentence at LiveJournal, epsilon theme set. 50 sentences on how Derek and Casey fall in love, drift apart, and ultimately, find their way back to each other.
Pairing/Characters: Derek Venturi/Casey MacDonald
Rating: K – T
Disclaimer: I own none of the characters used.
Author's Note: My first Life with Derek fanfiction – as such, possible OOCness, especially regarding Derek. I basically abuse the use of commas, 'and's, 'but's, semi-colons, hyphens, etc. Written in present tense because I felt like it. And despite there being no requirements that they relate to each other, I actually have somewhat of a plot going on. I'm considering turning this into a full-fledged fic since I'm so into Dasey at the moment, but we'll see. Some of these are overly sappy, but what can I say? I love the fluff as much as I love the angst.
02 :: Cool
Derek is the epitome of cool at their school, and though he aggravates her twenty-four/seven, she can't help but wish sometimes that she were just a little bit more like him, willing to break the rules and damn the consequences.
10 :: Learn
He doesn't say anything, but when his father mentions that his teacher called about an improvement in his grades, his eyes immediately dart to Casey sitting on the couch, glad that she's too far away to hear because he wouldn't want her to think he's actually learning a thing or two from her.
32 :: Eye
Derek's eye is swollen shut from a particularly nasty check at hockey practice, and he's kidding when he tells Casey cheekily – "kiss it and make it better" – but when she actually reaches over to do just that, he feels something in their hate relationship shift.
41 :: Power
She bet he'd never thought she would actually do as he told her to; for once, she wants to be able to throw him off balance, but when she kisses his eyelid, a bit more gently than intended, she feels a pleasant shock to her system and her plan backfires as she finds him with more power over her than ever before.
44 :: Wall
The next morning Derek encounters Casey, he tries for a standard sarcastic remark, only to find her completely ignoring him, and he wonders why it bothers him because hasn't he always wished for her to just be quiet?
42 :: Bother
For some inexplicable reason, he knows just the right buttons to push, but no matter how much he gets on her nerves, she can't talk to him because she's afraid the feelings from the night before will come rushing back, and she can't have it happen again – she just can't.
34 :: Sing
Derek's voice had never been the best, but when Casey catches him singing a lullaby to Marti, she watches quietly from the doorway and thinks maybe all he needs is a little practice.
46 :: Drive
"Why are you avoiding me?" he finally asks, and her stubbornness only drives him forward as he cups her chin, forcing her to look at him – "Afraid you found something you like?"
16 :: Need
Casey draws in a deep shuddering breath as it's the first time he's touched her in days, and she's overwhelmed by the impulsive need that shoots through her body, and her terror at what that implies makes her flinch away.
33 :: Never
"Hell would freeze over before I could ever consider dating someone like you!" Casey exclaims, and almost takes back her words when, instead of a scathing reply, the light in Derek's eyes dull and he seems to shrink into himself.
35 :: Sudden
But then he recovers in an instant – "Get over yourself Klutzilla, do you know what would happen to my reputation if I dated a keener like you?" – and then the killing blow – "You're not even worth a second glance, so don't think too highly of yourself."
08 :: Thousand
Out of the thousand things he could say, she wonders how he always knows the exact ones that hurt her the most.
47 :: Harm
The words leave his mouth so easily, and he thinks he can't hate himself more than he does in that moment, but the look Casey gives him then cuts deeper than anything she could have possibly said.
31 :: Book
She is speechless when he hands her a book she had been eyeing but never had the time or money to buy, and even more shocked when he mumbles an "I'm sorry", darting up the stairs before she can say anything.
24 :: Now
Casey decides it's now or never to confront whatever's happening between them, and she tries to stop her trembling as she knocks, ignoring the way his "come in" makes her fidget nervously, and turns the knob to enter his room.
40 :: History
"I don't know what's going on, but this has to stop! This thing between us, it's – we hate each other, Derek! It would never work and I –"
11 :: Blur
He can't stop himself from stepping over the line, blurring everything they ever knew as he takes her into his arms and kisses her with all the passion and frustration of the past week, and something deep inside unclenches when she begins to kiss him back.
12 :: Wait
Derek Venturi waits for nobody, they always wait for him; at least, that's how it was before he shows up an hour early in anticipation for his first date with Casey.
06 :: Gentle
Casey remembers when he had let her fall off the couch in favor of the remote control, and tries to see that Derek in the one who is now keeping her from stumbling across the skating rink, his grip on her waist firm and comfortable, and his touch so gentle that she is sure she's dreaming.
03 :: Young
He pelts her with a snowball and she swears she'll get him back, but she can't stop laughing and – oh god – when was the last time she felt her age?
05 :: Wrong
Everything about this is wrong, he's her stepbrother and what would their parents think, what would people say – she is tempted to break it off so many times, but he only has to remind her with a mind-bending kiss that why, if it's supposed to be wrong, does it feel so right?
38 :: Wash
He knows she's insecure when it comes to their relationship, and when she's below him, trembling and waiting in anticipation and fear of disappointing him – fear of not living up to the girls that had come before – he wishes he could wash memories of them away, so she could be his first (his only), just like he is now hers.
01 :: Motion
Derek has always loved the rough, aggressive movement of hockey, and finds he likes even the motion of Casey's graceful dances, but what he's come to crave more than anything else is how Casey quivers and moans when at his mercy.
15 :: Hold
They develop a routine when the family is out – Derek lies in his favorite chair and Casey curls into his lap without so much as a word, and when he starts to play with the ends of her hair, she hides her smile as she tucks her head under his chin.
14 :: Command
Derek shivers as Casey's hand brushes the back of his neck as she passes the couch, and when she sits across from him, arching an eyebrow in challenge, he commands his body to sit still instead of what he really wants to do, cursing that his dad and Nora are at the dinner table.
50 :: Believe
Being the hopeless romantic she is, it's quiet times like these – when Derek kisses her temple for no reason at all and she runs her fingers through his hair idly – that she likes to believe that maybe, just maybe, this will last.
20 :: Picture
Derek never tells her that his favorite picture of them is one he commandeers from Lizzie and Edwin – he is playing with her hair, laughing, while her eyes are turned towards him with the softest look – and he imagines it to be love.
23 :: Child
One day Casey finds herself daydreaming about a rowdy little boy so very much like Derek, matching smirk and all, but when she pictures him with her eyes, it is then she realizes she might want to be more than just a secret.
36 :: Stop
Casey looks for him everywhere at school the next day, still a bit in awe over her revelation, yet she can't wait to tell him; it's as if every part of her wants to shout it out, but when she walks into his science class after break, everything stops – and then shatters around her.
13 :: Change
Derek is terrified at the intensity of his feelings, at how much of him has changed since he and Casey started whatever it is they have, and the fear and uncertainty keeps him from stopping his own self-destruction as an ex-girlfriend pulls him close.
39 :: Torn
He pounds against the door, begging her to let him in, and Casey is torn between anger and forgiveness – the image of him and Kendra kissing in an empty classroom burning the back of her eyelids.
27 :: Hide
All Casey does is hide out in her room the next day, unsure if she can bear to hear the answer to the question she had spoken aloud, but he had never gotten the chance to reply to: Am I really what you want?
22 :: Mad
Casey knows this would have happened sooner or later, and she's so mad that he made her care, he made her lo– it's all his fault and she hates him, but she's more furious at herself for ever believing he wanted only her.
21 :: Fool
Sometimes when he looks at her, he imagines her standing across from him at an altar, but the moment is broken when she glares at him with hurt and betrayal, and he realizes once again that he lost the best thing that had ever happened to him.
19 :: Soul
She hates that she's desperate for him after what he's done, and she tries so hard to ignore the glances he sends her way because it hurts her heart - her soul, and decides she only has one option if she wants to keep her sanity.
18 :: Attention
He finds out where she's going to college and runs to his room, slamming the door shut and slumping against it, suddenly very afraid and aware that this just might be the end.
26 :: Goodbye
Derek is the last one to say goodbye as her flight number is called, and all she wants is one word – stay – but he remains heartbreakingly silent, giving her a stranger's kind of hug before stepping back, and all she can do then is walk away.
30 :: Ghost
He shoots up in bed, hands shaky and breathing heavy – it is not the first time he's reached out for her when she isn't there, and he thinks he'll go crazy with only the ghost of her touch in his dreams.
25 :: Shadow
Casey bursts into tears because even thousands of miles away, the shadow of him is everywhere and she can't escape, can't move on – she had wanted to stay, but he said nothing – and she doesn't want to remember because remembering only makes her miss him and she doesn't miss him.
07 :: One
He didn't want to consider the fact that she was it for him, but after a string of failed dates and unsuccessful attempts at relationships, he knows she's the only one for him (he's always known) and vows to get her back.
37 :: Time
Derek knows a year must have changed everything, but when he spots her across campus, it's like he's fifteen all over again and seeing Casey for the first time – but instead of resentment, this time he can only feel ridiculously and nonsensically happy.
45 :: Naked
And he can't stop what happens next because he's suddenly baring his soul in front of an entire student body who doesn't know who he is – "Casey MacDonald, I love you!" – and he doesn't care that they're staring because she hears and her gorgeous eyes turn to focus on him in shock and he repeats what he said to prove it's true: "I love you, and – and I just want one more chance!"
17 :: Vision
Casey thinks she must be going crazy because that's really not Derek shouting across the courtyard, and it's certainly not love he's confessing, but even after blinking and rubbing her eyes, he's still there, waiting.
29 :: Safe
She can't fathom why, but she's already running and he's opening his arms, welcoming her back where she belongs, and Casey marvels at how, even after everything that's happened, one embrace from Derek feels like home.
43 :: God
Derek had turned his back on Him long ago, but when Casey jumps into his arms, he buries his face in her hair and tries not to cry, and nothing can stop him from muttering "thank you" over and over again as his eyes dart to the sky.
04 :: Last
"This is it, Derek, this is your last chance," she murmurs, words muffled by her tears, "… one more, I'll give you one more" – and that's all he needs.
28 :: Fortune
Derek gasps as another nightmare leaves him reaching out, and when she actually turns in his embrace, he bites back a sob because she's really here and he brushes back her hair, kissing her forehead tenderly, not quite believing his good fortune.
09 :: King
It takes awhile for Casey to say it, and he knows she's afraid to give all of herself to him a second time, so he thinks he's imagining it when she whispers those three little words as they're washing dishes, but she repeats them again – and, even though his hands are covered in soap and bubbles, Derek feels like he's on top of the world.
49 :: Hunger
Casey shivers at the way Derek is staring at her – how had she gone so long without him? – but the hunger on his face is soon reflected in hers as he brings their mouths together in a bruising kiss.
48 :: Precious
Their legs entwine underneath the sheets and he stays up long after, stroking her back and watching her sleep; after awhile, he laces their fingers together and thinks vaguely that a ring would look pretty good on her left hand, before finally drifting off with a smile on his face.
.end