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Definitely Something

At Sir Thompson High, two things were held as more important than all. The one this story deals with is the sacred wearing of the practice jersey. This jersey is so important that not anyone can just wear it. It has to be the person that holds your affection. Now everyone on the hockey team had someone to wear their jersey, even if they just went out with them for a week. It was a matter of honor, a matter of luck, a matter of pride. Everyone that is, except for Derek Venturi. Many have tried, all attempts failed.

So when Casey McDonald showed up to school wearing Derek Venturi's number it was anything, if not a huge deal.

She walked down the hall, awkwardly, since all eyes were on her. She scratched her head and looked around. Don't get her wrong she loved the spotlight, she was in Drama Club, but then she knew why. She hadn't the slightest clue that that jersey she was wearing was legendary. No one had ever seen that jersey before. Well, outside of practice.

She stopped at the water fountain and leaned down, until someone grabbed her hair; hard.

"What the-" She turned to look at the culprit and saw it was her best friend, Emily. "Ow-a!!"

"What the Hell!?" Emily screeched.

"Yeah, I'm wondering the same thing." She ran her fingers through the hair Emily had pulled. "That really hurt."

"Oh, would you just shut up about your hair! I'm talking about you!" Emily whispered harshly.

"What about me?" Casey raised an eyebrow noticing how Emily's voice became lower.

"Look at what you're wearing!" Emily motioned towards her outfit.

"What I'm wearing!" Casey looked down at the jersey and pulled it down. "Oh! Derek's jersey? What's wrong with it? Is it the jeans? I asked Lizzie-"

Emily shushed Casey. "No, I mean why are you wearing it?" Casey stared at her, scrunching up her face.

"He asked me to." Emily's eyes widen to the size of saucers.

"He asked you to?" Casey nodded. "As in, He came up to you and said 'Casey will you wear my jersey?'" Emily was going crazy. The last person to be caught dead in Derek's jersey should be Casey. Clearly, she didn't understand the importance of that jersey and that every girl in the entire school wanted to bitch slap her. Emily was burning with jealousy.

"No. Well, I guess." Emily screamed. "TELL ME EVERYTHING!"

--

"Hmm." Casey sighed plopping down on the couch. "HMMM!" She sighed louder hoping to get Derek's attention. "Hmmmmm!"

"Okay! If I ask you what's wrong, will you go away?" He asked annoyed.

"It's just that," She turns toward Derek on the couch, folding her legs underneath her. "Max and I broke up."

"Oh my God! Are you still on that? I thought you were over Maxine!"

"I am! Completely!"

"Then can you go away? I'm trying to watch a game here." Casey rolled her eyes.

"Which surprises me since your playoff games are tomorrow. Shouldn't you be throwing up in a toilet somewhere?"

Derek scowled at her. "I'm just saying! Usually you're completely a mess. I mean, especially this time since college scouts are going to be there. If it was me I would be peeing my pants out of fear!"

"Yeah, well I'm not nervous." His voice quivering at the end. Casey laughed. "What do you care anyway? You've got your future all planned out. You already got into college, unlike me whose entire life's future is resting on this game. This one game, and I can completely blow it. So, no, I'm not nervous at all."

Casey sat back against the couch and thought about what he said. "Tomorrow, I would have been wearing Max's jersey." She sighed. "But, instead some skank named Tina is…" She trailed off.

Derek, for the first time, took his eyes off the screen, "It's just a jersey, something he practices in. It's really not that big of a deal."

Casey considered this, and then an idea popped in her head. "Hey! Who wears your jersey? Well, I guess I should start with what number is on your jersey?"

Derek laughed turning his eyes back to the television. "No one."

"Why?"

"Do you always ask so many questions?" Derek asked rolling his eyes.

"Only when I'm really curious." Casey reached over to Derek and patted his leg. "So, tell me why no one wears your jersey. You would think girls would go crazy-"

"They do!" Derek smirked.

"Ah! That's the whole plan isn't it? Let them want it so bad, that they'll want you even more?"

Derek fell silent. "Sure."

"Shallow." Casey mumbled. She got up from her seat and walked outside. Derek let out a sigh of relief, thanking God she believed his lie, when suddenly something hard hit him in his chest.

"What was that for?" Derek's face grew red as he grabbed the basketball preparing to throw it back at her.

"You're bummin' me out!" She screeched and added, "Teach me to play."

"What!"

"Well, I've been taught hockey, by Sam, babe raider, by Edwin, and football, by Max, now all I need to know is how to play basketball to live a fully well-rounded life."

Derek was completely ready to reject her, but he looked up and Casey added, "I'll totally let you beat me!"

"Ha! I'd like to see you try!"

Twenty minutes later Casey was on the ground, holding her knee, while Derek laughed intensely. "How-haha-do you end up hurting yourself in basketball?"

"I'll have you know, people get hurt in this sport every day. It's nothing out of the ordinary."

"We were playing horse!" Derek cracked up again.

"Whatever," She dismissed. "Just help me up."

Derek walked over to Casey and held out his hand, pulling her up. "Ow! Ow!" He stopped.

"What? What'd I do?"

"Nothing, just." She winced in pain. "I think I scraped my knee or something." Derek sat her back down on the ground. "What are you doing?"

"Just stay here, I'll go grab a band-aid."

"But, uh-" It was pointless to argue, he had already ran into the house. Was he seriously going to get her a band-aid? Or was this just some excuse to leave? Deciding on the latter she slowly picked herself up.

"Hey! What did I tell you?" She looked over and saw Derek smirking at her with a box of band-aids in his hands.

"I didn't think you were coming back." She confessed.

"I told you I was, didn't I?" She nodded,

"But,"

"Then trust me." He sits her back down and squats next to her. "Pop up your leg." Casey watched Derek tend her knee and she was anything if not confused.

"So, what's the real reason?"

"What real reason?" He grabbed the Neosporin and opened it.

"The reason no girl wears your practice jersey." Derek pauses and goes for the band-aids.

"Practice Jerseys are for two things." He started. "The obvious to practice in,"

"Of course." Casey laughed.

"And the second one for the object of your affection to wear on the day of your big game. Not just for some girl you went out with for a week so you could have someone wear your jersey. It means so much more than that. It's for the girl who not only won't miss one game, even though she thinks you don't know, but helps keep your nerves down." He looked up and met her stare.

"That was surprisingly very un-shallow of you." Casey said once she regained her breath.

"Yeah, well, thanks for coming to all my games."

"I don't come to your games!" She said defiantly.

"Oh, please." Derek smirked.

"So, you were talking about me?" Casey looked at him with wide eyes.

"Would you wear it?" When a couple seconds go by with out an answer Derek mutters, "I mean, I know it's not pink, it's a little big, and I know it probably smells like sweat. But, I was thinking you could wash it or whatever use your fabric softener. I mean, you don't have to wear-"

But, he didn't get to finish, because Casey's mouth was on his, and he wasn't complaining.

-

"Oh my freaking gosh!" Emily freaked as she walked with Casey to her locker. "I am so jealous of you right now. I can't believe Derek would say something so-"

"Un-Derek like? Yeah, me neither." She banged on her stubborn locker.

"So?" Casey turned to look at her. "What does this make you guys?"

"I don't know." She turned in the direction of Derek's locker to find him staring very intently at her, and when he noticed her looking he motioned her over with his finger. "But, we're definitely something."

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