A/N: This is my "I'm sorry for not getting off my lazy butt and finishing 'To Have and To Hold' sooner" consolation story. While it's true that I wrote this for a creative writing class last semester, using original characters, I had Casey and Derek in mind during the process. Therefore, it seems only fair that it should be shared. It's uncharacteristically short, but there was nothing to add. I liked all the secrecy. So, enjoy, and please, if you read, leave a review. It means a great deal to me. More than you may know, actually.
Emily
Disclaimer: I own only the plot.
The rain pounding on the old wooden roof muffled the persistent knocks at Casey McDonald's door that night. Glancing at the clock and then the window, and wondering who would be out at a time like this, she reluctantly went to open it slightly, weary, as always, of who it could be. At the door, the dog whined, scratching at the entrance, making the visitors presence clear. A thin hand patted the creature on its head, ushering the dog behind her as she peaked out.
A man stood, head down against the rain, shifting nervously in worn work boots. Jeans bagged around a lean frame, dark hair plastered against a pale face with an eager countenance. One large hand lifted up to knock again. The dog lifted her head, ready to bark once more, but the woman silenced her, and with a deep breath, opened the door.
A boyish grin shone on a weary face. "I knew I'd find you here."
"What are you doing here?" The tremor in her voice had little to do with the chilled December air. She backed up a bit, clenching her hands and biting her lip nervously. He stepped toward her, and she raised a hand. "Don't you dare come near me."
He looked taken aback, but nodded. "I'm back," he said.
"I…I see that," she murmured, failing to keep her voice strong.
"I missed you, Case. I missed you a lot." He gave her another smile, the one that had once stopped her heart, and still did, though for very different reasons. She looked behind her, into the warm glow of the small house, and reluctantly closed the door behind her as she stepped out beneath the overhang of the porch.
"What are you doing here, Derek? I thought…"
He shrugged. "Good behavior. I'm quite charming, as you probably remembered."
"Derek, you need to leave right now," she said, dropping her voice to a whisper, glancing away from his dark face. Her entire body trembled now, and she wrapped her arms around her, hugging herself.
"Casey, I came back to see you, honey."
"You can't be here. You're not…I'm not…" She clenched her teeth, dropped her head, allowing her brown hair to fall as a curtain in front of her face. The man was silent for a moment, fidgeting with the soggy cap on his head. She looked up again. "I've changed, Derek. I thought I told you, though you knew. I'm not the girl that you knew. I'm older and I'm not so silly, now. I…"
"And I'm not the boy that you knew. How perfect; we can become formerly reacquainted." He took an imperceptible step towards her, and she tensed, but did not move. Slowly, he reached out to her, and she looked down, her arms hanging stiffly by her side.
"Derek, I've made a new life…" she whispered, her voice carried away by the winds of the storm. "I don't want this anymore."
"I can see. Moving away from everyone, leaving your family behind. Is your name still Casey, or have you changed that, too? Ashamed, huh, ashamed of what, babe?"
"There was nothing to leave. You made sure of that," she replied.
He reached out and took small hand in his icy grasp. She didn't move, just stood and stared off at something, eyes wide and afraid.
"Do I scare you, Case?" he asked, voice low and husky.
She hesitated, and then, "no," a soft, uncertain word. They stayed locked together for a moment, his intense gaze fixed on her, until finally, she pulled away.
"I wouldn't hurt you, Casey," he said. "I only did what I did because of you, babe."
She shook her head. "I…"
"You don't need to be afraid, hon. I've just come to be with you again, just like we said."
She turned again, glancing towards the porch door. "Derek, I'm married. To a good man, now, a wonderful man. .."
"Who doesn't know anything about your past," he finished. She looked down and shook her head.
"He only knows who I am now."
He stepped away, and as a flash of lighting blazed across the sky, she saw his face, intense, scarred and hardened and hateful.
"I did it all for you, baby, and you broke your promise?" Even, steady voice, and she knew he was furious, knew that he was now capable of almost anything.
"I never promised you anything. I never asked… You killed someone, Derek, you killed someone they say, and then they took you away and I…I didn't know what to do!" she exclaimed at last. "I didn't promise anything, Derek. All the promises I made were broken when you…" She began to turn away, but then his arm was on her shoulder, and he was pulling her back.
"Don't you walk away from this. Don't you pretend you didn't feel a thing back then. Don't pretend you're not terrified and fascinated by me now more than ever. Look at me!"
She let out a cry as he yanked her chin up, forcing her to meet his eyes. An impasse, for a moment, as always was the case with the two. Then, he released her. Looked around the front yard.
"Derek, please just go," she breathed, voice sodden with tears. "Just leave us alone, for God's sake!"
He ignored her. A flash of lighting, the crack of thunder. The rain came down.
"Not much room for a kid," he said. She froze again, a lioness, ready for her prey.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"You never were a very good liar. Have you forgotten how good I was at reading you, Case?"
"Derek, don't ask this of me. Please…"
"So what happened? Kill it in the bathtub? Throw it in the sewer? Didn't fit into your new and perfect plan?"
"Don't start this…"
"Maybe you just gave it away, like some clothes you didn't like. Don't like this one, I'll just have another one later. Maybe…"
"It died, okay?" she cried at last, fierce shivers wracking her body. "It died, and there wasn't anything I could do."
"Did you give it a…"
"No. Baby. That's what I called it. Baby."
She was exhausted, unable to disguise fear, pain, hurt.
"I'm sorry. I should have been there."
"I'm glad you weren't."
"You don't mean it. I know you, and I know what you're like. You loved me, and you loved how I made you feel, and you're terrified that you still love me."
"Leave me alone, Derek. I can't fight you anymore tonight. I don't know what you hoped to do, but I'm sure you've probably done it by now."
A predatory gleam in his eye, the look of a caged man with nothing to lose. She'd seen it once before; still had the scars to prove it. It scared her more than anything else. She started to back up, backing towards the door, and then, he was upon her, and she was against the door, and couldn't move, and his mouth was on hers, rough and passionate, and then she was kissing him back, and she didn't want to, and she couldn't stop.
Arms roaming, grasping, burning. And then, his lips are on her ear, and he's whispering that she'll not forget him, and then she's cold, and he's gone, and she's alone.
She crumpled to the ground, chest heaving as she let out a strangled sob.
"Casey, you all right?"
She wiped her eyes, got up, sniffed, looked around once more. Another flash of lighting, a shadow by the brush.
"I'm all right, now," she said. "Thought I saw something out here. I'll be in in a moment."
She could still feel his lips upon her, could still feel the tremors run through her body. She gave the brushes one final glance before forcing herself towards the door.
He was wrong; she was an excellent liar.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed this strange vision of mine. Please, leave a review.
To the reader of "To Have and to Hold": The next chapter will be up by Monday at the latest. The characters would not cooperate, and I have been very busy. I hoped you enjoyed this story instead :)
Again, leave a review. I love criticism and praise of any sort