A/N: So, that was difficult. Of all the songs on my iPod, it comes up with quite a few obscure ones that I haven't listened to in ages. Out of all of the musicals, the Elvis, the Sinatra, it finds the country. Go figure.
I did not alter the order in any way, as much as I wanted to. The iPod was on random, and this is what it said. The challenge was to write to ten random songs, within the time frame of the song. I did go a bit over a few times in order to finish the thought, although not much. So here, then, are the ten shuffle stories. Enjoy, and tell me what you think!
Disclaimer: I own neither song nor characters.
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1. "One Love"-Trisha Yearwood
He didn't think it was actually possible, to actually have one love. Certainly, he was rather adept at having more than one "love" at a time (he'd once counted three, to be quite honest). Of course, leave it to Casey to be that one different person. That one annoying person with whom he felt something more than simple minded lust.
Damn. He'd really liked that simple minded lust. It was clean, easy (if you'd pardon the pun), no drama. Casey, Casey was drama. She was frustrating, infuriating. And, for all of that, what did he get? A girlfriend who was even bossier, even more infuriating, even more overdramatic than she had been as his stepsister.
From the hall, he could hear the creaking of her footsteps, and the slow creak as his door inched open. He smiled; she might be annoying, but damn if this love thing didn't make him happier than he'd ever been.
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2. "Without You"-Julia Andrews (From My Fair Lady)
"Damn, damn, damn," Casey muttered, pacing back and forth across her floor. "What was I thinking? What was I thinking, that I needed him? I don't need him, damn it," she said now with vigor. Her mouth pursed in determination, her pacing sped up. With a glance, her eyes fell to her cell phone, and the offensive text from Max, telling her, in no uncertain terms, that he was sorry he had dumped her, and if she needed it, he would take her back (for lest her she go crazy in his glorious absence).
I can survive without you, Max," she yelled finally, closing her phone with vigor.
Downstairs, on the sofa, Derek Venturi smiled as he heard her. That was the Casey he knew and loved.
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3. "The Scarlet Pimpernel"-Company (from The Scarlet Pimpernel concept cast album) -Please note this is late 18th Century England, during the French Revolution-
"So, have you heard the gossip of late?" whispered Miss Emily, her eyes bright with excitement.
"What, that mysterious man, the one they say is working against those French?" responded Miss Casey. Across the parlor, the gentlemen watched the young ladies, adorned in their scarlet gowns, gossiping about the identity of the Godlike pimpernel, who, they said, was rescuing the innocent from the hands of those mad Parisians.
"There is no man like him, I declare," Miss Emily said. "Certainly not at this ball," she continued, looking at the men around her. Casey nodded, but she allowed her eyes to drift to the figure of Derek Venturi. He winked at her, and she blushed.
"No, not just like him," she echoed. Indeed, Derek Venturi was not Scarlet Pimpernel. But he was hero enough for her.
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4. "Stealing Kisses"-Faith Hill
It was late, far too late for him to be out and about. With a sigh, the man looked down in his beer. He could remember, quite well, the girl, the love, the kisses. Despite his best efforts, no drink could erase those memories. Nothing could erase the memories of his wife begging his affection, waiting for him to get home, and the tears, oh God, the tears. She had been gone for ten years, come today. Ten years. Next to him, a young man and a young woman were sitting close together, laughing, alive.
"Der-ek!" the girl squealed as the boy attacked her with his fingers. He cut her protests off with a kiss, which she readily accepted. He wondered what they were doing in a hell whole like this; they were too much in love to be in here. He moved to get off the stool, stumbling as he did so.
"Hey kids," he said, addressing the two. They looked up in confusion. He turned to the boy. "Don't loose her, or all you'll have to remember her by are stolen kisses." That said, he turned to walk out.
It was late, and he still had much more forgetting to do.
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5. "What Do The Simple Folk Do?"-Julie Andrews and Richard Burton (From Camelot)
Derek Venturi was depressed. This was not something he often experienced; it might have been something for the lesser student population (like Casey), but for somebody as high up as he? Why, it was practically unheard of. He sat on the steps, during his lunch, observing the student population. A freshman boy, who looked rather happy, came by, whistling.
"Hmm…" he mused. With a shrug, he figured he'd give it a try. Pursing his lips together, he started to whistle. He was just getting to the good part of his song when Sam came over, looking oddly at him.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm depressed. I thought whistling would help. That's what the nerds do," Derek said.
"Umm, Casey used to sing when she was upset," Sam offered. Derek glared at his friend, who shrugged.
"I'm just saying. Hey, she used to dance too," Sam remembered. This suggestion was met with another glare.
"Well, maybe we should just watch?" Derek wondered out loud. Sitting next to him, Sam shrugged.
"Maybe that's what they do: sit around and wonder what we do when we're depressed."
"Sure, Sam, I'm sure that's exactly what they do."
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6. "Old Weakness (Coming On Strong)"-Diamond Rio
It didn't happen often, that they were in the same place at the same time. But it was Christmas, and it was "family time" (or so his father called it), and they were, inevitably, going to have to see one another.
He was going to have to see his old weakness, the only heartache he'd ever suffered.
Casey MacDonald.
Their affair, so passionate, had ended so swiftly, and with no lack of tears on either side. They'd swore they'd never see one another again, and he'd be damned if he was going to let her see that he'd never moved on.
But, perhaps, more than that, he was afraid that he was going to fall into her arms again, and beg her to take him back. And Derek Venturi did not do begging. And thus, he had tried, with every fiber of his being to avoid her company.
But now he had no choice. He was going to have to face that weakness once again, and once again, she'd have the final laugh when she saw how broken he still was.
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7. "When You Say Nothing At All"-Allison Krauss
For two such vocal people, their relationship was remarkably silent. Oh, to be sure, they were always talking, always fighting, even after they got together. Such fights were, after all, the cornerstone of their relationship. But when it came to moments between them, those tender moments in which most would speak words of love, words of comfort, they were silent.
Casey never asked him to say that he loved her. She never asked him to tell her that he would support her in all that she did. Likewise, she never had to congratulate him, never had to give him pep talks before his games. These tender words were engrained in the smiles, the simple touches that they exchanged. His smile in the hall, her hand on his, it would suffice. Indeed, these meant more to them than any words. Words would have been cheap-each had said far too many insincere words to far too many people.
No, they had their own language, and spoke more about their love than any words could ever do.
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8. "Two of A Kind, Workin' On A Full House"-Garth Brooks
If someone had told her ten years ago that they'd be in the country, in the states, living in a farmhouse, she would have laughed. Hard. Her, in the country, with Derek?
Yeah, right.
And yet, here they were, twenty-six, living in Texas, of all places, on a small farm. She still couldn't quite understand how they'd gotten there. She vaguely remembered a grandfather of his dying, leaving a farm in the states, and a large sum of money. For some reason, Derek had decided to realize his dream of becoming a farmer. And she, being the masochistic, love-sick idiot that she was, had decided to join him.
Well, she reflected as he walked into the kitchen, sweating from heavy work, and giving her a kiss, this wasn't bad. Wrapping her arms around him, and pressing her head into his chest, she thought, not bad at all.
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9. "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables"-Michael Ball (from Les Miserables)
It had been their place, once upon a time. It had been the place to go, Smelly Nelly's. Their team would so often gather here after the games, making noise, talking about their future plans, their future beliefs. And then, when it had happened, when the invasions occurred, they had talked about fighting back, taking back their homes.
And now, now it was over. His friends lay on the ground, frozen beneath the snow, their faces frozen in perpetual determination.
And he was here, alive. Somehow, he'd survived. And he wished he hadn't. He could hear their voices, see their shadows dancing on the walls. For a moment, he couldn't hear the explosions outside, the sound of the world going to Hell.
He sighed; it hadn't been worth it. His survival hadn't been worth it. But then again, he thought, glancing at the dim windows, at the smoke and the flames, to live in this was worse than death itself.
Yes, he decided. They'd been the lucky ones to die.
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10. "I Loved You Once In Silence"-Julie Andrews (From Camelot)
"Once, you know, we couldn't talk like this," Casey said, a faint smile upon her lips. "Back at home, I loved you a long time before this, you know," she continued. She stopped their, knowing that he wasn't one for such talks.
"Thank God for college," was all Derek said.
"What do you think would have happened if we'd never gone to the same college? Would we still be lying to ourselves?"
"We'd be in even more pain, I think," he replied thoughtfully. "I mean, it's kind of simple-I love you, you love me, but when you mix in silence…"
"Yeah," she agreed. She understood clearly. She remembered the pain, the anxiety, the "does he love me?" of silence. Perhaps now, by talking, they were opening themselves up for more pain. But then, if she had to experience pain for moments like this, alone with him, she was willing to cast away her silence.
A/N: So, uh, review? And give me a break-I was writing under pressure!