Tired From Dancing
Chapter 1
Disclaimer: Nope, don't own Life with Derek, but you already knew that
Enjoy!
It was Thursday, a day Derek had been dreading for about a month now. At that time his English teacher, also known as Satan, told the class they had to write a poem and read it in front of the class, so they could be publicly ridiculed and humiliated. Derek was convinced his teacher got the sadistic pleasure from watching his students squirm, especially Derek. Public speaking was bad enough, but reading a poem with Casey, Emily, and Sam in the same room was his idea of torture. He was in jeopardy of failing English and he knew a good grade on his poem would prevent him from failing and Casey from getting more ammo than she needed. He needed to write it on his own, without anyone's help, except for maybe Casey's, the smartest girl he knew. The hardest part was thinking of something to write about so he shamefully asked Casey to come up with a subject that wasn't too lame to write about. She told him if he wanted a good grade he would have to write about someting personal, something he cared deeply about.
As usual she was no help. He didn't care deeply about anyone or anything. There was no way he could read something personal in front of everyone. He'd rather kiss Sam on the lips. On top of it all, he hadn't been sleeping well that entire week. He kept dreaming he was reading his poem to the class naked. What made the dream especially horrible was Casey whispered something in Sam's ear and they both laughed while they pointed at a naked Derek.
Derek never really worried about anything. He was the most confident person he knew or at least that's what people believed, but he hated public speaking for some reason. Reading something personal to the entire class was not his idea of fun. It didn't help that English was his first class that day and he didn't do well in the morning. He barely opened his eyes before noon. Plus he really wanted to do well on his poem to show himself he could do it, but more importantly so he could show Casey he could do it. He didn't know why, but he kept finding the need to prove himself to her.
He walked into the classroom and saw Casey sitting next to Sam in the back. Emily was sitting in front of Casey. Derek sat down next to Emily and in front of Sam. Sam tapped him on the shoulder. "Ready to read your poem?"
Derek didn't turn around and said under his breath, "Yeah, sure." He didn't want to let Sam know how terrified he was to read his poem to the class. He had a reputation to uphold. He read over his poem again to make sure there weren't any mistakes, but he didn't recognize any. He was so wrapped up in his poem that he didn't see the teacher walk in or hear him ask Derek to come to the front of the room. Sam pushed him in his back, bringing him back to reality.
"Derek, are you ready," he heard Mr. Reid say.
"As ready as I'll ever be," replied Derek. He got up from his desk and wiped the sweat from his forehead. As he walked to the front of the room he swore he could hear Casey yell, "Dead man walking!"
When he finally got to the front of the room, he took a look at his classmates, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath.
"Mr Venturi, anytime you want to start," said Mr. Reid. He shot his teacher a dirty look. Here goes nothing, he thought.
"Awakeandasleep by Derek Venturi," he said. He couldn't bare to look up. He read it as fast as he could and without any emotion.
Awake or asleep, there is no difference
Awake at night thinking of you
Asleep during the day forgetting you
The same thing
Truth would let me sleep
The truth, too hard to explain,
Would wake me
Until you open your eyes
I'll remain awakeandasleep
Awake at night, asleep during the day
No way to live, unbearable pain
Haven't slept a wink
Please wake me, so I can sleep
He finished his poem and looked up at Casey. The entire class turned in their seats at once and saw who he was looking at. "That was very good Derek." The teacher sounded a little shocked. "Any questions for Derek?"
Derek looked around the room for the first time and was surprised no one was laughing or snickering. They all looked very dazed. Derek got a little insulted. Was it so shocking he could write about something so personal. Okay maybe it was a little shocking, he admitted to himself, but not completely out of the realm of possibility. He felt like he was the elephant man or some strange experiment that shocked and horrified the masses. His dream had come true. There he stood in front of the class naked and exposed. The only difference was Casey wasn't laughing. She looked worried. Derek was hoping no one had any questions, but no such luck. Corey Plunkett raised his hand.
"I have a question. Who is the poem about," he said as if he already knew the answer.
"None of your business," Derek quickly shot back. He knew he shouldn't have looked at Casey, but he wanted her to know it was about her without actually having to say it.
"Class, we should move on to the next person, Emily you're next."
Derek walked back to his desk with his head down. He was a little worried himself about what everyone was thinking. He knew no one would be accepting of him falling for his stepsister. Society, especially high school kids, wouldn't look too kindly on people who fall in love with their stepsibs, he thought.
Emily's poem was about shopping or something shallow. Derek wasn't really paying attention. He just wasnted this day to be over with. He wanted every school day over with, but this one was moving particularly slow. Eight more kids read their poems. Derek didn't listen to a word, until he heard Casey's name. "Casey, you'll be the last one for today," said Satan. Casey shot up out of her seat. She hoped her poem would be better received by the class than Derek's.
"My first Love by Casey McDonald," she said. Oh no, here it comes, Derek thought. A list of why she loved Sam. He hoped he could keep his breakfast down.
Dancing around the house
Pink slippers, recitals, practice
The happiest memories of my childhood have faded away
What was positive has become negative
Dancing around my feelings is what I do now
Casey had a hard time saying this line, as she held back her tears. She couldn't let the class see her cry, especially Derek.
Dancing does not bring me joy
Only pain
Whenandif I reveal how I feel
Dancing will make me happy once more
Casey looked at Derek, who looked like he wasn't paying attention, then looked at Sam who looked upset. The shrill sound of the bell startled Casey. She looked away from Sam and towards Derek who was almost out the door. What's his hurry, she thought.
"Class, we'll finish reading our poems tomorrow," Mr. Reid yelled over the students as they talked and walked out of the classroom.
Casey quickly went back to her desk to pick up her bag . "Casey, we need to talk," said Sam. She had never seen him look so serious.
Derek walked back into the class and picked up his pen he forgot when he rushed out. He overheard Sam's command, not request, but command. Derek was worried Sam might actually think Casey's poem was about him. He didn't want to cause a fight between Casey and Sam. He didn't need another reason for Casey to be mad at him. There was no way that poem was about me, thought Derek. Casey was in love with Sam, or at least she thought she was. Derek knew that Casey thought he was a total screwup. He knew that in her eyes he would never be good enough for her. With other girls he knew where he stood, but with Casey she never let on how she was feeling. Her poem was true, she did dance. Derek realized he does the same thing. He dances around his feelings too. It was easier to deny how he felt, especially when those feelings could cause him a world of pain.
English was the only class he had with Casey so he didn't see her until he got home. He purposefully avoided the cafeteria so as not to see Sam and Casey fawn all over each other again. It really did turn his stomach and he had no idea why.
When he got home, he went straight to his room so as not to see you know who. He laid on his bed and reached down to the floor for his latest issue of Sports Illustrated. He started reading an article about the Toronto Maple Leafs, but his thoughts quickly turned to Casey. He threw the magazine down in disgust. He got up and turned on his stereo full blast, hoping to annoy Casey and drown out his thoughts of her. The music made him think of her even more, if that was possible.
Casey was just another pain in the butt girl. The weird thing was he didn't mind dealing with her, not like his other so called girlfriends. They expected too much from him, but he was never one to give anyone his heart that easily. On the other hand, he wanted Casey to want him to give her his heart, but he knew that she never would. To her he was just her annoying stepbrother. He decided it was about time for that to stop.
A/N: Hope you like it so far. I know it was kinda short, but the later chapters will be longer. Sorry if the poems were lame but I'm not good at poetry. Please review and don't burn. I have an idea where I want this story to go, but I'm open for suggestions. The faster you review, the faster I update.