The Chronicles of Casey and Derek Chapter 2: Drive By, a life with derek fanfic

Drive By

Description: Songfic! Amongst the few businesspeople waiting on a corner, was the all-too familiar sight of the back of a certain keener. He shook his head, attempting to wake up fully, even comically beating the heel of his hand onto the side of his head. ...That couldn't have been Casey.

Disclaimer / A / N : I've deleted the stand-alone oneshot in order to place it into this new conglomerate of short stories I'll be adding onto. / Please enjoy the fluff! R&R

I own neither Train's music, nor the wonderful show itself, which was created by Daphne Ballon.

Twenty-two year old Derek just came from the first brutal workout of his off-season hockey training, trying desperately to keep his eyes open as the red light seemed to take forever and a day to change. Sighing, he turned off the radio when a slew of commercials came on, and drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. His eyes casually scanned the intersection before him.

Amongst the few businesspeople waiting on a corner, was the all-too familiar sight of the back of a certain keener. He shook his head, attempting to wake up fully, even comically beating the heel of his hand onto the side of his head. She was immersed by the crowd as it crossed the street, and seeing as he couldn't even find a fleeting view of the mystery girl, he chalked it up to imagination.

That couldn't have been Casey.

On the other side of a street I knew,
stood a girl that looked like you.
I guess that's déjà vu,
but I thought 'this can't be true.'
'Cause you moved to west LA,
or New York or Santa Fe,
or wherever to get away from me...

The light turned green as he whispered her name. "Casey." It felt foreign to the tongue, although familiar to the lips.

You see, even though they were accepted by the same college, they hardly associated with one another that first year. Yeah, Nora and George talked them into living together in an off-campus apartment, (with both of them fighting tooth and nail not to), but since Derek was mostly a spend-the-night-out person, while Casey was early to bed and early to rise, their paths hardly crossed. It was almost like having an invisible roommate.

They divvied up the chores evenly, (thanks to Casey's color-coded, three-part chart) and considering what had to be done between them on their conflicting schedules, Derek lamely consented. They only saw eachother briefly, if at all, and spent trips back home in relative silence, save for small-talk. They had their spats, of course; but nothing like those at the house —the ones that got their chests heaving and their faces red; eyes full of unspoken mischief... Those days were long gone.

Or so they thought.

They mostly communicated with each other through post-its; pads of multi-colored squares attached to pens, left around the apartment for easy access. At first, they were used to tell eachother what chore or errand they couldn't get done for the day, or what leftovers were provided for one another; but eventually, they started lightheartedly teasing eachother through them. It was Casey to make the change, (not that Derek consciously took note of it or something). (Not like he missed their banter or anything.) (Life without Casey was what he wanted, right? And that's the closest he was going to get.)

He was brushing his teeth late into the second semester, when his eyes flicked over to the bright green square, thinking it was Casey telling him to keep the toilet seat down, again.

Looks like that girl last night just couldn't stand the 'Venturi Charm'.

(W-what?) His face turned bright red, yanking the offending statement off the mirror and tossing it into the wastebasket. Casey. He wasn't aware she was home when he drunkedly pulled in a scantily-clad blond the other night, just to have his face slapped a couple minutes later due to a random burst of clarity on his behalf. As much of a player as he lead on to be, he never went far with a lot of girls; considering for years, he had to skirt around a house full of people, so he didn't have much privacy. And now, even with a basically non-existent Casey, her presence in his living quarters was enough to keep him on his half-virgin streak. He didn't really mind, but the blond did. He had her in his room when he dropped his hands and asked her to leave, causing the girl to automatically connect her palm to his face in a violent manner. Casey just assumed the worst of him. He was slightly offended, but he smirked.

Scribbling down his response, he made sure it was at eye-level for Casey, and left the bathroom.

Like you know anything about the Venturi charm.

Thinking back, that was the best comeback he could have ever thought of. It got her curious. It was suddenly a post-it war, and their trips back home evolved from small-talk, to knowing smirks and giggles; eyes showing that fire once more. But nothing truly changed from that.

Oh, but that one night;
was more than just right.
I didn't leave you, 'cause I was all through.
Oh I was overwhelmed, and frankly scared as hell;
because I really fell for you...

He couldn't deny it any longer. There had always just been something between him and Casey, and tonight was the night all the post-it bullshit was going to end. It was almost a year later when he plucked up enough courage to barge into Casey's room like in the olden days.

She was halfway to pulling off her shirt when he came in, spinning around, unaware she was giving Derek a view of the edge of her polka-dot bra. His jaw hung open when she screamed, causing him to compulsively shut the door. Not a half-second later, she threw the door open, pulling him by the shirt collar. She started hitting him, shoving him, yelling at him as he stood still, brows furrowed and eyes still wide.

"DE-REK! WHAT do you think you're doing? I know that's what you do at home, but I've been so used to you not doing that —who in the right mind would—!"

He used his hockey reflexes to grab her wrists and kissed her.

It may have seemed spontaneous and brought on by hormones, but it was actually a premeditated act. It was what he originally intended to do, but she didn't know that. She kept fighting back, trying to wriggle out, even though her lips gave into the kiss. Eventually, she calmed down, enough for him to look into her blue eyes intently, hoping they said everything he couldn't.

Oh, I swear to you;
I'll be there for you;
this is not a drive by.
Just a shy guy looking for a two-ply
Hefty bag to hold my, love.
When you move me, everything is groovy;
they don't like it sue me.
Mmm the way you do me.
Oh, I swear to you;
I'll be there for you;
this is not a drive by.

The moment that woman stepped into his life, he had an inexplicable need to get under her skin. He wanted to elicit the rawest of responses from her, make her blood boil, get her as riled up as he could. And he never could understand why. There were always those few, tender moments that suddenly became more frequent toward the end of highschool; ones that provided glimpses of what actually went on in his subconscious. But all he really knew was that he loved the fact that when he pushed, she pushed back; every time.

Every time.

So when he realized it was actually her he loved, it scared the living daylights out of him. Not just the social ramifications of it all, but the idea that he found himself utterly in love with Casey McDonald, and he had no clue whether she felt the same. He became so dependent on her essence somewhere in his life, that when she graduated early and went overseas for an internship, he found himself feeling numb. And although Derek Venturi doesn't admit to feeling a lot of things, this was the one he couldn't deny.

On the upside of a downward spiral,
my love for you went viral;
and I loved you every mile you drove away.
But now here you are again—
So let's skip the "how you been?"
and get down to the "more than friends" at last.

And now he thinks he saw her. God, this woman was driving him crazy even without being there.

Oh, but that one night;
is still the highlight.
I didn't need you, until I came to.
And I was overwhelmed, and frankly scared as hell.
Because I really fell for you...

He went on with his college plan of course, getting into the varsity hockey team and whatnot, all the while never forgetting how things escalated from that night. Keeping their relationship on the down-low from their family... sharing nights more intimate than the first. It was almost as if the spark that hid beneath their menacing glares was what ignited the two in more romantic pursuits. It was what brought the heat to their flushed cheeks and clumsy hands; what pushed them to needing eachother's touch.

Derek pulled up to campus, having moved out of the apartment in favor of a free dorm provided by the school for their athletes. The place started feeling more empty anyway.

Finally. Rest was near. He dropped his gear by the door, shuffling off his shoes and stripping off random articles of clothing as he went. Turning on the shower, he stepped in, eyes closing at the warmth of the water, relaxing himself under its flow. He thought he was finished when it came to thinking about Space-Case. He even sent back home every little object he found of hers that snuck into his own things, and now even the imagined sight of her got him dredging up old feelings again? It's been a year and a half.

A year and a half, too long.

He sighed, lathering up his hair. Before she left, they finally unveiled their romantic affair to the family. Everyone was a bit surprised, except for Lizzie who was seen receiving cash from Edwin, and no one ended up chewing them out for it. Probably because of the impending end.

They didn't say much when she left. Just a short hug, with Casey leaning in, voice no higher than a whisper, "Don't wait up."

Derek smiled at the memory. It was something he'd say to her right after dinner, before heading out with the team for some bonding time; or right after a game if anything celebratory was happening that Casey didn't want to attend. But she'd stay up anyway; and he'd find her, hours later, eyes closed and strewn across the couch with an unfinished book on her tummy.

"Don't wait up." At the time, he took it as her telling him to move on, especially since they didn't talk since she left, walking onto the plane without him having said the three words that lingered on his lips... but with the addition of that piece of remembered history—

Then it clicked. Maybe she meant—

Please believe, that when I leave;
there's nothing up my sleeve, but love for you—
and a little time to get my head together too.

His thoughts broke as the sound of violent knocking was heard from the dorm's door. With a frustrated sigh, he hurried out of the shower, making sure to get a towel, yelling, "Yeah yeah I'm coming, keep your pants on!" Marching over to the noise, he threw open the door.

On the other side of a street I knew,
stood a girl that looked like you.
I guess that's déjà vu,
but I thought 'this can't be true.'
'Cause—

There he was, in all his half-naked glory, sopping wet and fully disgruntled. Just how she liked it. She smirked, eyes bright as it followed a drop from his collar bone to his torso. "Looks like you couldn't keep yours on."

He was speechless as she walked past him nonchalantly, setting her bag on his desk. She stepped around his clothes that littered the floor and plopped onto his bed. She looked up at his form, apparently amused by his silence. By this time, he finally snapped out of his stupor, at least closing the door and making his way noiselessly next to her. He too plopped down, finally making eye contact.

"How come you never told me you'd be coming."

"Oh, you and I both know this would be funnier to tell in the long run, right, D?" She flashed him a mischievous grin. He grinned back, leaning in for a kiss.

Their relationship had never been easy, and it wasn't going to be, especially from then on out; but Derek and Casey both knew it was no mere drive by.

Their eyes opened as he kept an intense gaze on her. "I love you."