Pieces

Chapter Two

"You're where?" Derek could hear Casey's high decibels loud and clear through the phone, even though he was standing a few feet away from Sam.

"Case, it's not a big deal. It's just a small party, and I'll be home at a decent time." They were standing in a slightly dark, mostly deserted hall that Sam had fled to when Casey had called. It was much quieter there.

"A small party?" Derek whispered to Ralph, who shrugged. In all honesty, the party was a total rager. It was even too out-of-control for Derek, though he would never admit it. And the girls in attendance were anything but shy and modest. Derek hoped Sam would leave and go be with Casey, because he certainly didn't want to be stuck in the middle if this blew up.

"Casey, I swear it's nothing to worry about," Sam said as a girl in a short, tight black skirt passed by, running her hand across Sam's chest. Sam's eyes lingered on the girl's backside until she rounded the corner. "I promise. Yes. No. Yes, I'll call you as soon as I leave. Now go back to your studying, I know this test is really important to you. That's why I'm here and not there distracting you." Derek groaned inwardly. Casey was a sucker for a sweet-talker and she would definitely fall for the crap that Sam was feeding her. Sure enough, "I love you, too," Sam muttered into the phone, casting his eyes about to be sure no one – or no girls – was there to hear him.

Derek turned away as Sam said, "Yes, he is." Derek felt a tap on his shoulder and looked back to see Sam holding the phone out to him. Confused, Derek took it.

"Hello."

"Derek?" Casey sounded odd, as though she had been crying. "Is Sam listening?" She was talking quietly.

"Not really," Derek replied, making sure not to give Sam any clues hat they were talking about him. "Yeah I think she did," he said when Sam gave him a suspicious look. Casey knew him well enough to understand.

"Good. Now I need one more favor."

"You've already had two," he teased, but she didn't laugh.

"Seriously, Der. Promise me he'll be okay tonight. Tell me I shouldn't be worried." Derek froze. He was trying to think of the best way to phrase his answer so that Sam wouldn't suspect and so that he wasn't technically lying. He was also weighing the pros and cons of telling Casey that she should be worried versus Casey finding out he lied.

"It will be fine, Case. Don't worry." She let out a heavy sigh.

"Thanks, Derek, I really appreciate it. I know you don't owe me anything-"

"I know. It's cool, Casey, I've got everything taken care of."

"I'm sure," she teased. "Have fun with… whomever you meet tonight." He knew she was kidding, but her comment stung slightly. Did she really think that little of him? Not that he cared.

"I will," he said, working to keep the edge out of his voice. "Later, Case."

"Bye, Der." He snapped the phone shut and handed it back to Sam, who raised an eyebrow.

"Nora's sick and Casey's all worried." Sam continued to look suspicious.

"She didn't mention it to me," he protested. Derek shrugged.

"Maybe she didn't want to bother you with it." He hadn't meant to sound irritated, but he couldn't help himself. Sam looked taken aback.

"Oh. Well I hope she gets better soon." He tucked his phone into his pocket. "Now are we ready to party or what?" Ralph gave a mock cheer and Derek faked a grin. They followed Sam back to the main part of the house, where the music was so loud that they had to yell to hear each other, no matter how close they stood. Derek grabbed a drink from the table and sipped it. Sure enough, it was something alcoholic. Shrugging, he downed it. Ralph caught his eye and gave him a worried look, but Derek avoided it. Sam was too busy scanning the room to notice.

"I'm going to look for Priscilla," Ralph said. "She told me she'd be here." Derek nodded absentmindedly and sank onto a chair as Ralph disappeared. Sam gave him an annoyed look.

"Are you just going to sit there? The guys have an air hockey tournament going on in the other room." Derek shrugged again.

"I'll be there in a minute." Shaking his head, Sam walked away. Barely seconds after he left, two giggling girls plopped themselves on either arm of Derek's chair. One was the blonde from his psych class. The other looked identical to her.

"Hey, it's Derek, right?" Psych girl asked. Her friend blushed as Derek studied both of them.

"Yeah, but you can call me D," he replied with his usual smirk. They giggled, the friend blushing even more.

"I'm Amy," Psych girl informed him with a huge smile. "This is my friend Lindsey." Derek slid one arm around each girl's waist.

"Well, I'm looking forward to knowing both of you." Neither girl caught his meaning, but it didn't matter. They would eventually.

Forty-five minutes later, both girls were drunk from the punch and annoyingly giddy. Derek was stone-cold sober and miserable. After the first cup, he hadn't had a drop to drink and the girls, whose drinking was inversely related to their appeal, had touched his last nerve. Amy seemed to finally notice through her drunken haze that Derek was less than pleased.

"D? What's the matter?" Her face as very close to his and he realized that the closer his view of her, the less he found her attractive. She slid off of the arm into his lap, and he jumped to his feet.

"D?" Lindsey asked. He ignored her. "Derek?" She was no longer smiling and looked concerned. Amy was alternating between pouting and giggling.

"I gotta go," Derek mumbled, avoiding Lindsey's impressively focused gaze. He hurried through the house to the game room. Two frat brothers were playing an intense game of air hockey, but Sam was nowhere to be found. Backtracking to the kitchen, Derek found Ralph leaning on the counter and talking to a pretty brunette perched on the edge.

"Hey, D!" Ralph said. He had a beer in his hand but it was only half empty; the girl was perfectly sober and smiling brightly.

"So you're Derek, huh?" She asked. Derek nodded. "Ralph's told me all about you." Derek shot Ralph a sharp look, but he only shrugged innocently.

"Hopefully good stuff," Derek replied. He wasn't really in the mood to joke, but he made an effort for Ralph's sake. She smirked.

"Not really, but that's okay." Ralph, interpreting Derek's expression, placed a hand on the girl's knee, successfully distracting her. She smiled and laced her fingers through his.

"Umm, listen, Ralph, I'm out. Will you tell Sam?" Ralph nodded, looking concerned, but Derek didn't elaborate. "It was nice meeting you…" he trailed off, and the girl smiled.

"Priscilla," she offered, and he nodded.

"Nice meeting you, Priscilla," he finished, and he turned to leave. "Tell Sam not to wake me, either," he called to Ralph as he walked away.