Chapter 3: What's Up With Derek?
This is chapter 3 of Just Like Her Mother. I'm trying to update everyday, and sometimes I'll update twice a day. Just saying. And who is Derek's mother? ALL SHALL BE REAVEALED! Well, not all. BUT A LOT!
Reviewer Stuff:
cherrifly: You're really nice.:D Thank you for being my one and only reviewer! I'm trying to make the story more interesting by throwing in another character... but you'll have to read to find out! :D
After a day of hunting, swimming, and just laying down on the grassy meadow with Derek, I decide to go home. I yell a goodbye to him, and run back to my house. Once I step inside, I'm suprised to hear a different, deeper voice than my mother's. My brother and father aren't home, so it couldn't be them. I put my head in the doorway, and see my mother hugging a strange man.
"It's so great to see you, Gale. I missed you a lot." My mom murmurs.
"I know. I missed you too, Catnip." He says, and my mother laughs at the nickname.
"It's been such a long time since someone has called me that." She says, dreamily. She pulls back to look at the man.
"Gale, you look so old!" She exclaims, and the man laughs loudly. There's something about this man's demeanor that reminds me of Derek. Oh, this man is Derek's father, Gale. He looks like Derek, so much so that it scares me. The same gray eyes, dark hair, and olive skin. Only this man, Gale, is so much taller than his son, of course.
"So do you, Catnip. We've both grown old. We have children." He says, with a small, grudging smile.
"Oh, yeah. Did you know I saw our children sleeping together?" Derek's father just looks shocked as my mother continues.
"No, no, not like that. They were sleeping beside each other, in the cabin my father showed me. The one beside the lake, remember? The were asleep by the fire." She says, and her expression tells me that she's thinking of something else.
"Derek? And your daughter? It seems as though we're going to have another case like ours." He says, with a bitter chuckle.
"Oh, Gale. Don't be like that. They may actually end up together." She says, looking him in the eye.
"Yeah." Derek's father says, with a defeated sigh. "Do you remember the last time we were in that cabin?" He asks, a reminscent look in his eyes.
"Oh, how could I forget? That was the first time you kissed me..." My mother says, looking away.
I realize that what I was doing was considered eavesdropping, so I take that as the perfect time to come in the room.
"Mom! Oh..." I say, pretending that I didn't know he was here.
"Delilah! This is your friend's father, and my best friend, Gale. Gale, this is my eldest child, Delilah." She says my name with so much pride, I can't help but give her a huge smile.
I reach out my hand to shake Gale's, but he ignores it and pulls me into a big hug.
"Oh, you look so much like your mother. I just might have to call you Little Catnip." He says, releasing me from his grasp.
"She doesn't look like me, Gale!" My mother says, playfully slapping him on the arm. I look at my feet and my smile immediately disappears. "She's much prettier than I am." She says, looking at me and beaming. I blush, and I am sure that it makes me look like an overripe tomato.
"Hmm... I guess you're right, Catnip." Gale says, squinting, mockingly trying to see the difference between us.
"I'm always right." My mother says, with a smug smile. "Delilah, you can call him Uncle Gale."
She says.
"Aww, come on! 'Uncle Gale' makes me sound old. Just call me Gale, Little Catnip." The man named Gale says, beaming at me.
"Uh, no. Please don't call me Little Catnip. I don't like cat food." I say.
He laughs his booming laugh and says, "Just like her mother. Are you sure I can't call you Little Catnip?"
I nod vigorously. He laughs again and ruffles my hair.
"Bye. I need to go. I've got, um, homework to do. Yeah, that's it! Homework!" I say, desperately trying to find an excuse to leave.
"Uh-huh." My mom says with an un-believing expression. "Go then. Bye, honey!" She says, shooing me with her hands. I hug her and wave goodbye to Gale.
I walk towards the door as quickly as I can, and once I'm outside, I have no idea what to do. I settle for walking around the village. Though only five minutes pass, I am already bored out of my mind. I decide to go back to the meadow, as I can't find anything to do here.
I quietly slip through town, and go under the fence. I reach the meadow and lie down on the grass. I close my eyes and feel the sun on my face. I open my eyes, and face crystal clear lake. I suddenly decide I want to go swimming. I have no extra clothes, but I'm feeling impulsive today, so I just take off my boots and my jacket and dive into the water.
I feel the warm water swish around me, and I feel the calmness it brings. I feel refreshed, and I swim a few laps. Soon, I'm just floating on my back, enjoying the sunlight and warm water. A few hours later, I open my eyes and realize I have fallen asleep. I get out of the water, and am completely soaked. I dry my feet on the grass before I slide them into my boots. I decide against putting on my jacket, as it would only make me wet rather than provide me with warmth.
I suddenly remember where I got this jacket. It's Derek's! He gave it to me yesterday, and I forgot to give it back. When I see him, I suppose I should give it back. But for some reason, there's a part of me that doesn't want to. I shrug it off, and head back home.
I'm soaking wet, and people stare at me on my way back to my house. As I walk, I'm too caught up in other people's stares to watch where I'm going, so I accidentally bump into someone.
"Oof! Oh, sorry, I didn't see you." I say, as I look up into the smiling face of Derek Hawthorne.
"Oh, hey Derek. It's you. I think your dad is still over at my place. Wanna come with me?" I ask.
"Sure." He says, a silly, crooked grin on his face. He follows me toward his house, and I put on my -his- jacket.
"I have your jacket, by the way. I'll give it to you after I change into some dry clothes." I say, and notice that his grin considerably widens.
"Nah, it's okay. It looks good on you." He says.
"It's mine?" I ask, my eyes widening. It's good jacket. Is he really giving it to me?
"Yep." He says, still grinning happily.
"Thank you!" I say, jumping up to hug him. He hugs me back, and I notice that he's really, really warm.
He laughs and asks me, "Why are you so happy about me giving you a jacket?"
"Well, it's a really nice jacket." I say, and he laughs. We arrive at my house, and I grab his hand and pull him through the door. I don't know what made me do it, though.
My mom and Derek's dad are standing at the door laughing, and when we come in they immediately see our hands are pressed together. I quickly drop his hand and hug my mom.
"Honey! Why are you wet?" She asks me, still looking at Derek.
"I went swimming, and I forgot to bring extra clothes." I say with a shrug. She gives me a funny look and nods.
"Hello, Derek. Gale's told me a lot about you." My mother says, as she smiles approvingly at him.
"I'm going upstairs to change." I call out to my mother, as I make my way up the stairs.
I quickly change into a loose, cream colored shirt and white shorts. It's not like I'm going out or anything, so I don't need to wear my usual pants.
I dash down the stairs quickly, and when I arrive at the bottom, I see Gale and my mom talking and laughing, while Derek just stares at me.
I sit beside him, tap his leg, and say, "What?" in a hushed whisper.
He clears his throat and replys, "Oh, nothing, nothing." Derek is acting different today. He just keeps on staring at me a grinning. He's grinning at me now, for no apparent reason. (gosh, Delilah. You're so clueless. Oh, that's my fault. Hehe. :P) So I slap the back of his head swiftly, just to snap him out of whatever he's going through.
"Ouch!" He hisses.
I shrug and give him a look. "Your fault for grinning like a mad-man. It's getting creepy, Derek."
This time, it's his turn to shrug, and he laughs. "It's fun to creep you out." I look at him through slitted eyes and tell him, "Oh, that'll be the last time you laugh Hawthorne, if you keep this up." I say, forgetting to lower my voice to a whisper. He laughs, and I slap the back of his head again. It is then that I realize our parents are acting like us, laughing and joking, and I notice how much we act alike.
Gale looks at the clock, and his eyes go wide. "It's already seven! It's getting late, me and Derek should be getting home. His mother will worry."
My mother clears her throat, and awkwardly asks him, "Uh, who is Derek's mother?"
"Madge." He says, as if it explains everything. And by looking at my mother, I can tell that it does.(yep. She's alive! And Derek's mother isn't some random OC! Tell me, do you think it would be better if she was an OC?)
"Undersee?" My mother chokes out.
"Yes." Gale says, half smiling.
"I'm so happy for you!" My mom says, and she seems to be truly happy for him and this girl named Madge.
"Remember she that she gave me the mockingjay pin?" My mother asks, smiling happily.
"Yeah. The symbol of the rebellion." Derek's father says, with the same, happy smile. During this whole exchange, me and Derek stay silent.
"C'mon Derek. We should go." He continues, nudging his son. He gives me and my mom hugs, Derek wave at both of us, and they leave. I go up to my room, and decide that I want to sleep. Lately, I've been sleeping early a lot. I don't know why, I just feel tired.
So I crash on top of my head and fall asleep.
-Line Break!-
I wake up, and it's Monday. Great, I think, as I groan. I have to go to school today. I wash up, and stick my hand in my closet. I put on the first thing I touch, and see that it's a white tunic that I've forgotten about. It has short sleeves, and it ends at my thighs. I grab a pair of black pants, and put a belt around my waist. There. I comb my hair and slip on my boots.
I head downstairs for breakfast, and see that my father, mother, and little brother are already eating. My brother looks at me, with his mouth open in suprise. My parents are talking, so they aren't paying much attention. I laugh, and close Jeremy's jaw.
"Don't want to catch flies." I say, and ruffle his hair. "Why are you so suprised?"
"You look so pretty." He says, earnestly. "You've never worn anything like that for school." I pick up a bowl, milk, and the cereal box and grab a clean spoon from the counter. I turn away from Jeremy, so that he can't see I'm blushing.
I quickly give him a hug, and murmur my thanks. I pour cereal, then milk, into my bowl. I eat as fast as I can, as I'm already late. Jeremy's already done, he's just waiting for me to take him to school. I grab my book bag, finish and take Jeremy's hand, pulling him out the door, and shouting, "Bye mom! Bye dad! We're going to school!"
We walk in silence to school, and when we arrive at his building, I kiss the top of his head and wave.
"Bye, Lilah!" He shouts, as he makes his way towards his classroom. I continue walking until I reach the high school building. I see a familliar figure leaning against the rails, and I laugh as I greet Derek. We walk towards our classroom, and I realize I completely forgot my History book.
"Dammit! Derek, just go ahead, I need to get my History book from my locker."
"You sure? I could come if you want..." He says, trailing off uncertainly.
"No, no, you go. I'll see you there." I say, already making my way towards my locker. When I reach it, I enter my code and my locker swings open. I find my History book, and some other books that I might need, and close my locker door.
I'm holding my books to my chest, looking down at my feet, and I accidentally drop my books. I kneel down to retrieve them, but someone already picks up the books and hands them to me.
"Uh, thanks." I say, as I look up to see the person who helped me. I freeze as I see that it's Finn Collins, the most popular boy in Junior year. His blond hair, falling over his eyes. His bright green eyes shining as he smiles. Huh. I've never noticed it before, but he's pretty cute. (Delilah's got a crush? :D)
"No problem. Delilah, right?" He says, smiling at me, and I melt.
"Uh-huh." I say, unable to think of the right words to say.
"I'm Finn. Finn Collins." He says, and he gives me his hand to shake. I take it, and feel a little spark as I do.
"Hi." I say. Oh god, why can't I think of anything better to say? I'm embarrassing myself in front of the totally adorable, popular Finn Collins.
"Um, I kind of... have to get to class." I manage to say.
"Oh, yeah. See you later?" He asks me.
"Yeah. Yeah, of course." I squeak, and rush past him, towards my classroom. He was so sweet... and cute... I sigh, and step into the classroom, all while daydreaming about Finn.
I make my way over to my desk, and take a seat beside Derek.
"Why did you take so long?" He whispers to me.
"I... dropped my books." I say, blushing. It is the truth, isn't it?
"Oh. Why are you blushing?" He asks me, now confused.
"I talked to Finn Collins. Or, more like, he talked to me." I say, sheepishly. I'm still blushing when I see him frown.
"Who's that?" He asks me, and he looks almost mad.
"Oh, he's only the most popular boy in Junior year! How can you not know him?" I ask, watching his frown deepen.
"Eh. I'm new here, remember?" Oh, that's right. The teacher comes, and I watch the clock, waiting for school to end.
Yay long chapter! Do you like Finn? I hope you don't. I have plans... hee-hee. :D
Thanks for reading!