Emotions of the Eye

Casey knit her brow as a disappointed emotion pooled inside her. She almost regretted that Derek had departed so soon. Almost, though it was somehow relieving to be arguing with him in a way she hadn't since just after he had broken up with Kendra.

Taking a deep breath, she dragged her fingers through her hair, the memory of their last real argument causing her cheeks to burn.

"So, Derek, how was school today?" Nora asked in her usual, laid-back manner.

Derek ducked his head and politely asked Casey for the peas.

Casey passed them, an inquisitive look masking her surprise at his brief utterance of the word "please." She had heard the day's gossip about Derek, most of it from the ever-obsessed Emily.

"All right," Nora acquiesced knowingly, turning to her eldest daughter. "How was your day?"

"Well, I did hear an interesting rumor," Casey offered menacingly, eyes on Derek; for her, this torment was vindication for how much he had been heckling her as of late, mostly about how she and Sam had gotten back together after nine happy months of being completely broken up.

Derek set his jaw but said nothing.

"About Derek," Casey continued when the others made no inquiry as to the nature of this gossip.

"And it's completely true," Derek supplied in a low voice, looking up from his plate to glare at Casey. The latter was slightly taken aback by the aberrant look of unadulterated hatred in his eyes.

"Well, now we have to hear what it is," George joked, trying in vain to ease the sudden tension as his wife's eyes darted anxiously between their eldest; everyone was anticipating an explosion.

"Oh, uh, it . . . it doesn't matter. I was just . . . just kidding," Casey stuttered, not having meant to actually hurt Derek with her words.

"Okay . . ." George warily accepted.

There was a thick pause before Derek blurted, "Kendra and I are over," with his eyes riveted on Casey.

Nora choked on her food. "Over?" she repeated; she had nearly come to believe that Derek and Kendra were going to last forever, that he had fizzled out of his girl-using phase.

Derek tore his eyes from his stepsister just as she looked at him. "Yeah, we broke up," he rephrased unaffectedly.

"Whoa . . ." Edwin intoned, his glance at Lizzie indicating that they were going to seriously discuss this in comparison with their former research later. He cleared his throat. "So," he said casually, "Why'd you end it?"

Derek's gaze dropped to his plate. "Got tired of her," he uttered, but Casey's pair of blue boring into the top of his head told that she knew he was lying.

Nora raised her eyebrows disapprovingly and gave George a pointed look, obviously in reference to Derek's treatment of the opposite sex, as Casey let out a scornful breath. "It figures you would treat her like some toy you got sick of," she scoffed, humoring him.

Derek rolled his averted eyes, looking unsettled.

"It's low, even for you," Casey provoked, wanting to get him riled up so they could go back to their normal, back-and-forth repartee and cast off his seeming indifference.

"Don't worry, Smerek!" Marti chimed in. "You'll get another girlfriend!"

"Yeah, so you can break yet another innocent heart," Casey added meanly, becoming more irked by the second; this was odd, especially considering he wasn't even doing anything.

Derek raised his eyes to her, looking bored but somewhat incensed, before getting up and leaving the room.

"Derek!" George called. "You need to excuse yourself!"

"Excuse. Fucking. Me!" Derek hollered over his shoulder, reaching the top of the stairs and heading to his room, where he slammed the door shut.

"George!" Nora exclaimed, appalled that George wasn't reacting to this outburst; Marti, after all, was only seven years old.

Edwin snickered as George reluctantly stood to go after and apprehend Derek.

"Wait, George," Casey said, pushing her chair back from the table. "I'll go."

George and Nora looked at her like a savior and a very mature young woman, respectively.

"Are you sure, Case?" Nora asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure," Casey sighed, rising to her feet and following her stepbrother's trail, a knot rising in her stomach. The guilt that had made her so adamant about going to talk to him dissipated about the time she put her foot on the top stair. You can do this, Case. It's only stupid Derek. Just apologize and leave.

She knocked on his door once before opening it and going in.

"Some people learn by example, Princess," Derek growled from where he sat on his bed, headphones blasting in his ears.

"Are you gonna be okay?" Casey asked. She hadn't meant to ask it; her intention, when she had opened her mouth, had been to counter his statement with something wittier, but her concern had just slipped out.

Derek looked at her with shuttered eyes. "Duh?" He tried to make it sound like it was obvious that he was going to be perfectly all right. "Why are you here?"

"You really liked her, huh?" Casey asked softly, revealing that she knew the truth about who had broken up with whom.

Derek let out a harsh laugh. "Yeah, right."

Casey frowned at his cruel behavior. He couldn't really feel so unattached to the girl he had spent the last year dating; could he? "Derek, you can admit you're in pain sometimes."

Derek raised an eyebrow, finally pulling out his headphones. "Really? Thanks for that bulletin. I thought I had to be Mr. Macho all the time, but since you said that, I know I can go get my tub of ice cream and watch my favorite chick flick without people judging me."

"Sarcasm isn't going to help you," Casey remarked.

"Casey, I know you're not used to manly men--obviously." He gestured at the necklace around her neck; she happened to have gotten it from Sam the week before. "But we don't cry like little girls after a breakup."

"At least Sam knows how to admit his feelings," Casey snapped, clutching her necklace defensively.

"Whatever. Just get out. I don't want to talk to you." Derek sat up and pointed at the door as his eyes filled with that pained, hateful look again, and Casey's resolve strengthened.

"No. You need to talk to someone about this. I know I'm not your . . . ideal choice for a confidante, but I listen--" Derek let out a snort of derisive laughter, and Casey hesitated before continuing. "You seem really upset."

"Trust me; I'm not." Derek's hands reaching up to pop his collar, something they only did when he was flustered, belied this statement.

"Derek, I know I was kind of mean at dinner, but--"

"You really think I care?" Derek's mocking smile was almost grimace-like.

"You got up and left," Casey stated point-blank, trying to hide her confusion; she could never determine when he was being genuine.

"I left because I didn't want to talk about this because you're making a big, stupid deal about it," Derek snarled.

"You sound like a little kid, and I know you care because you looked--" Casey stopped speaking, realizing that she hadn't come up to apologize at all; she'd come to find out if he really hated her the way his eyes said he did. She met his irritated gaze, her arms forming a protective cross over her abdomen.

"I looked . . ." Derek prompted gruffly.

Casey turned away. "You just . . . you looked really mad, and I didn't mean to hurt your feelings," she finished hurriedly.

He was silent for a moment, stare burning into her back. "That's stupid," he declared finally, reclining on his bed.

She swiveled to look at him, finding his expression to have changed. He looked contemplative and the tiniest bit depressed. "Why is it stupid?"

"You know I don't have 'feelings'," Derek replied as if it was obvious. "And even if I did, anything you said wouldn't affect them."

Casey did a quick mental calculation, weighing the odds of him opening up to her if she voiced her insecurities. Very low. Give up logic told her, but the idea was stuck, and she couldn't resist. "Want to know why I really came up here?" she queried, trying to make the reason sound as interesting as possible.

Surprisingly, Derek appeared intrigued, but his dry, "No." overrode the expression. Casey's put out look must have shown because an amused gleam briefly entered his eyes before he stifled it.

"Well, I'll tell you anyway," Casey offered, sitting down in his desk chair.

Derek rolled his eyes and put in his headphones, receiving an indignant look from her. "I told you I didn't want to know," he explained roguishly.

Casey's eyes clouded with distress. "Do you hate me?" she asked abruptly.

Derek's gaze, which had been wandering, snapped to her. "What kind of question is that?" he demanded, looking even more livid than he had at dinner.

"A serious one, Derek!" Casey barked, nose tingling with impending tears.

"Why does it matter? If I say yes, you're just going to be the same, annoying princess," Derek pointed out.

"So, that's a yes?" Casey asked, voice thickening.

"Ye--" Derek winced when he saw the tears swimming in her eyes. "No. It's just hypotherical."

"Hypothetical," Casey corrected automatically. "And I was asking for a real answer."

"I don't see what the point is." Derek stared at her, something like panic in his eyes, as if he was afraid of what he might say.

"You're stalling!" Casey sprang up from the seat, tears spilling over the rims of her eyes as she started to pace. "God, Derek! I knew we weren't close or anything, but I didn't think you hated me!"

Derek was gaping openly now, unsure of what to do. "Casey," he said seriously, his tone drawing her full attention. He slid his legs over the side of the bed and set his feet on the floor. "I . . ." He exhaled in exasperation. "Whatever you think about me--that's what I think about you."

He seemed sincere, his eyes showing no light of laughter or shadow of mischief, but then again, he'd always been a good liar. Casey sniffled, looking much like a little girl, with her red nose, rosy cheeks, and big, watery eyes. "You--you think I'm a self-centered, obnoxious, primitive slob?" she asked, half-joking and half-wondering.

Derek cracked a slight smirk, though something essential to the authenticity of that visage seemed to have died. "No, I think you're a stuck-up, needy, preppy keener Princess, who can't keep her nose out of other people's business." The malevolent gloom in his eyes returned, making his insults more scathing.

Instead of reacting with tears, her feelings on a roller coaster that dropped from unhappy to enraged, Casey glowered at him. "I was just trying to help you because I thought you might feel something over your stupid breakup!" she spat. "Next time, I won't even bother!"

"Yeah, don't!" Derek rejoined hotly, standing so he was eye to eye with her. "Just mind your own business!"

"Maybe you should focus on keeping girlfriends instead of how I react when one of them breaks up with you!" Casey retorted, taking an involuntary step closer. "Just because you jump anything with breasts--"

"You think Kendra broke up with me because I cheated on her?" Derek laughed acerbically, his face inching ever closer to Casey's. "She got jealous because she thought I might be thinking about someone else. You know how retarded that is; right?"

"Actu--"

"Oh wait! Miss Preppy would do the same, exact thing, wouldn't she? Don't try and help me with this, Princess; you're the enemy."

"I'm the enemy!? Kendra and I don't go around picking random guys to hump and dump! If you ask me--"

"You know what? I didn't ask you, so shut up," Derek sneered.

Casey's jaw dropped, and she shoved him away, full force, with both hands. "Don't tell me to shut up!"

A spark flashed in Derek's eyes, and he grabbed her shoulders, pushing her back until she hit the wall. "Don't tell me what to do," he rasped into her face, lips hovering above hers, warm, moist, and sucking the resistance out of her.

Casey narrowed her eyes, bothered by her lack of authority over the turn of events, and pressed her hands against his chest. "You know, I wouldn't be surprised if you did hate me, because I loathe you right now."

"Good. Maybe you'll start leaving me alone," Derek muttered, eyes darkened past odium and to something else entirely.

"And maybe I won't," Casey bit back, chest heaving. Derek's hair, quite long and deliciously mussed, in spite of the haircut he had gotten recently, brushed the bridge of her nose, making her more than aware of just how close they were standing. She was suddenly very fretful, feeling as though something awful or dangerous was about to happen.

Derek must have felt this, too, for his expression changed yet again, and he loosened his hold on her. "You should stay away from me." Casey watched him, mildly exhilarated. "For your own good," he concluded brusquely, seeming to be memorizing the contours of her face with his unreadable eyes before he retreated to the other side of the room.

Casey shrugged off the electricity that permeated her body. "Is that supposed to be a threat?" she tested sharply, her voice tight.

Derek wouldn't look her in the eye. He shook his hair out of his face and strode back to his bed, carelessly collapsing on it and casting an apathetic, "Get out." in her direction before putting in his headphones and turning his CD player up to an ear-piercing screech; he happened to be listening to heavy metal.

Casey examined him carefully, hoping he would open up, go against everything he stood for and have a heart, but he paid no attention to her at all; she was invisible. Feeling snubbed and aggravated, she lingered only a moment longer before fleeing the room, banging the door shut on her way out.

"And don't talk to me when you're PMSing!"

Somehow expectedly, those had been the last, non-generic words he had said to her until he pulled his prank. Things were definitely starting to get hectic, and Casey had a feeling they would only get worse.

A/N: The Dennis/Natalie conflict has not been dropped, in case any of you were wondering. I just figure Casey would be focusing more on herself than others at a time like this. I hope you enjoyed the last two chapters, and I implore you to review.