Author's Note: Due to technical issues (a.k.a no internet connection in my new flat), I'm posting this un-beta'd.
Disclaimer: I don't own Life with Derek, nor anything connected to it.
Chapter 4
Casey scrambled to help the other cheerleaders up. As they moved back into formation, her mind was reeling so fast that she was oblivious to the glares of Louise and her friends. The glimpse had been so fleeting that she thought she might have imagined it, but as she looked out onto the ice she knew she hadn't; despite his full padding, her eyes picked him out instantly. Again her reaction to him caused her to physically jolt. She figured that it was shock; she hadn't expected to see him, she was reminded her how much she missed everyone, and panic, because she had to work out a course of action.
Derek had been secretly thrilled to be able to take up the hockey scholarship that he had won at the University of Alberta, as the newly christened Daniel Valenti. He tried out successfully for the team, and although as a new player he hadn't made the starting team during the first semester, he slotted into the team's social calendar immediately, and was never short of friends or female attention.
He had toyed with dating one girl for a few weeks, but she after she mentioned his sleep-talking, and then began to distance herself from him, he made a concerted effort to maintain a policy of strict detachment. Being single was hardly a sacrifice; it was his default state, and as a student he had plenty to keep him distracted, with a whole campus of potential dates, not even counting all the cheerleaders he met whilst touring the country, playing in the Interuniversity cup. Casey wasn't quite what he had in mind there, he thought wryly, as he watched her pick herself up from a pile on the floor.
Casey couldn't believe that she would have been lucky enough for him to have missed seeing her, she had fallen over after all. When she approached him after the game, she knew instantly that she was right, because he wasn't remotely fazed.
"Hi, I'm Daniel," stated Derek, emphasising his new name, and cutting off Casey before she had a chance to blow their cover.
"Hi, I'm Louise," purred Casey's roommate, believing she had an opportunity to snag a guy Casey was interested in. "You don't need to know who that klutz is," Louise pointed at Casey, and Derek smirked.
At the after game party, Derek avoided Casey, leaving rooms as she entered them, he didn't think to be subtle; it wasn't in his nature, and no one had cause to notice. He drank a lot, but she didn't know whether that was because he was as shaken up as her, or whether he had been embracing the college lifestyle during the months they had been apart. In truth, it was a combination of both, but Derek was not planning on sharing that information, and Casey was not in a position to criticise, as no one was aware that the two knew each other. Casey recognised this, and realising she wouldn't get a chance to talk to Derek, she left early.
Later that evening, Casey sat on her bed looking at pictures of her family, in a locked folder on her laptop. The light from the screen bathed the room in a bluish glow, which was shattered by light flooding in from the hallway as the door opened. She quickly closed the window, and maximised the solitaire game at the bottom of the screen, as Louise pulled her latest conquest into the room.
"You met my roommate, Caitlin. She's a bit of a prude, but her boyfriend, Michael, lives nearby so she can always leave," spat Louise, stressing the last word, as though she could have been in danger of subtlety.
"She's your roommate?" asked Derek, his eyes widening in surprise. Louise nodded, as far as she knew the pair had only met once fleetingly a few hours previously, so neither was in the position to kick up a fuss. Louise took the pause as a cue to jump Derek, and she pushed him onto the bed, promptly straddling him.
Casey wondered when Derek had dropped his no-PDA rule; it could have been due in part to the alcohol in his system, the dim room, that as pseudo-family she didn't qualify for the public clause, or maybe Derek knew how much it would annoy her and was relishing the opportunity. She rolled her eyes, and began to consider her options, her hand was somewhat forced, as Louise began to grind against Derek and slowly moved down his body. Did Derek have no decency? She had discovered on numerous occasions that Louise did not, so it was up to Derek to stop before Casey was scarred for life. When she heard unbuckling and unzipping sounds coming from the neighbouring bed, Casey hurriedly began to stuff things in her bag. She briefly wondered how Derek always managed to hone in on girls with the sexual nuance of sledgehammers, though in truth she admitted they were obviously drawn to him.
Casey, who was in the process of zipping up her boots, realised the sounds and movements from the other bed had ceased, and she breathed a sigh of relief.
"What's wrong?" whined Louise, obviously not sharing Casey's perspective.
"I can't… not with her here," explained Derek, motioning towards Casey. Derek too had a modesty threshold, albeit to a different degree than Casey.
"I didn't have you down as a killjoy," complained Louise, obviously offended as she untangled herself from Derek, and turned to Casey, "I'm going to the toilet. When I get back I want you gone, Caitlin," growled Louise, and swept out of the room.
"Nice catch, Derek, I see you're still picking the winners," muttered Casey, switching on the light as she finished packing her bag, and moved over to sit on the bed beside him.
"It looked to me like I was on a winning streak. Don't you want to leave so I can score again?" baited Derek, intent on avoiding the conversation that he knew Casey was attempting to engage him in.
"I miss you," she offered quietly, and he sniggered in response. "I miss everyone," qualified Casey, and the room fell into silence.
"I do too," admitted Derek quietly. His face showed no expression, and Casey almost wondered if she had heard him, until she noticed his jaw was clenched with the effort of restraining emotions he had kept well buried. Casey leant over to pull Derek into a sideways hug, but he flinched at her touch, and jerked away.
"You still won't hug me?" Casey half asked and half stated, sounding wounded.
"Nope. What did you think had changed that I would?" asked Derek, obviously rhetorically, but Casey replied anyway.
"I feel like you're the closest I've been to family in over ten months."
"You feel less like family than ever," replied Derek unthinkingly. It was Casey's turn to recoil, as though he had struck her, and tears began to form in her eyes. He panicked, as he realised how badly she had interpreted his statement. "… I guess... I mean... I've never hugged you because you never felt like family… Or a friend," he continued, tripping over his words, as he covered unfamiliar territory in his hurry to placate her. "It wasn't like I didn't want to exactly…" appeased Derek. He was cut off, before he could ramble further, when Louise entered the room.
"Why are you still here?" asked Louise, her voice taking on a warning tone.
Casey got up to leave, and turned to Derek as though to say something, but she couldn't find the words to begin, and there was nothing for her to do but turn around and leave. She had forgotten how that happened around him. Derek knew she had wanted to find out what he had meant by his last statement, and a large part of him was relieved that Louise had interrupted them, because he wasn't sure what exactly he had meant.
Authors Note: I'm just going to cover Derek and Casey's lives at the moment, so the audience will be as in the dark as they are. I do know what George, Nora, Edwin, Lizzie and Marti are up to, I'm just not writing about it currently, as Derek and Casey are proving to be enough of a handful. I may eventually do parallel piece around the others, depending on how this one is received. Speaking of which, thank you for all of your reviews.
