A/N: I had a couple of questions about my story, which I am gonna try to answer for you other views who are too mean to review! About the age difference: says that Derek is about 16 when the bombs drop in 2011. TSCC is set during 2007, making him about 12. The first chapter is set about a year before he met the Connors, so he is 11. She is 16 in the chapter, making her, if you do the math, 5 years older than him. Also, Derek did not forget her. Her death was very painful to him, so did not go look for her because it would hurt too much. Her face faded from his memory, not her and her personality. It happens. One of my readers did find a mistake though, which I corrected. Jesse should not be in the story in the first chapter. He didn't meet her until after he met the Connors. Sorry about that! Song to play is "Assassin" by Muse. For playlist go to .com/playlist/14395474699 . Also, for more Derek-centric stories, visit my community "Funny Derek"! Now, on with the show!

[note: any italicized text means Derek's thoughts]

LOCATION TIME: LA/ Early August 2008

The mid-afternoon sun peaked through the blinds, shinning in Derek's eyes as the air conditioner blew cold air across his bare chest. In the two years since escaping the post-J-Day apocalyptic hell the amazement of all the luxury around him still had not faded. For example, like the luxury of sleeping butt-naked in soft, warm bed with white sheets and a beautiful women next to him who was equally naked. Ah, life was good.

Lately he had taken to spending more and more time with Jesse. There was only so much he could do with the Connors to stop Skynet. Most of the time it was just the matter of waiting till something popped up. Besides he couldn't stand being in the same house, let alone the same room, with that tin bitch masquerading around as if it was good, like it was fully on their side. No matter what anyone said, it was just a ticking time bomb waiting to explode and kill everyone around. Plus, it wasn't like anyone even noticed his absence, which was fine with him. He didn't want anyone poking around trying to find out where was going or who he was seeing. He didn't want the knowledge of Jesse and their relation out in the open just quite yet.

His attention turned to Jesse when she stirred and faced him. He could help but compare her to Mel at quite moments like this. Whereas Jesse was all business and serious, Mel was laid back and comedic. Jesse's skin was caramel; Mel peachy tan. A lone mole graced Jesse's face, while Mel look as if she was wearing a porcelain mask. In contrast to Jesse's black curly mane, Mel's was a wavy curtain of dirty blond. It was like night and day. And just like moonlight could never truly shine at the full brilliance of the sun, no matter how much he loved Jesse, he will never love her, or anyone else for that matter, like he loves Mel. Yes, loves. He will always love Mel no matter what; his weekly ritual only stood to make him love her even more as he found out more things about her that he never learned. Sometimes it almost felt like he was cheating on Mel when he was with Jesse. The feeling would come at the most impromptu moment, and come at such a force that it decapitated him, froze him in place. Just as quickly, though, it would fade, but it always stayed at the back of his mind like a cancer, the guilt slowly eating through him. He'd have to keep reminding himself that Mel, or least the Mel he knew, loved, and married, was long gone. Just another skull that litter the ground in the future. But still, the feeling gnawed at him. He couldn't escape it.

"Stop staring at me, Derek," Jesse said sleepily, eyes still closed. Derek was startled a bit. He hadn't notice that had she awoken. "It's creepy."

Derek mumbled a quick apology before removing the covers to slip out of bed. Jesse's arm shot out and circled around his waist to pull him closer. "Mmm... don't go yet. It's only morning."

He slipped out of her grip, and sat up, searching around the floor for his jeans. He was sure they around here somewhere. Seeing the edge of something blue under the bed, he bent down and picked them up. It must have gotten pushed underneath as they made their way to the bed. Slipping a leg into the jeans, he turned his head to the side to look at Jesse. "It's about three in the afternoon. Stay in bed if you want, but I have things to do. Missions to complete, people to kill..." Dead wife to see...

"Three? Wow, times flies when doing things you like. Like you," she winked at him, and continued with a small smile, "But, you know what, I'm all of a sudden jonesing for some ice cream. You know the kind with the nuts, chokkie, caramel, candy pieces, the whole kit-n-caboodle. We never really got to eat that back in the day. If you're going out, you mind getting me some, yeh? And none of that bodgy stuff."

He poked his head through his shirt, and leveled a look at her. "English please."

Rolling her eyes, she said, "Just get me some Ben & Jerry's Everything-but-the-sink ice cream. I promise, I'll make it up to ya, with interest."

It was time for his weekly meeting with Mel anyways, so he grabbed his keys and gun, kissed Jesse, and left.

******

Beeep!

"Ice cream again, Daren? Jeez, I don't know where you pack it away. If it didn't look like you worked out, I'd say you were binging and purging!"

Derek silently noted with glee that she had noticed his physique. He guessed the intense workout that he got from dodging bullets had some noticeable benefits other than staying alive. It had about two years since he had stumbled onto Mel in the grocery story, and except for a few instances (like the week he was out of commission because he got shot), he had dependably met her every Wednesday night. At first he could barely mumble a few words to her from a mixture of fear that she would learn the truth and an unexplainable feeling of shyness. It had been so pathetic; it was almost like he was a shy nerd finally getting to talk to the head cheerleader, only to find he couldn't say anything (or at least that's what he thought that was how he was acting—he really didn't remember high school dynamics anymore). But over time he became more confident and at ease around her, mostly because of Mel. She could make even the most anti-social person her friend. There was just something about her cheery, open personality that made everyone feel comfortable around her, as if they talking to a long lost friend, which was actually what she was to him. In the past, or future, or what the hell you wanted to call it, Mel had been everything to him—best friend and confidant, lover, wife, protector, commanding officer, rival, mentor, soul mate. The list was never ending. Everything he had become was because of her. That was why he had become so devastated when she had died. In one fell swoop, he had lost everything.

"So how have you been, Mel? Anything new happen?" he probed.

"What? In the last week since you've seen me? You know my life ain't that interesting," she said with a roll of her eyes. Suddenly she stopped, and looked around as if checking to see if anyone was listening in as a slow smile spread across her face. "Come closer, and I'll tell you a secret if you promise to tell no one."

She leaned over the counter, pulling Derek closer by the shoulder, stopping so that her lips were just a mere inch from his ear. He tensed at the touch. He hadn't been this close to her in so long it was overwhelming his senses. He could smell her shampoo, a mixture of some type of floral and citrus. He inhaled deeply. Combined with the warmth that was radiating off her skin and her breath as it blew lightly on his ear, it was making his knees weak. Closing his eyes, he reveled in the feeling.

"I just accepted to a summer internship at this private medical practice," she whispered, "I start there in three weeks. In fact, I'm handing in my two weeks notice in today." She leaned back over to her side of the counter, letting go of Derek's shoulder. "It's no big deal or anything," she continued at her normal volume, "I'm just going to be filling paper or what not. I won't get to cut anyone open or anything. Too bad, I really want to see all that blood."

Derek put on a fake smile. Two weeks. That's all the time he had left with her before she walked out of his life completely. He could feel the walls starting to crash around him already. In a fake cheery voice he said, "Blood? Aren't you freaked out by it?"

"Nah, you get use to it pretty quickly."

Derek only knew that too well. Even though he knew being a doctor was a mediocre job during the present, he felt sadden that she had chosen that profession. It was what she was after Judgment Day. She had been the second in command of the Medic unit of the Resistance, second only after Kate Connor. She had run the hospital at the main base, patching up all the the broken souls who needed help. Even though death was common place, he remembered that she reacted to each and every person who died under her care as if that was the first death she witnessed. She would grieve for those who probably had no one else to grieve for them. There was even a little notebook that she had carried around that listed every man, women, and child that died under her watchful care. If a person died whose name was unknown, she would give them a name that she thought best suited them, and add that to her notebook. A prayer was said over the body followed by a moment of silence before she moved on to the next patient, a sad but determined look upon her face. The first time he had seen her, he, delirious from the pain, had mistaken her for an angel. The spot light in the background shined behind her, making it look like as if she was surrounded by an aura of light; it had reflected off her dirty blond hair giving the illusion of a golden halo on her head. He use to joke with her that she was campaigning to be the Patron Saint of Medicine with all the good she was doing. As time went on, the joke became a myth whispered throughout the tunnels.

"Yeah, well, Mel, I'll miss you." There was so much sincerity in his words that Mel actually blushed. "No one rings me up like you do. You almost never rip me off."

"You sure know how to make a girl blush. If you don't stop with the complements, I swear I'll go blind from rolling my eyes so much."

There wasn't a line behind Derek so he just stood there. An uncomfortable silence was developing. Mel, becoming nervous from it, felt compelled to do something. Thinking of nothing else, she stuck out her hand, knocking over a pamphlets on display. An array of colorful paper rained down in front of Derek.

"Oh my god! I'm so sorry! Damn, I'm such a klutz. Here, let me grab those real quick." She turned to step out of her station, but Derek held out a hand to stop her.

"No, no, no. I got it. You stay there." Derek knelt down, pulling his jacket down in the back to hide his Glock, and started to make a pile of paper. Dthum, dthum, dthum. Heavy footsteps sounded behind him, stopping as they reached the cash register. As soon as Derek heard the sound of the man approaching, a shiver ran down his spine. He froze. There was something wrong. So wrong that his skin crawled. The last time he had felt like this was in the tunnels. It was usually followed by metal raining down on him. But metal couldn't be here. Not here. Mel's location before the war was undisclosed, lost when the fires of hell burned everything to the ground. She never even told him her exact location pre-war, only stating that she had met up with Connor beforehand. There could be no reason for metal to be tailing him. The knowledge of his bunking with the Connors had disappeared when Sarah smashed Cromarti's chip. The only other person who knew was Jesse, but he she wouldn't tell. Derek hoped that he was just imagining his discomfort.

The hope was crushed when the deep, monotone voice of the stranger spoke, "Amelia Autumn Jones?"

"That's me. How can I help ya?"

Derek heard a gun a cocking. He turned, still in his squatting position, toward the man, seeing the gun pointing directly at Mel. Everything started moving in slow motion. The people around them saw the gun and started running, their screams muffled by the sound of his blood as it rushed through his veins. Mel was frozen in place, horror on her face. The machine was squeezing the trigger. It was going to shot Mel, and there was nothing Derek could do. Right before the bullet left the barrel, he did the only thing he could think of—he threw himself at the terminator's legs, toppling him over, and screwing up his aim.

He heard a scream and a thud as a body hit the ground, and he hoped, as bad as it was, that someone other than Mel had gotten hit. Scrambling to his feet, he grabbed the gun tucked into his jeans, and shot the machine in the head in three quick blasts point blank. It stopped moving, but Derek knew he only succeeded in making it reboot. 120 seconds. That was all the time he had to move Mel. He scrambled behind the counter. The first thing he noticed was blood. A pool of blood, growing larger by the minute. No, no, no! Not yet. Fuck, not yet! His eyes traced the blood to the source. Mel was sitting backed against cabinet under the register, eyes shut, teeth clenched, clutching her left side as rivets of blood flowed through her fingers down to the floor. Thank god! She isn't dead. He slid down through the blood, stopping next to her.

"Mel, Mel! Open your eyes. Look at me! Are you ok?!"

She opened her eyes and glared at him. "What the fuck do mean 'am I ok'?! I just got shot by some psycho! Of course I'm not ok! Pshh. 'Am I ok?' What kind of fucking question is that?!"

By his count, he had 100 seconds left. He had to get her out of her. 'Alright, move you hand. Let me see."

Carefully, he moved her hand away from the wound. She winced as even more blood rolled down her arm. It had hit her between the ribs, just an inch from missing her completely. If I had only moved quicker. He could see the shinny bullet. It wasn't as deep or serious as it looked. Probably missed all the major organs. Simple to fix, but unfortunately he didn't have the time. 90 seconds. Taking his jacket off, he tore a piece off and tied it around her chest, above the wound.

"Oww! Watch it!"

"Sorry. Here," he grabbed her hand to press the rest of the jacket to the wound, "keep pressure on it. Can you walk?"

"Yes, I think so," she nodded, determination on her face.

"Good, come on, I have to get you out here before it wakes up."

Mel thought it was odd that he referred to the man as an "it", but decided now was not the time to correct his grammar. Derek grabbed her right hand, and tried pulled her up. She slipped on her blood, but he caught her before she hit the ground.

"You ok?" Derek asked. In reply, Mel just gave him a dirty look. "Right."

Helping support her weight, they moved around the register station, walking slowly toward the front doors. He wanted to move faster, but Mel kept moaning and her eyes were starting to droop. She must have lost a lot blood. If they moved too fast she might pass out, and that would not help them. They still had a long way to go until they got to his car. Just as they were past the last checkout lane, a bullet whooshed past Derek side, hitting the wall. Shit! He swung both of them around, and fired two shots blindly towards the direction where the bullets came from. Shoving Mel behind the nearest counter,to the left, he dove behind her. She landed on her injured side, and nearly blacked out.

The machine must have already awoken. He thought they had at least 20 seconds left, but he guess he must have not counted right. Fuck, fuck, fuck! Ok, alright, get a grip Derek. You can do this. There was no way they could leave through the front door to get to his car. He didn't have the right type of weapon to take the damn thing down. Plus, he only had one bullet left, plus an extra clip that had an additional six. I should have grabbed the metal's gun. The only option he had left was to try to leave through another way, and steal a getaway car.

"Is there another way out?!" he screamed at Mel.

She was having trouble concentrating, the pain was so bad. Black spots were starting to cloud her vision. She took a deep breathe, taking a moment to get her bearings. Derek chanced a look around the corner to position the metal, but before he stuck his head out fully, another shot whizzed past him, this time barely missing by an inch. He could hear it moving towards them, its steps slow and measured as if it had all the time in the world to find and kill them. They needed to hurry. He looked at Mel, and noticed that she was slumping, her eyes almost closed.

He grabbed Mel by the shoulders, and lightly slapped her face several times to keep her from losing consciousness. "Hey, hey, hey, Mel, come on, concentrate. Where is the other exit?"

She blinked a few times, moaning, before answering. "In the back," she motioned towards the back right.

"Ok, let's go. We have to be quite and move fast. You think you can do that?" The footsteps were only 10 feet away. She nodded her head. He pulled her up, slinging her right arm around his neck so he could help her move. Couching, they moved toward the back. Just as the corner of the nearest isle, a couple bullets hit a glass bottle of ketchup, exploding above their heads, covering them with bits of glass and red goo.

"Ahh," Mel screamed.

"Keep moving, keep moving." He was having a hard time holding her up. The ketchup was creating a slick barrier between them. A clip fell to the ground as a new clip clicked into place not ten feet from them. It was close.

He ran through the eye, practically carrying Mel. There was a mother, her arms encircling her child, in front of them, crouched behind a cart. She shrank away from them as they passed. Derek wanted to stop and try to help them, but couldn't. He just prayed that the terminator didn't shoot them in the process of hunting them. Reaching the end of the isle, he turned right. There were double doors a hundred feet from them. They hobbled forward, but stopped when Mel almost fell to the floor.

"Please, stop. I don't think I can move anymore. Just give me a minute, please." Tears were streaming down her face. Derek glanced behind them. He couldn't see it, but knew it was close by the screams of people as it passed them. Shit!

'No, come on. Only a little way left. You can do this!" Don't give up now. I can't loose you twice.

"No, no. I can't!" Mel shook her head.

Damn it! He did the only thing he could do. He put his hand behind her head and knees, and lifted her. Looking back one last time, he turned and practically ran through the doors and plastic flaps behind them. Stopping, he looked around. He couldn't see the exit, just boxes in piles all around. Fuck! There doors were in the front center of the room, so there was no way knowing which way was the exist.

Looking down at Mel in his arms he asked, "Which way?"

"In the back left." Her voice was very weak. She wouldn't last much longer without some medical attention. He just prayed that that they would live long enough to get it. Sweat was streaming down his face, stinging his eyes. The muscles were screaming in pain, begging him to put down the extra weight. He ran forward, then took a quick left. Hallelujah, the doors were right in front of them. The doors were even propped open! Derek thanked whoever it was looking out for them. As soon as he passed through the doors, he looked around, trying to find a car.

Mel mumbled something.

"What?"

"My car. Its the blue Explorer. Parked in the front." she whispered. Derek looked around. It was the closest car to them.

"Do have your keys?"

She moved her hand from the side that was pressed against Derek, and retrieved the keys from her pocket. He almost dropped her when she moved. Again he thanked the powers that be. This saved him the trouble and time of breaking into a car. Plus, if he had to put Mel down to do it, he didn't think he could lift her again. Moving as fast as he could, he moved to the passenger side of the car.

"Can you open the door, Mel?"

She nodded her head, and he leaned in so she could reach the keyhole. It took her a few tries, but she finally unlocked the door. The entire time Derek looked towards the back door, praying the machine would reach them yet. He pulled the door open with a grunt, depositing her in the seat. His arms were so stiff he barely could move them from the position they were in. Making sure she wasn't in the way, he shut the door and ran to other side of the car. Opening the driver side door, he scrambled in, starting the car even before he slammed the door was shut.

Phew. A bullet shattered through the front windshield, cracking it right down the middle. It had caught up to them. Derek cursed out loud, and threw the car in reverse, rear ending the car behind them. The machine was running at full speed towards them. He put the car in drive, and sped out of the parking lot. The machine was still right behind them. The back windshield shattered completely as it fired more shots at them. Derek sped up more, willing to car the move faster. He turned right at the curve going 60 mph, and for a second it, the truck was moving on only two wheels. As he straightened out the steering wheel, all the tires slammed down onto the pavement, earning a long moan of pain from Mel. Derek wanted to make sure she was fine, but he had no time. First things first, he had the loose the gun-wielding machine. He gunned the engine some more, looking in the rear view mirror. The machine was still behind them, only 30 feet away. He took another sharp left turn at the stop sign, trying to loose it. He looked back. It was working! It was loosing ground—now only 50 feet from them....100...200. Knowing that it wouldn't be able to catch up with them, it stopped and aimed, emptying out the remaining bullets it had left. One hit the side view mirror on the driver's side, blowing it off completely. Derek turned left again, this time the machine disappearing from view completely. He almost yelled for joy, but he knew he wasn't out of the woods yet. It could acquire a car, and find them.

Mel moan beside him, drawing his attention to her. She was sprawled on the seat. Her bleeding had gone down a bit. The seat and the door were smeared with her blood. The good thing was her eyes were open and she looked coherent. The bad thing was that she looked like she needed some answers.

"What the hell happened? Why was that man trying to kill me?"

He looked away from her, and turned his attention back on the road. Should he tell her the truth—that that man wasn't a man, but a machine sent back from the future to kill her? That he was from the future? Would she even believe him? Maybe silence was the best policy.

"Hello?! Daren, please, tell me what the hell is going on?" Guess not.

He looked back at her before checking the rear view mirror, then turning his eyes back to the road. He couldn't tell, at least not right now. Instead, he tried to distract her. "You need to keep pressure on the wound or you'll bleed to death."

She took the jacket and put it firmly on her wound. "Fine, done. Now tell me what the fuck is going on? What's going on? And where did you get that gun?"

He turned into a busy gas station, and got out. Opening her door, he said, "Come on, we need to ditch this car, and get a new one. It might be tracking this."

"What do you mean get a new one? Do you mean stealing one?"

"Yes, now move! We don't have much time," he said impatiently.

"No way." She crossed her arms.

He ran a hand over his face. He forgot how stubborn she got. "If you want to live, we have to steal a car. Now COME ON!"

"No! Not until you tell me what's happening."

He eyed her. "I could get drag you out."

"You wouldn't! If you do, I'll scream bloody mary!"

He gave up. Throwing his arms in the air and practically screamed, "Fine! But I'm not gonna sit here and chat with you while the damn thing catches up with us. Once we're on the road again, I'll talk. Now, move!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

He helped her out of the car, and together they walked to the passenger side of a car a little way from theirs. Looking around to make sure no one was paying attention, Derek slammed his fist into the window of the car, and popped the lock. He settled Mel down, then walked to the other side, and got in. He bent down under the steering wheel, and hot wired the car to life. After rolling down the windows to hide the damage, he slowly drove out of the parking lot so as not to bring them any unwanted attention.

"Ok, so talk. Now," Mel said turning toward him.

He considered lying, but decided against it. She was going to find out sooner or later. "That man is not a man, but a cyborg sent from the future by Skynet, an A.I computer system, that in the future, will start a nuclear holocaust that wipes out almost all of mankind. It was sent here to assassinate you."

She started at him in disbelief. "You're kidding, right? A machine? Really?" He looked at her for a second, them turned back to the road. "You're not kidding. Oh my god, I've been kidnapped by a crazy person. Let me out!"

"No." Her hand towards the door handle. "Don't even think about it. I'll just stop the car, and throw you back in."

"This can't be true! You're crazy."

"Fine, don't believe me. Just don't say I didn't tell you in a few years."

"Ok then, let's say what you're saying is true. Why is it after me? Why am I so important?" Mel still didn't believe him, but decided to play along. She wasn't in any condition to really make an escape right now, and arguing with a madman didn't seem like such a good decision.

Derek sighed. "You play an important part in the Resistance, a group of survivors who banded together to fight. If you died now, then Skynet has a greater chance of winning the war, of wiping out the whole human race. Look, I know you don't believe me, but its true. I've...." he didn't want to say it, but he was going to have to, "I've see it with my own eyes, lived through it. Either way, I can't let you go and risk the chance that I'll find you and kill you."

They sat in silence for a few minutes before Mel spoke again. "Where are you taking me?"

Derek had thought about taking him to Jesse, but had decided against it. Call him crazy, but he didn't exactly want to be in the same room with his future wife and current lover. It just didn't seem like something a sane person would want to do. So instead, he was taking her to the Connors. He hated bringing Mel anywhere close to that metal bitch, but he had no choice. Maybe they could even get that mopey ex of Sarah's to patch Mel up. "We're going to my house. I have some...friends there that could help keep you safe." Looking over at her, he noticed how scared she was. "Don't worry, I won't hurt you, or let anything else hurt you. I promise."

Mel looked into his eyes before he turned them back to the road. She didn't know why, but for some reason she believed him. There was just something about him that made her feel safe. Hell, he had already saved me from that psycho with the gun, she thought. Why would he go through all that trouble only just to kill her later?...Maybe just so he could take his time to enjoy it?! No, no, he's not like that. I hope. She silently laughed, which all of a sudden caused a sharp pain through shoot her. She gave a long, low moan.

"Hold on, Mel. We're almost there." He pulled out a cell phone from his pocket and dialed a number. "Hello, Sar--" He grumbled an obscenity as he typed in a code before putting the phone back to his ear. "Sarah, I've run into a problem...I ran into a metal...no, no I lost it, but—...Yes, I'm heading home and I'm bringing a guest...the target, I've saved her, but she's hurt...Yes, a women. I'll tell you it is later. She got shot. She needs to be patched up...She'll be all right. It's not that serious. Missed anything big, but be ready when I get home...yeah, I'll be there in five... Be ready." He hung up, and dropped the phone in his lap.

After another five minutes, they pulled into a residential neighborhood before pulling to a stop before a large, brick home. As soon as they parked into the drive way, Sarah and Cameron ran to the car. Derek got out of the car, and moved to the passenger side. As soon as Sarah saw Derek, she ran up to him, and asked, "Are you all right? What happened."

Derek looked down. "It's not all blood. It's mostly ketchup and a little of her blood." Derek, Mel thought. Her vision was starting to get dark again. I thought his name was Daren? Derek pulled open her door, and reached down to pick her up in his arms again.

"Hey! I can walk..by..." Before she could even finish the sentence, darkness enveloped her completely.

A/N II: Ouch, my hand is all cramped by all the writing. BTW, anonymous reviewer TK-MR who said all my chapter are kinda short: this chapter is 5444 words (not counting the A/Ns), which is almost three times the number of words of all the previous chapters combined. How do ya like them apples?! J/K. Thank you guys for all the reviews and the "hurry-ups" (I'm taking about you, Dr. Cullen). I really appreciate it. You guys don't know how much.