Author's Note Enjoy this. A moment that you all had been waiting for. I hope you like it. And hopefully you like the song I wrote. I'm not, in particular, a song writer, but hopefully it doesn't totally suck.
Disclaimer I own nothing.
The band started playing and Casey couldn't understand a single word. Emily and Derek were both on their feet, jumping up and down, singing the words loud and proud. Casey wanted to stand, but she was afraid.
Everyone else was doing it, but jumping…
And next to Derek…
She knew he was a pervert…Don't assume ulterior motives. Everyone's a jerk at some point…and if you expect it of them…that's what they'll give to you.
Derek looked down at her then looked back up at the band. It didn't seem to phase him. Nothing phased him.
And Casey didn't care. She stood up and smiled at Derek, with him smirking at her she started jumped up and down, head banging and letting loose the crazy girl inside she was afraid of.
Soon as she knew it three songs had gone by and her head was pounding. It hurt but she didn't care. Let the whiplash come.
"WoooH!" Casey let out. Derek whistled as the song ended and Emily sat down, sweat coming off of her forehead. "You okay?" Emily nodded her head. The next song started but Casey sat down. "You sure?"
"Yeah, I'm just parched." Emily sighed, smiling with excitement.
"Hey, Derek!" Casey yelled to get Derek's attention. He turned. "Give me some money so I can go get Emily a drink." Derek pulled out his wallet and handed her money. Casey stood, but Emily pulled her down.
"I'll go get it." Casey helped Emily up and watched her walk away. She could faintly hear her screaming the words of the song. Casey started dancing her natural dance, the ballet, except in a more contemporary and provocative way. It was starting to take Derek's attention, but he kept singing the words. She swayed her hips, knowing exactly what she was doing.
But she wasn't disgusted. Not anymore. And she wouldn't have been disgusted in the beginning. She would've been shocked.
The song came to a slow, instrumental end.
"This next song is a new song we wrote, driving here. You guys will be the first to ever hear it…besides us of course. It's called 'Let's Play Games'." The singer called out to his teenage audience.
Bass, bass, some drums and lead guitar. Such a slow, tantalizing rhythm.
"You are in me, much like my blood.
Your hate keeps me alive, and your love
Keeps me insane.
Driven me to the craziest places
But I love you more now that you did it
Who'd have thought I'd want you to be it"
Derek was looking at Casey. Casey slowly turned her eyes to him, smiled, and sat down. No longer jumping Derek sat down too. The slow pace of the song had not changed. Emily had not gotten back.
"Tag you're it, catch me if you can
We can play a game to hide the truth
Or play a game of truth or dare
How 'bout I dare you to tell the truth?"
"Casey. Are you having fun?" Casey turned to Derek. She smiled.
"Of course I am. I was jumping up and down, wasn't I?" Casey had the urge to ask Why do you care? but she held it in. Em said give him a chance. Casey refused to be mean until he was.
"Yeah, but I don't want you to pretend." She curved her eyebrows inward. He was confusing…
"Wait no, the truth spoils the fun;
Let's play games around this kind of crazy
Hide and Seek baby, I want to find you sleeping
Sleeping in a strange position between me and you
Because the games are easier
Than to breath you in with just love;
Just love is no fun
For now let's play games"
"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I expected you to spoil my fun. I was afraid to bring you along." Casey crossed her arms but kept a smile on.
"Well, in that case…I'm glad you were wrong."
"Ring around the rosy, dance circles around me sweetheart
Make red marks on my skin in the shapes
Of broken hearts
Tell the dare you wish me to make
Tell the truth you know is there
Let's play a game to hide the truth"
"I'm surprised you haven't freaked. This doesn't seem like your thing. You seemed to have changed this past week."
"You too Derek." Casey eyed him gently. He smiled. Not smirked. Smiled. Casey felt soft.
"Let's play games around this kind of crazy
I knew you wanted to be on top baby
But before you were on top
You had to be in first
But first place was next to me
There aint any getting better
Let's play games behind a closed door
Let's play games in this kind of crazy"
"Derek, why do you try to fight with me, and then do something like this. All it does is confuse me." Derek furrowed his eyebrows at Casey.
"What do you mean?"
"We fight all the time, save this past week…when we only had problems dealing with you taking my letter and what I said to you on the bus…but you are nice…when you want to be…so why aren't you nice all the time." Derek thought for a moment.
"I'm not perfect." Casey looked down. "You can't always get along with someone that you even like…let alone dislike." She looked up at the singer. "You aren't perfect either."
"So now you've caught up, you knew it all along
If you could play along, why didn't you play before?
Because you thought that wanting me meant
Wanting to be something less than what you are?
But honey, playing this game makes you want to play the part
So why are we still pretending the truth is hidden?"
"And Casey…What if I told you that I didn't hate you. That I wanted to tell you something." Casey's heart was beating harder and harder. This time she was sure it was coming.
"Tell me what?"
"I know who 'No Name' is." Casey locked eyes with him. She stood, still looking at him. He slowly stood. "I want to know how you want him to meet you."
"I'm so attracted to who he is that if he just walked up and kissed me, I'd know then who he was." Derek smirked, put his left arm around Casey's waist and pulled her into a tight kiss.
His lips felt so surreal against hers. Subconsciously Casey wrapped her arms around Derek's neck and deepened the kiss. Her heart beat faster than it had ever beat before, and in this fantasy world the games of secret admirers came to an end.
"The game reveals the truth. The game was pretending it was a game."
Emily smiled down from the top of the stands where she had been watching them.
"Finally."
