This fic will have a few more chapters, but probably only two or three, four at the outside. Maybe one day I'll do a sequel but there are other things I want to be working on now, like my other two much neglected fics, and a few new things I'm having a go at. Hope you like the chapter :)
P.S Having never been out of the UK (since I was two, anyway), much less to Kingston in Canada, I have only google maps to go on so it might not be terribly accurate. Also, THIS NOW HAVE OVER 100 ALERTS AND OVER 100 REVIEWS! *Ahem* You can go ahead and read now...
Disclaimer: Do you think if I got enough good reviews they'd let me write some of Life With Derek, Again? No? Then I'll probably never own any rights to LWD...
Chapter Twenty-Nine
My epic klutzilla moment turned out to have just been delayed, as I found out when Derek offered to drive me to class (walking actually wouldn't have taken much longer, but it meant another few minutes revelling in our newly revealed feelings for each other) and I walked into the passenger door that I somehow hadn't noticed was being held open by Derek. Trust me to ruin it when Derek decides to go outside his comfort zone and be chivalrous.
I not only hit the door, but staggered back into the curb, tripped and fell flat on my back, hitting my head against the floor. I groaned, half pain and half embarrassment, and lay still for a moment, waiting for the throbbing feeling to pass.
"And there it is! I was beginning to worry." Derek taunted, earning a squinty glare.
"Der-ek! I'm actually hurt here!" My voice started out loud, then lowered in volume as it hurt my head.
He crouched down next to me. "What? I'm not allowed to enjoy seeing your klutzilla stuff happen over me?"
"Not if it means mocking my pain!"
He rolled his eyes. "You're such a drama queen. C'mon Princess, places to be." He reached out to pull me up as he stood again.
"Forget it! I'll walk." I grumbled, batting his hand away and standing up by myself.
"Casey." He sighed, trailing behind me as I walked away. "Casey, stop."
I carried on walking.
"Would you just stop a minute!" He darted in front of me, blocking me from stepping forward. He took in my folded arms and the corner of his mouth quirked. "I'm sorry, okay? I couldn't resist. You alright?"
I glared at him a moment before relenting. "Yeah, probably have a bump, but I'll live."
"Good. Want me to take a look?"
I thought of the feeling of his fingers running through my hair, but the thought was quickly cancelled out with a mental image of what my hair would look like afterwards. "No, I'll be fine. Let's just get to class."
Derek nodded and we climbed into the Prince, me wincing a little the pain in my head spiked. I wasn't too bothered by the pain, it was already fading and I'd sustained worse during previous klutzilla moments.
I ran my fingers along my scalp gently, making sure there was no blood. It was an afterthought; I already knew it wasn't that bad, but I felt the need to check anyway. I glanced over at Derek, meeting his eyes as he did the same, and receiving a smile. "What?" I asked, fighting the sappy grin from my face. If Derek had proven anything with his mockery outside the car it was that he was still going to make fun of me at any available opportunity. Truth be told, I wasn't even sure that was something that I wanted to change.
"Nothin'. Just thinking about the fact that I truly am irresistable." His smile morphed into a smirk. "I even got you; queen of all geeks and prudes."
I bit down a laugh and gave him the glare I knew he wanted. "There's still time for my momentary lapse of judgement to end, you know."
"Nah. Once you've had Derek Venturi, there is no substitute. You're stuck with me now." Derek claimed, barely keeping his eyes on the road as he pulled out of the parking lot.
"Because you're just so caring and charming. An all around knight in shining armour." I replied sarcastically.
"Nope. I'm just ridiculously good in bed." He let his gaze drift from the road just long enough to wink at me.
I snorted. "Man slut."
"Princess."
"Cad."
"Prude."
"Jerk."
"Nerd."
My mind ran dry of insults. Temporarily at any rate. Instead I opted for dignified lack of response.
Derek chuckled in victory and turned a corner.
"We were meant to go left." I pointed out.
He carried on driving.
"We're going the wrong way!" I tried again.
"No we're not." His eyes glinted mischievously and I got a bad feeling.
"Where are we going?" I asked slowly.
"Somewhere out of walking distance from campus." He answered, confirming my fears.
"Der-ek! We are not skiving!" I argued, continuing when he didn't answer me. "I only just talked you into an extension and you're already skipping class?!"
"No, my dear step-sister, we are skipping class. I only just got you and I'll be damned if I'm letting you run off to think about it and change your mind without at least spending some time convincing you not to." Derek countered calmly.
"And you think kidnapping me is going to do that?!" I asked disbelievingly.
"I think making out with you and being there to reason with you when you start freaking out is going to do that." He corrected.
"I'm not making out with you when you're forcing me to miss class!"
He smirked confidently. "We'll see about that."
"Der-ek!" I screeched, before taking in his unruffled expression and sitting back in my seat to sulk. I couldn't help but admit to myself that the chances of me holding out and not exploring the physical benefits of being with Derek were slim. Sex I could wait for; I'm not easy; but kissing and making out, maybe going past a couple of bases... Well, I'd been curious as to how accurate the claims of Derek's many ex-girlfriends were for quite a while now.
After about a quarter of an hour, Derek pulled into a wooded lane, following it round to a car park, stopping the car and pulling me out after him. I wriggled past the steering wheel and rolled my eyes, wondering why he couldn't have let me get out my own side.
"Come on." He kept a hold of my hand and pulled me along behind him, heading into a park.
I cursed myself for all the time I'd spent in Kingston without actually leaving campus more than two minutes behind me. I had no idea where we were. If I had then Derek's assertion that we were going out of walking distance from campus would have been majorly incorrect, even if it would have been a long walk. I followed obediently until we reached a small, secluded spot near a cliff edge and Derek sat down, gesturing for me to do the same.
I looked pointedly away from him while I caught my breath; being dragged along behind someone is not the best way to walk over parkland. I was vaguely aware that Derek was staring at me. "What?" I snapped after a few moments.
His hand fell warm over mine before he answered, drawing my attention to him without conscious effort. "You freaking out yet?"
I considered the question. "No."
"Good." He breathed, relief plain in his tone.
"I'm still angry with you." I informed him before he could make a move.
He ignored my folded arms and cross words, leaning in to kiss just beside my ear. "I know." He said quietly, his breath heating my skin and sending a shiver down my spine. "Aren't you cold?"
The chilly weather was more than enough to make the tips of my fingers and nose icy, but I shook my head in denial, determined to hold out a little longer.
His arm crept around my shoulder anyway, pulling me closer into the warmth that was somehow still seeping off him. He didn't make any other move than that though; just holding me close to him, his nose and forehead pressed against the side of my face, his breath brushing the skin from my ear down to my shoulder. Each breath in was cold air, each breath out was warm, my skin not able to become desensitized to both temperatures at once and betraying me with goosebumps and small shudders that made my own breath come a little quicker.
Eventually my resolve cracked and I turned my head to press my lips against his, clutching the arm not occupied by my shoulders and turning him further into me. He didn't put up any fight, kissing me back as soon as our mouths met, and squeezing me tighter, his hand coming to rest on my hip as mine slipped under his arm and grasped around his lower back under his jacket. Without quite knowing how, I ended up in his lap, my body pressed up against his and soaking up all the heat it could as our kiss quickened, breaths coming out in short gasps as we pulled away for milliseconds at a time.
Those girls were so wrong. It was so much better than they described.
Derek groaned as I lightened the kiss, pulling back and slowing it down a little until our lips just caressed each other, his mouth chasing after mine. I stubbornly kept my distance, having no inclination to end up shirtless in the cold. Derek gave up the chase, instead leaning down to kiss just below my ear, working his way down to my shoulder.
I bit my lip and futiley tried to summon the strength to push him away as his impossibly warm hand inched up under my shirt. "Derek." I murmured, hoping he'd get the message.
He just made a noise of acknowledgement and sucked at the curve of my neck.
I whimpered a little, wondering if he'd leave a mark, wondering if it would last over the weekend.
I froze.
"Derek." I said again, this time more urgently. What if my mother saw the mark? What was I supposed to tell her?
He groaned again, annoyance plain in his tone, his head dropping to rest where his lips had just been. "What?" He said resignedly.
"What do we tell our parents?" I asked, my voice a little shrill even to my own ears.
He sighed. "Here we go."
"I mean, what if they're upset?" I continued, a little hysterically.
"Casey, that makes no sense!" He spoke up before I could get any further. "Why would they be upset? They've been praying for us to get along since before we even met. If this is how that happens, then they'll be happy."
"But what if they think it's weird?" I had horrible images of my mom looking at me, all confused, disappointed, maybe even disgusted.
"We're not related! We're step-siblings! Nora even said they never expected us to be like brother and sister." He argued.
"She also said they hoped we would!" I countered.
He sighed again, a harsh release of air that spoke his annoyance and frustration. "Well we're not, and they've known that for a very long time."
"Oh God!" I gasped a horrible idea coming to me, not for the first time but with more weight than previously. "What if we tear the family apart? I mean, just because we want to be together now, doesn't mean we always will. What if we break up and they take sides and the family falls apart and it's all our fault?"
"Casey," Derek grasped my shoulders and made me look him in the eye. "When have you ever known them to take sides? We've had some pretty nasty arguments before, and it didn't turn to Venturi against McDonald. Why would it now?"
I swallowed as his hand came up to cup my face, keeping my gaze on him.
"It'll be fine." He said quietly.
"You really think so?"
"Yeah. Besides, it's a little late now. I'm in love with you, and I've said it twice now. Pretty sure if you break my heart because of 'what if' there's gonna be hard feelings." He smiled a little.
I choked back a sob and returned the smile unevenly.
"It's gonna be okay, Case. I promise." He repeated, guiding me back in for a kiss.
I shivered and nuzzled further into him, trying to get more warmth.
He pulled away and stood up. "Come on; if you're done freaking out we can head back to campus. We'll go to my dorm, get me a fresh shirt, and then hang out until it's time for the next class. Okay?"
I nodded and took the hand he offered to me.
Maybe he was right. Maybe it would all be okay.
