Casey knew exactly what she was doing when she narrowed her eyes at Derek and said, "Wanna bet?"

Derek could never refuse those words. He lived for those words. Casey cast them at him like bait, knowing perfectly well how flirty they sounded.

She also knew that her logic would be completely flawed if she were talking to any other normal human being. After all, why would she deliberately flirt with a guy if she didn't want him to find out that she liked him?

Derek was not a normal human being, and he had to be treated as such. He was Derek. He was practically his own unique species! Over the years, Casey had learned how to deal with the wild, invasive creature known as Derek Venturi.

Casey had to beat Derek at his own game.

She could (and would) return Derek's suggestive banter full-force. If Derek wanted to use fake flirting as a means of mocking her about their kiss, then Casey would show him that she had nothing to hide.

Derek fell for the bait, grinning ear to ear—hook, line, and sinker. Too easy. Casey thought with a smirk. She felt a rush. She felt in-control again. She had forgotten how fun it was to compete against Derek in his little games.

"What are the terms?" Derek asked smoothly.

Casey hadn't planned this far ahead.

"Uhh…"

"Where're you guys goin', all fancy?" Casey and Derek jumped at the unexpected voice. Edwin lounged on the couch, raising his eyebrow drastically. "Somewhere good good? What does that even mean?"

Casey cringed, distancing herself from Derek as she realized how close their faces had been. There was limited privacy in the house. They had to be more careful, moving forward. This wasn't a conversation that should be heard by others (although, the same could be said about any conversation with Derek as of late). Casey had been lost in the moment again. It was starting to become a bad habit…one that could ruin everything. She hated being a wildcard in her own life—the biggest wildcard, of course, being Derek (who else?).

"We're going to None of Your Business. It's this new place on Butt Out street." Derek laughed wryly.

"Together?" Edwin asked slowly.

Derek scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "It's not so much…together…"

"More like going to the same location at the same time." Casey finished for him. They exchanged looks, acknowledging their strange inside joke.

"There's a big thing at Smelly Nelly's." Derek explained, "Everyone's going."

"Oh. Okay." Edwin said, dropping the matter entirely and returning his focus to the TV.

As Casey put on her shoes, she wondered if they really were going to Smelly Nelly's. It was getting on her nerves that she didn't know where they were going. She didn't like surprises. As much as she was trying to 'go with the flow'…not knowing was driving her crazy.

As they left the house, Edwin called out to them, "Have fun! But not too much fun!" Edwin's laughter turned into a startled grunt as he was hit in the face by a sweater. Derek was known to have disturbingly good aim, and he never failed to impress.

They walked to the Prince, and Casey couldn't help but ask again. "Seriously Derek, where are we going? Smelly Nelly's?

"None of Your Business."

"Right. On Butt Out street." Casey rolled her eyes, "Come on. Not even a little hint?"

"Would it kill ya to just go with it?" Derek sighed, opening the passenger door for her.

Casey eyed the gesture with curiosity. The fake date hadn't even started yet. There was nobody around to see this but her and the butterflies in her stomach.

"It might." She said, graciously stepping into the Prince. Derek closed the door and walked around the car as Casey fastened her seatbelt. She took some calming breaths while she had the chance. The date part of their 'fake-date' was starting to sink in.

I'm going on a date with Derek Venturi. It still sounded fake.

It was fake.

As Derek got in and started the engine, Casey wasn't sure what to say, so she sat in awkward silence. After a minute or two of silent driving, Casey flipped to her favorite radio station. Derek immediately changed it to his.

"Der-ek!" Casey complained, changing it back to hers. Derek only let it play for about 10 seconds before he switched it again.

Casey pouted. "You're supposed to be nice to me, remember? Rule number one, Derek! It's rule number one!"

"So, to be nice, I have to let you pick the music?" Derek rolled his eyes.

"Mhm!"

"Well, I guess you would know all about rule breaking, wouldn't you?" He teased.

"I seem to recall that never happened." Casey asserted with a telling blush.

"Right. Sure. Okay, Princess."

"Aha!" Casey exclaimed. "Calling me Princess is breaking rule number two: no sappy pet names!"

"Nooo-ho-ho way!" Derek chuckled. "That's not a sappy pet name."

"Oh?" Casey raised her eyebrows, crossing her arms in accusation "So it's derogatory then?" She smirked triumphantly. "That would break rule number one."

"It's…versatile."

"Right. Sure. Okay, Derry-kins."

"Might as well forget the rules all together at this point." Derek returned, casting her a glance. It sounded like a dare.

"Yeah, right." Casey deflected, "Keep your eyes on the road, Venturi." She looked out the window to hide her embarrassed expression. "Hey!" She gasped, "We just passed the turn to Smelly Nelly's!"

"Yeah. So?"

"So…we're…not going to Smelly Nelly's?"

"Guess you're gonna to have to wait and see."

"Fine." Casey huffed, "But I get to plan our next date." Her heart beat anxiously at the thought of a second date, and a third. How many dates would they go on before the big, fake break up?

Casey tried to figure out where they were going as Derek took a series of strange turns. "Are you lost?" She asked, "Or are you looking for a good place to hide a body?"

"I'm not lost."

"That's comforting."

Derek laughed, shaking his head, "You think I would murder you?"

"Maybe." Casey defended, "I have no idea what I'm getting myself into because someone refuses to tell me."

"We're almost there."

"Really? Because it seems like we've just come full-circle, and—oh…" Casey trailed off as she realized they were turning towards Smelly Nelly's. "I knew you missed the turn earlier!" She exclaimed.

"Hah. Very funny." Derek smirked, "I just wanted to watch you freak out when we passed it."

"Der-ek!" Casey scolded. "That definitely breaks rule number one. And for the record, I did not freak out."

Derek pulled into a parking space in the far corner of the lot, away from the other cars. "Whatever." He said, "We're here."

Casey felt glued to her seat. The date was way too real now. Derek cut the engine and stepped out of the Prince. Casey forced herself out of the car, but she wasn't ready for whatever awaited her inside.

"You good?" Derek teased, as he realized Casey wasn't walking behind him.

"Okay. Maybe I am freaking out." She admitted. "—But only a little!"

Derek rolled his eyes and shook his head with a smile. He walked over to Casey as she continued to ramble anxiously, "I think I have the right to be a little nervous!" She babbled, "We're only lying to everyone we know, who incidentally are all going to be here!"

Derek placed his hands on her shoulders. "Hey." He said, waiting for Casey to look him in the eye. She held her breath and tried to keep his gaze. "There's nothing to worry about. We go in, we have a good time, and we leave."

Casey shook her head, it sounded too simple.

"Really, it's okay. Just…act natural." Derek said. He realized who he was talking to and tried again. "Look. Just…pretend you're here with someone you really like. Forget that it's fake and forget that it's me. Pretend I'm your 'mystery guy' or whatever. It will be fine, I promise."

Casey paled.

Derek sighed, trying to think of something else to say. "Casey. In all the time I've known you, there hasn't been a single thing you couldn't do when you put your mind to it. So…seriously. You can do this. 'Kay?"

"Okay…" Casey whispered, shocked by Derek's sincerity.

Does he really see me that way?

"I have an idea." Derek said, quickly moving to rummage through the back seat of the Prince.

He emerged with a jacket, which he shook over the pavement (probably to ensure it wasn't harboring a sock). As he approached Casey with it, she realized it was his varsity jacket. Unlike the football players, the hockey players didn't wear their jackets regularly. Most saved their jackets for their girlfriends. Derek never let anyone wear his—not even Sally.

"What?" Casey gasped, "No. Really?" She desperately wanted to wear it, but it also terrified her—and not just because it had been sitting amongst dirty hockey gear.

"You can let this do the talking." Derek said as he put the jacket around Casey's shoulders. She instinctively put her arms through.

Casey looked down at herself, lifting her arms and inspecting them. There was something about wearing a guy's jacket that made her feel weak in the knees. Her knees also felt weak for another reason: this jacket was going to turn heads.

She dropped her arms, "This is insane." She said, "Should we really be doing this?"

"I can't think of a good reason not to."

Casey could think of a million reasons. And they were all Derek. But she couldn't think of a reason she could admit out loud.

"I guess we're doing this." Casey took a deep breath and walked determinedly towards Smelly Nelly's, leaving Derek in the dust behind her.

I can do this. A date with Derek Venturi. Easy.

Having been caught off guard by Casey's abrupt departure, Derek caught up to her. He slung his arm around her shoulder casually. "You know, we should probably arrive at the same time. Wouldn't want people to think theres trouble in paradise, would we?"

Casey rolled her eyes, but slowed down, falling into a natural rhythm, nestled into Derek's side. They approached the entrance and Derek stepped ahead, opening the door for her. Casey entered to meet her fate.

The only thing more prominent in Derek's mind than the sensation of Casey's leg on his in the cramped booth was the way she anxiously picked at her lips. Her eyes darted around the restaurant as her fingers worked tirelessly over the delicate skin, drawing Derek's attention like a magnet. As distracted as he was by Casey's mouth, Derek could sense the eyes on them. It seemed the two of them were tonight's real entertainment. The scrutiny they were under reminded Derek that Casey's nerves could blow their cover at any minute—which would ruin everything and destroy his chances of ever getting close to her.

"What are you doing? Stop that."

"I'm just sitting here, Derek." Casey whispered harshly.

"You look like you're up to something." He warned. Casey's eyes widened and she picked at her lip more vigorously. Derek shook the thoughts of her lips out of his head "Ugh, here." He said, taking her hand away from her mouth. He interlaced their fingers. Casey's pulse quickened against his skin. It slowly evened out, and her nerves seemed to calm—her eyes trained on their contact.

When the waitress arrived for their drink order, Casey's hand flinched out from his briefly but settled back comfortably.

He wasn't sure what that meant.

Either Casey realized she had to hold his hand…even though she didn't want to (which was an option Derek wasn't ready to accept).

Or, she remembered she was allowed to hold his hand.

The waitress put a flyer in front of them. Casey awkwardly reached across the table, and Derek smiled to himself, knowing she could have easily let go of him (but chose not to).

"Wait." Casey read the flyer with amazement, "Sheldon Schleper is playing here tonight? Oh my god, where's Emily? Is she here? Does she know?" She looked around excitedly and spotted the dark-haired girl across the restaurant. "Emily!" She called with a projected whisper, much too quiet to be effective. Even though the venue currently resembled a party more than a peaceful dining experience, Casey would never make such a scene in a restaurant. Thankfully, enough heads turned their way (as if there weren't enough already) and Emily caught on.

Emily grabbed a clueless Sam by his elbow, dragging him along to Casey and Derek.

"Hey, guys!" She chirped.

"Emily!" Casey gushed, "You didn't tell me Sheldon Schleper was playing here tonight!"

"I just found out the other day! Remember, I was going to invite you but…"

The girl's animated conversation drifted away as Derek noticed Sam, whose stare was locked on Derek and Casey's entwined hands.

Shit.

He forgot to tell Sam.

Jaw dropped, Sam's eyes darted between Derek, Casey, hands, booth, and varsity jacket, seemingly unable to piece together what was in front of him. Finally, Sam's eyes landed on Derek's. A mixture of confusion, anger, and intrigue pierced into Derek as he tried to communicate to Sam with only a look: I'll. Explain. Later.

"—Anyway." Emily's voice interrupted, "We'll leave you lovebirds to it." She winked, towing Sam away as he looked over his shoulder in disbelief.