Casey couldn't stop staring at the architecture. The royal name fit well into the royal landscapes of the town. The cobblestone street and ivy-coated buildings looked more like castles than businesses in a college town. Derek was practically dragging Casey along as she Oooed and Awwed about each thing she saw.
"Casey, Come on. You will have four years to look at the brick and mortar all you want, but my stomach will cave in if you don't move your keister." Derek complained and managed to catch the young dancer's attention for enough time to steer her towards the diner around the corner. The two sat at the only booth available in the busy Sunday night dinner rush.
"So is this the Kingston version of Smelly Nelly's?" Casey asked as she peered over the menu, and Derek snorted.
"Nah, the food here is edible." He said and grinned up at the waitress that came to the table. Casey knew that grin and tried to hide her smirk. Derek could be charming when he wanted to be, and sometimes there were perks, like a free drink or an appetizer when it came to restaurants. The dark green eyes of the waitress gave him a scathing look. It was a busy night, and she had plenty of customers still to serve.
"Ready to order, guys?" She said and focused most of her attention on Casey. Casey swallowed the urge to laugh and looked down at her menu for reference.
"Yes, thank you. I will have the tomato soup and chicken avocado sandwich, please." Casey said and handed the waitress the menu. Derek frowned and looked at the waitress's name tag.
"Yeah, and I'll have the steak and potatoes, Emery. That's a beautiful name. Fitting." He said, pulling out all the stops. Emery ignored his compliment and notated the order in her notebook. She collected Derek's menu.
"I will pass on your praise to my parents. Your drinks will be right out," Emery said the last part to Casey alone and when the waitress had gone far enough from earshot. Casey dissolved into snorting laughter.
"I never thought I would see the day you crash and burn so thoroughly in your flirting," Casey said, and Derek rolled his eyes.
"Well, I'm just rusty. I guess I lost a reason to flirt with anyone else." He said, and though Casey would never admit it, she felt her chest fluttered at the warmth in his dark eyes. He reached out and held her hand. Casey gave him a warm smile and ran her thumb across his knuckles.
"Well, that's very sweet, but I really was hoping for a free dessert." Case teased, and Derek, without missing a beat, stood up and clicked his water glass with his knife.
"Attention patrons of Ronaldo's, this lovely lady has had a harrowing journey from the ruthless New York only to have a lonely birthday. Will you join me in a birthday song?" Derek shouted, and the rest of the customers joined him, singing 'Happy Birthday' to a red-faced Casey. Once the crowd's applause finally dissipated, Derek plopped down into the booth.
"I am going to kill you," Casey growled between clenched teeth. Derek paid no mind to her glare and started counting down.
"Five, Four, Three, Two, One"
"And here is your dinner and a special parfait for the birthday girl, on the house," Emery said with a smile. Casey smiled meekly and thanked her as Emery placed the food and dessert on the table.
"Your free dessert, Milady," Derek said while taking a small dollop of whip cream and putting it on Casey's unexpecting nose. She swatted his hand away playfully and began on her food.
Casey and Derek finished their dinner and walked hand in hand under the campus courtyard's string lights. Students were milling around the campus, and a loud group of men spotted Derek and went over with chants of
"EHhhh Tripple D, we missed you, man. You gonna come to Brian's party at the Alpha Delta Pi house?" One of the men asked. He had a spray of freckles across his face that even faded up into his sandy blonde hairline. Derek looked to Casey.
"I don't know, guys; I am kinda busy." He said, and Casey tilted her head at the rest of the group. These were Derek's fraternity brothers, and they were going to another fraternity's house party. Well, that was part of the college experience, right?
"Oh no, we'd love to go," Casey announced, and the freckled man grinned widely. He draped in his arm across Casey's shoulders and dragged her away from Derek.
"Alright, you heard Derek's girl. Let's go, Omegas!" He shouted, and Casey and Derek were swept away in the chaos. The Alpha's walls were vibrating with music. Someone had found a disco ball, and there were technicolor lights everywhere. Casey didn't know where to turn until Derek jumped out from behind her.
"Having fun, Case?" He asked over the music, and Casey shrugged.
"It's different." She admitted and nodded towards the french doors that lead to the backyard. There was a massive heated pool, and people were being thrown, and a volley game was underway at the shallow end.
"So, what's it like being an Omega? I hope they didn't haze you too bad when you joined." Casey said, and Derek scoffed.
"Please, I don't get hazed. They were smart enough to know it was an honor to have me as a brother." He boasted. Casey looked at him blandly.
"Edwin said that they stole your clothes from the locker room and made you run to your dorm in nothing but a thong and a pink tutu," Casey said, and Derek gave her a scathing look.
"You were misinformed," Derek said, and Casey gave him a conniving smile.
"Was I?" She asked.
"Yeah"
"Mmmm, then maybe I should ask some of your frat brothers to see if they remember." She said, and Derek grabbed her around the waist, inciting a squeal from the young woman.
"That's it. You're going in the pool." He threatened and twirled Casey toward the pool. She pounded her fist on his back lightly.
"Der-rek , don't you dare." She shouted. Derek ignored her. He didn't actually intend to toss her end, but Brain had other plans.
"Incoming" He shouted and tackled the couple into the pool. Casey sputtered and wiped the water out of her eyes. Derek pushed back his wet hair and waded as far away from Casey's menacing splashing as he could.
"Oh no, you don't," Casey said and swam after him. Derek dived to the bottom, and Casey gave chase and cornered at the bottom. Under eight feet of water, Derek went for the most resourceful option and grabbed Casey for a kiss. Casey wrapped her arms around his neck. Derek launched them up to the surface for breath. The two panted, and Casey leaned closer to rest her forehead against Derek's.
"Liking university so far, Case?" Derek asked huskily. Casey brushed away some damp hair from his forehead.
"Jury is still out, but I have a feeling that there is still so much left in store. Think you'll be able to help me out?" She asked, and Derek smirked.
Not for free," He said, and Casey pinched him in the shoulder. "Maybe under the right amount of convincing." Casey leaned down and kissed him deeply. Derek cupped her head and found her tongue before wrapping it with his own. A beach ball slammed against Derek's head, and they broke apart laughing. With one arm still around Casey's waist, Derek launched the beachball at his freckled friend.
"And I was thinking more of an agreement of me showing you around in exchange for doing my laundry, but your way works too." He said. Casey shook her head and kissed his cheek. The waterlogged pair ventured out of the pool and went a few houses down to Derek's Frat house for some dry clothes. He let Casey borrow a t-shirt that had shrunk in the dryer along with some clean drawstring shorts.
"How do I look?" Casey grimaced at the baggy clothing she was wearing.
"Dry and surprisingly ungrateful," Derek said and ruffled her already frizzing hair. Casey swatted his hands away and went to check the time. It was almost two a.m.
"Oh no, I didn't know it was so late, and I still have to walk to my apartment and get my alarms in order and get my clothes set up for tomorrow." Casey began frantically pacing and collecting her clothes. Derek grabbed her arms to stop her.
"Chillz, Case. Just spend the night here and wake up early tomorrow," He said and clicked on the Television. Thankfully Derek was able to have his own room in the frat house, and Casey was comfortable with the privacy. Derek peeled off his shirt and shirked off his jeans until he was just in his boxers. Casey swallowed and tried not to stare. Derek went under the covers and began watching the game show. "You coming?" He asked, and Casey went to bed. She tentatively pulled back the sheets silently, wondering when was the last time Derek changed them before crawling under the covers. Thankfully, there was still a light scent of laundry detergent on the sheets. That comforted Casey that they were at least recently cleaned.
"I have to be up by six, so be warned my alarm is loud," Casey said, and Derek yawned in response before pulling her closer and burying his face into her neck. He loved the smell of her hair and skin, even with the slight tinge of chlorine.
"Just go to sleep, Case," He breathed, and Casey smiled and the gentle intimacy. She kissed his forehead and settled into the bed.
"I missed this," she admitted sleepily, and Derek mumbled against her neck.
"Me too."
Author's note:
Hey there! This was a little slice of life chapter about Casey and Derek's first date. I'm sorry this chapter is not as long as the others. I was all sorts of stressed with issues with my truck. Life Hack: if you start hearing a horrible gear crunching sound while you drive, have your wheel bearings checked. Those suckers might be loose. Please review and let me know what sort of adventures you want to see. Much Thanks!