DISCLAIMER: Lyrics for "Whatever you Do! Don't!" written by Shania Twain and Robert John "Mutt" Lange, 1997. Produced 1997, Polygram Int'l
Whatever You Do
Why's he looking at me like that? Dana asked herself as she settled behind the conference table. She quickly glanced down at her clothes to make sure she didn't drop anything on them and then looked back up. He's still staring at me, she thought. "What?" she asked. Casey shook his head. "Nothing". "Nothing?" "Yeah," he said with a small shrug. "Okay," she said, but she kept a wary eye on him all through the meeting. The meeting came to a quick close and as he was leaving, she tugged at his sleeve to get his attention. "What?" he asked. "Are you sure nothing's wrong?" He looked up to make sure everyone had left, put his hands on her shoulders and looked into her eyes. "I'm positive". "Then why were you eyeing me through the whole meeting?" "You just look really pretty in that skirt," he said with a grin that betrayed him. He was trying not to show that he was blushing, but she could see it in his face. "Well, thank you," she smiled. Turning on her heels, she left the conference room. As soon as she got into her office, she closed the door and leaned back against it. Please, don't do this, she thought to herself. He does this all the time. It had been six months since he had said no to her, six months since the dating plan, as Natalie put it, blew up in her face. She sighed and silently kicked herself for even coming up with that stupid plan. She had lost him and then he began getting pretty serious with a girl named Ashley, but she broke it off. He took a hard hit to his ego and, true to form, he was going after Dana. So Dana had to be the big person and fight off his advances. Deep in Denialville Trying to fight the way I feel I go jello when you smile I start blushin', my head rushin' But the thing was, she didn't want to fight them off. She liked his advances, but she also knew that he was looking for a rebound girl and she was the closest thing to it. Shooting him down every time he came onto her was killing her because she truly loved him. They had shared good and bad times from the time they had entered college. He was there when Craig, the guy she had invested two years of her college career in, dumped her for a freshman named Cecelia. She still hated both names. And she was there through his and Lisa's many fights. They should have known right from then that their relationship was a problem; Lisa would constantly accuse Casey of cheating on her and then lying to cover it up, even though he was always faithful. She sighed as a noise in the hallway outside her door jarred her back to reality. Shaking her head, she sat down at her desk and tried to focus on the rundown sheet sitting in front of her. After trying to concentrate and finding it impossible, she turned the chair around to stare out the window. If you stand too close to me I might melt down from the heat If you look my way one more time I'm gonna go out of my mind Time ticked by, but she wasn't paying attention. A knock on her door sounded and she turned around, startled. It was Casey. Taking a deep breath, she waved him in. Just don't say anything remotely romantic, she pleaded with him silently. It was one of those times that she wished she believed in telepathy. Don't do this to me. "I was just wondering if I could have some more time for Detroit," he said quietly. "Sure," she said, letting her breath out in relief. "Thanks". He made his way to the door, then stopped. "Dana?" "Hmm?" "After the show tonight, you wanna go get a drink or something?" "We always get a drink after the show--" "No, I mean . . . just you and me". Whatever you do Don't even think about it Don't go and get me started Don't you dare drive me crazy Don't do that to me, baby "Casey, I--" "It's okay," he said, shaking his head. "I shouldn't have asked. I'm sorry". "It's not that you shouldn't have asked . . ." Dana said hesitantly. "It's that you always pull this". "I do not--" "Yes, you do!" she exclaimed. It was all she could do to keep herself from standing up to yell at him. "Ashley broke up with you, you need someone to stroke your ego, and I'm the one here". "Dana, I really mean it--" "You may think that you do, but you really don't," she said quietly. "You really don't. You do this all the time. You get hurt, you come after me, and then I get hurt. That's the way it is and that's the way it always has been". "Why are you being so difficult?" She felt hot tears stinging her eyes, but she refused to cry in front of him. "I'm not being difficult, I'm being rational. I care about you . . . no, more than that. I love you--" "Then what's the problem?" he asked, beginning to get exasperated. "I don't think you really love me". You stop me in my tracks My heart pumping to the max I'm such a sucker for your eyes They permanently paralyze "Of course I love you! Dana, you were my best friend for almost seventeen years. We shared so much . . ." He moved closer to her and put his hands on her shoulders. "We shared so much. I don't know what I'd do without you". "But that's not love," she said, feeling the tears she had fought so hard against fall down her cheeks. "Then what is love?" "Love . . . it's . . . it makes your heart race just to see the person. You get butterflies in your stomach when they come to talk to you. You want to do anything and everything with them. You can't imagine living the rest of your life without that person at your side in bed every night. You just look into their eyes and you can get lost . . ." She broke off and wiped the tears away, shrugging his hands off her shoulders. "Is that really how you feel about me?" He looked at her intensely, almost as if he were trying to read her soul. "Yes," she answered, her voice barely audible. "But the more important question is . . . is that how you feel about me?" When he didn't answer right away, she sighed and turned to face the window again. "Just think about it, okay?" "Yeah," he whispered, then left her office. She put her hands over her face, trying to stop herself from crying. Whatever you do Don't even think about it Don't go and get me started Don't you dare drive me crazy Don't do that to me, baby After she had composed herself a little bit, she wiped her eyes, then groaned at the mascara that came with the tears. Frantically searching her purse for a tissue and a mirror, she came up empty-handed. Sighing again, she sat back in her chair, not wanting to make the long trip to the bathroom. Someone would see her for sure and she didn't feel like explaining why she was crying. Slowly she stood up and peeked out the tiny window in her office door. The coast was clear. She made a beeline for the restroom and sighed in relief when she found that it was empty. She wet a paper towel and began wiping the mascara off her face. Damn him, she thought to herself. Why does he do this to me? Whatever you do Don't do that to me He was constantly playing games with her, but the thing was that he seemed oblivious to the fact that he was doing it. He would send her signals, ask her out on dates, and make her feel that he loved her and he was ready to take the next step, but he never really was. She was there for the rebound. That was it. She checked her reflection in the mirror. The mascara was gone, but she definitely looked like she'd been crying. Her eyes were puffy and red and she couldn't stop sniffling. I can't hide in here forever, she thought, but no one would miss me for a few more minutes. She placed her hands on the counter, leaning on them and waited for the puffiness to go down. After a few minutes, she was feeling well enough to come out, if only just to escape into her office again. She exited the bathroom and made a clean getaway to her office, the solitude beckoning to her. She didn't want to see anyone, especially Natalie, because she would just want Dana to delve into it. And Dana would rather just put the whole thing behind her. Her heart jumped when she saw Casey standing by her window. "You've been crying," he said softly. "Yeah". She was surprised by the chills she was getting. It was a nervous reaction, she knew, but still, she wasn't expecting them. "What did you want?" You got my heart under attack You give me shivers down my back Do you have to walk the way you do? I get weak just watching you "Just . . . I don't even know. Look, I never meant to hurt you--" "I know that. You just have to decide whether you really want me for me, or because I'm convenient and always here. And I need to know that you know what you want before I even get involved because I can't keep going through that". "I understand," he sighed. "And I'm really sorry". She looked into his deep brown eyes. I can see myself in his bed every night, she thought. She could picture the two of them leaving the studio together, just after midnight, going home, having a drink and going to sleep. But he could imagine the same thing? Whatever you do Don't even think about it Don't go and get me started Don't you dare drive me crazy Don't do that to me, baby "Look," she said, clearing her throat before she started to tear up again. "We should get back to work. You just think about what I said, okay?" "Okay". He put his hands on her shoulder as if to reassure her, then dropped them by his sides. Turning around to go, he stopped by the door. "I never meant to hurt you". "I know". She watched him leave her office with a wistful look in her eyes. In a way, she wanted him to say that he didn't really want her. It would just make everything so much easier. She could put this whole fiasco behind her and never dwell on it again. But on the other hand, she wanted desperately for him to tell her that he was her soulmate . . . the one she had been waiting for. Don't even think about it Don't go and get me started Don't you dare drive me crazy Don't do that to me, baby She wasn't aware of how long she had sat, deep in thought. All of a sudden, a light switched on. She turned around, startled. "You must have been sitting here doing nothing for a while". Casey was standing in her doorway. "Yeah . . . when did it get dark?" she asked. "A while ago". He watched her with a grin as she squinted her eyes against the light while they adjusted to the change. "What?" she asked. "You just looked nice right there". Don't do that Don't do that "Casey--" "I mean it, Dana. I'm serious this time. I've thought it over . . . it's you I love. Not the convenience, not the familiarity we already have. You". She felt the tears come back, but this time it wasn't because she was hurt. This time they were tears of joy. "You better be serious, because if you just wind up hurting me again--" "I promise . . . I'm serious". She looked into his eyes, trying to read them. They didn't betray him. There was a sparkle in them that she hadn't seen since he and Lisa first started going out . . . before all the problems. Her face broke into a shy smile as she slowly stood up and crossed the room. She stood in front of him, lifted herself onto the tips of her toes and brought her lips to his. The kiss was more than magical. She felt her knees starting to buckle as the butterflies rose in her stomach. After they broke apart, she ran her fingers through his hair. "I swear, if you don't really mean it . . ." "Don't worry about it," he said, bringing his head down to meet her lips again. He cupped her face in his hands and smiled. "I'm more than serious". She grinned and let him kiss her again. The sounds of the phones ringing outside her office seemed to melt away as they embraced. Nothing in the world mattered except for them in that very moment. And Dana hoped that there would be many more moments like this one to come.