Life With Derek: The Secret

o3o

Derek managed to finish his homework some time near midnight. There were so many interruptions, he was about ready to just throw it all out the window. Marti had come in four times, asking to play dress up; then she made her upset face because he had promised. His dad was too surprised to see him doing homework that he forgot what he dropped by to say, so he ended up coming back three more times when he thought he had remembered but didn't. Edwin stopped by to stare in awe; but found it bugged him, so he stopped when he became scared Derek would beat him up. Lizzie gave him weird looks when ever she passed his door; which he closed, just to get away from the looks. Sam had called twice for him and three times for Casey; putting Derek into an even worse mood. Lastly, Nora had come to see him four times, offering snacks. She seemed so pleased that he was working, that she had to give him sustenance. The only person who left him completely alone was Casey; oddly enough, he kind of wanted her to come in and see him.

When he finally put all his work into his backpack, he leaned back and stared up at the ceiling. He hadn't realized just how uncomfortable it had been sitting with his back hunched. He could now feel the surge of relaxation making its way through his body; it was slightly painful at first. Sighing, he really didn't want to get up and turn the light off. He decided to go the easy root first. Yanking his shirt off, without sitting up, he tossed it somewhere. Pushing his pants down, he kicked them onto the floor. Now, all he had to do was find the energy to roll over and walk the two steps to the light switch. As he gathered the energy, the room fell into darkness.

"Night Derek," he heard her incredibly sweet voice call out. Silently, he thanked Casey for knowing exactly what he needed at just the right time. With that, he fell into a deep and more comfortable sleep than he had in weeks.

The next morning, he woke up late but completely refreshed. He was more than sure that the day would be much less cruel to him than the last. Running out the door, a chocolate granola bar for breakfast in hand, he hopped into Sam's car.

"Could you cut it any closer?" Sam wondered.

"I could've, but I didn't want to give you a chance to invite Casey along," he told him, smirking.

It bothered him still, to think that maybe Sam and Casey would get together, but he couldn't let that show. Sam didn't seem to remember her from the party; then again, he had been pretty preoccupied by another private school girl. One that had hiked that hot little pleaded skirt up her thighs.

"Shut up," Sam mumbled, pulling out of the driveway.

They managed to make it to school on time, at least with the running Derek had to do to get to class, seconds before the bell rang. He discreetly dropped his homework into the bin at the front, careful to make sure nobody saw him. Walking to his seat at the back, he leaned back and yawned.

"Bored already Mr. Venturi?" the upbeat voice of his Social Studies teacher asked.

"In this class? Never, Miss Clark," he said, smiling. "I stayed up all night; eager to get here."

"Yes, I'm sure you did," she said, raising her eyebrows. Turning back to her desk, she opened the textbook. "If you'd all turn to page 156."

Deciding to do something productive, Derek actually opened to where she said and pulled some paper out too. Class actually went by even quicker when he did work. He found it a lot easier to get things done, when he really listened to her drone on about the most boring subject possible.

Leaving the classroom, he bumped right into Felicity. His eyes flashed for a second before he composed himself.

"Watch where you're going, you little-" Noticing it was him, her tone and demeanor changed. Her face became bright and a smile beamed out to him. "Der," she said, flirtily. "You were able to convince Klutzilla to go out with my brother, like I asked, weren't you?" she wondered. Running her finger down his chest, she winked at him. "I know I can make it worth your while."

"She'll be there," he told her, smiling. "And I will see you Friday," he whispered into her ear, noticing the shiver that ran down her.

Realizing what he had made her do, she straightened herself out and gave him a pointed stare. Leaning up, she pressed her lips against his neck in a seductive manner. "Not if I see you first," she said, her breath running over his skin.

Derek swallowed, his mind running back to a different girl. His eyes fell closed for a moment, relishing in the memory. A moment later, he realized what he was doing. Opening his eyes quickly, he noticed a stiff figure walking down the hall, one that looked a whole lot like the girl he'd been imagining.

Turning his face down, he grinned at the sexy girl in front of him. "Looking forward to it," he said, before leaving for class.

For the rest of the day, he was careful to slip his homework into the In boxes of each of his teachers. His last class was English, something he was not looking forward to. Loping into the class, he glanced at Casey, who after noticing him, turned away quickly. Sighing, he realized she had been the one in the hall who had seen him with Felicity. For a moment, he wondered if it really bothered her, then decided it was impossible. She hated him too much to care who he was with.

English dragged on, with Derek taking messy notes as Mr. Patterson droned on. Every once in a while he'd catch the teacher glancing back at him with interest, but luckily the older man didn't make any comments. He also found out more about the homework he'd have to do tonight. Three pages, double spaced, his choice of subject as long as it was something he really cared about.

When class let out, Derek tried to catch up to Casey. He spotted her at Emily's locker and walked over with his regular arrogant stride. He had no idea what he was going to say, or why he was even looking for her, but his feet weren't stopping. Her face turned to him and for a moment, he was at a loss for words. Casey had always been beautiful, in fact when he first saw her, he was blown away by how naturally stunning she was. At that moment, it all rushed back to him. The night he saw her, the movement of her lips turning into a smile. The first words she spoke.

The party was in full swing; loud music, empty beer cans, and drunk people doing the macarena occasionally. While Derek wasn't drunk at all, he was nursing a large white cup of beer and carrying on a meaningless conversation with a girl whose chest size was much larger than her IQ. He nodded while she went on and on about nothing of importance, all he wanted was to get his hands up her shirt. From the way she was smiling at him, he was pretty sure that wouldn't be long from now.

Just then, he heard some shouting in the kitchen. Turning his head, he noticed Sam fighting with his older sister Chelsea. Beside them was a tall brunette, smiling at them innocently. Derek wasn't sure what happened, but he found himself drawn to the beauty across the room from him. When her head turned, he caught her eyes. Smiling his regular sly smile, he was surprised to see her look completely unaffected.

He felt a finger on his chest. Moving his head back, he stared at the blonde. Tracy? Lacy? Jennifer? He wasn't sure what her name was.

"Why don't we take a look around Sam's room," she suggested. "I bet he has a very comfortable bed."

Smiling lazily, he realized his interest in her has completely depleted. Reaching out as a boy from the hockey team walked past, he pulled him over. "This is Brett, I bet he'd love to show you Sam's room."

Shrugging, she grinned up at the handsome guy beside Derek.

"Thanks man," he said, clapping Derek's shoulder.

"Don't worry about it," Derek said, before making his way towards the kitchen. She was sitting on the counter when he saw her last, but now she seemed to have ventured off somewhere. Looking around the area for a moment, he sighed. Sam happened to have a fairly large house, so when he turned around and saw it crowded with faces that seemed to be blurring together, he became annoyed.

"Looking for me?" a sweet and melodic voice asked from behind him.

Turning around, he stared into dazzling blue eyes. "Why would you say that?" he asked, taking in the rest of her face. She had soft features and he had to resist the urge to run his hand over her face. Her dark hair held a radiant shine; it hung down, long and straight. Thin curved eyebrows sat above her becoming eyes. Her mouth turned up in a smile; succulent, perfect pink lips staring out at him.

"Wild guess," she said, shrugging slightly.

His eyes fell down to her body; her perfect, curvy, and lovely body. The curve of her neck called out to his hands, his mouth. Down to her chest, over her petite stomach, and warming at the sight of her long, tanned legs. He felt a finger under his chin, lifting his face to look her in the eye.

"Up here," she told him, half-smiling.

"You must be Chelsea's friend, from her private school," he said, smiling.

"And you must be the boy she's warned me about; Sam's best friend. Derk right?" she asked, cocking her eyebrow.

He knew the moment she said it that not only had his reputation made it her way, but that she knew exactly what his name was. "Close enough," he said. "You have me at a disadvantage. You know my name, for the most part, but I have no idea what yours is."

"That does sound like a disadvantage," she replied, nodding. "So what are you going to do about it?"

He was really starting to like this girl. Not only was she incredibly gorgeous, but she happened to be feisty. Walking around her slowly, he raked his eyes over her once more. "I have a great ability to know people's names, without being told," he lied, but sounded sincere.

Her eyebrows rose. "Really?" she asked, tipping her head. "Then do tell me, what's my name?"

"Lets see," he said slowly. Reaching out, he pushed her hair back, over her shoulder, letting his finger run over her neck. "Dark, silky hair," he mumbled. Staring into her face, he nodded. "Soft, blue eyes," he half-whispered. His skilled hands ran down her side, resting on her warm hip. "Sensual, curved body." Standing behind her, his hands still cupped her sides. Pulling her hair back, he placed his head beside hers. She turned her face, give him full view of her mouth. Lifting his hand, he ran a finger over it. "Pink, luscious lips." Sighing, he felt her shiver. "Your name must be-"

"Casey," Sam's sister Chelsea called out.

Chuckling lightly in her ear, he rested his chin on her shoulder. "Casey," he told her. "How'd I do?"

Turning around, she grinned at him. "Well done, Derek," she replied, before turning and walking to meet her friend.

Sighing, he leaned back into the counter. Of all the girls he'd ever hit on, he'd never felt more attracted than he had with her. Deciding he wasn't going to let it just pass, he went looking for her again. The party was starting to wind down and he became worried that he lost his chance.

"Looking for me again?" her soft voice asked, a hint of laughter lacing it.

Turning around, he grinned at her. "What can I say? 'Casey's' do something to me."

Chuckling, she crossed her arms. "I've heard a lot about you, Derek," she said. Walking around him, she raked her eyes over his body. Though he had always been very pleased with his physique, for a fleeting moment he wondered if he was up to her standards.

"All of it's true," he admitted. He could've slapped himself, usually he said that people were just jealous or cruel and that's why he was stuck with such a horrible reputation; one that he secretly relished in. Or not so secretly, if you're his friend.

She cocked an eyebrow. "I'm not sure you'd be saying that if you heard half the things I've heard about you."

"You see, now I'm at a disadvantage once again. You know about me but I know nothing about you," he said, stepping closer to her.

Shaking her head, she smiled. "That's not true. You went through the very hard task of finding out my name."

Grinning, he nodded. "You've got me there."

"I've got you alright," she said, quietly.

Any more of this and Derek was likely to marry this girl. Playing cat and mouse was something he hadn't done in a long time. The girls he dated were more inclined to just let him have them. He hated that at times; he wanted to have the hard task of changing their mind.

"Casey, let's go. I'll give you a ride home," Chelsea's impatient and warning voice called out.

"See you around," she told him, before turning around.

"Wait," he called out. Reaching out, he grabbed her wrist. "I'd like to see you again," he said, feeling like a dope for the words that came out.

Smiling, she nodded. Producing a pen from her purse, she turned his hand over and wrote down her number. For a moment, he was shocked. Usually, he gave out his number and they called him. Then he'd keep their number for later use, if he felt like it. "Call me tomorrow," she told him. "We can do something."

Nodding, he was at a loss for words for a moment.

Leaning in, she pressed her lips against the side of his mouth. "It was nice meeting you, Derek," she said. Turning around, she walked away with ease and a sway in her hips.

Feeling like he was swallowing a boulder, Derek just watched her leave in a daze. He wasn't sure what this was; but it wasn't just lust. Something told him, he was definitely going to call her tomorrow. Bright and early; well as early as he could possibly wake up. There was no way that he wasn't going to take a chance with Casey.

"Derek?" Casey's voice asked, breaking into his thoughts. She stared at him, slightly concerned. "Are you alright? Do I need to take you to see the nurse?"

Chuckling slightly, mostly out of nervousness that was well hidden, he shook his head. "I'm fine. I just wanted to...uh see if you wanted a ride home with me and Sam." Why did he always say stupid things? He didn't want her anywhere near Sam. In fact, he wanted Sam to switch schools, change his phone number, and never even think of the name Casey.

Staring at him, confused for a moment, she shook her head. "No thanks, I think I'll walk home with Emily.

The pretty girl that was Casey's best friend, stared up at him with a gleam of awe. He knew she liked him and usually he might say something to give her hope, but he just wasn't feeling up to it. He missed the old Casey; the sexy and confident Casey that would take him and kiss him right now. Oh how he wished for the days of the past. Realizing he was staring at her again, he shook his head. "Right. Uh, I'll see you at home."

Turning around, he hurried away from her. He had completely lost his cool which was so entirely not good. He was starting to think it was becoming obvious; he had tried incredibly hard to keep his feelings for her hidden. He wanted to tell her what had happened that night. The night he had screwed everything up with her. The night he had made the biggest mistake possible and never explained his reasoning behind it. The last night he saw her; because she had left him behind, not waiting for him to give her some bullshit excuse. The night he ruined himself, her and the relationship that meant more to him than he wanted to admit.

oTBCo