"Why not hit him?" Derek asked matter-of-factly.
"Derek last I checked you two were friends," George replied trying to get his son to give him the truth.
"With friends like him, who needs enemies." Derek spat out.
"What happened?" George continued.
"I don't know. I just hear him talk and I think to myself 'God he's dumb'. I got to go. I'll be late." Derek said leaving his dumbfounded father.
But George found this more important than his son's athletics and continued the interrogation that led to nowhere.
When Emily left, Casey picked up the necklace Sam had given her. She fastened it around her neck. Emily had been right Sam would apologize maybe tonight.
She got up to close her door, but instead walked into the hallway. Derek's door was open and she looked in. His hockey bags were gone and she assumed he had already left. Casey walked into his unkempt room.
She sighed. So this is how its going to be. She would be with Sam while he would have his multiple partners. She wondered if she would ever again feel as complete and incredible as she
had being in Derek's arms. She knew the answer was no.
Casey sat on his bed. She ran her hand across his pillow. She could do this though, do what was right. She wouldn't do anything less than that. His cocky and charming ways would be the best part of her day.
She laid her head on his pillow, looking at his ceiling. She was fine with that. She really convinced herself. Yeah, the sooner she moved on, the sooner the impure thoughts would dissolve. Then maybe she could rely on herself again. Because for the time being she didn't trust her thoughts or her five senses. They had done nothing but let her down. They had let her fall in love with Derek, and let her hear things that weren't there.
She needed to think of Sam. She should think of last night, being with Sam. She smiled. Like she really would have called out Derek's name while Sam was touching her? Please. Sam gave himself to much credit. Derek contacting her skin was ethereal. Something Sam could never compare. She then reproached herself shamefully for being honest.
Derek finally escaped his father and hurried to his room to grab his stuff and leave before George said anything else. He stopped dead in his tracks seeing Casey in his bed.
Derek solemnly looked in on her from the doorway. She laid on the bed staring straight up, biting her bottom lip. Did Casey know she had killed him? That a part of him had died because of her. That he would never be put back together. For the rest of his life, the dead in him would rot.
"What the hell are you doing?" Derek demanded from the door.
Casey startled and jumped to her feet.
His tone which had been smug as ever was now harsh. "You're such a hypocrite. Who's 'invading privacy' now?"
He hid the impulse to run his fingers along her pink, sweet lips. He wouldn't let her turn him inside out again.
She moved a paper on his dresser. "I was just looking for my--"
He cut her sentence off spitefully "Save it. You looked. Whatever it is, it's not here."
Casey said sarcastically. "I guess I lost it all on my own this time."
Derek crossed his arms and let out a humorless laugh. "For someone who claims I'm self-centered, you seem to be the one who thinks of me first when something doesn't go your way."
"And I've never been wrong before," she snapped.
"There you go again. That's a really profound gift you have there Casey. You think your so damn special, but let's not kid ourselves." he taunted.
"If anyone struts around with the word 'special' labeled on them its you." she argued.
"Oh I feel a list of criticisms coming. Let's hear it." he gestured with his hand.
"I'll wait till you don't want to hear it." she said haughtily.
Casey walked to the door, but Derek kicked the door from behind with his foot and it closed.
"What's that?" he asked indifferently pointing to her necklace. The necklace he despised.
"Sam's anniversary present," she simply answered laying her finger tips on the bright, silver star.
"What a trade. You give him your all. And he gives you a scrap of metal. Was he worth it?" he said cruelly.
Her eyes narrowed trying to make sense of what he said. She hadn't liked his tone and pushed his chest so she could get to the door, saying in Sam's defense, "It's not just metal. It's beautiful and it was very sweet of him."
Derek didn't like that response. He grabbed the chain and ripped it from her neck. Casey felt like an incision was slit on the back of her neck.
"You jerk!" she shouted, trying to pry it from his hand.
He dropped it, not wanting to feel her touch. She picked it up and stared in alarm seeing it broke. If Sam saw it like that, he would think Casey didn't care about them. If she told him Derek did it, Sam would be more suspicious than he already was.
"Do you feel better now? What am I suppose to tell Sam?" she asked in dismay.
Derek answered nonchalantly, as he opened his closet and picked up his hockey bags "Tell him 'Happy Anniversary' from me."
Casey lashed out. "Do me a favor, Derek, and drop dead. My life would be so much easier if you didn't exist."
Still holding on to his bags he took a few steps to her. Casey could feel his breath on her face.
He wanted her to break, just a crack, after all she did to him. His voice low and vindictive, "Your life would be difficult with or without me because you cause your own complications. You do it to yourself. No one has to help you with that."
He fed off of her reaction for a minute then opened the door.
"I think you over stayed your welcome," he said self-satisfied and left.
With poise and dignity, Casey went back to her room. She speculated what had possessed her to
step foot in his.
As Derek drove to practice, a thought entered that maybe he was sorry for what he had said to her. Until what he had seen of Casey and Sam last night played again and all remorse vanquished.