A/N: First off, thanks to FreeFallin15, DC2012, Kaioo, Balyndaba, shyesplease, rainbowsherbert927 and KnowPein for the reviews, and thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday. =) Thank you to FreeFallin15, Kaioo, chocolatechipmuffins04, fangirl2fanwoman, and for the follows and to chocolatechipmuffins04 and for the favorites. Another sad announcement: I will be deprived of internet for one month starting October 7/8th. I will try to post my last day with internet, but who knows.
Now, onto the story.
Note: This chapter utilizes text messaging. For the sake of this story, * are received messages and – are sent messages. Bold will be used to accentuate texts sent long after the time stamp of the previous text.
Chapter Ten: What Do You Fear
What was he doing.
This was a horrible idea.
When he'd suggested setting her up with Wes, he figured it would mostly be a power trip: him telling her what to do and wear and how to speak… it'd be fun to boss her around. And all under the guise of paying off his debt.
But then she'd done the first assignment just a little too well and looked just a little too good, and he was coming down off some harsh rejection (why else had he gotten into a bar fight, really, he was usually the type to dip out when things got to the physical altercation stage – except when he was angry and trying to forget himself)…
Ugh.
His past with Casey (or his… y'know… f… f… feelings toward her) was complicated. Of course he'd thought she was cute when he saw her (even with the bangs and the retainer, she had potential). But then when they'd moved in, she'd somehow gotten cuter. So he'd told himself she was off limits, and focused less on how much of a distraction she was and instead on how frustrating it was to have her invading his house. But then, at some point, she got hot. Like… really attractive. And he could mostly ignore it as long as she was scowling at him, so he kept getting her angry. Or he avoided her. Or he focused his attention on girls who didn't live just a wall away. And that had worked for (almost) all of high school (with the exception of a few very… difficult moments).
But when he'd asked her to dress sexy (and it had felt like such a trip to get her to do so), she made a far more valiant attempt than he'd expected. And she'd delivered in a way that wasn't cheap or easy or obvious, just…. subtly sexy. No spiked heels, no skintight dress, no 'smoky eyes,' just simple confidence. He'd been all too eager to treat her – when in the public eye – the way he'd treat his usual Friday night dates. Which was why he had to keep reminding himself, and sometimes her, that she was off limits.
In the elevator…
He groaned, remembering how perfectly his hand contoured to her body. He'd avoided looking right at her, refusing to admit he was scared to see how she'd react. He'd felt the warmth radiating off of her as she tensed up under his touch, seen her wide eyes in the corner of his vision, but he'd kept his cool. It had to be an act. An act which, apparently, was more than convincing enough for the fourth-floor stalkers, one of whom looked disappointed and the other (Jules, the less serious of the two) intrigued as he'd shot them a grin.
He truly had enjoyed himself.
He'd enjoyed himself when he pulled her up against him in the doorway, when she'd huffed into a seat, when she'd stripped off his jacket, let him look her over, when he'd glimpsed the tempting hint of red down the front of her shirt – enjoyed himself particularly when he'd popped a button open – when she'd fallen back on her ass, and when she'd gotten in his face…
The longer he knew Casey, the more he liked hearing her say his name. It used to be just gratification that he'd successfully pulled a prank, or gotten on her nerves, and sometimes it had been irritating. Now though…
Calling it an addiction was way too melodramatic and girly for him. It was just… fun. Just fun. Whether she was squealing or sighing or whining or growling, his name on her lips was delightful.
And fuck did he want her to say it again.
But that wasn't going to happen.
If he was torturing her every time he emphasized their familial relationship, he was torturing himself double. Cause him and Casey… no way. Not ever.
Then again, he'd never claimed to be responsible.
It could be her job to keep things professional.
It was his job to coach her. And if that meant getting her to bend to his every whim… well, that was a sacrifice he was willing to make.
It was 11:03 P.M. when she sent him the last of five new contacts she'd made at the Varsity. He'd been raking in a good $200 at a friend's poker night, and hadn't been able to answer until he got home.
Spacey
* that's the last of them! (11:03pm)
- congrats (11:53pm)
* Wesleys #? (11:57pm)
He hesitated.
He knew what he was about to do was wrong. He knew it was entirely unethical. And he almost did it anyway.
Pulling up his Google account, he went to set up a new phone number.
Spacey
* ? (12:03am)
Was he really about to pull this scam? Pretend to be Wes and make a complete and utter fool of his stepsister? She'd walk into her class, thinking they'd been flirting via text all weekend, and he would (still) have no clue who she was. They'd set up dates and she'd end up alone and dejected. Yeah, he would.
No. No he wouldn't.
But he also wouldn't give her Wes' number.
Spacey
- change of plans (12:08am)
* ? DEREK! (12:09am)
- I don't trust you (12:10am)
- got you a practice texter (12:10am)
* ? the hell is that? (12:11am)
- a guy who agreed to flirt with you by text (12:13am)
- til your competent enough to grad to Wes (12:14am)
* So you're my pimp now? (12:15am)
- COACH princess (12:17am)
* ? (12:17am)
- hes a friend from London. Guy I knew in primary school (12:20am)
What the fuck did he think he was doing?
Spacey
* I don't trust you as far as I can throw you Venturi (12:22am)
- I don't recall you ever trying to throw me McD (12:24am)
* Exactly (12:25am)
- (sassy lady emoji) (12:26am)
- would I lie to you princess? (12:26am)
* Yes. Constantly. (12:28am)
- :P just text him (12:30am)
Derek didn't do 'guilt.' But he was definitely feeling a tug in his abdomen as he sent her his Google phone number.
He was such a shitty person.
A/N: The title for this chapter is from a very entertaining song/video about communication called 'Awkward' by San Cisco. I'd highly recommend watching the music video. And the song has the gem of a lyric: "I got your message last night – you didn't get mine, cause you've been calling me for days." Check it out, let me know if you think I steered you wrong in a review. Remember, there's a playlist right here: bit. ly/ 1Js2Osw
Or just leave a review because you're a good person.
Also, I'm curious to know if the text layout makes sense. Before I used the less-than/greater-than symbols, but they're used in coding html, so they don't show up when moved onto FFnet.
Let me know what you think!
