A/N: AHHHHHHH! Did you realize that it's been almost a MONTH since I've updated this story? And do you have any idea how painfully it's been rattling around inside my head? Seriously, I've been DYING to get this out to you, but life has gotten in the way just a little. It's been fun, though--the Austrians are here, and we took them on a family trip to Nevada, Arizona, and California (SUCH a pretty part of America). Anyway, I wrote this TONIGHT, and I couldn't wait my usual 24 hours to let it sit before editing and revealing it to the Dasey fans. I know there's a lot of mistakes (yuck), but if you point them out to me, I'll fix them at a later date. Just so you remember where we where ...

Flashback: "Casey, meet me in the park. Thirty minutes."

He felt her nod faintly.

********************

Casey stood on the side of the road, trembling and peering into the inky darkness. The trees cast a mysterious shadow on the starry night, and she was hesitant to leave the safety of the asphalt.

What if he's not even there? she thought, wringing her hands and twisting the strap of her clutch around her wrist. I'm alone out here. With no way home. I'm completely relying on Derek … what the hell was I thinking?

Casey turned in small, nervous circles, looking for a car, a person, anyone or anything. She saw nothing. She glanced down at her watch, the delicate hands illuminated in the moonlight; it was exactly 30 minutes after her charged danced with Derek at the wedding reception. Yet, no Derek.

I'll give him five minutes, Casey thought grimly, and then I'm calling a cab. If I have reception out here.

Casey sat down, gingerly placing herself on the bumpy ground and smoothing her dress underneath her. She glanced around for a few moments, and, against her better judgment, allowed herself to lapse into a brief recollection:

"Hi, I'm Greg."

Casey started out of her reverie and looked up at the tall, handsome man standing over her. He towered over her, smiling down and extending his hand. Startled, Casey wildly scrambled for her papers and gathered them into a messy pile.

"I'm SO sorry! I normally don't do this … here … you know … right." Casey looked around lamely and cast her eyes downward.

Greg started laughing. "And what, exactly, don't you normally do …" Greg looked at Casey expectantly.

"Casey," she answered. "My name is Casey."

"Casey. What is it that you don't normally do, Casey?"

"Um …" Casey hesitated. Do I really want to unload on a total stranger? Oh, what the hell, why not? "I don't normally sit in the sunshine and enjoy Boston, Greg."

"And why not, Casey?"

"Because I pretty much study all the time, and when I'm not studying, I sit around regretting my past. Still interested in talking to me?"

"Actually, yes, Casey, I am. What about your past do you regret?"

Casey and Greg sat outside for hours, talking about her past and his past until the sun dipped behind the banks of the Charles River and the crew teams packed up and went home. She had completely abandoned her studies for the first time since she started at Harvard Law, and for the first time since Derek had left her all those years ago, she finally had an enjoyable day. Just one.

One enjoyable day turned into one enjoyable evening, which turned into many more enjoyable evenings. Before she knew it, Casey was completely swept up in her relationship with Greg. She didn't see him often, since he was an agent with the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, but when she did see him, they had a blast.

Almost year after Casey and Greg first met and six months after they officially began dating, Greg told her that he was being transferred to England. Without hesitation, Casey disenrolled from Harvard, packed her meager belongings, and followed Greg to a small village in the fens of England.

"Casey."

Casey whipped around, fear plastered on her face. When her eyes finally focused on the dark figure in front of her, she loudly exhaled a mixture of relief and exasperation.

"Der-EK! You scared the crap outta me! Where were you?"

"Uh, Casey, I'm only three minutes late, and I got caught up at the reception. I had to give a toast, you know? Being the best man and all? Because, as you know, I am the best man." Derek flipped his collar and puffed up his chest with bravado.

"Yeah, yeah, you're the best man. Good for you. Now, are you going to help me up or what?" Casey raised her arms and looked at Derek huffily.

Derek sighed and put something on the ground. He grabbed her hands, pulling her to a standing position and tipping her forward into his chest. She wobbled, off-balance, and he wrapped his arms around her to steady her.

Casey immediately felt herself soften towards Derek, and she momentarily enjoyed the warmth spreading through and around her body. She closed her eyes, breathing him in again, then quickly shrugged him off and wrapped her shawl around her body. Her eyes were unwillingly cold when she addressed him.

"So what do you want from me?" she asked frostily.

Derek recoiled, shock and hurt spreading across his face. For a moment, Casey felt bad about addressing him like that. After all, he did ditch his best friend's wedding as soon as he could to come hang out with her in a dark, closed park outside of Kingston. On the other hand, he did walk out on her years ago, leaving her to a miserable existence.

Mostly miserable, Casey mentally corrected herself.

"Case, I just wanted to talk to you. It's been almost ten years. I want to know what's going on in your life."

"And why's that, huh, Derek? So you can feel justified in walking away from me? So that you can take your big, successful life and shove it in the face of my puny and pathetic one?" Tears moistened the corners of Casey's eyes.

"Casey, no. Wow, you really have no idea what I've been up to, do you?"

Casey sniffed. "No, not really. I just heard that you moved to Los Angeles and started working for some movie big-wig in 2013. And that you're still there."

"Yeah, that's the gist of it," Derek said, taking her hand and rubbing his thumb rhythmically along the top of it. "And I heard that you were working in some huge law firm outside of London since you moved there in 2014. Am I right?"

Casey sniffed again. "Yeah, that's the gist of it." She flashed him a quick, tiny smile.

"So let's get caught up to now. It's 2019, Case. A lot's happened since we've seen each other, and I want to know what that is. Come inside with me?"

Casey nodded faintly, removing her hand from Derek's and picking up her handbag from the ground. She turned toward the gate, kicked off her heels, grabbed onto the rails, and looked at him expectantly. With a hand firmly on her behind, Derek gave a small push, and Casey was up and over the gate into the darkness.

A/N: Didja like it? Casey and Derk have FINALLY started to talk a little, even if it's awkward. And Casey apparently had some American boyfriend in 2013/2014. And then moved to England ... cool, right? We know Derek was shacking up with Sally until he moved to LA, so it's good that Casey had a love interest for a while. Now the big question is, WHAT the heck have they really been doing? Keep reading to find out ... ;-)