Zeta Beta Alpha: Casey?
Disclaimer: I don't own LWD
AN: Hope you enjoy :)
Chapter 8:
SeductionHe knew something was wrong the second he spotted her at his practice. He was already tense about the big game that afternoon, and seeing her like that really didn't help. There were usually a few people who would come watch the guys warm up before a game, mostly girlfriends, but Casey usually didn't. She said that her cheering him on during the games was the support he needed. She hated feeding his ego, but today she was seated smack dab in the middle bleachers, where he couldn't miss her. Her head was down, and even from a distance he could see that her blue eyes seemed gray. That's why when Coach gave the guys a five minute break, he raced down the ice towards the exit to meet her.
Suddenly, realizing how desperate he looked, he stopped and gave her a "Hey," he gave a head nod as he caught his breath while trying to ease his racing heart.
She slowly made her way towards him. You could almost see the weight on his shoulders. What could have possibly gone wrong? He would have expected this a week ago when she started to avoid him a bit, but after the day of the car wash they had become inseparable once more.
"Hey," she spoke softly. He could barely hear her over the chaos going on in the background. The boys were messing around on the ice.
"What's up?" He asked, trying to act casual.
"I just wanted to drop the Prince off," she spoke once more. Her voice, god, you could hear the sadness in it, as if she wasn't even trying to hide it. But she was! She really was! It was just...so goddamn hard. She had grown attached and close to him over the semester. How was she supposed to just let him go now? She knew it was a possibility that he wouldn't fall for her, she rather prepared herself for the worst instead of hoping for the best and being let down.
He shook his head, knowing this was headed somewhere bad. He took a seat on the bleacher and motioned for her to join him.
She did, after letting out a reluctant sigh. Show time, she thought to herself.
"Why? Don't you need it?" He asked confused. They had started sharing the Prince more lately. She had needed it earlier, but why would she be dropping it off now? He wouldn't need it until after the game to get to the party they were going together...right?
She chewed on her bottom lip as she stared at her hands in his lap. He covered them quickly within his cold fingers. He wanted to comfort her, but wasn't sure, also it wasn't easy with all the padding and such he had on. "I don't think I'm making it tonight." Her words burned in her throat like a shot of tequila.
"Why?" He asked. He needed her there. How was he supposed to play if he didn't have her in the stands cheering him on? Did she not want him to play? Or was she asking him to do the impossible?
"I'll be watching from my room and the whole family back home will be as well. I'm even going to wear your old practice jersey," she said, trying to smile, trying to make it seem not as bad. She was failing.
"You'll watch from your room?" He asked as if it were an insane suggestion. Sure, it was a big game that would definitely be televised, but why watch it in her room when it's so close to her? "Why don't you just come and watch?" He asked, brushing his fingers over her knuckles.
"I'm not feeling well Der," she whispered blinking back tears. On the other hand...maybe he'll believe that she's in pain if she actually let herself cry...Well, she really was in pain, just a different type.
"Not feeling well?"
"Yeah, I'm coming down with something. I'm sorry, I really am. I know how much it would mean for you to have me there...but I can't Der. I feel horrible. Achy and my head hurts and I'm nauseous..." she explained, putting on a pretty good show.
"It's okay Case," he sighed dropping her hands. What, was he supposed to make her stay anyway? No, he couldn't even ask her to do that.
"So...the Prince is in its usual parking spot." She added.
"Nah, take it with you. I don't want you walking back to your dorm feeling like that." Their campus was pretty huge; it would be a pretty long walk. "I'll catch a ride with one of the boys." He finished.
She eyed him for a minute to see if he was actually okay with her not being at the game. "You sure?"
"Yeah," he nodded quickly. "Take some medicine and relax. I'll see you after the game." He told her.
"No! You have to go to the after party Der!" She yelled, suddenly full of energy.
He shot her a questioning glare. Where did that come from?
"I mean, if you guys win, you need to enjoy it with your team. We hate the Hawks!" She quickly defended herself. "Promise you'll go? I don't want to be the reason you're not out celebrating with them." She asked him, shooting him the puppy dog eyes easily. She had become a pro at this.
He sighed, running a hand through his already sweaty hair, he couldn't even picture himself going, knowing that she was alone feeling sick. But she was making it sound like she was okay with it..."Alright, but after the party I'm coming over, okay." He stated, like a stern father. She was not getting out of that one.
She nodded, "If I'm up. Medicine might knock me out." She added in for good measure, which was funny because the only medicine Casey would be taking that night would be a tub of Ben and Jerry's to mend her breaking heart. She had no intentions of seeing Derek Venturi tonight.
"Fair enough," he nodded looking towards the ice. Coach was coming back, it was time for him to leave her. "I gotta get back on the ice," he said turning towards her.
She nodded sadly. They looked into each others eyes for a second or two before she took his face into her small hands brought her lips over his hungrily. That he did not expect. I was just a goodbye kiss, it wasn't usually this intense. Usually just a quick peck on the lips because they knew that if it was more, they wouldn't end up pulling away from each other. But this, she was pouring a lot more than she usually did into that kiss.
Little did he know that she was, in fact, giving him a goodbye kiss.
Goodbye my lover...Goodbye my friend. You have been the one; you have been the one for me. A little voice sung in the back of her mind.
She pulled back and looked into his eyes once more. "Good luck baby," she said before dropping her hands and heading up the stairs towards the exit.
He remained seated for a second. What was that? "Venturi! Get your ass down here!" The coach had seen the scene in front of him, but he didn't care. The boys had a game to prepare for after all!
It was the third quarter of the game and they were down by two but they had been battling and putting in a good game. He loved this, he hated easy wins; there was no fun, no excitement. He practically flew down the ice to retrieve the puck. Before one of the Hawks came behind him on the left side, slamming him into the glass. "Fuck," he hissed.
He looked up into the stands and saw all the people. As usually, didn't even notice them except for his family, of course. He quickly searched the crowd for her familiar face. Then he checked the girlfriends' corner for her and found nothing, of course. His hopes perked up when his eyes landed on the ZBA girls, who were all cheering them on. All but her, of course.
"VENTURI!" Coach yelled at him. He shook his head in hopes to rid himself of all distractions. So she wasn't there. She was watching him get slammed and that just wouldn't do. He scanned the ice for the puck, #17 had a clean shot to the net. Derek smirked and charged after him like a bull. There was no way he was loosing this game.
A mile away laid a pretty brunette in a Venturi jersey, Queens sweat pants and fuzzy slippers.
"No!" She yelled as she watched him get slammed into the wall. "Derek," she breathed out watching him.
He didn't move, he didn't recover from the hit. But she saw him, when the announcers zoomed in on him. His eyes were going crazy searching the crowds. She smiled as she watched him snap out of it and make it just in time to catch the puck before it went into his team's net. He turned around and charged towards their opponent's net, easily avoiding the Hawks, who were chasing him. He took it all the way to the net before #17 charged towards him again. "Oh no!" Casey yelled at the tv almost falling off of her bed. What was up with #17, he was only going after Derek tonight.
But Venturi saw him of course. He wound the hockey stick up and once the wood hit the rubber puck it flew directly into the net. The perfect slap shot of course. It was long gone by the time #17 reached Derek, who easily slid back, letting the smartass run himself into the glass wall.
"YESS!" She screamed, knowing there was a full on smirk on his lips at the moment.
As he stripped out of his uniform his thoughts returned to her. Did she really watch it all? How is she feeling? But mostly...could he come over?
"Venturi!" He heard his name and snapped out of it instantly. He turned around and was greeted from the source. The team captain, Alex, stood there with a huge grin on his face. "You did good out there tonight, Kid." He said proudly. They had won 5-3 and man what a game it was.
"Thanks man," Derek said running a hand through his hair. He was use to getting his ego tended to, but in the locker room while he was half naked, well it was a bit awkward.
"Number seventeen man, he was coming after you!" Alex continued making his way towards his locker.
"Yeah, but I think I got him back," Derek smirked digging through his bag for his phone. His spirits perked when he saw he had a text from her.
You did good tonight, Der.
Hope you're not hurt from that slam.
Meds making me sleepy...
Try to enjoy yourself x3
He quickly replied.
Thanks Princess, feel better.
"I better see all of you at my house!" Alex yelled, before making his way out of the locker room.
"You coming Derek?" Jason asked as he was making his way out.
"I need a ride," he shrugged realizing that he didn't have the Prince waiting for him outside.
"What are you a girl Venturi? Do you want me to ask?" Jason joked rolling his eyes. "Come on man!"
The party was in full swing by the time Derek and the boys arrived. They had to make a pit stop and buy a few more kegs on the way over; Captain's orders. He made his way through the crowd and spotted the ZBA girls huddled together. Most of them with their respective hockey players and a few with their prospective hockey players. Then he spotted her, the Queen bitch in the dead center. Why would she even bother to show up? He rolled his eyes until an idea hit him...That bitch.
He stomped over to her making his presences known. "Walk with me, talk with me," he said, nodding towards the kitchen.
She stared at him for a second or two before responding with an exasperated sigh. She didn't like taking demands but she had a feeling that he wasn't going to be very nice to her. So she followed close behind him towards the kitchen. It was mostly empty with just a few guys filling up their cups.
"Do you have anything to do with her not being here tonight?" He asked getting right to the point. He was Derek Venturi, and that was just the kind of guy he was.
"What?" She asked confused, crossing her arms over her chest as she leaned against the counter.
"Casey." He clarified getting himself an infamous red cup.
Christina rolled her eyes. "No Derek. She's not feeling well." She easily lied. She was well aware of the plan and the background story.
"Alright..." He said, believing her. "You want?" He asked, glancing towards his untouched cup.
She nodded, sure why not.
He handed her his cup and went back to get himself one. "Why are you even here tonight?" He asked, but he heard no response. He turned around to look at her but she was already gone. Hmph...he thought. Whatever.
He didn't even think about her as he made his way around the crowd. There were a few couples dancing (ZBA girls were in there of course). But he couldn't let loose and have fun, he couldn't keep the thought of Casey off his mind. He felt his stomach growl; it was time to eat. He made his way towards the kitchen to find Christina singing to the song that was on. She was really into it as she poured herself another cup.
He was surprised. He didn't peg her for a Hawk Nelson fan at all. But she seemed to know all the words. "Well, you sure move fast," he spoke gaining her attention. Her face flushed quickly, realizing she wasn't alone in the kitchen and he had just heard her sing.
"It's only my second," she said holding up her full cup.
"I meant before, when we were talking. You just disappeared." He mentioned as he looked around for snacks.
"When we talked? I didn't think you wanted to...talk. I thought you just wanted to blame me for Casey not being here." She shrugged, taking a gulp of her beer.
"Well, you're a big enough bitch to do something like that." He replied, turning to look at her. He gave up hope; there was no damn food in that house!
"You think so bad of me," she noted.
"Well, is there a reason why I shouldn't?" He asked.
"I'm not that bad of a person Derek Venturi," she said hoping onto the counter.
"I'll believe it when I see it." He protested.
"Fair enough." She shrugged.
"Seriously...why is there no food in this place!" He yelled when his stomach growled again.
Christina laughed. "So go get something to eat, smart ass," she suggested.
"Are you giving me a ride?" He yelled quickly. Once he said it he wanted to take it back, but it was too late for that.
She looked at him for a second dumbfounded. But then she spoke, "Okay."
"Okay?" he asked confused.
"I'll give you a ride. Show you I'm a nice person." She said, as if it were no big deal.
"Seriously...this isn't a trick is it? Like you're not gonna drive me into the woods and have your way with me are you?" He questioned.
She rolled her eyes and hoped off the counter. "Lets go."
The night started off in the car. Before she even pulled out of her parking spot he stopped her. "Are you good to drive?" He asked shyly, which was weird, he was never shy.
She couldn't help but laugh at his concern. "I only had two cups. I'm good," she assured him before pulling out.
"Sorry," he said looking out of the window. "It's just Casey always makes sure I'm good to drive after parties. Guess she rubbed off on me."
She nodded not saying a word. She wasn't sure what to say. She simply turned on the radio and drove towards Jimmy's. "Why don't you just call her?" Christina said, finally breaking their silence. He had been throwing his phone back and forth between his hands constantly, looking in to see if he had missed something, but there never was anything there.
"She's asleep." He mumbled, sadly staring at the foggy window.
"I'll have a burger, she'll have a veggie burger." Derek told their waiter with ease. It was a slow night over there. Everyone that was anyone on campus was at the party, or at smaller ones near by. Only a few loners were perched at the bar drinking a few beers.
Christina's eyebrows knotted. Why did he order for her? Something she didn't even want at that!
He caught her eye and noticed his mistake. "Oh, erm...I'm sorry." He said quickly. "Casey..." he explained as if he needed to say more.
She figured, it was always Casey. She nodded turning her attention towards the waiter, "Cheese burger," she corrected him.
The waiter nodded leaving them alone. Even he knew Derek had messed up.
"It's okay," she repeated, even though she felt very strange. She shouldn't be there with Derek...she wasn't Casey. Obviously Casey was the only thing that mattered to him.
"It's just...she takes forever to order, which is kind of annoying, especially when she always gets the same thing!" He explained. He wasn't sure why but he felt like he owed Christina an apology. Weird...he was almost starting to see her as a normal human being, instead of the Queen Bitch he had originally pegged her as. Hm...maybe she really wasn't that bad after all.
She smiled understand. Everything revolved around Casey. "You're in love with her," she simply stated taking a sip of her coke.
"What?" He asked. In his defense, he genuinely looked confused. What was it with everyone thinking he was in love with the girl? They weren't even together.
Christina laughed at his outburst. Had the idea never occurred to him? "You're in love with her." She repeated easily. Why were men so blind? They never see what's right in front of them.
He remained quiet for a minute as he gather his thought….or wrapping his mind about what Christina had just said. Was he in love with Casey? Non sense. A few months ago the idea of having feelings for Casey at all were simply crazy. But love...really? "Did she ever tell you how we met?" He asked, suddenly feeling nostalgic.
"Nope," Christina said, popping her P's. "Spill," she urged him. She couldn't help but wonder what was up with those two. It was clear that they had known each other before that day in the quad.
He laughed softly. "Well...we meet in high school. She was the kind of girl who wanted to run for student government, was in plays, straight A student, submitted creative writings into the newspaper…that type of girl. Me...I was the 'skirt-chasing cad' hockey player and girls were my life. We...kind of hated each other. I did everything in my power to piss her off. I pulled pranks on her all the time." He reminisced.
"So you guys knew each other."
"Yeah...we did." He nodded, with a soft smile on his lips. He remembered the first time they really met. Sure she looked like a dork with braces and pigtails, but even then, he knew that girl was gorgeous. Of course he didn't want to believe it.
"That's why she was all nervous." Christina nodded putting everything together.
"Yeah... The thought of dating me, the guy who she fought with all through high school-"
"Lust" Christina added in, interrupting him.
He smirked for a second. "Yeah...maybe so."
"So, why'd you say yes?" If it was lust, why didn't they just go at each other in high school? Why wait until now? And the way he was talking, they still hated each other in the beginning of the semester.
"What?"
"When she asked you out that day at the quad, why'd you say yes? If you guys hated each other that much….?"
"Because, I knew she didn't really want to go out with me. She was just doing it because you told her to. So I figured I'd raise a little hell." He smirked as he leaned back into his chair.
"But..." Christina urged on, because she knew there was a 'but' coming…..the turning point that changed things between them.
"But then I saw what you did to her that night." He cringed as he remembered it, his hatred for Chris bubbling up once more. "I can't believe you did that." He didn't even sound mad, just sounded hurt. As if what she did to Casey hurt him just as much, maybe even more.
"Yeah...I know." She said looking down at her hands. If things had started to get good between them, that memory just ruined it all. Luckily for her, the waiter had returned, bringing them their food just in time.
The rest of the dinner went by pretty smoothly; just small talk, nothing more. But Christina noticed how often he would bring Casey up. Subtle things like "Oh yeah. Case told me," to "Oh man, if Princess knew!" Princess? He called her Princess? Did this guy even know that he was in love with Casey? It didn't take long to make Christina decide to abort the plan. It was clear who he really wanted. Not that she ever actually believed he wanted anyone else.
After they ate she drove him back to his dorm. She made no move on the guy, "Goodnight Derek," she said before leaving him on the curb.
"Yeah...night Chris." He mumbled before going inside.
He had only been back for five minutes but he couldn't stop pacing. He walked back and forth the length of his room and he couldn't stop. He needed to hear from her. He really did, but if she was asleep he didn't want to wake her. But maybe she needed him! He thought. He should bring her some soup or something.
Yeah, that sounded like a good idea. He smiled grabbing his leather jacket and heading back out into the cold. Who cares if he had to walk it?
His mind was on all things Casey but when he ran into Christina coming out of Casey's dorm. Right away he knew something was up. "What are you doing here?" He asked her, clearly confused.
"Just checking on Casey." She told him trying to avoid a full blown conversation with him.
"You sure?" He asked causing her to actually stop and talk to him
"Derek..." she said taking a breath. His name sounded so heavy on her tongue.
"What?" He asked, panic in his voice. She was about to say something he knew he didn't want to hear.
"I'm sorry." She said, shaking her head ashamed of herself.
"For what?" He was almost scared to ask, but he knew he had to.
"About tonight...about everything," she said walking away towards her car. She stopped mid stride and turned towards him one last time. "You might want to tell her you love her though, because obviously she's oblivious."
"You lied! You said you had nothing to do with it tonight!" He yelled at her, his rage suddenly overriding all of his other emotions. His hands balled into fists. He was going to lose it.
"Only because she asked me to," she told him before locking herself inside the warmth of her car.
He watched her drive off and replayed that moment over and over again. He knew by the look in her eyes when she spoke the last few words to him that she wasn't lying. Casey had asked her to do something. She had something to do with Casey not being there tonight, which meant that Casey wasn't even sick. Oh, she had a lot of explaining to do.
Casey sat on her bed with her back against the wall wrapped up in her comforter. Even covered with layers of clothing and blankets, her body still shook. Christina's words replaying in her head on a loop. "He's in love with you. Why would you even ask me to do that tonight? Are you trying to loose him?" Christina was outraged. She gave Casey the play by play of the night and made it a point to explain to her how Derek's world revolved around her. At first Christina thought it was Derek who was really blind, but in reality it was the both of them.
She tried to think happier thoughts but she couldn't. She closed her eyes and heard her heart racing, thumping against her ears as her body continued to shake. Could it be true? What was she supposed to do now? She should be happy that he didn't fall for Christina's trap, so why wasn't she?
She started rocking herself to sleep when she heard a loud knock at the door. She cringed at the thought of it being Christina, there to yell at her some more. She didn't want to think about it, she wanted it to go away. She just wanted to drown it all out. So she ignored the knocking but it became persistent. She had no choice but to gather her blanket covered body towards the door. She opened it slowly and was greeted by the sight that scared her more than it probably should.
"Casey," he hissed.
AN: I know you guys were very curious about what would go down! Reactions? Was it what you expected? Hope you all had a Happy Holidays =)