"Hey, Rabbit," Derek held the phone to his ear, breathing heavily. He had just finished a workout when he answered the call, his back and chest damp with prespiration.

"Hi!" she could hear his heavy breathing, and she frowned slightly. Her frown was removed, however, when the last of the students in her art class waved at her as he exited the room with a smile. Florence smiled and waved back. That boy, Joseph, really was adorable. He was about her age, but she saw him as a little brother since she was always the one he wanted help with during class. "Are you ok? Your breathing sounds labored."

"Yeah, I'm fine. I was just working out."

She smiled at the thought of that. She remembered the last time she had walked in on him working out... Him and his sweaty glory... She found it hard to breathe.

"Are you ok?"

"Y-yeah! Why?" Florence could feel her heart pounding in her chest... God, the way his voice sounds... Still smooth and light, but with his respiration, he sounded... Oh holy hell. You get it.

"I can hear your heart beating through the phone, but your breathing isn't labored..."

Just a week before that, he never would have said something like that. Even then, it felt weird to remind her of what he was.

Florence blushed and smiled widely. "Oh, my god. That is really awesome!"

"Right, well, what did you need?" He asked with a chuckle while shaking his head.

"Oh! I was calling you to ask if you wanna go see a movie tonight with me."

"Uhh..." Fuck... He really was not in the mood to go anywhere since his encounter with Kory. He felt as if he left his loft, he might snap and throw someone into a wall. "I was planning on staying in tonight..."

"Awww, babe, c'mon! Please?" she pleaded as she picked up her purse from underneath one of the desks and made her way out of the classroom, turning to lock the door. "I really wanna see you."

"You saw me yesterday." His tone was flat.

"I know. But I didn't see you today, and I miss you."

Derek sighed lightly and smiled. To anyone else, Florence would probably come off as clingy. But to him, it felt good to know that someone wanted to see him that badly.

"Alright, alright."

She squeaked in excitement and smiled happily, the thought of cuddling up with him in a dark room with a great movie bubbling in her mind.

"Do you want me to pick you up?" Derek asked as he picked up a fresh pile of clothes to the washroom.

"Do you really even need to ask? Of course."

He let out a small laugh, placing his clothes on the metal counter. He looked up in the mirror, finding his face coated with light sweat.

"You know, I'm starting to think you like my car more than you like me."

"I like your car, yes." She admitted as she stepped in the coffee shop where she met Derek for the first time. In the corner by the window, Kory was in a usual coffee shop seat as she stared at her phone. Probably scrolling through her dash, Florence assumed. But... She wasn't laughing her ass off or even smiling like she usually would when on tumblr. "But I love you," she added, taking her seat in front of her friend. Is something up?

"Good to know. Well I gotta get in the shower."

"Alright. Oh, by the way, Kory is going to tag along with us."

At that, the blond quickly looked up, a slight frown on her face. "Kory is going to tag along where?"

Derek bit back a low growl. He clenched his jaw for a brief moment before he realized he needed to respond. "Sounds good. I'll pick you up from your place at seven."

"K."

Kory just stared at her friend, trying to conceal the fear she felt churning in her gut. She could hear his voice... So light and sweet. Nothing like it was when he almost killed her just hours before.

The brunette hit the end call button on the screen of her phone after saying a quick goodbye. "So I invited you to go see a movie with me and Derek tonight... But judging by your reaction, you don't seem to fond of the idea."

Crap! C'mon, make up an excuse! "No, no," Kory chuckled, a fake smile on her face. Good thing she learned how to make it look so real. "I just thought you were setting me up for a blind date or something."

"Pffft, like I would even need to. You could get a date without any problems."

"Sure," she giggled. "So what movie are we seeing?"

"I was thinking Sweeney Todd?"

"You mean that knew Johnny Depp movie? Isn't that too bloody for you?" Kory asked with a slight tilt to her head. She always knew Florence had a weak stomach when it came to pain and death, especially murder.

Florence bit her lower lip just a little as she looked down at her hands. "Yes... But isn't that kind of pathetic? I mean everyone has blood. A lot of it. So why should I feel so queasy when I see it?"

"Florence... It's not pathetic. There are a lot of people like that."

"Doesn't mean I have to be one of them."

"Then how did you manage to play Black Ops?"

"There's an option where you can turn off the gore," the small brunette explained.

Kory sighed, nodding. "Alright... So are we driving?"

"Nope. Derek is going to pick us up."

"Oh... Well damn."

"Mhm. I hope you like Led Zeppelin! Because he usually blasts it when he drives."

Kory couldn't help but smile at that. "I love Led Zeppelin."

"Awesome sauce! Whelp, let's get back to my place. I wanna change my clothes and get an hour or two of Soul Eater in before we get to the movies."

The blond raised an eyebrow. "What the hell is Soul Eater?"

Florence's eyes widened and he jaw dropped. "You haven't seen Soul Eater?! Are you serious?!"

"Yeah... I'm serious. What is it?"

"It's an awesome show that you are going to watch," she stated as she grabbed her friend's wrist and pulled her out of her seat. "C'mon, we gotta get home fast so we can get started with it."

Kory let out groan as her friend dragged her out of the coffee shop. "But it sounds like some weeaboo ass ani-"

"YES IT IS ANIME AND YOU ARE GOING TO WATCH IT."

"Ok, fine, damn, alright. My car is around the corner."

"K!"

Derek walked away from the shower, water dripping down his body and leaving footprints on the cold floor. He grabbed a towel from the metal counter, quickly shaking his hair out then drying his skin. He quickly dressed in dark jeans and an old, worn Kiss t-shirt, one of his dad's. With a light sigh, he ran his fingers through his hair, shaking it out for a second time. He then pushed it back, almost enjoying how long it was getting. He never really was the type to allow his hair to get longer than three inches, but it was nice to have a change.

Florence noticed it before he did. "Your hair getting longer... I like it," she had said with a sweet smile, her slender fingers plowing through his hair.

Thinking back to small moments like those were what made his day feel brighter, if not by little. With Scott and his dumbass group of friends banging on his door every once in a while, it was hard to focus on the good in his life. But hey, at least they tried- and succeeded- to keep their relation with Derek completely unknown to Florence.

It wasn't till he thought about that that he truly realized how much of an instinct it has become for him to hide almost everything from her.

She's going to hate me if she finds everything out... Isn't she?

What kind of a question was that? Of course she will.

Derek's gut twisted at the thought.

I am sooooooo sorry it has taken me to upload this! I'm also really so sorry it's so short... But hey, it's something :P Anyway, the next chapter should be more interesting. Again, I apologize for leaving you guys hanging for so long.

I know this is off topic but what the hELL IS UP WITH BABY DEREK WHAT IS JEFF DOING HOLY HELL NO I MEAN BBY DEREK IS REALLY CUTE BUT CAN THE GUY JUST CATCH A BREAK? COME ON.

Sorry I just needed to rant for a moment with more than one person. Anyway, thank you soooooo much for reading! Now you wanna make my day and drop a small review? Even if you're a new reader and by the time you read this this fic has like twenty chapters, review! It seriously brightens my life. All of you have a fantastic day :)