Episode Twenty Seven

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For two days we did our best to stay invisible.

We didn't know how many biters were in the area and since that huge group moved through, we all thought it was better to lay low and prepare to leave. Since Thomas was healing, it was best to wait a couple days, anyway. I didn't want to disrupt his recovery.

As luck may have it, Derek was able to move Jenson's vehicle into the garage before the biters took their morning stroll through my front yard. So if Jenson had any friends that come looking there would be no sign of exactly where his crew went. I wasn't so sure that moving their vehicle would deter Jenson's friends, but I hoped it would.

The best I could figure was that Jenson and his people most likely had access to the high school's record system. I could only assume that was how Jenson found me. He'd probably seen plenty of my pictures on the trophy shelves. I had to hope his crew of five were the only people trying to take over the school.

I couldn't stomach the thought of more disgusting men searching for my teammates or other girls to kidnap, but my gut told me there had to more. If not at the school, then anywhere in this new awful world.

Matt's presence had become incredibly awkward. Matt tried to tell me about Derek's past as Seb, and after I told him I was fully aware, Matt had nothing more to say.

Like all of us, Matt was grieving. He'd become overly focused on me, and was following me around like a sad puppy.

Derek instructed Matt to sleep on the couch, which I was happy about. My house wasn't exactly the Hilton, but hey, it worked for now.

Suzie was still having night terrors, so she and I slept in her room with Mindy while Derek and Grant watched over Thomas. Suzie tossed and turned all night, making it nearly impossible for me to get any sleep, so I was learning how to function on limited sleep.

Thomas and I hadn't talked since the morning after he was shot. I checked on him occasionally, but there was nothing more to say, and I didn't want to argue. I still had to make sure Thomas was taking painkillers because he liked to act tough, but I knew he was still in a lot of pain.

The fever Thomas experienced the first night had disappeared entirely, which made me extremely happy. Thank God we'd had antibiotics to help him. I wasn't sure if the antibiotics treated the issue behind the fever, but I liked to believe they did.

I rolled over, searching for Dad's watch on the nightstand.

Four-thirty. Too early to get up, but I couldn't sleep anymore.

I sat up and rubbed a hand over my oily hair, pulling it into a tight ponytail.

My bath fantasies were escalating. As much as I didn't want to leave my house, I really wanted to find a body of water to become fully submerged in. I wasn't picky about where this miraculous body of water would come from.

A pool or lake. Whatever.

My oily, grimy skin was getting to me. I was learning how to live without water, and for the life of me couldn't figure out how in the heck anyone ever survived without running water before. I hated it.

We had water bottles and a few jugs saved, but I couldn't stop dreaming about a lake or pond. I needed to stop. The ocean. I would swim for hours with Mindy, and we would all get clean. I could wash my hair. I could... ugh! Stop.

I crawled out of bed and found my flashlight, still wishing I could just get in the damn bath.

After checking to make sure both of my girls were sleeping, I tiptoed down the hall to check on the guys. Grant was still passed out, but Derek was missing. He must've gotten an early start like me. Derek was probably making sure everything was ready to go for our move to the trailer later today.

When I turned to leave, Thomas chuckled. "Never got anything to say."

I spun to see if he was talking in his sleep, but I accidentally shined the flashlight directly in his face.

Thomas squinted his eyes, flinching back.

I aimed the flashlight at the ground. "Sorry. Did I wake you up?"

"She speaks," Thomas whispered into the darkness.

Crap. I really didn't want to get into it with him. It was way too early for this. "Do you need something? I'll go get it."

"I'd like you to talk to me." Thomas cleared his throat a little too loudly.

"Shh," I flicked the flashlight toward Grant, but he was still out for the count. "Can we talk later? After we get to your trailer?"

Thomas blew out a long, loud breath. "And then what, Casey?"

I didn't want to wake Grant up, so I moved close to the bed, clicking off the flashlight. "What're you babbling about?"

"I'm not babbling. I'm asking a perfectly worded question." Thomas said in a severe tone.

Since he'd been shot, fun Thomas had disappeared, and I really missed him. He'd been playful with Suzie and Mindy, but not me. We hadn't told him about Mitch, which pissed me off, but Derek thought it was for the best.

"Okay. Can you repeat the question with larger more specific words?" I bit my lip.

Even in the dark I could still feel Thomas's gaze on me when he asked, "Are you going to ignore me forever?"

Had I been ignoring him? I knew I'd stopped talking to him after he'd basically trampled all over the fact that Derek and I were actually together. "I'm not ignoring you. I'm avoiding you."

"I liked you better when you were punching me. At least then I knew you were angry." Thomas said.

"It's not that easy this time." I massaged my forehead. This was going to be difficult, and I had to be blunt and to the point or Thomas would push back. "I don't want to give you the wrong idea. I'm with Derek. That doesn't mean I'm kinda into Derek or that I'm thinking about being with Derek or that I'm unsure about Derek. I'm positive. I'm with Derek. And I'm loyal, Thomas. I'm either in or out. There's no in-between for me."

I waited for him to respond, but he stayed silent. In the darkness, I watched the shadow of his arm lift as he rubbed his eyes.

"I can't stand not hearing your voice, Casey. You already know I want you, but we don't have to be strangers if you don't want me. I'll settle for friends and leave you be. I just can't stand the silence between us anymore." Thomas's voice cracked. "I've lost everyone, and I need you in my life. I'll take whatever I can get. I love Squirt and my munchkin. I love Derek and Grant. I can't stand your piss licker ex, but I guess he's coming along for the ride because I care about you. We can still be friends, can't we?"

Tears formed in my eyes as I nodded in the dark. "Yeah. We can be friends."

Thomas let out another loud breath. "Good, because I'm starving. What's a guy gotta do to get some grub around here?"

I released a breathy laugh. "I'll see what I can find."

"Hey," Thomas's fingers ran over the back of my hand. "I'm glad we figured this out."

I caught his fingers and squeezed. "Me too."

After freshening up in the bathroom, I made my way to the kitchen and nearly ran straight into Matt.

Damn. Can't a girl get a break?

"Casey?" Matt whispered.

I brushed past him, continuing on my food mission. "What?"

"What're you doing up so early?" Matt sounded worried.

"Taking care of people." I snapped. "What does it look like I'm doing?"

My patience was running thin with Matt since he'd done almost nothing since coming here. I was constantly running around taking care of things, and he was always on my heels or watching me, but not helping.

Matt had been a team captain. He knew how to take on responsibility, but he was just floating here. I knew he was grieving. We all were, but his behavior was wearing on me.

Thomas would most definitely be a big help if he wasn't severely injured. Grant and Derek were doing everything, and Matt's moping ass was getting on my last nerve.

Even Suzie had stepped up and taken care of Mindy and Thomas most of the day, but Matt had become a sorry liability. It made me wonder what in the hell he was even doing here.

"Wait. Can we talk for a minute?" Matt caught my arm.

I wanted to rip it away, but instead, I stopped and gently pulled my arm out of his grip. "We can talk in the kitchen."

Matt followed. "Why do you hate me so much? I thought we had a good relationship before."

Of course, this was where he was taking the conversation. Poor, poor Matt and his sad, sad life.

I scoffed. "Either say something useful or go back to sleep. I have a lot of stuff to do, and this whole woe is me act is getting old."

"I just don't get what happened. You're so different. My Casey would never talk to me the way you do. I know this isn't you. I miss you. We were a power couple. If we get back together we could pick up whereโ€”"

"Who's getting back together?" Derek clicked on his flashlight, and stood it on end, aiming it at the ceiling. Derek had been sitting at the kitchen table in the dark. Alone.

Like I said, we were all having a hard time.

"No one is getting back together. I'm just getting Thomas something to eat because he's hungry and Matt wanted to talk to me about how much I've changed."

Derek stood and walked over to us. He wasn't quite as tall as Matt, but Derek made up for the difference in his confident demeanor. He leaned against the counter and folded his arms over his chest. "So, I guess I'm part of this conversation now that we're all here. Please continue."

Matt crossed his arms over his chest and glared at Derek. He was taking the bait.

I moved around the kitchen and opened a large cardboard box of food that was ready to be loaded into a vehicle, grabbing the first thing I touched. Pork'N Beans it is.

"Casey?" Matt eyed me.

"What?" I glanced between them.

"We were talking, weren't we?" Matt asked in a sweet tone. "About us."

"Um... I don't feel like talking anymore." I searched a drawer, feeling around for the can opener in the dark.

"Baby? Are you okay?" Derek was suddenly behind me. He ran his hands up my sides, sending tingles over my body.

I twisted around to face him. "I just don't want to fight anymore. It's getting old."

"I know." Derek cupped my cheeks and searched my eyes. I leaned into his palms, loving his touch. He leaned in, pressing his lips to mine. They were so soft and inviting.

Warmth spread over my cheeks as I wrapped my arms around his neck, parting my lips. I wanted his tongue. I loved his tongue.

Derek smiled before parting his lips and giving me what I wanted.

I groaned in appreciation as Derek ran his hands down to my waist. I smiled as he hoisted me up and set me on the counter. His exploration of my mouth intensified, taking me into a dazed dreamland.

Crap. Matt.

I pulled back and glanced around the kitchen, but Matt was gone.

When I faced Derek, a triumphant smile covered his face. What the hell?

I pushed Derek back and jumped off the counter. "Did you just use me?"

Derek's smile fell. "No. I... He needed to know."

Pissed off, I turned back to continue searching for the can opener. Derek was right. Matt needed to know, but we hadn't done that in front of Thomas to tell him the truth. What was wrong with me? I'd made out with Derek in front of Matt without even thinking.

I was exhausted, and besides a small touch here or there, Derek and I hadn't been intimate in days, so I'm sure that was why I'd lost all sense, but damn, that was just cruel.

"Hey." Derek cupped my shoulder.

I shrugged him off. "Don't."

My fingers ran over the familiar contours of what I was searching for and I pulled out a can opener. Yay.

"Baby, I'm sorry. I didn't know it would make you so mad. I wanted to kiss you just as much as you wanted to kiss me. I wasn't using you, but I'll admit I was proving a point to Matt. He needs to know you're mine, Case. He needs to back off. It's really starting to piss me off and honestly, I'm confused about why you haven't said anything to him yet. I mean, I know we have a lot going on, but Thomas doesn't knowโ€”"

"I told him." I blurted out.

Derek blinked, letting the news sink in. A grin crossed his face. "You did?"

"Thomas didn't tell you?" My heart twisted. Did Derek think I didn't want him?

Derek placed his hands on either side of me, boxing me in, and pressed his warm body against mine. "No. He hasn't said much."

I gave Derek a soft smile. "He knows. I told him and made it clear to him that I'm yours."

Derek's lips tugged up into a smile. "God. I'm so glad. I was worried."

My smile widened as I slid my arms around his waist, tugging him closer. "Don't be. I want you and that's not going to change."

Derek leaned into me with all his warmth. He was still smiling as he pressed his forehead to mine. "You and me, Baby."

"You and me." A tiny laugh escaped before Derek's lips met mine.

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