𝐃𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐤 𝐇𝐚𝐥𝐞 𝐈𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬

The very first night

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A/n: Inspired by The very fist night (Taylor's version), part three of Taylor Swift song fic series that's happening on tumblr- requested by @the_lazy_llama , you'll notice that they're looking back on the night instead of it actually being the night they met and also note that this is brother's best friend <33

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"You didn't tell me he'd be here," you noted as soon as you stepped into the crowded ballroom of the hotel, letting go of your brother's arm as you tried to avoid the gaze of the man standing by the bar.

"I knew you wouldn't come if I did," your brother explained, smiling when you hit his arm lightly. "Look, he's my best friend, it would be weird not having him here and even more so if you weren't here. So," he paused, taking your clutch from your hands and replacing it with a glass of champagne which he grabbed from a passing server. "For my sake, please try and put aside whatever is going on and just have fun," he bargained, and you swore you could hear Derek's laugh all the way from your current position, not needing to confirm the notion as the familiar sound shivered through your mind.

"Fine," you smiled, taking a rather large sip of your drink before offering him a little smile. "You do owe me, of course," you informed him, and he smiled as well, a sweet kiss placed to your cheek before he left you to your own devices, not hovering long before deciding to wander away from the room filled with guests, stumbling onto the secluded balcony, already knowing he saw you, already knowing he would follow.

"Are you hiding from me, darling," his smooth voice mused as you heard his steps come to a delicate halt behind you, the little smirk in his voice already quite prominent.

"I'm not doing a very good job at it," you breathed, taking a quick sip from your drink to work up the nerve to see him, and talk to him for that matter.

It had been months since the last time you spoke, even more since you saw him and what looked to the world like two people out of odds which each other, was truly two people fighting desperately not to act on their feelings. You were both very much aware of the fact that you were standing at the very spot where he'd asked you to spend the night with him, act as if the unspoken boundaries sat by your brother were nonexistent, though the night of carefree adventure only made things more difficult, having led to late-night phone calls and secret rendezvous, coming to a sudden halt when you realized what happened. Realized that innocent crushes and harmless flirtation had melted into something else, something permanent and real- something you weren't allowed to feel and neither of you was allowed to act on.

"You look lovely," he noted with a careful smile, settling himself at your side, eyes avoiding yours as much as yours were avoiding his, fluttering over the sight of extravagant cars and lost guests already abandoning the rehearsal dinner being hosted inside for solace or something better. "Did you wear it just for me?" his smile was faltering, attention divided between his memories and the very clear picture that was ingrained into every corner of his mind as soon as he saw you.

"I didn't know you were coming."

"But you hoped?" he pressed and his internal battle was defeated quite quickly when he turned to you, eyes instantly falling on the side of your face, raking over your body in a way he'd be in far too much trouble for doing, but he remembered the night in this hotel, chasing you down the halls as you stumbled around in the very tight dress you were wearing right now, remember how you giggled, how his name fell from your lips as if it were leaves tumbling to the ground in autumn, he remembered considering himself a madman for harboring feelings so impossible for a girl whom he barely knew, yet somehow knew completely.

"I did," you admitted and subconsciously lifted your hand to trace the outlines of the lace flowers that danced up the length of your collarbone, molding around your body like metal being plated by gold. "I wasn't sure you'd remember," you added and sighed as you took the final sip of your champagne, glass balanced on the balcony as you stole a glance his way.

"You'd be quite surprised to know how much I remember about that night, Y/n," he shrugged, hand pointlessly sifting through his hair. "There is not a moment that I've allowed to slip away, not a gesture of your hand, not an expression of your face, I remember every word-"

"You consider yourself quite talented then," you interrupted, bracing yourself before turning to face him as well, heart clenching at the amusement in the meadows of his eyes, threads of longing galivanting inside of them. "Do you remember the moment, then, Derek? The moment we realized how much we've ruined it all?"

"We did not ruin a thing, darling, quite the opposite, " he objected and shook his head when you sighed. "Y/n, I remember sitting in that car with your brother in the front seat and your hand brushing ever so innocently against mine, remember falling deeper than I'd yet to fall before and deeper than I'd fall ever again," he was getting brave now, finding no need for pleasantries when everything in you was screaming for him, your gaze on his lips as he spoke, your hands aimlessly searching for a resting place when they truly belonged in his, and the subconscious little steps that led you closer to him.

"The phone call," you nearly whispered, accepting defeat as you reached for him, almost gasping when your hand slipped so perfectly into his. "The last time we talked, if you remember it all so well, what did I ask you?" he smiled, the gentle kind, the kind that led him right into your heart from the moment you met him.

"Do you know how much I miss you?" he offered, and you nodded, stepping even closer to rest your forehead against his.

"I still do, Derek, I miss you like it was the very first night and if I could take us back in time, I'd never have allowed myself to hang up that phone." You smiled when a nimble hand found itself sliding around your waist, your eyes meeting his despite the impossible lack of space between you two. "I also asked you to take me away, take me to you," his nose brushed against yours, body filling with butterflies at the innocent touch. "How very frustrating that my pleas have not changed, my need to be at your side remains my only desire, my only endgame- I drive down different roads but they all lead back to you."

"Good," he smiled, hand shifting to press your body against his. "Because I don't want to spend another second missing you."

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Hope you enjoyed it and be sure to let me know what you think- more requests coming soon <33

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