One: I don't own Life with Derek. Two: Let us call this an IC experiment. The question I pose: How well can I keep the characters of LWD IN character? The answer: this fanfic. In other words, I'm testing myself. And you, the readers, are my guinea pigs. Oh, and, the italic dialogue constitutes as Casey's typical commentary at the beginning of each episode. Enjoy.

"Every girl has her perfect romantic moment, right? Depending on the girl it totally varies. Mine, of course, is a classic: the brave knight rescues his damsel from incredible danger, professes his undying love, and thereafter carries her off into the sunset, on a white horse. …Okay, so even I can admit that's a little unrealistic, but, I'm allowed to dream.

Wow. How ironic."

The door slammed loudly. The noise was soon joined by a second, equally loud: crying.

Those two things had never spelled so much trouble until Casey came along.

In a small, watered-down version of Casey's "make-a-list" habit, Derek begins to think of possible reasons for the impending sob-and-rant fest in the living room.

One—she had gotten into a fight with her date.

Two—someone had done her some horrible injustice, namely, her date.

Three—her date wasn't what she'd thought it would be.

Four—she wasn't what her date had thought she would be.

Considering this logically, the first reason was the most likely. Considering this Derekally, number four was the most likely. He would smirk at the thought, but Casey had just stormed into the living room, red in the face and tears streaming down her cheeks. She was a complete mess, and she was livid. That made it very difficult not to laugh.

"Casey," he began conversationally, "we seem to be having an awful lot of problems with dates lately, haven't we? Oh, I'm sorry, that's just you."

Casey fixed him with her fiercest glare. "Shut it, Derek. I am not in the mood."

This didn't bother Derek, of course. He leaned back in his chair. "So, tell me, how long did it take him to figure out what a freak you are? Please, don't spare any details."

"You know what, that guy was the most pigheaded, selfish, unreliable jerk I have ever met!" Casey started pacing around the room. "First, he flirts with our waitress, then, when our food comes, the first words out of his mouth are 'if you don't finish yours, I'll be happy to eat the rest.' Then—"

"All right, maybe that's enough info." Derek got out of his chair, only to be pushed down again by Casey. "Look, I'm sure your date just found you uninteresting; which reminds me, I would rather be upstairs right now, so—" He tried to get up once more. Casey shoved him down again with extra force.

"Now, I believe your exact words earlier were, 'please, don't spare any details.' And since you did say please I would be more than happy to oblige." Looking like an angry lioness, she added, "So you'd better stay and listen."

Derek decided to hear about Casey's horrible date. After all, it was in his best interests at the moment. Casey looked about ready to tear him to pieces.

So, here was the full story: Casey and her date went out to some second-rate restaurant, where the guy (his name was Kevin, by the way) flirted with every girl that passed by the table. After the chicks, food became his next highest priority and he devoured everything that was served. Including most of Casey's dinner. Then he ditched her for about an hour and left her to pay for the meal, and find another ride home.

This guy was a real jerk, even by Derek's standards.

"And the worst part is," Casey went on, tears tracking her mascara all the way down to her chin, "he'd seemed so sweet when he'd asked me out. So much like…like Max when he first asked me out."

Oh, joy. First the dish on the bad date, now a trip down memory lane. And Derek thought he'd be having a more pleasant evening.

Casey looked absolutely heartbroken.

"Why couldn't I just stay with Max? He was nice, he cared; I mean, he wasn't perfect, but…" Derek waited. "…he really made me feel special."

She'd never looked so pitiful.

It kind of…hurt.

Not fair.

"C…Casey, come on, now. You should be over that meathead already."

"Well I'm not, Derek, and don't call him that!" She flopped down on the couch. "Maybe…maybe that's why I can't find a good date…I don't deserve a good guy…someone like Max…I deserve to be alone."

Derek tensed nervously, hanging over the armrest of his chair. "That's going a little far, don't you think? I mean, sure, you've got tons of flaws, but—"

Casey was back to dripping mascara and sniffling, looking more miserable than Derek had ever seen her.

He sighed and moved next to her on the couch.

"Hey, just because you've had a little bad luck with guys doesn't mean you don't deserve a good one. You should know that."

Casey looked at him hopefully. "You really think so?"

Normally he'd be reluctant to admit it, but… "Yeah. Of course I do."

Casey smiled. "Thank you, Derek. That was…really sweet."

Then she reached over for a hug.

"Hey, hey, no, no hugging!"

Casey ignored him. She hugged him anyway and buried her face into his shirt. She was crying again.

"Aw, come on, you're getting mascara all over my shirt!" Derek placed his hands on her shoulders, about to shove her off. But Casey tightened her grip.

"Just a little while, Derek," she said quietly. "For once in your life, just be nice to me for a little while."

Derek sighed.

He didn't do tears. But he couldn't just push her away.

Wrapping his arms around her shoulders and tucking her head under his chin, Derek conceded.

He let Casey cry on him.

"This is a one-time thing only," he told her. "I don't do tears, you know."

"I know."

Derek let his hand drift upwards to stroke Casey's soft hair; just a small attempt at comfort. His eyes slid shut.

He was never going to do this again.

As for why I titled this "Grievances"...well, you'll just have to review to find out, won't you?