~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~

~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~~*~*~*~

Can you say "DEREK'S BACK!!!" ?

Before we begin... This time with Derek's being back in town, it was just so much fun. His return saved this "sorry-ass-storyline", made it watchable and enjoyable. Unlike the previous time, when there were no boundaries for my hatred towards Derek, this time I loved him inside out. I loved the way he betrayed on almost every step he made how much he was still in love with Meg and how much he wanted her, not Tess, not Maria, but Meg. Well, I mean, no surprise there, right? Ben didn't get much chance to talk so I concentrated on Derek. Not only his hilarious little comments, but on all those instances where he let it slip how he had loved Meg before and how he still had feelings for her. Meg expresses a lot of anguish in her own parts of the dialogue, but try as I might, I wasn't able to be as moved by it as I would have been if Meg was being Meg, and not Sydney Penny. Enjoy. I have.
 

Meg's flashback:
Ben: I love you now and I'll love you forever.

Meg's message to Sara on a picture of Meg with Ben.
"Sara, I found him, his name is Ben. He's my soulmate, the love of my life. I can't wait for you to meet him."

Sara: Meg, it's... it's obvious and totally understandable that you are still in love with him.

Meg: [looking at a picture of her with Ben] I can't get over you, Ben. I never will.

Meg's flashback:
Ben: I will love you forever. You know that, don't you?
Meg: How could I not know that, Ben?

Derek and Meg's first meeting:
Meg: Ben!
Derek: Meg. Sorry, I startled you. [and all the time this handsome devil is wearing that smirk of his]

Derek: That's why I stopped. I... I... I wanted to see you. [oh, see her, he does! He gives her a head-to-toe once-over!]

Meg: I know it's over. We've been through this, Ben. There is no 'we' anymore. Whatever Tess did or didn't do, that doesn't change anything.
Derek: Meg, Meg, listen, please. If you just...
Meg: No, it's... You have a son. You got back together with his mother. [No, he didn't] You're a family now, you and Benjy and Maria. And there's no room for me.
Derek: Oh, that's not true, Meg.

Meg: I'm changing everything, Ben. My career, my whole life. It's all new.
Derek: I see. And there's no room for me, I take it?
Meg: Maybe. Eventually. In a different way. But there has to be some distance now. There isn't any other choice. You know I'm right, don't you?
Derek: Yes, yes, I think, I think I do, you're right, yes.
Meg: [wistfully] I am?
Derek: Yeah, I'm finally, finally seeing what I know you've known for quite a while. That it's time for both of us to move on.
Meg: You agree?
Derek: Look, I mean, I know you've made up your mind. I'm not gonna try and talk you out of it.
Meg: Then we understand each other.
Derek: Well, as long as you understand that this is probably the hardest thing I've ever had to do in my life.
Meg: But you're still going to.
Derek: What other choice do I have?
Meg: None.
Derek: Meg, are you... Are you... Are you...?
Meg: I was just starting to worry that you might not be able to let go, that would be a problem.
Derek: Well, it isn't easy. I mean, I... I loved you very much. Part of me always will. [what did I tell you about his love for her?]

Derek tells Meg he's doing it for Benjy:
Meg: You'd never be able to live with yourself if you didn't, Ben.
Derek: Well, I guess that it makes sense then, doesn't it? Meg? Tell me it does.

Meg: You have to try. It's who you are.
Derek: It's what you've made me. I mean, you're the one who opened my heart again, it's your ... magic. [and all this time he's ogling her!!!]
Meg: I don't regret the time that we spent together. Only that it had to end this way.
Derek: Well, I'll always wish the best for you, Meg. Remember that. Well, I ah...
Meg: Yeah... Please...
Derek: Yeah, you... you take care of yourself... [walks slowly towards the door]
Meg: Yeah, you, too.
Derek: [can't leave] You know, I can't... I can't. I can't so this, Im sorry, not... not like this.
Meg: What do you mean, Ben, you can't leave?
Derek: Not... not like that. Not with so much left to say.
Meg: Ben, I don't think that I can...
Derek: Meg, Meg, Meg... I ah... I need to hear you don't hate me.
Meg: Hate you?
Derek: All right, all right, did you care for me in some way?
Meg: You know how I feel.
Derek: I need the words, Meg, when I'm looking at you. So that... So that I'll always know.
Meg: I don't hate you, Ben. I couldn't hate you. I never will. [they hug]
Derek: Forgive me, too. I ah... I'll never forget you, Meg. Never. [he holds her, then walks away]
 

New 06/03/200 Below:
darker shade of pink

Casey: Look, Meg, I know you're in pain right now, but there will be mornings like this for you.
Meg: Well, hopefully not anymore.
Casey: Oh yeah?  What's that supposed to mean?
Meg: Ben came by last night.
Casey: He did?
Meg: Ah-huh. He told me it's final now. It was like losing him twice, Casey. Only worse. It really is over. For good.

Meg: Oh, God! What's the point? It's over!
Casey: Is it really, Meg?
Meg: It is for Ben. It had to be for me, too. Why can't I foget about him?
Casey: You love him.
Meg: I do. I love him so much. I still do.

Joan: You and Casey have another shot together because of Ben and Meg, that's what you said?
Sara: Yes.
Joan: What do you mean?
Sara: Well, last night at the shop Meg took out this old picture of her and Ben and it was SO obvious she is still totaly in love with him!
Joan: Sara, we all know that, but Ben has a family now, that's how it is.
Sara: No, but you see, I just have this feeling that everything is going to work out in the end for Ben and Meg.
Joan: Honey, from what Meg has been telling, Ben and Maria are...
Sara: Mom! Momentary nostalgia nookie!
Joan: Oh, Sara!
Sara: Well, I'm sorry, but it's the truth! They're not together. They're not living in the same room an that house. And Ben is pining for Meg the same way that she's pining for him!
Joan: How do you know this?
Sara: Mom, every time she talks about him, I mean, you could... you could see it, you could hear it, you could feel it. It's just a matter of time before the both of them be facing inevitable.
Joan: Honey, I know she loves him and I believe in him despite what your father's been saying.

Meg's flashback:
Meg: [she blindfolds Ben] Now, I don't have to remind you the rules of this game, do I?
Ben: No, well, correct me if I'm wrong. You feed me something from your little basket and I have to guess what it is. And it is frank of course that it is something edible.
Meg: Now, would I do that to you?
Ben: I don't know about that.
Meg: Okay. Item number one.
Ben: Uh-huh. Chocolate. Dark chocolate. Imported. What do I do, guess the country?
Meg: Show off! Okay. Moving on.
Ben: Strawberry, too easy.
Meg: Well, I'm just trying to lure you into a false sense of security before you... One said, there is one thing you could live on for the rest of your life.
Ben: [he kisses her] It would be this. Just this.

Meg: Ben, what are you doing here?
Derek: I don't know, I couldn't help myself. I just couldn't stay away.

Derek brings Meg the pearls that Ben gave her:
Meg: Why are you doing this to me, Ben?
Derek: Well, I haven't just stopped caring about you. I want you to know that.
Meg: I know that, Ben. I know.
Derek: Here, Meg, just take it, please.
She takes the box and sees what's inside.
Meg: For God's sake, Ben!
Derek: Meg! Look, I know you thought you shouldn't take them because they were expensive.
Meg: It's not that simple.
Derek:  Whatever we had between us, they were still a gift.
Meg: No, no, you're wrong, these were a symbol of our commitment, a pearl a week until we were married! God, I can't even look at them now!
Derek: I didn't do this to hurt you.
Meg: I know, but I'm not gonna pretend that...
Derek:  I am not gonna pretend that what we had was anything less than what it was. And you shouldn't either.

Meg: So, what are you saying? This is your... your  way of saying that it's better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all?
Derek: No, no, that's not what I'm saying.
Meg: Well, then what?
Derek: I'm not sure you're gonna wanna hear it.
Meg: What are you talking about now, Ben?
Derek: Well, I knew you were in pain, Meg. All the way here I kept telling myself I wanted to help. I mean, I was concerned.
Meg: I've heard all of this.
Derek: No, no, no , there's more, there's more! That's the point, I... The point is I've been looking for ways to see you without realizing they weren't just to comfort you.
Meg: It wasn't?
Derek: No, I think I probably needed the comforting. I needed to convince myself that being with Maria and Benjy was the right thing to do.
Meg: You made that decision, Ben. You knew it was right.
Derek: In my head, yeah, maybe. But... I was never really sure.
Meg: What?
Derek: I never believed it, Meg. Not with the whole heart.
Meg: No!
Derek: No, Meg, listen.
Meg: You're... This is not making sense, Ben, you are not making sense!
Derek: Well, I AM to me! But... Meg, I don't know how to say this.
Meg: What?
Derek: I think I made a terrible mistake.

Meg: I just don't understand!
Derek: It's just that when I see... you.. now, in front of me, I can't help thinking what we were to each other and... I know in my heart what we had was right. And... And I ... and I miss you, Meg.
Meg: No, I won't do this, I can't. [she turns away from him]
Derek grabs her, takes her into his arms and kisses her. When they stop and look at each other, Maria, the Leech walks in. A second too late.

Derek: Meg?
Meg: Ben, why are you here?
Derek: You know why, to see you, of course.

Meg: It's over.
Derek: No, no, no, no. it's not over unless we want it to be.

Derek: Damn it! I don't know the right thing to say anymore. I'm trying to make everyone happy, somehow.
Meg: Not everyone always can be.
Derek: Well, I have to believe I'm doing the right thing. For you, too, Meg.
Meg: For me?
Derek: Yeah. You should be loved completely and unconditionally.
Meg: You bet I should.

Derek: It's just that, ah... After everything that's happened I wanted to make sure there's no misunderstanding.
Meg: None at all.
Derek: Yeah. And yet...
Meg: What?
Derek: No, it's just seeing you here... so beautiful and... familiar.
Meg: Ben! Stop!
Derek: I can't, I can't do it, Meg, I can't let you go!

Meg: When you came back from Seattle you made a decision. To be with your wife and son.
Derek: So, it's not fair to ask anything at all of you, is that it?
Meg: I think we should stick to the rules we agreed on. For everyone's sake.
Derek: I know that, but...
Meg: No, there are no buts, Ben!
Derek: I can't just forget about you, that's the truth and I can't pretend it isn't!

Derek: You know what I don't know? I don't know if I ever believed a single word that's come out of that lying mouth of yours. And you know what? It seems my feelings were right on target. Truth is I know exactly who you are. And despite outward appearances to the contrary, it's not a pretty sight, is it, Tess?

Derek: From the moment you showed up in this house, I knew you had to be up to something.
Tess: The only thing I was up to was re-uniting a family.
Derek: Really?
Tess: Yes.
Derek: How noble of you.

Derek: [to Tess] Look at you, you dress like a china doll. Scratch a surface and what do we find? Conniving schemer.

Derek: Do I look like a bloody idiot?!

Meg: Ben and Maria are together, Tess didn't broker the deal.
Sara: I would not put that pass that Mary Poppins poser.

Sara: Meg, I have been thinking.
Meg: As dangerous as that is!

Meg: That's okay, Sara. I knew there was a method to your madness.
Sara: Hey, I'm not mad. I'm just a little antsy.

Vanessa: [to Meg] Something tells me you are lost on planet Ben.

Tess: Ben, please, you don't have to do this.
Derek: Oh, I have to do this right now. I think it's time you got what you deserve. [and he kisses her]
Tess: What the hell are you doing?
Derek: Well, if you have to ask, then I must be losing my touch.
Tess: Oh my God.

Meg: Of course I still think about Ben all the time.
Vanessa: Of course you do.

Vanessa: You said it's over. That Ben's gone back to Maria.
Meg: No, what I said was that Ben says he's gone back to Maria. Sometimes actions speak louder than words.

Tess: It's you, isn't it?
Derek: Yeah, baby. In the flesh.
Tess: Derek.

Derek: [to Tess] Hi honey? Happy to see me?

Derek: Forgive me, but from what you told me on the phone and from I was able to get out of Ben in Seattle, it's fairly clear that things aren't going exactly how we planned here.
Tess: I just needed a little more time.
Derek: Please, it's fairly evident my twin brother isn't gonna do the noble thing and go back to his wife.
Tess: He was coming around. He 's broken up with Meg and he was getting closer to Maria every day.
Derek: Look, the bottom line is: Ben was never going to give up on Meg.

Tess: Derek, you coming back impersonating Ben is not the answer. Especialy that you were such rip-roaring success at it the last time.

Derek: I will not get caught. Not this time.
Tess: How do you know that?
Derek: Because I learnt a lot from the last time round. You are looking now at the perfect Ben. Calm, rational, refined, romantic. And utterly boring. No one will suspect a thing.

Derek: Meg, you didn't really come here to get your things, did you?
Meg: No. I came here to see you.
Derek: You had to see me the same way I had to see you. For me it's been ever since the moment we kissed.
Meg: Ben...
Derek: I have to, I have to, I haven't been able to get you out of my head for a second.
Meg: That's not what I came here for.
Derek: Of course it is. And you know what? I'm glad. I know I shouldn't be. The last thing I wanna do is hurt Maria. But what I feel for you... Meg, it's got a life of its own, it just can't be stopped. And I know you feel it too. You know we can't fight it.
Meg: Ben, stop it, stop it before you say something we're both...
Derek: We both can't bury our feelings, I mean, we have to be able to talk about them.
Meg: No, we don't. We've talked about this enough.

Meg: I can't live like this. Pushing me away one minute and then pulling me back the next.
Derek: You're asking me to stop loving you, Meg. And that's never gonna happen.

Meg: Make it simple for all of us and just stay the hell out of my life from now on.
Derek: Don't you think I've tried?! You know, I've made myself sick to death trying. God forgive me, Meg, living without you is like living without air, living without water and I'm choking to death here!
Meg: So, what are you saying?
Derek: I don't think I can go on like this.
Meg: You can't be telling me you were wrong about Maria. You can't be telling me you want me back.
Derek: Of course I want you back. I want you back so much I try and make ways to make it happen! At night, I.. lay in the dark and that's where I can let my heart feel what it wants to feel. And I conjure you up, you're lying by my side, it's so real.
Meg: But it's not real, it's a dream.
Derek: It's all I have. So, I'll just have to settle with my dreams. It's those dreams that keep me going, believe me. You know, sometimes I wonder how I'm gonna get through the day. Then I think of something, I don't know, smell of your hair, and it's as if I have something to live for.

Derek: I've made you unhappy, that is the last thing I want.
Meg: I thought hurting Maria was the last thing you wanted to do. Maybe you should make up your mind some day.
Derek: I would die rather than hurt you. Look, even if all I have is the memory of you, I can't help it if it's the best part of my life.

Derek: [to himself] I have no intention of staying away from you, Meg. No. That wouldn't do at all.