[ In Derek's defense, he's at least aware of what's happening in the conversation this time. It's taken a turn and he's being invited to test the boundaries of the relationship between the two of them, moving the needle from friendship toward something a little less platonic.

He finds himself wondering when he'll stop feeling guilty for feeling more inclined to turning down that sort of invitation when it comes up. Today is apparently not that day. ]

We don't have to go swimming to enjoy the beach, you know. There's a lot to be said about the cliche walk on the beach at night. It's actually really peaceful...

[ It's a soft decline, because he does like the idea of going to the beach, but it feels uncomfortable to think about following up his date with Claire with the exact same activity with Caroline. Something tells him that if either of them found out about the other, at best, they'd think he was pretty tacky, even if he hadn't been the one to come up with the idea in either of the instances. ]

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