Disclaimer: I don't own Life With Derek and never will. No copyright infringement intended.
Author's Note: Written for the hc_bingo prompt hostages.
Warning: Depictions of violence.
Casey McDonald struggled not to shake in fear as another one of the criminals pointed a gun in their direction.
"You're going to be fine, Case. I won't let anything happen to you." Derek brought her in for another hug to calm her down a little bit.
It had been a normal day at first. Derek and Casey had argued as they walked into the bank to deposit the checks that Nora and George had given them for Christmas. Within a matter of minutes, the bank had been robbed. Along with several other people, they had been held hostage for three hours now.
"I'm scared." Casey was absolutely terrified. At least Derek was keeping it together enough for the both of them.
"Hey, don't be. We're going to get out of here and they'll go to jail for a long time." Like Casey, he was terrified. However, he was determined to remain strong so he didn't freak her out even more.
"Don't leave me." Casey wouldn't be able to handle it if Derek even left her side.
"I won't."
"Quit talking!" one of the robbers snapped. He glared at them.
Casey felt an unexpected burst of bravery. She stood up despite Derek's protests. "What are you going to do? Shoot someone? I doubt it. You're taking orders from that "Mac" guy over there. You can't do anything." She sneered at him, having no idea where this attitude had come from.
Meanwhile, Derek had stood up and he noticed before anyone else what was about to happen. He dived in front of Casey and gasped as the bullet pierced his abdomen. He collapsed to the ground in sudden agony. A screaming Casey fell to the floor next to him.
"Ow." That was an understatement to Derek. It felt like his whole body was on fire. He bit back a scream as Casey placed shaking hands on the entrance wound to stop the bleeding.
There was so much blood. Casey couldn't tell where it started and ended. This was her fault. She knew that. "Don't leave me. Please don't die. Don't die. Don't die. Don't die. Don't die."
Derek was fading fast. He was in so much pain. He struggled to concentrate on her words. "… Won't … go."
Casey saw Derek was about to lose consciousness and panicked some more. He was dying and there was nothing she could do to stop it. She was completely unaware of anything around her. "I love you, Derek. Please don't die. Don't leave me."
She fought as hard as she could when someone grabbed her, but it was a paramedic. They loaded Derek into the ambulance a few minutes later, and Casey rode with them to the hospital.
The twenty year old was vaguely aware of being told Derek was in surgery, but she just sat down in a chair and refused to move.
"Casey? Look at me." Nora Venturi frantically checked her daughter out to make sure she wasn't hurt. She and George had been aware that Derek and Casey had been held hostage and had nearly fallen apart when they got the call that Derek had been the gunshot victim. They had packed up their children and rushed to the hospital. Meanwhile, Casey was covered in blood, but uninjured and clearly in shock.
"Nora, we need to snap her out of this." George was torn between worrying about Derek or Casey.
"I'm trying. Casey, I'm here. Wake up, sweetheart. Cassandra Rose McDonald!"
Somehow the use of her full name snapped Casey out of her daze. When she began talking, it sent chills down her families' spines. "He got shot protecting me. There was so much blood. It was everywhere, Mommy."
Nora gasped and began crying. It was clear that Casey wasn't quite herself yet. She had been traumatized. Despite the blood, Nora pulled her daughter against her. "It's okay, Baby. Mommy's here. You're fine." Except Nora wasn't sure if her daughter would ever be fine again after this. Especially if Derek didn't survive.
Casey was asleep (and cleaned up, courtesy of Nora and Lizzie) when the surgeon came out and informed the McDonald-Venturi family that the surgery had been a success. Derek was in critical condition, however. Only one family member was allowed in to visit him, so George went in while Nora stayed back with their kids.
Derek's condition remained steady throughout the night, and he actually woke up once around 5:30AM.
About 9:30, Casey woke up and was somewhat back to normal. She was still acting a little odd, but Nora and George chalked it up to the trauma of the previous day. Casey was allowed into the ICU to visit Derek at 11:00. He was awake again. "Hey, Case."
"Hey." Casey wanted to go over and never leave his side again, but the fear and guilt were preventing her from doing so.
Derek knew her well enough to realize how she was reacting. "Stop with the guilt trip you don't need to be on and come over here."
She reluctantly listened and went over to his bed. Casey grabbed Derek's hand and squeezed it. "It's my fault that you got shot."
"No it isn't. Look at me. That guy was itching to shoot someone. We all saw it. And I wasn't about to let you get hurt."
Casey wondered if he had even heard the "I love you" she had confessed before the paramedics and police had arrived. "I'm still sorry."
"I know you are." And that was the end of the conversation because Derek fell back asleep.
Two more days passed before Derek and Casey were alone again. "So what do you want to watch?" Casey held the remote for the TV in her hands and prepared to change the channel. She was letting Derek watch whatever he wanted.
Derek had had enough. "Are we ever going to talk about it?"
"Talk about what?"
"About the fact that you told me you loved me."
The remote dropped, and Casey's heart began to pound. "You heard that?"
"I heard it."
She laughed nervously. "I know you don't feel the same way. It's okay. You were dying and I didn't know what else to say."
He interrupted her. "Stop rambling. It's okay because I love you, too, Case. And I nearly died. I don't want to leave things unsaid." Derek beamed at her.
Casey burst into sobs she had been holding back for days and she collapsed back into the hospital chair. "I love you so much. You scared me, Derek, and I don't want to lose you."
"You're not going to lose me, Case." He patted the bed to get her next to him. She listened and found a comfortable position that wouldn't hurt Derek, closed her eyes, and snuggled in next to him. He fell asleep a few minutes after she had.
Unfortunately, they kept being woken up by nurses. Nora and George stopped by once and then went down to the cafeteria to give them privacy.
"We knew it was coming eventually." Nora beamed at her husband.
"I'm glad they finally came to their senses, even though it took this to get them there." George was honestly surprised they hadn't gotten together sooner.
After a week and a half in the hospital, Derek was discharged. He was thrilled to finally be home. "Edwin, you'll do what I tell you until I'm healed."
"Der-ek!" Casey glared at him and then told Edwin he was off the hook.
Surprisingly, Edwin was upset by this. Derek getting shot had shaken up their siblings. That much was obvious – Marti had gotten clingy and refused to leave his side, Lizzie burst into tears at random moments, Edwin just wanted to wait on Derek hand and food, and Simon was too young to understand anything except that his oldest brother had been hurt. He and Casey reluctantly indulged them, although it was irritating.
"Sit down next to me so we can watch a movie." Derek beamed at Casey when she listened.
Casey interlocked her hands with Derek's and then leaned her head on his shoulder.
The trauma of the bank robbery would haunt Derek and Casey for a long time. She suffered nightmares about what had occurred every night for months until Nora pushed her to go to therapy. Derek had started therapy a few weeks after the robbery, and his mental health was improving.
The McDonald-Venturi siblings came to terms with the situation about a month or so after it happened, and backed off Derek. He was touched they had been concerned about him in the first place.
Neither Derek nor Casey would ever fully get over the incident, but they did manage to move on from it eventually. They didn't let it define them.