Disclaimer: Why don't you take a random guess on this one?

Summary: The last thing Derek expected was for Casey to truly snap and leave the house… all because of him. He sure made a mistake, but will he be able to fix this one? Possible Dasey!

Author's Notes: So Derek might be out of character here, though frankly, Derek is out of character in all of the stories I write which is intentional to begin with. So sorry, if you don't like that. Also, I know I should be updating Night's Revelation, and I will in probably a week or so. It's just that I couldn't get this idea out of my head considering it's been stuck there for months and I truly got inspired to write this first chapter. So I hope you enjoy!

Snapped

By: True Love Lives Forever

Chapter 1: Crossing the Line

Did I really cross the line? Did I push her too far this time?

Derek couldn't help but think this as he stared at the empty seat across from the table. It was Casey's seat, but the occupant was missing.

Nora had called everyone to dinner about five minutes ago and while everyone was here, she still wasn't. It was so out of character for her too, Casey being the obedient daughter that she always was. Usually, she's one of the first people running down the stairs for dinner as soon as the announcements are made.

So as he sat here, faintly hearing Nora and George asking everybody about their day at school, Derek's mind kept drifting off towards the afternoon when Casey and him got back from school, with both Emily and Sam trickling in behind them into the kitchen. He knew Casey was already in a bad mood by the end of the school week – something about getting a lower grade than usual in math, but he wasn't quite sure on the exact details.

But it being almost a ritual or tradition, he said some things that sure ticked her off. To say that he was surprised by her reaction would probably be the understatement of the century… or at least the understatement of the year for sure. But he shrugged it of as Casey just being her usual Drama Queen self, not thinking much into it.

But now, he was getting uneasy. And to his distaste, it didn't go unnoticed.

"I wonder where Casey is," said a rather clueless Lizzie in regards to the situation since she was at a friend's house when the "show" went down. Her voice snapped Derek out of his thoughts and brought his attention to George's face, which was staring at him with a frown.

Great! Just great. He already assumes everything is my fault.

But his face must have shown some identifiable guilt for once, automatically getting questions in response.

"Derek, what did you do this time?"

By this point Nora also had a frown on her face, similar to that of George, as all of the heads turned in his direction.

Yep, just great.

"I should have known that whatever happened had to do with you," Lizzie said with one of those patronizing looks that usually come from parents, making sure that you know you screwed up big time. Lizzie will probably make a great parent someday, Derek was sure.

"And why do you automatically assume it's my fault?" It was stupid to ask, but it was something at least – despite how ridiculous of a comeback it was.

Edwin piped up, speaking up everyone's minds, "Because it always is your fault, D, making you the prime suspect."

Derek couldn't help but glare at him, causing Edwin to shift in his seat, intimidated by his older brother, as usual.

"Derek, whatever you did today, you better go up to Casey's room and apologize for it."

George coming to Casey's rescue – now that has become something Derek was nearly used to, but it didn't mean he was going to give in easily or show that he actually doubted himself and how far he pushed Casey's buttons. So he gave his father a look that read something like "you've got to be kidding me."

But that didn't fool George. Not this time.

"Derek, you've been driving Casey up the walls for years. It's about time you at least apologized to her once."

"But I didn't do…"

"Save it! The guilt written all over your face already showed everything I need to know. And considering you never even feel guilty, it means you messed up big time. And Casey shouldn't have to skip meals because of your irresponsible behavior."

Knowing Derek wasn't going to win this battle anyway, not to mention the actual guilt that has been building up inside him, he got up from his seat and headed up the stairs with a huff. He was going to go, but it didn't mean he needed to show he actually cared. He only hoped she wasn't as angry now and wouldn't tear him apart like a lioness deals with its prey.

As he was halfway up the stairs, he could faintly hear his little Smarty.

"I didn't know that Casey can climb walls. I want to learn how to do that too! Do you think she'll teach me?"

Her little comment sure got an outburst of laughter from Lizzie and Edwin, as Nora and George tried to stifle their laughter and started explaining what his father meant by "driving Casey up the wall."

Derek couldn't believe it.

He was shocked beyond belief.

Any fears he had at the table were magnified as he walked into Casey's room.

He tried knocking at first, trying not to push his luck. But after half a minute or so, he couldn't take it anymore and simply walked in – only to find the room empty, the bed made, and a single note lying on the bed while everything else was as tidy as ever, making his room look like a pigsty in comparison. Not that he really cared or anything.

He had read the note once, somewhat unable to comprehend the message very well, or at least hoping that he didn't understand it.

He just stared at the note, unable to move his gaze. It was as if all of his emotions escaped him, as if they didn't exist. Granted, he always made a point to pretend he didn't have emotions to begin with, but he was lying. He was quite a good actor when it came to such things though.

But this was different. This time, all of his thoughts disappeared from his mind. He just kept reading the note over and over again, almost hoping that he misread it the first time around and that reading it again would set his mind back on track, making him realize he became a zombie for no reason.

Only when he heard Nora's voice calling out Casey's and his name did he snap out of his trance, realizing that he must have been in Casey's room for minutes.

Slowly turning around, he walked out of the room, clutching the note with a death grip. He didn't even bother checking the bathroom or any other rooms on the second floor for he knew she wouldn't be found there anyway.

He walked slowly down the stairs, faintly hearing that Marti was still focused on learning to climb walls, despite the futile attempts of the adults to get her to realize that was humanly impossible.

Edwin was the first to notice Derek. Him being so gloomy was almost unrealistic and eventually others looked in the direction Edwin's shocked gaze was set on.

Nora was the first one to speak up, this being her first comment about the whole issue, "Did she still refuse to come down?" Her voice was rather calm considering the circumstances. But she didn't know, which meant she wasn't going to stay that way for long.

Then George took his turn. "Did you apologize? You better not have made it any worse or I swear…"

He didn't get the chance to finish his thought as Nora interrupted him, somewhat frustrated, "I'll go talk to her and try to calm her down."

"It won't work." Apparently, nobody really noticed Derek's desolate voice since the comments continued, starting with Edwin.

"Good luck with that, Nora. She's been in there since, like, 4 pm or something. If she hasn't cooled down, she probably won't for a few more hours. Derek's right on that one."

Finally, it was Marti who switched their attention to something else.

"What is that in your hand, Smerek?"

When Derek tried to answer, nothing came out. He looked at Smarti and wondered what she'd think of him when she realizes what he's done, or what his dad and Edwin will think, but especially Nora and Lizzie. Casey was their flesh and blood after all.

After some more silence in the room and strange glances in his direction, Lizzie got more and more suspicious by the second, probably like the others, and in order to break this awkwardness, she got up and snatched the note from Derek's hands, assuming it was the key to everything. And she was right.

After a few seconds of her eyes moving from side to side, obviously reading over the contents, her voice broke as she whispered, "She left?"

A/N: I know this chapter was vague and raised some questions that remain unanswered, like what exactly happened in the afternoon, but the next chapters will reveal more of that… and much more. What do you think happened?

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