Author's Note: Okay, I'm warning you guys, I'm not a doctor so some info in this chapter may be wrong. I'm sorry if it is…

The amount of reviews I got for the last chapter was amazing and I'd like to thank everyone for the feedback: jeytonlover, IWontSayImInLurv, Mrs.Williamthebloody, princetongirl, funnechick, lwdlvr4evr, coolbeanie, candypir, x0-vindicated-0x, derekandcasey4ever, JennaLeigh, KRB, BlueJay26, PropetryOfDracoMalfoy, Ghostwriter, ilovederekventuri91, IwasNeverReallyMe

And my anon reviewer..k

Thank you! Also, I only have one chapter left after this.

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The kiss was short and slow but full of emotion. It said everything that Casey and Derek ever wanted to say to each other.

Casey moved back breaking the kiss and looked up at Derek again. Putting her trembling arms around his wet body she hugged him as tight as she could. This was their goodbye and the very last time they could be alone together. As they both began to cry even harder then before, Derek wrapped his hands around Casey, enveloping her in his arms. He inhaled deeply, taking in her scent, the scent he'd secretly cause physical fights to smell.

Suddenly the two teenagers heard the front door open and slowly broke away from the hug. Standing at the door was the whole family, each of them sorry for the way they had acted. Casey looked at her mothers face and noticed she was crying.

"Casey, I'm so sorry." Nora whispered into the rain. It wasn't loud but Casey had heard it. As she ran through the mud to the door, Nora opened her arms. She then held her daughter in a secure embrace.

After an emotional ten seconds Nora pulled away and looked at Casey. She placed her warm hands around Casey's face, wiped her tears away with her thumb and began to cry hysterically.

Casey took in a deep breath and tried to calm her mom down "Mom, its okay," She told her, but Nora shook her head back and forth.

"No, its not. We should've never acted that way."

As the two hugged again, George, Lizzie and Edwin joined in while Derek came into the house and closed the door. Casey noticed that someone was missing. She looked over everyone and saw Marti standing outside of the big family hug. Letting go of her loved ones, Casey walked over to Marti and picked up the little girl.

"I love you Marti." She whispered into her ear.

"I love you too Casey." She said softly

Marti put her hand into the front pocket of her purple pajamas and took out a bottle the size of a perfume sample.

"Here Casey." She said handing it to her.

"Lizzie said you were sick so I made you a potion. Drink it and you'll get better in no time."

Casey smiled and kissed Marti and the cheek. She then turned around to face everyone and began to speak.

"Sometimes, one doesn't realize how important his or own family is until they loose them. You all are the most important things in my life, and I never doubted that." Casey said, her voice shaking as began to cry again.

Taking in a deep breath she continued, "Maybe, we will never see each other again but-"

"Case" Derek interrupted.

"If we never see each other again…" she said louder "then remember tonight. Remember this moment. I know I will never forget it."

Casey stopped and cleared her voice as she wiped her eyes. "I have one last wish…please, please don't forget me."

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The words "Don't forget me" was played over in Derek's head as he and the rest of the family stood in the hospital hallway saying one last goodbye to Casey. She stood in front of them, barefoot with her hair out, dressed in a hospital gown.

There were lots of hugs, kisses and many tears that day. It must have been the hardest experience a family could ever go through.

As a nurse approached with a wheelchair, everyone knew it was time for Casey to go.

"Ms.MacDonald, it's time." The nurse said softly and motioned for Casey to get into the wheelchair.

"No," Casey said, her voice rough from crying "I want to walk there myself."

After a short nod from the nurse, Casey looked at her family through her blurry vision. She then turned around and started to walk down the long, bright hallway of the hospital. It wasn't very long to her room but the walk seemed as long as an eternity. As she made it to her destination, she looked back one more time. There was her family, all huddled together watching her. Casey waved as teardrops dripped off of her cheeks and she took one good look at everyone's face as they waved back. She would never forget them.

Casey then entered into the room she noticed it had a hard chair that stood in front of a mirror. When she sat down, the nurse put a cloth around her neck before taking out the electric shaver. Casey knew what was coming next. Turning the device on, the nurse began to use it on her scalp. Casey watched as the stands of her brown silky hair fell onto the ground.

Finally, on a stretcher, Casey was moved into the operating room.

"This is it" she thought.

The doctor put a mask on her face. "Now Casey, we are going to count to ten together." He told her.

Casey began to count imagining her family and friends in her head. As she counted past four, those visions slowly faded into darkness.

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Derek was sitting in the hallway head in his hands, waiting. His eyes were a deep red and he looked like he hadn't slept in days. Although he was in bad shape, he looked better then Nora did. Her eyes were swollen and were surrounded by dark bags that contrasted with her paler than usual skin. She was sitting right next to him, her arm around Lizzie and Edwin who were sniffling and crying with her. Nora cried through the night and never stopped. He didn't blame her, she was a mother who was losing her daughter. It must be ten times worse for her then it was for the rest of them.

"I never thought I would outlive any of my children…" she mumbled causing a sharp pain to go through Derek's stomach.

"Nora, Casey's going to be just fine and everything is going to go back to normal." Edwin whispered.

Lizzie looked up at her mom, "Edwin's right mom, please stop crying." She said before digging her head back into her mothers shoulder.

Derek got up to get a glass of water. Taking a styrofoam cup, he filled it from the water cooler. As he took a sip, he noticed his father sitting outside with Marti sleeping in his lap. Walking through the clear sliding doors of the hospital, Derek came up from behind George, startling him a bit.

"Hey dad."

"Hey Derek" he replied quietly. "I was just out here getting some fresh air."

Derek sat down beside him on the bench. His dad looked just as bad as Nora did.

"This must be hard for you…"

"It's bringing up a lot of painful memories. Just five years ago we were at the hospital waiting for your mom to come out. They said it was going to be an easy surgery but after she went in, something went wrong and she never came back to us…" said George, his voice becoming shaky.

"I know…"

"I never thought that five years later, I'd be back at the hospital waiting for my daughter to come out of an almost impossible surgery…During the two years I married Nora, I really came to love Casey and Lizzie. I love them as much as I love you, Edwin and Marti." George wiped his eyes on his sleeve before continuing.

"You know Derek, these past few months have really changed you."

Derek looked up at his dad.

"Your personality has changed, you started to show emotion and that you cared for others. I'm really proud of you son, you really went out of your way to help Casey."

Derek was shocked. It wasn't often his dad said he was proud of him.

"Thanks dad."

After a few minutes of silence George spoke again,

"You love her don't you?"

Derek was confused. What did his dad mean? "Of course I do, she's my stepsister."

George shook his head from side to side. "No Derek, I've seen the way you look at her, you really love her don't you son?"

Derek's head shot up. There was no use in denying it.

"Yeah, I do…"

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"DER-EK! You are such a self-centered jerk!"

Derek lost count of how many times he had made Casey's life miserable in the past. He was the reason why she was unpopular in school. He was also the reason why she didn't have a boyfriend after Sam and Max. He was the reason for her unhappiness and it was all because he cared for her.

Hours had past since Casey went in for surgery and Derek thought about what his dad had said to him outside. He had change a lot in the past few months. What he also realized is that he had never told Casey how sorry he was for making her life a living hell ever since she moved in to the Venturi household. Now it may be too late.

The operating room door then opened interrupting Derek's thoughts.

He looked up to find Dr. Hestrin standing outside the door. Nora jumped up.

"What is it? Is my daughter going to be okay?"

Everyone was now staring at the doctor waiting for him to speak.

"We cannot tell yet. The surgery was successful and it is amazing that Ms. MacDonald has made it this far. But, during the surgery, we had a hard time stopping her bleeding. She didn't loose a whole lot of blood but we have to warn you of everything that can result from this."

Derek put his hands over his face. This can't be happening.

"She could have many problems when she wakes up. She could be paralyzed, she may not be able to move some parts of her body, she might experience memory loss and she may even loose the function of some parts of her brain. There is also a small percentage that she might not even wake up."

Nora gasped and George hugged her from behind for moral support.

"Like I said, some of these effects from the surgery are very rare and have a one or two percent chance of happening…but as a doctor, it is my responsibility to warn you."

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"Comas generally last a few days to a few weeks, rarely more than 2 to 5 weeks. After this time, some patients gradually come out of the coma, some progress to a vegetative state, and others die."

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Derek walked down the hallway to Casey's room with his earphones in his ears. Following the nurse, he walked up to her room. The nurse opened the door.

"Ever since you have been gone, it's all caffeine-free, faux punk fatigues"

"Okay Mr.Venturi, I'm letting you in but visiting hours are over in 10 minutes."

Derek nodded to show he understood. As he entered the room, he cringed. Seeing Casey like this always affected him. He would give anything to have her get up and fight him like she used to.

"Combat baby…come back baby"

Her head was bandaged down until her lower forehead and an oxygen mask covered the bottom half of her face. The only part of her you could really see was her eyes. Derek sat down on the leather chair beside her.

"Casey, it's Derek." Derek said awkwardly, not knowing where to start.

"The doctors said that if we talk to you, it might help you regain consciousness. I guess it hasn't been working out so well since everybody is always in here saying something. Especially Edwin, Lizzie and Marti. They never seem to stay quiet. Today, I thought I'd give it a try."

"Fight off the lethargy, don't go quietly"

Derek put his hand on top of Casey's.

"It's been a week now since the operation and we're all waiting, waiting for you to wake up. We're all getting really worried. The doctor said there's a small chance that you might not be able to, but I don't believe him. If anyone can pull out of this, it's you Casey."

"said you would never give up easy"

Squeezing Casey's hand tighter, Derek cleared his throat to continue.

"Casey, you being in here has made me think about all the things I've done, since you, your mom and Lizzie have joined the family…and I'm not going stop feeling guilty unless I…say…sorry."

A smile began to appear on Derek's face.

"If you were awake, you'd probably be laughing at me cause' Derek Venturi never apologizes. But I mean it Casey, I'm sorry for everything. For making you not want to come home, for making you cry in school and for ruining your relationships. For absolutely everything, I'm sorry."

"Combat baby, come back"

Derek couldn't hold back his tears any longer.

"Casey, if you don't ever wake up I want you to know that…that I love you."

"Fight, fight, fight baby"

Derek crossed his arms and put them on the bed beside Casey. Leaning over he dug his face into his leather jacket and began to cry. What he didn't notice was Casey's eyes fluttering open.

"How I miss your ranting,

Do you miss my all time lows?"