A/N: Oh, I must really love you guys, because it was one in the morning and I decided to finish typing this up for you. But here it is, this long chapter is the culmination of the entire story…well most of the stuff happens here. There are two more chapters. One to tell you guys exactly how it ends and another to wrap up (epilogue-ish). Anyway, enjoy. R&R! Thanks! –Mac

Disclaimer: I don't own LWD.

Chapter Eleven

Eventually Has Finally Come

Casey made a decision as she lay in her bed Saturday night. And the next morning, when Sam and Mikay returned from the park, she stood waiting with bags packed for her and Mikay.

"What are you doing Casey?" Sam blurted out as he looked at the luggage at her feet.

Casey ignored him for the moment and turned to Mikay, "Honey, could you please go and get changed for dinner?"

"Sure, Mom." Mikay nodded and then bounded up the stairs to her room.

"Casey, what are you thinking?" Sam questioned once Mikay was out of the room.

"I'm going to dinner at George's. I'm taking Mikay and we're going to stay there until you come to your senses." Casey answered. "Your little ultimatum is unreasonable. When you get over your superiority trip, let me know, because then we can try to work this out."

Sam scoffed, "I don't think you understand what I meant last night. It's either you're choosing him, or you're choosing me. There is no in between."

"You see," Casey began, "It's not going to work that way. You don't get to have that kind of power over me. I get to make my own decisions, you don't get to make them for me. You can accept that Derek is part of my life and still try to save our marriage, or I am leaving, for good."

"Excuse me?"

"I. Am. Leaving." Casey replied, punctuating each word. Then with a smirk Derek would have been proud of, "And you thought I never would."

Casey had put their bags into her car and was ready to leave by the time Mikay arrived back downstairs. Without saying so much as goodbye to Sam, she started the car, reminded Mikay to put on her seatbelt, and drove away.

- - - -

The drive to her old house was a quiet one. In the backseat, Mikay was quietly humming an unrecognizable tune to herself. Casey was lost in her thoughts. She couldn't quite grasp what she had just done. She hadn't left Sam exactly, but it was a step in the right direction. She knew if he couldn't be understanding of her relationship with Derek then she couldn't work things out with him. It would be hard enough to try and forgive him for the way he had treated her and Mikay over the years, but to try and do so without Derek's support would be impossible. Casey was unable to sort through all the different thoughts before she pulled up in front of her destination. She resolved to think it over later; she had the rest of her life to figure it all out. She needed to start living right then, before her life passed her by.

Casey opened the car door for Mikay and she hopped out. Mikay took Casey's hand and swung her arm as they walked up to the door. Casey smiled and laughed, causing Mikay to do the same. If this was all she had been given, she could live with it. Gladly.

"Can I?" Mikay asked excitedly, pointing at the doorbell and jumping up and down slightly.

"Of course." Casey nodded.

Mikay pressed the doorbell once and stepped back to wait for the door to be swung open. When a millisecond passed with no answer, Mikay pressed it again. She was about to press it a third time when Casey put her hand over hers. "I think twice is enough, don't you sweetheart?'

Mikay knew that tone. It was the one her Mom used that made what she said sound like a question, when really it wasn't a question at all. She nodded vigorously, earning a smile from her Mom. Before she felt the urge to ring the bell again (because she was bound to, what child can stand in front of a doorbell without pushing it more than once?), the door opened to reveal a smiling George.

"Casey! Mikay!" George exclaimed. "Come in, come in."

"Hey George." Casey responded as she crossed into the house. She stopped to hug him before moving further in.

"Grandpa George!" Mikay squealed as George picked her up and hugged her tightly.

"Wow, you're getting big!" George said as he put her back straight on her feet.

Mikay smiled proudly, "I've grown three inches since my birthday."

"I don't doubt it." George nodded, still beaming. He leaned down to whisper in her ear, "Your Auntie Marti is in the kitchen, why don't you see if she'll sneak you a bit of dessert before dinner? I bet she will."

Mikay nodded, her eyes big with excitement, before taking off toward the kitchen. George chuckled to himself before turning to Casey. He walked over to her, and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"How are you Casey?" George asked.

"I'm good." Casey answered, happy to know that it was almost true. There were only a couple things to wrap up. "I actually have a favor to ask you."

"Anything you need, you know I'm here for you."

"I was wondering if Mikay and I could stay with you for a few days." Casey said, and immediately added, "If it's too much trouble, I can get a hotel. I don't mind…"

"Casey, Casey, it's no trouble at all. You're always welcome here. You know I haven't touched any of you kid's rooms." George replied. "But do you mind me asking what's wrong?"

Casey answered vaguely, "Sam and I are having a few problems. I thought a little distance would be good for all of us."

"It's nothing serious, is it?"

"I'm not sure yet."

"Hmm." George nodded. Though Casey's mind was betraying her, she got the feeling he knew exactly what she meant—sadly, from experience. "Well, both Ed and Liz have both called to say they're on their way, and Derek should be here any minute. I know how you two lean on each other. Now I better get into the kitchen and make sure Marti doesn't sneak Mikay too much sugar. Make yourself at home."

Casey nodded in response. She slipped out of her jacket and hung it on the coat rack before heading to the couch. She sat down and picked up the remote. She turned on the TV, but couldn't find anything to watch. Nothing would interest her. She clicked off the TV a moment before the door blew open and Derek appeared in the house. Casey watched him as he hung up his coat before heading toward her. He hadn't seen her yet, he had his head down.

"Hey Dad." Derek called out. "I'm here—"

Derek stopped in his tracks as he finally looked up and caught sight of Casey. Casey forced herself to smile. Derek visibly took a deep breath before coming toward Casey once again. He sat down next to her without a word or any other form of response. He couldn't quite muster up a smile. He was purposely avoiding her eyes, he wasn't sure what he was going to find reflected in them.

Casey was the first to speak, "Look Derek, I don't want things to be like this. What happened…"

Derek was about to respond when the front door opened and Lizzie and Edwin simultaneously entered the house. The noise they made roused Mikay and Marti from the kitchen. Casey and Derek both stood from the couch to greet them, the conversation they were about to have, forgotten. George joined them a few minutes later, hugged both Lizzie and Edwin and announced that dinner was ready. Casey immediately sprung forward to help George by bringing the food out to the table, and she was followed closely by Lizzie.

Lizzie walked right next to Casey as they brought in the plates, and whispered so only Casey could hear, "Spill. I saw suitcases in your backseat. I didn't want to say anything in front of everyone else because I didn't know if you had said anything. What happened?"

"Could we talk about this later?" Casey said through the smile she put on as she passed Edwin to put down the food.

"Um, no." Lizzie responded instantly as they headed back to the kitchen for the rest.

"Only George knows, and I don't want to bring everyone down. I want to have a nice dinner. I will tell you everything later." Casey picked up a remaining plate and started to walk out of the kitchen.

"Not so fast." Lizzie caught Casey's free arm. Casey sighed and turned toward her, Lizzie continued, "I'm your sister. I get priority information."

"I left Sam, Mikay and I are staying here for awhile."

Lizzie's mouth fell open, "Divorce?"

"Temporary separation." Casey corrected. "And don't be so loud. No one else knows."

"What brought this on?"

"Sam gave me a choice: him or Derek. I would have to cut Derek out of my life in order to convince Sam that he should put an effort into saving our marriage. I told him he was being ridiculous and that until he got over himself, I was leaving. He's acting threatened by Derek, as if Derek is an equivalent to Emily. I mean that's ridiculous, right?"

Lizzie frowned, "Did you ever think he might have a point?"

It was Casey's turn to have her mouth fall open, "You're taking his side."

"Of course not! I've hated the guy for a long time for the way he treats you and Mikay," Lizzie responded. "Speaking as an objective party—as objective as can be—you and Derek have something. I don't claim to know what it is. I certainly don't understand it. But it is stronger, and more real than anything I've seen between you and Sam. Maybe Sam's picking up on that."

"What are you trying to say?" Casey asked.

"Maybe there is a choice you need to make. You can't have them both forever, because in the end you'll only end up hurting everyone."

"I don't understand."

"You're the smart one Casey. Don't you see what you do to Derek? You've kept him hanging on for years, made him watch Sam walk all over you, and you don't even see it." Lizzie shook her head, "You're my sister Case, but Derek is like family too, and it's about time I started looking out for him too."

Despite the fact that Casey had no idea how to respond, she didn't get a chance to because Marti called out, "Did you guys get lost in there or something?"

"Sorry." Casey said as she and Lizzie took their seats and put down the last of the food.

"We were just having a little sisterly chat." Lizzie added, glancing pointedly at Casey and then at Derek.

Now that the rest of the food had arrived, they began to pass around the platters to serve themselves. Casey helped serve Mikay who happily dug in. Once everyone had food they quietly began eating. As Casey ate, she thought about what Lizzie had said. She snuck a glance at Derek sitting across from her. He was focusing on his dinner and not looking at anyone. Casey looked away, biting her lip slightly. Lizzie was right, Casey could see it, but that didn't mean she could do anything about it.

Finally the silence at the table got to George, he piped up, "So has anything interesting happened to any of you recently?"

"There's a good chance I'm going to be getting a promotion." Edwin offered up. "It'd be a big raise, and a little bit more responsibility."

"Well that's great." George exclaimed. "Congrats."

"I haven't gotten it yet." Edwin shrugged, "But thanks."

"It's well deserved." Lizzie smiled. Edwin's eyes widened as he looked up at her, before he blushed lightly and looked away.

"My car has pretty much had its last stand." Marti announced. "I'm gonna see what I can get for it as is, and try and find something reasonable that will run properly."

"I told you that car wasn't going to hold up." Derek shook his head.

"Hey! It lasted awhile." Marti scowled. "It did its job while it could. It was a good car."

The conversation continued as so, with each person at the table contributing little tid bits. Derek was looking into new furniture. Lizzie was considering taking on a coaching job for one of the little soccer leagues as a side job—she'd been getting such joy from showing Mikay the ropes that she thought it would be cool to take it further. Mikay told a story about one of the kids that had been in her class about how he was moving to Oklahoma. Casey kept quiet most of the time, but once Marti had brought out the dessert she had prepared, she thought it was time to bring up the topic she had been dreading. Mikay had finished her dessert quickly and ran off to the couch to watch TV. With her preoccupied, Casey was able to say something without having to explain it to Mikay as well.

"This isn't exactly good news, well not good at all actually. I didn't want to say anything in front of Mikay, because I'm still not quite sure how to explain it to her, but…" Casey paused, took a breath, and then continued. "I've decided to leave Sam. Maybe that's not the best way to phrase it. It's for a temporary period, until we can try and work everything out without too much conflict and threats."

"What?" Edwin exclaimed, dropping his fork. "For real?"

Derek's eyes shot up, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"A lot of reasons. For one I didn't want anything to ruin this dinner. I know how important it was to you George."

"Casey, honey, you know nothing is more important to me than you kids." George replied.

"I know." Casey nodded. "I guess, I also thought the longer I could go without everyone else knowing, the less real it would seem. I wasn't intentionally keeping it from you."

"Case, you should have…" Derek blew out a breath, "I know things have been weird since…but if you needed me, you know I would have been there."

Casey met his eyes directly, "I didn't doubt that. I only decided last night, and I didn't have the nerve to tell you the whole story."

"Explain." Derek urged, sitting forward in his chair attempting to get closer to her—something he had caught himself doing countless times.

"I don't know if now's the best time." Casey gave a quick, sidelong glance at George. He had the best intentions, but she wasn't sure she wanted him to hear anything that might come up in that conversation.

George may be oblivious a majority of the time, but he did pick up on Casey's small hint. "I think I'll just clear these plates." George said as he stood and began to collect the dessert plates, "And I'll start the dishes."

"Thank you George." Casey replied as George headed for the kitchen. He gave a short nod in response.

"Okay," Derek piped up once the sound of water running began in the kitchen. "Now let's hear it."

"He wants me to stop seeing you." Casey said bluntly, "It's his condition for us to try. If I don't cut you out of my life, then he'll leave."

"That's absolutely ridiculous!" Marti spoke up first. "I mean, you two are what keep each other a float. Without each other, you wouldn't be able to make it."

"That's what I said." Casey agreed, "That's why I'm staying here. I'll wait out his stubbornness on this subject, and then we can really work on us."

Lizzie was shaking her head, "And if he doesn't relent?"

"What?" Lizzie frowned.

"What if he never changes his mind? What then?"

Casey froze, her mouth open. She didn't have an answer to that. She didn't know what she would do if that happened. She hadn't considered that possibility, mostly because she couldn't imagine not having both Derek and Sam in her life. She needed them both for different reasons. Derek, because he was everything to her. And Sam, because having him meant she hadn't failed her family—because she didn't accept failure well.

Derek scoffed, "Typical."

"Excuse me?" Casey scowled, turning to him.

Edwin put a hand on his brother's arm, it wasn't out of comfort Casey realized, it was a restraint. "Derek, don't say something you'll regret."

"What have I got to lose?" Derek responded. "Her silence, it already says everything I need to know. If he decided that it's the only way and that he will not waiver, she will do what he wants an any expense."

"I didn't say that." Casey exclaimed.

"You didn't have to." Derek shook his head. "You've been saying it for years."

"I've never had any other option."

"Damn it Casey, you've always had an option." Derek yelled, slamming his fist on the table.

The sound of it startled everyone at the table. It caught George's attention, he leaned away from the sink to try and see what was going on. Mikay was now watching the table over the back of the couch. Derek settled, taking a deep breath.

"I'm sorry." He said, "Maybe that's a conversation we should have in private."

With the table going quiet, Mikay returned her attention to the television. Each face at the table was calm yet solemn, weighed down by the gravity of what had just occurred. Casey was staring at her hands and not looking at anyone. Derek had chosen a spot on the wall behind Casey and focused on it intently. George finished the dishes and was drying his hands on a dish towel when he returned to the table to ask Edwin and Derek to bring in Casey and Mikay's bags.

"It's no problem, Dad." Edwin answered as he took the car keys that Casey offered him.

George watched as Derek and Edwin silently headed for the door. He returned to the kitchen to replace the towel once they were outside. He could feel the tension between the kids still heavy in the air. George wasn't surprised, giving the nature of his children and Nora's, that even as adults they all had a large dose of drama and angst that had characterized their teenage years. As he had all those years ago, George avoided it like the plague—disappearing into the basement for a while, hoping it would blow over quickly (whatever it was).

Lizzie turned to Casey once the door closed behind Derek and Edwin, "What did I tell you?"

"Lizzie not now."

"You've been doing this for years. Sam disappoints you, you run to Derek, you give him hope and then crush him when you go running back to Sam. He has hurt you countless times and you still go back." Lizzie shook her head, "And it's killing Derek. I'm trying to tell you…I'm trying to help you."

"Lizzie, please." Casey responded. "You're mistaken."

"He's in love with you!" Lizzie exclaimed. Then more quietly, added, "He has been for years."

"No Lizzie." Casey shook her head.

"You're in such denial. It's not even funny anymore."

Marti, who had been watching this exchange silently, finally spoke up, "I couldn't find a better match for my brother than you Casey. He needs you and you need him, everyone can see that. Why can't you see it?"

"I can see it." Casey corrected. "I know I need him, but I need Sam too."

"Why?" Marti asked.

"Why, what?"

"Why do you need Sam?"

"He's my husband and Mikay's father…"

"Excuse." Lizzie piped up, "Excuse. An excuse to be unhappy—even worse. I want you to be happy Casey. And I'm sorry to say it Case, but you've been trying to make it work for fifteen years and if it hasn't worked out yet…it's probably not going to."

"Lizzie, after watching Mom go through two divorces…I don't want to be that person. I don't want to be that person. I don't want to feel that kind of failure."

"Then you may succeed in your marriage—but you'll still be unhappy." Lizzie responded, "Where's the logic in that?"

Casey's response was cut off by Derek and Edwin returning through the door. Wordlessly, they began to take the bags upstairs. Casey stood from the table and walked over to the couch. There she found Mikay laid out on the couch, fast asleep. Capitalizing on the sudden silence, George returned. He offered to take Mikay upstairs and set her up in Marti's old room. Before he could do so, Lizzie stood, as did Marti.

"I'm gonna head out." Lizzie said, making to gather her things. "Thank you for having us George. I hope we can do it again soon."

George hugged her, "It was good seeing you Lizzie, say hello to Eric for me."

"I will." Lizzie nodded, she turned to Casey and added, "Tell me you'll think about what I said. I don't mind if you don't agree, or if you're angry with me for what I said. I just want you to think about it."

Casey pulled her sister into a hug, "I can't be angry with you for saying what you feel. I will think about it. Liz, I know you want the best fro me, just like I want the best for you. I'll think about it, I promise, okay?"

Lizzie nodded, gave a little wave and was out the door. Marti stepped forward to say goodbye. Hugging both her dad and Casey in turn. She smiled despite not feeling quite at ease after the previous conversation.

"I'm gonna give my car one last good run before I start looking for another." Marti replied. "I'll see you later. Say goodbye to Derek and Edwin for me."

Once the door closed behind Marti, George moved around to pick up Mikay. He started up the stairs just as Edwin was coming down. They side stepped each other and continued on their way. Casey didn't fail to notice that Derek was not with Edwin. Edwin reached the end of the stairs and started toward Casey.

"Marti and Lizzie both leave?" Edwin asked.

"Yeah." Casey nodded. "What happened to Derek?"

"Boarded up in his old room." Edwin responded. "He feels kind of stupid for reacting the way he did."

"Well," Casey shrugged not able to form any other words.

"What happened between you two?" Edwin questioned, "You were okay at the soccer game, but he's been moping around since then and he only gets like that when it has something to do with you."

"I don't know."

"This is completely disregarding what happened tonight, but I know it's something about you." Edwin responded, not believing her at all. "Besides you're a terrible liar."

"I can't talk about it. It's really between me and him, not that he would want to talk to me right now."

"He just doesn't understand, none of us do, how you could subject yourself to such torture by staying with Sam."

"What I don't understand is how all of you seem to think you know what's best for me better than I do." Casey shook her head.

"We only do that because it's not that hard to see what you want even if you can't. We want you to be happy." Edwin answered. "The truth is life is complicated. You're looking for a simplicity that doesn't exist in the real world. You just have to accept that there are things you don't have control over, like who you love and who loves you." Edwin had said his part, so he began to leave. He was pulling on his jacket when George was coming back down the stairs. "See ya, Dad, Casey."

Edwin headed out the door and George stated that he was going to bed, leaving Casey alone in the living room. She started up the stairs, hoping to get a shower and into bed without having to deal with the only quest still present. With everything she had been told, everything that had been said by the mixture of Venturis and McDonalds she wasn't sure she could deal with what he had to say.

She found her bags in her old room, and gathered her things. Her gaze found Derek's closed door as she headed toward the bathroom. A distant memory was nagging at her, hazy but very demanding. One constant that she could decipher: his voice.

"Casey, damn it Casey open the damn door!"

She shook the unplaceable shred of a memory from the front of her mind, and continued into the bathroom. She hoped that by the time she was finished Derek would be on his way home. She hoped that the shower would help clear her head. She hoped her life would be easy, her fairytale ending simply attained. But when does anyone get what they wish for? She scoffed at that thought. She had gotten what she wished for, it had just turned out that it hadn't been exactly what she wanted.

After Casey had spent a good length of time in the shower, she got dressed and made to exit the bathroom. As soon as she stepped out into the hallway, she came face to face with Derek. He had left his room at the same time she came out. They both froze in their tracks, eyes locked. Neither moved, for neither knew what they should do.

Derek ran one of his hands through his hair, "Case, I think we need to talk."

"I'm on my way to bed." Casey responded, taking a step toward her door. Her head was telling her she wasn't ready for this conversation.

Derek stepped forward to block her way. "It's really important Casey and you know it."

"I know Derek, but not tonight."

"Yes, tonight. Right now." Derek shook his head. "I don't know what's wrong with you. I really don't."

"Excuse me?"

"God Case. You act like that night never happened!" Derek exclaimed.

"What night? What are you talking about?" Casey questioned. "Are you talking about Wednesday? Because I am no where near pretending it didn't happen. I can hardly stop thinking about it. Everything is changing because of it and it's all so complicated."

Derek took in a deep breath, "I'm not talking about Wednesday and of course it's complicated!" Derek exclaimed. "You are married to a man who can't be faithful and you've let me follow you around like a lovesick puppy for fifteen years. And just when I thought there might be hope you rip it right out from under me. You still want him and I can't compete with that, can I?"

"I don't understand." Casey frowned.

"What is it that you want from me Casey? What can I do? What can I say? What do you want me to do to get you to acknowledge what happened that night? You act like you don't remember. You act like you've blocked it from your memory." Derek spoke rapidly. "I realize it was over a decade ago, but I haven't forgotten. I think about it everyday and what could have come of it…"

And then there it was. That distant, dreamlike memory that she hadn't been able to grasp fully. It played out like a movie before her eyes.

- - - -

"Casey, damn it Casey open the damn door!" Derek called through her door. After dinner was finished he had returned to try and draw her out. "Okay, listen to me. You can't do this. At least let me in. Sam's a real piece of work for doing this to you, but you're going to be okay. You will be.

"Am I talking to a wall here? Seriously Casey, let. Me. I—" He was cut off by her door being slowly pulled open to reveal Casey's tear streaked face. "Case."

"What do you want Derek? Because I'm really not in the mood for any of you—" Casey started, but didn't get a chance to finish before Derek folder her into a hug. Almost immediately, Casey burst into fresh tears.

Derek pushed the door closed behind them and locked it. He began to lead her toward her bed. He sat down against the headboard and let her curl against his chest. "Come here. Do you want to talk about it?"

"I just, I don't understand." Casey spoke through sobs. "I can't figure out what happened, what went wrong."

"Shh." Derek murmured, pulling Casey close into a tight hug. "It's going to be okay."

"I want to believe that." Casey whispered, still shakily. "But it hurts."

"I promise." Derek responded as he pressed a light kiss to her hair. "Things will get better."

"How do you know that?" Casey sniffed. She pulled back slightly to look Derek in the eyes as she waited for an answer.

"Because," Derek answered, "If Sam can say what he did to you, he doesn't deserve your time."

"How do you know what he said?"

"He told me." Derek shrugged, "I think he was reaching for a 'good job man' or a high five or something. He can be such an idiot sometimes."

Casey scoffed, "You got that right."

"I'm sorry Casey. I really am."

"Sure you are." Casey shook her head.

"I am. I'm sorry he hurt you." Derek responded, "I wish there was something I could do to fix this for you."

"Why?" Casey exclaimed, "Why do you care?"

"Because I care about you Casey!" Derek blurted out. He collected himself and continued, "What I meant to say was I know I don't show it very often, but I do care about you. And maybe it goes a little further than that…"

"Derek…"

"Maybe this isn't the best time to say this, but I feel like I finally can." Derek said, "Case, I love you. I have for awhile. But you and Sam were always together and you were always happy. I never wanted to ruin that."

"I, I don't know what to say." Casey responded. "I mean, you've never had the best timing. I guess I should be used to that."

"I know." Derek nodded, lowering his gaze. "I'm sorry."

Casey was silent for a moment, "But it's always good to hear someone say they love you. And I don't know why, but I believed you when you said it."

She wasn't sure why it was, but when Derek leaned down to kiss her, she let him. Not only did she let him brush his lips gently against hers, she responded, she kissed him back. She didn't understand it, but she felt something—something much more than anything she had felt with Sam.

- - - -

"Oh God," Casey breathed. She suddenly understood why everyone had been pushing her in his direction. It was clear to her, that the lack of that significant memory had been a hindrance.

"I figured eventually you would realize who had really been there for you, who really loved you. I don't know why I even try." Derek continued as if she hadn't spoken. "It's obvious that nothing would have ever come from it. You've been running from me and running to him since high school. No matter what he does, or what I do, that will never change."

Derek put his hand over his eyes as he turned away from her. She took a step forward and reached out to him, "Derek—"

"Don't." Derek stated simply, causing Casey to retract her hand. "Just don't."

"Derek, I, I just…I'm so sorry." Casey said not sure exactly what she was apologizing for, but knowing that for some reason he deserved it.

"I love you Case." Derek whispered, his back to her. "If that hasn't changed in the last fifteen years, I won't dare believe that it will. But I can't keep waiting for you to change your ways. I know, I know that somewhere inside you, you feel the same. I felt it that night and I felt it Wednesday. Someday you'll know it too, but I can't wait for you to figure that out for yourself." Derek turned back around to look at her. "I hate that it has to be this way, but I know you Case. And you will go back to him, no matter what the cost. That's what you do. I won't let you keep me on the sidelines hoping that I'll get a chance to play. So…I want you to know that I will always be there for you if you really need me, but I think it will be best if we had some time apart."

Casey's heart sank as she realized what he meant, "But, I…"

"Don't worry. I'll still be around. Mikay's soccer games, family dinners, the usual." Derek cut her off. "But us being alone together…I can't do that right now—not without getting angry or kissing you."

"So you'll still be around—Mikay's games, family dinners. But no Saturdays together or heartfelt conversations or…" Casey rambled. "Why would you do that?"

"It will be better for both of us in the long run." Derek responded, "Besides, you've been running from me for so long, I would think you would want me to stop chasing."

"No, Derek don't do this…" Casey started but was cut off again.

"Goodnight Casey." Derek said, with the finality of a goodbye. He turned and headed down the hall.

Casey didn't find her voice again until he had disappeared down the stairs. "No. Don't go…I need you."

As the house when silent, Casey became aware of how long she had been standing in the hallway alone. It was then that she noticed the tears that had began to fall. She retreated into her old room and collapsed onto her bed. She buried her face into her pillow as she cried. A single wish moving through her consciousness.

This isn't what I wanted

Please take me back

Let me fix it

Give me a happy ending

Please, Oh God please