A/N: Wow, it's been a while hasn't it? So sorry about that. I really have no excuse besides the fact that I'm terrible at managing my time. I, again, am up in the air about this chapter. There were a bunch of things I wanted to happen and I don't know if it flows very well. Hope you all like it though. I also wrote it in a couple of hours on campus today (when I should have been studying), so please excuse any mistakes or inconsistencies, I tried to make sure there weren't any.

With alerts messed up, and then receiving emails from weeks ago, I didn't respond to everyone. But, thanks so much to everyone who reads and reviews. They always brighten my day.

Enjoy and review

Disclaimer: I own nothing

For the next two hours, Casey and Derek interacted with their family and Marti's friends, as well as spent some time with Derek Jr and Gabrielle, who were a bit bored since they were the only children at the party.

After eating pizza, which George didn't order enough of and had to call again for a couple more pies, every congregated into the living and dining room area again. Derek watched as his children terrorized Marti's friends, until she caught them and tickled them with the help of her boyfriend. Darting his eyes around the room, he watched the other party attendants conversing amongst themselves.

And finally, for about the hundredth time that day, his eyes landed on Casey. From the moment that she let go of his hand when they reached the bottom step, he felt drawn to her. Their eyes would lock and involuntary smiles would spread across their faces.

"Hey Derek," Edwin said from behind him. Derek turned away from Casey, who gave one last fleeting smile, before turning back to Lizzie. "Are you feeling alright? You seem out of it today."

"Honestly?" Derek said, taking a sip from his cup. Edwin nodded and leaned forward. "No, I'm really not."

"Anything I can help you with?"

"Unless you can treat my insanity" Derek mumbled, looking back over at Casey.

Following his line of sight, Edwin noticed Casey turn from her conversation with Lizzie and smile slightly in their direction, eyes fixed on Derek.

"So, it has to do with Casey huh?" Derek snapped his head back and stared at Edwin. "I thought you guys weren't fighting."

"We're not," he answered quickly. "It's just . . . just weird."

"Weird?" Edwin pressed, obviously intrigued.

Heaving a sigh, Derek tried to explain without giving too much away. "I'm just confused. Things have been different lately and I'm trying to adjust, but it's a bit harder than I had initially anticipated."

Edwin gestured for Derek to continue.

"I really don't know what you want me to say," Derek said as he lifted his cup to his lips. When he realized that his cup was empty, something seemed to click. "It's like this," he showed Edwin his empty cup, to which he only got a confused face. "Where did my drink go? I know the most logical answer is that I drank it, but I don't remember my last sip finishing it off."

"Uh, Derek . . . you're not making any sense."

"Exactly! The first thoughts that run through my head are that my drink either evaporated or someone came and drank it. Both make no sense but my brain is so warped that I think these things before the one thing that makes the most sense."

"So . . ." Edwin began slowly, trying to piece everything together when Derek stopped speaking. "What exactly is it that makes the most sense in regards to Casey?"

Derek opened his mouth, closed his mouth, and then turned around to look at Casey. As if knowing he was looking at her, she turned and smiled, and Derek couldn't help but smile back.

"I have no idea," he whispered, still facing Casey.

She lifted an eyebrow, turned to say something to Lizzie, and then walked over to Edwin and Derek.

"You alright?" she asked Derek, voice full of concern.

"No," Edwin answered for him. He stood up when Lizzie walked over, allowing her to take his seat. "He's lost his mind."

Lizzie snorted and motioned to Casey, "Not the only one."

Casey glared at Lizzie before grabbing Derek's arm and pulling him to his feet. "I just saw George enter the kitchen," she whispered to him. "Want to go corner him and try to get some information?"

"Sure," he answered, following Casey after waving to Edwin and Lizzie, who were now in a conversation of their own.

Making their way through the crowd, Casey and Derek entered the kitchen as George took the milk out of the refrigerator.

"Hey George," Casey said, sitting on one of the stools at the island with her back to the doors separating the kitchen and dining room.

"Hey," he called over his shoulder, reaching into a cabinet for a mug. "Coffee?" he asked.

"Sure," Casey answered as she pulled the stool to her left out with her foot, motioning for Derek to sit down.

"Yeah, thanks Pops."

"So you're the one who told him to call me that," George accuse as he set the mugs and coffee pot on the island top.

Derek shook his head as he filled his and Casey's mugs with coffee. "No, I think he's just getting you back for calling him Junior."

"But he is a junior."

"And you're a pops."

"Fine, fine," George said as he blew on the top of his coffee.

They sat silently for a few minutes, each occasionally sipping from their mug.

"Not that I don't enjoy the quiet, but was there something you guys wanted?" George asked.

"Actually, yes there was." Casey looked at Derek, who raised an eyebrow. She nodded her head in George's direction, across from them. Derek shook his head no. Finally, Casey pinched Derek's thigh underneath the table.

"Fine," Derek gritted through his teeth, rubbing the spot that Casey pinched. "Dad, can you tell us about us?" Derek clarified at George's puzzled look. "How Casey and I got together."

"Shouldn't you already-"

"Just humor us," Derek said, cutting off his father.

"Alright," he said slowly. "Well, to be honest with you, I don't know." George put down his mug and leaned back on his stool, looking from Casey to Derek. "I don't think anyone but the two of you know how you got together."

"No one ever asked us?" Casey questioned.

"Oh, we asked, all the time. You both would either ignore the question completely or give cryptic smiles." He paused before speaking again. "Care to explain now?"

"No," Derek said immediately.

George shrugged, "Doesn't hurt to try."

After a moment, Casey asked, "Were we accepted?"

"By who? The family, society?" Casey nodded. "At first, no. But we all got used to it and you both are too headstrong to ever back down and give in to other's opinions." George chuckled lightly. "I remember this one time, early on, someone on Derek's college hockey team said something about your relationship. I never saw Derek so enraged before. If you hadn't whispered something to him, I thought Derek might have actually killed him."

"So, we were close like that from the beginning?" Derek asked.

"Um . . ." George tapped his finger on his lips as he thought. "Yeah, I think so. When it came to other people questioning the relationship. But you were both so off and on those first few months, Nora and I didn't think you were going to last."

"What do you mean?"

"The fighting, you were still at it like you were when the MacDonalds first moved in. There were times that people wouldn't believe you two were even together." George sighed and looked at the both of them. "But there was always this connection you had . . . like one of you would say something to the other, or give a look, or play this really old song." George shrugged, "and all was good again."

Casey looked out of the corner of her eye, only to see Derek doing the same. She smiled, a small smile, which he instantly returned.

"Like that," George said. "And after a while, the fighting pretty much stopped altogether, so no one questioned your relationship anymore."

A few minutes passed in silence, allowing Derek and Casey to collect their thoughts. Several questions were going through both their minds, but they were trying to find ways to word them.

"What did you and mom do?"

"Initially, we freaked out."

Derek sensed Casey cringe, so he lightly nudged her. When she turned to face him, he gave her a reassuring smile. Derek turned to his father before asking, "What did you do exactly?"

"Well, there was a lot of yelling. Besides that, there really wasn't much else we could do. You were both eighteen at the time."

"Right," Derek mumbled to Casey. "At the time." She elbowed him in the side.

"After the initial shock wore off, we didn't take you seriously, what with all the fighting."

"How'd you know we weren't joking about the whole thing?" Casey asked.

"Your mom and I sent the family spies after you."

"And we all know how that turned out," Nora said as she entered the kitchen. She threw away empty plastic cups that she collected, nodding her head in the direction of the living room.

Casey and Derek looked over their shoulders, turning a bit on their stools, where Casey's knee brushed Derek's leg. They saw Lizzie and Edwin sitting next to one another on the couch. Edwin was whispering something in Lizzie's ear, brushing the hair off her face. She was smiling, one hand resting on her stomach and the other on Edwin's arm.

"We did that?" Casey whispered.

"Mmhmm," Nora said, leaning against George and taking a sip from his mug. "Of course it took a couple of years and a bit of pushing from the two of you. But I think them spying on you, when you thought no one was watching, brought them closer together."

"Was it easier on them than it was on us?" Derek asked.

"Yeah," Nora nodded. "After people learned you both weren't going to back down and actually loved each other, we all were more accepting."

"Also," George said to Nora, wrapping an arm around her waist. "They weren't as cocky about their relationship as these two."

"How were Casey and I cocky?"

"George, you know Casey wasn't as cocky as Derek was."

"Hey!"

"Come on Derek," Nora began. "Don't you remember our conversation about your bedroom?"

"Oh yeah, that was great." George laughed.

"When I wanted to make you switch rooms with Edwin, so that there was some distance between you and Casey, don't you remember what you said?" Nora's voice deepened, trying to imitate Derek. "'There's only one way I'm giving up my room, and it won't even be possible for a couple of years.' And that was that, end of discussion as far as you were concerned." A reminiscent look crossed her face. "You never did give me any grief when I turned it into a room for Derek and Gabby."

"What are you all doing in here?" Lizzie asked as she and Edwin entered the room. She sat down on a stool next to Derek, Edwin resting his hands on her shoulders.

"Reminiscing," George told them.

"Yeah, 'bout what?" Edwin asked.

"Derek and Casey's relationship."

"Right," Lizzie began. "Their own graduation ten years ago."

"What?" Derek and Casey said at the same time.

"Oh wow, I almost forgot." Edwin turned towards Derek and Casey. "Don't you guys remember that amusement park we went to?"

"Like it was two days ago," Derek mumbled.

"Derek," Casey hissed.

"It was so strange," Edwin said, as if he didn't hear either of them. "Seeing you two making out next to that booth. What was it again?"

"I think a fortune teller or something," Nora said.

Derek's eyes widened and he smacked his left hand against his forehead. Casey gasped and her left hand clutched onto Derek's right wrist, which was resting in his lap. He turned to look at her and noticed that she just remembered as well.

"I didn't even realize it was them at first."

"Who would have thought that they would be kissing instead of killing each other? Nora and I caught them sneaking away from one another several times that day."

"And they weren't even embarrassed, like it was an everyday occurrence."

"Do you remember what they said? How they just wanted to try it out for a while."

"Yeah right, they both had determination in their eyes. Like they knew it was going to last."

From the moment Nora mentioned the fortune teller booth, Derek and Casey didn't hear a thing they said. Casey's breathing became erratic and Derek was worried she was going to have a panic attack. He flipped his hand over, the one that she grabbed, and intertwined their fingers. Derek ran his thumb across her wrist a couple of times, before leaning in closer to her.

"Hey," he whispered, making her look at him. "You alright?" She shook her head no and her eyes settled just over his shoulder. He turned completely on his stool to face her and placed his free hand on her thigh, squeezing slightly. "We're going to be okay Case, you know that right?"

Casey took a deep breath. "You think so?" she asked, looking into his eyes.

He smiled, trying to reassure himself as well as her. "I know so."

She returned the smile, tightening her fingers around his a little more. "Thanks."

"So," Edwin said, clapping Derek on the back. "You going to help me move the kid's seats?"

"Huh?" Derek said, turning away from Casey, but still holding her hand.

"The booster seats, help me move them to my car. Lizzie and I are leaving soon."

"Why exactly are you going to need their seats?" Casey asked.

"Do you honestly think I would drive with Derek and Gabby in the car without them?"

"Hold up," Derek said. "I'm confused, why are you taking them in your car?"

"What is wrong with you two today?" Lizzie asked. "They're spending the week at our house and it's not like we are going to make you guys drive them when we are already here."

"Oh, right . . . the week at your house. We, um, forgot to bring clothing for them."

"Not a problem Casey, we still have some of their things at our place. Besides, we live like five minutes away from each other."

"Edwin, help me up?" Lizzie asked, holding out her arms.

Derek stood, squeezed Casey's hand one last time before letting go, and placed his and Casey's mugs in the sink.

"Aww, are you leaving already?" Marti asked from the doorway.

"Yeah, sorry Marti, but I'm still craving grape juice and mom's all out."

"It's alright Liz." Marti hugged Lizzie, then Edwin. "Thanks again for the gift, you really didn't have to."

"Don't act like you didn't want it."

"You know," George began, gaining everyone's attention. "I just realized that we are all Venturis."

"That'll change when Marti gets married."

"No it won't," she said. "I decided a while ago that I'm not going to change my last name. I mean, how cool is it that we all have the same last name?" Everyone besides Derek and Casey laughed.

As Lizzie and Edwin began to say goodbye to Marti, George and Nora; Casey walked across the room to Derek.

"Looks like we aren't the only crazy ones."

"In this family," he told her before he followed Edwin and Lizzie outside, dropping his head to whisper in her ear. "I think you need a couple of screws loose just to fit in."

Casey found Derek Jr and Gabrielle, talking with Marti's boyfriend Adam, and helped them put their shoes on. After making sure they said goodbye to everyone, she walked them outside to Edwin's car.

Derek was finishing putting the booster seats in the car when Casey and the children walked up.

"Have fun and behave for your aunt and uncle, okay?" Casey said, hugging Gabrielle before picking her up and handing her to Derek so he can strap her in the car.

"We will," Derek Jr said.

They were both leaning in the car, Derek buckling Gabrielle's seatbelt as Casey spoke to Derek Jr.

"I'll miss you daddy," Gabrielle said.

"I'll miss you too, Poppet," Derek said sincerely.

Gabrielle beamed and wrapped her small arms around Derek's neck, kissing his cheek. "I thought you forgot," she said.

Realizing she was talking about the nickname that slipped from his lips, he smiled and said "Never. Now you going to be good right?"

"Yup."

Derek turned to his son, "And you're going to take care of her?"

"Always," he smiled and waved as Derek closed the car door.

Standing in front of the house, Derek and Casey waved as Edwin pulled the car out of the parking spot and drove down the street.

"Poppet?" Casey asked.

Derek shrugged, "It was something my grandmother always called me. I guess it's what I call her."

"Well," Casey said as she nudged him with her shoulder. "Looks like you made that little girl's day."

"I did, didn't I?" Derek asked, making Casey laugh. He turned to face her and spoke in a more serious tone. "You do know what we have to do, right?"

"Yeah," she nodded before turning towards the house. "Let's go say goodbye."