To Charlottetown

Chapter 21: Bayfield

A/N: This is the third last chapter. The last chapter will come SOON I promise you all. Well, I promise it'll come before 2010 :D

"Casey?!" Edwin and Derek both choked. Edwin ripped his hand out of Madam Sienna's, his face pale. It looked like he was going to be sick. Derek felt light-headed, and he looked at Madam Sienna for answers.

She smiled.

Derek frowned.

Edwin looked like he was going to pass out.

"Is there a problem?" Madam Sienna said slyly. She looked up at Derek.

"That's our stepsister," Derek said, pushing his hair back. Madam Sienna shrugged her shoulders.

"So?"

"So –,"

"Hush," she said, "And don't you dare say you can't be together because of that."

"Are you talking about me or Derek now?" Edwin asked. "Because it's Derek that's in love with her, not me! Dude, I'm not encroaching on your territory!" Edwin shot up, stumbling over a pillow.

"What did you say?" Derek hissed, grabbing the front of Edwin's shirt. Madam Sienna watched with her brows raised.

"I-I, I said that you –,"

"Hush children, I don't want to be responsible for any damage done between you," she ushered them out of the room. Edwin walked ahead, and when he was far enough so he couldn't hear their conversation, Madam Sienna grabbed Derek's arm and yanked at it so she could whisper in his ear.

"You're led by the opinions of others," she mumbled. Derek turned his head slightly so he could hear her better. "You'll lose her if you continue to ignore what's there."

He looked into her eyes.

"There's nothing there," he said, stepping away from her. "Nothing."

"Back on the road," Casey sighed as she clambered into the minivan. Lizzie smiled wearily at her sister as she buckled her seatbelt.

"You're finally getting sick of all this travelling?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"Does anyone want some chocolate?" Marti chirped from her backseat spot. Casey looked over at her, about to say something, but stopped dead when she saw the huge bag of chocolate on the little girl's lap.

"Mom! You let her get all of this?! Do you know what it'll do to her teeth?!" Casey gaped at her mother, and Nora looked up tiredly.

"She threatened that she'd start crying… in the middle of the store! People would think I was a bad parent!"

"Mom!" Casey groaned, rolling her head back. Lizzie laughed a little, taking the piece of chocolate Marti offered her and shoving it in her mouth. She was a health nut, sure, but sometimes she could eat chocolate; especially on a stressful family road trip.

"Here come the boys," Nora commented, to respectfully dodge the lecture Casey was probably forming in her mind about healthy eating and snacking.

George climbed into the passenger seat, since it was Nora's turn to drive, and Derek got into his spot in the back. Edwin stood outside, staring at Lizzie.

"Can I sit in your spot, Casey?" he asked, looking at her with big, pleading eyes.

"No," she said, making a face. "Why?"

"Oh… I think I'm going to puke again, from all that incense. Right, Derek?" Edwin said.

"Incense?" Casey repeated. "Where did you go that had that?"

"They wasted twenty bucks on a palm reader," George commented, turning to look at the children. "Now get in the car, Ed."

"Daaad I'm going to puke, and Casey's not being –,"

"Casey? Could you switch, just for now? Please?" Nora asked from the front. She mentally added, 'So we can get to P.E.I. before I turn 50.'

"Fine! But this is the last time, do you hear me?" She snapped, unbuckling her seatbelt and squeezing in-between Derek and Marti.

"Yeah, yeah," Edwin murmured, not paying attention, "Whatever." He got into Casey's seat and slammed the door shut, immediately leaning in to whisper to Lizzie.

Casey sighed, looking over to Derek.

"Did the palm reader say anything interesting?" she asked, trying to make conversation. Derek looked at her, his eyes wide.

"No, of course not. Palm reader's are fakes, you should know that," he said, then he looked out the window.

"What did –,"

"I'm not really in the mood to talk, okay?!" Derek snapped. He didn't even bother to look at her when he said that.

A pang of disappointment washed over her.

"Oh," she murmured, glancing away. She didn't want him to see how upset she was. He was acting like his normal self, like how he had acted back in London. She shouldn't have expected his kindness to last for much longer.

So that's how she found herself playing 'rock paper scissors' with Marti, which wouldn't be so upsetting if they hadn't been playing it for 2 hours straight.

Casey flexed her hand when Marti decided it was time for a break. The little girl reached into her bag and pulled out a block of chocolate. She popped it in her mouth, and Casey leaned back, closing her eyes.

It was nearly an hour later, and the car was filled with silence. Edwin and Marti were both sleeping soundly, so the loud gasp that came out of George made everyone jump.

Derek's head snapped up so fast he must've gotten whiplash. He tiredly mumbled, "Wha? Did we hit something?!"

Nora had a hand over her mouth as she whispered, "Oh my God…,"

"What? What's happening?" Casey asked, panic bubbling in her voice. She leaned as far as the seatbelt would let her, trying to peer out of the windshield.

And that's when she saw it.

"I can't believe it," George whispered. His voice wavered, like he might start crying. "I never thought we'd get here… never." One of his hands started whipping furiously at his eyes.

Is he actually crying? Casey thought.

"Dad…, are you crying? What's happening?" Edwin asked.

"I'm not crying!" George yelled. "I'm just so happy. It's… it's beautiful."

"What is?!" Derek hissed. "Can someone keep me in the loop here?"

"We're at the Bridge," Casey said, turning to look at Derek. His eyes met hers and something flipped inside her.

"What bridge?"

"The Confederation Bridge. The one that leads to Prince Edward Island." She would've expected to see Derek cheer, or at least smile, but the frown on his face only deepened.

"Oh," was all he said. His behaviour confused Casey. After spending days cramped in a rental van which kind of stunk, anyone would've been happy to see the bridge that led to their freedom. Honestly, just a few more hours until they got to Charlottetown and the only expression Derek could put on was a frown?

Weird. Really weird.

There was a bit of traffic, but by the time their van was actually on the bridge Casey felt like crying, too.

After all they had been through… after the rollercoaster of emotions, the awakenings inside of her, the lessons learned… they were finally here. They were finally entering PEI. After all of their adventures, the pressure felt like it was being released from her shoulders.

"Oh no, Casey's gonna start crying too," Derek whined. Casey smiled a little bit, her vision going blurry. Yes, she was going to start crying. She just couldn't believe they were finally here, in PEI!

She stared out the window, watching the waves of the Atlantic Ocean as their van drove down the Confederation Bridge. She wished she could've filmed this moment, to record all the happy faces in the car.

Everyone was smiling, and –

Well actually, not everyone was smiling. She glanced at Derek and looked hurriedly away when she realized he had been watching her, too.

"Does anyone want chocolate to celebrate?" Marti asked, holding her bag up. Edwin, Lizzie and George took some. They were all grinning like crazy.

Casey glanced at Derek again, keeping her gaze on him since he wasn't looking at her. What was wrong with him? Why wasn't he smiling?

"Derek," Casey whispered. She hoped no body would hear even though it was unlikely they would. They were all deep in conversations about what they'd do in Charlottetown.

He turned and looked at her, his brows raised.

"What?"

"What's up with you?" she asked. "Why aren't you excited?"

"I didn't know there was a law that said I had to be. I can be whatever the hell I want to be." He looked away, but Casey socked him in the arm.

"De-rek!" she groaned. "I know you well enough to know there's something on your mind."

He was quiet, so she took it that she struck a nerve in him.

"Well?" she prodded.

"Well what?" he snapped.

"Well you better tell me what's wrong, that's what," she said, narrowing her eyes. His eyes swept over her face, than he turned away, biting on his finger.

"It's nothing."

"It's not nothing if it's bothering you." She was quiet for a moment, than she shifted closer to him.

"If uh… If you need to talk, or confide in someone, I'm he—,"

He spun sharply, holding his hands up.

"Don't even do that!" Casey's eyes widened at his tone of voice. "Don't even pretend you're my little confide-o buddy or something." He turned away again, crossing his arms as he glared out the window.

All the occupants in the van were watching them, so she didn't say anything further. She would, however, figure out what was wrong with him. He was a jerk, sure, but he wasn't usually this rude. Something was eating away at his mind.

A short chapter, but the next one will be out really soon. How I know? Because I'm working on it right now. This is more of a build-up chapter. The next one should be interesting! A confession perhaps? Hmmmm.