Talk

"Mom, can we please talk?" Casey pleads, late one night in early July, offering her mother a mug of hot tea.

Nora exhales, taking the mug from her daughter and setting it on the kitchen island, turning her back to Casey for a moment. Nora reaches up into a high cabinet, producing two wine glasses and a bottle.

"This sounds like a conversation that requires wine, not tea," Nora sighs, popping the cork out of the bottle and pouring two glasses, sliding one across the island to her daughter.

Casey smiles a weak smile, taking a sip from her glass.

"I just—" Casey starts, unsure of where to start. "I'm sorry. I know you're disappointed in me. I don't know how to make it up to you."

Nora shakes her head, drinking from her own glass.

"I am disappointed," Nora states. "But not for the reasons you think."

Casey raises an eyebrow, confused.

"I'm not disappointed in you, or in Derek, for that matter. I'm disappointed in how I found out. What if it had been Marti who came home first? She's ten. How would we have explained that?"

Casey frowns, looking down into her glass.

"Of course, you guys should've told George and I when you came home for Spring Break. I understand why you didn't. I understand your hesitance. But that doesn't excuse what you did."

Casey nods, understanding.

"I know," she says, her fingers twitching at the stem of her glass. "And I just want you to know, I'm to blame for that— Not him. He was… a willing participant… but it was me who started it."

Nora laughs lightly.

"I see," she chuckles, taking another sip. "Well, like I said, it's not you guys I'm disappointed in. In fact, I expected it to happen eventually. And frankly, I'm surprised it took this long."

Casey laughs nervously.

"It's not really like that," Casey sighs, wondering how to explain this to her mother. "We're not really together."

Nora shakes her head again, her eyebrow arching high.

"Maybe not that you've explicitly said," Nora says, reaching forward and taking her daughter's hand in hers. "But I see the way he looks at you. And the way you look at him."

Casey's brows furrow and she runs the tip of her finger around the lip of her glass.

"It's been almost a year. I just know that I like being around him. He makes me feel good."

Nora smiles, pouring more wine into her own glass.

"I'm willing to bet he'd say the same about you," Nora states, watching as Casey bites her lip nervously.

"I can't believe I'm about to say this to my mother, but," Casey laughs, taking a sip of wine before continuing. "It was supposed to be just sex. At least, that's what I thought he wanted."

Nora laughs lightly in response, squeezing Casey's hand.

"Honey, I think if that's all he wanted, he might've picked someone a little less complicated. Not that you're complicated, but the situation is. He probably would've found someone who isn't his step-sister if it wasn't the person who mattered."

Casey bites her lip again, her eyebrows scrunching together as she processes her mother's words.

"You think?" Casey questions, unsure.

Nora nods, smiling.

"I do," she replies. "I've had the opportunity to see the way your relationship has evolved since George and I married. I've seen you two go from enemies, to reluctant friends, back to enemies, to allies. You two are always there for each other when you need to be."

Casey nods, understanding, not realizing that her mother had been paying so much attention.

"George and I have talked about you and Derek extensively. We knew it was only a matter of time. We weren't surprised when I found out, or upset with either of you for being together, we were just upset about how I found out."

Casey smiles apologetically.

"You almost gave your mother a heart attack."

"I'm sorry, Mom. I really am," Casey apologizes, smiling half-heartedly. "Believe me, that was never how I would've wanted you to find out."

Nora nods, laughing as she brings her glass to her lips again.

"That I do believe."

Nora leans across the island to her daughter, squeezing her hand again, reassuringly.

"And do you know what you can do to make it up to me?" Nora asks, looking at her daughter pointedly.

Casey shakes her head.

"Talk to Derek. I think you guys have some things you need to figure out."

Casey knocks tentatively on Derek's bedroom door. It's late, but she hopes she can still convince him to talk to her.

They haven't talked much since coming home from school four weeks ago. They haven't done anything else either, and both are starting to make Casey's eyes all twitchy.

"Casey," Derek breathes when he opens his door and sees her.

Casey smiles up at him nervously.

"Can I come in?" she asks, her voice quiet.

Derek nods, stepping aside and letting her in, closing the door behind her.

Casey stands in the middle of Derek's room, twiddling her fingers, not sure if she should take a seat somewhere or not.

"I just talked to Mom," Casey starts, her eyes meeting his.

Derek raises his eyebrows, sitting down on the floor beside his bed, patting the spot next to him for Casey to join him.

Casey sits cross-legged next to him, taking care to not touch him.

"She's not mad," Casey explains, fidgeting with the hem of her sweatshirt. "She just wishes she found out in a different way."

Derek laughs lightly, shaking his head.

"I wish she did too."

Casey nods in agreement.

"She… also thinks that you and I might have some things we need to talk about."

Derek raises an eyebrow, leaning his head back against his bed.

"I imagine she does," Derek laughs, scratching the back of his head uncomfortably. "She essentially caught her kids in bed together. I imagine there's a lot she thinks we need to talk about."

Casey reaches forward, taking Derek's hand in hers.

"No, she thinks maybe we're not telling each other something," Casey explains, squeezing Derek's hand and scooting a little closer to him.

Derek purses his lips, averting his eyes from Casey's.

Casey reaches up, placing her hand on his cheek and tilting his head back to look at her.

"Derek…," Casey sighs, leaning toward him.

Derek places a hand on Casey's lower back, tugging her toward him.

Casey smiles, resting her forehead against his.

"Derek, I love you."

Hello, friends. So, this one-shot is part of my most recent series. This one, "Talk", falls after "Comfort". In case you haven't read the rest, I recommend you doing so. The order they fall in chronologically is, "Alabama", "S.O.S.", "Party", "Red-Handed", "Comfort" and "Talk". I promise, the next one has more blatant Dasey. I know this one and "Comfort" were kind of lacking in Dasey. The next three are very Dasey. So I hope that makes up for it.

Thanks for reading.