Derek quickly excused himself and Marti from the breakfast table by reminding Marti that she hadn't shown him how she redecorated her room. He half dragged her to her bedroom and locked the door, and looked at his little sister.
"What do you mean, you 'know'?" Derek asked, and Marti crossed her arms.
"Casey was acting super weird in New York, and it wasn't because of Jessie. Then in Casey's bathroom, I saw an extra toothbrush. I thought it was Jessie's, but then I saw you too acting like you particularly hate each other this weekend and then knowing that you went to New York. It just made sense. You two are dating," She said and poked Derek in the chest. Derek scrubbed his face with his hands and led Marti to sit with him at the corner of the bed. He didn't have a chance to speak because Marti was on a roll.
"I am right, aren't I? What is wrong with you two? You are brother and sister, that's like if me and Lizzie making out all of a sudden." Marti said and made a pinched disgusted face. "Or Lizzie and Edwin. It's just weird, and then if you guys break up, what then? You will never be in the same room together again?" She asked in a harsh whisper, her face flushing and her eyes getting glossy with furious tears. "I am so mad at both of you. How can you do this to our family?" She accused.
"Smarti. Smarti. Hey, look at me." Derek instructed, and she did; by then, the tears had spilled over. Derek sighed. "Look, there is a reason that Casey and I haven't said anything. We honestly don't know what we are doing. But it's always been different for us. We weren't close enough to form the sibling bond and after being away from home. It just happened. But I promise this doesn't change anything for our family." Derek promised. Marti scoffed and wiped her eyes and nose with her jacket sleeve.
"Okay, family dinners will be even more awkward. But Smarts, we are still figuring this out, okay? You can't tell anyone. Promise me." Derek said and held out his pinkie finger. Marti looked at the extended digit and then back up her brother.
"You can't break her heart." She said before wrapping her pinkie around his and keeping it firmly there until Derek could meet her eyes and promise.
"I am going to do everything I can not to." He said, and Marti shook her head. That was not enough. Derek swallowed. "I promise" Marti let go and took a deep breath.
"I won't tell anyone, but you have to take it slow with Casey. She is freaking out about sex." Marti said, and Derek stared bug-eyed at his baby, ten-year-old sister. Sex and Marti do not compute.
"Come again?" He asked, a little winded. Marti explained that she had been trying to sleep when Casey and Lizzie had their conversation on the plane. She pretended to sleep and found out that Casey was scared to have sex because it hurt so much with Jessie. Derek stopped her there.
"Just to be clear, Jessie didn't force her, right?" Derek asked, needing the clarity so not to lose it and hire a hitman on the dancer's life. Marti shook her head.
"No, but she just said it hurts a lot. Lizzie says he must not have been doing it right. I think that she needs lube." Marti surmised. Derek could have vomited right then and there.
"Please never say 'lube' or anything involved with sex with me again. As you big brother, I warn you, Marti, I may not survive another conversation like this." Derek pleaded. Marti giggled but then smiled sadly at Derek.
"I really am going to miss you, Smerek," She admitted, and Derek shook off the earlier discomfort and pulled her into a hug.
"Me too, Smarti. Me too," He said.
That afternoon
"Okay, no, remember to drive the speed limit and take breaks if you need them. I packed cucumber salad sandwiches in case you get hungry, and there are no rest stops. Make sure to wear your seatbelts." Nora was listing off as Casey and Derek moved their things into the trunk of the prince. Derek looked back in amusement.
"You know I have already gone to university, right?" Derek teased, and Nora gave him a watery smile.
"Yes, I know. But it's you two now. Oh, I just love you both so much." She said and squeezed Derek and Casey into a crushing hug. The rest of their family said more or less of the same. 'Be careful, have fun, call me, make sure Derek doesn't sleep through his classes' the last one was specifically directed to Casey. Then they were off onto the road. Casey let out a deep breath.
"whew, I didn't think we would make it." She admitted, and Derek chuckled.
"I would have been fine. You were the one that almost didn't make it. Nice job on that bit about me going to New York, Case." He said, and she let out an annoyed grunt.
"Uhh, I know. I am sorry, but I hate that they think I am this damsel that needs saving. Even Lizzie said I could use you as an excuse to ward off sleazy guys. Madam feminist herself!" Casey exclaimed. Derek snorted out a laugh.
"I wouldn't worry about sleazy guys; regardless that you're hot, you give off this prudish, princess vibe. That'll ward off most of the guys at Queens." Derek said and braced for the punch to the arm. Instead, she crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow.
"Well, my prudish princess vibe seemed to work on you." She said cooly. Derek tried to regain his composure and glanced at her quickly over his sunglasses.
"Yeah, after five years. Good to know you're a distance runner and not a sprinter." He said.
"What is that supposed to mean?" Casey asked; there was something like fear lining her voice. Derek thought about the conversation he and Marti had. Did she really think that he would just up and leave her because she was nervous?
"It means that I just might have to start working on my stamina to keep up with you." He said and then reached over and gently squeezed her knee. She placed her cold hand over his and rubbed her thumb over his knuckles.
"You sure that it won't cramp your casanova style." She said while wiggling her shoulders. He couldn't help the laugh that escaped him.
"'Cramp my casanova style' Why are you the oldest nineteen-year-old on the planet?" He laughed, and now she lightly smacked his arm, but he caught her hand and surprised her by bringing it to his lips. He kissed it lightly, all while looking at the road.
"Face it, Case. You're stuck with me." He said and held hands until the next rest stop, where they refueled and picked up some snacks. Salt and vinegar chips for Derek and a hummus and pretzel pack for Casey. Then they began to argue.
"As the driver, I am at the command of the vehicle. Feeding me as I drive is much safer than if I fed myself." Derek tried to reason, but Casey wouldn't hear any of it.
"Forget it; your ego is already swollen enough without me feeding you like you are royalty," Casey said before taking another bite of her snack. Derek smirked at her.
"But haven't you always wanted a prince charming to sweep your feet, princess" He sneered, and Casey shoved his arm. "Hitting the driver while the car is in motion. Helga would be so disappointed." Casey rolled her eyes and opened the chip bag, but instead of handing the triumphant-looking man a chip, she flung the open bag at him. There was a salty shower of chips across Derek's lap. Casey burst into laughter and his annoyed expression.
"Funny," He said just before he backhanded the hummus cup into Casey's chest. She shrieked and looked down in horror at the orange blob staining her new lavender blouse. She grit her teeth and glared at Derek, who just munched from the chips on his lap. "Told you, I'd get you back" Casey gave him a scathing look and dabbed at the mess on her top.
"Somehow, I thought it would be in a different way." She murmured, a little trace of a blush rising to her cheeks. Derek was going to respond when Casey peeled off the ruined blouse and took a wet wipe to the remaining hummus smudges at her cleavage. Casey would usually wear a light camisole under her blouses, but this spring had just been too hot, and the polyester didn't breathe, so there she sat in, to her standards, a run of the mill blue pushup bra completely oblivious to the fact Derek was having trouble keeping his eyes on the road. Derek's grip tightened on the wheel, and he had to hold to the words Marti had told him. She is freaking out about sex. Go slow with her. Normally that wouldn't be too much of a problem, but Casey could be clueless about her own beauty and what she did to Derek. He felt a slight rush downwards and had to think of something fast.
"Jeez, Case, can you put a shirt on before you cause an accident," Derek said and then turned up the music so not to hear her question. Casey stared at Derek and his tense body and then down at her chest. Realization his and she quickly crossed her arms over her chest, but that wouldn't provide sufficient cover for long. She reached into the backseat and yanked at her ballet bag, which smacked Derek in the back of the head.
"Ow, watch it. Still driving here," He shouted, and Casey stuttered an apology and rifled through the bag for another shirt, and to her dismay, she found an absurd amount of condoms. Lizzie Casey thought and tried to hide the condoms from view until the prince hit a pothole and Casey's body leaped up, and the bag and all its contents came spilling down all around her.
"And you called me a bad influence," Derek commented. Casey held up a finger for not another word. Quickly, Casey shoved everything back into the bag and left out a simple blue T-shirt. Once fully clothed, Casey tucked up her legs and leaned against the door of the prince. Derek figured she was mortified enough without his intervention, so he let her be. An hour later, they were only about 20 kilometers to the Queens campus when Derek pulled off to a gas station, but instead of getting out to put in gas, he poked Casey in the side, hard.
"Ow, what gives?" She said while rubbing the aching spot at her side. Derek turned to face her, and Casey was surprised to see his face clear of any mischief.
"It has come to my attention that someone is afraid of having sex and therefore is afraid of me." He said, and Casey's eyes widened. He raised an eyebrow at her. Casey shook her head.
"It's not that I am afraid of you, Derek. I-It just hurts, and I didn't know how to tell you." She said and swallowed. She was having trouble looking Derek in the eye. He held both of her arms and made her anyway.
"We literally don't have to do anything until you want to. Like I said, I'm not going anywhere," He said seriously and leaned down to kiss her. Casey could feel her body instantly relax into his. Derek's kiss clearing out the cluttered and anxious thoughts.
In Queens, they could be whatever they wanted to be without judgment because no one knew them as anything but college freshmen.
Casey was thrilled to see that the movers already unloaded her various boxes when she unlocked the door to her apartment just a few blocks from campus. Derek looked around the quaint one-bedroom apartment and nodded approvingly.
"Not too bad, Case. I'm going to head out. You have that crazy look in your eye that leads me to think you are going to spend the whole day cleaning." He said, and Casey just grinned as she attacked the first box labeled 'Bathroom Supplies.'
"I had already designed a potential layout days ago, and now I get to see how it looks in the actual space," Casey said as she began to unload the box in the bathroom. Derek snorted.
"Figures, well, I'll leave you to it. Think you can squeeze in some time for dinner at 8?" Derek asked as he leaned on the doorframe. Casey peaked out of the bathroom.
"Derek Venturi, did you just ask me out on a date?" Casey teased. Derek rolled his eyes.
"Just be ready by 8, Space Case." He said before shutting the apartment door behind him. Casey couldn't help but feel giddy. She was starting over and bringing classes again. She had a little money left over from the play and had already scored an interview at a health food store in town for that Wednesday.
Everything was shaping up better than expected. Casey plugged in her speaker and connected her phone to start jamming to some music as she unpacked. Casey could never understand people that just let moving boxes stay piled about the apartment for days on weeks on end. Casey worked quickly and efficiently. Thankfully the major work of moving the couch, bed, and tv had already been done by the movers. Now was just time to add the homie touches. Casey was a blur running and decorating fury. Time was ticking by, and Casey was working up a sweat. The music was briefly interrupted by her 7:30 alarm to take her birth control. By that time, Casey had rearranged her frames and lamps about five times.
Casey gaped at the time and rushed to the bathroom. She hardly had time to wash her body, hair, and shave, and by the time she was done toweling off, there was a knock at the door. Her chest squeezed, and she looked at the slightly damp image in the mirror. She wasn't even dressed yet.
"Uhh, just a minute," Casey shouted and ran to the bedroom. Derek had a key for emergencies, so naturally, he would use and abuse it. He walked right in and noticed the frilly ornaments and flowery smells.
"Yeah, definitely Casey's place." He said to no one in particular and proceeded to raid the pantry. There was nothing but health garbage like protein powders and health bars and dry fruit and nuts at the front. But Derek knew that Casey had a chip addiction that she refused to acknowledge. Hiding at the very top of the pantry near the back was an unopened bag of all dressed chips.
"Hey, no pre-dinner chips!" Casey shouted and grabbed the bag. Derek easily held the bag aloft and looked down at Casey's frowning face.
"Oh, come on, Casey, it's just flavored air. I can still eat a whole meal and lick the plate clean." Derek insisted and smirked at Casey's pinched expression.
"You won't actually lick the plate, will you?" She asked.
"For that reaction," He said while pointing at her face. "It's a strong maybe" Casey crossed her arms and glared up at him. Derek took the opportunity to lean down and kiss her frowning lips. Casey didn't stand a chance and relaxed into him. He pulled back and tossed the chip bad to the counter. "Leave it for later. Come on, before they close down all the restaurants."
So, they ventured out into Kingston for their first official date.