Hello Dasey community. I am an essential worker with a background in science just trying to escape from her everyday life. I don't think I have written a single story since I was 16, so this isn't going to be perfect - be easy on me. However, I was recently inspired by the instagram posts by Michael Seater and Ashley Leggat. If you haven't seen it, go check it out. It's the cutest. I do not own the characters of Life with Derek, nor the foreign show "Sen Cal Kapimi" (which I was inspired by).

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Chapter 1 - The lie

Derek Venturi stared down at the pink lace lined card he held in his hand. It was delicate, almost too delicate to be a wedding invitation. So dainty and doily-like in texture he almost tore the damn thing apart while attempting to open it. He wouldn't have cared though, because Derek Venturi didn't like weddings. Better yet, Derek Venturi didn't believe in marriage.

This was probably why he was sitting at his desk, head in his hands, feeling like a knife had been stuck into his chest. Derek shouldn't have been surprised that something awful was waiting for him today. As soon as he stepped out of the elevator onto his floor of the Bentall Building, he could see people shuffling past him and lowering their voices as he said his usual hellos on the way to his office.

"Good morning Mr. Venturi" Tina, his intern, said quietly as she gave him a doe-eyed look.

He nodded, said a brief good morning but took an extra second to look at her face as he grabbed his coffee from her. She looked different today - her usual smile was pulled down a little at the corners. The inner segments of her eyebrows were raised as her brown eyes glistened in his direction. Tina looked like… like she... she wanted to give him a hug? Derek's brows furrowed - he'd never seen that look from Tina before.

"Oh, wait! I also got you a doughnut to go with your morning coffee."

Derek slowed down and grabbed the little brown Tim Hortons paper bag from her hands, trying not to squish the doughnut while he balanced it in the same handful that held his coffee.

"Thanks"

Tina smiled, "Honey cruller - your favourite. I thought you could use something a little extra this morning. Let me know if you need me to reschedule any of your meetings today. Or, if you need anything at all!"

Am I dying?

Derek thanked Tina again and opened the door to his office. Setting his coffee down at his desk, he noticed a small pink envelope sitting on top of his keyboard.

He held the envelope in his hands for a few seconds. It smelled like a combination of lavender oil and vanilla hand soap - It smelled like Sarah. After fiddling with the envelope he finally got it open.

"Sarah McHattie

and

Nathan Bates

Would like to invite you to celebrate their marriage on

Sept 18, 2021"

That's when it hit him - like a truck. Sarah was getting married. Six months after she had broken up with Derek, she was getting married to somebody else. And not just anyone else, his business partner.

-— -— -— -— -— -— -— -— -— -— —

"To my fucking business partner!" Derek mumbled. He was sipping on his sixth Old Fashioned at the new trendy bar across the street from the Bentall Building.

Derek and Sarah spent many nights bar hopping in downtown Vancouver. Vancouver was a bustling city filled with eccentric bars and restaurants situated along it's beautiful waterfront. The city, surrounded by water and snow capped mountains gave Derek life, which is one of the reasons he decided to move. The other reason being that Vancouver was the new gaming capital of Canada.

While studying at the University of Toronto, Derek met Nathan through his hockey team. He was a cool guy like Derek, liked sports, and enjoyed gaming. On one Friday night, Derek and Nathan came up with an idea for a video game and before they knew it, they received offers from companies willing to work with them to bring their game to life. From video games to a gaming console, Derek and Nathan eventually set up their own gaming company, "Orangutan Gaming" in Vancouver - named after his favourite shirt of course. Shortly after, Derek was packing his bags to leave the east coast permanently.

Making friends was Derek's forte and in the west he did, very quickly. He jumped from social circle to social circle and the more he expanded his list of friends, the less frequently he called or visited home. He kept everyone in that Torontonian house in a little box and shoved it aside in his mind. Derek told himself it was better this way. It was his way of starting fresh.

On a beer tour, three months after he moved to Vancouver, he met Sarah. He and Nathan were forced on the tour for a friend's birthday and Sarah was a friend of a friend. They hit it off right away as she was not only sweet but quick witted like he was. She was smart, organized and preppy which reminded Derek of someone he already knew - but he'd deny it if anyone made the resemblance out loud. There was something about Sarah that made him feel like he was at home whenever they were together. Perhaps it was the fear of someone pointing out why that kept him from sharing too many details about their relationship.

Dating Sarah was great until a year in when things started to get more complicated. Sarah began dropping subtle hints - "Oh, did you hear? Jessica just got engaged. It's about time he popped the question… I think after a year of dating you should know, you know?"

Derek would nod to appease her but erased the idea of marriage from his mind shortly after. Maybe it was Derek's inability to communicate his feelings that eventually broke them. Sarah always complained about the fact that she knew nothing about him. He didn't have any pictures up in his apartment, he didn't talk much about his parents or his siblings. All she knew is that he had a blended family and a younger sister he called "Smarti" who would FaceTime him from time to time. His family was something Derek loved, and Derek kept everything he loved to himself. He should have expressed how he felt about commitment, about how he grew up distracting Edwin and Marti while his parents argued into the late hours of the morning. He should have expressed how he feared that if he didn't wait until the time was right in his life, that he would relive the marriage his parents lived. Although his Dad was happy with Nora, he knew that even their marriage had its problems and he knew it was because George never really worked on himself. Derek didn't want to repeat history.

One day, Derek came home from work and Sarah was sitting at the kitchen table waiting for him. She gave him an ultimatum - either commit or it's over - and he let her walk away. Now that he thinks back, if only he hadn't.

Since he'd been in a relationship, Derek had only flown back to Toronto once. It was for Christmas and for less than a week. In those few days, he avoided deep conversations and kept it lighthearted - He took Edwin, Lizzie and Marti out for movies (since that was their thing). He watched Hockey with his dad and helped Nora with dinner. He avoided Casey at all costs (as per usual). She had brought her boyfriend "James" with her to Christmas and the last thing Derek needed was to vomit on the couch as he watched them cuddle. He didn't like James and his pretentious clothing - he always bragged about what brand he was wearing, what car he was driving, the fact that he was a Lawyer. Big freaking whoop. In Derek's eyes, it was just best to steer clear of Casey and James so he didn't say anything that would make his visit bitter.

Derek's phone suddenly lit up, vibrating on the bar table - Casey McDonald was the name on the screen

"Oh shit."

Derek forgot he was meeting Casey after work today. Casey had signed a year long contact with a Biotech company based in Vancouver. She had wanted to meet up with Derek for weeks since she arrived but he kept ignoring her messages until yesterday. There were a lot of other things Derek would rather do than listen to Casey's annoying whining about moving to a new city.

"Der-ek!"

Fuck. There was only one human in the universe who said his name like that and looking up from the bar he saw her, scowling at him across the room. She made her way over to where he was sitting with her arms crossed, teeth clenched, blue eyes on fire. There was something about the way her irises twinkled when she was angry, it made them look even bluer than the sky.

"Derek, you jerk! I've been calling you. It's 6 o'clock and we were supposed to meet outside your office building at 5:30. The least you could do is pick up your phone!"

Derek watched as Casey slammed her purse onto the bar table, her hands still in angry fists. He grinned. Some things never change.

"Nice to see you too, Case." He slurred.

"If I hadn't run into your intern I was going to turn around and go home.."

Before she continued, Casey paused because the picture of Derek sitting in front of her didn't look quite right. She analyzed him from head to toe. He looked thinner than his usual self and his hair was the longest she's ever seen it. It was evident that Derek was approaching drunk as he kept his gaze at his drink refusing to make eye contact again. All of this was unlike him. Being late? Fine. Disappearing when they were supposed to see each other? Definitely not like Derek.

Casey sat down on the bar stool to the right of her stepbrother. She waved the bartender over and asked for two waters.

"One of those is for you."

Derek rolled his eyes.

"Now spill," Casey demanded, "what happened?".

"How do you know something happened?" Derek said defensively.

The bartender set two glasses filled with water in front of Casey. She pushed one of the glasses at Derek.

"Because it's only 6 pm and you're drunk." She stated, matter-of-factly.

Derek sighed. He could lie, but Casey would see through it. She always had a way of decoding him and it bugged him.

"Sarah is getting married."

He could see Casey's expression change from irritated to shock. In her head he knew she was calculating.

"Yes, Case. Six months after we broke up she's getting married. I got the invite today… I'm sure everyone got the invite today."

Casey was silent.

"To Nathan."

"Wait- what?!" Casey exclaimed.

"I mean I could always tell he kind of had a thing for her but it never crossed my mind that she would date him. But I guess after I wouldn't propose..."

"She found a guy who would?" Casey winced.

He lowered his gaze at his drink again.

Maybe that wasn't the best thing to say.

"I'm so sorry Derek, that's terrible. But you can't blame yourself... If you weren't ready you weren't ready you know?"

Casey kept talking but Derek's mind faded her voice out so he could focus on how close she was sitting. He gazed at her perfectly braided brown hair and her never aging porcelain skin. He couldn't remember the last time he and Casey were this close in proximity. It was a rare event but when it did happen, Derek took the opportunity to take her all in and study the details he never had a chance to when he tormented her.

"...Derek?"

Shit, Casey was asking a question.

Before he could tune back into the conversation, there was a blonde girl standing at the entrance of the bar that caught Derek's eye. He felt his heart drop in his chest. She was asking for a table.

"Derek? Are you going to answer me?" Casey asked, unimpressed that he had zoned out while she was trying to console him.

"Case, shut up for a sec." Derek said. He lowered his head so he was hiding behind Casey's figure.

Casey looked around confused. "Excuse me?"

"Just shut up okay?" Derek put his hands through his hair and let out an exasperated sigh. "And stop looking around, just look at me."

The blonde girl was now following the waitress down the aisle behind Derek's seat and as she passed, she winked at him.

Casey looked up to see what he was distracted by.

"Case, you have to just go with this ok?" Derek whispered.

"Derek, I don't understand. Go with what? Derek?!" Casey whispered back.

But before Derek had a chance to explain, the blonde had already put down her jacket at her table and was on her way over to them.

"Derek. Nice to see you." She said, her voice so silky even Casey paused at the sound.

Derek couldn't help but notice the break up had done wonders for her. She looked healthier and fitter than he had ever seen her. Even her hair was shining in the dim bar lights. The inside of his chest was on fire but no matter how hard it was to do so, he took a breath to answer her.

"Hi Sarah, how's it going?" Derek said in his usual charm.

Casey was always astounded by how he could do that. A moment ago, he was a mess and then bam, at the flick of a switch, Derek was smirking like his usual, flirtatious self.

Only Sarah wasn't looking at Derek. Her questioning eyes were on Casey. Derek could tell she was slightly annoyed at how attractive Casey was and how close they were sitting to one another.

"It's going great Derek" she started, her smile slightly fake. "I'm guessing you got the invitation? Nathan and I really hope you can make it."

Derek knew that tone. It wasn't one that implied she was genuinely asking. It was a tone that Sarah used when she was being snarky. Something told him he had a front row seat at the wedding ceremony.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world."

"Aren't you going to introduce me to your friend, Derek?" Sarah said, slightly annoyed that Derek was still smirking at her.

Casey jumped at this opportunity to introduce herself.

"Hi Sarah, I'm Casey, Derek's-"

"Fiancé." Derek interrupted.

-— -— -— -— -— -— — -— — -— -— -—

"Casey, open your eyes!" Lizzie exclaimed. "That guy is a self absorbed asshole! What more evidence do you seriously need?"

"It was just one night, Liz"

Lizzie let out a loud groan.

"Casey. I love you and I know that you've got some self confidence issues... But James asked you to sleep on the couch so he could have his law friends come over knowing you have work at 5 am the next day."

"Well it was logical. The living room is against the bedroom so I wouldn't have been able to sleep if I hadn't slept on the couch in the den…"

Lizzie was silent on the phone for a few seconds. How could she snap her sister out of her thought process so she could see how everyone else viewed her relationship with James.

"But he didn't ask you! He told you! Casey, don't you think you deserve a man who thinks about your schedule too? Who is considerate and checks in with you before inviting his friends over on a weeknight?"

Casey picked up the nail file and continued to smooth out her fingernails as she spoke to Lizzie on speakerphone.

"Yes Liz, but it's his apartment too. He should be able to live his life and not be inconvenienced because of my weird schedule."

Casey was working for a biotechnology company conducting drug trials on patients. Due to her patient population being mainly in the hospital, Casey's hours were extremely early so she could perform her testing on freshly collected patient samples.

"Casseeeeyyy! You guys have just moved to the west coast, and it's been what? A month and he's already pulling this shit? I'm telling you one more time: you deserve a prince. Not sir Gucci."

Casey let out a small giggle at the nickname. "I understand your concern Liz. I'm just giving him a few more weeks to adjust to our new lives and if things still don't improve-"

"They're not going to!" She heard Edwin's voice in the background.

"You too Edwin?"

"Edwin! What did I say about eavesdropping?" Lizzie yelled, annoyed.

"Alright you two, I'm meeting Derek downtown in about an hour so I have to get ready. Talk to you later. Love you!"

Casey pressed the red button on her phone and tossed it aside in her bed. Getting up, she started to get ready for the night, picking an outfit appropriate to go downtown in. Not only was she meeting Derek but promised James she would join him for "happy hour" afterwards. Going through her closet she picked out her favourite button up linen dress. It was black and forgiving however, it also had a deeper V-neck plunge which added the sexy factor. While she put on her maroon lipstick, she remembered what Emily had once said.

"Casey, don't you think you spend a little too much time getting ready every time you go out to meet Derek?"

"Pffft. I look the same as I always do."

Emily shrugged, "I don't know Casey, that's a lot of effort for someone who you've shared a house with. The guy has seen you with no makeup on."

It's not that Casey got dolled up for Derek, he was her stepbrother after all. And she would never admit this to anyone because she wasn't sure if it was true or a fragment of her imagination... but sometimes she would catch Derek's gaze lingering on her for an extra second from the corner of her eye when they were alone. It was discrete and nothing a stranger would notice, but she wasn't a stranger - if anything, she could write a manual explaining all of Derek's body language. Maybe it was all in my head?

Coming from a scientific background, Casey wouldn't agree that deciding on a conclusion was accurate without testing out a hypothesis. So every time she saw Derek, she'd wear his favourite colour or his favourite scent, hair up or down - trial and error. This was an experiment after all. And it never disappointed. Without fail, she'd catch him looking at her as she walked away with that Derek look. And every time it would give her a small thrill. This was just a little game she played with herself.

Standing outside the Bentall Building Casey was freezing, waiting in the cold, dressed in her thin outfit. Arms crossed and shivering, she looked at her watch: 5:45

She took out her phone and called Derek. No answer. She left a message.

"Derek, don't you know it's rude to let your stepsister wait outside for so long? It's March you know?! Pick up your phone!"

That's it. I'm going inside.

Looking at the directory she knew to go to the 4th floor of the building. When she stepped out of the elevator she was impressed. Orangutan Games took up the entire floor and there were cubicles filled with people focussed on their computer screens. All of this was a glimpse into Derek's brilliant mind. She always knew that he had immense potential - the only problem was, he used that potential to prank her on the daily instead of using it for homework. But the Derek who used to be the cause of her adolescent misery was now a grown man who was an absolute success. Her heart pounded a little harder as she thought about it. She was proud but she'd never admit it to him.

"Hi. Can I help you?" A petite girl said as she walked past Casey in the hallway. She was adorable. Her hair looked like it was thrown up into a quick bun and her face looked like she was extremely overworked. It reminded Casey of a younger version of herself.

"Yeah, I was actually looking for Derek Venturi… I'm his stepsister."

"I'm Tina, his intern." Tina reached out her hand to shake Casey's.

"Mr. Venturi never mentioned a stepsister."

Of course he didn't.

"He actually left slightly early today. I heard him mentioning something about the bar across the street in case we needed him. Your best bet is to look there."

"Thanks! I appreciate it."

As Casey walked out of the building and crossed the street, all she could think of was how he let people call him Mr. Venturi. The Derek she knew would have hated that.

She peaked into the bar and just as she expected, she saw Derek sitting along the bar table, his fist holding up his head as he took another swig of his drink. She should have felt relief but instead, her blood was boiling. First he avoided her text messages and now he was just bailing on her the day of without the decency of cancelling?

Casey stormed into the bar.

"Der-ek"

Derek looked in her direction and suddenly she wasn't half as mad as she was a second ago. Casey hadn't seen Derek in over a year and she felt her stomach flutter as they locked eyes - she had missed him.

-— — -— -— -— — -— -— -— -— —-

"Aren't you going to introduce me to your friend, Derek?" Sarah said, slightly annoyed that Derek was still smirking at her.

Casey jumped at this opportunity to introduce herself.

"Hi Sarah, I'm Casey, Derek's-

"Fiancé"

Casey choked on her breath and tried incredibly hard not to react. But those large eyes of hers and expressive face couldn't hide this one. Her jaw dropped suddenly but she picked it up quickly and smiled.

What the actual fuck is he doing?

Derek noticed her face and acted quickly. Grabbing her hand in his, he brought his face an inch away from hers and whispered loud enough so Sarah could hear.

"Don't worry Case, Sarah won't mention it to anyone."

His hot breath smelling of orange bitters made the hair on Casey's neck stand.

He then looked up at Sarah. "We haven't broken the news to anyone yet so Casey is a bit nervous."

Casey squeezed the life out of Derek's hand as a response to his lie and he grinned even wider.

Derek, what are you doing?

Casey wasn't just nervous, she was going to pass out if Derek wasn't careful. How in the universe was this happening? Shouldn't this girl have recognized Casey as Derek's stepsister? She dated him for a year for goodness sake.

"Is that so?" Sarah said with fake enthusiasm.

"Well," Derek stood up before Sarah could ask any more questions, "we should probably get going, Case. We've got places to be."

As he gave his usual Derek wink, Casey used their interlocked hands to stabilize Derek while he stood up. Derek took some bills out of his pocket and threw them on the bar nodding at the bartender.

"Say hi to Nathan for me" Derek yelled over his shoulder while he pulled Casey behind him out of the bar, leaving Sarah in the distance trying to wipe the surprise off her face.