Thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed! Here's another chapter! Again, I'm just here to have fun, the story isn't perfect, it's a way for me to release some stress during this whole pandemic. I do not own the characters of Life with Derek nor the foreign show "Sen Cal Kapimi" and "Afili Ask" from which I was inspired.
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Chapter 3 - The Turkey Sandwich
"I just couldn't take it anymore, Derek." Casey explained, stuffing her mouth full with his nachos. Derek watched as each chip entered her mouth. It was nearly impossible to understand her through all the crunching. He should have anticipated she was going to eat all of his chips the second she showed up at his door, teary eyed and upset. Emotional eating was Casey's specialty.
"Casey, it's about time you left that selfish asshole."
Casey dipped another chip into the salsa, smearing it all over the plate.
"You know, he used to be a nice guy." Casey sniffed, "I don't know what happened or changed. Maybe I liked the idea of him better than I actually liked him."
Derek was assembling another plate of nachos on the other side of the kitchen island. He restrained himself from saying anything more. James was never a nice guy.
Casey changed the topic.
"That's enough about James. I want to talk about the whole engagement situation you mentioned earlier."
"What about it?" Derek asked, nonchalauntly.
Why is he not worried about this?
"Remember when I asked you what I'd get in return?" Casey said between chips.
"Yeah, and I told you-"
"I want to stay here until this silly agreement is over." Casey said sternly. Derek's body froze at the mere thought of his step sister living with him again. He glanced up at Casey's earnest expression. He couldn't help but notice she had a bit of salsa on the edge of her lips. Usually she was completely composed. Today, she had her hair in a messy high ponytail, she had thrown on an old graphic tee and she was standing around his kitchen island with mismatched socks. If she wasn't his step sister, Derek might have thought she looked cute.
"And why should I let you do that?" Derek answered, handing her a napkin.
Wiping her face, Casey answered, "Because Derek, I broke up with James and I already paid him the deposit for the apartment and three months of my share of the rent. I can't afford to go elsewhere."
Derek started shaking his head. "No."
"You have a spare bedroom… Come onnnnnn, Derek!"
Ugh, why did she have to do that. Her blue pleading eyes made it almost impossible to say no.
"Fine. But you have to massage my feet three times a week."
Casey pretended to vomit. "Um. Absolutely not. I will cook dinner four times a week and that's my final offer."
Derek sighed, "Fine. But on those four days, you have to pack me lunch."
Casey stuck out her hand, "Deal".
Derek shook it, "Deal."
Casey released Derek's hand and before he turned around, Casey spoke.
"Hey Derek?"
"What is it, Spacey."
"What happens when Nathan sees that I'm the Casey you're 'engaged' to?"
Derek scratched the back of his head, "Nothing. We let him think what he thinks."
And before Casey could say another word, Derek had already left the kitchen with his freshly made nachos to enjoy an episode of Pawn Stars.
-— -— -— -— -— -— -— — -— -— -— —
Derek was staring at the TV but he wasn't watching what was on the screen. Casey asked what would happen if Nathan found out that he was 'engaged' to his stepsister. Derek knew exactly what would happen... Nathan would give him a big fat 'I told you so'. Luckily, he no longer cared what Nathan thought. A man who asks his friend's ex girlfriend on a date two weeks after they broke up doesn't get to judge others on what is socially acceptable.
Derek was sitting on the recliner in their family living room. He had a blanket wrapped around him and a pillow behind his head. It was reading break for their university and both him and Casey had come home for the two weeks.
He was supposed to be out at hockey practice today, but things took a different turn. Casey was sitting at the dining table, studying calculus. Her new friend James had come to help her with her homework since he was apparently 'acing' their class. Derek made a face at the thought. He didn't like James. There wasn't a particular reason why, it was just a feeling he had, and Derek couldn't pinpoint what made him react like this. He knew not all guys were hockey guys and that was fine. Some guys were drama guys, art guys, or even film guys. But this guy was a nothing guy. He was too much of a coward to commit to anything.
Since they had been home, Casey kept complaining about James. One day he was texting her constantly until she replied and the next day he was ignoring her. He'd make plans to study with her and then he would cancel on her. He wanted to date Casey but cared about what everyone thought about him. Derek could tell, Casey didn't fit in the elite picture James had going for himself. She didn't wear designer clothes, she didn't buy expensive things, she didn't wear a pound of makeup and she didn't care what society thought. Even if it didn't bother James, he had rich parents and they had expectations that Casey could never meet. Of course, there was a solution to that. It was to tell his parents that he was a grown man and that he made his own decisions. But James was incapable of doing so. He was a mama's boy and he wasn't going to risk getting his allowance cut off. So in Derek's opinion, he was leading Casey on, giving her bread crumbs until he met the so called, 'right girl' that ticked all his boxes.
Now here he was, sitting at the dining table studying with Casey to try to get close to her? Over Derek's dead body! It was Derek's duty to make sure that the slime bucket didn't make a move (just the thought alone made him shiver)… So he did what any brother would do. He called Nathan to let him know that he couldn't make it to practice because he was sick. Would he have done the same thing for Lizzie or Marti? Of course.
Derek exaggerated a cough in the recliner he was sitting in. He coughed again. Then, again. Then, louder and louder.
"Sorry about all the noise" Casey apologized to James while she shot Derek a death glare from the table.
Derek was facing the TV but he knew he was doing a flawless job of irritating Casey. He didn't even need to turn around to look at her expression. He could feel the look she was giving him burn through the back of his head.
"No problem," James said, "let's work on question 2b."
Derek coughed again. Loud. And then he hit the remote, turning up the volume of the TV.
"Der-ek!" Casey yelled, "Isn't there any other place you can be tonight?"
Derek spun around in the recliner and made a sad face. "But, I'm sick!"
Casey slammed the notebook she was holding in her hand against the wood of the table. "Then go. To. Bed. Derek!" She said through her teeth. "Upstairs!"
Derek was trying his best not to smile. He was ruining their night. How perfect.
"You know what, Case? I think it's better that I lay here, on the couch." Derek said as he got up, moved his pillow and plopped himself down in his new position. From this angle, he could see them from the corner of his eye.
"Ugh! But we're trying to study!"
"I'm not THAT loud. Am I loud, James?"
James nervously looked at Casey then back at Derek. "No, not at all."
"See Casey?" Derek smirked, "What's the problem?"
Casey inhaled deeply to calm herself down and then put her focus back on James. They were working on math problems when suddenly the conversation transitioned from math to music.
"You like the Arctic Monkeys too?" James asked.
Casey smiled from ear to ear, "I love them!"
Casey's hands were suddenly in her hair, playing with the strands around her neck as she continued to talk to James. The more she fiddled with her hair, the more flirtatious her tone became.
"Well, I heard they were going on tour. They've released some Canadian dates… if you wanted to go, we could maybe go-"
"Hello?!" Derek screamed into his phone.
James and Casey were both startled at the table from the sudden noise.
Derek got up. "Sam…? ….SAM?!" He began pacing around the room pretending to look for reception.
"Sam where are you calling from? I can't hear you! Is it you or me? Hold on…" Derek walked over to the dining table and stood right between James and Casey.
"That's better! Sam, my boy, what's up?!"
Casey was ready to explode but before she had a chance to say something, the doorbell rang.
Everyone in the room paused.
Derek covered the bottom half of his cellphone with his hand.
"Casey, can you get that? I'm a little busy on the phone."
Casey forced a smile and looked at James, "Sorry AGAIN, James, let me go see who that is."
Running over to the front door, Casey opened it to find Nathan on the other side, holding a drugstore plastic bag.
"Oh thank god," Casey exclaimed. She took Nathan's hand and pulled him inside, shutting the door behind them.
"Nathan, you have to help. Derek is ruining my study date, please get him out of here." Casey whispered.
Nathan smiled at Casey, "I'll try my best."
As Casey walked back to the dining table, Derek and Nathan made eye contact.
Nathan could tell Derek wasn't sick and Derek could tell that he knew.
"I'll call ya later Sam." Derek said into his phone and pretended to hang up. He walked back over to the couch and layed down with another exaggerated fake cough.
"Hey bro," he said to Nathan. "What can I do for you?"
Nathan sat down on the couch not caring if he was sitting on Derek's legs. Derek moved his feet from under him and sat up, giving Nathan a questioning look.
Lowering his voice, Nathan spoke. "Dude, I thought you were sick? I brought you these multivitamins and throat lozenges…to find you policing Casey's study session?" He held up the drugstore bag to show Derek.
"...shhhh! Keep it down!" Derek looked over his shoulder and made sure Casey didn't hear anything. "I am sick! I don't know what you're talking about."
"Oh, come on!"
"I'm sick." Derek said, grabbing a tissue from the coffee table. He blew his nose and Nathan rolled his eyes at him.
"Yeah you're coming down with something but it's not a cold."
Casey let out a loud giggle from the dining table. James was making some sort of joke and Derek rolled his eyes.
"See?!" Nathan pointed at Derek's face. "Derek… actions speak louder than words. You're jealous. How long are you going to keep lying to yourself?"
Snapping out of the memory, Derek thanked his lucky stars that he was in love with Sarah. Because if he hadn't been, this living situation with Casey would have meant trouble.
-— -— -— -— — - — -— - — -
When Derek woke up, Casey had already left for work. It was strange having Casey live with him again. The dishes he left in the sink overnight were washed and put away. The kitchen counters had been wiped and the fridge was organized. He was looking forward to Casey cooking tonight because he knew she'd be creative. Living alone, Derek's cooking definitely lacked variation.
Walking to work, Derek felt exhausted from lack of sleep. He kept tossing and turning in his bed the night before, wondering if they could pull this whole thing off. What if he truly did lose Sarah? Maybe she honestly had moved on with Nathan, leaving her feelings for Derek behind. But Derek could sense what Sarah was hiding behind her beautiful smile and his gut was never wrong. Best possibility, he would cause some jealousy and tension in their relationship and Nathan and Sarah would call it quits before their wedding. Worst possibility, he showed Casey off as his fiancé until Sarah tied the knot and he and Casey would quietly "break up" soon after.
Stepping out of the elevator and heading down the corridor of Orangutan Games, Derek walked past Tina, ignoring her as she held out his morning coffee. Today he was taking a beeline to his office, making sure not to interact with anyone. The last thing he wanted to do was bump into Nathan because if he did, Nathan would ask a hundred questions and Derek would be forced to lie. As soon as he entered his office, Derek wrote "T-Con until lunch" on a sticky note and stuck it on his door, ensuring he wouldn't be disturbed for at least a few hours.
As the day went on, Derek became more engrossed in his projects not realizing he had worked through his lunch. He needed to take a break, but before he could log off his computer, there was a knock on the door.
Great. It was happening.
"Derek? Can we come in?" Nathan and Sarah emerged from the other side of the door. They walked into his room, hand in hand.
It was the first time Derek witnessed them as a couple in person - Nathan rarely brought Sarah to the office and he refrained from talking about her in front of Derek. Derek had seen pictures posted on instagram but never saw their interactions in real life since they had started their relationship. There was something strangely odd about the pairing. Usually couples mirrored one another but these two… it was as if they were mismatched. Like they got along well enough to be cousins but didn't hold enough chemistry to be romantic (but that was probably Derek being biased).
"I guess congratulations are in order," Nathan said. "Sarah told me last night."
Sarah smiled, "I couldn't help but share the news with Nathan." Her grin was rigid, trying to cover up her contempt.
She knows. Nathan told her that Casey and I are step siblings.
"So Casey, huh? I never thought the day would come when you'd finally admit that you had feelings for her. I always knew-"
"How did she do it?" Sarah interrupted. Her brown eyes were filled with hurt, but Nathan didn't know her well enough to see it. Her eyes never left Derek's as she stood there, waiting for an answer. "How did Casey get you to settle down and propose? I didn't think you had it in you, Derek Venturi."
"I proposed to him." A voice came from the entrance of the office. It was Casey standing there leaning against the doorframe. "Maybe I can tell you the story some time." She said, her eyes shooting darts at Sarah. How dare she put Derek on the spot like that. And in front of her fiancé...
"Casey, it's so nice to see you!" Nathan beamed, "It's been a while."
"It definitely has been. A lot has changed." Casey answered as she gave Nathan a noticeably tight hug. She glanced at Sarah to see if she noticed. Yup, she definitely had.
Casey then walked over to Derek's chair and put her arms around him from behind. "Hi, Der."
Derek's throat tightened at her touch. She then did something Derek wasn't expecting. She kissed him on the cheek. It was quick and soft but it lingered on his skin, causing his heart to pound in his ears. "I noticed you didn't pack anything for lunch so I made you a turkey sandwich."
Derek didn't know what he hated more, the way his body reacted to Casey's touch, or the taste of turkey sandwiches.
"So Casey," Sarah began, "where's your ring?"
Shit. A ring. How did Derek forget that detail.
Casey smiled and sat on the armrest of Derek's chair, her hands still casually around his neck from behind. Derek could feel the warmth from her hands through his shirt.
Casey, stop it. Get your hands off me, Casey.
Casey held up her left hand and pointed to the appropriate finger. "No ring. We can't wear one in healthcare. I'm so scared it'll get caught in a glove and get thrown away, so I leave it at home." Casey then put her hands back around Derek from the armrest she was sitting on, eventually resting both hands on his chest.
Derek let out an anxious laugh "Haha, oh Casey, always so practical. A typical Virgo, am I right?". Derek, said nervously, trying to ignore the fact that Casey's arms were around him. He then grabbed both of her hands in his so they weren't against his chest anymore. If she was touching him for any longer he was either going to fight her or kiss her. He wasn't sure which one and the confusion annoyed him even more. He felt Casey hold back a smile. She knew he was uncomfortable.
Well, two could play at this game.
Derek then stood up from his chair, forcing Casey to stand up from the arm rest too. Stepping behind her, he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. Casey placed her hands on his and they both were smiling back at the couple in front of them like two statues. Both insanely tense and uneasy.
Casey's fair skin suddenly began to change colour, starting from her neck up to her cheeks as her pulse quickened.
"Well," Nathan said, "we should have dinner one of these days to catch up. I'd love to hear about how you guys finally started dating."
Derek tightened his hug on Casey's waist and rested his head on her shoulder. "It's actually a great story. Why don't you fill them in, Case?"
Sarah flinched as a reaction to Derek's display of affection.
"Tomorrow night!" Casey suddenly blurted, taking the conversation in a different direction. "You guys should come over tomorrow night for dinner. That would give me a chance to get to know you better, Sarah, and to catch up with Nathan."
Nathan looked at Sarah for approval, "That would be great! We were going to go out for dinner but you don't mind, do you hun?"
Sarah shook her head.
"Great! Derek, text me and let me know what time we should come over. We'll leave now so you two can eat your lunch in peace."
Nathan and Sarah walked out of the room and closed Derek's office door on the way out.
Casey elbowed Derek in the stomach and he immediately unwrapped his arms from around her.
"Ow!"
"That's what you get for being handsy!"
Derek's mouth fell open in surprise. "Excuse me? That's funny, coming from Miss 'touchy' over here. Any opportunity you had, you took, to put your hands all over me!"
Casey was at a loss for words. "What are you implying, Derek Venturi?"
Derek gave her a smug look.
Oh that was it. Casey was now beyond furious. "You are so egotistical! I was acting! And who's to say you weren't happy to have your hands around my waist, huh? What was Nathan saying when I got here? Something about finally admitting your feelings for me?" Casey said in a mocking tone.
"Pfft! Please!" Derek, rolled his eyes. "Just next time we're in front of Nathan and Sarah, let's aim for less physical contact."
Casey's angry frown changed into a smirk. "Why, Derek? Does it make you nervous?"
Casey began walking towards him.
"I don't do the whole touchy feely thing and you know it."
She stepped closer to where he was standing, so close they were only an inch apart. Lifting her lips to his ear, she breathed, "Is that it? Or are you afraid that you're going to start feeling things for me?"
Derek looked at her lips. "I would never feel anything for you, Casey McDonald." He whispered.
She stepped closer. Their bodies were now flush against one another. Derek closed his eyes.
"If you say so, Derek Venturi."
She then let out a laugh proving that she had won this argument and threw the turkey sandwich on his desk, breaking the moment. She rolled her eyes and walked out of the room, leaving Derek breathless in his office.
