"What a place for both the opposite sides of my double life to finally collide. Sharing secrets I was taking to the grave. Nosebleeds from epiphanies I took full in the face
Oh, come all by the fire, babe, let's all participate" - Arctic Monkeys
Chapter 9 - Anyways
Nora glanced down at the time on her watch - forty minutes had passed since Casey dragged Derek out of the banquet room and there had been no sign of either of them since. Nora took a deep breath and bit her lip anxiously, hoping Derek hadn't crossed a boundary with his stepsister. Because if he had, there was a high probability that Casey had him in a chokehold outside.
Derek's body language combined with the mixed emotions in Casey's eyes were an indication that there was more going on in their personal lives than they let on. This ignited a stinging sensation within Nora's chest – it was the alarming realization that she no longer knew what was going on with her kids and this never used to be the case… not with Casey at least.
Casey's relationship with her mother always felt more like a friendship. They'd have their bonding time together where she'd update Nora on her dating situation, career choices and dreams. Lately however, Nora was lucky if she even received a reply back to her text messages. As time went on, she noticed the change in her daughter but she decided not to push, respecting the fact that Casey was now an adult and needed her space.
Maybe I should have pushed. Nora thought, letting the feeling of guilt take over her thoughts.
At least with Casey, feelings were more straightforward and Nora recognized that things could be fixed with some effort. Derek on the other hand, was like a concrete wall. There had been the rare occasion when her stepson confided in her and she cherished those moments, knowing they validated an unspoken understanding that his stepmother would be there whenever he needed her to be. Ever since he moved away though, it didn't seem like he ever needed her to be. The connection between Nora and her kids was weakening and she blamed herself for not forcing Casey and Derek to come home more often.
George noticed the apprehension in Nora's expression and moved over a seat in an attempt to comfort his wife. He watched her eyes glaze over while she observed the room, making it evident her mind was preoccupied with something else. So much so, she wasn't aware that her husband was now right beside her. He gently put his hand onto Nora's to get her attention.
"What's wrong?" He asked, hoping she could hear him over the loud music.
Nora's attention was still locked on the doorway as she spoke. "There was a testosterone filled interaction between Derek and James."
"Uh oh." George's expression asked how bad was it?
"Let's just say, Casey pulled Derek out of the banquet before it became ugly. She seemed relieved that no punches were thrown but she also looked like she was furious at Derek for getting involved. I warned him not to get involved, George –" Nora threw her cloth napkin on the table. "I'm going to go make sure one of them didn't dunk the other in the hotel fountain."
George sighed, "Nora, they're both adults, I'm sure they can work it out."
Nora shot her husband a look of disbelief. "That's what we thought two years ago when Derek cut a piece out of the cake Casey had made for James. We let them try to sort it out then and how did that end, George? Do you remember?" She asked.
"With the entire kitchen covered in cake and pomegranate juice?" George winced.
"Exactly. I'm going to see if everything is okay. Both Casey and Derek seemed extremely upset."
Before George could convince her to let their adult children deal with their own problems, Nora was up and heading toward the exit of the room. She clenched her teeth, preparing herself to either pull apart a fight or to console her distressed kids. Where were those two?!
Leaving the banquet and entering the hotel lobby, Casey and Derek were nowhere to be seen. Nora politely asked the man at the front desk if two fighting twenty six year olds had walked by.
The young man seemed amused by her description."Yes ma'am, I believe I saw them go outside."
Nora thanked the receptionist and sped up to the glass doors at the entrance of the hotel. Before she could make it through the doorway, just like that, her legs stopped beneath her. She was stuck where she was standing, so stunned by the image in front of her that she stood flabbergasted. Nora's throat was tightening while she fought to breathe, unable to process what she was feeling. Then all at once, a spectrum of emotions swelled in the pit of her stomach and displayed themselves as tears pricking her eyes. To her surprise, a tender smile appeared on her face and she brought up her hand to her lips, watching her kids from afar. It finally happened.
George and Nora had always talked about the possibility of this situation materializing and what they would do if it ever were to occur - but the more time went by the more they disregarded the likelihood. Nevertheless, this was a lesson for Nora that no matter how much you prepare for something, you could never foresee how you were going to react.
Outside, Derek and Casey were sitting on the bench at the bottom of the hotel stairs, both facing away from the glass that Nora was looking through, completely absorbed in their own little universe. Casey had Derek's suit jacket on and Derek had one arm draped protectively around Casey's back and the other hand resting gently at the bottom of her chin as he kissed her deeply. Nora watched as Casey broke the kiss a few moments later to whisper something to Derek. It was obvious she was making fun of him for something and Derek cracked up, his laughter lighting up his entire face. Derek then brushed back a piece of her hair that was carried away by the wind, tucking it behind her ear before he caressed her lips once more.
Well, George was right. They were definitely adults. And Nora had never seen the two adults she raised look so blissful as they were in this moment. She had to leave before they saw her.
Still under the influence of what she witnessed, Nora turned around and walked slowly back into the banquet hall. George saw her enter the room and he stood up from his chair concerned. His wife looked like she had seen a ghost.
Making her way through the busy room and arriving at her chair, Nora dropped herself down into her seat without saying a single word. She grabbed her wine glass, taking a few large gulps.
"Nora, what is it?" George asked. He felt uneasy knowing his wife was rarely at a loss for words, so if she was acting this way, something was wrong. "Oh my god, does one of them need stitches? Did Casey throw Derek down the hotel stairs?"
Nora kept gulping from her glass until all the red wine disappeared. "No, George."
She reached for the decorative wine bottle from the middle of the table and refilled her glass to the rim.
"Nora...? Is it worse? Did Derek throw Casey off the sea wall?"
Nora laughed and took a huge sip from her newly filled wine glass and grinned. She couldn't wait to see his face when he found out what was actually going on.
George snatched the glass away from her. "That's enough. Honey, you're scaring me. What happened?!"
"It happened Georgie." Nora whispered in bewilderment, like she was passing on confidential information.
Now George was thoroughly confused. "What?!"
"The thing that we thought had a possibility of taking place one day… It's more than a possibility now. It's happened." Nora let out a chuckle, "It's actually happening, outside. Go look if you don't believe me."
George covered his face with his hands, "... Casey finally killed Derek?"
"No," Nora pulled his hands from his face and bought them into her lap. "Casey finally... kissed Derek."
There was silence as George processed the words that just came out of Nora's mouth. He began to laugh, "Get outta here... stop it! Tell me what's actually going on."
He waited for Nora to continue but she just held the same I'm not kidding expression.
"What!" George exclaimed.
"Shhhhh! George!"
George lowered his voice "No way!"
"Yes, way. I went into the lobby and I saw them, George. I saw our kids...locking lips. It was definitely a strange sight." Nora grimaced again at the memory that made her want to jump for joy and vomit at the same time.
"Holy shit."
"But, it was the happiest I've seen both of them in a long time."
The two parents sat together in silence until George finally smiled. His grin became a chuckle and he looked at Nora. She then smiled and joined his contagious laughter.
"How did we not see this coming, George?"
"Pffft. We did, we just chose to ignore it. Think back to all those fights."
—
"You two, put down your weapons! Now!" Nora demanded.
Casey held the bottle of pomegranate juice in her hands, her eyes narrowed at Derek.
"Not until Derek puts down that jug of milk first!" Casey insisted.
"Never." Derek replied, unscrewing the cap of the milk jug and putting it down on the kitchen island to prove how serious he was. He locked eyes with Casey and brought his tongue up to his upper lip in a cheeky manner before smiling smugly at her riled up tone.
"What is this about?!" George yelled, putting his arms up in frustration.
"James' birthday! Derek took a piece out of the cake I spent all night making for his party tonight."
Derek smirked, proud of himself, shrugging like it didn't take him any effort at all to cause so much damage. "I guess you have to cancel that birthday party since there's no cake." He pouted at the end of his sentence, making fun of his stepsister. "It's not like you can replace it with a grocery store cake. Your boyfriend is allergic to anything that costs less than a hundred dollars."
Casey threateningly shook the bottle of pomegranate juice in response to his comment.
"Derek, what possessed you to do such a thing?!" Nora asked. This had to be the forth argument she had broken up this week and it was getting exhausting. "You know what? I don't even want to know. You two are going to solve this problem amongst yourselves because I'm sick of playing the referee."
"Nora's right. You guys aren't sixteen anymore, you're in your twenties for crying out loud! We're going to stand outside and we're giving you kids ten minutes to solve this with your words. You hear me?" George pointed at his eldest son, "Your words, Derek!"
George and Nora left the kitchen and stood outside the entrance, listening to where this interaction was going to go.
Derek slowly put down the jug of milk making it seem like he wanted to make peace but then picked up the plate that had the valuable slice of cake on it. He brought it closer to his face and exaggeratedly wafted the dessert to smell it. "hmmm, James' is a vanilla kinda guy, eh?" Derek winked at Casey. "I'm more of a chocolate guy myself."
"You're a monster Derek Venturi! Take a bite of that cake and you'll regret it. But if you must be a jerk, do it." Casey lowered her voice, "I dare ya."
"No daring each other!" Nora yelled from outside the kitchen.
Derek snickered knowing that he had pushed Casey to another level of anger. She was going to lose it any second, he could tell by the tension in her stance. So what did he do? He swooped the fork down to the slice of cake and paused for dramatic effect. Making eye contact with his stepsister, he then cut a little piece off, grinning ear to ear.
Casey exhaled in anger.
Derek brought the piece of cake closer to his mouth and licked his lips. And that's when he did it, he took a bite of the cake.
"Der-ek!"
Casey threw the bottle of pomegranate juice at her stepbrother and it hit his chest with a loud thud, spilling its contents all over his white shirt. Casey let out a triumphant laugh at the damage.
"You think this is funny?" He asked, his face still scrunched up from the coldness of the liquid that just hit his body.
"It's going to leave a stain, that's for sure."
Derek then took his shirt off, exposing his sculpted chest, and twisted it at high speed as if it were a towel.
Casey gasped knowing what his next move was and grabbed a chunk out of the cake for ammo. She held it behind her head, ready to pitch it in his direction if he came any closer. "Derek, do not!'
Derek let out a dark snicker before he whipped the towel forward, whacking Casey on the thigh, spraying pomegranate juice all over her and the walls.
"Ow! You, ass!"
Casey ran over to Derek and smashed the handful of cake onto his face, smearing it into his eyes and nose for revenge. That's when he wrung the shirt soaked in pomegranate juice over her head so that liquid dripped down her neck. Casey tried to get away but Derek kept pushing the wet clothing item down Casey's shirt and held her against his bare chest to stop her from getting away.
That's when Nora and George had walked in.
—
"Nora, we knew they had feelings for each other. Derek was miserable watching Casey date James and I know he never admitted it, but we all saw it… I know this may not be what we envisioned our blended family to look like, but if the kids are happy, that's all that matters."
Nora's eyebrows came together in confusion. "You think I'm upset?" She turned to face her husband. "I'm not upset that they're together, George. I'm upset that they didn't tell us! How long has this been going on? And Casey's been living with Derek? Did this happen right after Casey moved to Vancouver?"
George stayed silent, his expression blank after a memory flashed onto the screen of his mind. His complexion suddenly seemed very pale.
"George, what is it?" Nora asked.
George knew he was going to get in trouble for not mentioning this sooner, "When we were at Derek's apartment the other day, when Derek was showing me around, I swear I saw his grandmother's engagement ring on his nightstand. I know Abby had passed on that family heirloom when he was with Sarah but I wondered why it was sitting out in the open. I was going to ask him about it but it slipped my mind."
"George, how does something like that slip your mind?! Do you think they're engaged?" Nora exclaimed.
"I feel like they would have told us."
"We need to find out what's going on. If they're not going to tell us, we have no choice but to find out ourselves."
George shook his head back and forth, "I don't like this Nora, Let them come to us themselves."
"What if they never come to us because they think we disapprove?" She challenged.
He paused for a second, realizing this could be a likely outcome knowing his son. "Fine. Let's say I'm with you on this... how do we 'find out'?"
"We become typical, noisy, pushy parents. That's how."
George did not like the sound of this. Not one bit.
— — — — — — — — — — — —
Casey didn't quite understand what had gotten into her mother. Since the moment her and Derek had reappeared at their table, both of her parents had been acting strange…almost oddly parental? This was extremely unlike them as usually both George and Nora tried their best to let Casey deal with conflict herself, especially when boyfriends were involved.
What did James say? Why were you two outside for so long? Did something happen that you would like to tell us?
The normal analytical Casey would read into this sudden change in behaviour but right now, Casey didn't care because she was still on cloud nine. She felt like a human sparkler, lit on fire, her heart emitting an aura of colourful flames into the night. She wondered if anyone could notice the loving glow that encompassed her body. Even if it was obvious enough to give her and Derek away, the idea didn't bother Casey one bit because this feeling was worth it – it was love like she'd never felt before.
Naturally, she assumed her mother would want to stay with George at the hotel that night but she was obviously mistaken. Nora claimed that she missed her children so much that she even forced George back to their apartment for their last night in Vancouver. That's when Derek objected.
"Ah, you know I'd love some family time together but my apartment is pretty small…" he started.
"That's what you're concerned about?" Nora piped up, "I can sleep with Casey in the den and George can sleep with you in your bed. We don't mind! Don't worry about us."
It wasn't them Derek was worried about. After he had felt the softness of Casey's lips, he didn't think he could survive the night, knowing the withdrawal may just kill him.
Casey could read the disappointment on Derek's face and she bit back a smile. It was the same face Derek would make when their parents would announce their last minute cancellation of plans when he hoped for a party thinking they would be out.
Derek Venturi was upset that he couldn't spend the night alone with me? The thought alone gave her goosebumps.
She couldn't help but blush. The idea of her and Derek alone ignited a spark in Casey's mind, producing a heat that travelled through her entire body. Her imagination kept throwing possible scenarios of how their night could go and it took all of her mental strength to move her focus away from what alternative plans Derek had that their parents were impeding on.
What's one night? We can get through this.
Casey wasn't too concerned until Nora had dropped another bomb on them.
"Casey, you had mentioned that you had next week off, so George and I thought it would be lovely if you and Derek came home."
The four of them were seated in the living room with a drink and Casey almost spilled hers on her lap. Derek jumped up, "Let me get you a paper towel before you ruin my couches, Klutzilla". Before he faced his body in the direction of the kitchen, he mouthed 'do something!'
"Mom," Casey started, playing with her fingers as she spoke, "I don't know if Derek can take the week off and I've just been so tired-"
"Casey, since when have you been too tired to spend some quality time with your family? And Derek has his own company, I'm sure he can take the week off if he wants to. Isn't that right, Derek? Unless you two don't want to come home…"
George could sense the tension in the room, "Nora, let's not put the kids on the spot like this, huh?"
Derek watched Casey's expression as he returned with the paper towel. She was waiting for him to say something to save the situation but before he opened his mouth, he knew that she wasn't going to be pleased with the answer he was going to give his stepmother. He just couldn't bear to hurt Nora's feelings. He sighed, "I'll talk to Nathan and see what I can do."
"Fantastic!" Nora clapped her hands together, "You two can fly out with us tomorrow. I've already checked the flights and there are a ton of empty seats. I can't wait for all of us to be under the same roof again!" She beamed.
"Great!" Casey said through a stiff smile.
"Then it's settled!" said George, "I'll pull out my laptop to book those tickets."
Please let there be no seats. Casey begged the universe.
"Oh, I just realized!" Derek interrupted, "I put my luggage in my storage locker. Case, wanna come with me? You were complaining that your carry-on had a broken zipper. I think I have another one you can use, if you like it."
Casey bounced up at the opportunity. "That's a great idea, Der. Let's go. Now. Before it gets too late."
"It's so nice to see them getting along, isn't it Nora." George said, nudging his wife. Nora smiled at her two children, her eyes so serious, it contradicted the delightful grin on her face, "The perfect siblings, aren't they?"
As they exited the room, Derek almost dry heaved at the comment. Siblings- ick!
—
"Derek, my mother knows." Casey whispered in the hallway as they headed to the elevator.
Derek pushed the elevator button and then used the same hand to put his fingers through his hair while he sighed.
"Casey, how would she know? You're just being paranoid." He said quietly, being cautious since the hallway carried sound.
"I know my mom, Derek! I don't know how but she at least has a suspicion and this is her trying to confirm it."
"Let her confirm it. Then she'll really leave us alone." Derek cringed, thinking about how his father and Nora would take it.
"No. I want us to just be 'us' for a while. Without the added tension of how they'll react and what Edwin, Lizzie and Marti will think."
Casey crossed her arms at the end of her sentence and her face fell. Derek watched while she rubbed her hands up and down her arms. Ever since he could remember, that was her way of self-soothing when something was making her anxious.
The elevator door opened and they both stepped in. "Case? What's the matter?"
For the first time since he'd met her, he was able to freely ask that question without the looming fear of someone catching a small glimpse of what he felt for her in his heart. The liberation was refreshing and it was a reminder to stay in the moment and enjoy every second he had with Casey - to say and do everything he ever wanted, but never could.
"Derek, we only had minutes." She pouted. "After ten years of holding everything in, I need more time to say everything I need to say. To ask all my questions. To put my arms around you and finally sit in the peace that comes with knowing that I wasn't crazy all these years."
The similarity in their thoughts was astounding. Great minds really do think alike.
Derek laughed as the elevator doors opened, "This is what you're upset about? That you can't spend anymore alone time with me?" Derek couldn't help but tease her, acting as if she was being clingy. Little did she know, he never wanted to spend a second apart again.
Casey stepped out of the elevator with Derek, following him down the basement corridor to the storage units, questioning him. "So, you're telling me that you're not a tad bit upset? You're not annoyed at all that our parents are in our faces at the moment and that we can't spend time together?!"
"No, not one bit."
Derek tried his best to fight the smile forming on his face as he fiddled with the lock of the storage. Finally unlocking the garage door like opening, he pushed the heavy metal door up revealing a small collection of his miscellaneous belongings.
"Well," Casey stated, trying to hide the anger in her voice, "I'm going to keep this in mind for when you 'want to be alone' Derek Venturi. I may not give into your charm the next time you try and kiss me."
Feeling the wall adjacent to the door, he flicked on the light switch and tugged on Casey's hand until she was inside, pulling the door down behind them. He then placed his hands firmly on her waist, walking her backwards until her back was against the newly closed door while she still went on about some nonsense. She stopped talking when he pressed his body up onto hers and placed his hands on either side of her frame.
"Is that so?" He asked, his breath so tantalizing, Casey couldn't help but close her eyes in response. He loved how much of an effect he had on her. "Casey McDonald will never let me kiss her again?"
Before she could say a word, Derek placed his smooth lips on Casey's jaw, leaving a trail of teasing kisses down her neck. Every place he touched, burned Casey's skin and the only way to put out the fire he ignited was to pull him closer to her. He felt Casey shiver against the metal door, reacting to his touch.
"I thought it didn't bother you that we weren't going to get alone time?" Casey asked, barely able to concentrate on her thoughts, feeling Derek's warm mouth sweep against her collarbone. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you're trying to fit some in before we leave for Toronto."
Derek brought his lips back up and hovered them over hers making Casey's heart leap in her chest.
"It doesn't." He breathed, "Because now that we're together, I won't let anyone keep us apart."
And with those words, Casey stood on the balls of her feet and used her hands to bow Derek's head down, crashing his mouth onto hers. He held her with such passion and lust, Casey was drowning in his arms as she finally surrendered to his parting lips.
—-
It was strange being in the McDonald-Venturi residence again. Derek sat in his usual spot at the table with Casey seated in front of him. He couldn't keep his eyes off of her while she was giving Edwin academic advice. She always lit up when she talked about education and academia and Derek found it endearing - she had to be the most intelligent woman he knew. Edwin was explaining how he'd decided to switch his business major to an engineering major but needed enough credits to do so. Lizzie rolled her eyes when Edwin bragged about his GPA.
"Please Edwin, how hard is it to have a high GPA in business? Some of us are taking Organic Chemistry."
"Organic chemistry?!" Derek leaned over and high-fived Lizzie from across the table, "I always knew you were going to change the world, Lizard."
Lizzie grinned at her stepbrother. "Thanks, Derek."
"Both of you." Derek said, messing up his brother's hair (his way of expressing his affection).
Derek took another bite of the penne pasta on his plate and then looked down the table past Ed, over to Marti.
She was no longer that little kid he'd carry on top of his shoulders when they went to parades. She was now a young woman but on her phone, still in her own little world as always.
"Smarti, what about you? How's school going?"
While Marti talked about her high school classes, Derek noticed that not a lot in the McDonald-Venturi residence had changed. Sitting at the dining table was like stepping into a time warp. The furniture was the same since the day he left for Vancouver. The floors were still the same mahogany floors, even the cutlery was the same mismatched combination of forks and spoons merged from both homes when the McDonalds moved in. The only thing that had changed were the people around the table.
"Derek?"
It was obvious that Marti was asking her big brother a question but he was so deep in thought, he had missed it.
Derek looked at her face and she was staring at him with that adorable look that melted his heart, no matter what age she became. "Yeah, Smarti?"
"Can we have a movie night tomorrow night? Just like we used to? With popcorn mixed with M&Ms and chips?"
Derek chuckled. He couldn't believe he used to let his siblings eat all that junk food while their parents were out.
"Anything you like. You pick the movie, and I'll make the snacks! Ed and Liz, you wanna join us?" Derek asked, pointing his fork in their direction.
"I think I can take some time off from studying to spend an evening with my big bro."
Lizzie nodded, agreeing with Edwin. "It's not everyday you come back to see us, Derek."
Her words shot a pang of guilt right into the center of his heart. They were aware that Derek avoided coming home.
Casey put down her drink and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Am I not invited to this movie night? Do any of my younger siblings miss me?"
"They just know I'm the cooler sibling." Derek winked.
"You may be cooler, but I'll always be nicer."
"Actually, Casey…" Nora interrupted, "I kind of already filled your schedule up for tomorrow evening. I'm hoping you won't be too mad at me for this."
Casey tilted her head in confusion, "Do you need me to run errands with you, mom? If so, that's fine, I can always come home and catch the second half of the movie."
"Actually, my friend Elenor's son is in town. He's into medical research just like you and wanted to know what kind of opportunities there were for him out in Vancouver. He's wanting to move there since he's starting UBC Med School next semester. I sort of volunteered you to have coffee with him."
Derek's grip tightened on his fork.
"You could have just given him my email address mom." Casey said, slightly annoyed with her mother for planning something without asking her.
"But then you wouldn't be able to see him, honey. He's extremely handsome" Nora said, before lowering her voice "... and single" She whispered.
Derek dropped his fork on his plate causing a loud clanging sound.
George choked on his water and Marti patted his back "You okay, dad?" He nodded a quick 'yes' and then looked at his wife in dismay.
"Mom, I don't really appreciate you making plans for me." Casey expressed, pausing to sip her water and taking a quick glance at Derek.
"It's just a coffee date!"
Casey couldn't believe her mother, "You set me up on a coffee date without asking?"
Derek had his eyes firmly on his plate, pushing around his broccoli with his fork.
"Who cares, Casey!" Marti interrupted. "It's about time you dated someone like a doctor. Someone as Smart as you!"
"Exactly, someone scientific like you." Lizzie agreed.
"Yeah, he sounds better than James already!" Edwin chimed in. "Right, Derek?"
Derek finally looked up at Casey, his eyes displayed a feeling Casey couldn't put her finger on. "Right." He agreed in an emotionless tone.
"So Casey, what do you say? Unless you're dating someone else and not telling us..." Nora probed.
Casey could feel Derek's irritation from across the table and she wished she could have told her family that she couldn't go on a coffee date because she was in love with someone else. But instead she said,
"Sure, mom. I'll go. What time do I need to be there?"
