A/N: I know this chapter is kind of short, but I think it explains some necessary things.

This chapter is from the beginning of George and Nora's relationship to right after chapter 3. So I did not italicize anything again. Hope you all think it is better than the last.

The next chapter picks up from where chapter 2 left off.

Enjoy and review!

Chapter 4: The Inevitable

Nora and George were very liberal people. They understood that things would happen that they would not be able to control. They realized this the day their significant others left them. Both were very hopeful though, and one day they fell in love again.

Before their wedding, George and Nora sat down to discuss a few things. Most things were practical, like where to live and what schools to send their children. Since George had enough room, they decided to live in his house and send Nora's girls to the schools in the area.

The last thing needed to be discussed was their eldest children. Since Edwin, Marti and Lizzie were young, they would be able to adjust to becoming a family quite easily. But they knew that their respective eldest children were not keen to the idea of gaining family members. They would never consider each other a sibling, which may eventually cause some problems.

"What are we going to do if they are attracted to one another?" George asked his wife to be.

"Well, Casey is very attractive . . ."

"And Derek chases anything in a skirt, so we may have a problem." George said cutting off Nora. "Do you think that they will begin to like each other?"

Nora contemplated this for a minute. She shrugged "Well, we really can't deny them anything, it's not like they are blood related. Casey is 15 and Derek is 16. Don't you think they are old enough to make their own decisions?"

"We can't really let them date, can we?" George thought out loud. He then shook his head, "Well, I guess we could set some ground rules, if they do begin to like each other. Hopefully we won't need to have such an uncomfortable conversation." With that the parents agreed that they would not prevent happiness from their children.

Initially, the two teens could not be farther away from liking one another. They fought and yelled and expressed their hatred any chance they got. Although Nora and George were relieved, they knew that there had to be something else there. It seemed too much like Kindergarden, where the boy would pull the pigtails of the one he liked.

They began to notice some changes in Casey and Derek's behavior. There were less fights and secret glances across the dining room table. Both Nora and George knew nothing was going on, but they sensed that there may have been hidden feelings for the other.

One night at dinner, Nora asked "What is with the two of you? I kind of miss the fighting."

"Well, Derek and I decided we were getting too old for all the fights. It has been about 6 months now. We should start acting civil." Casey explained to her mother.

"But I still hear some arguments in the morning," George chimed in.

"Casey and I decided that we love to drive the other crazy, but it was becoming very mean. So we are limiting ourselves to only 5 insults a day. This way we can be happy and kind of nice to each other at the same time." As Derek said this, Nora noticed the way he looked at Casey, with something other than brotherly love in his eyes. As Nora looked up, she noticed that George also noticed the same look.

"Yeah, and we are usually done with the insults before we get home from school. So we now actually spend some time being nice together at home." Both George and Nora saw the same look in Casey's eyes that were in Derek's. It's too bad that they have no idea what they are missing out on – both George and Nora thought.

Over the years, the parents noticed the feelings grow. They both wanted their children to be happy and they saw how in love they were with the other. George and Nora swore that they would let their children figure it out for themselves.

By now it has been a little less than three years that the Venturis and MacDonalds became one family. Tonight was the first night that they realized how in sync the two soon to be high school graduates were. They both applied to the same school, were responsible enough to get scholarships and they did it completely separately. Casey and Derek were completely in love, but they would never act on their feelings.

"I think it is about time that we pushed them a little." Nora said when she was sure that Derek was upstairs. "I think they would be happy with one another, but they are never going to do anything about it, being afraid of rejection. And it does not seem like the feelings are going to just disappear. Derek was so selfless, offering his chance at a great education for Casey."

"I completely agree with you Nora, but it is not like we can take them by the hands and tell them to confess their feelings."

Nora's eyes widened, knowing she had a great idea. "What if we let them both attend the University of Toronto?" The smile on her face reached both her ears.

"How are we going to afford 2 apartments?" George asked confused.

"We're not, we only have to afford one." Nora noticed George finally understand. He began to nod his head. "Maybe if they live together, completely alone, and have to work with each other to survive, they might decide to tell each other . . ."

"Their feelings and be truly happy." George finished Nora's sentence. Any normal parent would think this to be completely out of the question, that two people who had feelings towards one another could share an apartment without parental supervision. But Nora and George were not uptight parents and they knew that their children could make decisions on their own, with or without them there.

"Then it's settled, we start looking for a 2 bedroom apartment for them in the morning." George kissed his wife goodnight and both of them were very pleased with themselves.