Disclaimer: Still don't own Life with Derek.

Chapter #7--Casey's New Mantra

"Casey?" her mother asked when her father had left. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," Casey mumbled, still in a daze, "I think I'm just going to head upstairs now."

"Alright," said Nora with a concerned look on her face, and she headed into the kitchen as Casey headed to her room. If Casey wanted some space, she would give it to her. Nora knew that this had to be a shock.

Derek could also tell that Casey was not, in fact, okay. Since the point when Dennis had mentioned a girlfriend, it had seemed like she was fighting back tears. How could her father have missed it? How could he have left her like this again? Derek fought back the urge to run after him and deck the man in the jaw this time.

He had hoped his comment about the woman would snap Casey out of her trance-like state. After all, she was far less likely to cry if she was angry at him, but it had gotten no reaction at all.

He knew that he had to do something. Since he couldn't do much on her father's end, he decided to go up and check on her.

Casey was listening to music when she heard a knock on her door.

"Go away!" she shouted.

"Now that's not a very nice, Case" Derek said, walking into her room uninvited.

"It's not a good time, Derek," she said half-heartedly, not really sure whether she wanted to him to stay or to leave her alone.

"I know," he said, with unusual kindness in his voice. "That's why I came to see you."

He sat down on the bed beside her, and she looked at him, barely able to contain her tears.

"She can't be more than 29, Derek," she said bitterly. "My father is dating a 29-year-old."

He nodded at her and she noticed a certain tenderness in his eyes that she didn't think she had ever seen there before.

"I mean, I knew that he was dating people, but he hasn't actually introduced me to any before."

"I know what you must be feeling right now," he said.

"No!" she said suddenly, letting all her anger toward her father spill out on the person in front of her. "No you don't, Derek! How could you even imagine?! My father, the man I admire most in this world, just brought a strange woman home to meet me. How could you possibly know what that's like?!"

"Case," he said smiling gently at her, not reacting to all the anger she was dumping on him, "I do." He motioned toward the picture on her desk—the picture she kept of herself, her mother, and Lizzie. It was from the time when they were "happy"—from shortly before they had moved into the Venturi household.

And then it hit her. He probably did know what she was feeling. Her mother had been that woman for him—that woman who had come into his home and shattered his world.

And suddenly she couldn't hold back anymore. She threw her arms around his neck and started to cry into his shoulder. He held her, gently and tenderly stroking her hair and just letting her cry.

"Case," he whispered, "he wanted you to meet her. I think he wanted to make sure you were okay with it. He loves you Case, and I don't think that he would jump into anything if you and Lizzie were not okay."

"Maybe," she said, continuing to tremble in his arms.

Derek hoped that he was right. He didn't know Dennis McDonald very well, but he did think that the man loved his daughters—even if he could be somewhat oblivious.

"Casey," he said, pulling back just slightly so that he could look her in the eyes. "Sometimes life changes. You know that better than anyone," he said ruefully, looking at the picture of her little family again. "And sometimes it can seem like those changes are for the worst . . ."

Casey could tell that the next few words were difficult for him. She could tell that he was thinking how to phrase things and watching her reactions closely. But he continued. Tentatively, he pressed on.

"But sometimes," he said, "sometimes it turns out that . . . that those changes can actually lead to something . . . something completely amazing. And you realizes that you wouldn't have things any other way."

"Derek," she said softly, both touched and comforted by what he said.

He looked down at her. He wanted to kiss her; he wanted it more than he'd ever wanted it before and more than he'd ever wanted to kiss anyone. For the first time, he had to admit to himself that he had feelings for her. Real, non-air-quoted feelings.

But he didn't kiss her. As hard as it was for him to resist, he knew that he couldn't. Not when she was vulnerable like this. Who knew if it was what she wanted?

So he hugged her again and held her in his arms, letting her cry until her tears ran out.

And then he did something that he really didn't want to. He couldn't stand to see her unhappy like this, so he said the only thing that he knew would snap her out of it.

"I bet you're enjoying my holding you like this, huh?" he said, using that same guarded, defensive, teasing tone that he had been using with her all month.

"Der-ek!" she shouted pushing him off her.

But as he left her room that day, he saw her smile at him. It wasn't a smirk, or a glare, or even the type of "smile" that she'd given her father. It was a soft, genuine smile.

Maybe, he thought, there was hope for them after all.

"Derek!" he heard her call down the hall. "What the hell did you say to my father about that woman?!"

He smiled to himself. Quite a delayed reaction there.

"Um . . . It's not important, Case," he called back, barely able to contain his laughter.

Casey smiled to herself. She thought she knew what she felt about him now.

Unfortunately though, she still didn't know what he felt. And Casey McDonald did not like to show people she liked them . . . At least not until she was certain that they felt the same way.

At least for now, she would continue to tell herself that he was just her stepbrother. Just my stepbrother. Just my stepbrother. She repeated the words to herself over and over.

Until she knew how he felt, it seemed much safer to think of things this way. She had a feeling that she would be repeating these words a lot in the near future.