A/N: Hope you enjoy!

When Derek found out that Penelope was dating Kevin Lynch, he felt like someone slapped him across the face.

He had finally gotten the courage to tell her how he felt. How he truly felt. He'd loved her since the day he'd called her Baby Girl, if not before then.

Maybe he should've used different terminology when he fessed up. Loved her? That could definitely be placed in the "just friends" category. Maybe that's why Penelope had ran into the arms of another man.

He should've stopped her. Told her before that first date with Lynch that he loved her more than anything. "You belong with me, Baby Girl," he should've said. "We're perfect for one another."

But he hadn't. Penelope and Lynch had dated four years after that. Four years! Derek had sat on the edge of paranoia that Lynch would propose at any time and they would marry. How could he sit through that wedding? How could he support Penelope marrying someone that wasn't him?

He couldn't. He just couldn't. There was no way that Derek could sit in the pews watching Penelope at the altar with another man. That's why he and Savannah had gotten together. He couldn't just sit around waiting for something that couldn't be.

She was passionate about her work, just as Penelope was. Savannah also liked the same movies that he did. It made their relationship easier that way. Nothing had to be forced. At least on Savannah's end, anyway.

Then Penelope and Lynch broke up. He had proposed, and she'd turned him down. She couldn't stand the thought of marriage. "He's not the one for me," Penelope had said. "I can't see the rest of my life with him."

It had taken her weeks to confess that to Derek though. By then, she and Sam were already speaking again and going on dates. "That was fast," Derek had said. "I hope you two are happy together. Really."

She had wished the same for him.

Here they were, the same sort of situation again. Sam and Penelope had broken up when he reconnected with another ex. Savannah had called it quits because she wanted to focus on her work and be single for a while. They were both finally available at the same time.

This was his shot. This was his chance to tell Penelope everything.

"A secret?" Derek asked laughing nervously. "I don't have a secret about you, Baby Girl."

She raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "The Ouija seems to think you do," Penelope said. "Ghosts usually aren't wrong."

Reid, for the first time, hadn't jumped in with a statistic. Derek bet that the young genius already knew what the secret was. After all, Reid had always teased Derek about his secret crush on Penelope. He was the first one to figure it out. Reid wanted to give Derek the floor to fess up.

The planchette started to spell out letters, but Derek stopped it. "No," he said. "I want you to hear this from me. I don't want some spirit board from your attic to tell you this. It's important."

"Okay," she said. "Just tell me."

"I...I love you Penelope," he said. "I really do. You know that, right?"

She gave him a look of confusion. "I know Derek," she said. "You told me when I was shot. Almost exactly in those words too."

"No," Derek said. "You don't understand. I love love you. In a more than friends kind of way."

Penelope didn't speak for a second. "Wait...What? You love me like that?"

"Of course I do, Baby Girl," he said. "You're the love of my life."

"You better not be lying to me, Derek," she said. "This isn't funny."

"I'm not joking. I've always had a special place in my heart for you," Derek said. "Is it really that shocking?"

"How long have you known?" she whispered.

"Since you were shot," he admitted. "I told you that night. I thought you knew what I meant. Then you and Lynch started dating, and I realized that you didn't. By then, though, it was too late."

He'd expected to see a look of softness in her eyes, but found a look of anger instead. "It was not too late!" she roared. "Derek, are you out of your mind?"

"Wh-what?"

"I almost married another man during the time you knew!" she yelled. "I almost told Kevin yes! I considered it for days before giving him an answer. You could've told me how you felt years ago!"

"Baby, I'm sorry…"

"Why did you wait five years?" Penelope cried. "Do you know how many times I've had to talk myself out of admitting my feelings for you? How many daydreams I've had since the night I was shot?"

With that said, she jumped to her feet and headed for the door. "I need some air!" she snapped. "Don't you guys dare follow me."

"Penelope," Reid finally interjected. "The door is still stuck. We haven't gotten it open yet…"

She turned the knob anyway, ignoring the genius altogether. She was simply too pissed off to listen to either one of them.

And the door actually opened.

"Seriously?" Derek yelled to the ceiling, throwing his hands up in the air. "You had to make her mad at me first before you could let us leave?"

Then he jumped to his feet and ran after her, determined to make her listen to him.

Leaving Reid alone with the Ouija board, Derek raced into the hallway after Penelope. He followed her to the end where she stood by the window at the stairs.

"How could you?" she whispered when he got close. "You knew all this time...and you didn't tell me. You let me date Kevin and fall for him. Then you let me reconnect with Sam. You didn't say anything all this time, and you knew."

Derek reached out for her. "I'm sorry," he said. "I just...I didn't know how to tell you. I didn't want to ruin your happiness with either one of them."

"I would've been happier with you!" Penelope protested. "All Kevin and I did was fight. We didn't have as much in common as we thought. And Sam… I love him, but he's not you."

"That's how I felt with Savannah," Derek said. "I loved her, but I wasn't in love with her. I couldn't figure it out for a while. She's beautiful, smart, funny...but she isn't you."

That seemed to soften Penelope a little. "You should've just told me," she said nudging him. "I would've been over the moon."

"We can't change the past," he reminded her. "Only the future."

And then he pulled her into his arms, relishing in the fact he'd finally told her. Penelope finally knew that their friendship wasn't platonic.

"I love you," Derek said.

"I love you more," Penelope said and kissed him.

Back in the apartment, Reid was still moving the planchette around. He knew that playing alone was a major no-no with the game, but he was bored and figured his friends would be a while.

"What's my big secret?" Reid asked. "You helped Derek and Penelope with theirs."

He watched as the planchette began to spell out letters. T-E-L-L J-J

"I guess the Ouija really does know all," he said with a laugh. "Won't Will want to kill me though? I mean, he is JJ's significant other. They have a son together too."

The pointer traveled to the no corner. "Alright," Reid said. "I'm calling her. Don't freak out or lock the doors again, okay?"

He grabbed his iPhone and dialed the blonde's number. It rang three times before her melodic voice said hello.

"JJ?" he said. "It's Spencer. There's something I need to tell you. Do you have a minute?"

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