A call from Emily. A text from Truman. A text from Emily. A call from Truman. Another call from Truman. And I am beginning to think I've lost my mind as I delete every message in my inbox and voicemail. Emily knows by now. She has to know. And frankly, I don't really feel like talking to her about it. As much as I don't want to talk to my best friend, I don't want to talk to my… boyfriend even more. He probably has no clue. No earthly clue what I'm going through right now. And to be honest, that's perfectly fine with me. It's not like he could do much to help, anyway.

My phone rings for the umpteenth time this week and ghost Derek groans. "Just answer it already! Get it over with!" He puts his hands over his ears. "And for the love of God, get a new ringtone." he mumbles.

It didn't take him long to come back. I was afraid that he would leave after my fit of hysterics, but there he was, sitting in my desk chair with this ridiculously goofy grin that makes me almost laugh.

I hesitate before picking up the phone and checking the caller ID. Truman again. Seriously, you would think the kid would realize I'm trying to ignore him by now!

Before I can silence his call, Derek is standing over me with a particularly evil looking smirk on his face as he reaches over my shoulder and presses the answer button. I stare at him in shock before hearing a muffled 'Hello? Is anyone there? Casey?'

I make baffled gestures towards the phone. And what am I supposed to do now, Derek? Supposedly he's trying to help me, but I don't see where he's going with this. The sound of Truman's voice never helps. "Talk already!" Derek yells, and I press the phone to my ear hastily.

"Hi, Truman?" I ask, although I already know the answer.

"Thank God. I thought I'd never hear your voice again." And I hoped I'd never hear your voice again. "Where have you been?"

I turn to Derek with an exasperated look on my face. What do I say now? Do I tell him the truth? Could he handle knowing? "Just tell him the truth, woman! You suck at lying anyway." Derek voices, and I roll my eyes.

"Well, if you really must know, Truman… my stepbrother, Derek he-" Derek motions me to keep going. "He died. In a car crash." I choke out, barely breathing. Even though 'Derek' is right beside me, it doesn't hurt any less to say it.

And the pain doesn't cease as I hear laughter on the other end. "You're kidding right? I mean, what kind of story is that? I've heard some pretty bad excuses before, but this one takes the cake. You were never a good liar, Case."

"Excuse me?" My voice sounds ten pitches higher as I blink back stinging tears. I knew he was insensitive but this… this was too much. Derek's fists are clenched and his face is contorted in fury.

"Casey, you were joking right?" I don't respond. I'm too busy remembering how to use my lungs. "I mean, even if Derek was dead, you never really liked him. So what's the real hold up? Why haven't you been responding to my messages?" Derek is now miming me punching the end conversation button on my phone, but I don't do so just yet.

"As a matter of fact, Truman, Derek is dead!" I screech. "And I happened to like him ten times better than I'll ever like you! You are a complete ass and I never want to hear from you again!" Then I take a leaf out of Derek's book and slam the red button on my phone.

"That was brilliant." Derek stares at me in awe, and I feel a blush rising to my cheeks. It's not every day you hear a compliment from the eldest Venturi.

Especially if your name is Casey McDonald.

Abby is here and everyone is trying their best to please her. 'She's a little sensitive right now, so try not to bring up… you know. She's our guest, so treat her with respect. She came all the way from Spain, so be nice.'

So…How the heck am I not going to mention Derek? He is the reason why she's here. And she had better be flying all the way from Spain for her son's funeral! What are you supposed to expect from a mother? And it's a little hard to be chipper when your step brother just died.

Nevertheless, I put on my brave face and act like everything is okay. Even when stone-faced Abby merely responds to all my questions with a nod or shake of her head. Even when I ask what she did in Spain…

I understand, different people grieve in different ways. But it's hard for me to grasp the concept of a mother that doesn't cry for her dead son. Mom has been doing so, and Derek isn't even blood related to her. But then again, I haven't really been crying either. Maybe Abby has her own personal ghost Derek too…

I swear, he's the only thing keeping me from going insane. Or maybe I already am insane, just for seeing him. Either way, I'm not nearly 'as sad' as the other members of my family. I don't know why Derek chose to come back to me, rather than Marti, Edwin, or even George. But maybe he knew. Maybe he realized I would need him the most. I don't know what I would be doing without him by my side.

Because, honestly, I had come to terms that Derek was my best friend when he was living. I never had more fun than when I was arguing or messing with him. I was never happier than when I was making him laugh or sharing stories with him. I never felt more loved than when he put his arm around me or danced with me. I needed Derek's ghost so I could deal with his death. But the one thing ghost Derek couldn't give me, was his touch. I missed his touch.

What would I have done if I had lost my best friend completely?

"Um, hi. For those of you who don't know me, I'm Casey McDonald, Derek's stepsister." I stood in front of a crowd of people, clad in black. There was this empty feeling in my stomach even though I felt like I was going to throw up. I never had a problem standing in front of people to deliver a speech, but this… This was no history assignment. "We're here today to honor someone… incredible. Someone who could turn anyone's frown to a smile. Someone who could light up a room just by entering it. He was my stepbrother, and he was a real character." A few people let out a small laugh, but it was nothing disrespectful. It was for Derek. "He always found one way or another to prank me or make fun of me. He was a restless spirit, someone who never backed down from a challenge and never gave up. And yet…" I fingered my notes, trying to stop my hands from shaking. "I saw so much more in him. He was genuine and kind. He cared about so many people. Children loved him. Girls loved him." A few people smiled up at me. "Everyone he knew… they all had a place in their hearts for him. I don't know a single person who didn't adore him in one way or another. Even me, his annoying keener of a stepsister… I loved Derek." The tears began to prick at my eyes, and even though I knew this would happen, I still hated it. "Sorry." I sounded like I was being strangled. "He didn't like to see people cry."

"It's okay, Casey." I heard a voice beside me, and I saw ghost Derek looking at me with a pained expression. "For once, I give you my permission."

"Derek will be forever missed." I continued, struggling. "But I know, one day..." My voice faltered and I felt myself getting dizzy. "I can't do this. I can't finish." I whispered, gasping for air. I felt a strong pair of arms around me as George led me back to my seat. I sat there for a moment before running to the bathroom and heaving over the toilet. That is, until someone interrupted me.

"Always the drama queen."

30 minutes later I return to the ceremony. People are saying their goodbyes and crying over the coffin. I almost wish I would have taken longer in the bathroom. Especially when Emily comes running up to me.

'Oh my God, Casey, are you okay?' she asks, tears shining in her eyes.

"Just dandy, Em.'

And then for about 10 minutes, she goes off on this monologue about how she was worried about me and how she was angry that I didn't call her back. She talks about how much she's going to miss her boyfriend and how unfair life is and how it was her fault because they got in a fight right before the accident. And then she contemplates the afterlife and how one day her and Derek will meet again in heaven.

And I'm finding it very hard not to either a) punch her in the face, or b) almost laugh. Because ghost Derek is standing behind her mimicking her antics, and it's quite a good impersonation.

Finally she's done, and, tears streaming down her face, she hugs me goodbye. The last thing she says is 'Call me and we'll talk about this later. We can get through this together.' Yeah we'll talk about this.

And the people don't stop running over to me, telling me how beautiful my speech was, and asking me if I'm okay. Honestly, I would be a heck of a lot better if they all just left me alone.

The last person that ends up leaving, besides the McDonald-Venturi bunch, is Ralph. He's just standing over Derek's grave with a funny expression on his face. I approach him cautiously.

'Ralph, I think it's time to go.'

He turns to look at me and smiles. 'I liked your eulogy, Casey. That was really nice.'

'Hmm, I'm surprised he even knows that word.' I sigh as Derek materializes beside me again.

'Thanks Ralph.' I say, ignoring the figure to my left.

'Sure. I bet Derek liked it too.' Ralph stares up at the sky. He's a peculiar one alright.

'Yeah, I hope so.'

'I know so.' Peculiar, but sweet. 'We can, you know, talk if you want. I know this must be hard for you.'

'That sounds nice, Ralph.' I muster all my energy into producing a hopefully convincing smile.

Ralph takes a pen from his pants pocket and writes his number on my hand. 'Bye, Case.' he says. 'And by the way, nice shoes!' He leaves and I crinkle my forehead in amusement.

'Wow, he must really like you if he says he likes your shoes.' Derek laughs.

'Yeah.' I stare at my hand and the corners of my lips turn up. Ralph is actually someone I wouldn't mind talking to about… 'this.'

AN: FINALLY! That wasn't too hard now… I should have sat down and done that a LONG time ago! Sorry for the long wait! I hope it was worth it! Okay, so obviously this is not going in the same order as Emily's video, or else it would be like, over by now. There's still more to come though. Don't worry! :D Please review if ya feel like it!