All I can say is: THANK YOU. I was totally surprised with the number of reviews I got! Thanks so much to you all. Loves and hugs. I present, Chapter 10!

Because They Said So - Chapter 10

"Oooh!"

Wait, were people actually cooing?

"Aww..."

And awe-ing!? Derek rolled his eyes under his closed lids. Casey, completely taken aback, gasped against his lips. She had no idea what was going on.

From somewhere in the crowd, they heard someone squeal, "Tori, look!"... followed by a shriek and a tray clattering on the floor.

Pefect.

Suddenly, Casey had a tingling sensation in her body. Derek had hit a soft spot, causing her to erupt a whimper from the back of her throat. Derek, unaware at how long this was going on, smirked. Why was he still kissing her? She was far from continuing to ramble on, so there wasn't any need for him to be kissing her anymore, right?

But, he couldn't find himself to pull away. Casey and her vanilla scent lingered on his lips, only causing him to deepen the kiss. It felt... good. Really good actually. So good, in fact, that Casey didn't even make an attempt to pull away.

"Oh, now don't mind us..."

The two pulled away quickly, yet a bit reluctantly. Emily had her eyebrows raised, her hands glued to her hips. Sams mouth was formed in an 'O' shape, and his eyes were wide with confusion.

"Ahem," Casey scoffed, pink blotches forming on her cheeks.

Derek smirked at Sam and Emily.

"Oh, now were you two standing there just now?" He asked cooly. "We had no idea."

Emily sneered, "Yeah, I'm sure you didn't."

Derek sent her a sheepish grin.

"...That's hot, dude!" Some guy, amidst the enormous crowd of kids, suddenly called out.

There were a few wolf whistles and 'Yeah!'s' that erupted from other people. Casey grunted in disgust, and immediately stood up.

"Oh, 'dude', you have no idea."

And with that, she sent one last look at Derek, before brushing past Emily and Sam on her way out.

000

"You haven't said anything the whole ride home..."

And she didn't plan to now. Casey tossed her bag on the kitchen counter and grabbed a water bottle out of the fridge.

"Thanks, sis," Derek grabbed the bottle out of her hands and guzzled it down.

She rolled her eyes and took out another one.

"What's up with you?" He asked, wiping his mouth with the back of his sleeve.

"What's up with me?" She spat, slamming her water bottle down on the counter. "What's up with me, is that I just had a makeout session, in front of the whole school, might I add, with my step-brother!"

"Ah," he said simply. "That."

"That's all you have to say?"

She shot him a dagger glare, while he merilly shrugged.

"What do you want me to say, Case?"

She thought a moment, "I want you to explain why you did it."

"Aren't you supposed to be the 'smart' one?" He said, as if it were so obvious. "You were talking crap about Sam and Emily, and I had to shut you up."

Her eyes started to narrow.

"And you couldn't get my attention any other way?" She asked in disgust. "You're so sleazy."

She shook her head and walked out of the kitchen.

"It takes two to tango, Case," he called.

She stopped and turned on her heel, Derek leaning against the kitchen island.

"You can't be serious," she bickered, walking back into the kitchen. "I wasn't in any part of your stupid plan."

The corners of his mouth twitched, as he crossed his arms.

"You kissed back," he said slyly.

She inhaled sharply.

"No, I didn't," she choked out.

"Well, you didn't pull away."

Now, he smirked fully. The smirk he gave when he knew something. And liked it.

"That's... that's because..." Casey was at loss for words. He was right. She didn't pull away.

"Admit it, Casey," he said, smiling. "You liked it."

"Ugh," she shook her head. "God, no."

"Oh, yes, you did," he pressed.

"No, I didn't," she stated firmly. "Now come off it."

He shook his head, "Not until you admit it."

"Derek," she barked. "I didn't enjoy it. Not one bit."

Okay, so it was a little, itty-bitty lie. Maybe she did enjoy it a little. But she would rather make-out with the entire chess team before she admitted that.

He pouted, "Fine."

She sneered.

"You're so immature."

"Denial." He shook his head. "One day, you're going to admit it."

"Never," she said assuringly. "Never in a million years."

"Sure, MacDonald," he winked at her. "No girl, no matter how stubborn, has ever turned down Derek Venturi."

"Well, here's one that will." She called after him, when he exited the kitchen. "You can count on that."

He snorted, obviously disbelieving. But Casey didn't blame him.

How could he believe that, when she was having a hard time herself?

000

"How's the dinner, kids?"

"Great."

"Good."

"Mmm."

"Delicious."

"Fantastic."

George quirked a brow at these unenthusiastic approvals, and merrily shrugged it off.

"So," Nora interjected, after a few moments of silence. "How's that bet coming along?"

Casey tossed her fork down, angrily, and stood up. "You know what, I'm not really hungry anymore."

"Yeah," Derek scooted out of his chair, as well. "Can I be excused?"

"Woah, woah, woah!" George called, and they halted. "Not so fast..."

The two sent a look at each other and hesitantly sat back down.

"What's this 'bet'?" He asked curiously.

Neither answered, just stared at their plate of mashed potatoes and rib-eye steak.

"Well," Nora decided to answer for them. "Casey and Derek got involved with a bet last week."

"Oh?"

"Mom," Casey snapped, shooting Nora an angry glare. "Can you not?"

George's eyes darted from Nora, to Casey, to Derek in a swift second.

"Casey?"

"Dad..."

"Derek."

"Nora?"

"Mom!"

"Casey...?"

"George."

"Nora."

"Marti!"

Everyone directed their gaze to Marti, who was supporting a toothy grin.

"Alright, what's going on, here?"

Casey sighed, "Well... Derek... Derek and I, we... we accepted this bet with Sam and Emily."

Derek shot her a questioning look, which she simply ignored.

"And the bet was...?

"If Casey and me and could stay together for a month," Derek answered, suddenly. "You know... as a couple."

There was a sudden outburst of laughing that erupted from George, who earned a look from everyone at the table.

"You're funny, kids, you're hilarious! You're..." He chuckled nervously, his eyes darting between everyone, who looked at him like he had gone insane. "... not kidding..."

They shook their heads, avoiding eye contact.

George coughed, and straightened up in his seat, before continuing.

"I see..." He said, suddenly serious again. "Well, who would like to explain first?"

Derek looked at Casey, who looked over at Nora, who was staring at George.

Well, this night was going to be longer than they planned.

I'm sorry this update took so long, I forgot to mention. But I really had no idea how to write and explain this one. So, be nice. Reviews? Do you have any idea how happy I'll be if I get over 200? ... and 10? 15? 20?! Just joking, but, boyy would that be AMAZING. Hope you enjoyed!