A/N: Well, I've been MIA for a while, haven't I? Lo siento, guys, really. It pained me to be gone as long as I was, but I hope you all understand. There was school to be done, I'm trying to juggle school with my driving classes. It's been quite hectic. But I've just had a sudden burst of inspiration after rereading my last chapter. So, without further adieu, capitulo dieciocho.
BYTHEWAY; I just found out this story made the "Dasey" Community on the LwD Fanfiction page... thanks so much you guys, for giving so much life to the story, and motivating me to continue writing. It may not be a big deal, but just got to let you know: Ya'll are amazing.
Because They Said So - Chapter 16
"You're sure you two can hold down the fort for the weekend?"
"Positive, Mom," Casey said reassuringly. "Relax. I promise not to do anything... rash."
"Oh, that I know... but it's not you that I'm worried about."
Nora nodded her head toward the kitchen where Derek was shoveling messy spoonfuls of Fruity Pebbles into his mouth, milk dribbling down his chin. He nonchalantly wiped it away with the sleeve of his shirt, flipping a page of his magazine.
Casey turned up her lip in disgust, "Ah."
Nora sighed, "This is my fault. It completely slipped my mind that George's company gala was tonight of all nights. And a four hour drive from Toronto, no less. Trust me, a night at the Marriott was most definitely not the way I planned to spend my weekend. If there was any way to get there and back home on the same night..."
"Mom, Mom," Casey stopped her. "Breathe. Listen to me... I've got it under control. Trust me."
"Right." Nora nodded her head, exhaling with closed eyes. "Right, of course. Of course you do. Good, great."
"Has she calmed down enough to finally get into the car?" George asked, his head poking in from a crack in the front door.
"Oh, hush, I'm coming." Her mother kissed her cheek. "Take care and please call me if there are any problems."
Casey nodded impatiently, "Go, Mom!"
Nora was shooed out of the door by both Casey and George, and the door was closed on her before she could attempt to worry about anything else.
Casey blew her hair out of her face tiredly, leaning her back against the front door.
"I literally thought she'd never leave," Edwin said, looking at her from his spot on the couch in between Lizzie and Marti.
"That's our Mom," Lizzie agreed, keeping her eyes on the television.
Casey peeled away from the door and bounded up the stairs.
--
"Alright, kids."
Upon entering the kitchen, Lizzie, Edwin and Marti were faced by Derek leaning on his palms against the island counter, where three items were laying in a horizontal line.
"Your choices for dinner are strategically placed in front of you. Take your pick," he said, gesturing in front of him.
"One package of Top Ramen, a jar of unsalted cashews, and a bag of baby carrots...?" Lizzie said slowly, holding up square-shaped, encased noodles.
"Didn't Dad and Nora leave any money for real food?" Edwin asked.
Derek held up a twenty-dollar bill, "They did leave this."
"Looks like dinner to us," Lizzie said, reaching for the bill.
"Ah, ah, ah," he chided, holding it out of reach. "This actually looks like a large, deluxe, meat-lovers pizza with my name on it."
"Derek!" They cried in disbelief.
"You know, you kids should be grateful. I take the time to find you moochers something to eat and you deny my assisstance? Greedy, little leeches."
"Casey!" Marti wailed at the top of her lungs.
"Tattle-tales," Derek muttered under his breath as a worried-looking Casey made her way into the kitchen.
"What's going on?"
"Derek's refusing to make us a proper meal." Edwin said accusingly. "He claims these are our only options."
"But... George and Mom left us twenty dollars," she recalled, looking at the poor excuses of a meal on the counter.
"Yeah, for his pizza," Lizzie said, narrowing her eyes.
Casey stared at him in disbelief, then scoffed. "I don't think so."
"I think you're forgetting whose hands the money's in, Case."
He quirked a brow, his tone challenging.
"I think you're forgetting," she retorted, "that I can sever those hands of yours with a flick of my pinky."
"Yeah? I'd like to see you try..."
--
"Now that was what I call an actual meal."
"Mmmhm."
Edwin leaned back on the couch, resting his hands behind his head. Lizzie rubbed her stomach satisfyingly. Marti licked the tips of her fingers clean.
Casey smirked as she gathered the polished-off plates and empty pizza box from the coffee table. She made her way into the kitchen, where Derek sat at the island, eating his single slice of pizza in isolation. He shot her a dirty look as she deposited the box into the garbage and the plates into the sink.
"Oh, don't be such a baby." She leaned against the sink counter, facing him.
He stuck his tongue out at her.
"You just need to get used to the concept of sharing..."
"Don't wanna," he mumbled, shoving a piece of crust into his mouth.
Casey rolled her eyes, "Very mature."
He licked his lips and pushed his plate away. "So, I'm a little territorial."
"A little? That's the understatement of the century."
"Yadda yadda," he rolled his eyes. "Look, I just like keeping what's mine, mine. It's clean and simple."
"Probably the only 'clean and simple's in your life."
He shrugged, "Works for me."
"Anyway," she sighed. "It's time to put Marti to bed."
"Well," he said, hopping off his stool. "Get to it, sis."
She sneered, "Nice try. You know that's not my department... for some mysterious reason incomprehensible to me, she'll only let her Smerek tuck her in."
He smirked, "What can I say? I'm a charmer."
"That you are, Venturi," she said, turning her back on him to start the sink. "That you are."
--
"The little booger finally fell asleep," Derek exhaled tiredly, flopping onto her formerly-neat bed.
"Is knocking completely out of the question in this household?"
"Apparently."
Casey patted the top of her hair, currently pulled back into a ponytail, using her other hand to continue typing rapidly on her keyboard, her eyes set on the Word document on her desktop.
"So..." he said, nonchalantly tossing her pillow into the air. "What did, uh... how's Fisher?"
"Who?"
"Cam Fisher."
There was a slight pause in her tap-tap-tapping. She recovered shortly and responded with a, "Fine."
The tapping continued.
"Good," Derek said tersely, swallowing. "That's good to, um, hear."
"Yup."
"What was he dying to talk to you about, uh, after school?" He asked, not-so-smoothly.
"Mmm, nothin'."
"Looks like he's kind of interested in you."
"Maybe."
He quirked a brow, suspicious of her indifference.
She felt the pillow thud against the back of her head, and she whirled around in her chair. "Really, Derek?"
He shrugged, pulling himself into a sitting position on the edge of her bed, "You've got an all-star Varsity basketball player pretty much on your tail and that's the only reaction you have? 'Maybe?'"
"Maybe," Casey responded, her eyes narrowing, "Maybe I just don't care."
There was no change in Derek's expression, but he remained quiet.
"I honestly couldn't care less," she said, giving a half-hearted smile. She proceeded to turn back to her computer.
There was silence, except for the tapping of her fingers on the keys. Finally, she heard the shuffling of him getting up from her bed, but she refused to shift her eyes away from her third-page English essay on 'The Odyssey'.
"I like..." Derek's voice was right behind behind her now, his hand positioned on the back of her seat. "I like... that you don't care."
The corner of her mouth twitched slightly upward and she fought a smile, as he leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to her cheek.
"G'night freak."
He exited her room and she looked after him. After she heard the click of his door shutting, she rested her chin on her hand, her elbow propped up on her desk. She sighed, tapping her fingers on the mouse. After about seven minutes of type-less silence, she dragged her mouse to the 'X' on the upper right hand corner of the window, after saving her document, and the screen cleared.
It's not like she could've relied on her thought process any further after that.
A/N: I do so hope you all enjoyed it, sorry it wasn't the best compensation for my lack of updates. Please R&R, criticize, whatever! Thanks, again!