Here's the continuation! Happy reading. :]
They spent the rest of the night eating cake and flipping through old photo albums, reminiscing in the past. Soon, everyone became drowsy and decided to settle down for the night. After goodnights, Derek returned to his room. He changed out of his jeans and slid on a pair of pajama pants and a clean, gray shirt. He brushed and flossed his teeth before he settled down in bed, only to find he wasn't tired anymore. He brought out his laptop, which he hadn't had time to check over the course of the trip and smiled when he discovered that Penelope had changed his background again to a collage of the goofy pictures that they took one day out of sheer boredom. He smirked as glanced at each one. God, this girl is crazy, he thought, as he looked at a particularly funny one with the two of them giving each other bunny ears, both of them in mid-laugh. His thoughts were interrupted by a light knock on the door.
He whipped his head around to see a pajama-clad Isabella standing in the door, looking slightly nervous.
"Hey, baby girl. What's the matter?" He asked softly.
"Um, I have something to ask you, and uh, it's been on my mind for a long time now and it's crazy and I know you may say no, but it's something I've really thought about and I think it would be good for me and-" She rambled.
Derek cut her off. "Spit it out, Bella." He said with a chuckle, patting the bed next to him.
She hesitantly sat down. "Ummm…" She stalled, earning a questioning look from Derek. "I want to come back to Virginia with you. For good." She finally said.
He was shocked. "Oh, sweetie, you know I love you, but…Virginia isn't the place for a kid. I mean-" He began.
Now it was her turn to cut him off. "I'm not a child!" She exclaimed, suddenly full of words. "Derek, think about it. There's nothing for me in this town. I mean, I love Grandma Fran, Desiree and Sarah, but really…I have no place to expand. No room to grow and learn. If I really want to work for the BAU, which I do, then what better place to enlighten myself then over there, with you? And, at the risk of sounding conceited, the team loves me! I'll fit right in. And-"
Derek put his hand up. This was too much. "Isabella! What are you talking about? Working for the BAU? I thought that was just some sort of phase. You need to stay here. Get some friends your own age. Act like a teen. No. No way! You need to stay put. Virginia isn't a good place for you. You won't be able to handle all the sick things you see. I can't let you. You're just a little girl." He said, his voice rising.
"What? When will you realize I'm not a baby! I can handle it! I am fifteen years old!" She yelled, her frustration apparent.
"Exactly, you are just fifteen. There is no way you are coming. Visits are fine, but living there? I wont have time to watch you or take care of you." He bellowed, in full-blown fight mode now.
"Will you just listen? I'm old enough to take care of myself! I don't need watching!" She pleaded.
"No, Isabella. And that's final. Go to bed." He said, his voice loud and firm.
"What is all the fuss about?" A voice yelled.
Both of them turned in shock to see Grandma Fran standing in the doorway, looking stern.
"She wants to come back to Virginia with me." Derek practically whispered, his voice shaking.
Fran's eyes widened, but she quickly recovered. She turned to Isabella. "Is this true?" She questioned. Isabelle nodded. "Well, maybe it's not a bad idea…"
Derek wanted to scream. So he did. "MOM! Come on. Not you too. That's crazy. Quantico is no place for her. I can't take care of her."
"Now, Derek, think about it…" Fran started, but she was cut off by Isabella's quivering voice.
"When did I become such a burden? I just wanted to be able to do something with myself. But it's obvious from your number of visits and your reaction that I don't mean that much anymore." She whispered, her big eyes filling with tears.
Derek softened. "Hey, Bells, you know I didn't…" He said, moving closer. She pushed him away and ran from the room. Things were silent until they heard a sob and a slam.
"Now look at what you've done. You mean everything to that girl." Fran scolded, worry etched onto her face.
"Mom, I…"
"Don't start with me, mister." She said cutting him off. "Just listen." So he did.
-:-
Isabella ran to her room crying. She collapsed onto the bed, sobbing. She couldn't get the look of pure rage he gave her out of her mind.
She could hear loud mumbles from the other room, but she didn't bother listening. There was no use, anyways. Derek was leaving tomorrow night and it was obvious she wasn't going along. Ugh. All that packing gone to waste. She thought, referring to how she packed up all of her bags in hope that her plan would work. It hadn't. She let tears flow. She knew she was being she was being dramatic, but she didn't care. He just didn't get how badly she wanted to go to Virginia. To get to explore the world of the FBI that she found so fascinating. To finally feel like doing something other than sitting around listening to music or walking around the streets of this boring town. She took a breath, suddenly feeling drained. She would just have to deal. She closed her eyes, letting the slurred, abstract images of dream carry her to sleep.
Morning came too soon for everybody. Everyone had stayed up late the night before, especially Derek and Fran. Isabella wasn't even sure if she was ready to face Derek yet, but the smell of chocolate chip pancakes and the sound of her empty stomach rumbling lured her out of her room. She trudged into the kitchen, cursing her "teenage-ness" for making her hungry all the time, to find a very sleepy Derek Morgan standing in front of the stove, adding a final pancake to the stack on the side of the stove. She plopped down at the kitchen table. Grandma Fran walked in and began setting the places at the table, smiling weakly at Isabella. He turned off the stove, picked up the plate and turned around. He seemed a little surprised that Isabella was awake, but he just strode over to the table. He set down the pancakes and Desiree and Sarah walked into the kitchen, both very drowsy, and sat down at the table silently. Just as Sarah reached for a pancake, Derek reached out and slapped her hand out of the way.
"Ah, not yet. I have to say something first." He said sternly. Isabella got a little curious at what he had to say. "Yesterday night, as you guys probably heard, Isabella and I got into a bit of an argument. And Isabella, I apologize, but I didn't agree with what you were saying. And after a long discussion, Fran and I decided that…" He paused, staring at Isabella, who was preparing for punishment. "…You are coming with me, Isabella. To Virginia. For good." He finished. Isabella took a moment to let it soak in. She glanced around taking in everyone's looks of surprise (Sarah and Desiree) and excitement (Derek and Fran).
"R-r-really?" She stuttered, on the verge of screaming.
"Really." Derek said, smiling.
"THANK YOU!" She screamed, happy tears spilling down her cheeks.
"Oh, don't thank me, baby girl. Thank your Grandma and the wonderful Penelope Garcia. Without her, we wouldn't have been able to figure this out on such short notice. Tickets, notifying the team, school transfers, all that stuff wouldn't have been done without her exquisite computer and phone skills." He explained.
Isabella squealed, something she rarely did, and threw her arms around Derek. She began running around hugging her aunts and grandma, uttering how much she loved them and how much she would miss them in their ears. Derek watched the overexcited teenager run around with a smile on his face. What did I just get myself into…?
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