Casey hugged her knees to her chest; a smile lingering on her lips.

She held the phone in her hand, about to make a call that would forever change her life.

Last night, Derek had told her that he loved her. It wasn't until he voiced those words that she realized just how long she had been waiting for him to say it. She loved him more with each passing moment, and watching him make an effort to keep her happy was all that she could ask for.

Casey desperately willed herself to stay calm. She could not mess up what they had going. She knew how neurotic she could be, and it had ruined all of her relationships in the past. She would not ruin what she had with Derek after four long years of playing cat and mouse.

She made up her mind regarding New York and Queens. She hadn't realized that her decision would come down to Derek's declaration. There was no doubt in her mind anymore.

Casey dialed the number that was written inside of her address book, waiting patiently and with bated breath until she heard a "hello" come from the other end.

"Jesse?" she asked with caution, though she already knew it was him by the sound of his voice.

"Yes?"

"Ummm, it's Casey."

The other end went silent, and for a moment, she thought that he might have hung up. She wouldn't necessarily blame him after how they had parted ways.

"Casey!" he said in a more excited tone than she expected. "I haven't heard from you in over a week. I was beginning to wonder if you'd changed your mind about New York."

Casey closed her eyes against his excitement. This would be much harder than she had anticipated. She barely knew Jesse, but he was genuinely one of the nicest guys she had ever met.

"Actually," she began, "I was calling you about New York."

"Great! Practice starts on September 16th, so if you would like to meet me at JFK, we can go from there. I can take you by the studio, introduce you to…"

"Jesse…" she cut him off from the plans he had so carefully laid out. The silence became deafening once again.

"Aaaannnddd…you're not coming, are you?"

"I'm sorry," she said in a genuine apologetic voice. "So much has happened this past week that there is absolutely no way I can leave right now. I hope you understand."

"Derek," Jesse said as a statement, not a question. Casey clenched the phone tight, her knuckles turning white in the process. Of course he would come to the conclusion that it was Derek keeping her here instead of fallowing her dream of becoming a professional dancer. After all, Jesse had noticed more than anyone the way Derek held her while they danced…the way she watched him ride away with Roxy; the way she walked away from Jesse afterwards so that she wouldn't have to answer the obvious questions that clearly lingered in his mind.

"It's just…"

"Derek," he finished for her, again voicing her step-brother's name. It was like he was willing her to say it herself.

"Derek," she whispered into the phone, giving Jesse what he wanted to hear – what he needed to hear. Though she knew that deep down, he wanted her to give any other explanation aside from her step-sibling.

"So it's been going on this whole time?"

"What?! No! I told you, a lot has happened since the lodge. Until this past week, I couldn't wait to get away from him." Casey truthfully answered Jesse and his beratement over what she had with Derek, though deep down, she knew that she owed him no explanation.

"You do realize how messed up this is, right?"

Jesse's words rang in her ears, making her realize even more how much George and her mom would voice the same opinion. Why was everyone going to be against her and Derek being together? It didn't make sense. They didn't even grow up together. She loved him and that was all that mattered.

He loved her, and somehow, that mattered even more.

"I don't care what you think."

"Good to know," Jesse said. And with that, the other line went dead. She put down the phone and pondered over what he had said. Honestly, she didn't care. She was truly happy for the first time in a long while.

Casey tiptoed from her room, pausing outside of Derek's. She could hear music coming from his stereo as she knocked lightly on his door, hoping that he would hear her.

"Go away, Edwin!" he yelled from inside his room. Casey smiled to herself, relishing in the tone that was so familiar to her. It was a reminder that he was still Derek and not some stranger who had overtaken his body when she wasn't looking.

Slowly opening the door and peeking inside. Derek was seated at his computer desk, chugging a can of Coke and shoving piles of food into his mouth. It was funny to think that the man who made her whole body come alive night after night was still the messy little boy that she had been secretly infatuated with for so many years.

Upon seeing her, Derek paused and smiled. A chip fell from his mouth and onto his shirt, making her grimace visibly, though she quickly tried to hide her disgust. She clicked the door closed behind her and suddenly felt ridiculous and vulnerable. Maybe she should have changed first, but she was all ready for bed in an oversized pajama shirt and bottoms.

Derek had seen her dressed like this almost every night since the moment she moved in, but somehow it now felt different.

"I'd give ya kiss, but I doubt you want me to," he said with a full mouth, wiping the mess away with the bottom of his shirt.

Casey sat on the edge of his bed, watching him click away with his computer mouse and then type furiously with his fingers. When he saw that she was watching him intently out of the corner of his eye, he finished another long sentence before shutting off his screen

"Sam," he said simply, indicating who he had been talking to.

Casey nodded her head in understanding and began to wonder what she was supposed to say. If she admitted that she already decided not to go to New York, but instead move to Queens with him, she might come off as clingy. And Derek hated clingy.

Upon sensing her hesitation, his eyes became weary, but was accompanied with a classic smirk. "You aren't about to start another fight are you? I'm tired…not sure I can drudge up another match between you and me tonight."

"I'm not here to fight. I do have something to tell you though."

He nodded at her statement, seemingly satisfied as he braced his feet on the floor and wheeled to her backwards, turning around and placing both hands on her pink pajama bottoms. "Shoot."

"I called Jesse," she blurted out. Surprisingly, Derek nodded hesitantly, but he didn't look particularly angry at her declaration.

"And?" he encouraged.

"And I've decided…not to go to New York."

She watched Derek's features closely as he allowed her words to sink in. For a moment, she was positive he didn't understand what she was saying until a light bulb went off. He brought her slender fingers to his mouth, kissing the tips before bringing his lips to hers in the lightest touch she had ever felt.

In that moment, she knew that she had made the right decision. Even if these few seconds were all she got, it was more than enough to satisfy her in every way imaginable.

"Queens?" he asked to garner confirmation on her future plan of action. Casey nodded her head vigorously, loving the way his dark eyes danced in that moment.

"I can't wait to have you all to myself – just you and I."

Casey couldn't wait either. Going away to University meant quality time with Derek without living under the scrutiny of everyone they knew. However, a sinking feeling continued to ruminate in her stomach, making her nauseous.

"I can't wait either," she voiced her thought allowed. "But I still think we should tell them."

It didn't take a genius to understand who 'them' meant. She didn't miss the eye roll from Derek, but his accompanied sigh of reluctance sounded promising in that moment as he nodded his head in agreement.

"I guess it has to happen eventually."

"When!?"

"Calm down, Spacey. Let's not get excited about shit that's going to hit the fan."

"When?" she asked in a less enthusiastic whisper.

Derek rubbed his furrowed brow before slapping both of his hands on his knees in a definite manner.

"I'll take care of it first. I'll talk to G and then maybe we can tell Nora."

"You don't think we should tell them together?" Casey asked, confused.

"Nooo," Derek said while backing up. "Dad's going to be pissed. He told me hands off from the beginning. And can you imagine what Nora will say? I'm going to turn out to be the big bad villain that corrupted her precious little girl. This whole situation sucks."

Casey opened her mouth, but quickly shut it, refusing to fight in this moment. There fights had to stop if they were ever going to have a future together. And despite the fact that he continued to be maddening, she had to trust his judgement.

"Whatever you think is best."

Her words of agreement caused Derek to raise his eyebrows in surprise. Once again, he smirked in her direction. "Well, that's shocking."

"What is?"

"That's the first time you've ever went with my suggestion without putting up a fight."

Casey shrugged. "As long as you promise to talk to George, I'll support you."

Derek rose from his chair and leaned down until his face was only centimeters away from Casey's. "I promise," he said before capturing her lips between his in a searing kiss that they hadn't shared since their last night alone.

"I love you."

"Love you too, Case."