A/N: Other than not having a computer I have no excuse for not updating. I'm sorry. At least the corner of shame has wifi.
The next morning Casey woke up at her normal class time. Seven fifteen. She sat up from her phone alarm chiming, having forgotten to turn it off. Her eyes fluttered open and looked around the room. It took her a full minute to realize she didn't need to rush off to English 112. She rolled over, looked around her room, and took in the sound of her home. Marti was probably downstairs prodding Mom about leaving for the park or library because she was sooo booored. Lizzie had to leave early for the dojo, she had a tournament coming up. Edwin was running around with friends. George was probably at the gym, enjoying a morning to himself. Derek was probably still drooling in his bed.
Casey threw her legs off the bed and grabbed her robe from the open suitcase. Before leaving the room she took a heavy breath.
"Now's as good a time as any." she sighed. Leaving the room she looked at Derek's door. Police tape stretched all across the door, DO NOT ENTER was scribbled on a handwritten sign. Casey peaked in, and sure enough Derek was lying face down on his bed. Head covered with a pillow, blanket tangled around his legs, snoring softly. Casey smiled and went downstairs. Her mom was on the couch reading the newspaper, Marti was on George's laptop playing Nora Approved Learning Games.
"Hi, Casey." Marti greeted cheerfully.
"Hi, Marti. How did you sleep?"
"Okay, I guess." Marti shrugged. "Will you make me waffles?"
"Sure, thing." Casey agreed and went into the kitchen to make coffee and frozen waffles. She tried to ignore the fact that her mother didn't look up at her during the whole exchange. Casey prepped the coffee maker and dug in the freezer for the box of waffles. She didn't hear her mother trail in behind her and sit at the breakfast table. When Casey closed the freezer door and saw Nora sitting at the table she yelped in surprise.
"God, mom. You scared the life out of me. I didn't hear you." Casey gasped. Nora chuckled and sighed.
"Sorry, sweetie. Didn't mean to." Nora apologized. Casey dropped the waffles in the toaster and poured herself a cup of coffee. "Come sit, Casey. I wanna talk to you. Girl to girl."
"Uh, okay." Casey muttered. They hadn't spoken "girl-to-girl" since Casey was fifteen and got the safe sex talk. "Marti come get your waffles." she called into the living room. Marti padded into the kitchen, grabbed her waffles, and nearly sat down at the table.
"Marti, honey. Go eat in the living room. I want to talk to Casey."
"But, you never let me eat in the living room." Marti's eyes widened with surprise.
"Today is a special day. Go eat your breakfast and watch tv." Nora responded, giving her youngest daughter a smile.
"Thanks, mom!" Marti said and rushed into the living room.
God, she wished Lizzie and Casey were that little again. Made happy by something as simple as eating breakfast on the couch. Nowadays, Lizzie was struggling with SAT-Prep and earning her second degree black belt. All while trying to get the girl with the blonde hair who worked at the grocery store and sat in front of her during Physics to notice her. And Casey was taking a massive class load, excelling at her part time job, and falling in love with her step-brother...no, Derek. Just Derek. Another boy off the street. Not the one she helped raise, get into college, screamed for at all of his hockey games, grounded hundreds of times, and watched turn into a fine young man. Nora's heart ached. Her kids grew up without her realizing it.
"What's up, mom?" Casey asked timidly as she sat down across from her mother.
"Casey, you know I love you right?" Nora's voice was small.
"Yeah. Yes, of course." Casey forced a smile.
"Good. I just want you to be happy. Always. No matter what." Nora sighed and reached out to touch her daughters hand. "Does he make you happy?"
"Yes." Casey whispered and her face turned an awful shade of fuschia. "He really does."
"Good. I'm glad." the older woman sighed and took a long drink of her coffee. "I just remembered the way he used to treat his girlfriends. I always hoped you would never date a Derek."
"As shocking as it is...he's not like that anymore. I mean...he treats me really well. And he even studies now! I think we've got his GPA up two points."
"Casey Jane. You always were my miracle worker." Nora laughed. "So, how long has it been? Anniversary wise."
"Geez, mom...I don't know...it's not like it's circled it on my calendar." Casey blushed again.
"C'mon Case. You know." Nora teased.
"October 18th." Casey muttered into her coffee cup.
"Wow. Nearly two months."
"Yeah, wow." Casey was trying to keep her face from doing that involuntary smile thing it did when she talked about her relationship. The two women sipped their coffee and sat in comfortable silence, the sound of Marti's tv show drifting into the kitchen. Only a few minutes later a sleep dazed Derek clad only in ratty pajama bottoms, that Casey had worn on multiple occasions, stumbled into the kitchen.
He didn't look at either of the women who were just talking about him. He was rubbing his eyes and pouting coffee, still pretty much asleep. He was however grumbling about, my damn sleep schedule being thrown off for a stupid geometry class no one should be awake at eight am.
"Still a grumpy bear in the morning I see." Nora laughed.
"I can only do so much." Casey laughed too and Derek finally noticed the two women at the table. He looked up from his coffee mug and smiled at Casey. His sleepy innocent morning smile that was just for Casey. Pretty much saying "I know you're here. I'm glad you're here. Don't even think about talking to me until I finish this mug."
Casey had seen that smile countless time in the past month and half. But it was all new to Nora. Usually Derek was a morning viking. Stomping and thrashing around the house making everyone miserable. Was this him maturing or was this Casey? Either way, those two smiling at each other just seemed too private. Nora got up and kissed her daughter's head.
"Morning, Derek. I'm going upstairs to my office to finish up some paperwork. Keep an eye on Marti please." Nora said and got a grumbled response.
Upstairs in her office she shared with George Nora sunk into her desk chair. On wall behind her desk was the first, and final, family portrait the McDonald-Venturi's ever took. Marti was crying and red-nosed because she was actually very sick but Nora couldn't cancel their appointment. Lizzie and Edwin both had mud on their nice blue sweaters from rough housing in the parking lot and consequently falling in a puddle. George was looking really quite tired and unshaven. Nora's smile was borderline creepy and her thick makeup made her look too happy. She was just as exhausted as her husband. The pair had been up all night taking care of the tiny sick Marti. Derek was on one side of the picture with a sly smile. Casey was on the other side with a red face and tears in her eyes. Derek had said something cruel and equally as crude to his step sister just to get a rise out of her. That family picture was nearly four years old and had never been attempted again.
Nora pulled out her cellphone from her robe pocket and speed dialed her husband's number.
"Hey, honey. Did I leave my wallet at home? I wanna get a smoothie at the juice bar and I can't find it in my locker." George answered the phone after several rings.
"I haven't seen it."
"Hmm. Alright. Are the mongrels up?"
"Yeah. Liz and Ed went to a friends house. Marti is watching tv. The other two….are eating breakfast." her voice dropped in case anybody was using the bathroom across the hall.
"Have you...talked to her?" George's voice was so even and devoid of emotion it was nearly scary.
"Yes." Nora waited a minute. "And I give my blessing."
After two full minutes George responded. "Okay, then. We'll talk when I get home."
"I love you."
"Love you, too." He sighed and the two disconnected.
That night Nora and George gave Lizzie and Edwin fifty dollars to take Marti out to dinner at Chuck E. Cheese. They were bribed with the leftover changed to leave the house for the evening while Nora, George, and the intensely nervous couple hashed things out properly.
As six fifteen rolled around no one had spoken for twelve minutes. The four of them just sat in the living room looking anywhere but at each other. Even Derek was keeping his trap glued shut and stared at his bare feet. With purple toenails, courtesy of his Smarti earlier that afternoon.
"So," George sighed finally at six nineteen. "Your...Nora and I have decided to...let this happen. No questions. No ultimatums. Just a few...stipulations."
"Okay." Derek said slowly. "This isn't like a...triple chore duty kind of stipulation. Because Edwin is almost sixteen and I am not doing his laundry. I remember that disgusting underwear."
"Der-ek. Not necessary." Casey snapped.
"No. Not chores." Nora supplied. "More like house rules. For one, you won't be sharing a room while here. You have separate rooms for a reason. It's always been that way and that's not going to change."
"Also, let's limit the PDA. Marti is a little young for the birds and the bees and this is still a family establishment." George added. "So, no lap sitting on the couch. No making out in the kitchen. If you need to go into each others room, the lights will be on and the door will be open. Just like if you had any other partner in the house."
"And just...please…" Nora looked at the ceiling and bit off her words sharply. "Don't have sex in this house. Ever."
"Agreed." George said quietly. "That's all we really have. So, if you would like to go out to a movie or something...that would be recommended as I would really like to be child free for an hour."
"I need some wine." Nora muttered. The two left the living room and escaped to the kitchen.
"Wow." Casey sighed.
"Yeah. Wow." he paused then looked at Casey. "Wanna go catch a movie? I'd rather not watch George and Nora get shitfaced because they're ashamed of our life's decisions."
"Sounds good to me." Casey groaned and went upstairs to grab her coat.
"It's gotta be worth it." Derek sighed. "It's gotta be."
A/N: Sorry. Yeah, sorry. I'll try again sooner….shit. I suck.