A/N: Back at it again! I'm hoping to finish this story before spring semester begins. I'm going back to school… mostly online but I think my time will mostly be devoted to my classes. So I guess I'll begin reading again when I graduate. -_-

Previously:

"Same dif," Lizzie said as she got up from the sofa. "You guys are disgusting."

"Lizzie!" Nora gasped.

Lizzie ignored her mother's call and ran upstairs to her room. She slammed the door with a loud thud.

Casey had yet to move from her spot. Derek began to panic. Casey's eyes turned into a glassy sheen. Tear were threatening to spill over. "I'm going to go for a walk."

Derek moved toward her. "Case, wait," he reached out to stop her.

Casey pulled violently away. "Please don't touch me." Derek's hands and his love might as well have been acid.

DASEY

Casey couldn't breathe. It was her worst nightmare. She had known that perhaps her sister would be shocked to find out that she and Derek were dating. Having her sister call her disgusting felt like a slap in the face. As soon as Casey reached the park bench she found a bit of peace. She replayed the event in her head as she kept walking.

Just then her phone started to vibrate. She took the phone out of her pocket and saw it was Emily calling. She briefly remembered receiving a Facebook message asking her when she was coming back home. Perhaps Emily saw the prince in the driveway. Casey let the call go to voice mail.

She wanted to just think for a second. Casey spotted the park she and Derek had just came from earlier that day. She walked up to the bench, brushed off the small amount of snow and took a seat. She tried to take some deep breaths but it wasn't helping. She thought of calling Kennedy but she already knew what her answer would be. Kennedy was a bit too pro-Derek. She needed someone who didn't know their situation yet.

Casey pulled out her phone. Emily had left her a voice message.

Hey Casey, you never answered my Facebook message so here I am to bug you again. I hope we can catch up. Call me!

Perhaps it was a sign. Maybe talking to Emily would help. Casey decided to wipe away her tears and make the phone call.

DASEY

Derek was in full panic mode. Not only did he know where Casey was but Nora and George were telling him to give her space. He didn't like it. He was pacing in the kitchen. Edwin sat there eating left over seeming to be indifferent, but he was keeping an eye on his big brother. Marti was in the living room looking out the window- waiting for Casey to appear.

Lizzie was nowhere to be found. Which was probably a good thing, considering Derek wouldn't know what do if he saw her at this moment. George and Nora had decided to talk quietly downstairs in the basement.

"I would've never expected his from Lizzie. I'm honestly shocked." Nora tried to calm herself down but she kept remembering Casey's face. Nora saw the light fade from her daughter's eyes when Lizzie spoke. She couldn't believe her daughter spoke so harshly. She decided to give everyone moment calm down. Nora did all she could to stop herself from running upstairs and asking Lizzie, why? George spoke with Derek and finally convinced him to not seek Casey out immediately.

It was growing dark. Nora knew she could only hold the motherly instinct to run and search for her daughter for so long.

"It's getting dark George. Where could she be?" George could only shake his head. He didn't know how to respond.

DASEY

Emily had pulled into the park parking lot and glanced around for Casey. She spotted her walking towards her car. Casey pulled the door open and smiled thinly. Emily on the other hand yelled in excitement and rushed to hug her friend. Casey accepted the hug and smiled a bit wider.

"Girl, I have missed you. I've got loads to tell. So where are we headed to?"

Casey shrugged.

Once Emily began driving she finally noticed that Casey hadn't said anything. "So what's been going on? And why are you outside at the park in the cold?"

Casey sighed, "Bad family meeting."

Emily frowned as she pulled into the parking lot of local mall. "Did you and Derek get into it?"

Casey laughed half heartedly. "Surprisingly no. Lizzie and I are not seeing eye to eye." Casey paused for a moment. She was trying to decide if she just wanted to tell Emily and just rip it off like a band-aid. "Derek and I are actually getting along now." She waited to judge her reaction.

Emily was super happy to see that the siblings were getting along. "So you guys are finally starting to act like siblings? Were there any feel good family hugs?" Emily clapped with joy.

Casey felt the sense of dread again. She could feel her heart begin to pound. Her palms began to sweat. Casey cleared her throat uncomfortably. "Well, actually we're kind of dating."

Emily stopped clapping. "Dating?" She whispered it like she couldn't bare to hear it any louder.

Casey tried to put on her brave face. "Yeah, we became close friends this past semester. Then we just sort of agreed to date. It all went so smoothly, surprisingly. I didn't think—"

"Have you slept with him?" Emily abruptly cut her off. Her voice was sharp, quite, and full of hate.

"No," she whispered. "I'm not ready for that."

Emily chuckled darkly. "Well, that's the only reason why he's still with you. You know once we slept together he kicked me to the curb." Emily turned to face Casey with a dark smirk. "So if you sleep with him he'll dump you. If you don't, he'll get bored and leave. So either way it's a lose lose situation."

Casey couldn't breathe. Emily didn't care about the fact that they were step-siblings. She cared for the fact that they were dating in the first place. The hated in her voice just tore through her heart.

Casey was brought back to reality by the sound of Emily's voice. "Face it, Casey. Derek is not a one woman guy. You're setting yourself up for failure."

DASEY

"I'm done waiting around." Derek said as he grabbed his dad's keys. "I'm going out to look for her. It's getting freaking dark and she's still not answering her phone."

George and Nora glanced at each other and nodded. They allowed Derek to go search for Casey but to bring Edwin along with him.

Once they were in the car Edwin meekly mentioned that perhaps they should call around to friends. Edwin thought Derek might pound him but all he did was pull out his cell phone. He began speaking with a girl named Kennedy, asking her if Casey had called recently. He obviously didn't get the right answered because he quickly hung up and dialed some more numbers.

"I wonder if she called Emily," Derek mumbled under his breath. He dialed her number. "Emily?... Hey… Have you seen Casey?... Really? Where? When?" There was a long pause. "So she just got out of the car?" Edwin saw it in his face that Derek was about to explode. "Alright, thanks, can you meet me later? I just want to catch up… Great, see you then." Derek hung up the phone. "Guess I'm gonna have to tell her off."

Edwin didn't question. Derek pulled the car over and headed towards home. Edwin threw a questioning glance at Derek. "I'm taking you home. Tell mom and dad I found her and to not wait up," he said. And that was all he said.

Derek knew confronting Casey would be difficult. He wasn't exactly sure what would happen. He wasn't sure if she even wanted to see him. Derek would never forget her face when he had tried to grab for her.

Derek flew towards the mall. He would deal with Emily later; for now he needed Casey to get out of her head.

DASEY

Casey wasn't sure if she said anything to Emily once she was finished with her rant. All Casey remembered was getting out of the car and Emily yelling at her that she was a bad friend. Casey pretty much blocked everything else out. She didn't even remember walking to the food court. She vaguely recalls herself placing an order at Ben and Jerry's. She glanced down at the table she was sitting at and saw her favorite. One Sweet World had comforted her all through her break ups but this time it sat melted in the cup.

She was so spaced out that she didn't even notice Derek walking towards her. Derek came up quietly as to not spook her. He gently placed a hand on her shoulder. Casey still ended up jumping. She was about to get up and run when she realized that she was basically strained at the mall.

Derek sat down and began to eat her melted ice-cream. Once he ate it he sat there waiting for her to speak. Casey couldn't think of anything to say.

"So, what did she say to you?" Derek finally spoke.

Casey should've known that Derek would've spoken to Emily. He probably called all their friends searching for her.

"She didn't say anything that wasn't true," Casey whispered. She lowered her head in shame. She didn't want to disappoint Derek but felt like it was a losing battle. "She wasn't upset that we're step siblings dating. She was more concerned with the fact that you're not a one woman guy. I guess it was just her way of warning me… maybe."

Derek didn't respond. He knew Emily's intentions were not as "friendly" as Casey made them out to be. He rose from his chair and began to walk away. He turned around slightly, "Are you coming?"

Seeing as how she didn't have a way home she decided to follow him. It was only then that Casey noticed the mall associates putting up chairs. How long had she been gone?

DASEY

Nora waited in the living room patiently. When Edwin had arrived at home alone she was beyond disappointed to not see Casey or Derek with him. When she asked Edwin had told her that Derek knew where she was and was going to get her. Nora had questioned him where Casey was but he answered that he didn't know.

Nora practically jumped up when she saw headlights run past the window. She saw Casey and Derek filing out of the car and rushed towards the front door. She hugged Casey tightly. "Please don't do that again."

Casey nodded and hugged her mother back tightly. She was glad to be home. Casey unclasped from her mother and head inside. She took of her coat and headed upstairs to her room. She locked the door and took in a deep breath. The solitude didn't last long.

There was a knock on Casey's door and she sighed miserably. "Who is it?"

"Its mom," Nora answered through the door. Casey debated on whether or not to talk to her mom. She wanted to nap and rethink things over when she awoke. On the other hand she wanted to bawl her eyes out to her mom. She wanted to be smoothered with love and be told that everything would be okay. She wanted her mom to stroke her hair and wipe away her tears.

"Come in," Casey rose from her laying position to sit on the bed. She wiped away her tears and tried to put on a brave face.

Nora walked in the room and saw her red eye, snuffling daughter under the covers trying to act brave. She knew that Casey was heartbroken. Nora moved to sit next to her on her bed. Casey broke down. She cried for at least fifteen minutes. Finally when Casey subsided Nora started asking questions.

"What happened? Why did you leave? Where did you go?" Nora tried to stop the questions from flying out her mouth but she couldn't stop it.

Casey lifted her head, "I just had to get out. Lizzie and the things she said and then Emily- it was too much."

Nora frowned. "What did Emily say?"

Casey retold her story of Emily coming to pick her up from the park. She then told her about the things Emily said. Just retelling it was too much for Casey. Were she and Derek silly for thinking that they could make this work?

Nora sighed, "Well, I guess you'll have to make a choice." That wasn't what Casey was expecting. "But you need to speak to all those involved. You need to speak to Lizzie—"

"Mom I can't talk to her right now!" Casey shouted angrily. "She probably can't even look at me much less—"

"No," Nora stated firmly. "You need to speak with her and find out what's going on. Lizzie doesn't express her feelings as well as you do. Perhaps there's something else that's bothering her. You need to find that out."

Casey thought about it, "What if it's not an underlying problem? What if she really hates us being together?" Casey wasn't sure if she could handle that. She was barely handling it now.

"Then hopefully that will be something she'll get over. Maybe as the time passes she won't hate the idea. Maybe once she sees how happy Derek makes you she'll come around… And if not, then that's something Lizzie will have to live with-not you." Nora was silent for a moment. She couldn't see Lizzie hating her sister forever. Lizzie wasn't hard hearted, which is why it surprised her when Lizzie called them disgusting. "Then you need to talk to Emily. Perhaps she wasn't such a good friend as before. People change Casey. You and Derek are prime examples of that."

Nora took a deep breath as Casey's breathing began to slow. She knew her daughter was fast asleep but kept talking anyways. "And then finally, you need to talk to Derek. The last time I checked there were two people in a relationship. However, I know you. You'll have to talk with all these other people before you speak with him." Nora stroked her daughter's hair. "I think you guys can make it. I really do."

DASEY

Derek couldn't calm down. He paced in the kitchen trying not to run over to Emily's and telling her off a good one. Luckily George was there to calm him down.

"What happened?" George sat down at the kitchen table and tried to talk to his son. Derek was so worked up George was honestly afraid for Emily. He told him what Emily had told him and what Casey told him at the mall. George could not have been more surprised and saddened by Emily's reaction.

"I told her that I wanted to meet and catch up," Derek laughed bitterly. "However, I probably shouldn't head over there just yet."

George chuckled, "Probably not."

Derek sighed and sat with his father. "Casey listens to people's opinions. She's already over thinking everything." Derek tried to rub the stress away from his face.

George nodded in agreement. "You're just going to have to give her some time. Let her think through it. Casey's smart and I'm sure Nora is talking with her right now."

Derek nodded. "I expected there to be some resistance from Lizzie. I just— I just didn't expect for her to say it like that."

"I think that's out of your hands. That's going to have to be a conversation between Casey and Lizzie. Now, what are you going to do about Emily?"

Derek sighed in frustration. "I think she's jealous. We didn't end on great terms." George looked someone expectant of his son. Derek rolled his eyes. "I knew I was pretty much in love with Casey by that time and she kept talking about coming to see me at college. She made weekend plans and she drew up a schedule… Then I sort of led her to believe that I was seeing someone else… on the side."

George just blinked at his son. "You told her that you were cheating on her?"

Derek pinched the bridge of his nose. "I know but it was the only way to break up with her. I tried to break it off just by a clean break but she wouldn't accept it. So finally I just blurted out that I was seeing someone else."

George could've smacked his son. "You need to take care of that Derek. If that's the only reason Emily could have to say that then you need to talk with her."

Derek nodded. Now that he'd calmed himself a bit he was ready to talk with Emily.

It didn't take Derek long to make his way over to Emily's house. He rang the door bell and waited. Emily was the one who answered. He asked her if they could take a walk. She agreed and ran upstairs to grab her coat. Derek felt his stomach twist. She was so happy to see him. Did she act that way with Casey?

Once Emily basically skipped her way downstairs Derek forced a smile and led the way to the park. Emily wouldn't stop talking. She went on and on about her college experience. How she had joined a sorority and loved all her sister. But of course some of them were jealous of her because she had all the guys chasing after her.

Once they did arrive at the park Derek sent a silent prayer, thankful for the walk to be over. Emily spotted a bench and sat. Derek sighed heavily.

"Wait," Emily spoke first. Derek raised his eyebrows in confusion. "I know what you're going to say." Derek's disbelief grew even further. She had no idea. "And I think you were right to say that we needed to break it off. I know there wasn't anyone else."

This statement did surprise Derek. She had cried about their breakup for weeks; texted him nasty things during those weeks. He knew just how hateful and bitter she could actually be. Very different from the mask she was showing him now. It was all a show for her.

"And now," She continued. "You think back on our time together and realize how good it was. Perhaps the breakup showed you just how much you missed me. And believe me I've missed you so much. I mean, sure there were tons of guys but none of them compared to you. I'm sure there were girls there—"

Derek's head was spinning. "What in the hell are you talking about!?"

Emily was startled by his outburst, "Us getting back together." She said it so plainly that he wasn't sure if she had even heard him.

Derek took a few steps back. He tried to gain control. "We are not getting back together. We will never get back together." Emily's eyes began to water. Derek simply couldn't believe the situation he was in. "Why are you crying?! You spoke with Casey earlier today! I know she told you about us!"

Emily face turned red and her mask was off. "CASEY?!" She shouted in disgust. "I thought she was delusional!"

"No! You told her I wasn't a one woman guy!" Derek shouted back.

Emily nodded, "Yeah, but I'm going to change that." Emily grew calm- scary calm. "You used to not be a one woman guy. But since our breakup and our time away from each other you've come to realize—"

Derek had heard enough, "Realize this! We will never to be a couple. Casey and I are dating. It didn't work out between us Emily, get over it. We would've made each other miserable. You know this." Emily just shook her head. Derek finally felt the stress he had been trying to keep at bay. It weighed him down with exhaustion. "Emily, listen. Casey will be my wife some day and you can be a part of our lives or not. The choice is completely up to you."

Derek left Emily standing beside the park bench. For now, he was done with her. Her fate as a friend he left up to Casey. He would let Casey choose whether she even wanted Emily in their lives or not.

A/N: DUN DUN DUN! Next in line- is Lizzie.