Update available. This took me a few months to write, but I hope you will like it!
Chapter 3 - Winter Wonderland
December 20.
He knew.
He knew everything. Even if there was in denial, the truth was that he knew. And even so he tried to ignore it. But things weren't the same. College... well, for the first time in his life his grades were good. And he was taking as many credits as possible. Hey, if he kept this up he might even graduate earlier.
"Dude, Michelle has been asking all week if you are going to be at the Phi Omega Alpha thing this weekend. All of us from the team are coming." He also knew that Michelle had a major thing for him and it was becoming quite annoying. She was pretty, blonde, green eyes, great tits, but he never got past a smile around her. Whatever made her interested in the first place? "Come on, she's hot. I don't understand why you don't give it a go." He looked up to Steve with a defeated look, having no idea how to explain that which he knew but he was denying to himself. Sororities had been a thing to look forward to when he was in high school. Yet it seemed he was never going to appreciate the beauty of them. How ironic.
He was supposed to be home for Christmas. He didn't go for Thanksgiving, he had a lot of work to do and on the Thursday crashed at Evan's place off campus, Evan's was a junior with his own apartment that was on the team with him. Good guy, steady girlfriend and they loved each other in a harmonic way, it wasn't the usual puppy love nor honeymoon love. They would be together forever, everyone could see the respect and simpleness of them. She was a no bullshit girl and he was a very grounded man. They had Spam with cranberry jelly on toast for Thanksgiving, College Budget Thanksgiving. It had been fun and he went back to campus on Friday.
But now, Christmas break was two days away and between not having an excuse to not go and between Marti begging him to come and open presents he found himself receiving an email from Nora and Dad with the plane ticket home. He called to say thanks. It wasn't necessary to ask if Casey was going... Marti had obviously begged her to come as well. And she was as weak as him in spoiling Marti. Well, maybe he was weaker.
The whole idea of spending Christmas home and being with his loved ones was beautiful... but he loved Casey, and he wasnt sure how to say it. He wasn't even completely sold on the idea of even saying it. But considering what the idea of seeing her made him feel, it was butt crazy to even be beside her in the same room and not explode with words better left unsaid.
He had fallen in love with his stepsister.
6:00 am
December 21
"Cachetes, wake up" Nadia said to her. She felt a soft hand sliver comfortingly down her arm. She turned in the bed to see Nadia already dressed in a pretty floral dress, mid thigh and no sleeves, she looked like a fairy, her wild brown hair framing her heartshaped face, and brilliant ocean green eyes. Since the first day they had instantly clicked, she was five feet of charm and a little bit risque. A careless flirt that loved to tease both girls and boys. She said she loved her blush the second day they met, and after that was always trying to make her blush.
But she was waking her at six am, which was not something she had planned. She had made sure that none of her classes was before nine, as much as she had always been disciplined and woken up early all her high school years, she just loved sleeping.
"You gotta be at the airport in one hour, remember? You asked me to wake you?" She stretched out in bed, letting her see her belly button and watching fascinated as Nadia's eyes followed her stomach. She was learning from her on how to tease, and she was enjoying it very much.
"No hagas eso," she said carefully. She was a very touching person, hugs all around and unexpected kisses. The first day of classes she had asked about the boy that called the night before. She shrugged her off at the beginning of the day, and she didn't push the issue. But that same night she started crying and she had no idea why and little by little she told her as much as she remembered of the night before.
I slept with my stepbrother was not the way she was hoping to start their friendship, but somehow it did. And she didnt judge her. She asked if Derek was hot, and then said, well, there's really no relation except living under the same roof. She knew it had been an alcohol induced mistake. And Nadia's friend therapy actually helped her come to terms with her friendship with Derek, how fragile it used to be and how now it hangs by a thin string which it was in her hand to repair.
The other thing she learned through Nadia was how to drink. Enjoy the taste and be slow about it, don't mix liquors and put yourself a limit of glasses, those were Nadia's advices, she told her how her first beer had been when she was twelve and her father had given it to her, and then with her father and family she had slowly grown to like and have a taste instead of the stupid was college freshmen usually chugged alcohol.
Nadia easily became her best friend and roomie. She was double majoring in biotechnology and chemistry, a solid background for pre med, even if she wasn't sure in the long run about being a doctor, and the only course they shared was one literature course, because she liked it to fill her last credits. Casey on the other hand was double majoring in English and economics, and although she had taking a necessary basic science course, she had opted for biology which was "absolutely boring" in Nadia's words.
"Five more minutes" she mumbled into her pillow
"Five more minutes and you'll be rushing, even if your luggage is ready" she replied. "Besides, we said we'd split the cab fare to the airport and I want to be there on time. Go on now."
"I'm up now." she said, grabbing her toiletries to go to the bathroom next door. She sniffed her hair, it could go unwashed today. Then she opened her closet space and took out a bra. She sniffed it, too, and decided it could have one more day. A pair of jeans and her towel and the headed to the shower.
6:02 am
December 21
Nadia was perched on the window, caught in between looking outside at the slowly emptying campus and reading a Megan McCafferty novel about the life of a college student that too often felt awkward and weird. Not unlike her. She had come to study in Canada from a far away country, or so she liked to say. Her English was perfect, but she often talked in Spanish just to feel closer to her family back home.
"Five more minutes" she heard Casey say to her pillow, it was barely comprehensible to her.
"Five more minutes and you'll be rushing, even if your luggage is ready" she said without lifting her eyes from the book. "Besides, we said we'd split the cab fare to the airport and I want to be there on time. Go on now."
She saw Casey groggily get out of bed and head for the bathroom. She loved her roommate. Knew way more than you sometimes wanted to know, but then again, friends listened to each other, and she listened.
About her family, her huge family and about her stepbrother. All about her high school life and too many details to keep count. She was a big talker. But she was happy. She had seen her flirt with two different guys, have a few dates, though nothing serious, which was good. We're not looking for husbands yet she had told her the first time they went to a party together.
She tried to read but kept getting distracted. She was also excited of going home, her sister was ecstatic to see her and her mother missed her too. And she did want to go, but somewhere it between the wanted to be alone. But, then again, she was a people-pleaser and the people she liked pleasing the most was her family. Seeing them happy made her happy. So she was going. Unlike her, Casey had no preoccupations whatsoever, was glad to see her family and didn't even have an issue regarding the way she left and her whole sleeping with her stepbrother fiasco.
It seemed highly unlikely, but I guess living under the same roof can make people do crazy things and have crazy feelings. She had a little idea that there was more than just alcohol between them, the way she had said it, but she was not one to impose her ideas on, well, basically something that she knew nothing about. Besides, if Casey had reached the conclusion that she was in love with Derek by her own, she would've denied it anyways, it would be a great big mess for everyone in her house. So. Nadia knew Casey was at peace with what happened, but then again, what could Derek be thinking? She had considered calling him a few times at the beginning of the semester, but chickened out and decided that it was too bold to interfere like that. Besides, as much as she could tell, Casey called home often enough to know how he was faring... but never called him. Nor him her, anyways. Except the night she arrived when she picked up the phone.
The door creaked open and Casey walked in all ready.
"Let's go" Nadia smiled at her, snapping her book shut and sliding off the window perch.
"You're lucky you only have one short flight" Nadia told her. "I have three flights, one connection I have to wait four hours and I get home technically next morning. Dumb airlines."
Casey just rolled her eyes, she knew just how excited Nadia was to see her family, even if she did complain.
11:49 am
December 21
He stayed home, he told them that he had some catching up to for one of his classes. So he did not go with everyone to pick her up at the airport, he would see her eventually but hoped to postpone it as much as possible. He could stay locked up in his room until tonight. Then he had to join for dinner.
They had left at 11:00 promptly to pick her up at the airport. Marti was even on time, and Edwin had stayed behind as well. So it was jut the two of them at home, but Edwin was too busy with video games to spare him a thought. Which was good, if someone was to figure out something was... off, it was going to be Edwin.
The silent house was thunderously interrupted by their arrival. Marti was talking joyously to Casey, and the baby was crying and there was a cooing (which he thought was his Dad's) trying to settle it. He put down the pen and got up from his desk. He neared the door and when his hand went to the doorknob he withdrew his hand as if burnt. "Idiot" he bumbled to himself and went back to his desk. He grabbed his pen again and skimmed through his book for the next paragraph he was on.
"Hey, Derek, we're back, wanna come join us?" asked Nora at the door. He really, really, really did not want to join them. Not now that Casey was here, not when he had no plan on what to do.
"I'll be down as soon as I finish this essay" he said to her, and he really hoped that the essay never ended.
"All right" she said and left his door, not even opening it once. He was lucky, Casey's room had been converted in the baby room and would bunk with the girls whenever she visited, he still had his room intact. It was probably due to both their parents thinking that if one of them was going to fail our or drop out it was going to be him. But that didn't seem like it was going to happen.
He went back to his book and continued reading; he simultaneously lifted his pen to his mouth to bite on it and his other hand went to mess up his hair.
8:03 p.m.
December 21
He had already been called down to dinner. She was actually a bit worried... was he avoiding her? Well, if that was the case all the better. He should be ashamed of making her drink like that.
"Derek!" his father's voice rising another octave and the tone was no longer pleasant. She impatiently tapped her fork with her middle finger, while Marti told her about a new classmate from... somewhere, she was not really paying attention. The casserole smelled delicious as it steamed on the middle of the table, but Eddie had already been chastised once for trying to take a small piece of skin before Derek arrived.
"He's probably texting all his friends from college rather than spend time with us" Edwin commented nastily. Casey was about to reprimand him when Derek finally arrived.
"Hey, I heard that" he said as he settled himself in the only spot left, to the other side of Marti.
She rolled her eyes, and George finally starts to cut up the casserole. She feels her stomach happy for it. That was probably the second best thing about coming home: she had not had a home cooked meal in a long time.
"So, how has university been?"
"Busy, a lot of school work"
"Great, you guys would love my roommate, Nadia!" they spoke at the same time. Then they looked at each other. There was fire in both their eyes. Casey turned away from looking at him, while he simply gaped at her with his mouth open.
"Sorry, you can say first, Derek" she said; pretending that everything was fine was actually not as difficult as she had speculated it was going to be today.
"Oh, yeah, well, I tried out for the hockey team and I got in, so far I am only a reserve but the team is really friendly and I have gotten to know a lot of people who study different things. Only three other guys are in music oriented majors." he shared with them, she was glad he was doing the talking, because she knew that they wanted to know all about both, but didn't really know what to say. "Im taking around seven classes, so I have a hot schedule"
"Well, that sounds nice," Nora said to him.
"Seven classes? A day? I have the same classes every day, university does not seem that different" Marti said.
"But in university you get to choose which classes you take," Casey informed her.
"Really?" she looked at her brother for confirmation. Derek simply nodded into his food.
"The food is great, Nora" he complimented her cooking.
"Actually, today George took care of dinner"
"Really good, Dad" he replied, looking his way beside him at the head of the table, while Nora was sitting in front of him, between them little baby Anna played with some toys, too young for food still.
"And you, Casey?" George prompted her.
"Oh, just fine, I am taking eight classes and maximum credits, hoping to be able to do my double major in time. I am taking Economics 101, Macroeconomics, English 101, Biology, American 18th century Literature, Statistics 101, Modern Globalization and, lastly, Ancient History." she shared with them.
"American 18th century Literature?" Eddie asked.
"Yeah, the rest of the economy courses had prerequisites that I am currently taking, so I needed a basic course to slot in with the remaining credits. It works perfectly because it is the only class my roommate and I share. She's a double major too but for sciences: biotechnology and chemistry. She's actually from abroad" she told them briefly about Nadia, no specifics.
"Latin american, right?" Derek asked, as he remembered the feisty girl that refused to let him talk to Casey on the phone.
"Yes, Derek"
"Well, that's interesting, from where?" George asked her.
"Um, Costa Rica. She has a big family like ours, too" she said.
"Well, feel free to invite her here whenever you want, sweetie" Nora offered. She smiled and took another bite. She wasn't entirely sure it was a good idea to bring her here, considering everything that she knew... plus other things that were not exactly family friendly things that they got up to together and with other people.
"Thanks" she said shortly after swallowing.
George and Nora asked them a bit more about university life before Marti took the floor and talked and talked. She paid attention to their little sister, until her other little sister started crying.
"She's probably just hungry," Nora said, and went to stand up.
"Wait, I can do it" Derek said. "How much do I heat the bottle?" he asked as he moved to take Anna carefully in his arms.
"40 seconds should do it, and she should fall asleep about a little bit more than halfway down the bottle" Nora said, actually happy to be able to spend more time at the dinner table, considering she was still in the middle of it.
Casey was still eating, but as soon as Derek left the table realized she had almost forgotten he was there to begin with. He barely said a word, except for that small information about college. Was she missing something? Derek was never quiet, and never helpful, either, as a matter of fact.
"Well, Mom, how has it been with little Anna around?" she asked, just to have a break from Marti's talking, she was just as loud as Derek, without the obnoxious factor, off course.
"Oh, well, Veronica has been a godsend in helping us during the day, even more so when my maternity leave ended and I went back to work. She takes good care of her and also helps me keep the kitchen clean. She is off for this week, though, she mentioned that her family also all of them came home for Christmas, so I said no problem, I will have two extra pairs of helping hands for the season too." she smiled, and looked back at Derek and how perfectly he fed Anna.
"Thank you, Derek." Nora said towards him. He looked up, nodded and sat down with Anna on a couch facing the other side of the room instead of the dinner table.
Weird, Casey thought and continued to eat and listen to Marti.
10:15
December 22
There was a noise. A disturbingly annoying noise. He heard it, but continued to ignore it. He turned his pillow towards the cool side and snuggled even more. He did not care if it was knocking on his door, last night after putting Anna to bed he went straight to him room again making an excuse about needing to finish some work for school, even if it was false, he read a textbook until he fell asleep. No idea what time he fall asleep, he still wanted to rest and rest.
He was just about to finally fall asleep again, when he heard the creak of his door opening. He chose to ignore it, maybe they were just checking to see if he was still breathing. He lay down as still as he could and pretended to still be quite asleep.
"Ooof" He wheezed out when Marti landed on his chest.
"See, I told them you were awake" she smiled smugly at him. He pushed of the pillow from his face and looked at Marti.
"You have to come with us to pick the tree!" she exclaimed and pulled him out of bed. He was only wearing his boxers, but neither Marti nor Edwin seemed to mind as he clapped Marti for finally getting him up. He resisted complaining.
"Ok, ok, I will, let me get dressed, I'll be down in twenty minutes." he said and looked at Edwin to please get Marti out of the room so he could put on some fresh clothes.
"Dad says we leave in 10!" Marti announced as she hopped out of his room. He let a small exasperated sound come out of his mouth as he hurried looking for clean clothes to put on, it seemed that breakfast was of of the question today.
He hurried as much as needed, when he got down and saw that it was everyone, yes, including Casey, going to buy a tree he wished he had stayed at campus, again. To make matters worse, they were going in two cars, one was already full with Anna's baby carriage and the other Casey was driving. He puffed out a lot of air and headed towards the back seat to be with Marti, the reason he had had to get up this morning.
"Morning" he said inespecifically to Casey and Lizzie, then tried to ignore them as he looked out the window.
"Hey, Derek" Lizzie asked, he looked at her and shot her a dirty glance.
"Yeah?"
"Whats up with you?" she asked.
"Huh?"
"You've barely talked since you got back, so, whats up?" Oh, nothing Lizzie, just that I'm in love with Casey and I slept with her and I really, really, don't want anyone to know either. He just shrugged
"Tired" he replied.
"Wow, university must be difficult, are you even sleeping any?" she asked.
"Some" he kept his answers short, and his face towards the outside, glancing at Lizzie in the co pilot seat through the rear view mirror. He really did not want to face Casey, and having to be in the car with her was similar to torture. Luckily, Marti was busy singing to pay him any attention. Casey, however, seemed to be paying attention to their conversation. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes.
He refocused on the street, Lizzie not asking any more questions so far.
The most obnoxious and latin song he had ever heard erupted from Casey's phone. She looked at it, and he could read in her face she thought about screening the call. But she answered anyways.
"Cachetes!" Everyone in the car heard the first line, it was that loud. She pressed a few buttons and the volume went down.
"How were your flights? Are you home safe now?" she asked.
"That's great, but I'm kinda driving right now, so how about I call you back?" she said to the phone, the response wasn't a simple okay, because she was still holding the phone to her ear for another full minute at least. Then she blushed, the color affecting her cheeks and chest, as far as he could see, he already knew her blush could run all the day down to half her breasts… Damn it, Derek, stop. Stop thinking like that.
"I'm hanging up" she said and did as well.
"Was that your boyfriend, Casey?" Marti asked from the back. Derek stiffled a laugh and it ended up sounding like a snort.
"Um, no, Marti. Why would you even say that?" Marti laughed
"Because you're blushing!"
"I am not!"
"Yes, you were," Lizzie added her input. Derek laughed at her demeanor,
"Come on, you were so red even your…" he stopped himself. Oh god, he almost said something stupid.
"I'm sorry what?" she turned around to face him, they were currently at a stop sign and right behind their parents. Think, think, think, make something up fast!
"I said, you were so red."
"Even your. The last words you said were even your. Care to elaborate?" she turned to him, he could not peel his eyes away from her, at least keep them on her eyes, he thought to himself.
"No" he replied cheekily. That seemed to frustrate her even more and the color rised again, but this time with madness instead of embarrassment. "Besides, whoever it was, what did they say to make you go so red?"
"Thats is not your business" she replied tartly.
"Was it a boyfriend, then?" he asked, knowing the odds were it wasn't, besides, that music screamed of her famous roommate whom she didn't stop talking about last night.
"I said, it is not your business" she gritted her teeth and angrily replied. She looked so sexy when she was mad.
He smirked at her, and at that moment they were honked at from the car behind. The other two girls had not noticed either, being really surprised at their intense arguing.
She pulled herself together and went back to driving.
Shit, he thought.
11:20 UTC -6:00
December 22
"Cachetes!" she had barely slept in the last two days, and now decided it was about time to check how Casey was doing.
"How were your flights? Are you home safe now?" Casey asked from the other side
"Oh, horrible and long as hell, but I am home now and don't have to worry about dumb airplanes until next year, well, its twenty days, but still its next year. How are you? No problems at home?" she asked, wanting to know how things were going with her stepbrother, she knew it could be an issue dealing with him for her.
"That's great, but I'm kinda driving right now, so how about I call you back?" she rolled her eyes.
"Is that code for Derek is listening in and beside you? Come on, don't let him get to you. Chill and be happy. Asides from that jerk, I know that you miss all your family. Remember to send me pics, please! Oh, and I was just thinking of you teasing me before we left to the airport, don't even for a second say you weren't! After all, you're learning all your tricks from me. You blush too easy, actually, I am quite sure that just me reminding you of this you are blushing right now." she laughed, her blush was beautiful, and she was quite sure Derek, like her, liked her blush as much, though probably more, than she did. "You're beautiful when you blush"
"I'm hanging up" she said and did as well.
"Come on, its all teasing..." she said to thin air.
1:18 UTC -5:00
December 22
Something was wrong, she had no idea what, but something was not right. And she couldn't shake that feeling off everytime she was near Derek he was avoiding her, well, except when they argued in the car. Even your, she was still pondering the words. Even my what?
He had literally flown out of the car before she had even stopped the car, and he had been hiding behind Edwin while they all searched for a tree.
So far, they had not reached a consensus on what tree to buy. So, after over an hour looking, they were in between the one Lizzie and Edwin wanted, really fat and chubby but not very tall and the one Marti and Nora wanted, very tall, very shrubby and very artificial. They said something about saving the forest with that tree.
"But this has already been cut! It is more of an offense to not decorate it!" Lizzie insisted.
"But this one we can use next year!
"Then, what will we do next year all together as a family?!" Lizzie said, and Edwin nodded behind her. If she came home next year. If he came home next year. She was seriously considering spending Christmas with Dad, for all the mess Christmas had been so far, there were just too many of them.
"I'm gonna side with them, honey, a real tree makes the smell of Christmas, alongside your cooking, off course" he said tried to be a tie breaker while not taking any sides, and still sugaring up with Mom. "Don't you agree?" he asked looking towards me, then Derek.
"Yeah"
"Sure," I said, honestly, really just wanting to go home and cuddle with a Christmas movie.
"Great, you lose, Marti" Edwin stuck his tongue out at her.
6:01 pm
December 22
The tree was done, the girls were cooking, and he was the assigned babysitter. It was actually the better end of the stick for him. He had gotten out of tree decorating claiming work to do, and later made it up to Nora and Dad by not allowing them to worry about Anna. He actually loved his baby sister, she was the perfect excuse to be useful and not participate in anything near Casey. She was busy trying to do everything.
"So, whats up with you?" Edwin asked as he was rocking Anna. He had not even noticed that he was in the room.
"I'm a changed man," he said, not taking his eyes off Anna
"Lizzie says you and Casey were fighting"
"We weren't fighting," he argued, "I simply hated that she was blushing."
"What?" Eddie said, even more confused.
"What?"
"Did you even hear yourself?" he asked again.
"Um, yeah, we weren't fighting."
"And then you said you hated that she was blushing"
"I said no such thing."
"Yeah, you did" Edwin said, and gave his brother a puzzled look. "You've been avoiding her, haven't you?" Damn his brother for figuring him out.
"Yeah," he admitted. "Will you help?"
"So long as you keep baby sitting I think no one else will be the wiser. But, if you don't want me to tell, you're going to have to tell me why you've been avoiding her"
"I can't" he said, defeated, it was one thing to ad admit he was avoiding her, it was another thing entirely to say he was in love with her.
"Yeah, you can, I'm your only brother, you have to tell me" he replied. "Its okay if you're embarrassed, I guess it has something to do with the fact that you finally understood why studying is important after all the years of her being the nerd?" he said. How the hell did he even think this things? It was not like that,
"Tell me" he insisted.
"Nadia, please, I know I told you about what happened between me and Derek, but you are making a bigger deal of me coming home for the Holidays than I am. I mean, its great, I have barely even ..." they both overheard Casey's phone call as she walked down the aisle, she didn't notice either of them, and she was actually talk in a lower tone than she usually does.
So she told Nadia about what happened between us? His eyes were glued to where he had seen her pass through the door frame. She did not notice the three of them inside the living room as she took the stairs up to the girls room.
"What the hell was that about? What is it that happened between Casey and you?" Edwin asked. He looked flabbergasted, and somehow Derek could see his mind churning.
He looked at Edwin with no words. He had absolutely no idea what to say, how to lie, how to explain- No, explaining was out of the question. He had to make something up, but he had no idea. He just looked at his brother like a codfish, unable to close his mouth but unable to find any words.
Anna was asleep in his arms, and he wished she would wake and start crying or something, anything to interrupt them. He said nothing. Right now, he wanted to shout at Casey instead of having to explain something or nothing to his brother.
"I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what happened" Edwin said, crossing his arms and looking at him like he had all the time in the world.
They both stood on stalemate. He wet his dried lips as he tried to come up with something to say.
"What happened between you and Casey? Why are you avoiding her?" he insisted once more, unmoving. He wasn't leaving without an answer, and he wasn't giving an answer. Stalemate.
"If you don't tell me, I will ask her, I have a feeling that she will answer me." He threatened. He said nothing. She would say nothing also if confronted.
"Do your best, I'm not talking about this with you."
"So, are you at least talking to her?"
"No. We have nothing to talk about, besides, she clearly talks to Nadia about everything, so one less thing for me to worry about." He left. Oh shit, Edwin knowing that something happened could be catastrophic.
9:26
December 23
"I'm telling you what I heard!" He repeated to Lizzie.
"That something happened between Casey and Derek? Like what?" she asked; not really convinced.
"That's what I want to know!" he exclaimed, frustrated at Lizzie.
"I'll ask her, but I'm sure it's nothing" Lizzie conceded, or maybe was simply saying that to make him stop. Whenever Edwin was fixated on something, it was very dramatic.
"Derek said they had nothing to talk about and she seems to be okay talking to Nadia about whatever it is"
"Maybe its just a college thing, Eddie" Lizzie said, really not interested in what he was babbling.
She left the kitchen and went back up to her room, hoping to relax a little. She knew Casey was using the desk during her stay, but her only assignment for the Holidays was a book, so she did not need the desk anyways.
Grabbing her book, she hopped on the bed to get some reading in. The morning was slow, and it wasn't until noon that George's parents were arriving to spend Christmas with them. Anna would be the center of attention, anyways, the only one worried about this seemed to be Marti. But having Casey and Derek was supposedly her idea and would distract her as the rest doted on Anna. It had not really gone according to plan, while Casey was spending a lot of time with Marti and giving her time and everything, Derek was avoiding all of them in favour of Anna. And no one had really gotten a chance to tell Derek how sad Marti was about it. Edwin was supposed to corner him yesterday and tell him to make some time for Marti, but somehow it had not gone accordingly. Now all that Edwin talked about was this supposed "What happened between us" that he overheard Casey saying on the phone and that had Derek, for once, speechless. The concept of a speechless Derek was hilarious, but then again, what if it was only one of them he was avoiding during this break? And it would explain him shutting himself out and all that. But I just didn't make sense. They hadn't seen each other since they left for college, and the day before Casey left everything was fine.
"Ugh" she said out loud, hating that Edwin's stupid ideas and stupid words were not letting her concentrate on her book.
"What is it?" Casey asked from the desk.
"Can't concentrate on reading" she said,
"Try to clear your mind before, and then submerge yourself in the text. That works for me" she replied. Lizzie nodded, but looked towards her sister. There was something different, she guessed, but she attributed it to college life, not Derek.
"Can I ask you something?" she said, hopefully, Casey's answer would shut up Edwin, at least the words that kept repeating in her head. Casey dropped her pen, and turned around to give her sister her full attention.
"Off course."
"Did something happen between you and Derek? Why is he avoiding you?" she asked bluntly.
"He is not avoiding me, Li…
"But he is. He admitted to avoiding you to Edwin. Did something happen?" Casey stared at Lizzie. Lizzie noticed her blanching a little at the admission she just gave about Derek.
"Hmm. He probably feels bad about getting me drunk"
"What?!" Lizzie exclaimed. "When? How?"
"It's not such a big deal, we snuck some vodka the day before I left for college. I hadn't noticed he was avoiding me until you just said it, I thought he was avoiding everyone. But I'm not complaining. I'd rather he not say stupid things and yell at me like he did yesterday in the car." she confided in her sister.
"I'm going to go explain to Edwin, before you somehow twist my words and tell him something different," she stood up and left their room. Lizzie was still a little flabbergasted about the whole thing to believe her.
Drunk? Casey?
10:13
December 23
"Get the fuck up" he heard above him. Whoever it was did not even bother to knock. He pulled his sheet higher up and snuggled into the cool side of the pillow.
"Derek, get the fuck up" she repeated herself. It was a female voice. Not Nora, she wouldn't use the f word anywhere near their house. He opened his eyes to see Casey, quite composed, and breathing heavily beside his bed.
"Why…
"Get. Up." she said, enunciating slowly. He refused. He was getting an erection just by seeing her by the side of his bed, she was angry. Had Edwin told her he had been avoiding her? Fuck, that was probably it.
"Go away, Casey." he said to his pillow.
"Get. Up." she said again, trying to control her anger.
"Go away, Casey, I'm naked under here. Let me sleep."
"I've seen it, don't worry about being naked." she said and literally pulled the sheets from his bed. To her mild surprise, he was not, as he said, naked.
"Figures. Why are you avoiding me?" she asked.
"Gee, let me think, wasn't it you who was avoiding me when I wanted to talk about what happened?" he finally sat up on his bed to address her, she was wearing a tight top and her arms were crossed beneath her chest, her anger made her breath heavily and her breasts moved with each breath. He couldn't help but stare.
"I'm up here, dumbass. And about that, that was a mistake, that was a drunken mistake. Forget it ever happened. Move on. I have" she said to him. That was just it, for him it was not a mistake, it was the greatest thing that ever happened. And, he loved her.
"But..." he started to say, looking into her eyes.
"Honestly, Derek, have you seen the mess you've made? You told Edwin you were avoiding me and hoped that nothing would come of it? And what is this shit about Lizzie and Edwin going on about "what happened" between us? We got drunk. Period. End of story. Sure, its not a very nice thing to tell the kids, but its what happened. So there. Now, now that is established. I'm telling Edwin what you for some reason couldn't: we got drunk, it was a mistake, no need to add anything else, no need to say anything else or make a fool of yourself the way you are. Now, today you will act normal and stop avoiding everyone in favor of Anna, which now I understand wasn't about Anna at all but about me." she started to walk around his room as she talked. He looked at her, wounded. He focused a few seconds on her boobs and lips, and then shook himself. She doesn't feel the same way. For her, it was all a mistake.
He felt his cheeks wet rather than notice that he was crying. He was crying in anger and in loss. He was not listening to a word she said anymore. He got out of bed, and went to his closet to put on some warm clothes for the day, she was still talking. She was probably thinking that him getting out of bed meant he was still listening. He followed her voice and changed into clean underwear, clean jeans, a t shirt and a green and red sweater to transmit the Christmas cheer that he did not feel. She didn't even notice that he was naked for a few seconds. He cleaned his cheeks before turning once more to hear her rant.
"What happened was nothing." she said, finally looking at him again. "Good, you're dressed. So, are we okay then?" she asked.
"Yeah," he tried not to sniff and went towards the door, noticing she had locked the door for privacy, oh the irony. "Wait" he thought hard for a second.
"The mess I made? What happened?" he said to her.
"Yes, Derek, was I not clear for the past few minutes?" she shook her head.
"You mean the mess you made." he stated.
"What?"
"The mess you made, everything was fine until when Edwin and I overheard you talking with Nadia about what happened between you and me. If you hadn't told her to begin with, Edwin wouldn't have overheard you and started this dumb gossip about us." he said, walking back towards her. Gods, she smells delicious.
"What? Were you two snooping on me?"
"No, you are the one of us that tends to be rather loud." he replied. She gasped in response.
"Maldito" she cursed something in another language.
"Uh oh, language, you are picking up things from Nadia, I'm guessing?" He said to her.
"That is none of your business" she replied acidly.
"That sounds vaguely familiar to what you said yesterday. So you were talking to her," he replied.
"Whatever,"
"I think it is safe to say you are not drunk now, are you?" he asked her.
"Off course, I'm not drunk! That night with you has been the first and last I ever get drunk!" she replied hotly.
He took a single step forward and grabbed her chin. She took a deep breath, probably readying to argue and refute him some more. But he didn't let her as he crashed his lips to hers.
He pressed himself to her, let go of her chin as he placed his hands on her hips. He felt her anger melt away as she didn't pull away from the kiss. He loved the feel of her lips, and he was missed her warmth in his arms.
"Derek" she sighed against him.
"I have no idea what you were saying before, but I have to tell you something." he replied. He opened his eyes and pushed her a little to look into her eyes.
"No, don't say anything, we really shouldn't..." she complained.
"I..." he started to say, despite her words.
"Derek, Grandma and Grandpa are here!" he heard Marti yell from the other side, and she then started to turn the doorknob. Casey pulled away from his arms and looked frantically to hide.
He reached over to her and pulled her close again, "You locked the door, remember?" he whispered in her ear before sucking on her earlobe. She tried to swallow a vocal response and simple grunted in response. Pulling her in his arms he relished the feeling.
"I'll be right down, Marti" he called towards the door. Marti then went to knock on the other door to tell Casey and Lizzie that her grandparents had arrived.
They heard the door on the other side open, and Lizzie and Marti talking.
"Where's Casey?" Marti asked.
"She went to talk to Edwin about something." she replied.
"Well, no, Edwin is downstairs and Casey is not" Marti replied smartly.
"Go!" Casey said in a stage whisper to Derek.
"Why?" he replied, deflated, not wanting to leave her arms,
"You first, and take them with you, I'll follow. Don't worry." she said to him
"But, I wanted to tell y….
"Derek, don't worry, I know. Me too" she replied giving him a small kiss on the cheek.
"No, you don't understand.
"Go, now, Derek" she insisted.
"Casey," he warned, she raised an eyebrow.
"What?" she asked.
"I love you" he said, placed a soft small kiss on her lips before they got a chance to form an O from the shock of hearing those words. He then did as she had said and left to follow the girls.
He loved her?
AN: Thank you for reading. I know, i promised it was a two shot, but i guess my muse came knocking so... well, this happened.
Thank you for reading, i know you probably thought i had abandoned this, but i have just been terribly busy, today i am updating several of my WIPs, i had something written, some incomplete, some more than others, some halfway, but i promised to finish some chapters and post them today. I think they are all from very different genres, but hopefully people will be a bit happy with this big update. Remember to review!