You all are just so lovely, you know that? Heartfelt thanks for the PCA win! It's always lovely to have your writing recognized..be it by a reader leaving a review, or in some other setting. Thank you.

But enough about that. New perspective for this one - one that a few people have asked for - and it flows straight from the last chapter. Sarah Morgan!

Happy reading =)

"Siblings: children of the same parents, each of whom is perfectly normal until they get together." –Sam Levenson

"Fran, I hate agreeing with Derek…but that was phenomenal," Emily says as she finishes wiping the excess sauce from her lips and face. I've found that pulled pork has a way of making even the neatest eaters look like they're incapable of staying clean, and even Emily – prim and proper upbringing that she had – is no exception.

"Told ya," Derek says with a smirk, to which Emily responds with an unimpressed look.

"Thank you, Emily," Mom says with an appreciative smile. "I'm glad you liked it."

"I'm not sure I'll be able to eat for a week, but it was totally worth it," Emily replies with a grin.

"I forgot dessert!"

"Mom, don't worry about it," I say with a wave of my hand. "I think we're all pretty full."

"Nonsense, we need dessert! Derek, Desi," she says, turning to face them, "why don't you drive down to the store and get some ice cream?"

"Aw, Ma, c'mon, we're all stuffed and-"

"Derek," Mom says, her tone shifting to one that means business. "Please?"

"All right, all right. C'mon, Desi. Let's go."

"Make sure you get that strawberry one I like!" Mom calls out just before the door shuts.

"It's probably good that we have to wait a little bit before dessert," Emily says, breaking the silence that had taken hold. "I wasn't kidding about not being able to eat for a week. I really shouldn't have gone for that second sandwich…"

"Life is short," Mom says with a smile. "It's best to enjoy seconds, I think."

Emily smiles and leans back in her chair. "Definitely."

"Hey, you wanna see Derek when he was little?" I say suddenly as it occurs to me that he's not here to thwart my efforts.

I watch as Emily's eyes brighten and she nods immediately. "Of course! I need more blackmail material," she says with a laugh. "Lord knows that man's ego needs a good denting now and then."

Mom joins in with her laughter and gestures for her to move into the other room. I set about retrieving the tapes that contain the snippets of our childhood. Derek, Desi, and I had managed to get all the home movies converted onto VHS for Mom's birthday, many years ago. Derek had tried to convince her to let him have them converted to DVDs, but Mom had insisted she was happy enough with the tapes.

"Was he as…goofy as he is now?"

"And then some," Mom answers. "He was such a clown. Always wanting to be the centre of attention."

"Why does that not surprise me?" Emily quips. "What about Sarah and Desiree?"

"Sarah was always fighting with him for the spotlight, and Desi just seemed content when those two let her tag along, but she got feistier as she got older."

"You must have had your hands full."

"Still do," Mom says with a laugh and a quick roll of her eyes. "What were you like as a little girl?"

"According to my mother I was quite a precocious toddler, but became very shy after that. I very much preferred to curl up with a book or in my grandfather's lap."

"Derek and Sarah had their quiet moments too. I remember them curling up in their father's arms, often just a few minutes before bed."

"I remember that," I say with a nod as I push in the tape and turn on the TV. "I used to pretend I was asleep so he'd carry me to bed."

Mom chuckles quietly. "He always knew you were pretending, but he always indulged you. He loved having you three in his arms. He never wanted to put you down when you were babies."

"That's sweet," Emily says softly.

"Oh, look, here we go," I say as the picture comes up and we see Dad wrestling with me and Derek.

"How old are they there?" Emily asks, her eyes glued to the TV.

"Sarah's about 5, and Derek's about 2, I think."

I watch as Dad twists and turns with us in his arms, a wide grin on his face. That's what I remember best about him – his smile.

"Wow, Derek looks so much like him," Emily says, her tone tender and sweet.

"Yeah," Mom agrees, a wistful smile on her face. From the dust I had to clean off of the tapes, I'm guessing she hasn't watched them in quite a while. I guess maybe it's a bit hard for her to watch…

"He acts like him too," I add.

"How so?" Emily asks, swinging her gaze briefly from the TV to meet mine.

"Just little mannerisms, and the way he carries himself. Dad was always a bit goofy, but fiercely protective of his family if things ever got to that point."

"And he has his father's smile," Mom says with a warm smile of her own. "Benny had that lop-sided grin that could always brighten your day."

"Oh, I know that one well," Emily says. "Oh! God, he's so adorable there! Where's that?" she asks as the scene changes.

"That's at his 5th birthday."

"I remember that," I say. "Didn't he faceplant into the-" I stop as we break into laughter when young Derek shoves his face forcefully into his birthday cake that Mom had just put in front of him. "Dad laughed for weeks after that."

"Yes he did," Mom confirms with another laugh. "I think we all did."

The laughter eventually dies down and the three of us watch as the scenes jump from year to year, in no particular order, through the lens of our family's camera. I haven't watched any of these tapes in many years, so it's quite a trip down memory lane for me as well. From Derek's first day of school, to a father-daughter dance, to Desi's impromptu fashion show, we got to see snippets from our childhood.

Just as the scene switches again, this time to a clip of me reading to Derek, the phone rings and Mom jumps up to get it. "Don't pause on my account," she instructs as I move to do just that.

Emily chuckles as a young Derek reaches across the turn the page before I'd finished reading it, which in turn makes me swat his hand away, which in turn makes him shove me, which of course ends up in an all-out brawl, with the camera being put down sideways as Mom breaks us apart.

"Was he always like that?" she asks, turning to face me.

I shrug. "Nah, he was okay when he grew up a little. After his growth spurt in high school, he was always around when the boys started bothering me and managed to chase them off. Even if I was mortified then, I appreciated it."

Emily nods in understanding. "It's nice that you're all still close."

"Yeah," I agree. "It definitely beats awkward family reunions and strained conversations at funerals and weddings."

She chuckles along with me and I find myself becoming curious about her childhood. "What was it like growing up as an only child?"

She shrugs. "Not so bad, I guess. Birthdays and Christmas I got spoiled rotten, since I was the only kid."

My brow furrows ever so slightly at her words. She skirted around the issue a bit, and I begin to wonder if she hadn't been a little bit lonely growing up. "I can't imagine being an only child."

"Well, you were for a few years," she quips lightly.

I roll my eyes. "You and Derek are too alike sometimes, you know that?"

"Now that's an insult if I've ever heard one," she says with a laugh.

"Honestly though, I can't imagine not having someone to gang up on Mom and Dad with, or someone to hide with from the endless aunts and uncles looking to squeeze your cheeks, or someone to play with when you're stuck at home."

She shrugs again. "I guess it's just what you're used to."

"Did you want a sibling growing up?"

"More than anything," she answers immediately. "I remember wanting to have someone with me to struggle with learning the language of whatever new country we were in, and someone to have by my side as I tried to navigate the local school social circles."

"That sounds so sad," I say, my expression shifting to convey that thought.

"Oh, I don't mean it that way," she says quickly. "I'm not complaining about my childhood, not by any means."

"Still," I answer, "it had to be tough."

Another shrug. "I suppose. It had its ups and downs."

"And a brother or a sister would've been nice to have to experience those ups and downs with?"

"Yeah," she answers with a nod.

Mom returns and settles back onto the couch just as we finish seeing Dad play baseball with me and Derek. Our conversation having ended, I find myself wondering how my life would have been different if I'd grown up without Desi and Derek. The more I try to envision it, the more I realize I can't even wrap my head around the idea. They're so intertwined with my life that it doesn't make sense to think about my life without them in it.

When a shaky video of Mom and Dad dancing slowly comes on, I turn to see Mom's reaction. Her eyes are watery, and I know instantly that the videos have opened up old wounds.

It's always bittersweet seeing pictures and remembering Dad. Sometimes it just hurts so much to know that he's not here, and sometimes it's just nice to remember how many nice moments we shared. I can't imagine how it is for Mom, having lost her soulmate. I want to say something, to comfort her, but I can't find the words. I never have quite been able to.

The scene ends, and after a few seconds a new one appears. I'm curled up in between Mom and Dad, and a newborn Derek is held snugly in Dad's arms. I'm struck by the expression on Dad's face as he looks at the baby in his arms, and by the expression on Mom's face as she looks at Dad. It's pure love, and all at once I feel slightly overwhelmed by the loss of Dad, even though it's been many, many years.

"What a beautiful moment," Emily says quietly, breaking the silence that had taken hold. "How old is Derek there?"

"A week or so, I think," Mom answers with a sniffle. "Even though we'd gone through everything with Sarah, Benny was still a bit panicky about everything with Derek. He was paranoid that he'd drop him, or hurt him somehow. That was the first time I saw him with Derek that he didn't have overwhelming fear on his face."

"I can't even imagine how terrifying it must be," Emily replies quietly. "They're so tiny."

"It stops being terrifying after a little while, and then you starting worrying instead."

"You think you and Derek will have kids?" I ask after a moment, when my mind wanders to possible nieces and nephews. Immediately Mom shoots me a look of warning. Frankly, with how much she begs Derek, Desi, and me for grandchildren, I'm a little surprised by her reaction, but I just shrug in response.

"Um, we haven't really talked about it, to be honest," Emily answers as she shifts a bit in her seat. Even without the training in observing human behaviour, I can tell I hit on an uncomfortable topic.

"We're back!" Derek announces as the door swings open, thankfully saving us from an awkward moment. "And we brought 4 different flavours of ice cream, so no complaining."

"Did you get the strawberry one?" Mom calls out as she gets up and goes to meet them in the kitchen.

"Yes," Desi calls out, "and vanilla bean for Derek, and cookies and cream for Sarah."

"And chocolate chip cookie dough for Desi and Em," Derek finishes.

Emily smiles at his words and moves to get up, but I grab her hand to stop her action. "Emily, I… I didn't mean anything by…" I let out a heavy exhale. "I'm sorry."

She smiles and gives my hand a squeeze. "Don't worry about it."

"I'm glad he found you," I say quietly, uncharacteristically so. "He needed you."

"I needed him," she replies in a quiet tone. This conversation is just between us. "Believe me, I'm the lucky one."

"Either way, I'm glad you're joining the family."

She smiles again. "Me too, Sarah. Me too."

So...amused by young Derek's antics? Chuckle at the image of him faceplanting into a cake? Feel a little heart clenching at the thought of Fran seeing Benny on the tape? Like Sarah's chat with Emily? Let me know!