Chapter 7: Galaxies Collide
The McDonald family officially moved into the Venturi household in London a week after the wedding. With two families merging into one, the first hurdle was deciding room assignments.
Debates erupted over who would get which room, with Derek refusing to give up his space and Casey adamantly demanding her own privacy. In the end, a compromise was reached.
George and Nora took the basement as their new master bedroom.
Edwin moved to the attic, thrilled to have a space of his own.
Upstairs, Derek kept his original room adjacent to George's old master bedroom.
Casey took George's old master bedroom, which shared a thin wall with Derek's room.
Lizzie's room is adjacent to Casey's room at a bend.
And Marti's room is adjacent to Lizzie's room.
Though the arrangement seemed fair, it created a proximity between Derek and Casey that neither was ready for.
At first, Derek tried to approach Casey, leaning against her door frames with his trademark smirk, his voice low and teasing. "So, about our little… summer adventure—"
Casey cut him off sharply, her tone firm but her voice quivering with the weight of their history. "That's over, Derek. We're siblings now. You need to stop bringing it up."
"Siblings," Derek scoffed, stepping closer, his confidence faltering ever so slightly. "You don't just forget something like that."
Casey glared at him, arms crossed defensively. "We have to forget it. For our family's sake."
Their heated discussions soon shifted into full-blown arguments. At first, the fights were subtle, often whispered behind closed doors, laden with thinly veiled references to their summer fling.
"You're impossible!" Casey hissed one afternoon after Derek's teasing crossed a line.
"And you're a control freak!" Derek shot back, leaning in with a grin that only irritated her more.
When their arguments bled into the shared spaces of the house, they became more cryptic. Derek would complain about the noise coming from Casey's room, accusing her of blasting her music too loud, while Casey would fire back about Derek's inconsiderate mess in the kitchen. Their family, oblivious to the subtext, chalked it up to sibling rivalry.
After a week of this, Derek abruptly decided to stop engaging. He avoided Casey at home, brushing past her with barely a word. At first, Casey was relieved, hoping the tension would fade. But Derek's cold shoulder brought a new ache she hadn't anticipated.
Casey tried to act like a sister to Derek, occasionally offering him a plate of food or asking how his day was, but Derek met her attempts with disinterest. At school, Derek's indifference persisted. Girls surrounded him constantly, laughing at his jokes and hanging off his arm.
Casey, meanwhile, did her best to stay out of his way. But no matter how hard she tried, her gaze always seemed to drift toward him in the hallways or the cafeteria. Derek with his effortless charm. Derek with that devil-may-care grin. Derek, who seemed to be moving on without a second thought.
One night, as Casey lay in her bed staring at the ceiling, she heard a soft, slow strumming coming from the other side of the thin wall they shared. It was Derek, playing his guitar—a tune she recognized from their summer together.
The familiar melody tugged at her heartstrings, bringing back memories of late nights, whispered laughter, and the warmth of Derek's touch. Casey turned onto her side, her hand resting on the wall as she closed her eyes.
Why does he have to be so close and yet so far away?
The music continued, bittersweet and haunting, as Casey let herself get lost in the memories of a time when everything between them felt simple—before their galaxies collided.