Misunderstanding

Casey had just come back from school and was walking upstairs to her room to do homework. The teachers decided to give extra homework on that week because a lot of examinations were coming and she didn't want to waste time. She wanted to make sure she was ready for these exams, hence studying everything she had noted since the beginning of the school year. That was why she didn't even notice that Derek got home a couple of minutes after her and that Sam was with him.

She studied for about an hour before she decided to take a five-minute break: she was thirsty. She walked out of her room to head for the kitchen and poured herself a glass of water. Then she walked back upstairs making sure she wouldn't spill the water everywhere. She was known for being clumsy after all. Even if she hated her nickname, Klutzilla did somehow suit her. Derek had called her that ever since she fell on that flight of stairs at school. She would never dare say aloud that she liked the fact that Derek noticed her enough to give her a nickname, even if it was meant as an insult.

That's when she realized that Derek got home and that Sam was with him. She heard voices and she concluded it was Derek's and Sam's since Derek would never speak to himself. She walked passed his room to head to hers, but she heard her name and she couldn't stop herself from eavesdropping. Luckily, the door to Derek's room wasn't completely closed. If they had not wanted her to hear their conversation, they would have closed it.

"Casey is driving me insane!" Casey heard Derek say to his best friend, exasperated. She knew that was his usual feelings about her, and she had fun making him go insane, so she did not understand why Derek seemed to make it such a big deal to Sam.

"That bad?" Sam asked. By the tone of his voice, she understood Sam was hinting, or suggesting, something, but she did not understand what it was.

"You have no idea!" Derek answered. There was something about his voice that she could not quite decipher. The closest thing she could relate to it was desperation. "I can't be in the same room with her without feeling the need to do something considered very wrong."

She also felt the need to snap most of the time when he was around her, but she knew it wasn't for the same reasons as him. You see, even if she knew it was completely wrong and immoral, she had developed feelings for him. She buried them deep and that's why she felt the need to snap most of the time when she was around him. She knew he would never return her feelings, and that she would never tell him about them, so she did the best she could to ignore them.

"Why don't you do act on it, then? What you feel is far from wrong," Sam suggested and Casey raised an eyebrow, interested by the turn of their conversation. As if Derek would ever try to call a truce between them; he was way too selfish and a jerk for that. A cute jerk that is.

Casey then realized Sam probably meant something else. He did not mean a truce and she could not believe what Sam had told her step-brother. He suggested that there was nothing wrong about wanting Casey to leave the house for good, to get rid of her.

"Are you crazy?" Derek said a bit louder. "It would fuck up the whole family if I did!"

Casey winced at Derek swearing, but it might also be because he had never been so serious about his hate towards her. She knew he despised her, but something in the tone of his voice made her feel uneasy.

She heard what she thought was Derek falling onto his bed and then she heard him sigh.

"You have no idea how much I wish she wasn't my step-sister," Derek admitted. "Life would be less complicated if she wasn't around."

"Or if she was just some girl going to our school," Sam said, and she believed he was trying to lighten up the mood, because he laughed slightly after his comment.

"Not helping," Derek whined.

She knew he despised her and she knew they did not get along, but she didn't think he hated her that much. They had their differences, but, sometimes, by the way he looked at her, she felt like the hate he had towards her was just a façade and that he actually tolerated her. She realized that she was wrong; that boy had no intentions of tolerating her whatsoever.

Derek's words echoed in her head; "I wish she wasn't my step-sister"; "Life would be less complicated without her around."

Her eyes filled with tears as she realized Derek did not even tolerate her. If she couldn't have him as a lover, she would at least have wanted him as a step-brother, family, but she just witnessed the proof that none of that could ever happen.

She walked to her room and carefully closed the door behind her. She threw herself on her bed and buried her face in her pillow to muffle her cries. She sobbed for a couple of minutes before finally calming down. That was when her thoughts came flowing again and when something lit up in her mind.

She had just found the solution to all her problems; they mostly correlated with Derek, so there was one way to get rid of them: live in a Derek-free environment.

Well, her plan was not perfect since it also meant she would live in a Lizzie-free, Marti-free, Edwin-free, George-free and mother-free environment, but it meant no Derek.

She just needed to convince her mother that it was what was best for her sanity.

After their family dinner, which involved some food throwing, Edwin making weird sounds and Marti saying incoherent things, Casey had finally found herself alone with her mother in the kitchen while the others were watching television or in their room.

"Mom," Casey hesitated. She needed to tell her mom how she felt, but she was not sure how she would take it.

"Is everything alright?" Nora asked, noticing the hesitation in her daughter's voice.

"I— Huh—wanted to talk to you about something," Casey said. She only hesitated because she knew she was about to lie about her motivations.

"Sure," Nora said, oblivious to the demand Casey was about to make.

"You know Derek and I cannot get along—even if I've tried everything—and it's driving me closer and closer to insanity," Casey said, watching her mother carefully. "I've had troubles adjusting to everything and I've realized that maybe this isn't for me."

Nora listened to her daughter carefully, but could not make sense of what she was saying. She knew Casey and Derek hated each other and that it made her feel miserable, but, by the tone of her voice, it sounded like more than that.

"What are you saying?" Nora asked, wanting further explanations.

"I want to move with Dad," Casey said, determined.

Nora dropped the mug she was currently holding and her jaw dropped. She never thought Casey would make that demand. She knew her daughter was stronger than that, so something happened to make her feel like this was her best option.

Nora, however, knew better than to refuse this to her daughter. She knew how Casey missed her dad and if living with him was going to make her happier than living with the Venturis, she would oblige without any doubts.

"If that is what you want, Casey, I won't stand in your way," Nora said.

"Thank you, mom," Casey had answered.

"I'll call Dennis tomorrow," Nora announced and Casey faked a smile. She had somehow hoped her mother would try to stop her, but then she realized that Nora just wanted to do what's best for her daughter, even if that meant for them to live in another country. New York was full of opportunities for Casey if she wanted to dance professionally or if she wanted to attend university there.

The following morning, Casey had already gotten out her suitcases and she had started ordering and choosing everything she owned to bring to New York with her. She knew she could not bring furniture, but she had to fold her clothes and to neatly organize her books.

She was paying attention to the noise she was making and since it was eleven on a Saturday morning, she expected everyone to be awake. Well, she should have realized that her beloved step-brother needed his beauty sleep, because he came in barging into her room asking her to keep it down. He was so sleepy he did not even notice that she was packing. That just proved her point, he did not care about her.

An hour later, the teen decided to take a break from packing and walked downstairs to meet her mom in the kitchen. She asked her mother if she had called her father, but she had not called yet.

Lizzie had heard their conversation, and she came barging into the kitchen with a face stained with tears.

"You're leaving?" The tween had asked angrily. "I thought we were in this together."

Casey had tried to comfort her sister. She explained to her how she was not happy living with the Venturis and how she missed her dad more than she expected. She felt bad for not telling the whole truth, but she was not sure the family would be able to understand how she felt. She was partly leaving because she couldn't control her feelings for her step-brother and she knew he hated her profoundly.

She came back to her room to continue packing her belongings. In a way, she knew she shouldn't be doing that, because Nora had not talked to her father yet, but she wanted to act as fast as possible, so it would not hurt too much.

"What are you doing?" Derek asked as he walked into Casey's room, without knocking.

"Packing," Casey answered not daring to look at him.

"I can see that," Derek answered sarcastically. "I mean, why are you packing? You're going on a trip?"

"No, I'm leaving for good," Casey answered. "I'm moving with my dad."

"What?" Derek asked, shocked. If she had dared to look at him, she would have noticed that his face had paled.

"I don't think I could ever be truly happy here, and I think that everything would be less complicated if I was gone," Casey answered, trying not to sound hurt by her own actions.

For the first time in her life, Casey had rendered Derek speechless. The boy stared at her with a gaping mouth. All he could wonder was if it was his fault. Did he drive her away that much? Did she hate him that much? Or did he have nothing to do with it?

He could see how much it hurt her to leave though. He noticed it in the sound of her voice. She was leaving, but he knew it was not what was best for her. She had ulterior motives that he knew she was hiding for everyone.

Although, seeing that she made no effort to continue their conversation, Derek left her room to enter his own. He had called Sam to tell him what Casey was about to do. While walking downstairs, she only heard Derek say through the phone that she had solved his problems for him, which broke her heart even more.

At lunch that day, everyone was very quiet, until Marti spoke up that is. Everyone was not surprised that it was the younger one who was actually willing to share how she felt first.

"I don't want you to go," Marti had said to Casey. Derek watched his step-sister's reaction and he could see how much it pained her to leave everyone.

"I'll still visit sometimes, Marti," Casey assured her, but it did not please the six-year-old.

"Maybe we could even visit her in New York," George suggested and the little one smiled slightly.

"I haven't talked to Dennis yet, though," Nora said. "I tried to call him earlier this morning, but he wasn't answering. I'll try later today."

Not much was said at the table after that conversation. Casey kept playing with the food in her plate without eating it, before she asked to be excused.

Not long after, Derek also asked to be excused. He knew Casey was hiding something, and he needed to know what.

He walked into her room and sat on the bed right beside her.

"Out with it," Derek demanded.

Casey gave him a puzzled look and continued to fold some clothes.

"I wanna know why you really want to go," Derek said seriously.

"Because I don't think I can ever really adjust to this place," Casey answered, trying to sound as honest as possible.

"Casey, you've been living here for two now years, I think you've adjusted enough," Derek said and he knew he was about to corner her. He would get the truth out of her, even if it meant harassing her until she gave him the truth.

"I do not want to talk about this," Casey answered.

"You'll have to talk about this to someone," Derek said.

"Why do you even care?" Casey asked.

"I don't," Derek responded. "I mean, I'm just curious, so then I can use it against you."

"You wanna know why I'm leaving?" Casey shouted. "You. You're the main reason I'm leaving. You're making my life hell and I'm tired of it."

Derek's smirk dropped. Did she really hate him that much? He never wanted her to hate him, she just wanted her to notice him.

She noticed the change of expression on Derek's face and she knew she had struck a sensitive chord.

"It shouldn't matter to you," Casey said. "I know that you want me gone as much as I do. I know you don't want me as a step-sister. You despise me and I would rather live in an environment where people respect me."

"What makes you think I hate you that much?" Derek asked angrily.

"Hum, let's see," Casey faked thinking. "You told your best friend that you wished I wasn't your step-sister, that I was driving you crazy and that your life would be less complicated without me. That's a real giveaway."

"You heard that?" Derek asked as he paled.

"I did," Casey answered. "You're not happy with me living here, so I'm saving you the troubles."

"I don't hate you," Derek admitted, but Casey did not believe him one bit.

"Then, why did you say those things?" Casey asked.

"I—'The boy stuttered as he looked at the floor.

"That's what I thought," Casey said dryly. "Just leave."

Derek got up, walked to the door, and closed it in one swift movement. He joined her again and took a deep breath. She had it all wrong and he needed to tell her how she got it all wrong. He wasn't sure how to explain it to her. He never really told anyone that before.

"I can't believe I'm about to say this," Derek whispered to himself, but the girl heard him. "You got it all wrong."

"How?" Casey asked, raising an eyebrow. "It was pretty clear to me."

Casey just knew how to get him riled up and how to corner him. He was really bad at expressing himself and this situation only made him even more uncomfortable with himself.

"I know it seemed bad, but I—." He tried to tell her, but he stopped himself. He couldn't find the words to say. She raised an eyebrow at his failed attempt to express himself.

Instead, he pulled her into him in one swift movement and crashed his lips on her own. She was shocked, he was shocked and the spider in the corner of the room probably was too.

Shock faded away pretty quickly and he was shocked to feel her lips move against his own. She was kissing him back and he cherished every second of it.

He pulled away a couple of seconds later and looked into her eyes. She was flustered and he was proud that he made her feel so giddy.

"You are driving me insane, and I do wish you weren't my step-sister, because what I feel for you wouldn't be wrong in that situation."

"Oh."

"It's driving me insane that everything you do makes me want to kiss you, and it's driving me insane because it is not acceptable for me to do so since you're my step-sister."

Casey stared at Derek with wide eyes. Did he just say he reciprocated her feelings? Well, the fact that he kissed her willingly was a proof, but it felt so surreal to her.

"We don't share blood, so why is it wrong?" Casey asked, a small smile tugging at the extremities of her mouth.

"I'm sorry, did you just say you weren't freaked out by this?" Derek asked as he pointed at her, and then at him.

"I did, Derek, we did not grow up together and we met when we were fifteen. I don't think there's anything wrong with the way you feel," Casey said.

"Great, so now you know I don't hate you," Derek said as he stood and walked to the door. He put his hand on the knob to twist it, but she stopped him.

"Derek, I kissed you back, do you really think I'm just going to let you leave now?" Casey said and Derek looked at her confused. She wrapped her arms around his torso and rested her head on his chest.

"You're not?" Derek asked. He thought that she might have kissed him back in impulsively. He did not think Casey could hold actual feelings for him.

"No. I need to tell you why I wanted to leave," Casey said as she tightened her arms around him. "I was devastated that you hated me so much, and I thought you would never reciprocate the feelings I have for you. I thought it was best for me to leave, because I would be able to forget about you and move on."

For the hundredth time that day, eyes widened at her confession, but the shock expressions quickly changed for a genuine smile. She felt for him what he felt for her and that realization struck. He wrapped his arms around her and held her tight.

"I personally think there is nothing wrong with us having feelings for each other," Casey said as she moved to face him, snaking her arms around Derek's neck. She had never seen him with such a real smile. He put his hands on the small of her back and pulled her closer, taking in her smell and her touch.

That moment only lasted seconds, but it felt like forever to them. It ended when the two teenagers leaned in to capture their lips in a passionate kiss.

Casey didn't think Derek could ever be so gentle and passionate, but he was and it made her head spin. They did not share a long kiss, but it meant the world to them. The first kiss they shared was uncertain and spontaneous. This one was desired and way more romantic.

When they broke apart, it was Derek who spoke first.

"So, do you really want to go to New York?"

Casey's eyes widened once more as she realized that her mother was about to call her father. It was obvious that she did not want to leave anymore, that her problem was solved.

She ran downstairs, brushing passed her sister and Edwin, who were obviously spying on her and Derek, to reach her mother who had just dialled a phone number.

"Dennis," Nora greeted. "It's Nora. Listen, I wanted to talk to you about something."

Dennis said something on the other end of the line before Nora spoke again.

"Casey has been feeling down lately and—"

Nora was cut off by Casey snatching the phone away from her.

"Dad, hi," Casey said. "I really miss you and I really wanted to come visit soon."

Nora stared at her other utterly confused by her behaviour. She could not comprehend her daughter's behaviour.

"Great, I was thinking Derek could also come since you promised him a Rangers' game last time you came to see us," Casey said and Derek was secretly watching from the top of the stairs, a small smile adorning his face.

"Thanks dad, I love you," Casey said as she hung up the phone.

She noticed Derek at the top of the stairs and he winked at her, which made her blush.

Nora stared at her daughter confused, mouth agape, but she realized that whatever reason made her want to leave was not a problem anymore.

Hey ya'll! This is my second LWD one-shot and I'm really proud of this one. I had lots of fun writing it and I hope you guys enjoyed reading it! Thank you all so much for all the amazing feedback!