Disclaimer: Don’t own Life With Derek. Or Interview with a Vampire. ‘Nuff said.

Author’s Note: Reviews make me a happy cookie. Especially the long ones. Those are always fun to read.

Thanks for the support, you guys, and I hope you enjoy this chapter.

After this, only 5 or 6 chapters left.

X

Code Names for Puberty
Confrontation

X

“What are you guys doing?”

Upon hearing his sister’s voice, Edwin froze, his eyes widening as he slowly lifted his head and glanced over, only to spot Marti standing just a few feet away from them. He felt Lizzie stiffen underneath him - a clear indication that she, too, had seen (and heard) the eight-year-old - but didn’t pay much attention. He was too focused on Marti, who was currently staring at them with her mouth hung open and her brows knitted together in confusion. Or repulsion; he couldn’t really tell, but that was the least of his worries at the moment, especially what with the way his sister’s blue gaze kept bouncing back and forth between him and Lizzie.

He realized it didn’t look good. At least, not for them. He could practically hear the gears in Marti’s head grinding and churning as she tried to make sense of the situation. After all, it wasn’t every day that she walked in on her brother straddling their step-sister, while that same step-sister - who, thanks to years of Tae Kwon Do, could easily fight him off - just lay their beneath him and let him assault her neck with his mouth without even so much as putting up a struggle.

One word rang through Edwin’s mind: ‘Shit.’

He had to think of something, and fast.

Laughing nervously, he scrambled to his feet as quickly as possible before extending his hand to Lizzie. She grabbed it and he hoisted her up and smiled weakly at her before glancing back over at Marti, who was watching them with suspicious eyes.

“Uh… well… there’s a perfectly logical explanation for this…” He said, scratching the back of his neck. “You see… we were… we were…” He trailed off, pulling a blank, and looked at Lizzie for help.

“Wrestling!” She blurted out. “We were wrestling over the remote and then… and then Edwin decided to pretend to be a vampire to throw me off. I told George not to let him watch Interview with a Vampire, but he just wouldn’t listen.”

Edwin nodded vigorously in agreement. Then stopped abruptly when he realized what, exactly, she’d said in order to shoot her a ‘what-the-fuck?’ sort of look, but Lizzie just shrugged. He turned back to face Marti instead.

“Uh… yeah. What she said.”

The expression on Marti’s face let them know that she wasn’t buying into their story, but before she could actually voice her opinions, George and Nora entered the house carrying boxes and bags of who knew what, and made their way into the kitchen with them. They were followed closely by a bickering Derek and Casey.

“I can’t believe you made out with her again!” Casey was saying - or rather, shouting.

“Jealous?” Derek replied, smirking.

“UGH!” Casey let out a scream of frustration before whipping around and storming up the stairs, not even bothering to spare Lizzie and Edwin a glance as she did so.

Derek watched her ascend up the stairs until she disappeared from his field of vision. Then, he shrugged and wandered into the living room, where he plopped down in his recliner and kicked back before looking over at Edwin and Lizzie, who currently wore matching flustered and shamefully guilty expressions. He opened his mouth to say something clever with the intention of embarrassing them both further, but before he could, Nora suddenly appeared out of nowhere and enveloped the two tweens in a tight embrace that - judging by their blue faces - deprived them of oxygen.

After about a minute or so of watching them struggle for air (mostly due to his own sick amusement), he decided to finally voice his concerns.

“Uh, Nora? I don’t think they can breathe.”

As soon as the words left his lips, realization dawned on Nora and she quickly released her daughter and step-son, who gasped for breath and backed as far away from her as possible.

Marti had long gone, having stormed up the stairs and to her room upon realizing that no one was actually paying attention to her.

Nora smiled sheepishly.

“I’m sorry.” She apologized. “I guess I just… missed you guys, is all.”

Edwin and Lizzie glanced at each other briefly before rolling their eyes.

“Missed us?” Her daughter repeated. “You were only gone for a few hours!”

“Yeah, I know, but -”

Before Nora could finish her sentence, however, George entered the living room and interrupted.

“Who wants leftover cheesecake?”

And all was forgotten as everyone raced into the kitchen.

X

The next day was… weird, to say the least. Especially since Edwin had gotten so used to sleeping in the passed week… it was hard getting up so early the following morning. Fortunately for him, though, he had Lizzie there to help… persuade him into waking up. First by threatening to forcibly drag him out of bed (which he and everyone else knew she was perfectly capable of doing) but when that failed (he wasn’t about to go down without a struggle, after all, and he thanked the Lord every single day for headboards) she switched to Plan B. In other words, her ‘secret weapon’ - also known as her lips. Against his, to be more accurate.

Needless to say, that certainly got him out of bed, and in less than twenty minutes (a new record, he was proud to admit) the two found themselves downstairs and ready to go - but not before grabbing a bite to eat first.

“So…” Lizzie started, without looking at Edwin as she opened the freezer door and fished out a box of frozen waffles. “Excited to go back to school?”

“What are you? My mom?” Came her step-brother’s reply, before he went on. “And no. Not really.”

Lizzie nodded, but said no more as she waited for her breakfast. Then, after about two minutes, the toaster went off and her waffles popped up. She licked her lips hungrily and quickly snatched the syrup and a plate before making her way over to the island and pulling up a stool across from her boyfriend, who glanced up from his cereal and smirked.

She arched an eyebrow at him upon noticing a familiar striped material wrapped around his neck.

“Edwin… why are you wearing the scarf I made Derek for his birthday?”

“He let me borrow it after you did a number on my neck last night.” Her step-brother answered simply, grinning sheepishly at her. “And no amount of cover-up could hide these hickeys. I tried.”

Lizzie rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, well, that’s what you get for tricking me.”

Edwin smirked.

“Really, now?” He said. “Well, if that’s the case, then I guess I should trick you more often.”

Lizzie scoffed and promptly chucked a piece of waffle at him.

X

“I didn’t see you first period. Where were you?”

That was the first thing Lizzie asked as soon as Edwin dropped his tray on the cafeteria table and plopped down beside her.

“In the Principal’s office.” He muttered. “Mr. Greenberg wanted to talk to me about the ‘no fighting on school grounds’ policy, and told me I’d be expelled if I ever did it again.” He rolled his eyes and took an angry bite out of his sandwich before continuing. “That guy is such a dick. I should egg his house or something - he only lives a few blocks away from us, you know.”

Lizzie smiled sympathetically at her boyfriend and placed a comforting hand on his knee.

“As fun as that sounds, Ed, I don’t think that’s a very good idea. You’re already in enough trouble as it is.”

Edwin sighed.

“I know, I know. It was just a thought.” He said. “But enough about me. How has your day been so far?”

Lizzie groaned.

“Stressful.” She replied, planting her elbows on the table and rubbing her index and middle fingers against her temples. “Ms. Parker’s been giving me hell since last week. She’s been assigning us double the homework and I swear she’s out to get me now. I’m starting to think she suspects… us.” She whispered the last part so that only Edwin could hear, before speaking normally again. “And if that’s the case… she clearly doesn’t approve.”

Edwin scoffed.

“That ignorant bitch.” He growled. “I change my mind about Greenberg. We should egg her house instead.”

Lizzie just shook her head.

“She’s not the only one who’s been acting differently.” She said. “Haven’t you noticed? Everyone has been acting weird since your fight with Teddy.” She bit her lip and peered around the crowded cafeteria before looking back at him. “A lot of them won’t even go near us unless they absolutely have to. Why do you think we’re the only ones over here?”

Edwin glanced around. He and Lizzie were sitting where they usually sat - close to middle of the cafeteria - but for some reason, the surrounding tables - which were usually filled with various cliques and students - were vacant. Most of their classmates were sitting as far away from them as humanly possible, opting to be squished together at tables that were only supposed to seat six rather than find a free table that was anywhere near them. He frowned, unconsciously clenching his fists.

“That’s not all.” His step-sister’s soft voice brought his attention back to her. When she felt she had his undivided attention, she went on. “Tanya… she convinced the rest of the hockey team that I was some sort of ‘incestuous freak’ and held a vote. They…” Her voice started shaking against her will. “They voted me off the team.”

Edwin’s eyes widened.

“What?” He hissed. “They can’t do that!”

“Yes they can.” Lizzie grit out, refusing to meet his gaze. “They can, and they did. And now… none of them will even so much as look at me anymore, and… and…”

A choked sob left her lips, and Edwin instinctively wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into his warm embrace, holding her close and kissing the top of her head while she cried silently into his chest. Many emotions - specifically anger - were beginning to surface inside him, but he forced them down. He wasn’t about to risk getting expelled on his first day back after a week’s suspension, but at the same time, he didn’t just want to sit there and do nothing while the girl he loved was tortured and tormented by the people who were supposed to be her friends. He had to do something. He just had to.

However, before he could dwell on the subject any longer, Lizzie lifted her face from his chest, wiping her tears away with the back of her hand and smiling warily at him.

“I’m sorry.” She said. “I don’t know what came over me.”

Edwin shook his head.

“No.” He said. “Don’t be. You have every right to be upset. What they’re doing isn’t right… and I’m going to fix it. Somehow. I promise.”

He rested his forehead against hers and reached up to caress her cheek.

“Everything will get better. I promise.”

X

After an agonizingly long day at the school that no longer wanted anything to do with them, Edwin and Lizzie were relieved when they walked through the front door of their house. Sure, their family was crazy and often overbearing, but at least they wanted them there… to an extent.

Regardless, it was still way better than school.

But then again… anything was better than school.

Unfortunately for Edwin and Lizzie, however, their home life was about to get a lot more complicated.

…

But they’d find that out soon enough.

X

Ugh.

Dish Duty.

How he loathed it so.

Unfortunately, it was Monday, so it was their turn to do the dishes that night.

Edwin sighed as he lifted his hands from the soapy water in front of him and stared blankly at his wrinkled fingertips before glancing at his step-sister from out of the corner of his eye. Her usual cheerful smile was absent, and had been since lunch, replaced with an unreadable expression that made it hard for him to tell how she was really feeling. He could only assume the worst, but… hopefully he was wrong. Perhaps she was just lost in thought, he mused.

“So… are you gonna tell Nora about getting kicked off the hockey team?” He asked under his breath, so as to not alert the family members sitting in the living room.

“I already did.” Lizzie murmured.

Edwin blinked.

“Really?” He said, genuinely surprised. “What did you tell her? How’d she take it?”

Lizzie sighed, but didn’t say anything at first. She just scrubbed furiously at the plate in her hands, making sure that not even a speck of food remained. After about a minute or so, she looked up and shrugged.

“I stretched the truth a bit… all I told her was that Tanya was being a bitch, so I quit the team.” She said, and then sighed again. “I couldn’t tell her the whole truth without her finding out about us… so I just said the first thing that came to mind. She was a little disappointed that I ‘gave up without a fight’ and all, but other than that… I don’t know.” She chewed at her bottom lip nervously. “You’re not mad, are you?”

“No… why would I be mad?” Edwin asked, furrowing his brow.

“I don’t know. It just feels like… like everyone’s turning against me, you know? Like… people who I thought were my friends turned out to be the complete opposite, and… I keep getting this feeling in the pit of my stomach that something bad is going to happen.” She paused briefly to look her boyfriend directly in the eye. “To us.”

Silence dawned on them shortly after. Edwin opened his mouth to say something, but no words would come out. Finally, he just shook his head and wiped his hands on his jeans before placing them on Lizzie’s shoulders.

“Lizzie, listen to me.” He said. “Nothing - I repeat: Nothing - is going to happen to us. Do you hear me? In a few weeks, all of this will blow over and everything will be normal again. Just you wait.” He smiled reassuringly at her. “I promise.”

Lizzie sighed and turned her head to stare out the window.

“You make a lot of promises, Edwin.” She said. “But are you sure you can keep them?”

Edwin grinned, then cupped the side of her face and turned it so that she was looking at him again.

“Liz… when have I ever been wrong?” He asked.

His girlfriend raised an eyebrow at him. He laughed and shook his head.

“Okay. Bad question. What I mean is…” he amended, “… what I mean is… that when I make a promise… I keep it. You can count on that.”

With that, he lowered his lips to hers.

X

Unbeknownst to the two tweens locking lips in the kitchen, a pair of cerulean eyes were watching them, and had been watching for a while.

Horrified, the owner of the eyes quickly tore their gaze away and hid behind the dining room wall before they were spotted, all the while trying to rid their mind of the sinful and disgusting image that was forever stained in their memory.

But the damage was already done.

Clenching their first tightly, the owner, a determined young woman of the tender age of sixteen, silently vowed to put a stop to what was taking place under her own roof.

X

“Goodnight, Edwin. See you tomorrow.”

Lizzie gave her step-brother a quick peck on the cheek before bounding down the upstairs hallway and to her room, but as she went to go open the door and step inside, she froze.

There, sitting on the edge of her bed waiting for her with her arms folded and her legs crossed, was Casey.

“Hello, Lizzie.” Her sister greeted her in a sickeningly sweet voice that made Lizzie want to puke. “I’ve been expecting you. Come in. Take a seat.”

The younger of the two furrowed her brow in confusion, but said nothing as she closed the door behind her with an echoing click and obeyed Casey’s orders by sitting down next to her - not because she was an obedient little sister that did everything her older sister wanted her to do (though that was certainly part of it) - but rather, because there was something strange about Casey’s aura that night. Something eerie and daunting. Something that made Lizzie fear what may happen if she didn’t do what her sister told her.

Once she was seated comfortably enough, she looked up at Casey with curious eyes, silently wondering what was going on. Casey looked back, and seconds later, she spoke, as if there had been some kind of telepathic link between them that allowed her to hear - to know - exactly what her little sister was thinking.

“I want to talk to you.” She said simply. “It’s about Edwin.”

Lizzie’s heart stopped. Her eyes went wide and her mouth fell open as she stared at her sister in shock, but she quickly snapped out of it and tried to act like she didn’t know what Casey was talking about.

“Really?” She said, feigning curiosity. “What about him?”

Casey narrowed her eyes.

“Don’t play stupid with me, Liz. You know exactly what I’m talking about.” She said dangerously.

Lizzie tore her gaze away and shook her head frantically.

“No.” She lied. “No, I don’t.”

“Stop lying to me, Lizzie! I saw you two! Tonight! In the kitchen!” Casey snapped. “I saw him kiss you, and I saw how you kissed him back, so don’t you dare tell me you don’t know what I’m talking about because you do!” She took a deep breath in an attempt to regain her cool, and tucked her hair behind her ears before looking down into her sister’s terrified face once more and saying calmly, “I just thought I’d let you know that I know… and that I do not, under any circumstance, support what you two are doing.”

“I mean…” she went on, “lying to your own mother? Sneaking around behind everyone’s backs to make out with your step-brother?” Casey made a disgusted face. “That’s low. Not to mention sleazy. And another thing…”

By this point, Lizzie’s body was trembling with fury. It was taking all her willpower not to just slap Casey right there and then, but she knew violence wasn’t the answer, so she suppressed the urge. Unfortunately, with each passing second that her sister continued to rant and rave about how ‘gross’ and ‘wrong’ it was, the temptation was becoming harder to resist.

“Shut up, Casey.” She grit out, rising to her feet. “Just shut up!”

For a moment, Casey was rendered absolutely speechless.

Never once had her sister ever talked back to her in such a way.

Her cerulean eyes went wide upon realizing that her worst fear was slowly becoming realized. Just as she’d suspected from the beginning… living with the Venturis was clearly taking a negative toll on Lizzie. Her personality, her morals, her judgment, her… her everything! Everything about her dear, sweet, innocent little sister was taking a turn for the worst and the Venturis were to blame for it!

Specifically the eldest and his loyal minion.

“Oh, Lizzie!” She gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. “Can’t you see what being with Edwin is doing to you? You’re becoming impulsive and reckless! You’re not thinking straight! You’re becoming like -”

“Like Derek?” Lizzie finished, before laughing bitterly. “I appreciate the concern, Casey, but I think I can take care of myself. You may not like it, but being with Edwin is the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

“It’s unethical!” Her sister cried. “It’s not normal!”

“I don’t recall asking for your opinion, Casey.” Lizzie spat, folding her arms defiantly across her chest.

“He’s a Venturi, Lizzie!”

“So?”

“He’ll only end up hurting you!” Casey told her. “All Venturis are the same.”

“Really, now?” Lizzie challenged. “Is that so? Know from experience, Casey? Got something you want to share, perhaps? Is somebody a hypocrite?”

A resounding CRACK echoed throughout the tiny, peach-colored room, and Lizzie was stunned to suddenly find herself on the floor holding her stinging right cheek, staring up at her older sister in disbelief.

Casey, on the other hand, didn’t seem at all perturbed that she had just hit her own sister. Desperate times called for desperate measures, after all, and while she knew that it was wrong to justify her actions, she just didn’t know how else to make Lizzie see that she was wrong. Oh, how she longed for the days when all she had to do was talk to her sister to make her understand, but those days seemed to have long gone.

“My apologies, Lizzie, but don’t you dare talk to me like that ever again!” She warned, stepping closer and casting a shadow over her sister’s curled up body. Her expression softened a little as she crouched down beside her and gazed into Lizzie’s eyes lovingly. “I’m your sister, Lizzie. I’m only trying to look out for you. The Venturis are bad people - can’t you see? All of them. Even Edwin, and if he’s anything like his brother - which he is - he’ll only end up hurting you in the end. It’s inevitable. I’m only trying to prevent that from happening, and one of these days, you’ll see that… and you’ll thank me for it.”

With that, she rose to her feet and made her way over to the door, pausing midway to spare Lizzie one last glance.

“Break it off with him, Liz.” She said. “Before it’s too late. If you don’t… I’ll have no choice but to go to Mom and George.”

Then, she was gone.

X

Lizzie didn’t know how long she sat curled up in a ball on the ground, but as she slowly got to her feet and massaged her cheek, she knew that that was the least of her worries.

Casey knew.

Casey knew about her and Edwin, and she’d threatened to tell their parents if she didn’t break it off with him. But she couldn’t just break up with him. She just couldn’t!

She had to tell Edwin. She had to tell him about Casey and everything Casey had said. Once she did that, they would be able to come up with a plan.

And a damn good one at that.

X

Alright, I’m stopping the chapter there, folks. It was originally going to be longer, but school starts back up tomorrow and I have to go to bed early.

So… let’s see. Casey’s a bit OOC, isn’t she? Yeah… she turned out a lot more evil in this chapter than originally planned. Not to mention a little psychotic. Split Personality, much? Ah, well.

Also, I tried my take at foreshadowing, which is always fun. Leaves you on the edge of your seat with that horrible gut feeling we all know and hate, doesn’t it? And there’s finally some major conflict going on.

I’m so cruel.

ANYWAYS… hope you enjoyed!

Please, REVIEW and tell me what you think!

-Lady Azura-