I find this on my PC a few week back. It was the first ever 'big' Life with Derek fanfiction I'd even seen and got my shipping Dasey and Lizwin. I do not know who work it is and I cannot find it on her at all. So after thinking about it I am putting it up on her for other to see too. If this this your work, why, O why did you take it down? Say and I shall take it down. So my MY Disclaimer: I do not own this work of fanfiction, nor do I own Life With Derek.

Life Goes on, or Does it?

They say that 'life goes on', it been 5 years sine the last time we saw them and I can tell you that is dis go, I just don't like it anymore.

Chapter 1

"Dad, you can't be serious."

Dad sighed, "I'm sorry Derek, but things just aren't working out between Nora and I."

I was getting angrier by the minute. "You two have been married for what, six months? Don't you think there's still a chance to work this out?" I asked.

He stood up and started to pace around the room. "Not really, son. Why is this such a big deal to you? You were so strongly against the McDonalds moving in."

I shrugged. "I got used to them. Even Casey."

He chuckled a little, and said, "I never thought I'd hear that from you."

I ignored what he said and continued, "All of us have gotten used to them. I don't even wanna think about how upset Marti is gonna be about this."

His face fell a little at the mention of Marti. Honestly, I knew that this was for the best, but Dad needed to get chewed out. They put all of us, Venturis and McDonalds alike, through such a life-changing ordeal. Then expect us to just deal with things going back how they were.

His face turned to one of annoyance. "I don't really need this from you Derek. Don't you think I've been thinking about this? Things just didn't turn out how I thought they would."

I started to say something, but he interrupted me. "..and I know it's Nora and I's fault for rushing things. We truly thought we were in love. Can you really blame us?" he asked.

To that I simply replied, "Yes."

With that, I went upstairs. As I got upstairs, I could hear Casey crying in her room. Normally I would just ignore her, but for some reason I felt for her. I knew exactly what she was going through, and felt a twinge of guilt for putting her through so much these past six months.

I gently opened her door. If I had knocked, she would have just told me to go away. She looked up at me as I entered. Her eyes were puffy and red from crying. For a second I wondered how long ago Nora had broken the news to her.

"Hey," I said softly.

"W-What do you want, Derek?" She barely managed to ask between sobs.

I hated it when people cried. This was so much worse though, this was Casey crying.

"I uhh.. well.. You want to just talk?" I asked.

She looked surprised, and I can't blame her. In the time she has lived here, I never volunteered to just 'talk' to her about anything.

She wiped away some of her tears, and asked, "Are you asking because someone told you to, or do you really want to talk?"

I made my way over to her bed and sat down next to her. "I really do want to talk. If you'll stop crying."

She laughed a little, and for the briefest moment I saw a smile on her lips. I don't know why, but for some reason making her smile had taken away almost any negative feelings I had at that second.

She sat there for a minute, and managed to stop crying for the most part. "What do you want to talk about?" she asked.

I shrugged, "I don't know.. We could talk about this moving thing, if you want?"

She looked me in the eyes. It almost seemed like she was searching for some clue of the prank she assumes I'm trying to pull.

"There's not much to talk about. In a week you'll have your old Venturi house back. Poor taste, messy rooms, and fast food every night."

I sighed, "What if I don't want that?"

She looked genuinely surprised at what I said. "Why wouldn't you want that? That's you, Derek."

I looked away from her, and said, "Believe it or not, and I won't admit to saying this, but I think you McDonalds have made this house better."

Her eyes started to tear up. "Really?" she asked.

I nodded. A single tear went down her cheek in response. Without thinking I gently wiped it away with my thumb. She closed her eyes as my hand made contact. After I did it, we both realized what happened.

What in the world was I thinking? Why am I acting so nice to her.. It's not like she's going through anything the rest of us aren't.

She smiled, and said, "Thank you, Derek."

We sat there in silence for a while. It wasn't really awkward, though. For my part I was still wondering what was making me act like this, and why couldn't I stop myself. Try as I might I didn't have a clue what she was thinking.

Eventually I figured some conversation might help.

"Are you guys gonna be living nearby?" I asked.

She shook her head. "Mom is taking a job in New York. She said it's perfect. Dad will get to see Lizzie and I, and the new job is great pay."

My stomach turned at the thought of them moving to New York. I don't know why, but I really didn't like that idea.

"Case. For what it's worth, I'm going to miss you."

She smiled at me, and asked, "Who knew you were a nice guy, Derek Venturi?"

My face flashed with mock anger, and I said, "Hey, I'm not a nice guy. I'm a skirt chasing cad, remember?"

She laughed. A genuine laugh. "I'll miss you too, Derek."

5 Years Later...

I'd like to say we did fine after the McDonalds moved out, but we didn't. Who knew six months could really change people so much. Dad tried his best to go back to how things used to be, but it really didn't work. Ed got very moody, not that I can blame him. Lizzie had quickly become his best friend, and then she was gone. Marti took it the hardest of us. She seemed like an entirely different kid. She stopped wearing purple, Daphne went away, and she even stopped calling me Smerek.

I wasn't much better. Try as I might not to, I thought about Casey every day. I tried dating to get my mind off her, but it never worked. I haven't even gone out on a date in 2 years. I buried myself in school work and hockey. It wasn't even to improve myself. It was strictly a distraction.

I hadn't heard from any of the McDonalds since the day they left, and still constantly thinking about one of them. I sometimes wondered if this was what being crazy was like.

Anyways, here I was buying my food for the week. For the 2 years I spent at home before going off to college all we ate was fast food. As soon as I was out on my own I strictly avoided it. I'm not a very good cook, but just being reminded of 'home' was painful. It definitely helped to move to Toronto where I didn't have the fast food phone numbers memorized.

As I was buying some tomatoes, somebody nearby caught my eye. It was a young girl, she couldn't have been older than 18 or 19. She looked so familiar, but I couldn't figure out where I knew her from.

I'll admit I did stare, but it wasn't in an inapropriate way. Some memory was trying to force it's way out, but it just wouldn't come. Finally, I got so frustrated, I approached her.

"Excuse me, but do I know you? You look very familiar-"

Her face lit up. "Derek? Derek Venturi, is that you?!" She asked, practically yelling.

Then it clicked. Her age, her face, her voice. "Lizzie?"

She grinned and jumped up and gave me a hug. It was a little awkward for me, but just the idea of running into a McDonald had my head spinning.

"What are you doing in Toronto?" I asked.

We separated, and she smiled at me. "I moved up here for college. Wow. I never thought I'd ever see you again. It's like finding my long lost brother."

I desperately wanted to stop her from talking, and grill her about Casey. I figured that would a pretty rotten thing to do to her, though.

I nodded, and said, "You wanna come hang out at my place? I'm not the best cook, but I'd love to catch up."

She nodded. "Definitely."

She put her basket down, and helped me finish my shopping. We didn't talk much, except to point out things to buy. I think both of us wanted to save the conversation for a more comfortable place.

Back at Derek's apartment, after dinner...

"I have to admit, that wasn't that bad, Derek."

I laughed, "Well, Dad never got a chance to teach me how to cook badly."

She tensed up a bit at me mentioning my Dad.

"So, how is the Venturi clan doing lately?" She asked.

I grinned, and said, "You mean, how is Edwin doing?"

She blushed a little, and nodded.

"He really changed when you guys left. We all did.." I mumbled the last part.

She looked concerned. "How did things change? I thought things would just go back to what they were like before."

I shook my head, and said, "Dad tried to bring everything back to normal. None of us wanted that, though. You McDonalds made more of an impression than you'd think."

She motioned for me to continue, so I did. "Edwin stopped being outgoing. Even now he's a very moody person. You really were his best friend. He doesn't like to talk about it, but when you all moved away it crushed him."

She looked like she was fighting back tears, but I kept going. I thought she needed to hear all of it. "Marti probably took it the worst. She stopped being herself. There was no more purple craze, no more Daphne, no more cute nicknames. She started acting out in school. She's 11 now, and she's been suspended three times this year, that I know of."

One stray tear started to slide down her face, but she caught it before it went far. "What about you, Derek?" She asked.

"I'd be lying if I said a day went by without me thinking about the McDonalds."

"You mean, thinking about Casey," she said, barely above a whisper.

I nodded, "Yea. Casey."

She sat there, seeming to build up some confidence. "We took the move hard, too."

I almost felt bad that her saying that cheered me up. As bad as it sounds, I had hoped that we had as much of an affect on them as they had on us. I would never wish them pain, but the idea that they all could have happily adjusted.. It killed me a little inside thinking about it.

"R-Really?" I asked, my voice breaking a little.

She nodded, and continued, "Nothing was the same, ya know? I can't bring myself to play sports. Mom has been so depressed lately. She even tried to hook back up with Dad a few years ago. Casey really took it bad though. She stopped doing all the things she really loved, dance, writing poetry, school plays. Her grades started slipping."

I was shocked to hear that. That didn't sound like my Casey at all. Wait, my Casey? Since when was she mine..

Lizzie interrupted my thoughts, and added, "She barely made it through college. It was really tough to watch."

I took a while to absorb what Liz had said. I was about to say something, when her phone rang.

She didn't bother to leave the room, so I could hear her side of the conversation.

"Hey.. Yea, I'm fine.. I'm with a friend.. Oh, just some guy I ran into at the supermarket. He made me dinner.."

She looked at me and smirked. I couldn't hold back a laugh.

"Stop yelling!.. Yes, I'll be home soon.. No, he's not a crazy person.. How do I know? I just do.. You're not going to believe me are you?.. Fine, hold on.."

She pressed the speaker button, and whispered for me to say hi.

I was a little hesitant at first. I assumed she was talking to a dorm roommate, or maybe even a boyfriend. I didn't want to make any waves.

"Umm, Hi..Lizzie is perfectly safe. My name's uh, De-"

"Derek!" I heard an unmistakable voice on the other end.

"Casey?!"

A/N: I have all of this, but I'm putting it up a bit at it time for you all to enjoy it more.