Derek and Danielle

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Disclaimer: This story is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

As well, this work of fiction depicts sexual activities between teenagers, siblings and otherwise. As such it may be illegal to view this story where you live, and you should cease reading at this point if that is the case.

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On the way home, Danielle said to Derek and Rick, "Why'd Evan give you guys a weird look?"

Rick coughed nervously. Derek shrugged. "Just something he'd like to keep private, is all."

"But wha—okay," said Danielle in realization. "Mum's the word. What happens between boys, stays between boys, is that it?"

Rick shook his head. "You're too observant, I swear."

Danielle smirked. "Price of being a girl, I guess."

"Oh, that's fighting words!" Derek said laughingly as he began chasing Danielle, Rick following as she made 'kiss my ass' motions.

When the boys finally caught up with Danielle, Derek casually slung an arm over her shoulder and said, "You know, you should join me and Rick for running practice. Can't hurt, right?"

Danielle seemed to consider it. "I guess. I usually do my running before volleyball practice, down by the school." She grabbed Derek's arm and pushed it off her. "I'll let you guys know. And your arm belongs around him, I think. It was kind of heavy, anyway."

Rick hesitantly put his arm around Derek's shoulders as he walked, shortly reciprocated by Derek, who smiled at Rick encouragingly. Danielle grinned and gave the thumbs up. "Look, I really think it will be okay if you guys come out at school. Honestly."

Rick tensed up, causing Derek to rub his back soothingly. "Look, it's one thing to just walk like this when half the people here probably don't have kids or whatever. But I… shit. It's weird; I can shower with the track team like it's nothing, but telling them I like guys? All it takes is for one of them to be a total dickhead about it."

Danielle spread her hands. "All I know is when the girls on my volleyball team aren't believing rumors about my nice brother here—" Derek stuck his tongue out at her, prompting her to return the favor. "—they're usually going google-eyed over, like, John Barrowman. Remember when he came out?"

The boys nodded.

"So there you go; I think the girls in the school would probably be more or less all right," pointed out Danielle. "And the guys would probably just be happy there's less competition for the girls, right?"

Rick shook his head uneasily and disengaged from Derek. "I still don't know about it. Look, I'm not trying to be an ass here, but Danielle, you're starting to make me a little uncomfortable."

Danielle said in a low voice, "I'm sorry." She added contritely, "I'll back off. I promise."

Derek looked at the pavement as they rounded the corner, approaching Rick's house. He didn't like feeling caught between Rick and Danielle. As the trio came to a halt in front of Rick's place, Rick said, "It was nice hanging out today, Derek. Call me later, okay?" Derek nodded, and quickly hugged Rick.

To a somber Danielle, Rick said, "Hey. I'm not mad at you, okay?"

Danielle nodded in understanding. "Forgive me, Rick?" she asked.

Rick chuckled. "Forgiven and forgotten. Hug?"

"With pleasure," Danielle replied as she embraced Rick. "And you'll be a great boyfriend to Derek."

"We're still figuring that part out, I think?" pointed out Derek. Rick nodded and said, "Yeah. We've been friends so long it's kinda weird. Anyway, look. Danielle? I appreciate that you were just trying to help. Just help us kick some ass at school if we ever do come out, okay?"

"Say the word, I'm there," said Danielle firmly. She held up a clenched fist. "These fists shall make our opponents know fear!" she mock-growled, prompting Derek and Rick to laugh uproariously.

"Okay, I gotta run in," said Rick. "Seeya!"

The siblings waved at him, and then walked towards their house, waiting until they heard the distant slam of the front door before they were ready to talk more intimately.

As soon as they heard the door, Danielle blurted, "Derek? Am I annoyingly pushy all the time? Rick's never told me to back off before."

"I guess sometimes," temporized Derek. "It's not all bad though; you know what you want and you go get it. It's just that doesn't work for other people."

Danielle sighed. "You're right. I'm being kind of selfish though. Pushing Rick to come out just so it takes any attention off the fact that I hang around you and might not date anyone at school."

Derek hugged Danielle to his side as they walked. "It's all right, big sister. I don't think anyone at the school will assume anything."

In disbelief, Danielle said, "Nobody's ever come up to you and said, 'Dude, if she wasn't your sister, would you tap that?'"

Derek chuckled nervously. "Not yet, anyway. But I bet you cursed that question into existence."

"Hm. Anyway, we have to cook for all four of us tomorrow. Remember?"

Derek let his arm fall to his side as he muttered, "Shit! I forgot. What can we make that we won't burn or fuck up? Mom's right. I need to know how to cook."

"So do I," noted Danielle. She mused, "You know, could we live together somehow? Like, after we graduate?"

"It's all hazy, Dani. I honestly haven't got the faintest idea how that would work. And anyway, making you do all the cooking wouldn't be fair, anyway."

"Well, that's in the future. And right now we've got some time left to figure out what to make for tomorrow. So, c'mon, let's brainstorm." Danielle clapped Derek's shoulder briefly.

The siblings began discussing food items, Derek rapidly realizing he had no idea how complicated or simple they'd be. He resolved to read more cookbooks and watch his mom more in the future. It was embarrassing, knowing so little, he thought.

At supper, Derek and Danielle discussed the proposed lunch menu, and finally settled on a vegetarian lasagna and a salad on the side, to be made from scratch.

Rachel said, "It's not that I don't trust you to cook meat properly, but this is your first time; you'll want to start with something you don't have to worry as much about. Just make sure to get a decent recipe from my cookbook or from a good cooking recipe website. Okay, kids?"

The siblings nodded and exchanged a small high-five.

The next morning, Derek caught Evan online and exchanged messages as he sat up in bed with his laptop.

DCtheGrey: Morning. How'd it go?

EvanTheBold: Shit man, it was *awesome*! We wore each other out by like eleven, though. She's cuddled up next to me, actually, so I'm not gonna talk for too long.

DCtheGrey: Cool. :) You hear anything more from the 'rents?

EvanTheBold: Just a quick e-mail. They're coming back with the asshole around lunch. Katie's mom's boyfriend is over at her place anyway, so her mom didn't give her too hard of a time about staying at my place. She's gonna sneak back home soon actually, and pretend she came back last night.

DCtheGrey: Okay, catch you later then?

EvanTheBold: Yeah. Damn, I hope James isn't a complete dick to me now. He's never run away before. :(

DCtheGrey: Sucks to be you. Good luck, man.

EvanTheBold: I'll need it. L8r, okay?

DCtheGrey: Yup.

With that, Derek got out of bed, did a few stretches to try and relieve the aches in his muscles, then went through his morning ritual. He got dressed in some casual clothes, then went downstairs to find Danielle talking with their mother.

"Hi! How are you, Derek?" Rachel came up and brushed Derek's hair out of his eyes.

"Not too bad, Mom. What's up?"

Danielle said, "Just checking that we'll have all the stuff we need. Mom was saying no onions."

"Whew," said Derek. "Even I know if you cut them the fumes'll make you cry."

Their mother nodded. "Start cooking around eleven. Generally I find it takes about an hour and a half, but for you, budget an hour and forty-five minutes."

"Okay," said Danielle. Derek nodded in concert, and noticed it was now nine in the morning. Enough for a small breakfast, and then maybe chatting with Rick for a bit.

Derek and Danielle stood in the kitchen, the recipe for the lasagna sitting on the counter in front of them. They looked at each other, at the recipe, and then blurted simultaneously, "I'm not ready to do this."

Derek grinned and gently shoved Danielle, who giggled and pointed. "Twin jinx!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," responded Derek. He looked at the counter again and said, "Well, we've got no choice. Let's do this, huh?"

Danielle nodded. "Okay. I know a bit more about this than you probably do from last year's home ec. So, get that pot there, and fill it with water about halfway, and then put it on and get it boiling."

Derek moved to follow Danielle's instructions and noticed she'd smoothly moved to get another pot, with two handles on it, which she set on the oven element next to the water. "This is a saucepan. I'm gonna start prepping the veggies and sauce in this pot. Watch the water pot as you help me; when it boils, get that package of noodles and pour them in; set the alarm on your watch or clock or something for ten minutes after you put 'em in." Derek noticed the indicated lasagna noodles in a carboard box on the counter.

Danielle took a deep breath. "O-kay. Mushrooms. Wait; the oven." Danielle gently moved Derek aside so she could set the oven.

As the siblings began working on the lunch, Derek found his rapport with Danielle hit a smooth stride, as they anticipated each other's moves, and worked carefully without trying to rush. They hit a lull as Danielle began heating up the mixture of pasta sauce and vegetables with a bit of oil, and she smiled. "Not so hard, huh?"

Derek smiled in response. "Not so far, anyway. How're we doing?"

Danielle instructed, "Pretty good. Just watch the noodles. When your alarm goes off, just turn the element off; leave it for a minute, then drain off the hot water, carefully put in some cold water, then drain that off too. Make sure the noodles don't fall apart, though."

"Okay. You know, even though this seems easy I never really thought about how much work Mom or Dad put in to feed us. Maybe we should do the cooking for them so they come home to a nice supper instead of bringing in takeout when they come home late?"

"We should," agreed Danielle. She winked and said, "How domestic, huh?"

Derek chuckled.

Rachel popped her head in quickly, eyeballed the cooking, then nodded and left.

The rest of the meal was fairly straightforward to prepare, as the twins carefully layered the noodles and lasagna pasta mix, along with the cheese before putting the glass pan into the oven. Derek found he wasn't even that bothered when the two of them would occasionally brush against each other.

Rachel came in once more, observing the preparation of the lasagna; she just said, "Don't make the sauce layers too thick, and make sure they're even as well." She took off after that, again leaving the the two siblings to their own devices.

The salad took very little time to prepare, so after washing their hands, Danielle and Derek began setting the table. Their mother came in, put the oven light on and leaned over to check the lasagna, then said, "Good work, you two."

The twins let out a short cheer and briefly hugged Rachel when she came over to the table.

"I was hovering near the kitchen when you were doing the preparation, and I heard that thoughtful thing you two said. I know Sam and I would really appreciate it if you kids could start taking some of the load for suppers."

Derek, abashed, said, "We should've done this last year."

"It's all right, son. Believe it or not, your mother was a teenager once herself. I had to be pretty much dragged into the kitchen by your grandmother before I started cooking for the family – and I was fifteen. So you kids already have a head start on me." Rachel patted Derek's shoulder, then brushed Danielle's hair back as she remarked, "And honey, you need a haircut."

"Mom," said Danielle in an annoyed tone.

"Fine; you don't need to get one today. Just sooner or later, all right?"

"Sure. And we'll call you down when lunch is ready." Danielle's grin betrayed her enjoyment of the sudden role reversal.

"Yes, dears," their mother called from the stairs.

Derek chuckled. He nudged Danielle and mimed cupping his hands around his mouth and yelling (really, whispering loudly), "Mom! Dad! Get your butts down here now!"

Danielle pressed her lips together to keep from laughing.

The oven timer rang, making Derek nervous as he and Danielle cautiously pulled the pan out from the oven and set it on the counter to cool down. He thought it smelled okay and looked at Danielle. "Did we do it right?" He bit his lip.

Danielle nodded a bit tentatively. "I think so. At least, it doesn't smell burnt."

After another minute or two, Derek, figeting all the while, finally said, "I can't wait any longer. If this is a disaster I have to know now."

Danielle obliged, getting him a fork and a small plate. Derek quickly scooped out some lasagna from the corner onto his plate, then blew across it to try and cool it off.

"Moment of truth, sis," he declared. He put the little lasagna sample into his mouth, and began chewing.

Danielle, her eyes wide, said, "Well?"

Derek chewed experimentally, tasted it, then swallowed. "Pretty good, actually!"

Danielle, relieved, leaned against the fridge and said, "Thank God."

Derek put his plate and fork in the sink and reached for Danielle, who quickly hugged him. "We did good, huh?" He said into Danielle's ear. She nodded, and kissed him on the cheek. Derek responded with a quick kiss to her forehead, then let go of his sister.

Danielle grinned wickedly and then ran to the base of the stairs. She bellowed, "Mom! Dad! Lunch is ready and you get down there this instant!"

Derek almost fell over laughing at Danielle's strident imitation of their mother when she got annoyed enough to rattle the whole house with her voice.

Their parents came into the kitchen on Danielle's heels, smiling widely at her obvious parody of her mother. After the lasagna was placed on the table along with the salad, Derek and Danielle joined their parents. Anxiously, they awaited the verdict.

"Pretty good! You just need a bit of practice to get up to your mom's level, I think," remarked Samuel.

"I agree. If you two are up for it, you can do supper on Tuesday night. Something a little more complicated, with meat in it. How about it?" Rachel eyed the two of them.

Danielle looked at Derek. "You wanna?" she asked.

"Sure thing," responded Derek.

"All right, kids. You figure something out, run it by me and you'll be on your own for it when you come home from school," pronounced Rachel. "Now, let's eat!"

Lunch proved to be very good, thought Derek. Not bad for a first time.

That afternoon, Derek sat comfortably on the couch in the rec room as Danielle started up one of the Need for Speed games – he didn't remember offhand which one. She plopped down on the couch next to him and said, "Good teamwork down there."

Derek nodded. "Thanks for helping me out. I didn't know what some of the cooking terms meant in the recipe 'till you explained."

"As I never tire of pointing out, you can look up anything online if you haven't already learned it," said Danielle evenly.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah."

Danielle looked at the door, which was closed. She seemed to be debating with herself; Derek had half a mind to warn her not to try it, but that died as soon as she hooked her leg over his own and snuggled up next to him.

Hesitantly, Derek put his arm around Danielle and said into her ear, "We do not have an innocent explanation for this."

Danielle shrugged. "When you were putting the leftovers away I was at the table clearing the plates away, so I heard Dad saying he was going to check the garage gutters, and Mom saying she was gonna get a bit of shopping in."

The layout of the upstairs rec room was such that the window could only be reached if someone was standing up. This also meant that even from the back garage or the pool nobody could see them.

Derek tentatively put his free right hand on Danielle's bare leg (she was wearing casual shorts), looking to see if she was okay with it. She looked down and nodded, and he let his hand fall to her midthigh, feeling the toned muscles.

He whispered, "Nice legs," into her ear, and was rewarded when Danielle momentarily lost control of her car. She shot him an annoyed look, and said, "Opinions to yourself, thank you."

Derek chuckled as he snuggled closer to Danielle and leaned his head against hers, watching as she played the game.

At one point, she said, "Hey. Did Evan have a good time?"

"According to him, he did, yeah," Derek replied.

"You know, I got the vibe she might want a three-way with someone."

Derek sat up. "You're joking."

Danielle paused the game and looked him in the eye. "I don't think so. I kind of got a bit of an energy off her? Nothing I can really put into words; just the way she feels about other boys or girls. Look, Derek, if you do this, and you fuck her, it's your choice, but I'll be disappointed. Just... I know you probably weren't planning on it with her and Evan, but if she asks you, you should know how I'll feel."

Derek nuzzled Danielle's neck with his nose. He murmured, "And you?"

"If she asks, I'll say no. Right now, I'm not really in a 'girl' mode. I know I like boys – one boy in particular."

Derek kissed Danielle's neck. "Let's shut up about Katie and her wild sex drive for a minute, huh?"

Danielle purred, "I like the way you think."

The teens had a short, but intense, make-out session which culminated in Derek complaining, "C'mon, Dani. Take your shirt off, huh?"

"Not now. Look, you wanna fool around with me naked? We can do that tonight, if you want. But just, not now," said Danielle firmly.

A bit miffed, Derek said, "I guess."

"Look, you're horny and you've got a hand. Just go jack off in the bathroom or even in your bedroom," said Danielle reasonably.

Luckily, Danielle was pretty much done with the game, and shut the sound off just as the door slamming alerted them to disengage from one another. "Okay, yeah," conceded Derek.

"All right, then. Here, quick, gimme a kiss." Danielle beckoned Derek to lean in, and they pecked each other on the lips before Derek stood up to leave the room.

As soon as he got into his bedroom, he grabbed a spare towel, whipped his pants down, and was so turned on that it only took a few moments of stroking himself to gasp in relief as he quickly unloaded onto the towel. He then wrapped it up and tossed it into his laundry hamper. Thankfully, he'd taken to doing his laundry himself, freeing up his mother and his privacy at the same time.

He pulled his pants and underwear back up partway, then noticed a bit of cum was still present at the end of his cock. He swiped his thumb across the slit, licked it, then made himself decent and went to wash his hands. After that, he got down to business and began studying for a history exam that was due to come up later that week.

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