Vera did her best to be supportive as Casey was clearly worn out from his internship. He did seem to perk up a bit after spending time with her on Saturdays, which was incredibly flattering.
Tilly noticed. "So. When are you going to ask him out? He's obviously too shy to do it himself but I can tell he likes you. He's a sweet kid."
"Isn't he?" Vera sighed a bit dreamily before growing more serious. "I don't want to overwhelm him though. He becomes a human tomato at the drop of a hat. If I tell him I like him, I might give him a heart attack."
Tilly laughed but Vera was perfectly serious. The last thing she wanted to do was freak Casey out.
"I'm sure you'll find a way. My tenacious girl always gets what she wants."
This was true. She had always been stubborn. Stubborn and patient. However long it took, she would figure something out eventually.
Vera continued being there for Casey for the rest of his internship but that wasn't all. She insisted on making him a cake when he graduated. He originally hadn't planned to walk in the ceremony but she managed to convince him, saying he had earned his degree and it should be documented. He didn't argue with that, simply said he didn't think his twin would come.
She had no idea he was a twin! Why hadn't that ever come up before now?!
It was true that he was more of a listener than a talker but how could he not tell her something so basic about himself? What else hadn't he told her?
"You're a twin?" Vera asked in disbelief.
Casey seemed extremely reluctant to talk about this. "Yeah. An identical one. His name is Kane and he's…well, he's difficult to deal with. That's why I don't really talk about him."
Difficult how? How bad was their relationship that he wouldn't talk about his identical twin?
"Oh. I'm sorry to hear that."
Vera knew all about complicated family relationships. Like the one she had with her biological father. It wasn't her place to judge, even if she was curious.
Casey knew the basics about Matt and why she had come to live with Tilly in the first place. Vera had told Casey practically everything about her life but he didn't do the same in return. He had mentioned his parents being dead but that was all he ever told her. He never mentioned siblings at all. Was Kane not the only one? She was afraid to ask and upset Casey.
"It is what it is. If you ever come across him, just ignore whatever he might say. He knows who you are."
She didn't know when that would happen if Kane didn't show up to his own twin's graduation. She supposed she would have to see.
Ultimately, Casey's pessimistic prediction came true. Vera and Tilly were the only ones there. At least he had two people cheering him on. That was better than none, wasn't it?
He definitely appreciated the cake since he only hesitated for a moment before hugging Vera for making it. She noticed he made the picture Tilly took of them in his cap and gown his phone's lock screen too. That was adorable!
Her feelings didn't seem to be completely one-sided but if he was hesitant to talk about his own twin, they still had a long way to go. It was fine. They had plenty of time.
Casey ended up doing what he said he would. Freelance editing while apprenticing under Tilly. He had more time to do that during the day while Vera was at school once fall semester started. She was there to help the whole time during the summer.
By the time she graduated and worked at the shop full-time, he would be fully trained for sure. That would help a lot because Tilly started having problems during Vera's junior year.
It started small. Memory issues. Forgetting dates, repeating questions, needing more frequent reminders.
Then came the concentration problems. Or was it difficulty completing familiar tasks? Restoration projects Tilly used to be able to do in her sleep took much longer.
Confusion with time or place, trouble understanding visual information and spatial relationships, issues with speaking and writing, misplacing things, poor judgment, changes in personality. It wasn't too long before Vera was so worried that she made Tilly go to the doctor for it.
That was when it came. The devastating diagnosis of early onset dementia. She wasn't nearly old enough for this!
Vera was absolutely heartbroken. What was she supposed to do? She still had to finish her degree! She couldn't run the shop and take care of Tilly at the same time!
"I'll help you, Vera," Casey said far more firmly than usual when Vera cried while telling him the news. "You just focus on school, okay? I'll try to take care of the business end of things here for you."
"You'd really do that?" she sniffled, overwhelmed with appreciation.
"Yeah. We're partners, right?"
That WAS why Vera originally offered Casey a job. She hadn't thought Tilly would be able to help forever but didn't anticipate her not being able to so soon. What would Vera do without him?
She hugged him tightly. "Thanks, Casey. I can't tell you how much this means to me."
He somewhat awkwardly patted her back, not seeming to know what else to do. All he said was "Glad I can help."
Casey had called Vera an angel before but he was the true angel. She couldn't even imagine how she would have juggled all this on her own. He stayed with Tilly all day to redirect her and make sure she remembered to get things done, helping with various restorations to make them go faster since he had the skills for it at this point.
With how much was on Vera's plate, she couldn't even think of trying to push her feelings on him. It wasn't the time. She had to focus on her aunt and finishing school.
He had become her rock. She didn't just like him anymore. She was completely in love with him. And she couldn't say so and overwhelm him. Not when he was doing so much for her. It wouldn't be fair.