***
Cassie moved stiffly through the hall. Her legs were like wooden blocks; her shoulders ached from being locked in place. Her hand drifted to the sunglasses perched on her nose. The large lenses helped to block out the harsh fluorescent light that filtered through the halls. It had rarely bothered her before but now it constantly burned her irises, nearly blinding her with its brilliance. She chalked the strange effect up to exhaustion.
Everyone stopped to stare at her as she moved past; their whispered comments were not as loud as they had been before the death of her grandmother. Apparently, the loss of a family member was enough to bring her a reprieve from the cruelty of her classmates. She was not fooled into thinking it would last long. She would probably become the center of attention again, once the gossip about the destruction of the school bathroom, and hallway during the homecoming dance became old news. They would all still be buzzing about her, if they knew that she had been involved in that destruction while fighting for her life against Julian.
Stopping at her locker, she spun the dial quickly, her fingers going through the combo with little thought to the numbers. Melissa stopped beside her, leaning against the lockers as she waited for Cassie. She had a feeling that either Chris or Melissa was going to be with her every second of this miserable day.
Her skinned crawled with aggravation; anger spurted through her as she thrust the locker door open. Grabbing her books she slammed the locker closed. She didn’t need a babysitter, and she sure as hell didn’t want one. She tugged the hood of her black sweater more firmly around her face. She didn’t want to see anyone, or be seen either.
Keeping her head bowed she slipped into homeroom, relief filled her when she realized that Devon was not there. His car had not been in the parking lot either. Though she was glad that he was not here, that she wouldn’t have to deal with him on top of everything else, she couldn’t help but wonder where he was, what he was doing.
Her hands fisted on her desk as the brief thought of who he was with tore through her mind. He had claimed to love her, but he was a man after all, well sort of, and he had been dumped. She knew that he would find someone else soon enough. She tried to tell herself that the thought did not bother her, but it did. No matter how much she wanted to deny that fact, she couldn’t.
The morning announcements droned on, but she paid them little mind, she paid little mind to anything. Everything seemed surreal now. Everything was so out of place. Just last week she had been sitting at this same desk with dreams, hope, and love. She had been looking forward to the Homecoming dance simply for the chance to dance in Devon’s arms.
Now, just a few short days later, she was sitting here with nothing. No hopes, no dreams, no love. Her grandmother, the one person that had always been there for her, caring for her, loving her, was gone. And she had taken everything that Cassie was with her. Cassie was surprised that her heart continued to beat in her chest considering how dead she felt inside, how empty and alone and so very lost she was. How did the world continue to spin? How was she supposed to go back to her life, when the hurt and anger inside of her was nearly consuming?
Didn’t everyone else know that they were supposed to stop? Didn’t they know they were supposed to recognize her loss, and acknowledge it by being as miserable as she was?
Her name being called snapped her attention to the front of the class. “Here,” she mumbled, ignoring the stares she felt burning into her.
Ducking her head once more, she played idly with her pencil, tapping it against the desk. She felt stuck, trapped in a life she didn’t want anymore. She had no idea why she was even here, what did school matter when she didn’t plan on living for much longer? It had simply been habit that had forced her out of bed and here this morning. Habit and the fact that she had nothing better to do with her day.
Julian and Isla would be hidden away, avoiding the daylight. She couldn’t hunt them when they weren’t around to hunt. And if she simply sat at home she would go absolutely insane. She needed to be doing something, and no matter how pointless school was now, it was far better than sitting on her ass doing nothing all day.
A ripple in the classroom caused her to bow her head further. He may have been late, but she knew immediately that Devon had arrived. She could sense him as he made his way toward the only empty desk in the room, the one diagonally across from her. Cassie’s hands fisted even tighter, her nails dug painfully into her palm.
She could feel the energy rippling off of him, the power that he admitted in waves. The waves pulsed against her, causing her skin to heat and her heart to pick up. She hated the way that he made her feel, hated the fact that she always reacted to him, no matter how hard she tried not to. It was just purely a physical thing, she told herself fiercely. She did not love him anymore; he was the reason that her grandmother was dead. She hated him!
The pencil in her hand snapped, cracking loudly in the silent classroom. She felt the heads turning toward her but she ignored them. Gathering her things, she rose swiftly, not caring that the bell hadn’t rung yet. No one stopped her as she hurried from the classroom, but she did hear a chair skid back, and she knew that Melissa was coming behind her.
Disgust and anger boiled through her, she shoved the door of the girl’s bathroom open. It crashed against the wall with a resounding thud. Slamming her books on top of the counter by the sink, she spun toward Melissa as she entered slowly. “I don’t need a damn watch dog!” she exploded, fury boiling through her.
Melissa quirked a dark eyebrow but simply folded her arms over her chest as she leaned against the wall. Her onyx eyes were inquisitive and sad as she studied Cassie; her black hair fell around her shoulders in gentle waves to the middle of her back. “Maybe not, but you’re going to have one.”
Cassie glared fiercely at her, fighting the urge to rip the sink from the wall, something she felt she could actually do in the mood that she was in. She settled for gripping the sink tight, taking gulping breaths of air as she tried to calm her racing heart and shaking body. How on earth was she ever going to survive this? She wasn’t, that was how.
Turning the cold water on, Cassie slipped her glasses off and splashed her face, hoping to revive herself at least a little. She turned the water off as she lifted her head slowly; she hated the sight of the girl staring back at her. Hands fisting, Cassie had to fight the urge to smash her fist into it, destroying the image that she hated so much.
Blinking rapidly, she lifted her glasses from the sink, and slipped them on. The dark lenses eased the burning in her eyes, but they did not ease her pain. Every part of her body ached and hurt lately. She didn’t know what was wrong with her, well except for the obvious. Shuddering, she grabbed hold of her books, trying to ignore the bone deep, aching chill that had become a constant part of her.