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CASSIE DIDN'T GO to school for a week. She laid under the covers of her bed despite her mother's persistent knocking after receiving worried phone calls from her high school.
[ 'Some of you cared. None of you cared enough. Neither did I. I'm sorry. So, that's the end of tape thirteen. There's nothing more to say' ].
It was the fact Hannah thought she had no one, and it was the fact that Cassie found out more about Bryce Walker than she intended to. He had done something horrible to her, and it left her broken, her spirit ripped from her without warning. How could he have done something so vile and so sick that he can still walk around like it was nothing?
It was seven pm on a Friday night, Cassie had missed the last five days to escape seeing Bryce, but in her mind she only saw the smile he wore everyday and she wanted to punch it right off him. Hannah couldn't fight him off though, how could Cassie serve her justice? Besides the point, Cassie had shrugged Hannah off, and pushed her to the side.
A gust of wind blew into her room as her window opened and a figure fell into her dark, shadowed room. Cassie sat up, and grabbed the lamp on her nightstand, ready to attack. When the figure stood up, closed the window and turned to her, she raised the lamp higher.
"What the hell, Cas, put the lamp down," Justin scoffed and walked over to her. He sat on the edge of her bed and gave her worried look, "why haven't you been at school? Or out of the house?"
Cassie fell silent, because she knew he already listened the tapes. She wondered how he wasn't messed up after finding out about what Bryce did to Hannah. How could he still be friends with someone like him?
She glanced over to the tapes, and his eyes followed hers, "take a wild guess," she whispered.
Justin's face fell and he scooted more onto the bed to lean over and hug her. She refrained from him and he leaned back before he could do it. Seeing his confused expression, she scoffed, "how can you still be friends with him— Bryce, he's— he's a rapist."
It was almost like he couldn't answer her, "Cas, I— it's complicated."
"It's really not. He's a rapist, it's that simple," Cassie replied, shaking her head.
"Bryce has been one of the only people whose ever been there for me when my mom wasn't. He's done so much for me, Cas. I'm not saying what he did was right, but what am I supposed to do? If I stay away from him, what does that make me look like?" Justin asked fearfully and continued, "he's taken me in so many times. How do I just let that go?"
"You're making it seem like he has control over you. He did all those things to make you feel like you owe him now, but Justin you don't owe him anything," she tried explaining, and set her hand over his, "he's not a good person."
A few tears dropped down his cheek and Cassie pulled him into her, "it's okay to let go." Holding him in her arms, his head laid in the crook of her neck as he held onto her.
Minutes later he glanced up, "I miss you, Cas. I miss you so much."
"So do I—"
"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I wasn't faithful. I know now what it's like to lose someone, and I don't ever want to feel it again. Cassie, I know I probably don't deserve you now, but I love you," he concluded.
Cassie's heart started to hurt as she was reminded of Eisenhower Park. She saw the hurt in his eyes then and saw a more intense version in his eyes now. He had apologized more than ten times and the most that came out of his mouth was him saying 'I love you' when he talked to her. Although he hasn't been trying very hard, things have been hard on him, and she couldn't blame him. She had been pushing away any hope he had. Could she trust him with her heart again? At the same time, how could she walk the same hallways Bryce did, and know what he did without speaking out? In some way, without telling someone, she was just as bad.
