Chasing Euphoria

Chapter Forty Nine

Cassie

Cassidy Piece. Kennedy Acosta. Cassidy Acosta. Kennedy Pierce.

Four different names yet all of them were... me?

Sitting opposite a woman who I had never met in my entire life, yet she was the reason for my existence. I never considered it too much, but seeing an older version of myself was far too unusual for me to understand having gone twenty-one years and not knowing any different.

Life is fucking weird.

"So, can you tell me anything about yourself?" She asked, almost unsure as if it was the right thing. Was there a right thing to say? "I just can't believe I'm finally seeing you."

I didn't even know where to start. "Well, I've been in Northlyn Hills for almost a year. I work in a little coffee house with my friends and I'm at University studying business."

Despite genetics, we were strangers. How could you really speak to someone about your life? There's so much that she missed.

It wasn't that I didn't want her to know about my life, there was just too much to even begin to collate at this moment. I wasn't prepared. Hell, I forgot she was even showing up. How shitty of me. I didn't want it to feel forced, but it did. You can't just go off listing every year of your life until it's cleared.

Maybe it was stupid of me to think that's how it would go.

"Can I show you around?" I offered. I remember telling her she could stay for a couple of days whenever she visited.

"Absolutely, I should also probably mention I'll have to leave later tomorrow. Work could only give me a couple of days and with travelling, I only have today and tomorrow." She said.

It did upset me a little, however, it was probably good to not rush into everything all at once.

Or I was trying to cover up my disappointment with the 'bright side'.

After giving Mallory a tour of the apartment, I showed her specifically her room and where Landon put her bag. Not that she could miss it with it being directly in the middle of the bed.

"Do you feel like going to grab some brunch?" I offered.

She nodded. "I'd love to see where you work, that's if you're okay with bringing me there?"

"That would be nice, let me just grab a jacket and my keys and we can go now."

Rushing to grab any jacket from my room, I hurried back to her and directed the way to my car. The ride was quiet, with the music barely loud enough to hear. I detoured slightly to point out certain key areas of my life like the university, and Landon's apartment building.

"How did you meet him?" Mallory asked once we passed.

"It makes me sound messy." I laughed, not prepared for the question. "After my ex and I broke up, I was drunk on the rooftop of a bar and he just... found me. He was looking for one of his friends and instead was greeted by me in a crisis."

She nodded, "I've been there. Not on a rooftop. Some people are in the right place at the right time."

"Are you with someone?" My curiosity peaked, having a flowing conversation that I wanted to keep going. "My birth father?"

"Unfortunately not honey. I haven't seen him in years, I wouldn't even know how to contact him now. I've been in and out of relationships, but nothing ever stuck. Things go well until they just don't anymore." She looked apologetic toward me. I was hoping my birth father could be a topic of conversation at some point, perhaps today wasn't the day for it.