Casey and Me

Casey

Once I'd been given the all clear, Olivia and Sophia left Casey and I to make our way back to class. Obviously they were none too pleased at being bodyguards, and gladly took the first chance they could to disappear. This wasn't too big of a deal.

"Now watch 'em complain till the cows come home," Casey said cheerfully, as we walked back to the main building. "Oh well. Serves 'em right for takin' up with the likes of Jessie McGrath. Her dad won't be too happy."

"Will he really sue the school?" I asked. 

"Ha! Not bloody likely," Casey said confidently. She flashed me a cheeky grin. "Now get on with you, girlie. I'll catch you at lunchtime, yeah?"

"Yeah," I said, surprised and touched at this unexpected gesture of friendship. And just like that, with a cheerful wave, Casey melted into the crowd, and I was left to navigate my way to my next class. My jaw still ached, but no permanent damage had been done, for which I was immensely relieved. And my next class - part of which I'd missed thanks to the scuffle with Jessie and her (now former, probably) cohorts - was theatre, something I'd never had the chance to study at my old school. I definitely wanted to be able to talk for this class.

At lunchtime, Casey called out to me as I was making my way over to a vacant table. This morning's fight had put me in the "she's okay" category, and I smiled and returned the greetings directed at me. Jessie was thankfully nowhere to be seen, and Olivia and Sophia both gave me the cold shoulder when I slipped past them, but I was no longer terribly worried about those two. 

Casey grinned as I reached her side. "It's mad, innit?" she said, relaxing on her bench. "C'mon, sit down, girlie. I don't bite. At least not on the first date."

I laughed and sat down. "You're good," I assured her. I already liked her a lot. "So, what year are you in?" That was the unofficial first question you always asked someone when getting to know them, as I'd discovered during theatre class. 

"Supposed to be year eleven, but got kicked outta me old school," Casey said cheerfully. "So I'm repeatin' year ten, same as you."

I nodded. "Changing schools is rough," I agreed. 

"I'm used to it," Casey said proudly. "So, whatabout you?"

Telling her my story took the rest of lunchtime, but by the time it was over, we'd promised to keep in touch. Casey was a day student, since her parents literally lived across the road from Maple Hall, but she often stayed past the "official" school hours of 9 to 3. Her reasoning was that she had a few friends she liked to catch up with after school, so it made perfect sense to me. 

After lunch, we went our separate ways again, and I groaned when I stepped into my next class. Sophia glared at me before turning her back, and I sighed as I made my way to a vacant desk. I didn't expect her to fall on my neck and apologise for slugging me that morning, but I didn't like being iced out. Still, I had enough new faces to more than make up for it, and before long I was chatting with another repeating student by the name of Sally. Her older brother Ellis was in his final year before heading up to London, and together with his friend David, they captained the school's octopush team. "They really want to beat Silver Cross this year," Sally explained. "They lost by one goal last year, and they've been working extra hard over the break to get up to speed. Hey, can you swim?"

"Mum claims I was an Olympic swimmer in the womb," I said, and Sally giggled. "Who do I talk to?" 

"Ellis," Sally said. "I'll mention you after class, okay?"

I nodded. "Sounds like a plan."

After the final class of the day, Ellis and I met in the north courtyard, together with his friend David. "So you're the Olympic swimmer," Ellis commented with a grin. "Well, we need a few of those this year, don't we?"

David nodded. "We do, " he agreed. "Trials are on tomorrow." 

"What he means is, come down tomorrow after school," Ellis said, laughing. "We'll put you through your paces, how's that sound?"

"That sounds like a great idea," I said. 

Ellis nodded solemnly as we shook hands to seal the deal. "I like you already," he said. "I think we're going to get on like a house on fire."

"Bad news if the fire brigade are thirty miles away," David commented, and I blinked before laughing. He gave me a crooked half-smile. "I do crack the odd joke now and then," he said. "Ellis is the true wise-cracker, but I've been known to come up with a few zingers myself."

"I was making wise-cracks before you were born," Ellis retorted.

"Unless they were farts, I doubt it," David shot back, and I giggled as I left them to it. Ten seconds later, I bumped into a furious Casey. 

"Where the hell were you?" she demanded, grabbing my arm. "I was waitin' for you outside the library like we promised!"

I blinked, taken aback. This was not the friendly girl who'd made me smile during lunchtime. "I was just talking to Ellis about joining the octopush team" I said hesitantly. "I'm going to be taking part in the trials tomorrow."

"The hell you are," Casey said angrily, glaring at me so frostily it was a wonder I didn't flash-freeze from the inside out. "You an' me are hangin' out tomorrow, remember?"

Now it was my turn to get angry, and I yanked my arm back. "Hey, you don't go telling me what I can and can't do," I said crossly. "If you're going to be all possessive of me, you can forget being friends with me."

Like the sun coming out from behind the clouds, Casey's glare cleared and she laughed. "S'all good," she said. "Don't let it worry you none. I'll just hafta come along tomorrow and cheer you on then, won't I?"

I blinked, then frowned. "I suppose so," I said, unsure of just how to take this complete 180 in personality. "Listen, I've got to get on. I've got homework to do, and I really don't want to get in trouble."

Casey shrugged. "Sure thing," she said carelessly. "I'm gettin' on towards needin' to be home meself. We'll catch up tomorrow, yeah?"

"Yeah," I said, still a little unsure, but feeling better now that Casey had shed her blisteringly bad mood. "See you tomorrow."