Cassie threw one of her textbooks at me but Zack stepped in and caught it effortlessly.
She growled and glared at me, "Can you get your fucking bodyguard out of the way so I can hit you."
"Zack, step aside."
"What? No way-"
This is my fight. You don't see Drake defending Cassie. I yelled in his head and he tensed.
I didn't know if it was my wise words or the shock that I could mind-link that ultimately made him back off. But he backed up and dropped Cassie's textbook on the floor.
Give her hell. He said in my mind and I smiled. That's exactly what I was going to do.
I've had seventeen years of hidden hatred and anger bottled up inside me waiting to explode. That just wasn't healthy.
Are you sure this is a good idea? Archer finally interjected and I nodded.
Best one I've ever had. No one was stopping me. I didn't care that I was going to physically hurt my sister, I didn't care that I could get in trouble, I just didn't care.
As soon as Cassie gave the rest of her textbooks to Drake, she crossed the five feet between us and got in my face.
She made the first move, punching me in the face. It sounded more like a slap because her fist slipped into a palm, which sounded like it hurt more than it actually did. The slap was weak but still stung my skin.
She tried again, using her same hand to aim at my nose. But she overshot it and her fist connected with empty air above my head.
"Where did you learn those cheap moves?" I taunted, feeling good.
For once, Cassie didn't respond. Instead, she did the dirtiest thing a girl could do during a fight: she grabbed my hair. Her grip was tight around the tips of my hair and she used it to twist me around so that my face was up against the lockers.
I yelped in pain and as a reflex, stepped as hard as I could on her foot and she squealed.
If she could fight dirty then so could I.
Cassie spit in my face and attacked me as I tried to grab her flailing arms. She was stronger than me but I was smarter so I hit her in a spot where she wasn't protected: her stomach. I bit my lip and without thinking twice, brought my knee up and used as much force I could. My knee connected with her ribs and she immediately collapsed to the floor.
"Fuck!" She shrieked in the middle of the empty hall but as soon as she fell to the floor, she started to get up again.
Her eyes were deadly, expression ferocious, as she growled and shoved my back against the harsh wall, frantically hitting me in the face.
"What is going on here?"
Both of us froze and looked up. It was Principal Calbury with her hands on her hips and her wild curly hair like angry fire.
And she didn't look happy.
"My office. Now."
.•*•.
"What is going on?" Mom demanded, looking both of us straight in the eye. Principal Calbury, also Kaitlyn's mom, called our parents and sat us down. Not that I could take being in another room with Cassie ever again.
The ice stung my cheek and I grimaced. The Nurse gave us each an ice bag; one for my face and one for Cassie's bruised ribs.
"And don't say it's nothing." Dad added.
I wanted to tell them everything, from school to the werewolves. To tell them about how Cassie hated me and would probably never forgive me.
"I want my own room." Cassie blurted with so much hatred leaking in her voice.
Mom blinked, "What?"
"I don't like sharing, okay? Especially not with her." She pointed in my direction like I was some disgusting disease.
"Is that what this is about? Your own bedroom?" Mom asked in disbelief.
"Yeah, Mom, it's the fact that we share the same room- what the hell, of course not!" Cassie fumed. "It's about Maddy, okay? She's smarter than me and nicer than me and is obviously your favorite- don't interrupt me-" She ignored me when I opened my mouth, "And she's obviously going to a better college than me. Hell, I don't even think I'm even going to college. But can you stop shoving her perfection in my face every second of every day? I'll never be like her, I'll never be the sweet, innocent girl you want me to be."
When Cassie was done ranting, silence invaded the room.
"You always have to make it about you, don't you?" I challenged, "You always make yourself the victim."
"What the hell? No, I don't." Cassie crossed her arms and used her best death glare.
"Girls-" Mom started but we ignored her.
"Oh, yes, you do. You get what you want all the time and you don't even have to try-"
"That's such a lie and you know it!"
"Girls-"
"Then why do you hog everything to yourself? God, you have everything but you take from everyone else, you're the most self-centered brat I know-" I was so done with her whining.
"Oh, like you're so perfect."
"Well, according to you, I am-" I threw it back in her face.
"GIRLS." Dad shouted, so loud that I thought it'd been someone else. He never lost his cool and never lost his temper.
We instantly shut up and gave him our ears.
He wiped his face with his palm, sighing loudly, "What happened to you two? You used to be inseparable." Cassie snorted.
"Things change, Dad, we're not little kids anymore."
"Well, you're young adults now, so you'll deal with this like young adults." Dad said firmly.
Mom and Dad looked at each other and nodded, standing up at the same time.
Mom pointed at both of us, "I want both of you to apologize and when we come back, this better be resolved."
I opened my mouth to protest but they'd already left the room in heavy frustration. Great.
"I'm sorry, okay? Is that what you want to hear?" Cassie crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair but avoided my stare, "I'm so damn sorry that you're perfect and I'm not."
What was she talking about?
"Would you stop with that? I'm not perfect, Cass, and I never will be. I'm shy, you're my only friend and Mom and Dad love you and you can't even see it." I shook my head passionately.
"You wouldn't know." Cassie replied lowly and I looked at her, begging her to open up. She used to tell me everything, things really did change.
"Then tell me."
She uncrossed her arms and bounced her foot in the air. She stared at the wall infront of us as if she were facing an internal battle in her mind.
"You don't know what Mom and Dad tell me. They tell me I'm stupid and that I should just quit because there's no way in hell they're paying for me to drop out of college. They don't think I can do it. Do you even know what it's like to hear that from people?" Cassie huffed in exasperation and I nodded vigorously.
"No. . ." I looked down, "Because people never notice me. I live in your shadow. When people say the Aster girl, they think of you. When people see you, they don't see me."
It was so quiet that I could only hear the low purr of the air conditioning.
"Then how come the one guy I really liked liked you instead?"
I finally told her the truth, "Landon never liked me and I never tried to steal him from you. He's actually with another girl-"
"Penny," She all but growled, "I know."
"Cass, he's not worth it." He's already found his mate, there was nothing we could do.
"I really liked him." She sighed and twirled a piece of her hair around her finger, thinking about him.
"He definitely liked you, too. The timing was just wrong." I could see it in the way he looked at her, with so much concern. No one's ever looked at me like that but that's how I want to be looked at.
Cassie stuck her hand out and instantly flinched from the slight action, "Ouch, that hurt." She tenderly wrapped an arm around her stomach.
"I'm sorry that it got so bad."
"My fault, wasn't thinking."
I corrected, "Mine, too."
"So, sisters?"
I quickly grasped her hand and shook.
"Of course." It was as easy at that; we were sisters and friends again. All was forgiven, all forgotten.
"You were always the one, weren't you?" Her dark eyes were sad and that made me sad, too. "Why didn't you say anything?"
I didn't know what else to say, "Because it made you happy." I should've spoken up before but it was just easier to let her claim whatever she wanted. I didn't know any better and I didn't know it would make things so strained.
"That's so cheesy," She rolled her eyes but I could see a faint layer of tears coat her eyes, "Thanks, Mad."
"Of course, Cass." I smiled back, happy we weren't enemies anymore.
.•*•.
The next day, Cassie and I woke up the next day like nothing happened, like we didn't just fight. She talked to me like always but there was something lost in her eyes. There was something still fractured between us and I didn't know how to mend it.
Yes, Cassie let me in on a part of her life but didn't tell me everything that was bothering her.
When did we stop talking to each other?
When did we start lying to each other?
I guess I just had to learn that sometimes things change.