Miraculously, Alexander texted me when he left. Granted they were emojis but it was better than nothing. Even though I didn't normally see Alexander throughout the day, I would still miss him. It felt like would disappear again and never return my messages. It would take me a while to not automatically jump to that thought.
Instead of having lunch inside, I went out to the picnic tables with my food. Did I feel down? Kind of. I concluded that I didn't like sharing. Much. I understood Alexander had to do his own thing, but I'd just got him back. If we wanted this to work, we needed to come up with a way to make this all work. Maybe I had to make an appointment with his secretary or something. Then again, did he even have a secretary? I'd have to ask.
"You alright?"
I jumped and silently cursed myself. It wasn't often someone snuck up on me. Cassidy stood by the picnic table holding a pear in her hands. She placed it in front of me.
"Sorry," she said. "I didn't mean to scare you. I mean, I called your name but you didn't hear me."
I waved away her apology. "It's fine. I shouldn't be daydreaming." Realizing how that sounded, I quickly added, "in general, you know? Everyone needs to be aware of their surroundings."
Cassidy smiled. "I know what you meant, Rin."
I cleared my throat. "So, what's up?"
"May I sit?" She gestured to the table.
"Yeah, go ahead."
She wanted something. My mom used this tactic all the time.
"I hear the Heir is gone," she began.
Why wasn't I surprised? Of course, she was going to bring this up. Of course, she had waited until Alexander was gone.
"Oh?" I said. "I didn't notice."
"It's hard not to notice everyone talking about you two."
If she wanted a reaction, she had one. My heartbeat betrayed me.
"What have you heard?" I asked. "Oh wait, don't tell me. I can probably guess."
Cassidy didn't speak. I took this as a sign to continue.
"They're probably saying about how my locker was vandalized and how I spent all day with the Prince at study hall. Let me tell you, it was the worst time of my life." I snapped my fingers. "Let's not forget how he was arrested."
"Rin," she said quietly. "This isn't a joke."
I frowned. "Well, duh. This happened."
Now, I was really confused. I had no idea what she wanted. The way she stared at me, made me think she knew way more than she should have. Hadn't Alexander said he'd take care of her?
"I'm not stupid Rin," Cassidy suddenly said. "Something is happening between you and the Heir."
I opened my mouth and closed it, not sure what to say. Cassidy continued without stopping.
"It's happened to everyone and you're not alone. I'm surprised you held out this long."
Now, I was lost.
Cassidy must have seen my expression because she continued. "It's perfectly normal to develop a crush on the Heir. I'm sure you know about a vampire's Allure. What you're feeling now is part of that. Now, I'm not saying that what you're saying isn't real -"
"Cassidy, stop."
I was having trouble making sense of it all. She wasn't entirely wrong but she wasn't entirely right either. Did I want to clear up her confusion? If I did, that would bring other problems but I also didn't want her to keep thinking that I was under Alexander's Allure. The effects of Allure didn't affect me as strongly as everyone else.
"I'm sorry," Cassidy whispered. "I know you don't want to hear this."
I was still speechless. "Yeah," I forced out. "I mean, it's a new experience. But can't vampires control their Allure? Why would the Prince use his Allure on me? That doesn't make any sense."
Cassidy bit her lip. "It's not my place to say." She looked around. "I don't want to gossip at school."
I felt a bit guilty lying to Cassidy but I needed to know what was on her mind. If she thought Alexander was just messing with me, to make me one of his loyal followers, then I had to know. Knowing that much would prepare for whatever she thought of next.
"It is strange," she admitted. "I've never seen the Heir pass notes before. He even ordered me to switch seats with him. You two do seem close."
"I was his mentor," I reminded her. "That's all there is. Plus, before, I'm sure you heard I wasn't a huge fan of his. Like you said, maybe his Allure is working now. I don't know."
After finishing, I looked away. This was turning into a jumble of half-truths.
"Then let's talk more."
"What did you have in mind?" I dared ask.
"Let's meet at the mall," Cassidy simply answered. "There's a neutral one near here."
Out of anything she could have said, I wasn't expecting that.
"It'll just be the two of us. Lisa, Connor, and Miguel will go home."
Apart from Alexander, I hadn't been alone with a vampire since like now. But we were in a public area, right? There were cameras even now. Plus, Cassidy seemed trustworthy. I didn't think she would do anything. She didn't seem the type.
"I'll have to ask my parents," I told her. "How about I let you know after school?"
Cassidy smiled at that. "Sure." She held out her hand. "Let me give you my number."
Instead of handing her my phone, I typed in her number. Nothing against her but vampires tended to break my things.
With the time I had left of lunch, I ate my food. Cassidy went back inside with her friends, leaving me with my thoughts. I was curious to see what she knew. Plus, it was just the mall, right? Sure, I was technically still grounded, since my parents hadn't ungrounded me, but I could ask them. If they said 'no', they said no.
Before my last class, I sent my mom a message. She was the one picking me up. I tried focusing in class. With Cassidy beside me, it was a bit difficult. It was almost as if she was waiting for me to say something to her.
"We can meet over there if you like," Cassidy suddenly whispered. "You have my number. Let's meet up at the food court?"
"Oh, well, if my parents agree then, sure. I'll text you either way."
I didn't need to worry. When I got into the passenger's seat, my mom was beaming at me.
"I got your message," she said. "At first, I couldn't believe it but I guess it's true. You're going out with friends."
"She's not exactly my friend, Mom. She's a classmate."
"That doesn't matter Rin. The point is that someone wants to hang out with you."
Shaking my head, I buckled up. As she drove, my mom talked about how this was a new opportunity for me to branch out and make more friends. I couldn't spend my time indoors all the time.
"Maybe you can invite her over some time. Your dad and I would love to meet her."
"Mom, she's a vampire," I said. "Passes aren't handed out like flyers."
My mom grew quiet all of a sudden. "A vampire?" she repeated. "You're meeting a vampire at the mall?"
"Yeah," I answered. "Is that an issue?"
"N-no," she said. "I'm just surprised. If anything, I'm glad you're meeting new people. Cassidy was it? How is she like?"
I shrugged. "I don't know her well," I admitted, "but she does want to go to school and hopes this arrangement works out."
"Well, everyone does." She bit her lip. "I wasn't going to say anything but there are parents that want to talk to the Board and put a stop to all of this. Of course, with no major incidents happening, they don't have anything to base their worries on."
"They reached out to you?" I asked.
"They left fliers for meetings," Mom told me. "Your dad - well, you know he's always been protective - he wants to go and see what they have to say."
I frowned. "Really? I get he's worried. Everything is new and no one knows what will happen, but I still can't believe he'd want to go."
"I'll handle your dad," she assured me. "You focus on school and getting along with everyone. There's no gain in being rude and fearful."
"Hmm, ok."
Halfway to the mall, I sent a text message to Cassidy. It was time to put on my big girl pants and hear what she had to say. I wish I had time to tell Alexander what was happening but I doubted he would answer my messages. I also wished he'd told me what he was going to be doing for those days. Regardless, I was confident I could handle Cassidy without any help.