• Cassandra always denied that Kurt was her father, until this very moment. Everything these past three years hit her with such intensity, she sputtered and lost breath. Luckily, no one was around to hear; just like always. Cassandra decided to give herself therapy, as Olivia, her best friend, had moved away. She sat down on her bed, closed her eyes, and started at 2007.

    Cassandra quickly packed her books together, sneaking one last glance at James, the cutest boy she had ever laid eyes on. She always had her things strewn about on her desk, never in order. That being stated, she was always last out. And in Mrs. Rust's case, this made things much easier. Because when Cassandra felt a hand on her shoulder, she jumped and spun around, easing when she saw who it was. "Cassandra, I need to talk to you...", Mrs. Rust spoke softly. Cassandra wanted to bolt out the door and talk to James, but it was too late now. "Your parents and I have discussed it...And you're being retained for this year,".

    What Mrs. Rust told her last year never sunk in, it only laid upon the surface, feeding on whatever happiness dared present itself. And Cassandra did spend another year in Mrs. Rusts fifth grade class. The way Cassandra's school was arranged, fifth graders came to a new building, and sixth graders got a hall to themselves. That meant little to no James and Kaylee, Cassandra's best friends. Not only had Cassandra never laid eyes on these people; she could tell she would not like them. None of them compared to her old friends, and although she lied otherwise, she refused to open up to any of them.
    Quickly becoming the social outcast and fashion messup, Cassandra isolated herself, The better to study, she could lie to anyone. Anyone would believe her. The weeks turned to months, and before Cassandra knew it, people were excited about the summer vacations. Cassandra would move on to sixth grade next year; and it would be better than fifth ever was.

    2008


    Cassandra yawned as she entered Mrs. Gardner's sixth grade classroom. Not only was she stuck with the fifth graders again, but she gaine a friend. A friend she never wanted. Megan was your typical blond. Never attention-starved, it made Cassandra wonder what made Megan drawn to her, and sure enough, she found that if she paid attention, the answer was obvious. "Oh! Whoops!", Megan said sarcastically, dragging the compass point across her wrist, only leaving a white streak were it had been. "I bet Ben would freak if he saw me doing this! Oh no! Don't tell Taylor I told you that!...Oh who am I kidding? Who do you talk to, right?", she joked jubiantly, discovering her secret could be held. Even Cassandra could see in one sentance that Megan had been dumped and her boyfriend had been taken by a friend before she could win him back, and Cassandra was nothing more than a vent. Delightlful..., Cassandra would think to herself. And luckily, she did not leave Megan's side, but took in her secrets, and helped Megan get over them.
    Then Olivia came along.
    Olivia Rose was the last person you'd expect to find with Cassandra- well, at first. Olivia quickly made friends with Megan, only because of her fashion sense..., Cassandra would think spitefully; she was quick to judge.
    However, Olivia and Cassandra quickly found themselves attached to the same things; Literature, and maybe one day, writing it.
    Not only did Cassandra find in Olivia what Megan never offered, but she became happier, more open. But then disaster struck in the most unlikely of forms.

    June walked into the large door of the family's house and presented Cassandra with the puffiest little gray furball excuse for a cat that she'd ever seen. When Cassandra put her face close enough to the kitten, the first thing she did was stick a paw to Cassandra's face and meow. Nothing more. The laughter of this adorable episode quickly subsided, and the little gray puffball was dubbed FizzlePop, or P for short. She quickly joined Cassandra's other beheamoth of a cat, James Dean.
    James Dean was a black tabby first mistaken as a girl and dubbed Chio. When they found out he was actually male, they dubbed him J.D., soon to be George by Kurt's loud yells, "GEoooorrrrge!!", which made the family crack up when he turned his back. P was also a bit of trouble, as she had not been neutered and went into heat. The noise was too much for George, and Cassandra's little sister was scarred for life when she discovered how George got her to stop.
    But it was not so happy for much longer. P, being a stray, brought in fleas. The fleas seemed to targer Cassandra, and sticked with her for three years. Her legs, and some other body parts, were quickly targeted and eaten like corn on the cob. The legs went first, and they were soon polka-dotted in horrid black dots and red blood. The family went to twelve doctors, but the problem would not go away.

    2009/2010


    With 2008 being by far the most painful year of all so far, Cassandra set out to make '09 worth it. Her would-be friends dubbed her legs the "red plague" and teased her about it, but Cassandra acted as though it didn't bother her and joined in on the mirth. She would need it later.
    In the summer of 2009, Kurt, Cassandra's father, told Cassandra to sit in sunlight for an hour a day. Cassandra, much more interested in the computer, tried to refuse. She protested that she could get skin cancer, but little good that did when she found herself in shorts and in a lawn chair.
    Along with her daily exposure and the labor that was grooming the cats, there was no more time for friends. With no solution in sight, Kurt got rid of George and P when June moved out. She was to take them with her. This, of course, made the family quite angry with Kurt. But, nevertheless, life moved on.

    Cassandra's bite did not improve, indeed, the fleas lef the cats and stuck with Cassandra. Cassandra's legs became so bad that she was carted to Hospitals more often than school, but no cure was found. By November of that year, Cassandra's mother had enough. She and Kurt were divorcing. Even more burden for Cassandra.
    By October, a writing club had formed, and Cassadra and friend were more than glad to join. But one day, Olivia announced the worst thing ever; She was moving after Christmas to take care of her Grandmother. Cassandra held her tears for home, and she made it. By this point, she had mastered her tear ducts. And sure enough, from the top of the staircase, wailing could be heard echoing off the walls of Cassandra's room.
    December arrived, bringing with it cold and frigid pain. The Christmas holidas were vast approaching, but Cassandra could hardly let Olivia out of her sight. They met almost every day at the Book Store, which was Cassandra's haven. But on Olivia's last day, she had to haul everything out of her locker to the bus alone; Megan went to chase after Ben, dropping all of Olivia's binders and clothes. Cassandra, deciding James would have to wait, helped a crying Olivia get her things to the bus on time, making her miss her own.
    An empty Christmas came and went, diminished without the humor of Olivia. Returning to school would be horid...