Perfect Caina

thirteen

When Caine told Drake about the breakup later that night, Drake didn't know what to think. The first thing he did was check his phone.

"What are you doing?" Caine asked. "I just told you a very important historical fact."

"I'm checking the calendar on my phone. Is it April Fool's Day?" Drake couldn't help but laugh at his own jokes.

Caine was not amused. "It's June." He leaned back in his chair and began humming a song.

Drake looked at him skeptically. "You don't seem very broken up about this."

Caine laughed. "It's Diana. I give it two days before she comes crawling back."

Five days later, Diana Ladris spoke to Caine for the first time.

"Do you have the notes from Friday?" She asked with an innocent smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. She looked like she was talking to a complete stranger, rather than the boy she dated for nearly three years.

"Um, sure." Caine didn't really know what to say. They had been seeing each other all week, same as usual. They had sat next to each other in classes, she had come next door to borrow something, or even to talk to Drake, but this was the first time she had truly acknowledged that Caine existed. He took it as his one opening.

"Wanna do something later?" He asked with all his usual confidence. He didn't want to be the one to grovel and beg, but he realized he needed Diana more than he thought.

"I'm really busy right now, homework and such. How about some other time?" She said this the same way Diana Ladris would say anything; confident, cocky, and slightly sarcastic. It made Caine explode into a silent rage.

"I want to talk."

"You know who else wants to talk?" She gave a knowing expression, like she had a trick planned. "Connie."

The bell rang and she got up to leave. She left Caine wondering if she had timed that perfectly, just so she could make a dramatic exit. He stayed at his desk long after everyone had left and contemplated his next move. He got up, grabbed his stuff, and walked quickly down the hall. He burst through the door to the office.

"Nurse Temple?" He shouted, flustered and nervous, but determined not to show it. He looked around a few times before he spotted Connie behind the large wooden desk.

"Mr. Soren." She said, a kind smile on her face. "What can I do for you?"

His expression was nothing but serious. "I want to talk."

She matched his expression and led him into her office. She gestured for him to sit down and shut the door. Caine had the ability to make himself look twice his age, and he thought this was an appropriate time for that.

"Connie," Caine began. He was raised with all the southern manners possible, but he chose to throw them out the window with Connie. There was no respect here.

"Caine, I'm sorry." Connie hung her head down low. "There is no good explanation for the mistakes I made in the past, and I know I can't change things. All I want is a chance to make things better for the future."

Caine was slightly shocked, but hid it well. He certainly hadn't got his emotional constipation from Connie.

He took a deep breath, thought of Diana, and asked the question that had plagued him all these years. "Why?"

Connie seemed slightly confused by his question. "Um," She hesitated, trying to find the right way to phrase it. "I was young, and I was married to a man, your father, and he died. Being an unemployed, single mother was the second most difficult thing I've ever done. Leaving you was the first."