The Sandman's Daughter

One

One

The closet door closed with a thump as the girl walked away from it. Sighing, she brushed the soft brown curls out of her face and grabbed her backpack off the floor.

"Cassandra O'Bryan, you're going to make me late to work again," her mother's angry voice drifted upstairs into her room. It left Cassie feeling even more isolated than usual. If only she could talk to her mother, tell her the things she so desperately wanted to. But she wouldn't understand. No one could understand what she was going through.

She threw the pack over her shoulder with a frown as the weight of the world settled deeper into her chest. "I'm coming, Mom."

"That's what you said fifteen minutes ago."

Cassie left the bedroom, slamming the door behind her. Would it really kill her mother to give her a break? Just once? She hurried downstairs, taking them two at a time. Her eyes burned with exhaustion as she made her way into the kitchen. Another nice, long day started by her mother's nagging.

"Well, it's about time," Jessica O'Bryan said, hands on her hips as she scowled at her daughter. "I thought I was going have to drag you out of there."

"Come on, Mom," Cassie said as she tossed her backpack on the floor before settling into a chair at the table. The smell of food made her stomach roll. She couldn't even remember the last time she enjoyed sitting down to breakfast. "I didn't take that long."

"If you would get up when your alarm goes off, we wouldn't have to go through this every morning," her mother told her as she set a glass of orange juice in front of her. The glass gave an angry clink against the table as juice sloshed over the side, leaving a trail of pulp in its wake.

"I'm sorry," she muttered as she wiped the pulp away, eager to focus on anything other than her mother. She sighed, wishing she was already at school and reached for a piece of buttered toast, hoping the carbs would soak up the stress piled at the base of her stomach.

Her mother watched as she sipped her cup of coffee. "You look terrible," she told her in-between sips.

Cassie rolled her eyes, biting into her meager breakfast. "Thanks, Mom. You're so kind."

"I'm serious, Cassandra," she said, setting her coffee mug down with a slosh. Another stain on the kitchen table. "You need to stop staying up so late."

"I'm fine. Stop worrying."

"That's my job," her mother said flatly. "This isn't healthy. You look like you haven't slept in a week. This can't continue."

Cassie stood up, her exasperation and weariness taking over. "First, I'm in trouble for sleeping too much and now I'm in trouble for not sleeping at all." She grabbed her backpack and turned on her heel, heading for the front door. "You need to make up your mind, Mom."

"Cassandra," her mother called, desperation in her voice.

"I'll be in the car," she told her and slammed the door.