Is That It?

Chapter One

She knew it would be hard, but she couldn't say it wasn't worth it. She was finally independent, she only relied on herself.

Cassandra's heart swelled with pride as she tucked away her last article of clothing in her drawer. She looked around at her newly aquired apartment. It wasn't much, but it was hers, all hers.

She had worked her ass off, slaving in the bar every night so she could finally afford a place of her own. Lord knows it wasn't gonna be easy, but she was going to get through this.

Anyplace, even this rinky dink apartment, was better than what she had left back home. Home, it was barely even that. If she could help it she wouldn't ever go back. It held nothing for her but heart ache and bad memories.

She didn't really know what her future held, it was uncertain, but she was determined to make something of herself and she would be damned if anyone got in her way.

Her job at the bar wasn't that bad. The hours were decent and the tips were enough to keep her afloat. The owner, Amanda, had been more than gracious to her. She had quickly befriended her. Cassandra hadn't had many friends in her life, so she cherished Amanda even more. She was grateful to her. It was Amanda who had helped her find this apartment.

She looked around the place once more before heading to her bedroom and slipping into something more comfortable. She slipped under her covers and snuggled down into the bed.

....

Morning came all too soon. She reluctantly got up and went into the kitchen to fix some coffee. She leaned against the counter and stared at the floor.

She was procrastinating she knew. She needed to get ready so she could go get things ready before they opened tonight.

She hurriedly showered and threw some clothes on, barely giving her appearance a glance. She walked through the doors and Amanda greeted her brightly.

Cassandra glanced around the place.

"What the hell happened last night, it looks like a tornado blew through." Amanda rolled her eyes.

"It was a pair of those damned sailors that drop by here. They decided to have a little fist fight last night, and just about took down half my bar with them." Cassandra could only shake her head. That was the only thing about this place, they were close to a Naval base which meant that this place was usually hoping with sailors. They were a rowdy bunch, especially when they had alcohol coursing through their veins. It definitely kept the place interesting.

Without another word she quickly started setting things back to the way they were, knowing she would be repeating the process tomorrow.

It was about 5 minutes before they opened and she was wiping down the bar one last time. She did one last sweeping glance to make sure everything was in order before she walked over to the door and unlocked it. She flipped the sign on and waited for the place to begin to fill.

It was a Friday night, so she was more than busy. She had gotten used to ignoring the whistles and flirting that the men threw her way. There was just something about a man that reeked like alcohol that she didn't find appealing. In all honesty no man had really caught her eye, not that she was really looking.

It's not that she wasn't attractive, she was. She had bright green eyes, and wavy brown hair that spilled down her back. Her frame was average height, with curves in the right places. She was on the slimmer side, but she was content with her looks. Many a guy had tried to put the moves on her, but she just wasn't interested.

Cassandra was all too happy to usher the last few stragglers out at closing time. She was tired and ready to go to bed.

She quickly locked up and went to her car and drove home. She merely slipped her shoes off before she collapsed on her bed and fell into a dream less sleep.