Rising Star -a Jake Miller Fic-

Dawn

CASSIE

Home is forever where the heart is..

Did I ever really believe in that saying? Did I ever truly believe that home is where the heart was? Did I ever want my home to be where the heart was? My heart had shattered a million times over the last three years, and not once was I ever okay. Not once did I ever want to push forward, not once did I ever believe that I was going to be able to do what I loved again. Not once did people stand next to me, offering their shoulder to cry on, or their support as I walked down a trail that only had one path. Not once did I ever feel like home is where the heart was..

I was sitting out on the balcony of the shared hotel room, my knees hugged up to my chest as I thought about everything that had failed me in the last three years. My relationship with my ex-boyfriend, Drew.. The death of my parents.. The crash that ruined my entire professional career as a dancer.. The last three years had many twists and turns, but only three made me want to just forget about it all and give up. But I wasn't going to give up. I was stronger than that and I was going to make sure that I was.

I wouldn't allow myself to be pushed down. I wouldn't allow myself to give up, but more importantly, I wasn't going to let anyone tell me that I wasn't good enough. I was a choreographer, I could still have a part of my dream. Sure, I wasn't dancing, but I was going to make sure that people knew my name. After all, the dream was still strong for some of us. I started when I felt a blanket being draped around my shoulders and I smiled when I saw my best friend, Kenna.

McKenna Grace had stood by my side through everything. She was the only person that did. Granted, she had been going through her own stuff, so I didn't force her to stay with me, but we were there for each other when the other needed them to be, because that was the kind of thing that friends did for each other. She would never abandon me, and I would never abandon her.

"What's troubling you now?" She asked as she sat down next to me, her own blanket wrapped tightly around her shoulders.

"Just thinking.." I stated and trailed off slightly. I knew that she would know what I was thinking about, because she was my best friend, she always knew.

"Cassie.. Dance is your life. I don't understand why you don't just dance and prove everybody wrong," she whispered as she looked at me, a look of seriousness on her face. There she went again, knowing things that no one else did.

You see, there was a secret deep inside of me. I don't dance. Not, I can't dance. I don't dance. I can dance, but it's me who chooses not to. After the accident, I was lucky in the aspect that the accident hadn't caused too much damage to my body, so I could still do everything that I had wanted to do, but it was more the mental block than anything right now. The mental block was the thing stopping me from dancing. I chose not to dance anymore, and I was alright with that.. On some levels... But on other levels, I missed the feelings that dance gave me, so instead of telling everyone about what had happened, I said the first thing that popped into my head.

I told everyone that the doctor said I could no longer dance. For a while, people believed it. Then, it was slowly forgotten. Especially by me.. I no longer hide in the shadows of the past. I've moved on with my life, purely because there was nothing in my life worth worrying about. I know that this probably wouldn't make a lot of sense to you right now, but trust me, one day you'll know the full and honest truth about what really happened that night. Everyone was going to know one day and honestly, I wasn't sure if I was ready for that just yet. But who knows, maybe one day soon everyone will know my secret.

"Cassie, you know better than anyone that dance is something you need to do. It's not a question of want, it's a question of should. Isn't that what you always say to me and Noel?" She asked and I gave her a sideways look, one that clearly meant that she shouldn't be turning my words around on me. Not when I had given her so much advice when it came to dance over the years. But, as much as I loved my best friend, I knew that she was right. She always was when it came to something like this. And as much as I wanted to dance, I had made myself a promise, and promises were not to be broken.