Words Unspoken ✔️

Chapter 1: First Day of School

My tea's gone cold, I'm wondering why I got out of bed at all

The morning rain clouds up my window, and I can't see at all

And even if I could it'd all be grey, but your picture on my wall

It reminds me that it's not so bad, it's not so bad...

Dido-Thank You

September 2005

"Cassie! Come on, get up!"

Cassie groaned as she pulled the covers over her face, trying to enjoy the last few bits of sleep she had left before had to get up for school.

"Cassie, I'm not leaving until you get out of this bed," she heard her older sister Cheyenne warn.

Cassie sucked her teeth as she threw back the covers and sat up on the bed. She glared at her smiling sister sitting at the edge of the bed, already dressed and ready for her classes at Hunter College.

"There we go," Cheyenne said brightly. "You don't wanna be late for your first day back."

"Is there a reason why you're doing this?" Cassie grumbled, not in the mood for any of her foolishness.

Cheyenne instantly looked nervous. She looked around before answering her question. "Mom threatened to wring my neck when she gets home if I don't wake you up," she whispered her reply.

Cassie rolled her eyes. "Sure she did."

"I'm not joking, now come on before you run late."

Cheyenne then got up and walked out of the room, leaving Cassie to sigh and get out of bed, into the bathroom for a quick shower. Today was the first day back to school after a well enjoyed summer break. Now it's her junior year of high school, and she absolutely dreaded it. This year was going to be very hectic for her academically because it was expected for all junior students to have college on their minds. That's what worried Cassie the most. But that was least of her problems. After all, it was only the first day.

She dreaded coming back to school to face the thorn in her side, Simone Hall, along with her cheerleader and lapdog Ashley Barnes. Those two have been making Cassie's life miserable since freshman year. She was sure that once she steps foot into the schoolyard, she would hear their squawking voices call her name, and once Cassie would try to avoid them, they would come to her, and come up with some sorry excuse that they were just trying to say "hi" to her. But the three of them all knew that this was a bunch of bull, and they wanted to spew out some petty stuff about her clothes, her weight, and how much she was a loser.

These last two years were bearable because she had her best friend Brianna to tell those two to back off. She would always reassure her that they're just "jealous bitches", and not to worry about them. This year, Cassie was all alone, now that Brianna moved to the Bronx due to her father's job relocating there. She told Cassie before she left to stay strong and always tell herself that she was better than them. Cassie didn't know if she had the strength to take on both of them.

Along with the pain in her stomach from anxiety, Cassie put on her most comfortable outfit possible, a pink shirt with a jean overall dress, and her pink and white Nikes. She let her curly jet black hair loose and took one last look at herself before grabbing her bag and heading downstairs for breakfast. In the kitchen, she was met by Cheyenne wolfing down her cereal and their father, Austin Phillips, reading his newspaper while sipping his coffee. He looked up at Cheyenne and said,

"Jesus, Cheyenne, slow down! It's gonna be bad for your digestion."

"I know, Dad, but I have a unit exam first thing this morning, I can't be a minute late," Cheyenne whined, making her father give a final "harrumph" before returning to his papers, making a small smile appear on Cassie's face, always loving their banters. She then walked in, setting her bag on the chair. She walked over to her father to greet him.