Casey and Me

A last minute "message"

As Christmas approached, I finally had a sense of things actually starting to go right. Following the "black-eye incident", Casey had well and truly left me alone. Well, it had more been a case of me telling her to stay away from me, since I really didn't want to have any more incidents. Getting yelled at in the middle of the dining hall was probably the last thing she expected, and after that, she decided it wasn't worth it to invoke my wrath once more. And the peace was wonderful. 

Now it was coming up to the December holidays, and I was very, very glad to see the back of the first term. It wasn't that I hadn't enjoyed it. But Casey's shenanigans had reminded me all too vividly of my old school, and even though she'd taken the hint and left me alone, I was glad to get away from her for a little while. I was less happy to be apart from my friends, but we'd all exchanged numbers and had promised to keep in touch during the holiday period. 

I was also looking forward to spending some time with Dad in the garage. Weekends had been all too short, with Sunday night coming on all too fast. But Dad had promised that he'd help me do up my very first car so I could start getting driving lessons when I turned sixteen. It meant the world to me to have him go to that trouble for me, and I couldn't wait to get started. Dad had hunted far and wide for what he hoped would be the "perfect car" for me, and Mum had joked that she didn't know Dad anymore. But I knew she didn't mean it; Dad's love of cars still came in second to his love for Mum, so it all evened out, and she really didn't mind in the slightest. 

Speaking of love, Ellis and I had had a few heart-to-hearts about the subject, and while we'd agreed that there was something there, we'd also decided to just stay friends for the time being. Things had been so volatile in my first week at Maple Hall, and I wanted to be 100% certain that my feeling for Ellis were genuine and not brought on by all the nonsense. Ellis had agreed, thankfully, and our friendship had grown stronger as a result. We sometimes did things that couples did, but we'd made it clear early on that we weren't going out - we were simply comfortable enough with each other that we could express our affection in a way that was agreeable to both of us. And that would stand us in good stead down the road if we ever did decide to become a couple. 

The school was in chaos as students hurried from one place to another, stopping to say goodbye to friends and teachers, and I dodged the press as best I could, suitcase in hand. Marcia's parents - who'd incidentally struck up a friendship with mine - had agreed to take both Marcia and I home, since we lived so close to one another; Marcia's family farm backed on to ours, and had indeed once been a part of our farm, before being divided in two when the owners of the original property had had a dispute. 

"Over here," Marcia called, and I hurried over, narrowly avoiding getting bowled over by Olivia. She gave me a frosty stare and stalked off, and I rolled my eyes. "I swear, that girl needs to reign it in," I complained. "That's the second time she's nearly knocked me over and treated me like it was my fault."

"She's just sore because I got onto the octopush team and she didn't," Sophia said, as she approached, two heavy suitcases in hand. She blushed as she set them down. "Yeah, I blame Dad for this. He loves collecting, and since it was easier for him to ship them to me, I've become his mule."

I giggled. "Sounds about right," I teased, and Sophia laughed with me. 

"Yeah, a bootlicking mule is all you'll ever be," snarled a new voice, and we all turned to find Olivia standing there, glaring at us. "The reason I didn't make the octopush team, by the way, was because I had a stomach bug."

"Look, we get that," Sophia said. "But you've been like a bear with a sore head ever since."

"Yeah, because you're friends with her," Olivia snapped, transferring her glare to me. "What'd she say to get you to ditch me anyways?"

"Nothing," I said crossly. "Olivia, I seriously don't have time for this. Just say what you have to say and be done with it."

Olivia rolled her eyes. "Ellis wants to see you," she said, her tone dismissive. "He said he had something he wanted to give to you before he left."

I smelt a trap. "Ellis would rather cut his tongue out than let you be his messenger," I said. "Stop bullshitting."

"I'm not bullshitting," Olivia said angrily, turning on her heel. "But hey, if you want to treat me like a liar, that's on you. It's not me who's going to get my heart broken."

Marcia groaned. "We don't have time for this," she said. 

I nodded, already dropping a quick text to Ellis warning him to ignore any last-minute "messages". "I've got to go," I told Olivia when I was done. "If Ellis has a problem with me not going to collect his 'gift', he can tell me himself."

Olivia shrugged and walked off, her whole demeanor screaming disappointment. My phone buzzed not long after, and I sighed in relief when I read the new text. Ellis had already been approached by Casey with a similar message, and he assured me he hadn't bought it for a second. "All good?" Sophia asked me, and I nodded. 

"Then let's get out of here," Marcia said, and I picked up my suitcase. "Good idea," I agreed. "I'm just about ready to lose my mind."

That was when Sally came up to us, frowning. "Have either of you seen Ellis?" she asked. "He was meant to meet me by the gate, but he hasn't turned up."

"I got a text from him a few minutes ago," I said, feeling a frown of my own. "What's wrong?"

Sally's frown deepened. "Can I see your message?" she asked. 

I nodded and handed my phone over. Sally shook her head as soon as she'd read the message. "That wasn't him," she said grimly, handing my phone back to me. "Here." She gave me her phone, already opened to show the last message she'd received from Ellis. I read the message, before looking back at mine, and I felt my stomach drop as I gave Sally's phone back to her. 

"Trouble?" Marcia asked.

"Big trouble," Sally said. "And Casey is missing also. I'm guessing this is her work."

"That's why Olivia came up to us," Sophia said, horrified. "She used the excuse of a 'message' from Ellis to trick Sarah into messaging Casey!"

"Right, we have to get to the bottom of this," I said firmly. "I've got to call my parents and let them know what's happened. I don't want them worrying unnecessarily."

Miss Ainsworth came running up to us at that moment, and I felt my stomach drop further at the news she brought. "Casey and Ellis have gone missing," she said, and I shivered. "I do not know how or why, but I am having the countryside combed for them at this very moment." She pointed to Sally and I. "I need you two to go home. I'll call you the minute I hear anything."

"Good call," Sophia agreed. 

"Fair enough," I said, taking a deep breath. "Sorry. I'm half worried out of my mind at the moment."

Miss Ainsworth nodded understanding. "Of course," she said. "But there is nothing you can do. Home is the best place for you to be right now." There was an unspoken warning in her words; if any of us went in search of Casey and Ellis, we'd get ourselves neck-deep in the mess Ellis had gotten caught in. 

Even so, as Marcia and I went to her parents' waiting car, I felt that I'd be of more use joining the search party than going tamely home. It was not a nice feeling at all. 

"Boy, some Christmas this is going to be," Marcia muttered. I wholeheartedly agreed.