The Oracle

Chapter 3

"Cassie!" Cassandra heard her out-of-breath friend call her as she was crossing the road.

"Justin, are you alright?" She held back a laugh at Justin's state.

Justin clung to his bag and let himself catch his breath once he caught up to her. "God, why do you walk so fast?"

"Is there a reason why I need to walk slowly?" Cassandra continued walking, Justin at her side.

"I wanted to walk home with you. Actually, I was wondering if you wanted to come over to my place?"

The wind washed over them as Cassie contemplated his question. She looked over at Justin and saw his honey brown hair continuously bang against his forehead. She giggled and moved his hair, so she could see his grey eyes. "Alright. Lead the way."

After about twenty minutes and after a game of twenty questions, they reached Justin's house. Cassandra's eyes widened. My twelve year old self would have marveled at it, she thought. She didn't realise that she was marveling at it now.

"What?" Justin broke her train of thought.

"Nothing. It's just." Cassandra looked down at the ground, moving a pebble in between her feet. "When I was twelve I wanted to be an architure. I had an obsession with houses like yours." She looked up to see Justin. He gave her a smile that just seemed so genuinely sweet with just the right touch of shyness. She didn't expect a sudden warmth to rush through her.

"Who knows? Maybe one day you'll live in a house like that."

Cassandra looked back up at the house and later wrote in her journal:

Cradled in the beauty of the mountain side stands a beautiful stone dwelling. A line of trees and shrubs grew in a curve, like an arm reaching out to embrace the view of the hillside and the vast swimming pool,whose water reflected the azure of the skies and rippled in the breeze.

"I'd like to do many things. This, just like the many others, won't happen." Cassie mumbled. If Justin heard, he didn't show any signs.

He walked over to the door and bite his lip in frustration. "Fuck, I forget my keys." He sighed, focusing on Cassandra's Harry Potter t-shirt.

"It's alright. We can just-" Cassandra stopped mid sentence as soon as she felt Justin's hand intertwine around hers. Her arm soon tugged on her as she ran with him to the side of the wall.

"My window!" Justin exclaimed! I can climb into my room and pull you up."

Cassie looked at the wall, the bricks laying out a path, just waiting to be used. "I don't know, Justin. It's dangerous." But Justin already made up his mind. He placed his foot on the edge of a brick and started to climb. "Justin, don't!" Cassie's tone was serious and stern. So much so, that Justin looked down at her. "You're going to fall. I know you are."

The last thing Justin remembered was falling.