Cassie (Book #1 of the "Cassie" Series)

Chapter #1: Delusion, Convince Yourself

September 5, Monday, 7:53 am

"Cassie, if you don't hurry up, we're gonna be late!" Hope yelled from outside the bathroom door. I was in the mirror, where I'd been for the last twenty minutes trying to wing my eyeliner perfectly. My step-sister Shenice once told me that you can tell how well your day is going to go based on how precise your eyeliner is and trust me, on this day I needed all the luck I could get even if it was some bullshit YouTube beauty guru superstition. The summer break was over and it was finally time to start senior year, and I was more excited than ever!

Ha! Excited to get out of that dumpster fire of a school. I had it all laid out for me: get through this final year, ace my exams, tell Azealia and her little gang where they can shove it, and then move on to studying fashion design at Crestville University while living it up in an on-campus apartment with my sister and my best friends... but unfortunately, while planning gives me so much excitement for the coming year, I actually have to get through the year first.

"Cassie, if you're not out here by 8, I'm getting the bus."

"Just ooooone minute!" I called from inside the bathroom. I examined the liner in the mirror, it hadn't smudged and it was fairly even, let's see if Shenice's theory was correct and if I was gonna have a good day. I walked out the door to find Hope leaning against the staircase, arms folded over her chest.

"Well, it's about time. You got your keys?" she asked. I jingled my car keys in my hand and we made our way down the steps.

"Have a great day at school, girls!" Mom called from the kitchen, clearing away the plates from our breakfast earlier.

"I'll try not to have too much fun..."

"That's the spirit, Cassie!" I cleared my throat and locked the front door. It was a rather chilly September morning, signifying summer was well and truly drawing to a close. The sky was light blue still, but there was no sun to be seen. The cold wind brushed against my exposed arms as I went down the stone steps to the driveway.

"Of all days to wear a tank top..." I thought to myself. I jammed the key into the door of my car and after twisting and turning for a minute, I finally got the bitch open. My car is a piece of junk, a green 1983 Ford Escort. I should be grateful to even have a car and I'll always love my Dad for getting it for me for my sixteenth birthday, but this car is torn UP. It's battered, scratched, and it runs as though the road is made of Lego. You see most kids around my age having cars where you can press the key fob and it will just unlock in a snap, nope, I drive a car where you have to actually use the key AND it gets jammed half the time.

"So, what's our game plan for the day?" Hope asked, buckling herself into the passenger seat. I turned on the ignition.

"Game plan?"

"Yeah, are we gonna walk in like the boss bitches we are?"

"More like walk in like the awkward, who-gives-a-shit bitches that we are."

"In that case, I'm walking in with Naya, she knows how to make a statement." I laughed and backed out of the driveway while Hope started fiddling with the knobs near the dashboard, tuning through the static until she found a station she liked as she turned up the volume. The sound of "I Wish" by Cher Lloyd filled the car.

"Sing it with me, Cass!"

"No."

"Oh come on!"

"No."

"C'mon, cheer up a little."

"...No."

Not even thirty seconds later.