Chapter 1: Cassie

Every day is just another day, nothing's new. People just pass by, they change and me? I don't feel it. In school, everyone is with someone else but me? I go to school, study and go home, going out with friends is not really my thing, and I’m the introvert type. I have a limited number of friends but I don't go with them I don't know what's wrong with me, sometimes I'm glad that I am alone and sometimes it breaks my heart. I think I’m getting used to being alone since everything turned ungrateful.

I want to see the world outside my safe haven, the only problem is I don't know how and it scares me. People will try to take over my life, they will be my temporary happiness yet it is not enough. I have been searching for a good life for a long time my question is does that exists?

I live in North Carolina, in a house with six bedrooms but not all of it are occupied, I live with my maids and my driver. Parents are always out of town working and attending meetings sadly I'm the only child.  The library inside my bedroom is my favorite place, tall bookshelves with thousands of books that I love. I can spend all day inside it without no one bothering me. My parents decided to make that sanctuary since I was a kid, they found out already that I love reading and I always read a hundred or more books every year. They even gave me a credit card just to buy my favorite books, or they gave that so that I don’t need to disturb them. Who knows?

No one is interested in hanging out with me, except from my three friends but I don't talk about books with them. I'm like a nerd or that's what I feel. I wonder if I can find a friend who loves books so we can spend time together and talk about books while having coffee. I'll share my books and we'll spend time in my library. It will be really awesome to have a friend who will understand your likes. I still hope I can find one.

That's the only thing I am proud of and my companion for all these years, just books.

"Cassie!" A maid called from downstairs. Shouting my name wakes me up from my drama.

"What??? I told you I don't want to be disturb!" I shouted back feeling irritated. I’m not like this every day, I am just having a bad day.

"Your mom's on the phone she said emergency"

"Ann, tell her I'm sleeping," I said. Emergency meaning they're not coming home again. I'm okay with that besides I feel free without them.

"No Cassie, pick it up, it might be something important" I hate it when she's right.

Rolling my eyes "Fine, I'll pick it up".

I decided to answer the other phone which is in my library table. It’s just an extension from the phone at the living room, my parents decided to put the phone there since I always stay in this mini library of mine. "Hello? Hey mom."

"Hi sweetie, how are you?" Mom asked. I love her voice, to be honest, it sounds so sweet.

"I'm okay, just reading a book as usual" I replied with a flat tone, I don't really know if I'm okay, "How's dad?"

"He's good currently on a meeting, well, that is not the reason why I called it's just that, I'm sorry because we can't go back until Christmas, and we still need to ---" I cut her off.

"Alright, I get it. You need to work, it's okay I'm used to this." I am more irritated but heck! Christmas? I'm alone?! Tears began to swell up in my eyes. "Is that all?" I want this conversation to end. My day is just getting started but I want to end it right away.

"I am sorry sweetie!" Real pain in her voice. "We'll get back before New Year promise" I'm tired of their promise so I just said "yeah okay".

"Love you!" She said but I'm not in the mood to say it back, it’s painful because this is my first time to spend Christmas alone, instead I hung up. Tears began to fall I didn’t bother wiping them, it hurts that I won’t even spend Christmas with them all these years I’ve been spending it with them no matter how busy they are. Christmas is my always favorite time of the year because we are complete and they don’t even bother to get busy at work but now, they chose work over me. I cried, hugging my purple pillow.

I knew what was coming, but I didn't expect that because Christmas is just a couple of weeks away. My friends will be away for a Christmas vacation with their family so I can’t tell them to spend the day with me. Some of the maids or maybe all of them will go home to spend time with their own family. I understand that, I miss mom and dad right away even though thinking of them makes me cry a lot more.

I suddenly feel that I am more alone than before. When did things turn upside down?