A/N – Hey there! Possibly my LAST Chris fanfic – that's if nothing else springs to my imagination.

Just to prewarn, I chucked my original character into this one; simply because it gives me a bit more to play with and to form a few extra twists and turns along the way.

Enjoy!

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Cassie felt nerves seizing at every part of her body as she waited outside the school's office. She'd been nervous at the doctor's or dentists, but what she was feeling was a different type of fear.

Janeece flounced through towards her desk, her eyes fleetingly meeting the young girl's ones. "Oh, hello," she casually acknowledged. She peeled her coat off and dropped her bag down by her chair. "I haven't seen you around before…have I?" She assumed.

Cassie shook her head. "I'm new," she coyly replied. "I start today."

The older girl smiled softly. "Well, you've got nothing to be afraid of. We're all nice people here." She paused partway through as the presence of a young, highly attractive male interrupted their conversation. She caught the long brown-haired girl following him with her gaze but thought nothing of it.

"He seems nice."

She smirked to herself. "He is."

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Cassie was soon called in to the office, where she found the new focus of her fantasies standing by Karen's desk. She didn't have the time to get a good look before as he passed her so quickly, but the morning light had seeped in to the room and accentuated the soft blue in his orbs.

"You must be Cassie," Karen assumed. She nodded. "Well, we'll start to take you through your induction and then you'll be taken to your first set."

"Where will I go first?"

"You'll be with me," Chris piped up. His reply prompted a wave of excitement to pass through her guts. "And they're a nice group, so don't worry."

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Cassie found herself fantasising over the young male throughout her set with him.
She was only seventeen and fantasising over someone who was a little bit older than her and slightly more mature wasn't exactly…ideal.

But he was so good to look at, what was stopping her? She had her fair share of boyfriends but he seemed perfect.

"Don't think you're in with a chance," a voice next to her quashed her thoughts. "Every girl in the building has probably fallen for him."

She turned to the small black-haired girl sharply. "No, you don't understand. I think I love him."

She smirked to herself. "You can't just love anyone. And they've got to love you back. What if he doesn't?"

"What's your name?"

"Abigail," she replied, "but everyone calls me Abi."

Cassie came over more thoughtful as she trained her eyes on him. He was sitting at his desk at the far end, oblivious to her admiring gaze and preferring to keep his attentions focussed on what he was writing. She couldn't help but think he looked cute.

She liked everything about him and she wished she could tell him that.

At the end of the set, Chris wanted a word with her. "How did you find that?"

"Scary, I guess," she admitted shyly. Her answer prompted a playful smirk from him and she felt herself blush madly inside at the action.

"Why scary?"

She shrugged. "First day here."

"You coped ok from what I could see," he was in the process of going through her work with her, "if your answers are anything to go by."

She swallowed hard and refused to look straight at him. He wasn't looking at her anyway and was sifting through what she'd written.

"To be fair, you were the only one in your set who got everything right, Cassie."

That made her blush all the more. "Beginner's luck."

"No, there's more to it than just luck." He looked to her in a more intent way. "I know you've only had one set with me, but I think you're a very bright girl. And those weren't the easiest of questions."

Cassie felt herself glow inside at his words. A compliment! She could've just looked at him coyly and thanked him in a gushing sort of way, but she decided to compose herself in front of him. After all, she didn't want to give too much away. "I-I should go," she admitted.

"Sure," Chris completely lost track of the time and he didn't want her to be late for her next set, "I didn't mean to hold you up. I only wanted a quick word with you."

She managed to find Abi hanging around not too far away, and she caught up with her.

"Gotten into trouble already?" She assumed teasingly.

"No," she replied, "he wanted to talk to me."

They walked together for a little bit more before Cassie broke the silence between them. "What do you know about him?"

Abi was a little caught out at her question, but she wanted to answer her anyway. "Well, he's single, if that's what's bothering you."

Cassie felt butterflies in her stomach at the realisation that she could well be in luck with him. There had to be a catch, surely. There had to be something that made him unavailable to any woman who threw herself at him.

It was then that she realised that she had to have him.

XXXX

The next day, Cassie made to leave Chris's set with Abi, but he stopped her by asking her to stay behind.
"Have I done something wrong?" She asked, hoping that he didn't twig her feelings for him or upset him with her work. "I tried, I really did try."

"You haven't done anything wrong," he quietly assured her. "I know you're in your second day here, but I wanted to make sure everything was ok."

"Everything as in…home or here?"

"Both," he made tracks to go back behind his desk again, "I mean it is important that things at home are ok as well as things here…"

She noticed he'd become aware of the tempting scent from within the carrier bag she'd been holding and she thought it was a good way to start a conversation between them. "That's only what I cooked earlier."

He felt his stomach rumble and it was too powerful to ignore. "What is it – or they?"

"Oh, only rock cakes," she replied dismissively, removing the small plastic box from the carrier bag for him to see, "you can take one if you want."

A louder rumble came from within the pit of his stomach, knowing that he should keep a particular distance with Cassie. "That's nice of you to offer, but I shouldn't."

"Why not?" She sounded hurt, and the last thing he would've wanted was to hurt her. "I did make too many and I don't want them to go to waste…"

Well, what could Chris have said? He could've simply come out and tell her he didn't want to get involved with her, but she was only treating him as she would a friend, surely? "I'm on a diet." That wasn't entirely true, but he'd developed a little bit of fat around his middle.

"I don't believe you," she smirked, opening the lid on the box and going over to him, "go on. Take one."

He drew in a small, barely noticeable sigh, and took one of them from the box. "I know that I shouldn't, but if it'll make you feel better…"

Cassie left the room, finding Abi had waited outside for her so that the two of them could walk home together. "I think he likes me."

XXXX

On her way down to her set the next day, Cassie realised that the focus of her fantasies was loitering around outside his room on his mobile. She didn't want to approach him and disturb him, but she wanted to maintain some form of distance so that she wasn't too close to him but could hear his conversation anyway.

"What's the matter?" He was heard to ask.

She ran her tongue along her lower lip nervously, hoping that he hadn't found someone whilst she was still trying to make a go of it with him. If that had happened, well, she wouldn't have let it go, put it that way.

"I mean I can't be in two places at once, Clara," he went on. "I know you don't feel good, but can you hold on till lunchtime? That way I can come by and check up on you." He hung up, jolting a little at seeing Cassie approach him. "Cassie…you're a little early for your set with me."

"How could you cover that up?" She demanded to know, prompting a startled look from him.

"I'm sorry, cover what up?" He reiterated, confused. He tilted his head a little when she pulled away from him and he decided to follow her.

"Who were you talking to?"

"Is that all that's bothering you?" He grasped her arm once he caught up with her. "If you have to know I was talking to my daughter."

"Y-your daughter?" She frowned.

"Yeah," he let go of her, "she isn't very well so she stays home some days and other days she comes here. It isn't as though our relationship isn't common knowledge…" He peered down at the floor. "...But there are the odd one or two people here that know nothing about us."

"How do you feel towards her?"

He lowered an eyebrow at her question, wondering how she could ask him such a thing. "I don't think that's any of your business."

"I'm asking if you love her."

Chris over a little more weighed down. "Of course I love her. She means everything to me."

Cassie took his answer to mean that he only felt for his own daughter and no one else. She felt herself well up and it was her cue to leave.

"Was that not what you wanted to hear?" He dared to ask her, but she didn't respond and she left him on his own in the corridor.

I know that this chapter may seem short and have little detail than the following ones, but I often find that when writing new ones ha ha! I do feel as though this one is a little broody...maybe I could be as bold to say it's slightly dark? Anyway! Chapter 2 on its way!

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