DISCLAIMER: Daria and associated characters are owned by MTV. This is for entertainment purposes only and no money or other goods have been exchanged.
This story was written for the '1,001 Deaths of Tom Sloane – Part II' thread on the PPMB. The character of Cassidy Hemming was created by Ognawk and first appeared in the fic "The Great and The Good"
IF I CAN'T HAVE YOU...
Cassidy entered the park and made her way towards the bench by the pond, where she knew Tom was meeting someone. She braced herself for the worst and, as she looked ahead, she saw it. Jane was there, and she was kissing Tom. Her Tom. In a rage, she stormed over to them.
"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?" she shouted, causing Tom and Jane to quickly separate.
"Cassidy! What are you doing here?" Tom asked in surprise.
"I'll ask you again. What the hell is going on here?"
"I'm sorry, Cassidy. There's no way to tell you this, but... I love Jane."
Cassidy's face twitched, and she slowly approached Tom, getting in between him and Jane. "What did you just say?"
"I.. said I love Jane."
Cassidy closed her eyes tightly. "What did you say?"
"Are you deaf or something?" Jane asked, "He said he loves me."
Cassidy scowled and turned to face Jane. "Did I ask for your opinion, you harlot? Get the hell out of here, before I do something I'm going to regret."
"I'm not going..."
"Jane," Tom said, interrupting Jane and causing her to look straight at him, "Just go. I'll take care of this and I'll see you later."
Jane looked uneasy at Tom's suggestion, but he nodded to her and she took that as her cue to leave. Tom then turned his attention to Cassidy, who put an arm around the back of his neck and ruffled his hair with her other hand.
"You love her?"
"I'm sorry, Cassidy. I can't help how I feel."
Cassidy closed her eyes tightly and pressed her forehead against Tom's, a sad expression on her face. "But what about me? I love you, Thomas."
"I do care about you, Cassidy, but I love Jane. I can't help it."
"But I love you Tom," Cassidy replied, her voice wavering slightly, "So tell me, why must you hurt me so?"
"I didn't mean..."
"Why do you hurt me so, Tom?" Cassidy said in a slightly menacing tone.
Tom had no answer. He didn't get time to answer, because Cassidy immediately kneed him in the crotch, and he dropped to his own knees in pain.
"You see Tom, you hurt me badly," Cassidy said, a cold, emotionless look in her eyes as she stepped back slightly, "And now I have to hurt you!"
Cassidy grabbed Tom by the hair and kicked him in the head several times. She then rammed his head into the nearby bench. Tom was extremely groggy by now, and suddenly scared by Cassidy's anger and surprised by her strength as she dragged him in the direction of the pond.
"If I can't have you, then no-one will," she said as she got him to the edge of the pond and pushed his head under the water, holding it there for a moment before pulling it back up.
"Cass... Cassidy," he tried to say, choking on the water, "I'm sorry, please..."
"I'm afraid it's much too late for that now, Thomas," Cassidy said as she pushed his head back under the water again.
Tom flailed his arms around, desperately trying to hit Cassidy and try to break free, but it was no use. His struggling started to weaken until it eventually stopped completely. She then pulled his head out of the water and laid his limp body out next to the pond. She kneeled by his side and stroked his wet hair, her hands shaking and tears forming in her eyes.
"We could have been so good together Tom," she said, as she leaned over and kissed him on the forehead, "It's a shame you couldn't see that."
With that, Cassidy stood up, and looked down at her former boyfriend one last time before quickly walking away.
