I won't upload any new idea chapters, especially any of them involving Briley because I'd rather not have backlash about her character, but I wanted to rewrite chapter 6 "Casi's Tears" since my writing has gotten a hundred times better and I was reading through the story and felt the urge to redo it.

So without further ado, Casi's Tears v.2

Casi's Tears v.2

With tears sparkling in Casi's blue eyes, betraying her strong emotions that for once she couldn't control and hide, she blurted out the reason she didn't want him telling her he loved her. "Because I love you, Leo!" She blurted out, some of her black hair escaping her messy ponytail, "and I can't be with you! So when you say things like 'I love you, you're amazing,' it feels like your stabbing my heart with a knife and watching me suffer! It hurts hearing the one you love," her voice cracked, "say words you want to hear but they don't truly mean. I know I act like I don't have a single care in the world but it's not true you know it!" Her eyes were glassy and partially unfocused now as she struggled to keep from crying. "I've worked so hard to pretend none of this bothers me, that I don't wish it would go back to how it was last year when I was the one you were kissing, holding hands with and being with you!"

Leo looked at her, his amber eyes sad as he approached her slightly, wanting to comfort her somehow. "Cas, you know I don't have feelings for Iria, I'm just stuck with her-"

"Does it really matter?" Casi snapped through the tears swimming in her eyes, "just because you don't have any romantic feelings for her doesn't mean I can be with you!" Her voice rose into a sharp yell at the end before she deflated and looked at him, the heartbreak she had been harboring for close to a year finally coming to the surface around him. "Do you know how much it hurts watching you be with a girl who flaunts you like a trophy? Watching as she takes your money and thrives off your popularity and doesn't really seem to care about you? Iria only likes you for your popularity Leo. She used to like you, really like you, but now she's just in it for the popularity. While I," her voice cracked, "while I sit here knowing I could do better than her, and yet wishing that I could do something about all of this." Her blue eyes shut for a few seconds as she continued speaking, Leo keeping silent and just listening.

"I'm used to us just being friends, and I can live with it. I like the nicknames you like to give me off the top of your head even though I'm just your best friend now. I play on the basketball team under you in a hard earned spot with my left arm's disability and I'm happy. I don't mind giving you money because it makes Iria easier to deal with, and I can handle you not going anywhere with our friends anymore." Her voice shook as she opened her eyes, "I can even handle waking up and finding you in my room because you had a nightmare of the car crash that put me into a coma. At least there in those moments I can pretend nothing's wrong and selfishly want to keep you there with me for a few moments while my heart's breaking all over again."

Leo's breath hitched and he opened his mouth to speak, to tell her she didn't have to tell him this, that he'd stay away from her and try to make it easier, but Casi cut him off, the tears in her eyes threatening to escape as her voice grew more emotional.

"You have no idea what kind of effect you have on me Leo, where I want to kiss you whenever you make that utterly confused expression where your eyebrows wrinkle together and I think it's adorable. But I don't, I don't ever actually kiss you properly, not since last year where you were mine, not Iria's. Where I could kiss you for every hilarious and adorable expression you make or really whenever I wanted to." Casi breathed a shuddery breath, her lower lip trembling slightly, "I can handle a lot of things, I can take nearly everything thrown at me, but…" she lost her cool, pulling a miserable expression and giving a few struggling breaths as she stifled a sob and refused to let it all overwhelm her. "But I can't…" her voice trembled, threatening to break down sobbing, "I can't handle you telling me you love me. When I can't be with you and when I'm forced to watch you be with Iria every day." She remained standing though and in somewhat control, standing across from him next to the the small kitchenette counter.

"Cas…" Leo spoke her name in a sad tone, looking at her in a miserable fashion. Casi rarely showed anyone the emotional stress she was under, hiding it behind her immature and goofy personality that made her seem younger and sometimes more childish.

Casi sniffled hard while she tried to keep herself together, "I had my chance to officially ask you out and I blew it," she stated bitterly, "I know. However for some stupid reason the whole damn school wants Iria with you and you and I apart." She roughly brushed the escaped tears from her face and sniffled again.

A lump grew in Leo's throat, "that wasn't your fault, Iria-"

"Iria got to you first," Casi retorted with a bitter laugh, "and I've tried competing with her before but I can't. She may be the most annoying and conceited person on the planet but she's… she's perfect." She looked away from him, speaking bitterly, "I'm just the disabled athlete of your best friend. I've worked my butt off for everything and I still can't reach her level. She's the Queen Bee of the school, unbeatable."

Leo didn't verbally respond, hearing her speak that way about herself stabbed at his heart, when he always saw Casi more beautiful in and out than Iria. Casi was beautiful, and she was perfect too, more so than Iria but she never saw that in herself. Without thinking he moved forward, wanting to feel something besides the crippling misery they both dealt with every day. He wanted her to feel better, to tell her the whole situation, and be her with again, not with the blonde he was stuck with.

He placed his hands on both sides of her face and firmly kissed her full on the mouth, cradling her face in his hands like she was a delicate treasure he never wanted to lose.

Casi leaned back against the counter behind her at the force of Leo moving forward. Stabilizing herself as she gasped against his mouth and melted into the kiss. Bringing her right hand up and threading it through his messy blond hair. Keeping him close while her other arm remained virtually useless and stayed at her side. She felt like they had gone back in time to last year, where they kissed, went on fun dates together all the time and had been essentially dating.

Casi's fingers tangled slightly in Leo's messy hair, refusing to let him go as she kissed him back. She wanted this and selfishly she wasn't letting go. She had missed this feeling, where he loved her and were Iria wasn't standing between them like a massive wedge. Where for just a few moments she felt invincible and her heart wasn't aching all the time.

The kiss was firm, rough, passionate, and filled with scattered emotions. For Leo it was nothing like kissing Iria. He didn't like kissing Iria but would put up with it to make the blonde happy, while he had forgotten what it was like to kiss the girl in front of him.

Casi had always laid out her emotions when they kissed in the past, like a finished hand of cards. Letting him see everything what bothered her, what built her up, and what gave the confidence she exuded. Her lips were soft and warm against his, gentle but in control, her movements were frantic and a little scared, like she knew this moment would end any second and she didn't want it to.

Leo pulled back first a few seconds later, pulling away just enough to break the kiss, but close enough for his breath to wash over her face, tickling her skin with the warm air. He let go of her face and rested his hands on her waist. "You can do everything you want to," he said in a quiet voice. Resting his forehead against hers, "everything and more. I've seen you do it before."

Casi nodded but kept her eyes closed and didn't verbally respond. Instead, she tugged him into another kiss. A softer, less frantic and more sweet and passionate kiss.

Leo broke it again about fifteen seconds later, as the realization and the guilt settled in. Iria. This wasn't fair to her, he was still in a relationship with her. But he didn't want to pull away from Casi, he looked at her, amber eyes a little giddy and yet at the same miserable. "Cas…" he murmured as the girl leaned forward and brushed her lips over his, "stop…"

"I don't want to," Casi breathed against his lips in a breathless tone, keeping her blue eyes firmly closed and her fingers softly tangled in his thick blonde hair.

"I know," Leo responded, his own breathing a little rough, "but I'm not supposed… to be doing this-"

Casi stole the last few words with a kiss before she reluctantly breathed out a miserable sigh and quietly leaned her forehead against his. "I know," she murmured in a breathless whisper, "I know it's wrong." Her voice wobbled as her eyes half opened. "I know you're going to go back to Iria, and I won't be this close to you again for months…" she took a shaky breath and Leo saw tears well in her blue eyes before she continued. "It's not fair" she whispered moving her head from side to side barely half an inch. an inch in both directions. "I want to be with you so bad, to be your girlfriend instead of Iria, but I can't."

Leo opened his mouth for a few seconds before he paused, feeling something wet land on his shirt, and looked startled at Casi. Who had tears beginning to roll down her cheeks and her eyes were beginning to go red rimmed.

"I know it's wrong for you to kiss me again, but…" Her blue eyes were broken and pleading, tired of fighting every day. "Please? Just this once?"

Leo wanted to give it to her, he wanted to brush the tears from her eyes and kiss her till her head was spinning and she was happy, but… "I'm sorry Casi…"

Casi gave a tremble from head to toe at the rejection, she then dropped her head down and hunched her shoulders. Before she pushed her head into the crook of Leo's neck with her eyes squeezed shut and she hugged him tightly with one arm.

"I'm sorry…" Casi apologized in a broken tone, "I know I shouldn't be doing this, I shouldn't be touching you at all."

Leo's heart twisted at his best friend's voice and he leaned further down to take in account their height differences, before pulling her into a close embrace. He gently held the back of Casi's head, keeping her where she was as she moved to let him go, and wound his other arm protectively around her slim waist. "Don't cry…"

Casi breathed a sniffling breath and shook harder, her hand clenching a handful of shirt shirt, clearly struggling to hold herself together.

"Cas… please don't cry… I'm sorry," Leo pleaded with her, able to hear the suppressed sobs she was making, "I didn't mean to make you cry. I never want to make you cry…"

Casi buried her head deeper into his neck and gave a strangled sob, trying her hardest to keep it together. "I'm sorry, I'm trying… I'm trying to stop crying…"

It reminded Leo of the last time he had seen her really cry. He rarely saw her really cry, at most she'd tear up and shamelessly shoulder her burden without fear of showing her tears. However, there was one moment last year where she had really broken down into tears comforted by her best friend and his sister. The last time he had seen her really cry was after Iria had kissed him after a basketball game and asked him out. He never should've said yes, he should've returned to his dorm and found everything Casi had planned and put together to ask him out in her own roundabout way instead, yet he couldn't change it now.

The first thing that hit Leo's ears as he entered the dorm was the sound of running water, the clinking of dishes, and the sound of someone sniffling like they were holding back tears. He had been planning on finding Casi and getting her opinion on what he should where and where he should take Iria for their first date, but that quickly dissolved. It dissolved at the sight of his best friend standing in the little kitchenette, her shoulders hunched with her head held low. She had changed from her basketball gear to a simple t-shirt and denim shorts with frayed ends and no socks. How she had beat him up here after the game he had no idea. Yet she was there, and oddly enough she was doing dishes, dishes he hadn't been aware had even been used.

"Hey Casi, you feeling okay?" He quietly asked his best friend as he walked closer to her and leaned to one side, trying to catch a glimpse of her expression.

Casi jumped a mile into the air before she responded, her voice thick with emotion and a little nasally. "Yeah, I'm fine. Go celebrate with Iria Leo, I'll be here when you get back."

"First off where would we go? And second of all, what do you mean you're fine? You've been crying, your eyes are all red rimmed and everything."

Casi gave a heavy sigh and reluctantly grabbed a towel to dry her hands before she turned to face him. Sure enough tears glimmered on her cheeks, leaving thin trails that reflected light in a different way than her skin did. "You finally got yourself an official girlfriend Leo, go on and celebrate with her, take her somewhere fancy shmancy."

Leo gave her a weird look, "Casi are you sure you're okay? You're acting way too calm about this."

Casi stuffed her hands into her pockets, the metal on her left arm allowing her to properly move the limb. She smiled sadly, "what do you expect Leo? I lost my chance, had it swipe out from under my very nose. Honestly I'm trying just to keep it together till I can crawl into bed and cry. Now go on, make her happy."

Leo ran a hand through his blonde hair, "let's just say I believe you about your mental state. Where should I take her? This is Iria we're talking about."

"I know, Casi murmured quietly before she dug into a pocket of her shorts and offered them to him, her hand shaking slightly. "How about here? It's a reservation for two that I can't get rid of."

Leo's jaw dropped as he took the tickets and studied them. The tickets were to a particularly fancy restaurant funplex, where he had only gone twice. "Where… how… where did you get these?"

"I bought them," Casi responded simply, her voice breaking halfway through the sentence. Her eyes, directed at him with tear glistening pools of beautiful blue, were red-rimmed and held a look of broken longing behind her lowering emotional barriers. All in all she looked like she wanted to cut the conversation short and flee to her dorm room before diving under the covers and hiding from the world till it stopped cracking beneath her feet.

If possible Leo's jaw dropped further and he stared at her, wide-eyed. "You… you bought these? What in the world urged her into buying a reservation here? I know you Casi, fancy dinners and dressing up is a once in a bluemoon kind of thing."

A few of Casi's tears escaped and made a trail down her cheeks as she spoke through the lump in her throat and the agony in her heart. She shoved her hands into her pockets before briefly gesturing at him, "you." She said before pausing, swallowing hard, and shoved her hand back into her pocket, "I bought them for you. For an official date just the two of us." She took a shuddering breath, "you know, after I asked you out first. We've already kissed and we're practically dating but… I never asked you out properly." Her voice turned bitter and a little self-loathing, "but I guess there's no point in it now. You're a free agent, and… and I missed my chance." She forced a weak smile and gestured to the tickets, "but I'm sure you and Iria will have a blast, so they won't go to waste."

Leo's eyes glinted with pain in amber depths, "Cas… Why didn't you tell me? StarClan above, the thought of answering Iria asking me out with a yes never would've even crossed my mind!"

Casi grasped her left arm in a shy manner and looked down at her shoes, more tears dripping down her cheeks and chin. "I've never asked someone out before and I was a coward. I don't know what to do regarding romance and our messy relationship, but I was trying."

"What do you want us to be?" Leo asked quietly, a lump growing in his throat as well, feeling like an absolute jerk.

Casi lifted her gaze to his and brushed tears from one of her eyes, looking sadly at him, "I want what I now can't have. You have a girlfriend now," her voice choked, "who isn't me. So I have to settle for being your best friend again, just your friend. When I want to cuddle with you and watch a movie and when I want you to kiss me and tell me it's going to be okay, that I'm not losing my chance to be with you all because I'm a coward toward romance."

"What else did you plan?" Leo asked hoarsely, knowing full well that when his best friend planned something she went full out. "I know that can't be all."

Casi's blue eyes watered more, "I set up decorations in the dorm, and got all the stuff to make the treat we used to make as kids together. I picked out an action movie for you that we could watch while we goofed off or played around till the reservations at six." Her shoulders were shaking now, causing her entire body to be softly trembling from her emotions. She breifly shut her eyes to pull herself a little together before speaking the next sentence. "I even bought a dress to make sure I can get into the reservation place."

Leo felt his stomach twist and drop with guilt, "what color?" He asked hoarsely despite already being able to guess what color the dress was.

"Silver," Casi murmured in a broken tone of voice, "with blue accents. Cause you told me when we went out for dinner last month-"

"-it accents your eyes…" Leo finished the sentence, his voice breaking, "I remember telling you it accented the hints of silver in your eyes." He felt even more horrible, Casi rarely ever dressed up for any reason, despising formal wear and turning up her nose at almost anything relating to a dress or skirt. Yet she had gone out of her way to buy a dress that he in particular would like. "Can I see it?" He asked a moment later, unsure where the thought came from, "please?"

Casi hesitantly nodded before she spun on her heel and led the way to her dorm room, Leo on her heels. She pushed open the door to the rather messy room littered with art supplies, athletic equipment, and schoolwork and headed toward the closet. Where she silently pushed open the door of her closet, took out a gently shimmering silver dress and laid it out on her messy made bed. Where she stuffed her hands back into the pockets of her shorts and looked at him through tear glassy eyes. "I liked it, figured you would too."

Leo wanted to cry. The dress was beautiful, and he knew it would look jaw dropping on Casi, while he also knew that he would likely never see it on her her. "It's beautiful, you'd look gorgeous in it."

The dress was a shimmering silver, softly reflecting light. With a dark blue velvet ribbon at the waist, intricate dark blue vine like designs on the skirt, and elegant dark blue hemming. It was thin strapped with a knee high slit along one side, and would compliment Casi's blue eyes while contrasting her dark colored wavy hair.

Tears misted Leo's eyes and he blinked them away before he walked over to Casi and pulled her into a tight embrace, apologizing softly in her ear, his voice cracking. "I'm so sorry, StarClan forgive me I'm so sorry Cas." He tightened his arms around her, feeling her shake harder in his arms, "I ruined everything, especially for you."

For a moment Casi clung to him, her arms slipped around his back and pushing her body as close to his as possible while she gave a muffled sob into his shoulder. "I'm a coward, I should've acted before Iria got to you first. This is my fault, all of it."

Leo's heart squeezed and he gently pulled Casi back before looking at her, looking at her blue eyes glazed with falling tears. He rested a hand on her cheek, brushing his thumb softly over her skin, "I'm sorry," he murmured again, feeling his own eyes grow wet, "I'm so sorry."

Casi sniffled and said nothing, trembling in his arms and leaning into his touch, lifting a hand to cover the one on her face.

Without thinking both of them leaned forward till they were an inch from each others faces, and that's where Leo paused, looking at her.

Casi had closed her eyes and was breathing shuddery breaths, her breath hitching as she desperately tried to pull herself together. "You're not mine anymore," Casi murmured in a heartbroken tone and shut her eyes tighter, "so can you at least kiss me goodbye before I lose you?"

Leo nodded and gently pressed his lips to hers in a bittersweet last kiss before pulling back and looking at her.

Casi opened her eyes as well, and Leo could tell she was seconds from completely falling apart.

So he let her go, withdrawing his arms from around her body and taking a few steps from her while holding her hands. Watching her breathing start to grow uneven and her start to sniffle repeatedly. "I'm sorry," he whispered softly.

Casi turned her head away from him with a hiccup, "leave me alone," she murmured quietly, "please."

Leo hesitated, "I'm still your best friend, right?" He asked weakly, unsure.

"You'll always be my best friend," Casi reassured, "but please," her voice broke again, "leave me alone..."

"Okay…" Leo reluctantly let go of her hands, "see you later Casi." He took a few steps back before he forced himself to turn around and walk away even as he heard Casi drop to knees and give a heart wrenching sob.

Someone pushed past him, long straight black hair and dark green glasses, it was his sister, and Casi's other best friend.

"Oh Casi… I'm so sorry this turned out like this…"

Leo's heart clenched but he kept walking, listening to his friend's request.

"I cant… I can't be with Leo anymore! I can only be his friend now!" Casi howled and Leo glanced back to see his sister holding Casi like a sister would, hugging her tightly and gently rubbing her back while Casi cried.

Leo sighed and looked up at the person who had angrily slammed their hands down onto the cafeteria table where the basketball team and a few of Leo's friends were all sitting together. He was sitting in the middle, with Casi sitting at a table nearby with the rest of their dorm. She was laughing and cracking jokes like normal, but Leo could hear the forced nature of each one, like she didn't want to be here but was obligated to be. "What Iria? I've been sitting here all lunch hour so far."

Iria's icy blue eyes narrowed at him and she raised her voice so most if not all the cafeteria could hear her, "what Iria? I heard you cheated on me Leo! Yesterday, with one of your dorm floor mates!"

Leo's blood went to ice, he hadn't meant to, he honestly hadn't meant to kiss Casi at all yesterday, but there was no way he was going to get her in trouble. Still, if he said he was too blame he could kiss his scholarship goodbye.

"Well?!" Iria shrieked and Leo just stared at her in a dumbfounded fashion, confused and gobsmacked at even the idea. "Who did you cheat on me with? Tell me Leo!"

Leo didn't know what to do, either way he was screwed, he didn't have a way out of this one. He was alone in this.

"Leo didn't cheat on you." Another voice added, cool and sharp, odd for the basketball player with an immature attitude who cracked jokes all the time.

Leo looked over at them and watched with a start as his best friend pushed through the crowd gathering with a determined look on her face. She had his back, even though in a situation like this he didn't want her to. No! Stay back Casi!

"What do you know about it?" Iria snapped harshly at the athlete, furious blue eyes focused on her as she straightened up and Casi approached her.

"I know all about it, after all I was there." Casi responded coolly, blue eyes flickering around the room before she addressed Iria again with a daring play. "I forced Leo into a kiss. He didn't cheat on you, I forced him to kiss me. I was bored and wanted something to do."

"So you kiss my boyfriend?!" Iria shrieked, and the cafeteria was buzzing with whispers from the students around them.

"Yes," Casi replied with a hint of smugness in her voice, "I kissed him, blackmailed him too, said I'd pull an audio prank on you that would make your ears ring for weeks." She crossed her arms across her chest while Iria looked furious.

Leo felt fear creeping into his chest, what was Casi doing? Trying to get punched in the face? His friend never acted like this, dark and mocking.

"He's a brilliant kisser too, which I would already know since I'm the one who kissed him first. Although… it looks like all those moments of you two kissing the hell out of each other in a tiny corner has made him a million times better." Casi leaned a little toward Iria, "aw, is the ice queen angry I kissed your guy?" She asked in a mocking voice as Iria's ears flushed red with anger. "Probably was the best kiss of my life so far. Nothing like kissing Leo to make you feel better." She took a step back and gestured to herself, "want to hit me? Be my guest. You can punch me in the face, beat the crap out of me, ruin my reputation, whatever you'd like." A smug smirk spread across her features, "maybe I'll blackmail him into a different kind of kiss next time, I know, how about-" She was cut off by Iria shrieking in anger and nailing the athlete hard in the mouth.

Casi laughed as she fell, landing hard on her butt but looking smugly up at Iria, "that really got under your skin didn't it?" She spat out a glob of blood on Iria's shoes, "little Mrs. Rich-Princess, I got more where that came from, I wonder what else Leo would do under blackmail, what about break up with you? Or I know," she raised her eyebrows in a suggestive manner with a smug smirk on her face. This time Casi didn't have to say anything before Iria roared in anger and pinned her down, Casi's head violently slamming into the floor before Iria punched her again in the face, repeatedly punching Casi in the face and mouth, shrieking with anger and fury.

Students were cheering as Casi laughed between getting punched and Iria kept punching her. Leo felt dizzy, sick even as his best friend laughed like she had really lost her mind and his girlfriend kept beating her up. Casi… what… what possessed you to do this to yourself?

"How… dare… you… little-"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Hailey's authoritative shout broke through the cheering as she yanked Iria off Casi and shoved the blonde back toward her group of friends while Casi lifted herself up on her right arm and used her exoskeleton covered left to casually wipe the blood from the corner of her mouth. "What are you doing Iria? Beating up Casi isn't going to do anything! Explain yourself!"

Iria jabbed a finger at Casi, "she forced Leo into kissing her!"

Casi gave Iria a cheshire cat grin that sent chills up Leo's spine, Casi's teeth were slightly bloody from the repeated punches to the mouth, and the look in her blue eyes was almost murderous. However a moment later she lost the creepy grin and lightly shrugged her shoulders, "it's not actually true, just a flimsy rumor."

"StarClan above, Casi what am I supposed to do with you," Hailey muttered under her breath, "Iria, double detention for a week, Casi you're going to the nurse's office and you're unofficially suspended for the week. No leaving your dorm for anything besides basketball practice unless your escorted by me or another teacher."

The other students gasped and Leo looked wide-eyed at Hailey before he gawked at Casi at her reaction.

Casi simply shrugged and let Hailey harshly pull her to her feet by the back of her jacket, "fine with me."

Leo watched her leave even as Iria perched in his lap, mumbling about the double detention she had received. Casi what in your right mind possessed you to go far enough to get yourself suspended?!

"Casi, what. The. Heck." Leo threw down his backpack the moment he entered his dorm and heard a yelp from Briley as it nailed her in the back of the head but he promptly ignored her. "You want to explain that little stunt in the cafeteria?" He snapped as he approached his best friend on the couch, only to pause, finding her asleep.

Casi was asleep, sprawled awkwardly on the couch while having fallen asleep while holding an ice pack to her left eye. Her face was bruised and swelling, with her lower and upper lips split in more than one spot and her nose red and swelling almost like she had nearly broken it.

Leo eventually broke out of his concerned stupor and harshly shook her by the shoulder, waking her up with a start. "You could've relapsed!"

Casi floundered, her visible blue eye popping open before it focused on him and went dull and tired. "For StarClan's sake Leo," she slapped his hand from her shoulder, "quit touching me and tell me what the heck you're yelling about."

Leo glared at her, "You could've relapsed and fallen back into that coma Casi! What were you thinking goading Iria like that?"

Casi looked at him, and he couldn't believe the next words that came out of her mouth. "I wanted to relapse," she snapped back at him and pushed herself away from him, still holding the ice pack over her injured eye. "If I relapsed I wouldn't have to deal with seeing you and Iria every day now would I- Ow! What as that for!" She yelped when Leo promptly slapped her across the face, restraining the urge to punch her when she was already beaten up.

"What was that for?! Are you listening to yourself?! I didn't go through six months of hell waiting for my only friend at the time to wake up only to have her want to relapse nine years later!" Leo snarled at her, glaring dangerously at her.

"Oh so you think I want to watch as my heart dies a little more every day?" Casi shouted back, "I'm already dying in here," she stabbed her finger at her heart, "so what's the point of living any longer?! At least if I relapse I don't have to deal with finding you squished in a corner kissing Iria with your hands whereever she wants them to be!" She stood up and threw the ice pack at him, nailing him in the gut and revealing the swollen shut and developing black eye, "I can dream and live through those dreams how I want them to go! Where I'm the one your kissing, not her!"

Leo's anger vanished at the sight of the injury and concern overtook his features before he reached forward and brushed his fingertips over her bruised flesh. "How many times did she hit you?"

Casi was fuming, but she responded to his question, and left his hand there, letting the cool touch of his fingers calm her and soothe her injury. "Eleven times. Hailey said I missed relapsing by a a couple more punches, hooray for me," she stated sarcastically.

He had almost lost her. "Promise me you won't do that again," He said suddenly, looking seriously at her, "I can't lose you again."

Casi looked at him in a tired fashion as her anger drained away as well. "It was a fleeting feeling Leo. I was shaken up afterward, and confused to why I wanted it so badly in those moments."

Leo nodded and studied the damage to her face, "what did Hailey say the extent or your injuries was?"

Casi swallowed hard, "concussion, split lip, a black eye and…"

"And?"

"And a little internal bleeding up here," she pointed to her head, blue eyes guilty and regretful.

Leo stared at her, "so if you sustain a few more heavy hits to the head…"

Casi looked back at him, blue eyes tired, miserable, and scared. "I'm going to lose consciousness and likely never wake up again."

Leo's heart was in his throat and he almost choked before he pulled her harshly into his arms and held her tightly, shaking slightly. "Promise me you'll take care of yourself, Cas I can not lose you. I can't watch you lay there in a hospital bed for months or to till your parents agree to pull life support again, please… don't leave me again…"

He felt Casi's arms slip around his back and felt her shake as the realization of really how close she was to losing the life ahead of her really hit her. "StarClan I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking," Casi blubbered, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, I'll be careful in the future, I promise I'll be careful now…"