Hiding Scars
Chapter 5
Cassandra woke up in a panic late on Sunday morning. She'd had the dream again that she was looking at her younger self in the mirror. Cherry lifted her head off her paws and stared at Cassandra. "Sorry, girl," Cassandra mumbled and scratched Cherry's head. Cherry laid her head back down onto her paws and closed her eyes. Cassandra kicked the sheet off of her and climbed out of bed. Now that she was awake, she was pretty excited for the day, since she would be spending it partying with her neighbors, then heading down to the beach at dusk to watch the opening night fireworks. Milly promised that the fireworks show for the opening and closing nights would be even better than the previous year. Cassandra stretched her arms up over her head and walked to the window. She pushed aside her curtains and looked down at the street. Milly and her husband Paul were already outside, setting up barriers and tables. Other neighbors were coming out of their houses, getting some last minute yard work done, or setting up volleyball nets in their front yard.
Cassandra took a quick shower, brushed and braided her hair, then pulled on a sundress. When she leaned into the mirror to apply her eye makeup, she noticed that her roots were beginning to show again. She'd have to make an appointment to get her color touched up. She applied eyeliner, eyeshadow and mascara, then headed down to her kitchen. Cherry finally got out of the bed and followed her downstairs. Cassandra made a glass of iced tea and went outside.
She was greeted in several directions by different neighbors. She tried to wave to everyone. Cherry, who had trotted outside, dashed off to greet some of her dog friends. Cassandra walked over to Milly and Paul.
"How is everything going?" Cassandra asked.
"Good! Everything is set for tonight, so I get to relax and have fun!" Milly said. Paul smiled and wrapped an arm around his wife.
"You deserve it, honey," he said. Milly smiled and they kissed quickly. Cassandra smiled at them.
"Well, all my food is done and ready to go," Cassandra said. "So if you need me to do anything..." she said, holding a hand out to indicate to let her know.
"Sure. And if you wander around, some of the others might ask you to help them," Milly said. Cassandra nodded and moved off down the street. Cherry had returned to her side. Cassandra was greeted by several other neighbors, and eventually got pulled into a kitchen to help with cooking. She went gladly.
Soon, the entire street had poured out of their homes, along with friends and family from other areas. The food was placed on a long line of tables, and people were everywhere, drinking and eating and playing. Cassandra had brought a blanket out to her front yard and was sitting on it, eating and drinking from a glass of vanilla flavored vodka and a cola. Milly, Paul and their two children soon joined them. Someone brought their stereo out to the curb and was blasting music. Everyone was having a good time. The dream that had troubled Cassandra that morning was all but forgotten.
The party raged all through the afternoon and into the early evening. Cassandra had drank a lot, passed out in her front yard, woke up, then drank some more. She walked along the tables of food, picking at the leftovers with a fork. Before long, the sun was beginning to sink into the horizon. Milly and Paul joined up with Cassandra, and along with the rest of the neighbors, began the walk towards the beach for the fireworks show. Cassandra and Milly had snuck bottles of soda with vodka in them, like they were teenagers again. It was a long walk, but they finally made it to the beach. The group found a spot in the sand to sit down and wait for the fireworks.
As Cassandra sat in the sand, she looked around at all the tourists. She heard a loud shout nearby, and she turned. She thought her heart stopped.
A group of familiar faces were walking nearby. They were laughing and joking while searching for a place to watch the fireworks. Cassandra put a hand to her chest and could feel her heart facing. One face in particular caught her eye, the dark brown hair, the deep blue eyes, the well built frame, that had gotten taller since she'd last seen him, dressed in shorts and a button down shirt. In a panic, Cassandra stumbled to her feet.
"Girl, what are you doing?" Milly asked.
"I have to make a phone call," Cassandra said, stumbling away from her friends to find a quieter spot. She dug around in her shoulder bag for her phone. She finally located it and dialed a number she hadn't dialed in years.
"Miss Cassandra Cooper," the voice said on the other line. "or rather, Miss Relena."
"Shhh," Cassandra droned into the phone. "Don't say that name," she said.
"Miss Cooper, have you been drinking?"
"I am an adult, Lady Une," Cassandra said. "Look, what in god's name are Heero, Duo, Quatre and Hilde doing here?" Lady Une sighed.
"I wish I could say they are on vacation, but that would not be the whole truth," Lady Une said. "Your book, well, they figured it out," she said.
"What?"
"They read your book, and they know it was you. Heero asked me for money to come out there and find you, but I told him no, because he didn't have any real proof. Unfortunately, Mr. Winner is entitled to do with his money what he will. And he chose to pay for the four of them to travel to that city and stay there. They will come looking for you," she said. Cassandra felt like sobbing into the phone.
"They can't," Cassandra said. "My life here is fine. I can't have them back in my life. I can't," she said, near tears.
"I know you don't want that, but I can't technically stop them. Heero is not on Preventer business. He even filed for official vacation time," Lady Une said, heaving another sigh. "But maybe it would be a good thing, Miss Relena." Cassandra hissed again at the name. "The letters have stopped. The threats have stopped. You've come to terms with what happened. Perhaps it's time you told your friends why you had to disappear four years ago," Lady Une said.
"No, no, no. I can't," Cassandra said. She felt her resolve and courage slipping through her fingers as her foggy, drunk mind tried to catch up on comprehending what Lady Une was saying.
"Have you gotten over what happened?" Lady Une asked. Cassandra didn't have an answer. "Quatre and Duo tell me that Heero has not been the same since you disappeared. If you let him into your life again, he could protect you. I admit it was a mistake to take him away from you that week," Lady Une said, her voice softening. Cassandra sobbed and let her knees buckle under her until she was sitting amongst the grass growing up through the sand. The first loud pop of a firework went off.
"I have to go. The fireworks show is starting," Cassandra said.
"Take care," Lady Une said. Cassandra hung up her phone, threw it in her bag and stumbled her way back to Milly. When Cassandra sat back down, Milly looked at her.
"Oh my god, are you alright?" Milly asked. Cassandra nodded.
"Don't worry about it," she said, wiping at her cheeks.
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