AN: Back again! Another chapter. Do leave me something! First answer these questions:

10 +10 =

what does a tiger do?

"Why is 1 plus 1, 2?"

"What is Mona Lisa's specialty?"

"Why is SpongeBob called square pants?"

"Why do hyenas laugh?"

BETTER STUDY UP

(CASSIE'S POV)

I created a diet chart for Rachel with the help of net and Emily and threw almost everything with saturated fats to Emily's. Rachel is quite mad at me but I didn't throw it into trash. She should be happy with that and live with that. Paul isn't mad at me which saves me and creates a point for me because Paul and I are in majority and Brady, let's just say he's with me whatever I do until it doesn't hurt me or anyone. Seth is stuck in the middle and so is everyone else but Rachel knows that she's gotta follow it and the doctor too has told her to follow up to my diet chart and she just gave me this let-your-time-come-and-I'll-see-you look. I didn't care about it because I knew it was a long time and I would stick to my healthy diet.

Why am I thinking it now?

Anyway, later, Sonny, Ashley and the other imprints ate half my head like they might've been zombies in their last lives (if they had they wouldn't have lived, right?) those guys were behaving as if it was my fault that I went. You would get irritated if you are continuously cursed for about an hour and you cannot react because everyone has got happy-tears in their eyes.

Drama queens

You bet, even Quil cried his eyes out because they all missed me and Embry, I knew, he was crying but in private. He curled up into a corner and dabbed his eyes. I liked that my brothers missed me that bad. Paul didn't show but he's gone to the washroom three times just to cry. I don't exactly know what's being without them because I have no idea what is it. Rachel didn't get that mad at me because of the same.

I love the special treatment they are giving me.

At about 11 at might, my house was free of the population but fortunately…

What?

Brady won't budge. I liked that he cares this much about me but Paul and he are having a constant bickering about the whole thing.

"Guys, what would you take to shut up?" I asked.

"You are not sleeping upstairs in her room." Paul shouted.

"What do you think I am? A sex addict like you?" Brady said.

"Gee, my poor virgin ears." I muttered putting hands on both my ears. I went upstairs and took my old cell phone to call my mom after all. After a familiar tone, she picked it up.

"What? You again lost your phone, Brady?" mom said in a motherly yet sad voice. I was on the verge of tears.

"Mom, it's me, Cassie." I said. It seemed like she spat something liquid like I usually do when I'm too surprised. Now I get that it's totally hereditary.

"Cas…Cassie?" mom asked.

"Not the ghost atleast." I explained.

"I am sleeping, ain't I, Rick?" she asked dad.

"C'mon, no mom! It's me really. I'll just video call you in a second." I said and hung up. I video called her in less than a second. She picked up in the same second.

"Hey mom!" I called happily.

"Cas…Cassie?" mom said in the same tone as earlier.

"Cassie?" this was dad's voice.

"Guys, I am not a ghost that you guys are overreacting this much." I said.

"Hey ya Diana! Hey Rick!" Brady came at my back and said.

"She…she is alright?" mom asked looking Brady in wide eyed surprise.

"Yeah, kind of. It's a really long story. I stole her from Theo." Brady laughed.

"You…you stole her? Do you even know how risky that is?" mom said.

"Yeah, kinda. I kidnapped her and you know they filled her that she is some Faith named kid. Valerie manipulated her memories and stuff like that. She was in amnesia." He clarified.

It took us about an hour to talk. I scolded her because, c'mon, she went so weak that I think she could barely walk a distance but I told her to just sleep soundly now.

"So, where are you sleeping now?" I asked him as he sat on my bed. He ran his fingers through his hair.

"Ask me who won? Me or Paul?" he said in a kind of swaggering voice.

"Why? What happened?" I asked growing a bit more interested. If Paul won, then Brady is leaving in a few minutes, if Brady won, Paul is not going to pick up a fight with him till atleast two days is what I'm sure about.

"He said I'm not supposed to be in your room at this time and I just told him about what he used to do when he had imprinted on Rachel."

"Do tell me what?"

"He said that I'm not supposed to touch you." He said putting an arm around my waist and kissing my right temple. "And we're not supposed to talk and just sleep soundly. I have to maintain a foot distance from you and whenever you roll into me, I'm supposed to push you to your original place."

I moved my face next to his neck mischievously.

"And?" I asked.

"I don't know. I'm not doing that. I just said: "Paul, I'm not like you. You even used to 'sleep' with Rachel when Billy was at home." You should've been there to see his face. I bet he won't speak anything till a few days. He was like this" he said and I saw his face. He opened his mouth about three inches and eyes just bulging out. I burst out laughing.

"I wanted to see that." I said.

"Let's go to my place tomorrow morning. What say?" he asked me. "I asked Mark to keep his mouth shut in front of mum and dad."

"You mean you're gonna be scaring them off? Is your brain at its place?" I asked.

"No, it's gonna be fun." He said.

"Whatever." I muttered as I switched off the lights and searched for my star-and-moon colorful lamp. I searched for the switch and it turned on. I was left speechless when I saw the new one. It was even more colorful and glittery. Brady just sat up straight and looked at me with a look that clearly demanded to know how it was.

"You…you made it?" I asked him excitedly.

"Yeah, totally. On your birthday. How's it? I didn't overdo it, did I?" he asked.

"No, it's perfect. It's really pretty. I like it." I said. "Thanks. MARLEY!" I called my little Aric… I mean Marley, now. He came wagging his tail.

"Hey honey." I rubbed his back.

"Yeah, right. Forgot me?" he muttered.

"What?" I said acting as if I didn't hear.

"Nothing." He muttered. Marley curled up in his new basket bed I had organized that Ashley had got me.

"I'm coming to talk." I told Brady and caressed Marley. I walked back to my bed but unfortunately, I had forgotten what was where and stumbled onto him.

"Someone missed me a lot." He pulled me up on him.

"Kind of, yeah. You know, I thought of a new nickname for you."

"Cass, not those 'curly-burly' kinds of nicknames." He moaned.

"No, I was thinking about how sweet you are and how much I am addicted to you just like Brownies." I said kissing his nose.

"And? What did you think?" he asked.

"You're my Brownie." I declared like a kid who just named her doll, proudly.

"Hmm… I kinda like it." He said kissing my nose back.

"I knew you would. I'm just thinking about those guys, Wayne, Amelia and Louis, I guess, how Theo is treating them after you kidnapped me." I said. I knew I had spent 5 months with them and if I was supposed to be close to them.

"Can you just sleep?" he asked me.

"I don't want to." I said but I soon fell asleep because of the tiredness.

At about 5 in the morning, I heard the doorbell ringing constantly. I jumped out of my bed, pushing back the cover and Brady's arm around my waist. Rubbing my eyes, I walked downstairs in my pink PJ's. I opened the door without asking.

"MOM!?" I spat as I saw mom on the door with two suitcases and dad next to her. Mom launched herself on me and hugged me and so did dad. Mom kissed my forehead and head and might be I didn't know what she was going through but I knew she had missed me a lot.

"Hey guys!" Paul came rubbing his eyes with Rachel in line and Brady appeared from upstairs.

"What were you doing upstairs?" dad asked Brady.

"He fell asleep in the nursery." I defended his case. "He was moving the stuff."

"Yeah, I was pretty much tired running patrols." He lied looking down so as to act tired.

"Honey, what happened to your foot or I might as well say, leg?" mom asked.

"Long story." I muttered.

SOME HOURS LATER, AFTER THE SHOWER TIME…

"So, now what are we doing with her studies?" mom asked Paul. How did I ever forget the most important of my little life?

"I missed three months plus the finals. There's not even the Summer school going on." I muttered. There would've been chances if there was summer school going on. I could've totally topped it but it's not. What a tragedy my life is!

"I think there's just one option left." Dad said.

Not repeating! Not repeating! Not repeating! Not repeating! Not repeating!

"Repeating?" mom asked.

Shouldn't I be called to a GK game show to win all their prizes?

"NO!" I shouted.

"Whoa, calm down Cassie." Brady said.

"You are asking me to calm down? This could ruin my entire life and my dreams of helping the nation!" I stated.

"You have already skipped seventh grade. You could repeat 9th." Rachel proposed.

"No freaking way am I gonna do that! Just think how it might look when I go for an interview and they ask me for my freshman year CGPA and I get confused between the 1st freshman year and the 2nd one." I screamed.

"No one would ask you for that." Paul said.

"I am not going to! Dad, Principal Brookshields is your friend. Why don't you go and talk to him if he could? I'm sure he could give me retest or some allowance to get to my sophomore year THIS YEAR!" I gave the full stress on the words 'this year' because I knew I had to get into it THIS YEAR! "Even the Ivy League could help us. They know you and I am one of the Rez' top 20 highest IQ kids." I added. Hey, I didn't brag about the last thing. My IQ is high and that is why I skipped 7th grade.

"What time is it?" dad asked looking at his wrist watch. I have come to know that if dad does this, he is going to do something quite surely but he knows that he isn't sure he would succeed.

"10 o'clock, why?" mom asked him.

"Well, we first go and hurry up to meet the Principal." Dad said.

"I love you, dad!" I said and hugged him.

Mom and dad took off in half an hour as I sat on the front steps of the porch waiting for them. Brady came to sit beside me after about an hour that he had spent eating inside.

"What time is it?" I asked him as my heart pumped even faster than an expressway.

"Calm down, it's not even ten minutes since they went." He told me.

"Your watch isn't working properly, Brownie." I said grabbing his wrist to see the time. He was right. It wasn't even 10 minutes since. "Sorry."

"I can kinda understand." He said kissing my cheek.

"I don't want to just waste this year, you know. If I repeat, you know, it'll be like when you guys get past your senior prom- you, Ethan, Nathan, Sonny, Ashley, Seth, Hayley, I'll be the one in the prom organizing committee." I answered.

"I don't think that far." He said and sighed.

"But I totally do." I said.

It seemed like days went by sitting on the stairs in the porch in silence with Brady. Even he didn't utter a word since I had stopped. It seemed like days and days of waiting and I was left in my thoughts if I could get past my sophomore year. We heard a car honk in our driveway when Brady stood upright.

"Mom, dad?" he muttered.

"Mine." I said. C'mon, I know we're destined together but Brady shouldn't be so eager to call my parents his before marriage.

"No, mine are here with yours." He said as we saw our parents approaching the house with Mark giggling at the back. Okay, now I totally get it. How much can I over think at times?
We had this hugging and how-are-you and where-were-you session again of which I had been sick yesterday. God, I really don't want anybody asking me again about this now.

"So, what happened?" I asked dad with hopeful eyes.

"They are kinda giving you a retest." He said. I swear I was so happy that I almost jumped to hug Brady which made all of them glare at me for once. "But…"

"What but?" I asked dad.

"In a week. That is, next week." Alan, (i.s. Mr. Fuller, Brady's dad) told me.

"What?" I spat.

"It's on Monday. The checking would be the same day and if you pass, well and good, next day in school, otherwise…" mom didn't care to complete and scare me off.

"You…you mean three month's study in a week? It is Impossible!" I said. Note the stress on Impossible. Do you think it is possible?

"What about a tutor?" Paul said. Hmm…not a bad idea.

"I can do almost all subjects except algebra. I need someone great in Algebra." I added.

"I have all my notes saved." Brady came to my rescue. That is why I love him!

"And the Algebra tutor?" Monica asked looking at her new shiny cell phone. The parents went to the new bakery and I stayed at home with Brady and Rachel. Paul went off to work and I doodled in my notes.

"You're supposed to learn them not draw them." He said.

"I can't. It's way too confusing." I complained.

"Okay, great. First give me the pencil." I gave him my pencil. "Don't read the notes."

"What am I supposed to do then? Wait for them to roll me back to freshman year?"

"Study the books and make your notes yourself. You're good at it." He told me. Why didn't I think of it this way? That is why he is a bit more clear-minded than I am.

"Hmm…point." I said. "But what about my geometry and algebra?"

"I could tutor you. No offense, but I'm way better than you in algebra."

I should've thought of it earlier. It would be fine because that way it won't irk Paul or dad when he is making me work and at the same time I get to see him every second. Not a problem with me, neither with dad and nor with Paul. Well, that's called one shot and three dead.

"You're not that dumb." I muttered.

"What?" he asked me innocently.

"Don't act as if you don't know what I mean." I said standing back up.

He waited for me to make new notes in Bio, chem. and physics. It wasn't that boring reading the chapters again and making new notes. He drew a chair and sat next to me as I was busy assembling those.

"Read them once." He told me. "And one subject once, not all together. That way it will take you about…two hours, might be."

"And what about the revision stuff?" I asked.

"Just do it. Don't worry about the rest." He said and buried myself alive in my books and notes. I was way too right about the whole distraction thing earlier.

FIVE DAYS…STUDYING, STUDYING, STUDYING!

My exam…

IN Two days…

I am so dead.

I dozed off three times while studying last night even after the two cups of caffeine I poured in. Even today morning, I couldn't make out what was going out: night or day? The whole thing is making me so sick that I feel that it's even difficult than any university or central govt. exam. I was even studying on the breakfast table this morning when mom put my breakfast on the table.

"Cassie, breakfast first." Mom said.

"Huh?" I asked looking up from the first time after I woke up. Someone pulled off my notes. "Hey!" I wasn't surprised to see who it was, my one and only- Brownie.

"Breakfast first." He ordered. He is making a good deal of impression on my parents. Yeah, right, sure.

Next day was a total mess. I didn't even know when I was sleeping or waking. I had spent the whole night studying and Brady was doing his best to make me feel okay and not freak out totally but I was freaking! I was really freaking out! At last, to avoid a doze-off attack, I started studying on the coffee table in the living room. He was asking me a quiz which I was totally answering correctly. In 15 minutes, almost all lights of my house were off but not the one under which I was studying. It was way too important to be shut.

About 20 minutes later…

"Cassie, what do you call a polynomial whose degree is 4?" I heard him speak. I was way too dizzy to say anything and shaking back and forth but I still looked at him and tried to answer:

"Bye-bye quadratic." I answered.

"Okay… what is 10 plus 10?"

"One-zero, one zero…no, lemme guess, seven two three, right?" I said, trying to take a more comfortable position to sit.

"And what do tigers do?"

"They bark." I answered intelligently.

"Why is 1 plus 1, 2?"

"Because they got married?" I said in an uncertain tone.

"What is Mona Lisa's specialty?"

"She's sitting in the same frame since a whole lot of years without going to toilet."

"Why is SpongeBob called square pants?"

"I don't exactly know. Might be his underpants are covered in squares." I answered.

Under root of 4?"

"8."

"Why do hyenas laugh?"

"'cause they watched Charlie Chaplin's collection of movies, duh."

"That's it. You gotta sleep now, Blue eyes." He said and lifted me up in his arm, the bridal style.

"How will I do tomorrow?" I asked as he laid me on the bed.

"You'll do perfect and top it." He answered and gave the cover up to my chin. I drifted off to my dreamland as soon as my head hit the pillow. I heard faint voices and finally made it to the dreamland.

"YOU MADE ME SLEEP WHEN I WAS SUPPOSED TO STUDY?" I shouted shooting out of my bed. Brady had come to wake me up and he had told me that I was answering some question quite intelligently and he would make me hear the tape as soon as I came back from my test.

As soon as they made me alone in the principal's, tension crept over me and I wondered what the test would be like. Brady and Paul had come with me and were waiting outside. I received the OMR sheet and the question paper. My tension reached a level where only I could reach, no one else. I hope this goes well.

"You might open it." Principal Brookshields said.

So, here goes nothing…

(BRADY'S POV)

I was pacing back and forth since almost half an hour and biting my nails. I was sure that she would nail it but if she comes out crying, there'd be four outcomes:

1) I won't forgive myself ever in life.

2) Paul would kill me.

3) She won't talk to me.

4) No one else would forgive me and let me be with her.

Okay, I should be the calm one here, shouldn't I? Hey, I just received Cole's text.

Ready 2 b killed by Paul and her sister dude?

xxx Cole xxx

He has to think something inverted. I know that.

She would nail it for sure.

xxx Meg xxx

I texted her right away.

Dat, I know but tell ur boyfriend not 2 text me again like he just did otherwise I'm killing him.

xxx Brady xxx

About half an hour more passed, as if it was half a day and she finally came out. She looked inside once and took out her cell to do some calculations as I saw and walked towards me. Paul and I stared at her.

No expressions, no emotions.

I didn't say anything and she finally opened her mouth.

"I think I would nail it!" She squealed and hugged me as tight as she could.

"I knew that!" I said and kissed her forehead.

We waited almost 15 minutes till the final results that the principal had to declare. Paul, Cassie and I went in. for some seconds, we just stared at his face with an excited look but he didn't return it. Cassie was on the verge of tears when he placed her new timetable in front of her on the table.

"Welcome back, Cassidy." He said and Paul hugged her. Yeah, me hugging her would be a bit awkward, you know.

"The final scores?" she asked.

"98%" he answered proudly. We walked back to the car and she, although was excited but really tired.

"Wanna hear the questionnaire from last night?" I asked her.

"Yeah, kind of." She said and I took out my cell phone to make it loud enough for Paul and her to listen. I think she had forgotten it.

(Bold : Brady, italics: Cassie)

"Okay… what is 10 plus 10?"

"One-zero, one zero…no, lemme guess, seven two three, right?"

"And what do tigers do?"

"They bark."

"Why is 1 plus 1, 2?"

"Because they got married."

"What is Mona Lisa's specialty?"

"She's sitting in the same frame since a whole lot of years without going to toilet."

"Why is SpongeBob called square pants?"

"I don't exactly know. Might be his underpants are covered in squares." I answered.

Under root of 4?"

"8."

"Why do hyenas laugh?"

"'cause they watched Charlie Chaplin's collection of movies, duh."

As we were laughing, both me and Paul, not Cassie, I noticed she got annoyed and her eyes turned purple again and all of a sudden, Paul pulled the brakes too hard that we both almost fell in the front.

"What happened?" I asked Paul.

"There's someone out there." He pointed to a guy outside with chocolate brown hair and a height of about 5'10". He stared inside the car at Cassie with the keenest look ever.

"Faith?" he called.

LOUIS NICKERSON?