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Dedication: OreoCookieKitty for the amazing cover! Thank you!

Recap:

"Sadie!" Owenexclaimed, trying to pull me off of him.

I got one more punch in, before I was reefed backwards. The guy who served us ran over.

"You're fucking dead," I screamed, lunging at Isaac.

"No," he laughed, pushing himself to siting position. "You are."

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"You alright?"

I didn't move. I haven't really, for the past three days. I continued staring at my ceiling, laying completely motionless on my bed.

Isaac was a mess when I saw him. I honestly thought he was moving on and honestly, I was hoping he would help me, too. Clearly, he was as bad, if not worse, than I am.

"Do you... You're not going to school?" mum questioned quietly.

I didn't answer.

"Sadie," she whispered softly. "Please talk to me."

"No," I croaked out. "I am not going to school."

"Is there anything I can get you? You must be starving."

"No," I said dryly.

I heard her sigh, before walking from my room. Vaguely, I heard her say something along the lines of, "I am really starting to worry," as she made her way down the stairs.

I guess she had a right to be concerned. I hadn't moved from my bed, except to use the bathroom, for three days. I felt numb.

The viscous words that tore from Isaac's mouth was circling inside my mind, restlessly. Those words had been stuck on replay, going over and over until I felt like I was going insane.

I just don't understand. We had made such good progress. We had become friends...

There was a soft knock at my door.

"I told you, I'm not hungry," I muttered.

"Didn't ask," a voice said back.

Slowly, I moved my head and stared at Marissa, who stood there, a tentative smile on her face. She was dressed in casual clothes. Clearly, she was skipping school, too.

"Oh," I said, my voice monotone. "I thought you were my mum."

My muscles protested as I moved slightly, to make room in my bed. I winced, my muscles feeling stiff.

"You don't look so good," she said, sliding into bed beside me.

"Don't feel so good."

"The date with Owen was that bad?" she joked.

"He, surprisingly, was really good," I admitted.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked.

"Not really."

"Do you want to watch a movie?"

"Why aren't you going to school?" I asked, quirking an eyebrow. "I've never known you to miss a day."

"I'm taking a mental health day, in honour of you," she declared, a smile stretching across her face. "Now, what movie would you like to watch?"

"Anything but romance."

"Too easy."

I watched as Marissa elegantly glided around my room. She went through my DVD collection, before inserting the disc into the machine. I watched as she made even that simple, mundane task look graceful. I envied that kind of precision. It was a curse being clumsy.

"Why are you looking at me like I'm something to eat?" she laughed, before crawling beside me.

I rolled my eyes. "I was observing you, in a non creepy way."

"Uh huh."

"Shut up."

She stuck her tongue out at me, before tugging the blanket cover over us.

We watched the movie, speaking a few times. It was soon over and I realised I had hardly acknowledged anything that happened. My mind was too preoccupied with the two brothers that have dominated my life.

"Hey," Marissa said softly. "You okay?"

"Yeah, why?"

"You've been staring at the T.V and the movie finished ten minutes ago."

"Oh," I deadpanned.

"Sadie," she said, rolling to her side. "What's up?"

I sighed. "This is something I hate talking about. And I don't really ever talk about it."

"Okay."

"Don't say anything until I'm finished."

"Okay."

Exhaling deeply, I reclined back further into the pillows and resumed my position of staring at the ceiling.

This was it.

It was time to tell someone the horrible secret that has been eating me from the inside.

"I had this best friend," I whispered. "His name was Casey..."

***

I woke with a gasp.

I pressed my hand to my chest as my heart was galloping. Sweat was running down my skin. With a groan, I tossed my blankets to the side and stood.

Slowly, I moved my eyes around the room. I could swear someone was here. I could feel their eyes on me.

Was that someone breathing?

I felt dizzy. Clutching my head, I stumbled into the bathroom, where I turned on the light and winced. Not only were the lights bright, but my reflection was horrifying.

I was a mess.

My dark hair was sticking to my skin. My skin was an off, pale colour. The dark circles under my eyes made me look like I haven't slept for a month. I feel like I haven't.

Edging out the bathroom, I peered around. There was no one there. Letting out a breath of relief, I re-entered the bathroom.

Robotic-like, I stepped into the shower cubicle. I moved underneath the cold water and let out a shaky sigh as the coldness engulfed my body. Soon, I was shivering. My teeth were chattering.

Wrapping my towel around myself, I quickly dried off. I slid one of Casey's shirts over my head and made my way back into my room.

I froze. I heard a creak. Slowly, I turned. Nothing was there, but in saying that, it was now pitch black.

I let out a slow breath, before turning.

Suddenly, something hard hit the back of my head. I let out a scream as I flew forward onto the bed. My face was smooshed into the mattress as something sharp ripped the skin on the back of my neck.

"You think you can go on a date with someone?" a raspy voice whispered in my ear.

Another scream tore from my lips, but the sound was muffled.

I had been right. Someone was here.

"I loved you," the voice bit out.

The body pressed onto me was heavy, making it hard to breathe. My eyes rolled back into my head as I thrashed and flailed, trying to get out of his grip. My heart was slamming so fiercely into my rib cage, I wouldn't be surprised if I had a cracked rib.

"Get off of me," I spit with as much venom as I could muster.

"I never left," he murmured, his voice such a deep whisper, there was no possible way to distinguish whose voice it was.

Suddenly, I stopped moving. I froze. My heart was pounding in my ears. My eyes squeezed shut.

"C-Casey?" I stammered.

He let out a kind of hysterical laugh.

"Yeah baby," he whispered, his teeth nipping my ear. "It's me."

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What do you think about Sadie opening up to Marissa?

And what do you think about the stranger in her room? Do you really think it's Casey?