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Then means before Casey's death. Now means the present.

Dedication: Reachingformorex for the amaaaazing cover! Thank you so much!

Recap:

She cried out in joy and began doing her little dance again, whereas Owen looked at me like I had three heads. I gave him an amused grin.

"Pick up your bottom lip, it's not that big of a shock."

"It really is." He said in all seriousness.

I guess it was.

I was so going to regret this.

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Then

I felt like I was going to blow up. I ate so many tacos that I think my stomach had actually stretched.

Undoing the button on my jeans, I leaned back, letting out a satisfied sigh.

"They were so good," I groaned, half wishing we had more, even though I already ate my own body weight in tacos already.

"Damn right," Casey said, patting his belly in triumph.

I stared sadly at all the dishes in front of us. As if reading my mind, Casey nodded, whistling to gain his brother's attention.

"Oi, Isaac," Casey called out. "I'll give ya ten bucks if you do the washing up."

"No way!" he argued, shaking his head.

Isaac was a bit younger than us. Half the time he hung out with us though. He was really cool.

"Twenty? Come on man, you can't buy a GoPro without any money."

I smirked. Isaac had been literally saving to get a GoPro for about six months. It was all he ever talked about. He wanted to put it on his surf board, apparently.

With a dramatic groan, Isaac threw the remote on the lounge, giving in. "Fine."

I grinned at Casey and he winked at me. Grabbing my hand, he pulled me down the stairs after him. The awesome thing about Casey's house was the size of it. It was basically two houses on top of each other. Casey and Isaac had the bottom floor to themselves and the top floor were his parents, but it held the kitchen, so we had to go up there a lot. There were two bathrooms down on the bottom floor, so we could camp out in Casey's rooms for hours. It was awesome.

"What movie do you want to watch tonight?" he asked me, as we headed straight to his bathroom.

Well, technically anything that was his was mine as well. We were joined at the hip practically.

"Hmm," I said, tapping my chin. "Friends with Benefits?"

He shot a grin at me.

1. That was one of my favourite movies.

2. Because that's basically what we were.

"Hell yeah."

Sitting heavily on the sink basin, I watched Casey reach in and twist the nozzles. Steam began filling the room. Tantalisingly slow, Casey removed his shirt. Biting my lip, I let my eyes wander over him.

Even though I saw majority of his body every day, I never got sick of looking at him. He was so beautiful.

Maintaining eye contact the entire time, he slid down his pants. I smirked. We always showered together. Even if we weren't hanging out, which was rare, he would just come over tell me to shower.

We're weird, I know.

Slowly, he wandered towards me. His hands rested on my thighs. Acting as nonchalant as possible, I stared back at him. He gripped the bottom of my dress and with one fluid movement, pulled it over my head.

Gently, he stroked his thumb against my cheek.

"You're wasting water," I pointed out, even though I was enjoying every second of his attention.

He smirked at me. "Alright then."

He turned and strode to the shower and I puckered my bottom lip. Hastily chucking off the rest of my clothing, I followed him in. Easing into the scalding water, I moved so that our chests bumped. He grinned at me.

"Always got to be close, don't you Bub?"

My insides melted. Snuggling up to him, I let his warm arms embrace me. I sighed in the steamy air around me, feeling content.

This was my favourite time of the day.

***

Now

Letting the water heat up, I shredded my clothes. I stood on the cold, tiled floor, waiting impatiently. The water system in this house was a lot slower than my old one. It was frustrating.

Finally able to hop in, I slid the glass door behind me and leant on the wall. The hot water ran down my skin and I let the water run through my hair. As the room was dark and I hadn't bothered to turn the light on, I could hardly see. But I didn't really care.

It had been a long two weeks. Every second of the day was nonstop talk and organising Splendour. I wish I never agreed to go. I had been dreading every second leading up to it.

My plan was to get hammered.

At least it was only one day, but still. A day could feel like a long time.

At about nine, mum was dropping me off to Marissa's. The festival started at 12 and went to early the next morning, as most of the "big" performances were on at night.

We were meant to get ready and do pre-drinks together. Unfortunately, Owen was going to be there. But Marissa seemed really excited and she had been a really good friend to me, so I just have to deal with him being there. I wasn't the easiest person to befriend, so I appreciate her effort.

After eventually washing my hair, I stepped out, toweling off. I was just wrapping my hair up into the towel, when I was walking into my room. I froze. On the window, in big lettering, was a message.

BE SAFE

I hadn't had a message since the terrifying phone calls I received at the party.

Shuddering slightly, I stomped towards the curtain and hastily shut them. I did not want to deal with him right now. I'm so over wasting my time and energy into wondering and questioning everything.

Why did he want to ruin any time I had the chance to have fun?

With a heavy sigh, I collapsed onto my bed, face first. I don't really know what to expect about tomorrow. This was the most adventurous thing I've attempted since Casey's suicide. I thought the party was brave enough.

I stared emotionlessly at the outfit Marissa is making me wear. I'm going to look ridiculous. And I'll be freezing tonight, if I'm not as drunk as I plan to be.

She bought me a play suit. She actually went and bought it for me, guessing my size. I guess it was a thanks for coming with her. And probably a birthday present.

It was tight, gathering at my waist in a flattering way. It had lace covering the back and had long, lacey sleeves. It was really nice, actually. I'm glad she bought me something black. It was definitely my colour.

She'd bought us glitter and little sequins to stick near our eyes. Apparently that was the cool thing to do.

Eventually dragging myself from my bed, I slipped the cool fabric of the play suit over my skin. It fit really well and it looked good. Which is something I haven't said about myself in a long time.

Marissa was going to do my hair in two braids and place the sequins on my face. She was doing everything really. She had our outfits planned. There was a certain look we had to have, according to her.

After getting everything I needed, I trudged out to the car. Mum kept glancing at me, as if waiting for me to suddenly back out.

"What?" I asked, chucking my bag into the back seat.

"I'm just... surprised. That's all." she smiled, sliding behind the wheel of her the car. "I'm really glad you're starting to go out more. Marissa sounds wonderful."

"She is," I agreed, buckling up.

I was nervous. Which is weird, because I haven't felt like that in a long time, either. Usually I just didn't care. But today, I was. Alcohol and me don't mix well. As soon as I started, I would end up saying "screw it" and getting drunk. Drunk me sometimes isn't pretty.

"Please be safe."

I pulled myself back to the present and blinked, realising we were at Marissa's house. Had mum been talking this whole time? I glanced at her. She was smiling at me.

"I will."

"I hope you have a good birthday."

"Thanks."

"Okay, have fun. Call me if you need me."

With a nod, I scrambled out of the car, hauling my bag through the window. She waved at me and I did one back as I wandered up the drive way. A loud fox whistle pierced the air and I stopped, tilting my head back.

"You're so hot, Sadie!" Owen said, pretending to faint.

I rolled my eyes. He was such a dork. I strode straight up to Marissa's room before I realised I should have said hi to her mum or something.

"Yay! You're actually here!" she sang, coming towards me and shaking my shoulders. I limply moved with her.

"Don't do that."

She laughed, letting me go. "Thanks for coming!"

"Hello darling," Owen said, coming towards me. "Happy birthday."

"Oh my God, happy birthday!" Marissa squealed, shouldering Owen out of the way. She flung her arms around my neck and I cringed, squeezing my eyes shut.

I let out a faint laugh as her hug was more of a strangle. Just as she pulled back, Owen was there, his arms around me. I stiffened, not liking this at all. He gripped me tightly.

"Happy birthday, gorgeous," he breathed into my ear.

Suddenly, Casey was there. He pulled back, giving me his charming smile that I adored so much.

"How is my angel?"

"Great! What did you get me?" I teased, a flirtatious smile dancing on my lips.

"Oh, did you expect me to buy you something?" he asked, sounding awkward.

"Shut up," I laughed, lightly slapping him.

"Okay, close your eyes," he murmured. I did as I was told. I held my breath as I felt him stand about an inch from me.

He placed something on my head. I quirked an eyebrow.

"Every queen deserves a crown."

I could have melted into a pool right there.

"Don't open your eyes yet." He quickly said, knowing me all too well. Keeping them closed, I stood stock-still, a wide smile on my face.

Something with a velvet feel was placed into my palms. Slowly, I opened my eyes. Glancing up at him with an excited grin, I opened it. It was a diamond necklace. My mouth fell open.

It was amazing.

"Look at that, she didn't even pull away from me! Sadie, I knew you couldn't resist me forever."

I blinked, Owen coming into focus. As he stepped away, I felt the chain around my neck pull.

"Oops," he muttered, attempting to detach himself.

"Wow," Marissa said, her face suddenly popping into my vision. I couldn't stop blinking. Where was I? "That is stunning!  Where did you get that?"

"Is there something in your eye?" Owen asked, his voice bouncing around inside my head.

I stumbled back, feeling like I was suffocating. I stared at them with wide eyes, suddenly coming back to the room. A huge weight of disappointment hit my heart.

I wasn't with Casey. He wasn't here.

Marissa looked at me with worry and Owen stared at me like I was ghost.

We were all silent for a few moments.

"Um, can someone tell me what just happened?" he asked, looking around.

I was finding it hard to breath. My fingers latched onto the diamond necklace wrapped around my neck. Suddenly I couldn't stand it. I couldn't stand to have it on my skin. I tugged at it roughly, ripping it off. I threw it to the ground, my breath rising and falling rapidly.

"Sadie," Marissa said slowly, her hands out in front of her. "It's okay. Breathe."

Owen looked at me, puzzled. I closed my eyes and focused on trying to breath normal. It was okay. I'm here with my friends. We're going to a festival. It was going to be fun. I was going to have a good birthday. I was okay.

Slowly, Marissa bent and retrieved the necklace I had thrown to the ground. She stared at it, her eyes wide in awe.

"It truly is beautiful, Sadie," she breathed. "You shouldn't take it to Splendour, in case you lose it."

All I could do was nod. I couldn't form a coherent sentence just yet.

"I'm going to go put this in my draw, where it's safe. Is that okay?"

Again, I nodded.

My heart felt heavy as it thumped in my chest. My hands were still shaking. That had been such a vivid flash back. I actually had thought he was right here...

"You need to back off, okay, Owen?" Marissa said to him, her voice laced with authority. "Just try and contain yourself."

Instead of a witty comeback or some outrageous gesture, he just nodded. He looked freaked out.

"I need a drink," he said hoarsely, before leaving the room.

As soon as he left, I let out a long breath, leaning against the wall.

"You okay?" she asked, taking a step towards me, before pausing.

"No," I sighed, feeling tired and the day hadn't even begun yet. "But I will be."

"You don't have to come if you don't want to," she offered and I knew she meant it.

"Let's just get drunk," I suggested, pushing myself from the wall.

"I think we can manage that," she grinned.

Screw Casey. It was my right to have fun on my birthday.

And this time, I wasn't going to let him ruin it.

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What do you guys think of the new cover? I love it because I think it really reflects how they were once united as a pair and now she's left isolated. What do you think?