Through the lens

Chapter 8

*alarm ringing*

"if you don't shut that thing up I'm going to kill someone."

Before the sun was rising alarm clocks sliced through the early morning silence forcing Cassie, and Ronnie, awake. At 4:45 am it was well before she had to get up for class but she had something much more important to do, something that was worth pissing off the Devil's daughter. 

Lifting the white duvet up and off her body the warm comfort was replaced by the cold air being emitted from the ancient air conditioner that was attached to the body window of the dormitory. Quickly she threw on a light gray windbreaker, slippers, and tied her light red hair into a messy bun before taking her journal and pen out of her desk drawer. Making sure she grabbed her lanyard, which contained her debit card, ID, and room key, she left the quiet dorm room and wandered her way to the back staircase of the old building. 

The metal stairs creaked with every step and the motion sensor lights flickered on and off as Cassie walked up to each flight until she reached the little door that leads to the roof. A morning breeze shocked her body awake as she made her way across the rooftop to the small table that sat under the only light. 

With a single click of her pen, her journal was open and she was writing away.  It was the only time she felt that she could say everything too, she knew that when the ink attached to the pen her words, her thoughts, her hopes and dreams, her fears were going to end up with someone, who even though she could speak the words too was still too afraid, and she wouldn't feel so alone. 

By the time the sun began to rise in the sky, Cassie had finished writing about her hopes for the year and watched the busy city come back to life after taking a short nap. As the students began to stir awake with the rest of the city she decided to make her way back into the staircase and down to the ground floor. 

Still, in her pajamas and slippers, Cassie hailed a cab from the street, she had a feeling that unless she always got up this early she would never get a cab as fast as she did.

"Hi, to London Metro college."

"Alright, it will be about twenty minutes with traffic."

"No worries, thank you."

Cassie buckled her seatbelt and the driver closed the clear plastic barrier separating the front and back seats beginning the drive to the college. They soon drove past the diner that held the memoirs of her first breakfast in London, after that everything felt completely foreign. 

Looking out the window made the ride pass almost instantly. When the cab slowed to a stop in front of the main campus building Cassie grabbed a 20-pound bill and gave it to the driver as she climbed out of the vehicle. By the time she turned around another student was already inside and going to their own destination. 

The sun was still sitting below the horizon allowing the paved walkways to glow from the streetlamps that illuminated them from above. With the campus being so small it was easy to remember which of the buildings were home to lectures and computer labs and which one was home to Niall. Capturing the building in her line of sight Cassie made a b-line for the front door, just as she got close enough to see her reflection in the window the door opened, and a young man emerged holding the door open for her.

Maybe it was because she was also a college student he held the door but what if she was a serial killer? She made a reminder to tell her boyfriend to make sure he stays safe. There wasn't enough time from entering the building until she found the staircase for her to freak herself out. Stepping inside Cassie walked up the seven flights of stairs until she saw the silver metal door that leads to the roof. 

Once outside it was only a few steps until she was sitting at a little rusted-out iron table and matching chair. Cassie placed down her journal and pulled out her pen from her coat pocket, before she started writing she looked out into the London skyline. At 5:15 in the morning, the soft glow from windows looked like a patchwork from a quilt, the sparse cars ran between them like stitching keeping the scene tied together. 

Remembering that there is just a slight time crunch Cassie found the next blank page and let her thoughts take over the page. On mornings like this, it was exceptionally easy to write, so many things were going on in her head the page was soon filled with paragraphs of hopes for the school year and words her heart not dare speak out loud, at least not yet.

With the click of her pen, she tore out the page of writing and stuffed it into an envelope. Sealing it, she turned it over and wrote Niall in a dainty small print not forgetting to draw a tiny heart at the end. Taking in a deep breath Cassie relaxed, it was something about the morning air and knowing she had her person that made everything thing in her life easier.  

The sun's reflection bouncing from the windows signaled it was time to go, after all, she did have a class at nine. Tucking everything away the strawberry blonde stood up and headed back down the endless staircase to the building's first floor. Instead of finding the front door, she took a left turn down into the main corridor until she found it, room 118. Cassie bent down and pushed the small envelope through the somehow smaller crack under the door until she could no longer see it. 

"Perfect."

With her job now done Cassie found her way to the dorms exit and walked out into the now crowded campus walking paths. It didn't take too long to hail a cab and be on her way back to her own campus with her own classmates.

What a year this will be.

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A short and sweet chapter! I hope you like this little Cassie/Nassie chapter you'll need the refresher before we really get going...