The other sister

chapter nineteen

Cassie avoided going anywhere near Levi for the next few days. He came to the house twice and even though she knew it was hars for him to cross the street alone she didn't answer the door.

She was in her room working on some chapters of a short story she had been writing when her phone rang, she answered it without looking.

"Hello?"

"Cas! Don't hang up!" Levi begged.

"Oh, uh...Levi, Hey."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry I kissed you, I'm sorry I'm such a mess. Okay? Please Cas don't shut me out."

"Oh..."

"I'll do whatever you want, I'll say whatever you need me to say just please...forgive me?"

"I forgive you," she said softly.

"I'm sorry, Cas I didn't meant to scare you or confuse you."

She closed her laptop and stood from her tiny desk, moving to her bed she said down picking at a string that suddenly bothered her.

"You didn't....scare me...I mean yeah, I was a little confused."

"I know and I'm sorry I never should have...I just...I love you so much Cassie. You're my best friend and you've been so great I just...I thought I....I was confused," He said with a heavy sigh.

She wanted to scream, wanted to tell him it wasn't okay, that she didn't understand but she didn't.
Clearly he was confused too, he didn't need her feeling weighing down his own.

"It's okay, I promise." She said forcing a lighter tone to her voice.

"I'd be lost without you." He said.

"Me too," she said with a sigh falling back onto the bed.

"So, I've been thinking...I think maybe I want to look into being a physical therapist."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, is that stupid? I could you know go to a local school stay in town."

"I thought you wanted to go away to school?"

"Yeah, back when I had scholarships and a future in football."

"Levi,"

"Look, even if my sight returns and it's not looking good my knee is done...I need a back up plan."

"I think you'll be great at whatever you do," she said honestly.

"These last few days without you have sucked, Cas. Carly won't take my calls again and then you ghosted me."

"I'm sorry."

"I think that might be the longest we have went and not spoken since we met," He teased.

It was true, Cassie had been awestruck with Levi the moment they met and had always been glued to his side and he never minded since she usually had Carly in tow.

"Remember when we met?" She teased.

"Not really but I remember the day you guys moved here...I saw the truck out my window. "

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, I watched the moving truck pull up and I keep watching I was hoping the new neighbors had a boy I could play with."

She chuckled and rolled over facing her closet, listening to his voice.

"I was snooping out the window and then the car door opened your mom got out, then your dad and then...a girl. A little girl, smaller than me. She had pigtails in her hair and I was over the moon. I thought she was....the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen and then another one got out...two girls."

She sighed heavily, but didn't comment. She was always the second one people noticed, the second choice.

"I ran downstairs I told my parents there were angels next door two of them. I said I wanted to marry them.
Mom said I could only marry one girl. So I watched the house for....geez  two or three days, I was a regular stalking seven year old. I couldn't stop thinking about the girl in the pigtails. Finally my dad decided to introduce himself and I tagged along. So...we met and...I...I fell more in love." He said with a small laugh.

"You never told me that," Cassie said.

"It was creepy. Who decides they're getting married at seven?"

"I think it's sweet."

"You're such a hopeless romantic."

"I'm sorry Carly has been...off."

"It's okay. I'm going to ask her to go to Cals party with me in a few weeks. You going to go?"

"Um, I don't know. Maybe."

"I figured you and Jared would be there, I know how much he loves a party."

"Maybe not Callums," she pointed out.

"Is he still giving Jared a hard time?"

"I think he beat him up at a party a few days ago, I lost him awhile and when I found him he was beat up. He won't tell me who did it but...I saw Cals knuckles they were bloody."

"Cal has a short fuse but...I never thought he'd actually hurt someone."

"Me either," she admitted softly.

"But I think Cal has always had a thing for you, he always looked for you at our games and watched you in the lunchroom, I saw him."

"No, not Cal," she said shaking her head, a blush creeping up her cheeks.

"Yeah I caught him more than once staring at you, he never said anything though."

"He's not my type," she said honestly.

Callum was attractive tall, blonde, blue eyed and full of muscle. He was the typical American dream but he was never Levi.

"What is your type? I've known you almost our whole lives I've never seen you even interested in a guy."

"I..I don't know," she said softly.

"Shit," He said suddenly.

"What?"

"Shit, shit.....shit. Cas, was that your first kiss? Did I steal your first kiss?" He asked quickly.

"Oh..uh.."

She wanted to tell him he was, that it was okay. That she wanted it to be him, had always wanted him but she didn't.

"No...no, it wasnt." She said.

It wasn't technically a lie, he had been kissing for awhile believing she was Carly and those had been her first.

"Oh...okay...thats good." He said.

"I need to go, I have to start dinner before mom and dad get home."

"Okay. Can I see you tomorrow?" He asked.

"Yeah,"

"Okay, bye."

"Bye, Levi."

She hung up dropping her phone onto her bed with a heavy sigh. She rolled from her bed and went downstairs. She promised her mom she'd put the meatloaf in the oven forty five minutes ago.

On her way down the stairs she stopped at a picture hanging on the light blue wall.

Her mom, her dad, her and Carly stood in front of the house on moving day. The moving truck parked to the left and the house behind them.

Carly was on her dads shoulders a long brown braid over one shoulder, Cassie stood in front of their mother wearing the same dress as her sister but her hair was up in pigtails.