Cassie
I woke up and the memory of what happened last night flashed before my eyes. I instantly slapped myself just for the sake of it.Stupid. Baka. Pabo. Bobo. Calling myself stupid in every language I know wouldn’t cut the embarrassment I’m feeling right now.I buried my face in my pillow and screamed. I just subjected myself to complete and utter humiliation. I swear I won't be able to show my face in the studio after this. At least not to Matthew.Damn it! I hate being sick. I act like a drunk whenever I am. I get upset for reasons that never bothered me on normal days and say whatever I want. I'm perfectly able to handle it on my own but now I realized it's actually very embarrassing when other people get involved.Oh my god! I replayed the things I said last night. Did I just admit to him that I wanted to die? Now he's probably thinking I'm suicidal. I mean I do. I did. But I won't kill myself! Those are just passing thoughts.I picked up my hammer stuff toy and started hitting my head. What time is it? Mel's gone so it must be late. I turned on my phone. I turned it off for the past few days since I was acting all depressed and all that shit. It was almost noon. No wonder I'm already feeling hungry.I went to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. I had been starving myself for days that I'm actually craving for everything that's sweet. My phone kept beeping and all the missed calls and messages for the past twenty-four hours started flooding my inbox. I looked at the latest one. It's from Mel.The studio's closed for the day. We'll have a meeting later in the evening, though. You should restThank God I don't have to see Matthew today. I sighed. At least, not until this evening. I sat on the couch and nibbled on the ice cream. I stared on the date on my phone. It's April 8. Where did Mel even go? How dare she leave me all alone on my birthday?Not that she even know, I thought, turning on the television. I made it a habit of not telling people my birth date. Telling them means expecting them to remember. Most of the time, they don't. So I stopped telling so I wouldn't even start expecting.I scrolled through the messages on my phone. My mom haven't texted me yet. My dad always forgets my birthday so I didn't bother looking. I would have preferred to work today, just like any other day. What's so special about birthdays anyway?Our family never celebrates birthdays. Or even holidays, for that matter. They're too busy with work to even care. My friends, too. No family. No friends. My life sucks.I'm already used to it. But it still makes me feel sad that I don't have anyone to celebrate my birthday with. It's my birthday. No one can change that fact. It's the day that I came to this world. Although I still haven't figured out if that's a good thing or a bad thing.Whatever, I'll just clean up the apartment today. Nothing beats throwing away some old stuff in starting over a new life. I turned off my phone so I won't be tempted to checking it every once in a while.I don't plan on buying cake. I mean, what's the point? So I cleared out the contents of the fridge instead. And when I say cleared, I ate everything inside. I had to catch up on my glucose requirements, anyway. Good thing I never get fat no matter how much I eat.I went to the bedroom and aired out the mattresses. I also took off the sheets and put them in the laundry. I vacuumed every dust there is to find in the house. I cleaned the counters and tabletops. I even organized my closet. I even scrubbed the bathroom.It was almost nightfall when I finished. I'm so proud of myself. Mel would be shocked to find the house sparkling clean when she gets home. I opened my phone and saw a message from her.Meeting @8pm. Attendance is a must. Or else you're fired.I smiled. No need to threaten me like that. My phone rang all of a sudden. It was my mom calling. I knew it.“Hi Mom!” I said cheerfully as I answered the phone. She used to call me three times a day before but I finally talked her down to making it once a day and now she barely even calls me at all.“Hey baby, how are you doing?” She says on the other line. She’s been calling me a bunch of weird nicknames and a ton of endearments ever since I could remember.“I'm fine. You?” I asked.“I'm good. Just a little busy.” She says. Of course, she’s always busy. “Has your Dad contacted you yet?” She asks.“Uh, nope.” I tell her. Does she really expect my father to contact me first? Not in a million years. Or better yet, no, not in this lifetime.“I see.” She says, thoughtfully. “He'll get to it. I have to go. I'll call you again, okay?”“Okay.” I said. Isn’t she going to say anything else?“Bye. I love you.” She says.“Love you, too.” I said, before dropping the call.She ended the call and I sighed. She totally forgot. I went to the bathroom and took a hot shower.Wow! Out of all the people, I never expected her to forget. My own mother. The one who gave birth to me. I came out of her stomach for god's sake.I went to the hotel where the meeting was to be held. It was probably a dinner meeting. I was too sad to think it was weird having a meeting by the pool."Happy Birthday!" everyone cheered as I entered the pool area. Taylor Swift's song 22 was playing on the background. The whole band was there, along with the staff and of course, Mel. Matthew came out holding a strawberry shortcake cake. I was too overwhelmed by what's happening that I started to cry."Matthew, what did you do? You made her cry!" Landon said shaking a finger at him."Are you okay?" Matthew looked alarmed. He handed the cake to Clark and patted me on the back.I was too ashamed to show my crying face in front of everyone so I buried my face on his shoulder."I know!" Kasey exclaimed. "It's tears of joy!"I think I've calmed down enough so I stepped away from Matthew and nodded."Okay! Let's party!!!" Kasey shouted and everyone cheered. A few people started jumping into the pool. Mel took off to get some drinks."How did you know?" I asked Matthew. I took one of the strawberries on the cake and took a bite from it."I stumbled upon Kasey's slam book this morning," Matthew said, taking some icing off the cake. "Why didn't you tell us?""I don't celebrate my birthday," I said."Why not? Aren't you thankful you're alive?" he asked.I shrugged. I think I already answered that question yesterday."Because I am," he said, putting some icing on my cheek. "From now on we will celebrate your birthday together."I nodded. Maybe birthdays aren't so bad at all. As long as someone remembers. I took a huge amount of icing and smeared it on Matthew's face."What the!?" he cried in surprise. I instantly took off and he started chasing me."I think you should go wash your face," I said and pushed him to the pool. But unluckily, he grabbed on to me and we both fell."You little brat!" He said coming out of the water. "I'll forgive you since it's your birthday."I gave him a huge smile after that. I can't wait for more birthdays to come.CassieIt’s been a month since I've been working with these rock stars but up until now, I still haven't gotten used to all the ruckus they make. For one, the pounding and strumming seems to be getting louder each day but my eardrums have luckily adjusted.If only these people would be a little more serious, I thought as I watched Landon jump up and flail all around the room. It's obvious the kid was playing around."Here, water," I said tossing each one of them a bottle. They instantly gulped mouthfuls before putting down the now empty bottle and wiping their sweat. The room was fully air-conditioned but moving around so much must have caused them to sweat a lot that they started stripping off their soaked shirts before I knew it.I really don't mind seeing half-naked guys, not as much as they wanted to show off. I think Clark's got the best build among the four of them, maybe because he often plays the bass without a shirt. He's tall and lean. Not much tattoos either.
MatthewThat girl, she clearly passed the entire burden on me, I thought as I scanned the album for some possible designs for her first tattoo."Where's she planning to put it?" the tattoo artist asked me. He was Kasey's friend so we could take our time choosing but I didn't think it would be this hard."Collarbone," I answered. I looked over to where Cassie and Kasey were waiting; they looked like they didn't have any problem at all. Well, it was me who's carrying the world on my shoulders. I should watch what I'm saying next time."She's cute," the artist said. "Who's she dating between the two of you?"I gave him a 'mind your own business' look. He seemed to have understood and he looked away from her. It just felt wrong having guys thinking things about her."What about a flower? Or a butterfly? Girls like those stuff," he suggested.I shook my head. Those are too mundane. I was looking for something symbolic."How about a cat? Does she have any pets?" he
MatthewWhat am I doing? As far as I know, I’m not a babysitter. Then why am I in a salon picking out a hairstyle for a twenty-two year old girl with long wavy hair that’s most of the time frizzy. First a tattoo, now a hair color? What’s next? Eyeliners and black clothing? This girl is sure late on rebellion. I wouldn’t wonder if she starts listening to emo music anytime soon. In fact, I would be more surprised if she doesn’t.“How about it? Find anything?” the hairdresser asked. She’s been asking me the exact same thing for about a dozen times. Seriously, what do I know about girl’s hair.I shrugged. “What do you think? You’re more knowledgeable at this matter than me.” I sighed.“Are your curls natural, dear?” she asked Cassie, gently holding her huge curls on her palm. She seems to admire them. Well, if only she would dye her hair blonde, she would definitely look like Goldiloc
Cassie"Hey, girls! What are we watching?" Landon said one day when all my mood swings were gone and everything is back to same old normal.Stuck in the same routine.Which means all day hanging out in the studio with nothing to do so Mel decided to have a movie marathon right then and there with the projector on in the multimedia room. We were having a rerun of the The Wandering Samurai movies when Landon came in albeit looking for the two interns that suddenly disappeared."We're on the second movie of The Wandering Samurai," Mel answered, not taking her eyes off the screen. I think she would deeply appreciate it if I actually make her some popcorn. That way she would have the whole theater feels experience. Although the multimedia room isn’t so bad in itself."I guess that's the part where we sang Mighty Long Fall," Landon said, taking a seat."Really? I didn't notice," I said. I've watched all three movies but I guess I was too fixated compari
"Oh my god! It's Cameron Reid in the flesh and blood!" Mel said excitedly as she was turning her closet upside down looking for an outfit to wear later. Landon called Cameron earlier and he said he could go for drinks this evening. Unfortunately, Wallace had a prior commitment. Shame."I really wished Wallace could come," Mel said. "Don't worry, I'll share Cameron with you so you won't be lonely.""You're crazy," I said throwing a pillow at her. Typical fangirl alert."What do you think about this?" she said holding up a top and a high-waist shorts. I wonder why she's asking me about this stuff when she's the fashion guru between the two of us."It's good," I said. She's been showing me about a dozen combinations for the past hour. I've been nodding my head off every time, not sure if my opinion even affects her decision. She's Mel. Whatever she puts on looks good on her.Me, on the other hand, I plan on wearing a dress but I guess they're a bit too formal f
We came at the bar a little late than I expected. Well, that’s a first for me - being late. I don’t mean to brag but the guys looked awed as soon as they saw us. I’m not big on modesty and I clearly knew that I was pretty. Not beautiful, just pretty.“Over here,” Landon called and we walked towards their seat. I feel like a runway model wearing these heels. Feeling taller does give me some leverage.“Is that Cassie?” Kasey asked, clearly shocked. I know, I know. I dress so plainly all of the time that I looked like a kid. I wouldn’t wonder if he barely recognizes me even with so little make-up on.“Woah! I’m Clark. Nice to meet you,” Clark said jokingly, handing out his hand for a handshake.“Silly,” I said, slapping his hand instead of shaking it. “Just so you know, I can kick just as well with these heels,” I told him, since he knew how brutal I can get.“By the
Matthew"Coffee?" Kasey offered as I entered the pantry of our studio the next day. We had a rough night last night and to be honest, I was expecting our manager to cut us some slack but hearing how we got so wasted last night made him even more stern on us following our schedule especially just right before a tour. He even personally went into our place this morning to make sure we whip our asses out of bed."Make me one of those, will you?" I asked Landon as I took a seat and rubbed my temple with my hand. He was making a concoction for hangover. I don't care whatever he puts in it as long as it makes the pounding in my head go away. Good thing he was already up; Clark passed out on the couch as soon as he stepped inside.Cassie came in the same time Landon started running the blender. Crap! The sound felt like it was grinding my brains instead. I watched Cassie as she went to the refrigerator and filled a glass with orange juice, then went and took a seat beside Ka
"Hey, thanks for taking care of me last night," I told Cassie as she was busy sorting files. I don't know how there seems to be an endless stream to them. I heard from Cameron that she half-carried my drunken ass to the car and drove me home. I wonder how she did that when she's practically half my size.I eyed her from head to toe. She looked more like a child to me before but now I noticed that her body's actually pretty toned. Impressive. She's not sexy like other girls who practically starve themselves just to maintain their weight; she's got muscles more than fat which makes me wonder if she works out often. Great! Now I've got more questions piled in my head."Oh please, don't mention it," she said, sounding annoyed and went away. She didn't even look at me when she said that. Just had that grimace in her face. She glared at me when she noticed me watching her."What did I do?" I asked, more to myself, when I saw Kasey eyeing me ruefully."Don't you remembe