I drop my backpack on the floor by the kitchen table and head to the pantry to grab some cookies.

Definitely not the healthiest option, and I know mom will tell me all about how I need protein after school and not sugar, but I so don't care right now.

Then again, maybe it would be best to get on her good side before she catches me sneaking out.  Not that she will, but still.

"Hey, Cass, how was school today?" she asks, walking into the kitchen.

"It was okay, I guess," I say.

"Did people bug you? I'm sorry if they did, honey, since I know that's not easy."

I shrug. "I mean, yeah, I guess, but Char and Isa were always there, so people didn't really come up to me."

She smiles at me. "Those two. Speaking of which, when do I get to see them?"

"Mom, you like them more than me and you don't even try to hide it." I complain, and she grins.

"No comment. Anyway, have you seen your sister, or is she still changing for practice?" she asks me.

"She's still upstairs," I begin to say, but then El comes running down the stairs, kicking her soccer ball as she goes.

"Eleanor West, what have I said about kicking that inside the house," mom says.

Ellie rolls her eyes, but when she sees mom's face she stops. "Sorry, mom."

"Yeah, I'd hope you are, otherwise you'll have to figure out how you're getting to practice since I sure wouldn't take you," she says as she walks to the door.

Ellie groans. "Mom-"

"Nope."

There's no way I'm going to get any homework done with them arguing in here, and I've still got to finish my project for Spanish class before the party. "Bye, guys."

~Ruel's POV~

"She didn't answer?" Coco asks me as I walk to dinner with her two hours later.

I shake my head. I feel a little stupid that I spent two hours waiting around my phone hoping she'd call when she clearly had no plans to. I'm just confused, though. What happened between her leaving the airport and getting back to New York? She hasn't even sent me a text, though. It hurts that she hasn't even tried.

"I'm sorry. Maybe she's just super busy?"

"Two days in a row though? She didn't even try to contact me."

Coco nods. "True. This doesn't seem like her, though."

I roll my eyes. "Seriously, Coco? You're supposed to be MY sister, but you're defending her? What, are you guys like best friends or something and suddenly I don't matter? Geez."

Coco takes a step back from me. "Woah, calm down. What's your problem? Obviously, I care for both of you; I'm just saying this doesn't seem like her, and not to stress about it. I was just trying to help!"

She's right, but it's not like I'm going to tell her that. I'm in a bad mood, and honestly, I'd kind of like everyone else to be too. I know it's kind of twisted, but maybe people would leave me alone. "Well, you're not helping, and she clearly doesn't want to talk to me. Don't you have anything else to do besides attacking me?"

Her face turns red, and Coco gets mad. Really, really mad. "Get the fuck out, Ruel. I was just trying to help, but you're being a dick, and you know it. I love you, but you need to go figure out what's going on with yourself before you come to dinner, since you're being a complete ass."

I'm vaguely aware of my mom walking out of the hotel's dining area and over to Coco, but all I can see is red, and I storm back to my hotel room.

~Cassandra's POV~

I'm sitting in Ellie's room right now doing my makeup. The door is barely cracked open, and I can hear Ellie talking to Mom, but I can't hear what my mom is saying.

"Yeah, she's just kind of sad tonight, and so we're gonna have a spa night thing."

"No, you don't need to check on her, Mom, she really just wants some space."

"No, Mom, she's not mad at you, she understands that she needed to come home for a while, but she just misses him. Trust me, it'll be fine, but we're just going to stay up and have a spa night."

"No, we won't stay up too late, I promise."

"Yeah, our homework is done. Mom, I promise it will be fine, you don't need to check on her. It's okay."

"Okay, goodnight Mom. Love you." she says, and I hear Mom's footsteps fading as she walks back to her room. 

I feel kind of bad that we're ditching her tonight since Dad's on a business trip this week and he's out of state, but I force that guilt out of my mind.

I want to go to this party.

Ellie pops in the room and hands me my dress off the closet door. "You ready for this?"

I nod and change quickly in the closet.  Ellie's already got the window open, so I climb out and onto the branch of the oak tree near her window. "See you later." I whisper to her and quickly climb down from the tree.

Charlotte's waiting at the end of the street, so I run to her car. 

"Girl, you look hot!" Isa says, and Charlotte nods before turning right to go to Evan's house.

"Have you guys seen yourselves? You're literally gorgeous." I tell them, and before I know it we're at the party.

Char and Isa pull me through the crowd, and Char pulls a big container of cherry vodka sour out of the fridge. 

I shake my head. "No, no, I need a ride back. Mom would kill me since I'm also not supposed to be here, you know"

"Come on, just one? I promise we'll still get you home."

I groan. "Fine, but pour me one too."

___________________________________________________________

"This is so fun!" Isa calls over the music as she pours me a fourth drink.

"I know! Let's dance!" a drunken Charlotte calls to me and pulls me onto the dance floor. I down my drink so I don't have to carry it, and she grins at me. By my count, which is definitely off since I'm drunk too, she's on her sixth drink, and I'm not sure how she hasn't passed out by now, but anyways. 

Carrie, one of our other friends from school, walks over. "Hey girl, it's been forever since I've seen you! How are you?" she asks as we dance. I'm not even sure what song we're dancing to.

"Good!" I reply overenthusiastically since I'm way under the influence. "Do you know what time it is?"

She looks at her watch. "It's twelve thirty. Why?"

My brain's fuzzy and it feels like I'm chewing on cotton. "I think I have to be somewhere at one. Whatever, though!" I yell out, a little too loud, and people look at me.

Oops.

I stop dancing and go over to the drinks station. There are drunk teenagers making out with people everywhere, and more than grossing me out it makes me sad. I miss Ruel.

It's ruining the happy feeling of the vodka, though, so I grab another cup. A guy comes up next to me and I almost don't recognize him at first. 

"Cass?" he asks.

Oh no.

"Conner?"

"Uh, how have you been?" he asks, scratching the side of his neck nervously. 

I gulp down a bunch of my drink. "Uhm, good. Do you want to dance?"

Oh god, why the fuck did I just ask him that? 

His eyes widen in surprise. "Uh, sure," he says, and leads me over to the dance floor. I gulp the rest of my drink down. I'm going to need the alcohol to get through this.

Since everything is going so well tonight, the music shifts to a slow song right then.

We start dancing, and before I know it the song is almost over and Conner's spinning me around, which doesn't work well with the vodka in my stomach. Before I can even process it, his lips are on mine and he's kissing me.

His dark brown hair seems to change and turn into a sandy blond color before my eyes, and his baby blues are suddenly more of a hazel color. I kiss him back, and he bites my bottom lip as he pulls me closer.

Suddenly, I'm pulled off of Ruel by someone with long nails and a very firm grip. "What the fuck are you thinking?" Char hisses as she pulls me out of the house. Isa's waiting out there, and Carrie runs out and Char tosses her the car keys. 

"What do you mean?"

"You were just all over Conner making out with him on the dance floor. You have a boyfriend, and he's famous, and you really think he's not going to find out about your drunken mistake?" she asks me as she forces me to drink water.

My stomach doesn't feel so good anymore. "What do you mean, Conner?" I ask.

She talks slowly so I can understand her through my stupor. "You were kissing Conner?"

My face pales. "What? I thought that was Ruel?" She looks at me like I'm crazy, and I see Carrie pulling up to the curb. 

"I don't feel so good anymore." I mumble, and Isa quickly grabs my hair as I hurl into the bushes.

~Ruel's POV~

I wake up the next morning, still in a funk, and I don't even turn my phone on. I roll over and check the time on the wall clock across from my bed. It's 10:17.

Shit, Nate wants me downstairs by ten-thirty since I've got a photo shoot.

I rush to shower and get dressed and run downstairs, grabbing my phone right as I leave. I slow down only when I get to the lobby. Nate has a peculiar look on his face, which I choose to ignore since he's probably mad at me. 

"You haven't seen the Sugarscape article, have you?" he asks me, and my stomach drops. I'm not sure what he's talking about, but it can't be good. 

"Don't look online now; we can talk on the way to the shoot, but we've got to walk past the paps to get to the van," he says, looking worried.

What's going on?

Nate pulls me into the dining area and the manager quickly rushes us through the kitchen to the delivery entrance, and we step out, but there are paparazzi there, too.

"Run!" he tells me, and we run for the van. 

"Ruel!" "RUEL!" Ruel!" they call after me, but I don't stop.

"Ruel, is it true that Cassandra West cheated on you?"

I stop in my tracks, and my ears start ringing.

What?

No, she wouldn't.

Nate looks at me. "Come on, let's go to the van and I'll tell you what I know. I've told the magazine we'll be late for the photo shoot, so we can find somewhere quiet to talk for a while outside the city."

I nod, feeling numb.

She wouldn't.

Right?