Come Around

Alex stared at Nick for a minute then looked at Cassie, "Is that true?" he asked, a slight edge to his tone.

Cassie sighed, "Thank you, Nick," she said, "Thank you so much."

Nick shrugged and walked away, leaving the two alone. Alex stared at Cassie, waiting for a response. He grew frustrated when she didn't say anything.

"So what next? Am I going to find out you had sex with Rian too?"

She rolled her eyes, "No, I never had sex with Rian. The thing with Peter was a one time thing shortly after I lost my baby. I was really upset and he and I were drinking a little too much. It just happened. And then it never happened again. We've always only been friends. And his girlfriend knows that," she said, "There's no hard feelings about it, really. She and I are actually very friendly. I was joking when I said that."

He raised an eyebrow and continued to stare at her with a look in his eyes that said he didn't know if he should believe her.

"Not that you would have any right to be upset over that. How many girls have you slept with?" she said.

"Is that rhetorical?" he asked.

Cassie rolled her eyes again, "Of course it is," she said, "I really don't ever want to know what the actual number is."

Alex sighed and pulled Cassie into a hug, kissing the top of her head, "I'm sorry," he said.

"It's alright," she said wrapping her arms around him and taking in his scent, "I love that you wear CK1. I can't get over it."

He laughed and she hugged him tighter before letting go. As they rejoined the party, Cassie could feel a few sets of eyes on them. The next thing she knew, they were being pulled in opposite directions.

"You were both gone for quite awhile. Where were you?" Rian asked.

"We were just talking," Cassie said with a sigh.

"About what?" he asked.

"Rian-" Angie started but Cassie cut her off.

"It's okay, Ang, I got it," she said, "Listen, Rian, I've heard over and over how you feel about Alex's dating habits and I appreciate that you're concerned but I really need you to let me make my own decisions about him. I mean it."

"I just don't want to see him do to you what he's done to so many girls."

Cassie smiled at him, "I'll be fine," she said.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"Positive."

Rian nodded, "Okay, I won't say another word about it. Scout's honor," he said, saluting her with two fingers.

Angie and Cassie both laughed, "You were never a boy scout, you nerd," Cassie said.

He shrugged, "I could have been!"

Cassie laughed again, "Drink more of your beer, sweetie," she said, grabbing the bottom of the bottle in his hand and guiding it to his face, tilting it and spilling beer everywhere.

"Dude, that's alcohol abuse!" he yelled.

A few people around them turned to look at what he was yelling about. Cassie just laughed and walked toward the kitchen to find something to drink. Before she made it there, someone grabbed her elbow and pulled her gently in another direction, leading her into the back yard.

"We're the talk of this party," he said.

Cassie kicked her shoes off and laughed sitting at the edge of the pool and stretching her legs out above the water before slowly lowering them in. Alex sat next to her and did the same.

"When did you change?" she asked, noticing that he was now wearing swim shorts.

"Just a little while ago. I was thinking I might want to swim," he said, shrugging.

She laughed, "You've had quite a bit to drink, haven't you?" she asked and he nodded. "It's a really nice night," she said, gently bumping her hand into his.

He smiled and took her hand, lacing his fingers with hers. She laid her head on his shoulder and stared at the water.

"I told Rian to lay off," she said quietly, "I told him that I need to be able to make up my mind on my own."

"What did he say?"

"He said okay."

"Really?" he asked and she nodded, "And what direction is your mind going in?"

Cassie shrugged, "I'm not sure yet," she said.

He sighed but didn't say anything. Cassie lifted her head from his shoulder when he shifted. He released her hand and pulled his shirt off, sliding into the pool and standing in front of her. His eyes met hers and he took her hands in his.

"What are we going to do if you're pregnant?" he asked quietly.

She sighed, "I hadn't gotten that far yet," she said, her eyes falling away from his gaze.

"Hey," he said, trying to get her look at him. When she didn't, he repeated himself, "Hey, look at me." Cassie brought her eyes back to his, "Come here," he said softly.

She leaned down as he stood on his tip toes, closing the space between them. Her legs wrapped around his body, pulling him closer to her. She kissed him hard, as if her life depended on it. When they both finally pulled away, he offered her a smile.

"It'll be okay. Whatever happens, it will be okay," he said.

She nodded and kissed him again before asking, "Do you want to leave?"

"Do you want to?" he asked and she nodded, "Then let's go," he said and jumped out of the pool.

They went inside and he changed quickly. Cassie said goodbye to a couple of the guys before the two quietly slipped out the front door. When they got to the car, she sent a text to Angie, letting her know that she was leaving.

The drive home was mostly quiet, with the exception of Alex halfheartedly singing along to some of the songs and occasionally asking Cassie if she was okay. Each time she responded with a nod.

"Will you stay with me tonight?" she asked, "I don't know if Angie's going to come home or crash at the Over It house and I don't really want to be alone."

Alex laughed softly, "The Over It house?"

"The Runner Runner house. Whatever. You know what I mean," she said, "It used to be the Over It house."

"I'm just not used to hearing it called that. And yes, I'll stay with you tonight if that's what you want," he said.

"Thank you," she said.

When they got to her house, she headed straight upstairs for her room. Alex followed her and sat on the bed while she rummaged through the closet. After a minute, she tossed a pair of pajama pants to him and disappeared into the bathroom.

She emerged a few minutes later, her face freshly washed and her glasses on, "Did you want some water?" she asked.

"I'm okay," he said as he made his way to the bathroom.

Cassie ran downstairs and grabbed a bottle of water for him anyway. She got back to her room just as he came out of the bathroom.

"Where did you go?" he asked.

"I got this for you, even though you said you didn't want it," she said, handing him the water and climbing into bed.

He smiled and took a drink before crawling in next to her. She reached over and turned the light off and closed her eyes but her mind was working too hard for her to actually fall asleep. She could tell by listening to Alex's breathing patterns that he was awake too.

"Are you ashamed of me?" he asked, breaking the silence.

Cassie's eyebrow raised, "Why would I be ashamed of you?" she asked, "I mean, we're just friends, aren't we?"

"Are we?"

She rolled over so she was facing him. As her eyes adjusted to the dark, she met his gaze and held it, not saying anything.

"I think it's more than that," he said quietly, "Don't you?"

Cassie nodded slowly, her eyes still not leaving his. She could see the smile in his eyes. Her heart pounded.

"Just promise you'll give up all those other girls," she said softly, moving closer and resting her head against his chest.

Alex wrapped his arms around her, placing a kiss on her forehead and nodded, "Anything for you, Cassandra."