Prom was in just two days. And quite frankly, I wasn't excited at all. I didn't want to babysit more than 20 teenagers in one room. But I didn't have a choice since a few teachers had already called off on that day. I just wanted to spend my Friday night indoors, preferably watching movies. Another thing, I wasn't excited about for Prom was the fact that Casey was still going as Desire's date.

I'm well aware that at the time when the two of them, did things, Casey and I were single. We still are, but the thing is I'm jealous. There's no other way to put it. I know Desire isn't the person Casey wants but she was able to be with her in public, whereas Casey and I have to hide our relationship.

Not that our relationship is going anywhere at the moment. I thought it was space we needed. But not being able to call Casey my girlfriend was slowly starting to get to me. We weren't being intimate or romantic with each other and it was driving me insane.

Knowing that she was on the market didn't feel right. It was fair game for anyone who was interested in her. Put into play, Desire McClain. I wasn't just jealous, I was scared. Scared that maybe all this time spent away from me, Casey would realize that Desire was more worth her time than I was.

I wasn't ready to give Casey Kings to anyone. I would never be ready to do that.

"Kathryn!"

My eyes land on Casey in annoyance. "Are you okay? I've been calling your name for a while now." I nod my head and place my hand on my chest, waiting for my racing heart to calm down. The girl smiles as she sits on my desk, not caring that the classroom door was still open or she could get caught.

I glance at her, furrowing my brows, "What is it? Shouldn't you be at home by now?" I question.

"I could be. But I wanted to tell you something before I left."

I raise my brows waiting for her to continue. She leans into me, smile still plastered on her kissable lips. I inhale her vanilla-scented perfume, loving how much she was invading my personal space. Her eyes land on me, a mischievous gleam hidden behind her pretty brown eyes.

My eyes land on her lips waiting for her to say something. "I'm taking you out tonight" she bites her lip forcing my eyes back to hers. "Taking me out where?"

"On a date, duh." I try to force my lip to remain flatlined as I eye the girl. My heart jumps in joy at her words and I feel myself smiling at the thought. "Why? What's the special occasion?" I question glancing behind her, making sure there was no one coming in.

"No occasion really. I just miss hanging out with you. I would take you out Friday but we have prom and Saturday is too far away."

I nod my head, "Okay. Is there anything I need for this date?" I question with a teasing smile. Casey shakes her head. She climbs off my desk, her lips landing on mine, surprising me. Once she pulls away her smile widens. "I won't be home when you get there. So you'll have time to get dressed and I'll pick you up around 5ish."

Nodding my head again, I watch the girl walk out of my classroom. I let out a breath, I had no idea I had been holding. My fingers caress my lips, missing the feeling of hers. This was the first time we kissed since movie night.

- - - - -

"Let's go out for dinner," Emily says as we exit the school building together. My eyes land on one of the students getting into their car, "I can't."

The woman frowns, "Kathryn ever since you've been at Casey's parents' house we haven't really hung out much. And we didn't hang out too much before then either. I miss my best friend."

I smile at her, "I know and I'm sorry. Christian and Casey have been very overprotective of me since I've been there. And trust me, hanging out with you sounds great but," I trail. She frowns, not liking my rejection.

"Casey already asked me to go out tonight. Well more like demanded."

Emily rolls her eyes causing me to chuckle. She was still upset Casey had broken up with me but I knew deep down she still wanted us to get back together she was just being stubborn and petty. Any time Casey tried talking to me while she was around, she practically gave her hell. But she only means the best.

We get next to my car, causing the woman to groan. "I guess your ex-girlfriend can have you tonight. But Saturday you're all mine I don't care if I have to kidnap you. I will have a day with you."

I smile and hug her. "Okay. No rainchecks" I spit. She nods her head and walks over to her car, my eyes following her before I slide into the driver seat. I check my car, a habit I picked up after Rai happened. Once I make sure the car is clear of any unexpected creep, I put the key into the ignition and pull out of the school parking lot.

My mind races with a million words I wanted to say to Casey. I was happy she wanted us to go out, it gives me a chance to ask her to be my girlfriend. Again. I smile at the thought of being able to call her my girlfriend and not having to worry about another girl possibly stealing her away.

I get to the house. I frown when I don't spot any cars in the driveway. I knew Casey wasn't going to be home but I was expecting her mother to be here. Exiting the car, I check my surroundings before heading towards the house. I glance around again, making sure no one was watching as I grab the key from inside the lantern on the porch.

Once the door is unlocked I place the key back into its hiding spot and enter the house. My heart feels slightly heavy as I walk into the empty home. I was too used to coming here and there being someone inside it gave me a sense of security. But suddenly, I was scared.

I could feel my skin slightly begin to peel as I clenched my fist, nails digging into my palm.

Rai invaded my head as I make my way to Casey's room. I close the door and get onto her bed, hugging my knees to my body. I had an hour and a half before Casey gets here, was I going to survive it?

I swallow harshly as I hear something tap against Casey's window. My eyes land on the curtain. My heart drops as I make out the silhouette of a body next to the shadow of the nearby tree. With wide eyes, I watch the shadow closely.

I scream as I hear something come from outside the door. I clench my jaw as my eyes gaze around the room in fear. The doorknob turns grabbing my attention. I watch intently as the door begins to open. I open my mouth and scream loudly as I crawl to the other side of the bed and fall off. I get into the corner of the room and hug my knees to my chest in fear that it was Rai.

I squeeze my eyes shut, my heart beating rapidly against my chest and my breathing heavy. There was a ringing in my ears that didn't seem to go away as all the hairs on my body stood alert. Why was I so scared?

"Kathryn?" I hear. I open my eyes, brown confused irises landing on me. Tears stain my cheeks as I jump up, engulfing the girl into a hug. "What's wrong? What happened? Where's Casey?" Cassandra questions as she hugs me tightly.

I shake my head, not wanting to think about anything, knowing that if I did only Rai would invade my thoughts. She hugs me a bit longer before stepping away. She glances at me before sighing and wiping my tears away. "Are you okay?"

I nod my head. She smiles softly before guiding me out of the room. She makes me sit at the dining room table as she steps into the kitchen. She opens the fridge, grabbing a water bottle before handing it to me. I take the water from her hands, not realizing I was shaking until the bottle was in my grasp.

Cassandra kneels in front of me, her hands pressing firmly on my knees. Her eyes land on me reassuringly, "It's going to be okay Kathy. No one's going to hurt you anymore" her voice is soft and calming. My eyes scan over her face, finding her features just as calming as Casey's.

I inhale and exhale a few times calming myself down. Once I'm a bit more relaxed I remove the lid from the bottle and take a sip. The woman stands and walks back into the kitchen, raiding the cabinets.

Silence falls over us for a few minutes before she speaks up. "Prom's coming up, are you going to be a chaperon?" I clear my throat before speaking, "Unfortunately." She laughs and nods her head. "Yeah, teenagers are a lot to deal with."

I bite my lip and glance at her. She eyes me a bit longer before putting her box braids into a messy bun. "Why were you screaming Kathryn?" Her question startles me. I avert my gaze to the tabletop. I didn't want to sound weak because of some man.

I decide not to answer her question as I continue sipping on my water.

Eventually, an hour goes by and there's a knock at the door. Cassandra sighs, making her way to the door to see who was knocking. I hear the door open and my lips pull into a smile as I hear the sound of a very familiar voice.

"You were not supposed to open the door. These flowers aren't for you" Casey groans. "Close the door, when I knock again Kathryn better answer."

Cassandra doesn't give in to her wishes as she pulls the girl inside. Casey stumbles before gaining her balance. Her eyes land on me, "You're not dressed at all. Did I not make myself clear?" she hisses playfully.

"When I got here she was sitting in the corner of your room knees hugged to her chest crying and screaming." Casey's face falls at the truth. She sets the flowers down on the counter, giving me all her attention. "What happened?"

Cassandra eyes me, waiting for the same answer she didn't get earlier. I swallow the lump in my throat, glancing away from my ex-lover and her sister. But Casey doesn't allow me to ignore her question as she takes a seat on side of me. "Kathryn, what happened?" she questions sternly, brown eyes staring daggers.

I sigh, "I don't know okay. I got home and nobody was here, I got scared. I was hearing things and I thought..." I trail feeling tears stain my cheeks once again. "I thought Rai was here. I saw someone outside your window and when she opened the door I just, I freaked."

Casey glances back to her sister, silently telling her we needed privacy. Cassandra nods her head, "I have to get going. Text me later" she informs before grabbing her keys and heading out the house.

Once we were alone, Casey turned her attention back to me. "Are you okay?" she questions, her hands landing on mine. She turns my hand over, noticing the scars on my palms. I could see how much she pitied me in her beautiful brown eyes.

"Yeah. I'm sorry I'm not dressed. I'll go get changed" I mutter, standing from the chair.

"Don't" she spits causing me to stop in my tracks. I glance back at the girl. "I think it's best we stay in tonight and not be around people. It's clear you're suffering from PTSD, maybe someone or something will trigger you."

"But you had plans for us."

She smiles, her hand grabbing mine. She kisses the palm of my hand, "I'll be fine. Your mental health is more important than the date. We can go out another time."

I frown at her. "I was going to ask you to be my girlfriend again. I know you said we shouldn't get back together with Rai still out there, but I can't keep that promise. I wasn't here because I went to your apartment. I was looking for this," she says causing me to frown.

She reaches into her pocket, pulling out the black and blue ring she bought me for my birthday. My heart sighs at the romantic gesture though my brain is still trying to wrap around the fact she said she went to my apartment.

"Was he there?" I question. She shrugs her shoulders, "I wasn't looking for trouble so I don't know." I slap her arm in disbelief, "You know it's dangerous. You should've asked me to come with you. What if he was there?" I hiss.

She smiles sheepishly, "I wanted to surprise you. I know this ring means a lot to both of us. But I guess since I shouldn't have done such a dangerous task, I'll take it back" she jokes. I slap her arm again causing her to laugh. She gets out of her seat, kneeling on one knee, my hand still in her grasp.

"Kathryn Elizabeth, I am so sorry for not taking your feelings into consideration when you need me the most. The truth is, I'm scared to lose you. I thought that you were tired of me and that's why you couldn't open up" she mutters.

Her eyes drop to the floor, "You're my first serious relationship and I fell in love with you so fast, I was scared that it wasn't going to last. I said things I shouldn't have and I've had to regret and relive it every single day. And then I found out about everything I felt horrible for how I treated you."

Her grip on my hand tightens as she kisses my knuckles. "Please forgive me for not trusting you and waiting for you. For making rash decisions and ending the best relationship I have ever been in. I promise that I'll mature and I'll be patient. Kathryn, I love you so much and all I want for you is happiness."

"And even though you'll need time to recover from such a shitty experience, I will always be by your side. I'll always be here for you when you need me, so please, please be my girlfriend again. I miss you so much."

"Casey you didn't do anything wrong. This entire situation is my fault, I should've been the adult and took care of this properly. I thought I was protecting you and everyone but I only put us in deeper shit" I sigh.

The girl parts her lips to protest but I stop her. "I think I should've told you about him sooner otherwise we wouldn't have broken up in the first place. And I pushed you away and made you think I didn't care when you were the only person I could think about. I don't want to jinx it but Casey, I believe you are the love of my life. I forgive you even if you did nothing wrong. I need you to forgive me."

Brown eyes smile at me, "You know I forgive you baby" she trails, waiting for my answer.

I smile at her, my heart completely melted at her words. I pull her up with a wide grin, "You know I'm going to say yes."

Once again, the ring is placed onto my ring finger. Casey pulls me into her arms, hugging me tightly. "I love you."

"I love you so much more!"