Jumping up out of her chair, Cassidy leapt over Dax’s long legs and took off. “Brandon!” she shouted, hoping not to wake Jamie but not giving it too much thought as she chased after her boyfriend. “Brandon, wait!” The fact that she was sprinting while he was walking in an angry stomp allowed her to close the distance, though she stopped midway down the hallway when she realized he hadn’t yet pushed the door open but stood instead with his hands resting on it, staring at his Converse.
From this angle, she couldn’t tell if he was angry or exasperated. She gave him a moment and tried to read his heavy sighs. With his back to her, he said, “I had a feeling something like this would happen as soon as you got here, though, I have to admit, I thought it’d be someone older than me, someone flashier.”
Confused, Cassidy took a few steps forward. “What’s that?” she asked. “Brandon, what are you talking about?”
Slowly, he turned to face her, dropping his hands and shoving them into his pockets. Though his hair had grown a little longer than he liked it and it was concealing part of his face, she could tell there were tears in his eyes, and he was doing his best to force them back in. He shook his head and swallowed hard. “Compared to those average punks at your high school, I probably seemed like something pretty special. Here, I’m just another guy,” he replied. “And you? Well, you’re you.” He pulled his eyes up from the heavily waxed linoleum now and met hers.
Cassidy was stunned and stared at him for a long moment, her eyes wide, before she took a few cautious steps toward him. “Brandon, you are special. You’re amazing.” He was already shaking his head, losing the battle with the tears, which he brushed away, turning his head away from her as he did so.
She reached out to him now, even though he didn’t even want to face her, and she pulled him away from the door by the cuff of his long-sleeved, ribbed T-shirt. She loved him in this color, a dark green that offset his eyes. “Listen, I know what you think you saw, but you didn’t. I promise.”
“Really?” he asked, leaning back against the wall near Christian’s office. “Because it sure the hell looked to me like you were getting pretty close to Tree Boy in there.”
Cassidy snickered at the nickname. “We are close,” she admitted. “We’ve been through a traumatic experience together. Very recently. But… we’re just friends, I promise you. Surely you know me well enough to know I’d never cheat on you.”
“Sure, I do,” he shrugged, the tears seeming to have at least temporarily subsided. “But after the last few days, I wasn’t even sure if you were still thinking of yourself as my girlfriend.”
“What?” she asked, running her hands up and down the outsides of both of his arms. “Why would you think that? Am I not allowed to get agitated by you every once in a while? I just needed a little space, that’s all.”
“But Cass,” he said, brushing her hair back away from her face, “I don’t even know what I did.”
“I know.” She inhaled sharply and took hold of his hand. “That wasn’t fair of me. None of it was fair of me.”
“Why… why were you so angry?”
Thoughts of what had made her react the way she did filled her mind, and it was her turn to feel unwanted tears stinging the backs of her eyes. With a deep breath, she said, “I was angry at every man on our team, everyone except Jamie,” she admitted. Brandon stared at her, clearly needing further explanation. “I watched through your IACs as you guys—you, your dad, Christian, Aaron—destroyed Mina. At the time, I felt so connected to her. I could see into her mind. I walked those tall prairies in her boots. I smelled the earth and the fresh flowers after the rains. I was there with her when she was turned. All of the events that marked her life, and her afterlife, were intertwined with my own experiences, and then you helped send her out of this world.”
Brandon ran his thumb along her cheekbone. “I’m sorry, Cass.” His voice was quiet, sincere. “I had no idea you felt that way. If I had….”
“No, it’s okay,” she insisted taking his other hand in hers so that she had them both now. “It isn’t your fault. I realize now, obviously, that all of them needed to be destroyed.” Thoughts of Bonnie, both the quivering child she’d carried in her arms and the savage devil that had ripped her friends’ throats out, had to be forced aside in order for her to continue. There was no need for her to mention that to him. He’d already know how she felt about that tragic mistake. “I just needed to remember that, as much as they can suck me in and make me feel like I’m one of them, I’m not. And I never will be.”
Brandon’s green eyes twinkled and he pulled her closer. “No, you’re not.” He freed his hand and slipped it around her face again, gently tugging her chin so her mouth was only inches from his own. “You’re a Hunter, Cass. An amazing one with gifts like nothing any of us have ever seen before. What you did last night, fixing the IACs, it was amazing. Time and again, you step up and make a bold move that saves the team. You’re incredible. And the thought of not being with you….” His voice gave out on him and the tears were back. This time, he didn’t try to fight them.
“You don’t need to worry about that,” she assured him, reaching up and brushing the drops from his cheeks. She found a smile and brought it to the surface, though on the inside her joy was overshadowed by a mixture of more combative emotions. She ran her tongue across her teeth, remembering both instances where she’d hissed at her teammates. “Listen, I’m not sure I’m quite as awesome as you just made me out to be, Brandon, but there’s something you need to know.”
“I’m certain you are,” he said, clearing his throat and regaining his composure. “But what is it?”
No matter what order the words came out, they were bound to be jumbled, so she let them flow. “I’m pretty sure whatever it is that’s causing the Vampires to act so unruly it’s affecting me, too.”