Sunglasses at Night ((Casey and Ezzie))

[Carson McGreggor H6]

“So what’s in it for me, McGreggor?” AJ Murphy asked as he leaned against the hard stone wall. Carson had always somewhat admired AJ’s knack for always looking cool and laidback. AJ was a lot like Ethan in a way. Ethan used to be able to do that too. He always had this aura around him that seemed to always attract women. In fact, it worked a bit too well sometimes. People like AJ and Ethan were always in a good mood, and always looked their best, whether they were trying to or not. Last time he had talked to his sister Julie, he had confided in her. He told her everything from going out with Casey for Valentine’s Day to missing Ethan. Carson had always thought that should they enter the Twilight Zone and Julie’s art career failed, she could always be an advice columnist or a guidance counselor of some sort. She wished Carson the best of luck with Casey and rambled for almost three pages on how cute of a couple they would make and how proud she was of Carson for finally getting himself a girlfriend. But then the more serious conversation came. She told Carson that things only got worse before they could get better and that eventually, Carson would get over Ethan’s death. But for now, Carson would just miss him more and more every day. It seemed weird that Carson was like this. Ethan had always been that crazy friend that pressured Carson into going on adventures and doing the fun things he would never normally do. And even now, after Ethan was gone, he was still pressuring Carson to do things he wouldn’t normally do. It seemed like Ethan really did leave a lasting effect on Carson. He was sure that effect would remain with him now and forever.

“Well think about it. You get to lock Ezzie Mendez in a room with my girlfriend. Don’t you love playing tricks on people, AJ? C’mon, just do this for me? I need to get them to resolve their issues so they can finally live their lives again. You don’t understand. They used to be best friends, and now they won’t even look at each other. Do you realize this is the only way?” Carson pleaded. Casey and Carson had been fighting for weeks now. Carson felt bad for the both of them. Casey pretended not to care about what was going on with Ezzie, but she knew she was worried. Carson was worried too. Ezzie just looked like she was going to shatter lately. She always looked weak and tired and missed class often just to catch up on some sleep. And Carson would always have to perform spells on Ezzie because she kept spraining her wrist or fracturing her ankle. It seemed like all it took for her to break something lately was just to walk or bang her arm on a desk. Those two needed each other and Carson was going to make sure they were friends again even if it took locking them in a room together.

“So let me get this straight. You want me to lock your girlfriend in a closet with Ezzie Mendez because you want them to be friends again? Well I’m sorry Car, but that’s not going to work out.” AJ winked at a seventh year as she passed by and turned back to Carson, who furrowed his brow in confusion. “What do you mean, ‘it’s not going to work out?’ Of course it’s going to work. Why wouldn’t it?” Carson asked in confusion. “Well think about it. Ezzie will either kill Casey like she killed Ethan-“
“AJ! You don’t actually believe that, do you?” Carson interrupted. He hated when people started saying things like that. They didn’t even know the story. Carson rolled his eyes.

“..Or she would dump you.” AJ added with a smirk. Carson didn’t care. Casey would probably end up dumping him because he did this to her, but he knew that it was best for both of them anyway. Besides, if his plan worked, Casey wouldn’t be dumping him, she’d be thanking him. He knew that if they were locked in the same room together for long enough, they’d eventually work out whatever issues they had against each other.

“Will you do it or not?” Carson asked impatiently, just about ready to do this himself. AJ raised his hands up in surrender. “Alright. But I get to be in there with them, right?” He said, raising his eyebrows and making Carson roll his eyes.

“NO! They can’t solve their problems with you putting the moves on them, AJ! And besides, you and my girlfriend locked in one room together? Like that’s ever going to happen. ” AJ was so immature sometimes it scared him. He really needed to grow up and stay true to his girlfriend for once in his lifetime.

“But this is Ezzie Mendez and Casey Allen we’re talking about. They’re like the hottest girls in fourth year!” AJ protested, almost making Carson laugh. Just like Ethan… thought Carson to himself. Ethan always did have a thing for girls who weren’t his age. He had Ezzie, who was a year younger, and then Amber, who was a year older.

“AJ, let’s drill this thought into your thick head, eh? You’re taken, one’s my girlfriend, they’re two years younger than you, and they’ve got issues to work out. Make sure to lock a box of tissues in there with them. I suspect a lot of crying.” Carson raised his eyebrow in challenge, taking a chance. Ethan never liked seeing girls cry, so chances were neither did AJ.

“Fine. I’ll do it. But you better be paying me good money for this.” AJ mumbled, making Carson grin triumphantly. He had done it. Casey and Ezzie would finally be back to normal again.

((I'll post Ezzie next, then Casey can go.))

[Esmeralda Mendez]

((Song lyrics are from Crimson Tears by Cassie Steele))

Ezzie Mendez sang quietly to herself as she dug her hands deep inside the pockets of an old black sweatshirt. Her words were almost peaceful, for she had just finished the first of a bag full of little presents given to her by none other than T.J. Turner. She giggled as she continued her bitterly peaceful melody to herself. Her eyes were red from tears, but thanks to T.J, Ezzie was happy now. He was right. They had taken her problems away and were the perfect outlet when Ezzie just wanted to fall off the face of the earth. The contents in that little plastic bag were the only things that kept Ezzie alive. Otherwise, the stupid Witch Weekly would be reporting about Ezzie jumping off the top of the Astronomy tower, which was perfectly fine with her. The only thing that gave her hope was the chance to go back to Hogsmeade next weekend and see T.J. again. She sighed happily, giggling slightly as someone ‘accidently’ dropped an ink bottle at her feet, dirtying her shoes. She merely hopped over it and continued to sing softly to herself.

“So the mourning after heartbreak got me tearstained
And all my cries have hurt my sides in losing you pain
All these bruises and misuses will become scars
Just a norm for tragic born with all their broken hearts

I'm losing grip
Only holding on by finger tips

Cry crimson tears without you
Cry crimson tears without you
Cry crimson tears without you
Crimson tears”

Ezzie giggled slightly as she reached the Gryffindor tower. Suddenly, someone blocked her path. The boy who had stopped her was tall and rather handsome Gryffindor in some older year. She had seen him with Carson quite a few times, but she knew they weren’t very close. Carson just didn’t hang out with guys much anymore. He had Angel, who was currently in Sweden, Casey, and he had Ethan. Now that Ethan was gone, Carson was constantly surrounded by girls. He honestly didn’t have many friends, though Ezzie couldn’t exactly talk considering even her best friend Casey was mad at her now. She was eating again, but it was only very limited if anything. She ate about a meal a day, and that meal itself was quite small. “Hey, you’re Ezzie, right?” The boy asked with a casual (and quite arrogant in Ezzie’s opinion) smirk as he brushed some sandy blonde hair from his face. “Yeah, what’s it to you?” Ezzie asked with a slightly raised eyebrow.

“I’m AJ Murphy, Carson’s friend. He says he really needs to speak to you, and that it’s an emergency. He really, really needs your help with something, but you have to get there as fast as you possibly can. He’s hiding out in the broom cupboard near the Great Hall. Oh, and great song, by the way. A little too dark for my taste, but it’s nice.” He said with a smile. Ezzie shrugged and ran at quite a slow pace toward the Great Hall. She found the broom cupboard AJ had mentioned and once she entered, she did not see Carson there, but Casey. Through the open doorway, none other than AJ Murphy appeared in the doorway. “Have fun girls!” He said with a wicked smile as he slammed the door shut. Ezzie groaned. “How lovely.” She mumbled to herself, avoiding Casey’s eyes completely. She leaned against the wall and started to pick at her black nail polish as she started to sing her song softly again. She couldn’t bear to even look at Casey, let alone talk to her.

“Cry crimson tears without you
Cry crimson tears without you
Cry crimson tears without you
Crimson tears.”

[Casey Allen G5]

“You’re a true friend.” Casey finished singing the song into the microphone as the music ended. She glanced to Bradley who was watching her from the studio. “C’mon Ede. Put some feeling into it.” Casey sighed as she looked around the studio. She was in her Eden clothes which for the day which consisted of a blue skirt and a sparkling blue top. She eyed her dad. “Dad, why does this have to go on the album? I hate this song.” She told him bitterly. Bradley shook his head and leaned in to the microphone from the sound booth. “Eden, this is a great song.” The writers and managers in the room with Bradley nodded. Some of them didn’t know her secret. “I can write something better. Give me a chance.” Bradley shook his head. “You’ve already sung this in public. People are expecting this on the album. And it’s going to be.” Casey rolled her eyes and stood up. “Fine, but I’m done for today.” “Ede..” “Bye dad.” Casey shot out before leaving the room and slamming the door behind her. She then left the studio without looking back. She wrote that song for Ezzie. It was there song. And now that she wanted nothing to do with Ezzie, she wanted nothing to do with that song.

Casey stuffed her wig into her bag before leaving the bathroom stall. Lately she had found that being Eden was like a chore. It was something she had to do, not something she wanted to do. She wanted to hang out with Carson and tell him everything, but she couldn’t. This was an ongoing battle for Casey. Ever since Casey and Ezzie stopped speaking, Casey couldn’t stand being Eden. She hated singing on stage and she hated getting interviewed and asked questions about Ezzie. Lately she had responded with a simple “No comment” which had left a few eyebrows raised. Casey sighed angrily as she hopped on a carriage and headed back to the castle. She started out the window for a minute, but got bored of that so she quickly pulled her journal out of her bag and scribbled out some lyrics. Yep, they were angry but that was how Casey was feeling. She just wanted this to go away.

Casey pulled a piece of brown hair from her face as she walked into the castle. “Hey Casey.” AJ smiled as he walked up to her. AJ and Carson were friends, not good friends but friends. “Hey AJ.” She said simply. Usually she would ask what was up, but she wasn’t in the mood. “So, Carson told me to tell you to meet him in that broom cupboard by the Great Hall. He wants to talk to you.” He winked suggestively. “Then why couldn’t he just meet me in the Student Lounge like usual?” She asked. AJ shrugged and ran off. Casey sighed. Well, a visit with Carson would cheer her up even if she couldn’t tell the truth. She sighed and walked to the broom closet. She sighed and walked to the broom closet. However, it was that usual lock of curly brow hair that greeted her. “What are you doing here?” She asked Ezzie as anger rose inside of her. Casey then turned to leave, but the door slammed and locked. Casey shook her head and sunk to the floor. “AJ..” She cursed under her breath. This was probably Carson’s doing. Casey could feel it. Casey eyed Ezzie and shook her head. She closed her eyes for a minute. “I’m guessing that you didn’t know anything about this either.” Casey sighed and opened her eyes. “I’m gonna kill AJ..” She muttered.

[Esmeralda Mendez]

Ezzie wanted to look up at Casey, she really did. She wanted to smirk and joke and laugh with her friend like she used to, but it was no use. Casey hated her now. Ever since she found out about Ezzie’s little secret, she wouldn’t even give her the simple and decent respect of looking at her. Ezzie couldn’t blame her though. She had to admit, she really did deserve the cold shoulder she was getting from Casey. (Though Ezzie thought the term ‘frostbitten shoulder’ would fit more with Casey’s attitude) After all, both Ezzie and Casey had agreed a long time ago that they would never keep secrets from each other. They would be completely open and honest about everything no matter what the consequence.

But Ezzie had broken that promise, hadn’t she? She didn’t want to worry Casey with Ezzie’s issues when she had some issues to deal with for herself. Ezzie didn’t look up at Casey, but spoke as she was chipping the black nail polish off her fingers piece by piece. “Actually, I quite enjoy lurking around in broom cupboards waiting for people to arrive and I simply couldn’t resist but to ask AJ to bring you here.” Ezzie muttered sarcastically. Normally, Ezzie wouldn’t dare speak this way to Casey. Ezzie had a policy of only acting civil to those who were kind to her. Carson was kind to her, so he was pretty much the only one who saw any sort of signs of the old Ezzie. Casey used to see them too. But now that they weren’t speaking, the only thing Ezzie would let Casey see was the new Ezzie; the new Ezzie that had issues and hung around guys like TJ Turner.

Ezzie wondered if Casey knew anything about Ezzie’s little meeting with TJ yet. She hadn’t told her of course, but she was sure Casey had heard people whispering around the school about how Ezzie had ‘done things’ with TJ or other dramatic junk like that. Most of the stories that were getting tossed around school and especially the ones mentioned in the tabloids were either completely fake or stretched to a point where almost none of it was actually true. Ezzie sighed slightly, waiting for Casey to answer. There were so many things she had been just dying to go and tell Casey about. Sure, she had been dying to run into her dorm and tell Casey all about her mini adventure with TJ the second she’d arrived back to the castle, but then she remembered they weren’t talking. Sure, she couldn’t wait to go on a rampage and rant on and on to Casey about how stupid her psychologist was for even daring to think she was bipolar, but then she remembered Casey was mad at her.

Ezzie wanted to talk to Casey about a lot of things before she remembered she couldn’t. So instead of talking to her, she would just go home, curl up in her bed, and silently cry herself to sleep once more. Crying herself to sleep had become somewhat of a ritual to her lately. The tears were like a silent lullaby of some sort. While it did make her more upset in the end, it helped her sleep. Then of course there were sometimes that she had cried so much she couldn’t sleep, and just sat there in her bed, crying, waiting for the morning to come. She was sure all her dorm mates heard her every night. She was sure they heard Ezzie sniffling and gasping for air between fits of violent tears. Casey had to have heard them as well, and if she didn’t feel a pang of guilt every time she heard them, Ezzie would be purely surprised. Hearing Casey mutter something about killing AJ, Ezzie merely let out a sour sort of chuckle. "Why would you kill AJ? It's obvious he's just the messenger. This is all Carson's doing of course." Ezzie said simply without looking up from her hand.

[Casey Allen G5]

Casey rolled her eyes at Ezzie’s words. Casey had changed. Lately, she hadn’t been that sweet Casey that never said a bad word. She hadn’t been that girl that everyone liked. She had become tired of being perfect so she simply didn’t try anymore. Casey had so many reasons to be bitter and she used everyone of then, Hmm, where could she start well, she lived a secret life and couldn’t tell her boyfriend about it. One of her best-friends was killed, she wasn’t talking to her best-friend, oh and she had to go on tour with that brat London Star. Yep, life was great. Not. Casey was only happy around Carson and even then she knew she was keeping something huge from him, but she wouldn’t tell him. It was too late for that. Casey closed her eyes again. For a moment, she was trying to keep words coming from her mouth, but that would only last so long. Casey didn’t know if she could forgive Ezzie. A part of her wanted to, but the stubborn part didn’t. Casey had trust issues. She always had. After her mother left, it was hard to trust someone. It had been hard for Casey to trust Carson and now it was hard for Casey to re-trust Ezzie. She wanted to, but she didn’t know if she could.

“Well, at least you’ve found a new way to make friends.” She let the bitter words leave her mouth without trying to hold them back. Casey didn’t care anymore. She was going to say what she felt. Casey sighed. Lately she had been avoiding Ezzie like the plague, but now she couldn’t. Now she had to face her. Stupid Carson. Why did he have to care so much? Lately, Casey really only saw Ezzie in the dorm or at classes. Casey had been sitting at the Hufflepuff table with Carson for meals so she didn’t see Ezzie then. Casey didn’t even know if Ezzie was coming to meals or not nor did she care. Casey heard mutters about Ezzie in the hall. But she didn’t dare listen. She didn’t want to hear any of it. People knew that Ezzie and Casey weren’t speaking so they knew not to mention Ezzie to Casey. Besides, Casey had always been the “sweet one” few people would dare mention Ezzie to her now and that was a good thing because there was no telling what Casey would say.

Casey eyed Ezzie. It was hard not to talk to her. They used to be best-friends. Now, nothing. Casey had taken up the habit of talking and laughing with all the other girls in the dorm but Ezzie just to make her jealous. Obviously, this wasn’t a normal Casey behavior, but she had changed. And she blamed Ezzie for it even if it wasn’t her fault. At night, Casey tried to ignore Ezzie crying herself to sleep, but that was hard. It made her feel guilty, but she couldn’t do anything about it. She wanted to just run up to Ezzie and hug her, but she couldn’t. She was too stubborn. Usually, Casey ended up crying as well, but she doubted that anyone heard that. She tried to keep it soft. Casey closed her eyes and nodded. “Yea, I know that, but the last thing the school needs is rumors of two girls killing their boyfriends.” That statement would have been almost funny if Casey hadn’t made it sound so flat and emotionless. She wished she could laugh and joke with Ezzie, but it wasn’t that simple was it. “What was Carson thinking?” She whispered out loud. “If we wanted to talk we would, but we don’t. I don’t.” She said firmly not meaning a word she was saying. Ezzie was still looking at her hand. “Okay so I don’t care about the rumor thing. I’m gonna kill Carson.” She said bitterly through her anger even though Casey adored him more than she would admit. She sighed and stared at the ground for no particular reason at all.

[Esmeralda Mendez]

Ezzie could feel the tension surging throughout the room. She couldn’t believe this was happening. Just a few months ago, Ezzie would have never believed she and Casey could ever be in a fight. It was physically impossible for Casey and Ezzie to fight at all. Normally, when Casey and Ezzie would start fighting, they’d break out in laughter after just a few moments and all would be fine and forgotten. She’d never thought that they’d ever get to the point where they had to be locked in a broom cupboard by Casey’s boyfriend and Ezzie’s only friend. It just didn’t seem real. But then again, everything these days seemed to be an illusion. Everything seemed unreal to Ezzie, like she was living in some sort of strange nightmare she just could never wake up from. Ezzie sighed, finally looking up from her nails, which were turning into a complete mess thanks to Ezzie picking at them so much. Casey didn’t look like she had shown any remorse as to what she had done these past few weeks. It was true. Ezzie was a walking, talking bag of problems and she could understand that Casey didn’t want to get wrapped up in them. What she couldn’t understand though was why Casey was so upset. Shouldn’t it be Ezzie who was upset at Casey, not the other way around? Casey had nothing to be mad about whatsoever. Everything was going great for her. She had an amazing family that loved her more than anything, the nicest boyfriend in the world, (who would actually result to getting his friend to lock his girlfriend in a closet just for her happiness) a great career, and freedom from all the press and drama that Ezzie had to deal with everyday. What was so terrible about that? What had Ezzie done that was so wrong that would lead her to be so angry at Ezzie?

Not being able to stand it any longer, Ezzie lowered her eyes once more so they landed on the chipped black nail polish that she hadn’t been able to peel off earlier. She wondered how long they’d be here. She wondered how Carson would even know if they’d made up or not? Maybe he’d open the door up three days later and Ezzie and Casey were still standing in their respective corners glaring at each other through the many brooms and mops and such that were stored in the cupboard. Ezzie almost felt the urge to laugh thinking about how Filch would react to seeing Ezzie and Casey locked up inside here when he went to go get his broom to go clean up the castle.

Casey’s bitter little comment hurt Ezzie more than she would have dared to expect. She was so used to the silence Casey had given her that she wasn’t prepared for the unexpected but sure event when Casey would actually open her mouth to join in the insulting of the ever so hysterical life story of Ezzie Mendez. “Well to be perfectly honest with you Casey,” Ezzie said sarcastically, her cold tone equally matching that of Casey’s icy cold sarcasm. “I haven’t really been doing so hot in the friend department ever since you decided to abandon me for those little brats up in our dorm room.” Here she went again. Once Ezzie started, she could never truly bring herself to stop. It was almost like her common sense and inhibitions were put on hold while Ezzie yelled, screamed, and put up a fight in front of what used to be her best friend. “I’m sure you really get a kick out of telling them how messed up I am, Casey.” Ezzie’s eyes were now narrow little slits and her arms were crossed stubbornly against her skeletally thin chest. Ezzie had finally solved her problems and returned to eating about a small portion of what she used to eat before all this madness. She was getting tired of everyone giving her a hard time for her eating habits that she finally decided she’d take a stand and keep her food in her system for a change. Well, it’s not like Casey cares either way. She’s obviously moved on to much bigger and better things than me. I mean, who wants to be friends with a bulimic train wreck like me? Ezzie thought bitterly to herself as she leaned against the cold hard wall.

[Casey Allen G5]

Casey was furious. With Ezzie, with Carson, but mostly with herself. She realized that it had been stupid of her to act the way she had. But she was worry! And upset. She didn’t realize how badly her actions would hurt Ezzie. And if she did she probably wouldn’t have care. That was how badly the anger had built up, but Casey’s anger was more than this whole situation. Her anger started forming the day Ethan was shot. That day Casey lost a friend and gained a rage inside of her. His death made Casey think about a lot of things. It made her hate her mother for leaving. It made her hate her career and it made have a hate for life in general. Casey just formed a bitterness and she couldn’t quite make it go away. She shook her head and glared at Ezzie. She wasn’t even sure why she was so mad for the moment. She just was. How long would they be locked in there? Casey just wanted to slam down the door and bolt. And she would if she had her wand with her which she didn’t. Stupid Carson. Boy would Casey yell at him for this later. She didn’t even want to fight was Carson, but she would. He was the cause of this after all! Casey shook her head and just tried to keep control over her temper, but that wasn’t about to last long.

Casey’s eyes rolled as soon as Ezzie said her little comment. “Well, you lied. And I didn’t abandon you for them. If you think that I’d actually say stuff about you to those stupid girls than you’re an idiot.” Casey shook her head. “And I didn’t mean to become friends with them, but I had no one else to turn to and it was easier to hang with them than deal with this.” She said trying to prove a point, but which one she wasn’t quite sure. Casey shook her head. She would give anything to not be in there was Ezzie for the moment. She would even go do her Eden duties. Rage built up inside Casey even more. “And I was loyal to you even when they wanted to make fun of you and gossip so don’t you dare pull that card!” Casey wasn’t going to be able to stop the words. They were just going to come and she wasn’t going to be able to stop them. She wished she could but it just wasn’t going to happen. “Look maybe I over reacted, but I wasn’t expecting that and I wasn’t ready for it. You’re not the only screwed up one Ezz. My head has been doing cartwheels since Ethan died and I can’t get them to stop.” She sat down on the ground and over her forehead with her hands. She looked to the ground and didn’t look back up. “I wouldn't betray you.” She said finally. And that was the last thing she could say for the moment.

[Esmeralda Mendez]

Ezzie pursed her lips angrily. She didn’t want to be here. She didn’t want anything to do with this place. It was times like these that made Ezzie want to just fall off the face of the earth and stay there, just floating in space while the world spun on and on in the same sickly chaotic manner. She just wanted to float there and forget about Ethan or Casey and just float, while everyone else lived their life. The last place she wanted to be was trapped in this damn closet with Casey Allen. Just a few weeks ago, Ezzie would have actually wanted to talk to her friend, but things change, people change. Casey was no longer her best friend, nor was she anyone Ezzie would want to talk to right now. Sighing, Ezzie walked over to the door and tried to push it open, but there was some kind of force field over it. Ezzie couldn’t even touch it. She groaned. They had made the door impenetrable. Ezzie would kill them.

Ezzie glared right back at Casey as she rolled her eyes in annoyance. Ezzie knew why Casey would be a bit upset. Ezzie had lied to her. They’d agreed ages ago that there would be no more secrets between them. There wouldn’t be anymore lies or sneaking. They would be open with one another. And Casey broke that promise. But she didn’t care. Ezzie had a right to a few secrets. Ezzie didn’t need to tell Casey anything, especially something like her problems. Maybe she didn’t want to talk about them. Ezzie’s so called ‘issues’ were perfectly fine left alone. She didn’t want to share them with anyone, even Casey. Casey just didn’t understand. The only person who seemed to understand Ezzie lately was T.J, and he was in Hogsmeade having fun. It unseated her that he got to be so free. There was nothing more Ezzie wanted in this world than to quit school and devote her life to her music like T.J. did. She wanted to do it so badly, but she knew she couldn’t. She wasn’t even of age yet. Ezzie started playing around with the black rosary beads that hung loose on her neck. She’d been wearing them a lot lately. They’d been a birthday gift from Ezzie’s mother, who had pretty much turned into a nun with all the time she spent at church lately.

Ezzie’s eyes narrowed at Casey’s words. Even though Ezzie didn’t show it, her words really did hurt Ezzie. Casey was explaining this to Ezzie like she was a burden of some sort. Ezzie thought she was Casey’s friend, not her burden. “I know I lied, Casey! But what did you expect me to say, that I was a bulimic? You wanted me to tell you what I was feeling, what I was doing? How do you think you’d feel then, Casey? You and I both know you had enough of your own issues to worry about without having to worry about mine. It was one of those things you really didn’t need to know, Casey. And not that you care or anything, but I stopped. I don’t do it anymore." Ezzie folded her arms across her chest as hot angry tears welled in her eyes. “And I’m sorry if I was some kind of hassle for you, princess.” Ezzie added in a tone of cold bitterness. Although, she knew Casey had a point. Dealing with those little witches was probably a lot easier than dealing with Ezzie’s roller coaster ride of problems.

Ezzie laughed cruelly and manically as if humoring Casey’s petty words. “Oh, please. I’m sure that even if you did stand up for me, then that’s great. But then what about when it actually came to talking to me, Casey? Was that too much for you? Was your head doing so many cartwheels that you couldn’t stop yourself long enough to even look at me? I can’t believe you Casey. You think you’ve got it so hard. Well it looks like you need a reality check, princess. I would give anything to walk a mile in your shoes. How about you try walking in mine? You wouldn’t, would you, Casey?” Ezzie accused angrily, frustrated tears streaking down her face, smudging her makeup. Ezzie took a deep breath, finally able to calm down a bit. She didn’t want to fight with Casey. She just wanted someone to talk to again. “Look. I’m sorry I lied to you, Casey. And I’m sorry for putting you through my problems. I knew all this had to be tough on you, and that’s the reason I didn’t tell you. Obviously we’re not getting out of here until our issues are resolved, so we might as well make the best of our time. It’s not like I’ve got anything better to do anyway. I’ve got no friends.”

[Casey Allen G5]

How long would Carson keep up this little charade? It was getting old. Deep down Casey knew that Carson just wanted his two friends back and she understood, but she just wanted to be mad at him. Casey really cared for Carson, but for the moment she just needed to let that anger out. Her anger wasn’t helping anyone and it really had to go. So the only thing to do was release it. Casey eyed Ezzie. She was more mad at the world than her old friend, but she wasn’t about to admit that. She couldn’t admit that. She wanted Ezzie to be back to normal and healthy again. That was all Casey wanted since Ethan’s death. Yea, Ezzie would never be the same as she had been before his death but she could be better. She could be if she tried to get over it and really tried. Ezzie could get better and Casey could help and she wanted to but she couldn’t. They couldn’t just pretend that everything was fine. No they had to figure it out. Casey didn’t know if they would ever be friends again, but she was starting to realize that she wanted to make up and have fun with her best-friend yet again. But how could she do that?

Casey eyed Ezzie. “Yes I did! I wanted you to tell me for yourself and explain it to me.” And that was the truth. Casey wasn’t the little child like everyone including Ezzie thought she was. She could deal with it and she could have handled it. “I wanted you to be truthful and deal with it because believe me Ezzie I wasn’t surprised. You had been acting weird for months so both me and Carson knew something was wrong. And it made me mad even then that you wouldn’t talk to me about it.” Casey shook her head and turned her back to Ezzie. She hugged her arms around her chest and look to the wrong. “I was madder that you didn’t tell me than anything. I felt like you didn’t trust me with the information or that you didn’t need me.” Now they were getting to the heart of the issue. She turned back and faced Ezzie. “My whole life people have been treating me like a little kid. Even in the music industry they do that to me. I didn’t need to feel the same way from you. That was why I blew up that day. That’s why.” She let one tear drop and then shook her head. This was not fun.

“Well I’m glad. And I do care.” She said finally when Ezzie said that she stopped. She had just spoken volumes there. Casey revealed that she did care and that she always had. She shook her head at the princess comment. “You were never a hassle and I would have helped you because I wanted to not because I had to or I felt like I did. Believe me Ezzie, first few months after Ethan’s death, it would have been easy to not be friends with you and no one said that I had to. But you were my best friend and I believed in you and I wanted to be there for you. I didn’t care about the rumors or even that I could be popular if I ousted you. You were my friend not a nuisance.” All those words were true and Casey meant them. She just hoped that Ezzie knew that she did. Casey wanted to be her friend again but now the ball was in Ezzie’s court. It was Ezzie’s move.

Casey shook her head. “Ezzie your life isn’t perfect! Get over it! It will never be easy so you deal with it and move on!” She sighed. “You just think my life is easy because I keep the truth about it from you. Want it? Here it is.” She took a deep angry breath. “When I was ten my mom got brain cancer and they thought she wouldn’t make it so my dad took to drinking and Joel went a-wall. But when they realized she would make it, she left. She left me, my dad, and Joel and she hasn’t come back for us yet. She didn’t want me so she left.” Casey let tears fall. “Do you just care about who’s life is worse, Ezzie? Because it doesn’t matter. It matters if you try and change it and you know that I’m right. So would I take a walk in your shoes probably not but just because I’m okay with my life and I don’t need anyone elses to make me feel better.” The tears kept falling but Casey didn’t stop them. Casey shook her head. “I was mad and now I’m not. Now I just wanna stop fighting.” She smiled slightly. “You’ve got me Ezz.” She said sweetly. “Do I have you?”

[Esmeralda Mendez]

Growing tired of leaning against the wall, Ezzie decided to have a seat amongst some of the brooms and mops that lay inside. She doubted these brooms could fly, but she did wonder if maybe she could find a way out of here using one of them. Maybe if she banged it against the wall hard enough, she’d make a hole big enough to get herself out of the small cupboard. She simply wasn’t in the mood to listen to Casey’s little lectures. She’d heard it all before. Casey always used to complain about how she didn’t want to be treated like a little girl, about how she hated when people kept things from her. Ezzie had done just the thing Casey hated. She had gone behind her back and did things without telling her about it. Ezzie took a deep breath. Casey just wasn’t getting it. She says she would have understood. She says she would have supported Ezzie, watched her refuse to eat and be happy just because she knew about it. Both Ezzie and Casey knew deep down that was a lie. It would have done more harm than good if Casey had known what Ezzie was up to all this time.

“Casey, don’t even say that. You know things would have been weird. You know you wouldn’t just stand there and watch me refuse to eat. Things would be weird. I know you Casey. If you had known what I was up to all that time, there would have been problems. Knowing you, you’d probably want to tell someone about it. You’d talk to Carson, or a teacher, or McGonagall, and before I knew it, I’d be out of here, being homeschooled by my therapist. And even if you just told Carson, things between me and him would have been weird. And he’d tell McGonagall in a heartbeat if it meant getting me to eat again.” Ezzie sighed. While she was angry, she knew where Casey was coming from. She knew there was something wrong with her best friend, but she didn’t do anything about it simply because she couldn’t. Her best friend was suffering right before her eyes and there was nothing she could do about it. She wanted to help, but it was like her best friend, her sister didn’t trust her enough to let her do anything. With a feeling of great remorse, Ezzie nodded.

“Alright. I get it. You were upset that I was locking you out of my life, and I really am sorry about that. But what can I say? I’ve spent all my life happy. My parents left me. I kept smiling. I had to live in a homeless shelter. I kept smiling. I had to work my arse off to pay my own school tuition, and I kept on smiling, Casey! But this guy, this one guy…I thought I was going to marry him. The second I saw him, I knew. He was the one.” Ezzie’s eyes filled with a puddle of fresh tears. “And when he died, I just couldn’t smile anymore.” Ezzie gulped and sobbed quietly. “And I…I didn’t know how to handle myself. I locked everyone out, even you, you who was there for me when no one else was. And I swear Casey, I really am sorry for that. But that didn’t give you the right to do what you did, all because I wanted to keep to myself for a while.” Ezzie paused to hear what Casey had said. All this time, she really did care. Even though they were fighting, Casey really did care. Ezzie sighed and stood up again with a small, weak smile. She couldn’t remember the last time she had smiled. But here she was, smiling again.

“Of course you have me, Casey.” Ezzie said through her tears, hugging her best-friend tightly. “You always did.” Ezzie smiled. Suddenly, she heard voices. She recognized one as Carson’s, but the other one she couldn’t tell. “Do you think they’ve made up yet?” Spoke Carson’s voice from outside the door. “I dunno, do you want me to check?” Said the other. “No thanks, AJ. I think I can check for myself. Thanks for helping me out though.” Said Carson’s voice again. Ezzie’s smile grew just a bit larger at the sound of Carson’s voice. It was because of him that Casey and Ezzie were now friends again. She didn’t know how she’d ever thank him.

Ezzie heard the door click open and Carson’s smiling face appeared in the doorway, seeing the two hugging. He smiled warmly. “So I take it I’m not dead, then?” Carson asked with a weak smile. Ezzie managed a small chuckle. “Well I, for one am very thankful of you, Carson. I’m not so sure about your girlfriend, though.” She said with a small smile toward Casey. “But anyway, I’m hungry. First one to the Great Hall gets cake?” Ezzie suggested with a small smile. Carson smirked. “You’re on.”

((The END…..for now. ))