Chapter 2

Cassie was calm on the way home, listening to her music and enjoying the lack of traffic. As she retraced the procession of gradually larger roads that lead back to her town, she could believe in the things that Leigha had said – that the world was a bounty of possibilities, many of them sexy, just waiting for her to grab them. She even felt a little tingle on her belly, where Leigha had cast her alleged spell. But then Cassie pulled up to her house, and found her family yelling at each other on the lawn, and she was yanked back down to hard reality.

"Mom, everyone else in my class has one. It's not a luxury!"

"You bet your ass an iPhone is a luxury, missy. How much do you think these things cost?"

"It's not that much! You work all week and you can't even--"

Cassie's father was, as usual, in the middle and trying to make peace. "Girls, can't we go inside? The whole neighbourhood is watching."

Charlotte, Cassie's stepmom, just pursed her lips in that pouty way Cassie hated. "There's nothing worth looking at here! Just a parent doing what every parent should do, but most of them don't – saying no to her daughter."

"Oh God, like you can judge anyone else for their parenting?" This was Mindy, daughter of Charlotte, stepsister of Cassie, and desirer of Apple products.

Cassie made a calculated decision to avoid the fray altogether and walk past the trio on the lawn into her house. She lived most of her life like this, trying to avoid her step-relations as much as possible and ignore them most of the time she couldn't avoid them. But her father was desperately looking for a distraction, and so grabbed Cassie by the shoulder and steered her into the group huddle.

"Hey everyone. Cassie's home. How was your night, Cass?"

"Did you have a good time at queer camp?" said Mindy, with that mocking tone to her voice that made her seem like the villain in a teen soap opera.

"I told you to watch your language, missy," said Charlotte.

"What? If she can say it, why can't I?"

Cassie pivoted on her heel. "All right. I'm going up to my room. Let me know when dinner's ready."

"Take it easy, Mindy," said Cassie's father. "And Cassie, don't shut yourself up there again. We've hardly seen you this weekend."

"You know," Mindy said, crossing her arms, "if I had gone out to the woods and banged some guy all night, you guys would be freaking out. But because it's sweet little Cassie and she's fucking a fat girl, you're fine with it."

Cassie dug her nails into her palm, so as not to dig them into Mindy's eyes. She knew that it was an intentional provocation, and to fall into it would just feed her stepsister's need for drama. But insulting Leigha was a cheap shot that Cassie couldn't forgive.

"Well Mindy," Cassie said, doing her best to maintain a cool and sarcastic tone. "I'm sure you've banged plenty of guys in the woods, and you're still living here. Speaking of which, at your age aren't most women moved out of their parents' house?"

Somewhere in there, Mindy had stomped over towards Cassie, raising her shop pink nails up above her head, but before she could actually strike, Charlotte grabbed her hand. "Let go of me!" Mother and daughter tussled on the lawn as Mindy's father buried his head in his hands.

Cassie threw her overnight bag over her shoulder. "Well, like I said, I'm going upstairs. Let me know when Jerry Springer shows up."

When she finally made it to her room, Cassie let out her frustration by pounding the pillow a bit. How could Mindy say those things about Leigha – a girl she didn't even know, but thought she could dismiss and deride just by taking one look at her? Cassie wanted to wring her neck, and only the thought that she would be free of this house in a few months stayed her hand.

It had been two years since her father had married Charlotte, and Cassie was still no closer to getting along with the new half of her family. She also had yet to find anything about Charlotte that would cause her cool graphic-designer-cum-guitarist father to give up their urban life and marry a small-town divorcee. And, for that matter, she was still searching for any redeeming quality possessed by Mindy.

Cassie tried to slow her breathing and calm herself. She really shouldn't let Mindy get her so worked up. After all, if she got through this summer – during which she planned to spend most of her time out of the house working or hanging out with friends – then she would be across the country and among other intelligent people. Now that her much-anticipated weekend with Leigha was over, that thought was the only thing keeping her going.

There were advantages to living in a small town For instance, a good word from your dad could get you a summer job at the local grocery store, even if that store didn't need (or perhaps couldn't afford) an extra clerk. Things seemed to operate on a more informal, familial basis around here, and Cassie's father had taken advantage of it, making friends with everyone from her teachers (who had always given her good grades) to the clerk at the corner store (who always gave him a discount). Somehow, in this environment he had developed an incredible charm.

And so Cassie had been making shopping money at Danny's Grocery and Deli since she was sixteen. Danny had, of course, been accommodating in giving her a weekend off, but now Cassie had to put on the familiar green apron and go back behind the cashier. It wasn't hard work, but she did get exhausted smiling at someone all day – especially with the town's middle-aged women who liked to gossip.

"Hey Cass," said Danny, the mostly benevolent middle-aged manager. (Not the Danny the store was named after, but that was a long story.) "How was your weekend."

"Lovely," said Cassie as she walked in. She paused to tie her chestnut-brown hair into a bun as she talked to Danny.

"We just got a shipment of cereal in. Can you stock them before you start today?"

"Sure."

"Oh, and one more thing," said Danny, following after Cassie as she walked to the back. "We've got a new employee. I was wondering if she could shadow you for the day, learn the ropes and such."

Of course, this was the downside of having a casual relationship with your boss – just as you could impose on him to get out of things, he could use that folksy would-you-mind politeness to get you to do extra work. Then again, it's not like a boss in the city wouldn't do the same thing – and he wouldn't give you a weekend off because you asked for it. But Cassie was not looking forward to being shadowed by some local teenage girl.

It was indeed a local teenage girl, but not exactly what Cassie was expecting. Her new co-worker had pale skin and a cute face framed by jet black hair and silver earings. She didn't look like a goth exactly, especially wearing the neon green Danny's uniform, but there was something of the gothic about her, and there was a sharp glint in her eyes that made her seem a world apart from the townie girls obsessed with high school sports and celebrity gossip. Then again, that could just be Cassie's thing for brunettes deceiving her.

"Hi," Cassie said, offering up her hand. "I'm Cassie, I'll be your ... trainer? Mentor?"

"I'm sure I can learn a lot from you," said the black-haired girl, licking her lips. "My name's Devin."

There was something suggestive in Devin's mannerisms, but Cassie tried not to read too much into it. She motioned for the new girl to follow her through the swinging doors into the back of the store. Devin looked around the dull and dingy grocery underworld curiously. "I always wondered what it looked like back here."

"Well, now you know where the magic happens," said Cassie. "So Devin, what grade are you in?"

"Not a grade any more," said Devin. "I just got back from my first year at State."

"College. Nice," said Cassie. "I'm surprised you're back, though – I thought that when people got out of this town they never came back."

Devin shrugged. "Better living with my Mom here than paying out the ass for a city apartment."

Cassie began to explain the job to Devin. It was pretty straightforward, but Danny had a rather idiosyncratic way of doing inventory and shelving, so it took a while to explain. Cassie could feel Devin's eyes on her, and not always on her face. She tried to convince herself she was imagining it. When she went to get a big case of toilet paper down from the top shelf, and felt something brushing against her ass, she assumed that was her imagination too. Maybe the weekend at Leigha's had overcharged her sex drive.

"So," Cassie said at the end of her spiel. "Any questions."

"Yeah," said Devin. She was, Cassie noticed, rather close to her, and Cassie could feel Devin's breath on her face. "What makeup are you using?"

"Oh, um ... no makeup. No need to look pretty for the old folks that come in here." Cassie laughed nervously.

"Well, you would look pretty anyways." Devin seemed to hesitate for just a moment, and then plunged forward, pressing her pale lips against Cassie's. Her kiss was hot and hungry as her warm breath caressed Cassie's cheeks. Cassie was taken aback, but decided that this wasn't all that bad. She wrapped her arms around Devin's back and pushed her into her. The new girl's breasts were soft and comfortable as they melded their bodies together.

Devin backed her up into the shelves, hot and urgent. Soon her tongue was inside Cassie's mouth, and her hand was rubbing the crotch of Cassie's work pants. It was a rough and blunt carress, but it still made Cassie shudder as the base of Devin's thumb pressed against exactly the right spot. Even through all those layers of clothing, her touch was electric.

And then, Devin leapt back. "Oh mygod, I ... I don't know what came over me. I just ... first I was idly thinking about how you were cute, and then the next thing I know ... fuck..."

Cassie was trying to shift gears. She was still caught up in the dizzy momentum of the kiss, but it looked like Devin was genuinely distressed by her lack of control. "Hey, it happens." Well, it had never happened to Cassie before, or anyone she knew, but it surely couldn't be the first time that two strangers had spontaneously made out. It happened in movies all the time, and not just the pornos. "It was ... nice."

"We shouldn't," Devin said, scratching her arm nervously. "We have to get back to work. Shit, shit ... I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."

"What are you apologizing for?" said Cassie. "Come on, I'll show you the cash register." Best to get this behind them, although she was sure her damp panties would remind her of the unfinished encounter all day. She was already feeling primed and ready for a fuck, but now she had to adjust to the monotony of work.

There was not much said between Cassie and Devin for the rest of the day that wasn't work-related. Cassie was distracted for the whole shift. She was trying to teach Devin the produce codes, but kept getting them mixed up herself. One customer got a great deal when she gave his radishes the price-per-pound cost of cabbage, while a few more got cheated out of a dollar or too, with neither party knowing until Cassie checked her receipts during a lull.

Mostly she was caught up wondering what the hell had just happened. Two explanations presented themselves. One, Devin was a little crazy, one of those girls who threw herself at everyone she met. Maybe that was how she had got this job in the first place. Two, Cassie was a lot hotter than she thought.

After work, she turned her phone back on in the break room. The familiar chirp told her that she had missed a few text messages. After Leigha's daily dose of pet pictures, there was a message from her friend Rainey. Hey cas. Just heard from ms bright – she wants to have the old gang over at her house for dinner tomorrow. A little weird but could be fun.

Ms. Bright was their high-school drama teacher. Cassie couldn't act worth a damn, but she had been a stagehand for the theatre club's productions, more to be around her friends and away from her stepfamily than anything else. They had formed a tight-knit clique of creative, and mostly queer, kids. Cassie wouldn't miss much about this town, but she would miss them.

The problem was that among that group was Sara, Cassie's commitment-obsessed ex-girlfriend. Cassie had taken their breakup with little more than a sigh, but she had the feeling that it had hit Sara a lot harder, at least if her despondent status updates were any indication. She was worried about things being awkward, or the dreaded appearance of drama. (After one noisy argument between Alan and Riley, Ms. Bright had put up a sign in the green room reading "Drama has been banned from the Theatre Club".)

She texted Rainey back. will sara be there?

Rainey was quick to respond. i think so. don't worry, she's fine.

Cassie had found there was never so useless or concerning an order as "Don't worry". Still, if she missed the gathering on account of Sara she would look like the one who was bitter and hung up on a past relationship. So she told Rainey i'll be there.

Before she left, she ran across Devin, who was just hanging up her apron. The new girl looked like she almost had a heart attack. "Oh! I mean, hi Cassie. See you tomorrow."

"Yeah. See you." It looked like Devin was just as weirded out by their earlier kiss as she was. Cassie didn't want to make too much of a big deal about it. It had been a pretty nice kiss, even if it was sudden. And Cassie wasn't opposed to the two of them doing more, maybe in a more opportune location. It would certainly be nice to take off Devin's shirt and see more of that silky skin underneath. And then...

Cassie stopped fantasizing. Her underwear was already wet enough. Still, she tried to put a pin in that image of her coworker laying topless on a bed. For later use.

Mindy had already booked the car for the next week through her unique brand of wheedling and threatening to cry, so Cassie had to ride her bike to Ms. Bright's house the next night. It wasn't that long of a trek, but halfway through the clouds abruptly broke and sheets of rain tumbled down on her. Cassie clenched her teeth together and kept pedalling. Disaster visions of skidding into oncoming traffic filled her vision (when she wasn't trying to brush rainwater out of her eyes), but she managed to keep moving forward with only a little wobbling. By the time she got to Ms. Bright's cozy, ivy-laden home, Cassie's shirt and shorts were soaked through. They hung heavy and cold around her, and Cassie wondered if she would get sick.

She tried to compose herself and make sure that her wet clothing wasn't exposing her too much, although that last bit was a fruitless task. Cassie knocked on the door and, a moment later, Ms. Bright opened it. She was dressed the way she always was – glasses, a short skirt and a black t-shirt bearing the logo of a punk band from decades ago, trying to look like anything but a high school teacher. "Cassandra!" Ms. Bright said. "You look like something the cats dragged in. Come on, get inside and you can warm up. Everyone else is already here."

Indeed, all of the drama regulars who had not already fled town were sitting in Ms. Bright's stylish living room. They were also all staring at Cassie, a little awkwardly. She looked down and realized that her nipples were clearly visible through her soaked white T-shirt. She could feel the flush of embarrassment – and maybe something else – hitting her face.

"You can go up to the bathroom and dry yourself off," Ms. Bright said. She was either oblivious to Cassie's embarrassment or dealing with it very tactfully. "I'll bring up some clothes for you. Take your time – we're not going to run out of wine any time soon."

Cassie scurried upstairs, dripping water the whole way. What a pain – she hated to make a scene like that. In any case, she now found herself in the uncharted territory of Ms. Bright's second floor. The whole house was a little baroque, with all the coffee table books and offbeat furniture that any member of the liberal intelligentsia would require. On the way to the bathroom, a watercolour painting of a nude black woman hung on the wall, alongside some abstract thing that Cassie didn't care to understand. There were times when it seemed like Ms. Bright revelled in living up to a stereotype.

The bathroom was fairly plain, with a bare-basics set of cosmetics. Cassie peeled her water-logged clothing off. The rain had even got down to her underwear, which had to come off as well. She draped the wet clothes over the bar which Ms. Bright's shower curtains hung on. Cassie took a moment to look at her nude body in the mirror. She haad to admit – even cold and bedraggled, she was cute. The stiff nipples almost made the image obscene.

"Cass, Ms. Bright asked me to--"

Cassie whirled around. Sara was standing there, a folded-up dress in her thick arms. She was staring straight at Cassie's naked body. Sara seemed transfixed, her eyes staring down at her ex-girlfriend's pert breasts and lightly covered pussy.

"Asked you to what, Sara?" Cassie said, turning her head coquettishly. She should really put a towel on, but she felt like being a little flirty. After all of the arguments Sara had made her endure, a little teasing was the least Cassie could do.

"Well, uh, she asked me to give you, uh, a dress. This dress." Sara thrust the clothing into Cassie's arms, fingertips brushing against her erect nipples and quickly withdrawing. Her eyes lingered on Cassie's bare clavicle for a second before darting away. "Well, bye! See you down there!"

Cassie had to laugh at Sara getting so choked up. It was nothing she hadn't seen before, after all. But the poor girl had been madly in love with Cassie. Still was, probably. It was just too bad she was so stubborn about the shape that love would take.

She slid Ms. Bright's brown dress over her shoulders. It was a little long, and a little too vintage-hippie for Cassie's taste, but it would do. Cassie noted that Ms. Bright had forgotten to send her spare underpants. Oh well. It would have been weird to put on her teacher's bra and panties. And in the strange mood she was in, Cassie really wasn't troubled by the idea of her friends seeing something they shouldn't.