THE MAFIA BOSS FINALLY FALLS IN LOVE

CHAPTER 1: Cassie's POV ​I woke up feeling an intense pain in my head. "God," my head hurts like I held my head in my palms. ​"Cassie, it’s time to go to school!" Mom knocked on the door. ​"30 minutes!" I said from the room. "Okay, hurry." ​I didn't really want to go to school. I can't face Natalie. We just separated; I know Nat would never say that. I saw the hesitation and pain in her chocolate brown eyes. ​Although her family is rich, she is not the arrogant type. She's friendly, beautiful, and she is a kind person. Well, she's also timid. Micah was saying insults to me; I didn't want to do anything, I just kept quiet and aimed at her calmly. Then all of a sudden, I heard someone standing up for me. ​"Hey, why the f*** are you talking to her like that?" she was glaring at Micah. ​"But—but—she's just a nobody," she stammered, pointing her index finger at me. ​"Oh, just f*** off!" The girls ran away pouting. That's how we became friends. ​I stood up to go and take a shower. Well, I forced myself to sleep, truth be told. I am the opposite of Natalie Stone. I don't know how to make friends, I'm not rich, and I'm not beautiful. ​After the shower, I went back to the room to get dressed. As usual, all my clothes were black: my skinny jeans, the t-shirt, the sweater, and even the leather jacket. I wore black so much. I just tied my hair in a ponytail, no makeup. I took my backpack and went downstairs. I entered and joined my family. I sat beside Kelvin, my younger brother. I served myself and started eating. ​"Why are your eyes so puffy?" Mom asked, I paused midway putting the food in my mouth. ​"I didn't sleep last night because I was reading some books," I lied to my mom. ​"Oh, okay," she nodded, not believing what I said but choosing to let it go. I didn't even finish eating, I took my backpack, got out of the house, and took a cab to school. ​The car dropped me off at my school's entrance. I stood there for a while. "Hmm," I sighed before entering the school. As I was walking down the hallway, I saw Nat. She saw me as well; we halfway stared at each other for a second. She looked down and walked past me. ​I stood there staring into an empty space. I was brought back to my senses when the bell rang. I continued to walk, and when I reached the front of my class, I stood there for a while before entering. I went to sit at my usual seat, the back seat at the far corner near the window facing outside. ​Our math teacher entered the class right after I sat down. I was just looking out the window; I didn't hear a thing from the teacher. ​"Ms. Atkins!" he yelled, which brought me back to my senses. I stared at the teacher blankly. "What did I just say?" he asked, giving me a sharp glare. Mr. Connor is a strict teacher. A lot of the students are afraid of him, but I'm not. I still respect him. ​"I—I... am—um... s-s-sorry," I stuttered. ​"Enough, Ms. Atkins. You are not like this in my class. Meet me after the class is over," he looked a bit frustrated. ​"Yes, sir," I replied with a low voice. ​"You can sit," I sat back down trying to concentrate, but I couldn't. Mr. Connor still glanced at me once in a while. Two periods passed before it was break time. I walked down the hall, turned left, and walked a little before reaching Mr. Connor's office. I knocked on the wooden door. ​"Come in," his deep voice came through. I opened the door slowly. I stood there and stared at the floor for a whole minute. Mr. Connor was behind his oak table looking through some files. He raised his head and looked at me. ​"Have a seat," he beckoned me with his head. I sat opposite him. He stared at me with his sharp eyes for a few seconds before asking, "What's wrong with you, Cassie?" ​He only calls me Cassie when we are alone. He's my father's friend, so he is like a second father to me, and I call him Uncle when we are alone. ​"Nothing, Uncle Connor." I looked down at my fidgeting fingers. ​"Don't lie to me. I know you more than you do," he said, and it was true. ​"But—okay. I-I will tell you everything. It's about Natalie, she was my best friend," I said, my emotions already rippling up, remembering what happened between us just yesterday. ​"Hmm, okay. Go on," he was leaning back in his chair. I started narrating everything to him. ​When it was break time, Nat and I went to the cafeteria to buy our food. We sat at our usual spot, we finished early and went to the library. We chose a book to read. In the middle of the reading, Nat's phone vibrated. She looked at the caller ID; she looked back at me with a frown and whispered, "It's Fred," one of her brothers. She went to answer the call. ​Nat came back; she was—not herself. ​"Hey, what's wrong?" I asked worriedly. ​"Nothing!" she shouted her head and started packing her things. ​"Uh, why are you packing? We are not even done yet, and after all, it's not break over." I was a little confused as to why she was acting strange all of a sudden. She didn't even answer my question. She took her bag and turned around to leave. I immediately stood up and followed her. I held her wrist to stop her. ​"Don't you dare touch me, you filthy little b***h!" she said angrily, gritting her teeth. ​"Wait, what?" I was shocked. "Well, we aren't friends anymore. You know why? Because you are way out of my league. You are a poor, little, wretched b***h," she pointed her long, shiny nails at my nose. ​"Hey, why are you saying all this to me?" She rolled her eyes at me. ​"You know you are my only friend, right?" I asked, my voice shaky. ​"Oh please, Cassandra, don't play the victim," she said. I stood there in total shock. ​"Anyways, I don't have to explain myself and ever talk to a poor girl like you. Excuse me." She turned and stepped her blonde hair in my face. I was really hurt because she is the only friend that I have. I was dumbstruck at her actions. ​"That really got you, didn't it?" he asked. ​"Yeah," I whispered. "But I know she wouldn't do something like that." ​"If you know that, don't think about it and hurt yourself," he said, his voice soft and low but firm. ​"I know, but it still hurts," I said, pain lingering in my voice. ​"It's okay. People we know change to people we don't," he said, patting my hands. ​The bell rang for the next period to start. "Well, I think you should go to class for now." I stood up and thanked him. I went out to my class. All the periods didn't go the way they used to; I couldn't concentrate one bit. ​Finally, the day was over. I packed my books in my backpack and went out of the class. I met Nat in most of my classes today. Our schedules are almost the same, so we meet a lot almost every day, but now I don't think we can even sit close to each other again. ​I decided to visit the park to get some fresh air. I sat on one of the benches under a tree. Nat would have been with me by now, talking and laughing. She was the only friend that I had, and now she is my ex-best friend. ​It was getting late already; I need to head home. I decided to walk. There were bushes on each side of the road. After crossing the bush-sided road, you take a left turn, count four houses before getting to my house. That was how far my house was from the park. When I was about to cross the bush-sided road, I saw a wounded man lying beside the road. I could see that he was still breathing, but it was faint. I had the urge to help him.