15 Days With You

Prologue

Prologue

"Good morning Sandra!"

Cassidy's irksome voice reached my ears, traveling straight to my eardrums, my ear canal, through those three little bones and finally into my brain. Telling me to walk faster or risk having my day ruined.

Too late.

"Hey, flowers for you," she said, falling into step beside me with a bouquet of roses in her hand.

Most people will find this scenario cute, seeing that Cassidy almost never fails to give me flowers every day. I admit, that it is very flattering for someone to devote this kind of effort and resources to me. But imagine waking up to this, every day, for the last year.

"No thank you, Cassidy. Why don't you just eat that and realize that I'm not into you?" My utmost irritation fueled that outburst but Cassidy still wore that dumb smile on her face.

"Wow, honeybunch. Never thought you'd be a good actress, but I'm all up for that."

"Ugh!" I stopped my heel-clad foot on the concrete ground like some five year-old.

"You're so annoying," I added, surprised that she still manages to irk me after a year of... well, constant annoy-ment?

She smiled and took a glance at her wristwatch. "And you know what?"

"What?!"

"You are so late," then Cassidy grinned. She knew she won the fight this time. Or again, if I take yesterday's banter into consideration or the day before that... and the day before the other day.

I gave her a death glare before I opened the door to my two year-old Kia and got in.

"Driver safe!" I heard her exasperating voice.

After I gave her the finger, I drove off speeding.

Damn it. Now my day is officially ruined.

"You're late." My co-worker and best friend said from her cubicle. Jasmine is a cheerful, black girl that Sandra has known for most of her college life. Four years and several drunken nights later, they're still as close as ever.

"I know Jaz, " I slumped down on my chair and turned my computer on.

"Someone thought that they've been nice long enough and decided to cause trouble."

"Cassidy?" Jasmine asked, her eyebrow quirking up in mild amusement. I groaned from hearing her name while I heard Jaz giggle.

"I guess that answers the question."

She's been with me long enough so she knew the difference between my non-Cassidy and Cassidy days.

"I don't get it. What does she sees in you?"

"Wow. Thank you, best friend. That comment sure boosts my ego to the nth degree."

I pride myself on my looks, of course. I have a body that's toned and proportioned with curves at all the right places. Although I'm not very beautiful, I'm still more than pretty enough to attract anyone that I want, and I'm thankful for my inviting, warm brown eyes. Typically, brown eyes are categorized as boring, but from a young age I learned to appreciate and love everything about myself.

I heard Jaz laugh softly, careful not to attract the attention of our surly boss.

"I didn't mean it like that. I'm just wondering, that's all."

Then I heard the familiar sound of the clicking keyboard. She went back to work. I did the same and focused on the pile of documents on my side. This is going to be another long day.