Cassandra’s POV
“What are you doing?” my mom’s voice cut through the silence, sharp and direct.
I spun around, my pulse jumping as I tried to look as casual as humanly possible. She was standing in the doorway, arms crossed, her sharp gaze pinning me in place.
“Oh, hey, Mom,” I said, forcing a weak smile. My voice came out a little too high-pitched. “I was just… looking for my journal.”
Her eyes narrowed, scanning the room like she was peeling back the walls of my brain to find every lie buried there. She didn’t say anything at first, just tilted her head slightly, her silence louder than any accusation.
“You’ve been in here all day?” she finally asked, her tone flat but loaded with suspicion.
“Yeah,” I replied, a little too quickly. “Why?”
She didn’t answer right away. Her gaze swe
