Topic: What's with this family and notes?

Sebastian · Date: 2006-12-22 08:30 EST

Dec. 20th

He still had the key from when he?d lived with her for a few weeks so it was fairly easy to sneak in. Everyone was away for the wedding, he assumed, and Sebastian could move through the house without fear of intruding upon anyone. Luckily, he just needed to put something on the kitchen table.

The door creaked open and Bastian slipped inside silently. He didn?t know why he was being so sneaky when no one was home, but it felt like the right thing to do. This wasn?t his house, after all.

Down through the hallway he continued to slink...until suddenly, out of the shadows jumped Eliza. The huge, tiger sized Moor Cat with blue eyes forced Bastian to the floor, growling territorially. But as soon as she realized who it was, the animal licked his face.

?Gross...? Sebastian laughed, though, and pushed the 200+lb cat off of him. Eliza followed him into the kitchen where he laid a photo and a piece of paper on the table. That done, Sebastian decided to leave before anyone showed up. ?Eliza, wanna come meet Erin??

The cat, obviously understanding, at the very least, that Sebastian wanted her to follow him gave his leg a nudge with her muzzle. He patted her on the head, which came to about his waist, and started heading for the door. One last look around, making sure the porch light was on for Cassie when she got home, Sebastian moved out onto the porch after Eliza.

Cassandra,

I know this isn?t exactly your most favorite of days, but I wanted to let you know I was thinking about you today. Don?t worry...I didn?t tell anyone it was your birthday. Jon and Lane say happy birthday, too. Oh, by the way...that photo is one I got from my mother. I don?t know how she got it, but... She had it hidden away. She wanted me to give it to you...she said she didn?t want it. But honestly? I think....I think my mom has a heart in there somewhere and knew you?d like to have the picture. You look just like Steph?, Cassandra.

Sebastian
P.S. I?m sorry for blowing up the other day. And...thanks for keeping my ?secret?.

The picture was of Stephanie holding Cassandra just after she was born. Steph was smiling and looking down at her child.

Cassandra · Date: 2006-12-23 21:56 EST

December 20

She was absolutely exhausted. It wasn't that she hadn't enjoyed the wedding festivities, because she absolutely had. But there's a lot of stress before the bride walks down the aisle and so much to get ready and coordinate for, even after the actual ceremony itself. Charlotte and Dakota ought to be able to just enjoy the event. So Cassie ran around here and there making sure everything was as perfect as she could for them. She even kept watch over the kids and made sure no one got ahold of the champagne. She'd had a good time over all, and it kept her mind off of other, less delightful thoughts.

Today was her 21st birthday. Unlike most people, Cassie did not anticipate her birthdays with bright smiles and happy laughter. Birthdays were more like... Gyno appointments. You sure didn't want to go, but they were necessary things in life. At least, that was how Cassie felt about her birthday. It hadn't been given the same attention as most people around her growing up, so Cassie didn't give it the same attention, and it marked the nearness of another date that Cassie didn't care for. It was something like a precursor to a mammogram, to continue with the same sort of metaphor. So that's how Cassie feels about birthdays.

She almost missed the note in the kitchen. She went straight to the fridge to pull some cold cuts out, since the first floor kitchen was better stocked than her kitchenette, and headed to the table. She'd already had three bites of her sandwich before she noticed. The remainder of the sandwich was set down on a napkin and she reached for the piece of paper and the photo. She read the note first. It was the last line that brought a sheen of tears to her eyes. The note was set down and the photo picked up. She studied it for several minutes, memorizing it just about.

The house suddenly seemed entirely too large and entirely too quiet for her. She stood, the sandwich forgotten, and headed for the door, tucking the photo into a clever little pocket on the inside of her jacket. She was going to go out and have a drink. Maybe even get drunk. Because, after all, it was her birthday, isn't she supposed to be able to do as she pleases?