Cassie's Crush Read Free Page B

second bathroom – an en suite like Marcia’s – instead of just one for our whole family. How are five people meant to manage with just one bathroom? We do have a broken old toilet in the horrible stinking shed at the bottom of our garden, but I doubt if anyone’s used it since Victorian times. You’d probably get some kind of bum disease if you sat on that loo.
    Later, at school, I heard the Leech saying to Jade, “Looks like Cassie’s actually tried to do her hair today, ha ha!”
    â€œYeah,” Jade said. “Wonder why?”
    They both burst out laughing, then the Leech said, “C’mon, let’s ask her for some styling tips.”
    I bolted away down the corridor before they could get me, wishing I wasn’t such a coward. Perhaps combing through conditioner and leaving it in wasn’t such a great idea, even though I’d read it as a beauty tip in one of Marcia’s magazines. Ollie smiled at me, though, in history. He either didn’t notice my peculiar lank hair, or is too in awe of my sparkling personality to care what I look like.

Big sis Beth was whisked off at seven thirty a.m. by her boyfriend Henry to some posh family do miles and miles away. I can’t stand Henry. He drenches himself in so much aftershave it’s a wonder he manages to breathe in any oxygen. And Beth’s not much better. She’s just turned eighteen and is meant to be on a gap year, which I’d assumed meant doing exciting stuff like trekking through India or swimming with dolphins, but all she seems to do is paint her nails and drool over Henry. As soon as they’d left, I snuck into her room to nick some of her baby-soft tissues. I stuffed a whole wodge of them into the left cup of my bra and was quite pleased with the natural-looking result. But when I glanced down in morning break, the tissue clump had worked its way down to my stomach. Now it looked like I had some kind of horrible growth.
    Left boob still hasn’t grown. No wonder I’m feeling so unbalanced.

No chance to talk to Ollie this morning because there was a swarm of people buzzing around him at break. I’m glad he’s hanging out with Sam and Joey, though. They’re pretty friendly and like a laugh, which might make getting to know Ollie a bit easier.
    The three of them were hanging about outside the chippy at lunchtime. They were chatting, probably about London and how it compares to living in such a boring place like Tarmouth, where even the pier fell into the sea because it couldn’t be bothered with the place any more. Me and Evie had walked past the chippy queue when someone shouted, “Hey, Cassie!”
    I whirled around to see who it was. Sam was grinning at me and holding out his bag of chips. “Want one?” he asked.
    â€œThanks,” I said, going back to take one from his bag.
    Ollie was watching me. I was trying to focus on Sam because I knew if I even glanced at Ollie, I’d go bright red and not be able to speak normally. “Growing pains any better?” Ollie asked with a smirk.
    â€œOh, yeah, thanks,” I mumbled to the ground.
    â€œHave you been ill or something?” Sam asked, looking concerned.
    â€œNo, no,” I said quickly. “It’s just … just some pains I was having the other day.”
    I’d told Evie all about the growing pains incident, and she was giggling as we walked away from the boys. “Maybe you should see a doctor, Cassie,” she teased. “Those pains of yours sound serious.”
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    After school, I phoned Mum and said I was going to Marcia’s. She sounded annoyed. “I’ve got a few jobs for you, Cassie,” she said, which made me even gladder that Marcia had asked me over (even though Marcia’s mum can be a bit scary and never seems exactly delighted whenever I go round). Me and Marcia had dinner in their huge, incredibly tidy kitchen, with her mum banging cups