In Our Heads (bxb) Completed

Chapter 2

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Cassian frowned into the mirror as he stared past his reflection towards the man and woman behind him while he fixed his tie. He did not like having his parents in his room, but he missed them because he saw them approximately two weeks every month and that was mostly at night when they got back from work exhausted so he was not about to chase them out despite them entering without so much of a knock and taking over his bed and dresser to sit down and talk to him while he got ready for the gathering. They were already dressed despite there having been a few hours to get ready while Cassian waited until just before people were set to arrive.

“Alight Ian, remember to spend a few minutes with Mr McIntyre, you know he adores you.” His mother said.

His mother sat on the edge of his bed in a long dark red evening gown and his father was over at his dresser in a navy blue tuxedo with a bowtie that matched his mother’s dress. Cassian was in a black suit with a red tie he was struggling to get just right while they were watching him do it because he knew they loved it when he did things perfectly. He was certain they would fix it once he was finished anyway.

“Yes, Mom.” He mumbled.

“Raise your voice.” Cassian nodded and his father smiled, “I heard the Gilmore’s eldest son, Ryan is gay too. He will be here tonight, maybe you could –”

“Dad.” He cut his father off.

“I’m just saying, that would make a great partnership.”

Business partnerships were all his parents really cared about, romantic relationships mattered less. He came out as gay when he was twelve and his parents had taken it quite well. He was lucky, lots of people at his school could only wish they had parents as okay with their children’s sexuality as his were. His parents still wanted him to marry someone with money though, preferably not new money as he would already have it coming from them and his family had been wealthy for generations. They expected him to take over all of their endeavours as their only child and they expected him to be with someone who shared similar interests, attributes and… class. Someone who understood what it took to keep wealth within the family and keep growing.

The last guy Cassian had been with was Kian for about a year before they broke up seven months prior, his parents had loved Kian and Kian’s family but Cassian figured they were better as friends. He had been the person Kian came out with and he remembered that Kian telling them he was dating Cassian seemed to soften the way his friend’s parents reacted to it because they liked and approved of him already.

“I know,” Cassian replied to his father as he stared at his tie. Perfect. It was a perfectly sized, perfectly shaped, perfectly placed triangle.

“Coach Dan says you’ve got the team doing pretty good out so far, can’t wait to see that final game. Remember that soccer is –”

“Less important than school and networking.” He finished with a smile and his father smiled back at him in the mirror.

“Seriously, you should consider Ryan. He looks good too and he’s built pretty well, Ian.” Cassian grimaced as his father winked at him and his mother giggled hiding her smile behind her hands like a teenager.

“Dad!” His embarrassed hiss only caused his parents to laugh more as they got up and Cassian turned to face them.

“You look handsome.” His mother’s hands went straight for his tie as he had predicted and she shifted it a bit, even though he had been certain it was straight to begin with, “Now, remember to stay downstairs in the hall for at least two hours. Do not slump your shoulders or lean on anything and do not drink anything.” He rolled his eyes. He spilt a drink onto his shirt at a party once when he was ten and his parents had been telling him that since then. “And do not roll your eyes.” His mother added narrowing her own hazel eyes up at him.

“Don’t spend too much time with one person, you have many to get to, but don’t make it seem like you’re not interested in any conversation. You have to be present.”

“I know all of this already, I can handle a party.” Cassian frowned.

“Just making sure.” His father said lifting his hand to brush it against the side of Cassian’s hair, probably making certain it was down, “Make sure your handkerchief is folded properly before you come downstairs, also wear the Patek Philippe you received for your 16th, you know Tariq and his watches.” Cassian nodded and his parents began to leave as he turned back to the mirror holding his breath as he ran his eyes over what he was wearing before they landed on the handkerchief that was folded slightly wrong. He lifted his hands but stopped when he heard his parent’s speak as they walked away.

“He’s so handsome, I can’t believe we made him.” He heard his mother say. Cassian grimaced slightly at the thought of his creation.

“I believe you did, that’s basically all you.” He shook his head but could not help smiling as he heard his mother giggle at the compliment.

He re-did the handkerchief making sure it looked perfect before he made his way over to his walk-in closet and pulled out his watch stand running his eyes over them until they landed on the watch his father had suggested. He took it out of the case carefully and clipped it onto his wrist as he admired it. He loved watches too. It was his favourite piece of jewellery because of how it emphasised people’s arms without overpowering their clothing. He straightened his jacket and checked himself one more time in the mirror before he began to make his way downstairs.

He could hear music coming from the ballroom and slowed his pace as he was walking down the stairs. He had spent the day by attending his taekwondo session in the morning and then had his management lessons and training for a couple of hours before attending his violin lesson and later doing homework in the time he had left while his parents ran around with the person who was in charge of planning the party finishing last-minute things and getting ready for the party. This was how his weekends often went as his parents wanted him to keep active and learning.

His friends must have been having a blast at the moment, he wished he could have been where they were even if it meant having to put aside the amazing watch and getting out of the designer suit. He stopped walking altogether when he thought about whether Theodore would be where they were before he scoffed. Of course not. He probably did not even know there was a party, much less wanted to actually be there. He had found Theodore crossing his mind every few minutes throughout the day even when he tried not to think about him because it was weird thinking so much about someone he had met just the day before and not even said a lot to. He was still curious though… where was Theodore at that moment?

“Cassian?” he snapped out of his thoughts to find his cousin standing at the foot of the stairs in a purple sleeveless gown.

“Amber.” He chuckled as he made his way down the rest of the stairs to hug her. “Pearls?” He tapped the necklace she was wearing as he pulled back from her.

“Mom thought the dress could use a little extra… age.” She whispered the last part as if she was afraid her mother would hear and they laughed, “She insisted on the pearls so much, Ian. I couldn’t change her mind no matter what style of necklace I showed her.” She shook her head.

“It’s cool, they’re pretty and you can use them to trip some guy if he tries to come at you.” She nudged his side as they laughed again and began making their way to the ballroom together. They split up once inside because she wanted to get a drink while he began talking to the random people that immediately came up to him.

He spoke to everyone keeping his posture perfect and he made sure to smile while he spoke to each of them. He went around the room being friendly and talking seriously about some business and news when it was brought up. He was on his way to another one of the people he figured he needed to speak to when someone tapped on his shoulder causing him to turn around and smile.

“Good evening, Cassian. You looked like you could use a thirst quencher.” The man in front of him was clearly a few years older than him, but Cassian recognised him easily because he looked a lot like his father who Cassian had spoken to just a few minutes earlier. He glanced past Ryan towards where he had seen his parents earlier and they both smiled at him. He gave an awkward smile back. He had no intention of being with this guy as they had only met a couple of times before and did not seem to have much in common besides their families’ wealth, but he could humour them for the evening.

“Uh – yes, thank you, Ryan.” He took the glass of wine from the guy’s outstretched hand, but not without hearing his mother’s voice in the back of his mind telling him not to drink anything. It would be fine, how could he deny a drink from the guy they wanted him to consider? It was just one drink anyway, “Is this alcoholic?”

“I won’t tell if you don’t.” Ryan winked causing Cassian to let out a chuckle. They had not understated his looks, Ryan was very attractive. He had more muscle than Cassian, and was a few centimetres taller. He had blonde hair that was gelled back neatly, icy blue eyes and a sharp, wide jaw. He wore a suit without the blazer, but it worked for him because the shirt and violet silk vest showed off his muscles quite well. “Your parents outdid themselves this year.” Ryan motioned around them.

“It’s mostly my mother. My father’s just here for the credit.” They chuckled. They began talking about school and college for a few minutes until Ryan suggested they go outside. Cassian welcomed the possibility of fresh, cold, evening air and they began to make their way towards the doors that led to the back yard. Cassian barely drank any of the wine because he really did not like the taste, he planned to put the glass down before they went outside.

Planned to.

Until he saw a little girl in a long yellow gown trip over it so he dove to catch her before she could fall completely forgetting that his glass was still filled and it slipped from his hands as he tried to catch her. He caught her well enough but froze when he heard a gasp before the glass smashed onto the floor. He looked up from his position kneeling and holding the girl to his chest and felt his mouth open but nothing left it as he stared up at the woman in the clearly expensive white dress now covered in red wine. It had to be white. The contrast in colour was so dramatic.

 “Oh, shit.” The words left his mouth before they even entered his mind when he realised who she was. A very well-known reporter, the dress undoubtedly sponsored as most at the party probably were. The words seemed to shock everyone more.

“Is he drunk?” he heard someone ask.

“No, no. It’s non-alcoholic.” He shot Ryan a glare when Ryan spoke up even though he had to hold back a laugh, it was not that hard to hold it back once he caught the looks on his parents’ faces. He immediately asked the girl if she was okay, helping her straighten up before he stood up and asked the reporter if she was okay. She seemed pretty dumbfounded and he had no idea what to do about her dress so he just held his hands in the air until someone suddenly grabbed his shoulders to steer him out of the room as his parents began speaking to the woman.

“Dude, everyone’s going to love this story!” Amber burst out laughing once they were in the hall alone and the doors had closed behind them.

“Amber, shut up, it’s not funny. I’m dead.” Cassian hissed walking further away from the ballroom to make his way back up to his own room.

“Yeah, your parents did not look happy.” She bit her lip looking nervous, “It was a mistake, though. Clearly you were trying to help the girl.” Cassian shook his head, he didn’t make mistakes.

“God, it had to be her too.” He shook his head groaning.

“Yes, you have the worst luck.” He glared at his cousin and she lifted her hands, “Just be scarce for the rest of the evening, I’m sure everyone will forget by… by the next… autumn party?” She said it uncertainly, they both knew no one was forgetting that.

“Whatever, I’m going to… figure out how to make my parents forget about disowning me.” He said as he began to walk upstairs.

“Wait – can I have your jacket? Mom didn’t let me bring one.” He shook his head but smiled as he pulled his blazer off and tugged it over her cold, bare shoulders.

“Bring it back in the same condition.” He said seriously.

“I will, I promise I won’t spill anything on it.” She smirked.

“Amber!” He let out a groan as she laughed.

“It was one of the rules, Cassian.” His mother said.

“I know, but it came from Ryan and I wanted – I thought you wanted me to be nice to him or whatever.”

“Or whatever?” His dad frowned, Cassian knew it was because of his wording.

“You know what I mean.”

They had not even had breakfast yet, but Cassian knew this was coming which was why he had not slept well after the previous evening’s party mishap. It did not even take them a second to look at him with their disappointed eyes as they began lecturing him after he walked into the dining room, he barely had time to sit down. He did not usually mess up and when he did his parents seemed to treat it like it was the end of the world. Whether it was a mistake or not, there was so much discontent, frustration and lecturing. Moments like this one made Cassian quite anxious about doing anything incorrectly.

“Why would you throw your drink on Nancy Herra?”

“I didn’t throw it, I… spilt it. I did not aim at her. It was a mis…” He drifted letting out a frustrated sigh, they weren't going to accept that it was a mistake, “I’m sorry, okay? I was trying to help someone, I forgot I was holding it. I didn’t mean to mess up the entire party, I didn’t throw it on her on purpose.”

“You threw it on her none-the-less.”

“I apologised.”

“It still happened.”

“It was a mistake.”

“It’s not a mistake if you knew you weren’t even supposed to be drinking anything.” His father said. Cassian grit his teeth as he clenched his fist before he stood up.

“I don’t know what else you want me to say.” He shook his head before he attempted to leave the room but his father spoke again.

“Don’t forget that you have your lesson in thirty minutes.”

How could he forget a piano lesson that had been scheduled at the same time for years? He just nodded at his father before he tried to excuse himself but his parents refused to let him leave the room without eating so he sat back down and spent the next twenty minutes eating oats and chewing on a muffin he had no appetite for while they asked about how his management lesson had gone.

After having breakfast, Cassian had the piano lesson and then he attended a Skype meeting his father wanted him to sit in on so he could take notes before he went out with his parents to visit his uncle’s family for lunch. After lunch was his usual Sunday jujitsu session with his father that proved that his parents were still not over the spilt drink before he finally had time alone.

He decided to go for a run feeling like he needed some air so without showering, he pulled off his t-shirt and replace it with a hoodie before strapping on his phone case around his bare waist and tucking the phone into it, pulling the hoodie down to hide the phone. He then tugged on a pair of sweat pants and shoved his feet into his trainers before jogging downstairs.

“Cassian?” He glanced over his shoulder hearing his mother call and bit his lip. He just needed an hour to be alone.

“I’m going for a run.” He did not wait for her reply, quickly shoving out of the front door and sprinting his way down the path along the lawn and around the fountain towards the front gate where he waved at the security guards as he exited before he ran down the street.

The cold afternoon wind felt great against his sweaty body and was motivation to keep up his speed as he sprinted, trying not to think about how upset he was that he had spilt the drink. Rationally, he knew it was no big deal. It was just some wine on a dress that could be paid for but it seemed like such an avoidable mistake, such a stupid mistake to make with so many reporters and expensive clothing around, no wonder his parents were annoyed. He should not have accepted that drink, how could he forget he was holding the glass when he tried to grab the girl?

He had been running for a while when let out a breathless groan as he slowed his running and let his head fall back to look at the sky once his legs stopped moving. He felt so upset that something so small seemed to matter to both him and them so much. Maybe it was not small. It was embarrassing for them. He should just act more carefully. As if he was not already careful, he made sure to think things through thoroughly before he did anything because of the reaction and consequences it could entail. He made sure not to make mistakes or mess up. Apparently he did not make sure enough through.

Cassian looked back in front of him and raised his brows before he ran his eyes over the houses around him. He was in a part of town he had only ever driven through a couple of times, perhaps because he rarely walked anywhere. It was much less upper class than where he lived. The houses here were single-story and had what looked like only one garage. The fences were low, most of them chipping and there were some kids playing outside of one of the houses. He decided to keep walking for a while as he watched some kids ride by him on bicycles, it was still light out so he felt quite safe. He reached a park and walked up to one of the benches before taking a seat as he watched some children play on the swings. Growing up, he had had his own set of swings in his backyard, his friends sometimes came over for playdates and they would hang out there. He had never been taken to a park or made random friends with children in one like these kids seemed to be doing. His friends were always people that could afford to attend the schools and activities he went to and his parent’s wealthy acquaintances’ children. The friends he had would never even want to be near the kids and teenagers hanging around in the park around him, he had to admit to himself that some of the teens seemed quite dodgy looking, like they were into drugs or something. He brushed it off as himself just being prejudiced.

He became lost in time watching everyone and when he looked up at the sky again, it was darkening so he decided it was time to run home. He did not know exactly where he was, but he figured he would retrace his steps until he reached a part of the city he recognised better.

He got up and began a jog back the way he had come realising that he had been so deep in thought, he had not really taken note of his surroundings. He needed to look at his GPS, but he figured taking his phone out in this part of town was not the best idea. He had not gotten very far away from the park when he saw a group of guys ahead of him on the sidewalk, there were three of them and he felt quite intimidated by their figures in the dwindling daylight and considered crossing the street, but they seemed to already notice him coming toward them and he thought crossing the street would seem rather suspicious so he kept walking straight towards them. He froze as one of them stepped into his path when he neared them and looked up feeling his heart pick up in his chest as he took in the man staring back at him.

“Hey.” The guy said.

“Hey.” Cassian gave a nod before he tried to side-step past the guy but another stepped into his way.

“Can you tell us what time it is?” He asked.

“I don’t have a watch or phone with me with me, sorry.” Cassian replied.

“You’re not from here.” Cassian gasped lightly as the guy in front of him flipped open a switchblade right in front of his face and did not move when the third guy moved behind him and he felt a hand digging into the kangaroo pocket of his hoodie before the hands moved to his sweatpants to check those pockets.

“Nothing.”

“You really have nothing?” They did not look too happy about that and Cassian figured giving up his phone was worth saving himself from a possible beating or getting stabbed with the blade that was currently still being held directly in front of his face.

“Uh –” He began to lift his hands but let out a cry when something slammed into him from behind.

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