a/n; this is gonna be a long ass chapter (literally, over 5k words) cuz y'all deserve a detailed, long last one. i hope you like it!!

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"can we look now?" alex whined as she walked without sight. vanessa rolled her eyes and kept guiding her forward, which cassie did to matt.

"no, not yet. jesus, so impatient." cassie laughed and entered the juice café with matt beside her. she smiled and took off his blindfold, raising her hands beside her head and shaking them lightly.

"why are we here?" alex asked confused, examining the place that looked a little extra nice and clean, with some more decorations here and there.

"because, you two are leaving soon, so we wanted to hang out here." vanessa explained, glancing at some of their close friends from the college.

"and don't worry, emmett isn't here." cassie quickly butted in, motioning behind her shoulder with her thumb. "just katie and i."

"this looks so cosy." matt grinned and wrapped his arms around her, pressing a kiss on her head. "thanks."

"i also made a playlist with songs that both of you enjoy, which is basically the same music." she added once she heard the background music.

"... and here are your juices for now." katie, another co-worker with black hair, approached them, handing the siblings their drinks.

"thank you." matt laughed, feeling a bit overwhelmed — by happiness of course — over it all as he processed it.

"he's so cute." katie whispered to cassie before going behind the counter again. the brunette rolled her eyes stupidly and sat them all down by a table with multiple things on it.

"okay, so..." she started, sweeping her hair behind her shoulders by shaking her head. vanessa, mason, alex and matt all looked at her with expectation. well, except for vanessa since she knew what was planned for the day. "this is going to be really fucking hard, but we wanted to do something fun today."

"cass...?" matt questioned with a weak frown, already noticing the shift in her voice and body posture. he absolutely didn't want it to be even harder than necessary for her.

"we wanted to make this special. we can't just say goodbye without doing something creative." vanessa explained for her, tucking some of her blonde hair behind her ear. "so, we've made different things. first, we made you each a big, framed collage each with our favorite pictures of you."

cassie grabbed the first two things on the pile of items, turning them around while simultanously handing the siblings each. the two studied the frames, examining each chosen picture with a sad, yet happy smile. some of the photos were just silly, rememberable ones that they could laugh at. then there were some more "serious" ones, most likely unaware ones, where there was a deep memory behind it.

for example, on alex's there were one picture of her with cassie's family during one christmas. it was a lovely memory, because those were a few days where she really got to know cassie and her family, when she discovered cassie's extremely goofy side and also her vulnerable one.

on matt's, there was a photo of him and mason, during the time when matt got accepted in the football team, and scored a hell of a lot touchdowns on his first game. the picture was taking right after that game, the two boys standing with one arm around the other one's shoulder, smiling so big and whole-heartedly it nearly put matt in tears watching it. he remembered and adored what a great friend mason actually was; kind, believing, sassy when needed, honest and realistic. but most of all, he had always been by matt's side (and vice versa).

then, adding onto his nostalgic state, he noticed the picture in the corner of him and cassie. it was the selfie she had taken of them during their first date in the city. needless to explain why, that picture truly made his chest ache. the last thing he ever wanted to do was to hurt her, and he did so by leaving her. it was simply unbelievable that he fought so hard for her, only to get it messed up in the end like this.

"this is great." alex whispered with glossy eyes. "thank you guys. this is truly amazing."

cassie and matt locked eyes for a moment before she inhaled sharply and rubbed her own thighs. vanessa, ready to cheer cassie up any time like a king's guard, smiled at them all and then down at the remaining items.

"i think we'll take a break now so you guys can drink your juices and talk to people." she stated, standing up from her chair.

the others followed her movements, much like soldiers under command, and went to do their own things for a while; alex went to play pool with some classmates, mason walked over to chris (and basically the entire football team), matt then stumbled after and vanessa joined another table where people such as candice and steffy sat by.

cassie waited a while until she finally placed herself behind the desk. grabbing a remote, she raised the volume on the music and tied her hair up in a ponytail, considering she were to make drinks for everybody there.

"katie, can you go and get the fruit delievery?" she asked softly, wiping the sticky counter with a cloth.

"how do you know it's here?" katie asked with a frown, not coming off rude or so.

"the fruit delivery guy is always, always on time. and he's supposed to be here right now." she answered with a side smile, looking up to see the guy approaching the café.

katie didn't hesitate before she went to get the fruit, giving cassie some time to finish a juice for vanessa. when her co-worker was to put the box of fruit in the coolroom, she pursed her lips and turned to cassie slowly.

"it's locked."

"what?" cassie mumbled, putting the things in her hands down to join katie's side. she pulled the door handle, but groaned when it didn't open. "i don't have any keys. emmett has them."

"then call him. the fruit's gonna' get bad." katie suggested as if it should've been obvious.

"no, you don't understand..." cassie sighed quietly, biting her thumbnail while she glanced at matt.

"cassie." katie said sternly, being the voice of reason for the moment. the cheerleader reluctantly called emmett, telling him to come over quickly with the keys.

"there, happy." cassie faked a smile, which put a real one on katie's face.

"yes. so how do we serve your friends? you told me we'd keep them updated, but...?" she asked with puzzled expression, the corner of her mouth slightly twitched to the side.

"right. i changed the menu for today, because i want both of us to socialize and not just stand here all day. i shortened it down to six of our most popular drinks. i figured we could just make a few of each, put down on a plate on the counter and mark them with a note that says what drink it is. or we could just stand here and take orders if that doesn't work." cassie explained as best as she could, gesturing with her hands sometimes. katie seemed to think about it for a moment — and that cassie liked, since her friend was just as experienced and creative as her — before she nodded.

"yeah, that sounds pretty good. although we'll have to be very quick on taking away empty glasses and making sure a juice hasn't been standing there for too long. maybe we could put them in a fridge? just to assure ourselves that they won't turn warm and yuck-ish." katie developed her idea with folded arms, looking like a true, severe employee.

"yes! yes, that's better. i didn't think of that." cassie nodded, automatically averting her eyes to the fridge. "wow. it's emptier than i thought. that's great."

"and it's by the end of our area, so your friends won't have to come behind the entire counter to grab a drink." katie raised her palms to beside her shoulders, a happy smile on her face.

matt laughed at a joke that was said by a friend, finding it rather funny. while he stood there by the group, he heard a lot of story telling and memories — some that he hadn't remembered until now. alex was practically in the same position, considering most people do revive old moments when someone's about to leave. why's that?, matt wondered to himself. he didn't complain though; it was nice to hear what people remembered about you.

"where's cassie?" chris asked as he looked around.

"making drinks, i suppose. she still works here." matt mumbled while doing the same.

"speaking off girls, do you two still don't think i can swoon steffy?" mason asked the two, watching them turn their heads to each other and smirk.

"no." they answered in unison, shaking their heads.

"thanks guys. so supportive." mason deadpanned, glancing behind their shoulder to where steffy sat.

"look, it's not that you're not... swoon-material, or that she's a bitch. because you're not, and she's not. it's just, you plus steffy equals... well, nothing." chris shrugged, raising his eyebrows.

"we'll see." mason winked at them before he squeezed between the two taller and more muscular guys to walk towards steffy.

"is he–"

"unfortunately."

cassie stood close to the table as she frowned at mason. she listened when he started to talk to steffy, a charming smile on his baby-face. vanessa sent her a weird glance and suppressed a wide grin. basically everyone close to mason knew about his frustration about not impressing her. even steffy knew it.

"you know, you look italian." mason stated, making her frown with her lips.

"actually, i am. well, part italian, but still." steffy confirmed his hunch, which only put a stupid, cute and surprised smile on his face.

"wait, really?"

"oh god." vanessa whispered, pressing a fist against her mouth in order not to laugh.

"hey, mason?" steffy said when he glanced back at his friends. he looked back at her, only to part his lips when she bit on her bottom one.

"yes?" he mumbled, nearly stammering but he kept it in.

steffy didn't say anything more. she sent him a soft smile before taking a hold of the back of his neck and shocking everyone when kissing him.

matt and chris widened their eyes. cassie gaped like never before, vanessa watched amused with raised eyebrows, and mason? he stopped breathing. he was so shocked, but not too shocked to not actually enjoy the kiss and move his own lips against her plump ones.

"holy shit, he actually did it." chris laughed with disbelief on his face.

steffy deepened the kiss teasefully, only to pull away with a smirk. mason was still pouting a little, opening his eyes after a few seconds.

"well..." he started, straightening his back again. "i think it's safe to assume who wants who in this relationship." he added jokingly, cocking his head to the side before walking away again.

unlike what most expected, steffy didn't giggle nor scoff rudely. she just rolled her eyes and smiled, in that way that said he wasn't a hundred percent right, but he wasn't a hundred percent wrong either. that put some hope in the recently kissed boy.

cassie felt her cheeks hurting from grinning so big, so she stopped that a little. it took katie and cassie a while to finish enough drinks, find sticky notes and putting them on two smaller plates in the fridge. katie then announced that they were free to grab a drink whenever, on the café.

glancing to the side, cassie suddenly remembered about the fruit and the coolroom. she was about to call emmett once again when he rushed inside the place, a look of stress on his face. she felt the urge to hit him for being so late, and showing up just like this. she had asked him to text her when he was outside.

mason was still extremely pleased, and also spiteful towards chris and matt. he was, however, very happy. and that made him talk a lot. matt was just nodding when he glimpsed emmett approaching cassie, standing close to her as they spoke in low voices.

"what took you so long? you live just a few meters from here and the fruit is getting ruined." she hissed annoyed, folding her arms together. he opened his mouth to answer the first question, but frowned when she ended.

"wait, you let it stand outside? you have a fridge to put the fruite in, in case of emergencies." he stated as if teaching her the job for the first time. the obvious 'rule' made her purse her lips briefly.

"okay, fine, we didn't think of that. but why so late?" she muttered, eyeing him awkwardly.

"well, i got you a key." he said, dangling a new, fresh key between their faces before handing her it. "i figured it'd be smooth if you also had one. please don't lose it, took me some time. obviously."

"you got me a key?" she questioned in disbelief, not being able to push back her smile. "why?"

"actually, i got you two keys. you can keep the one to the café that you borrowed for this goodbye party." he blurted out, cocking his eyebrows upwards quickly.

"what?!" she said louder than intended, attracting a few more eyes to view them for a brief moment. "why?"

"because i trust you the most. of my employees, i mean. and you deserve it. i have another one at home, in case." he explained, glancing to the side. he noticed matt now, practically staring at them — but with less hate than usual.

"wow, thanks." she laughed while moving over to the coolroom, inserting the key and unlocking the door. emmett grabbed the box of fruits and put it on the shelf for her, shivering due to the cold.

"there. sorry, i forgot to unlock it before. hope the fruit didn't get too bleh-ish." he mumbled and exited with her. "i'll see you later i guess, maybe on full-time after you graduate?"

"probably." she nodded with frowning lips. "see you later. and thanks."

emmett merely smiled at her, raising his clenched hand slowly. cassie averted her eyes to it and laughed through an exhale before fist-bumping him. an old habit of theirs. he then left without even giving matt a dirty look, like he usually would do.

matt sighed through his nose as a thought popped up in his mind, one he hadn't paid attention to before. he realized that once he and alex left the states, he and cassie were over as a couple. not as mutuals, but they had agreed to not try so hard, therefore ending the relationship.

which meant they'd be single again. emmett was a reminder of a few things things;

i. cassie was an incredibly gorgeous girl. not this 'perfection', or angelina jolie, but she was beautiful. not only did her appearance appeal, but her personality only added to that beauty.

ii. if she was officially single again, guys like emmett wouldn't hesitate to swoop in. why wouldn't they? imagining her going out with someone else made his stomach churn. he didn't want that, but that feeling was selfish of him too feel. he knew he wasn't ugly or obnoxious either.

iii. emmett. the two were friends, he was her boss, and he wouldn't mind asking her out. but that wasn't as important; he was done feeling so resentful and jealous of emmett.

other things too, but those were the important thoughts. as cassie approached him, he automatically opened his arms to hug her. she did hug him, but it felt painful now. not comforting and cosy, but painful. remindful. so she pulled back, smiled at him and grabbed another item from the table.

"what's this?" he asked softly, grabbing the piece of paper.

"a letter i wrote. we've all written one each for both of you — and by all, i mean vanessa, mason and i. but don't read them until you're on the plane, please." she explained and licked her bottom lip between her teeth.

"okay." he whispered while putting it in his back pocket.

"is it time?" vanessa asked out of the blue, putting her hands on cassie's shoulders. "i'm so excited, please?"

"okay, okay." cassie chuckled and shook her hands off. "give me a minute."

what the other two girls had planned was some sort of kareoke — only, their friends dedicated songs to alex and matt, ones that held memories. vanessa sang first, picking one that she and alex had heard at restaurant when two guys memorably hit on them. she was a horrible singer, but it was nice.

mason also sang, surprising everyone. he actually could sing. sure, he wasn't a michael jackson (although no one could ever reach that level of talent), but it was pleasant and he didn't sound like a dying cat. he dedicted a song to them each.

cassie didn't sing, she just watched in awe as the others did. chris sang horribly, steffy was quite okay, candice was funny and the rest didn't sing too seriously. alex felt a tear or two roll down her cheek from laughing too much.

katie asked her co-worker to get some more fruit. mason decided to follow cassie inside the coolroom, studying her face thoroughly. it was impossible not to notice how bothered she actully was.

"you okay?" he questioned, turning her around by the shoulder before she could grab anything. she didn't say anything. if there was a person she underappreciated, it was mason. he was so sincere and caring, it made her wish she could confide more in him.

"no." she answered truthfully while shaking her head the slightest.

"oh, cassie..." mason sighed sadly, embracing her in a soothing hug. she shut her eyes closed and swallowed a lump in her throat. "i know it's hard, but–"

"how the fuck can you be so calm? you and vanessa?" she cut him off. he raised her eyebrows since she rarely cussed — he'd only heard her once before.

"because we have to. believe me, i want to cry and scream too. but you, marinov, you're losing both of them. sure, i'm friends with alex, but not like you and vanessa. and we need to be calm so we can be there for you. that's what friends are for, right?" he explained shortly, stroking the back of her head.

"i hate both of you." she muttered, only making him smile. he understood how she meant that; that she hated how they coped with it like that, so confidently without breaking at some point.

"and we love you too. come on, we're about to emberrass them with our speeches." he shook her gently to make her smile, which worked.

"i won't read mine. i gave matt his, and i'll do the same to alex." she reminded him.

"i know. don't forget the fruit."

cassie would've forgotten them if he didn't remind her. she seized what katie asked for and gave them to her, glancing at matt. he frowned deeply, not failing to notice her eyes.

they weren't red and puffy, but there was a glossiness and wetness in them, as if she was on the verge of crying. he then looked at mason who shuffled after his speech on the table, whistling a melody. matt felt a pang in his chest for hurting her this way by leaving. he hated it.

however, no one let that ruin the day. the 'party' (more accurately, get together) continued for a while, with everyone being happy, playful and chattering. and in the end, all the memories that were shared during the day really did emberrass the two siblings.

//

this was the day.

graduation went smoothly and faster than the students had imagined. it was memorable of course, but there was always that one, nagging thought back in the mind of both cassie and matt. it was dreadful, and she did her best to push it further back.

and so soon, too soon, they were on the airport, the five close friends. the girls were all in hoodies and shorts, messy hair up in a ponytail. matt wore sweatpants and a black t-shirt, and mason struggled in the morning to put jeans on.

matt was so proud of cassie when she got her grades and diploma. the same thing goes for