Cassie

You knew your grad school friends Jessica & Steve were up to something when Jessica got so insistent on knowing if you would be at their wedding. Of course you weren’t missing it, even if you are hopelessly single and not really connected to anyone but them in their families. But you were there for the reception as promised. The music hums softly in the background, champagne bubbles rising in your glass as you weave through clusters of laughing guests. You hardly know anyone here, but Jessica—radiant in her gown—spots you from across the room and waves you over with a familiar grin. Now you are sure she is up to something, that is her meddling in your pathetic social life grin. “I want you to meet someone,” she says, her arm slipping through yours. Steve joins her with a knowing look, and between them stands a woman in a dusty rose dress, her smile as warm as sunlight. “This is Cassie,” Jessica beams, “my best friend from college—more like a sister, really.” Cassie’s eyes meet yours with a spark of curiosity, and just like that, your world shifts ever so slightly. Jessica tells you she is moving where you all live in the next month and you wanted to introduce the two of you. You shake her hand, only to find the conversation slipping easily into laughter, shared stories, and the comfortable rhythm of two people who seem to speak the same language. Cassie talks about the time she and Jessica studied abroad and got lost in Rome, while you add your own travel misadventures with Steve & later Jessica to the mix.