Cassandra sighed as she packed away her papers from the morning session, the Freshman having no talent in her eyes. "There has to be at least one" she sighed. The talent was just not the same in this day and age. She often thought about her own failure on Broadway, The Dan Yankees forever haunting her. She stopped her actions as she heard the doors to the dance hall open. "Schwimmer I don't have time for your shrill, irritating voice" Cassandra sighed putting down her papers and leaning on the desk as she turned around, she then stopped talking as her eyes fell on an middle aged brunette, rather than the platypus faced freshman. "Um, can I help you?" Cassandra asked upon seeing the brunette. The brunette smiled softly and strolled up holding out her hand to shake. "Shelby Corcoran" she said warmly, looking down to her hand. Cassandra narrowed her eyes slightly. "I asked if I could help you, not your name" She said sharply, almost too sharply for a first meeting. Shelby pursed her lips and sighed,
"Sure, I just wanted to talk to you about booking the dance studio, you see my daughter needs somewhere to practise and I wondered if you could open up a slot on the Wednesday? I wanted to turn up and help her, and Wednesday is my only free day" she pointed out. Cassandra arched an eyebrow. "And that's my problem why?" she asked picking up her hand bag, her eyes raking down the shorter brunette, seeing something familiar in her, but what that was she couldn't have been sure of.

Cassandra walked past the brunette, Starbucks on her agenda; she needed coffee fast. Shelby sighed and looked to her. "Oh come on, does it really matter? I thought I'd be nice and ask. But I suppose I can get permission elsewhere, I mean your word isn't God here." Shelby laughed bitterly shaking her head. "I was simply being polite" She continued. Cassandra stopped in her tracks and turned to look at her, her eyes cold but a little flicker of fight in them. "My word IS God in MY studio" she almost hissed, her insecurities rising. Shelby folded her arms and smirked. "Oh fine, wouldn't want you to frazzle your head there… Cassandra" Shelby laughed knowing exactly who the blonde was. Cassandra gripped her hand bag tighter; she couldn't understand why her fighting techniques felt wasted, the brunette's coy smile making her comments useless. Cassandra gritted her teeth and strode away.
"You're really going to just run away again?" Shelby laughed making Cassandra freeze, she thought they were over this, for she really did know the brunette. Cassandra looked back not being able to keep the hurt from her eyes. "18 years, a life time for some, well most actually, especially in your Freshman class" Shelby laughed bitterly walking slowly over to Cassandra, Cassandra stood herself up trying to not show Shelby that she was affected.
"Fuck you" she hissed, her eyes narrowing. "Just, fuck you" she said quietly, Shelby rolled her eyes.
"Fuck me? After what you did? Oh that's real rich, but I'm not getting into this...I'm over you and I am simply asking as one professional to another to use your dance studio, if you are going to be that same arrogant child you always have been then whatever" Shelby shrugged. Cassandra watched Shelby carefully as Shelby shook her head leaving her in the empty space. Cassandra stared to the door remembering what she had tried to repress for so long, she walked over to the doors and locked them after the brunette left, her heart heavy and the need for coffee, turning to a need for liquor.

18 years ago, New York City- Cassandra

Cassandra was depressed without Shelby, she found herself nursing a bottle of Whiskey that was really of no comfort to her at all. She hated to argue with the brunette, but they had too many conflicting opinions and it couldn't be helped…But Cassandra knew she was hopelessly in love with her and the fact that Shelby had avoided her only tire her heart open. Cassandra threw the bottle to the side once finished, too drunk to realize it had smashed, she shrugged and hung her head with a long sigh, closing her eyes, and getting up dizzily. She needed more liquor and fast, grabbing her jacket she headed for the liquor shop swaying slightly as she walked down the busy street; she wasn't even bothered if people were looking at her. That was when the taxi driver hit her. Driving up on the curb and hitting the blonde, the taxi driver panicked his steering off in the rickety old cab but Cassandra too drunk to jump out of the way; her lightning fast reflexes affected by the Whiskey. She smashed her head onto the bonnet as the car struck, and fell backwards hitting her head again. Cassandra laughed dizzily in a clear concussion and by the fact she felt like a ragdoll due to the alcohol intake, her neck damaged and her shoulder dislocated from the fall. She dizzily hummed on the side on the pavement, her eyes fluttering as she tried to stay awake, the alcohol and concussion pressing her eyelids to shut. A woman rushed to her side to help her, whilst a man barked not to move her. Cassandra groaned slightly as the pain was now too much, even for the alcohol to hide, coming through as a dull ache. "Oh lighten up you dorks" she moaned, her sassy self-coming through before she gritted her teeth fighting the concussion, She strained to look to her side and was amazed by the position her arm was in, could it be bent back that way? Cassandra squinted as she considered this before her eyes simply fluttered shut, her injuries to severe to keep her awake any longer.