“I’ll never allow a fräüd like you to become a part of my daughter’s life. This will be the last time you hear this from me. If you go near her again, I’ll drag you back to jail myself. Mark my words.”
Carlos asked Daniela whether she knew Alvin since he had seen her talking to him earlier. Daniela told him that she had just been warning him not to meddle in their family’s problems. Carlos said he felt sorry for Cassie and he would have told her the truth himself had it not been for her father. Daniela told him to sympathize with Marga instead, adding that everything that Cassie had belonged to Marga.
Carlos mentioned that Cassie was her father’s legal child and Daniela told him that was only on paper, adding that she and her mother were nothing but fräüds. Myrna came home smiling and Jude asked whether she had won a jackpot. Myrna announced that she had gone to the hospital for a checkup and doctor hadn’t been able to identify any cancer cells in her system. Kulas and his sons were glad to hear that Myrna was no longer sick.
Robert took Cassie to school and told security to never allow her to go out without informing him, adding that she shouldn’t be allowed to leave campus until the person supposed to pick her up arrived. Fatima told Cassie about how her mother had been so worried about her yesterday. LJ added that she wasn’t surprised that her father was more strict with her now.
“I had to do it to find out the truth,” Cassie argued.
“That’s why you’re allowing your relationship with your parents to be destroyed?” Fatima asked. “Your search is affecting your entire family.”
Cassie looked hurt. “You also don’t understand me now? I never wanted any of this to happen. Am only doing this so I can have a piece of mind. All this time I thought you understood that. But I guess not.”
Cassie walked away, ignoring as Fatima called out to her. Carlos went to visit and Kulas told him that his mother was cancer free now. Carlos hugged his mother gladly, asking if it had just disappeared. Gino mentioned that miracles did happen and Carlos was glad since it was the first good news he had heard for a while now. Carlos then mentioned that he had noticed Daniel acting strange recently and he was certain that she was hiding something from him.
Robert went to see the head of maintenance and asked him to fire Alvin. The man told him that he couldn’t do that without a valid reason since Alvin had signed a contract with them. As Robert was asking what he had to do to get Alvin fired, Alvin showed up and pleaded with him not to have him fired since he had a family to support.
“I only went with Cassie because I wanted to keep her safe,” Alvin said. “Since when did protecting a little girl become a crime?”
Robert gave him a look. “Alright. I’ll let this one slide. Just don’t go near her again, and we won’t have any problems.” Robert walked out and made a phone call. “I need you to investigate someone.”
The entire class was laughing and making fun of Cassie as soon as she entered. Cassie found an envelope on her desk and she was shocked at it’s content; it was a photo of herself in the outfit she had used for the Juliet role. Instead of Kristoff, Alvin had been edited into the picture as Romeo. Cassie was annoyed and the class laughed and mocked her some more. Kristoff arrived as Cassie stormed out of the class. When he saw the picture, he gave Marga a look before going after Cassie. Cassie was sitting by herself crying when Kristoff found her and asked if she was okay.
“If I tell you that am fine, would you believe me?” Cassie asked.
“Am sorry.”
“After everything that’s happened Kristoff, I can’t tell what you’re really sorry for.”
“It’s about what happened between you and Marga. I should have believed you. Am really sorry, Cassie. I just can’t believe they did that to you.”
Cassie sniffed back tears. “Am not even surprised anymore, Kristoff. I should be used by it by now, because ever since I moved here, they haven’t stopped bullying me.”
“This isn’t something to get used to,” Kristoff said. “It would be better if you don’t give them the opportunity to do that to you.”
“So it’s all my fault that am being bullied? Am the one at fault because they’re thinking maliciously?”
“That’s not what I mean. It could have been avoided. It’s not usual for a student to be so close to a school janitor.”
“Kristoff, Mr. Vin is a nice person. We’re not doing anything wrong. He’s the only one who really wants to help me.”
“Am just saying what the others are thinking.”
“No, you’re saying that because that’s what you believe. Who should I ask for help then? I can’t trust LJ and Fatima Anymore. And now you’re taking Marga’s side.”
“Cassie, this is different. You don’t know the guy.”
“And I don’t know you anymore, Kristoff. I thought you were different from them. But you’re just like all our classmates. You all think the same thing about me.”
Cassie walked out on Kristoff. At Camila, Romina noticed a huge redrawal from her joint account with her husband. Bonita checked Mina’s computer and asked whether she was planning on buying a car with that kind of money. The Mean Girls were mocking and making fun of Cassie on account of the sick joke they had played on her. Kristoff listened in as Nica said that Marga wouldn’t have been able to pull it off had it not been for Nadya’s help.
“If you want us to continue working together, then I have a condition,” Nadya said.
“And what condition is that?” Marga asked.
“Treat me as your equal, and not as your minions you treat as servants.” Nadya offered her hand. “So, deal?”
Marga shook Nadya’s hand. “Deal. No problem with me.”
Kristoff looked frustrated and disappointed from where he stood. Alvin found Cassie walking around campus and he asked her if her parents had scolded her badly. Cassie told him that she was fine. She then apologized for what her father had done to him. Alvin then told her that Robert was still upset with him and he had asked his boss to fire him. Over dinner, Gino revealed to Neil about his mother’s cancer being cured. Neil told him about how Robert was now stricter with Cassie, adding that he couldn’t understand why he didn’t want to tell her the truth.
Romina went into Robert’s office and told him about the huge redrawal from their joint account. She asked what he had used the money for and Robert told her that he had used the money to make a down payment on a house near Cassie’s school. Mina was against it and Robert apologized and promised to cancel it. Kristoff confronted Marga and told her to stop acting so innocent since he had heard her talking to Nadya earlier, adding that she had gone too far this time. Marga told him that whatever that was going on between her and Cassie didn’t concern him.
“I want to believe that you’re a good person,” Kristoff said. “But you keep making it so easy for me to believe that am wrong. I just don’t get it. What do you really want?”
“What if this is who I really am? What if I am a bad person?”
“Marga, nobody’s born evil. So if you think you’re a bad person, it’s not because you were born that way. It’s because you choose to be that way.”
Daniela came into her father’s office. She told him that she was worried about him after what had happened last night. She asked whether he had spoken to Cassie yet and Robert told her that wouldn’t solve anything. Daniela then suggested that he have Alvin fired since he was making things worse.
“Do you know that guy?” Robert asked. “Why do you sound so interested in him?”
“No,” Danny girl replied. “The longer he’s at Maxwell, the longer this problem would drag. Marga goes to the same school and I don’t want people like that to be around her.”
Cassie confronted her father angrily when he arrived home with Romina. Robert asked why she was upset and she asked him why he had threatened to fire Mr. Vin from his job. “He was just helping me out,” Cassie said. “If you’re mad, then take it out on me, not the person who was trying to protect.”
“Okay, Cassie. Let’s talk about this calmly. You don’t have to raise your voice.”
“Are you going to keep away all the people who are trying to help me?” Cassie ranted on. “Are you still my daddy? Because the dad I grew up with is not unreasonable like you!”
Robert raised his hand to smack her but Mina managed to stop him. Robert came back to himself and apologized profusely.
Cassie was crying now. “Please, bring me back my dad,” she wailed. “The dad I used to know is not like this.” Cassie ran up to her room and Mina turned and gave her husband a look.
“Am sorry,” Robert repeated, and Mina consoled him with a hug.
Romina came into Cassie’s room and tried to convince her that her father had never intended on raising his hand on her. She added that she didn’t know why things were going so badly when her sixteenth birthday was just around the corner. Cassie seemed surprised, yet she still remained silent.
“Did you know you that?” Mina asked. “We’ve been planning big things for your sixteenth birthday. Because you’re the one who changed our lives and made us happy.”
Alvin complained to his brother how Robert had requested for him to be fired so he couldn’t go near Cassie. Hector told him that Robert was not an easy prey since he had also threatened him over the phone. Alvin suggested that they teach him a lesson and show him that he had messed with the wrong people. The next morning, the atmosphere at the dining table was depressing. Cassie hadn’t touched her food. When Mina asked whether she had any food requests for her birthday, Cassie told her that anything was fine with her.
Romina tried cheering her up, telling her that she could invite all her friends and even the kids she taught at Navotas. Cassie told her mother to handle everything instead since they might not like the people she might invite. She then left to go get ready for school. Marga planned on celebrating with the Mean Squad for her supposed victory in the Maxwell Prime. When she saw Kristoff approaching, she tried calling him but he just ignored her and walked away. Nadya asked if something had happened between her and Kristoff since he never treated her that way before.
Marga told them to stop asking questions, saying that the most important thing for her was to get back on top and bring Cassie down. Romina took Cassie to school and she bid her goodbye and went inside. LJ and Fatima came along and Mina asked them about Cassie. After she had left, both girls apologized to Cassie for hurting her but Cassie stormed off upset that they had told her mother about what was going on in school.
Robert found out from an investigator that Alvin had faked his information to get into Maxwell. The investigator told him that Alvin was an ex-convict and he had been in prison for selling drügs. Robert was surprised to find that Alvin used to work at Camila and thus, knew about the secret concerning Cassie. Cassie came into class and she was surprised to find that her desk had been littered with trash. A girl mocked her and asked her to call in her janitor friend to clean up the mess and the entire class laughed.
“No need,” Cassie said. “I can clean this up myself.”
Kristoff came in and helped Cassie clean up. The girl made fun of Marga as well and Kristoff yelled, telling them to stop. He warned them that they would end up in the principal’s office if they kept doing it. At Camila, Mina was overwhelmed with the preparations for Cassie’s birthday. Bonita told her that she didn’t have to worry so much since she had raised her daughter well. She suggested that she ask Cassie’s opinion if she really wanted to make her happy. After class, Marga thanked Kristoff for defending her and Kristoff told her that there was no need because he was tired of all the bullying going on. Kristoff hurried over to Cassie and she also thanked him for his help.
“I’m fine, Tope,” Cassie said. “I don’t break that easily. You don’t need to worry about me.” Cassie started walking away.
“I won’t give up on our friendship,” Kristoff yelled. “I won’t let it go to waste. Even though you no longer see me as your friend, I’ll always be here for you.”
Cassie walked away without responding and Marga looked on angrily. During break, Alvin mentioned to Cassie that she was often by herself these days and that he had heard about what her classmates had done to her. Cassie apologized for dragging him into her issues. Alvin said she was like a daughter to him and Cassie told him that she was glad he was there since he didn’t have anyone else to talk to. Robert walked in on the scene and confronted Alvin.
“Didn’t I tell you to stay away from my daughter?” he asked. Robert told Cassie to stay away from Alvin because she had no idea the kind of person he was. “You can fake your way into Maxwell, but I’ll never allow a fräüd like you to become a part of my daughter’s life.”
Cassie asked what he was talking about and Robert told her that Alvin had faked all his documents to get into Maxwell. He showed her Alvin’s criminals record. Cassie asked Alvin if it was true and Alvin said he had just done that so he could have a fresh start since he had been framed.
“This will be the last time you hear this from me,” Robert warned. “If you go near her again, I’ll drag you back to jail myself. Mark my words.”
Alvin looked on angrily as Robert left with Cassie. Daniela was very upset that Alvin had ruined her day with his constant meddling. Savannah pointed out that paying him to keep silent wouldn’t work. She suggested that she frame him up again so he would go back to jail and stop bothering her. Daniela was against the idea since Alvin would then figure out that she was the one who had framed him up years ago.
“I need to get rid of him,” Danny girl said. “The sooner, the better. And no one can find out what am about to do.”
Since Bernard was Robert’s closest friend, Romina asked him whether her husband had told him about something she didn’t know of. Bernard told her to ask Robert herself. Cassie tried to convince her dad not to inform the principal and have Alvin fired since he had been good to her. Robert told her that she didn’t really know the guy and he was just protecting her since Alvin had been in prison for more than ten years for being a drüg pusher. Romina was surprised when Daniela came to her office and offered to help with the preparations for Cassie’s birthday. Mina however told her that Bonita had already taken care of everything. Daniela then took the guest list and insisted on finalizing it.
“I hope she doesn’t invite Alvin,” Danny girl said. “Because she considers him as a close friend.”
Mina gave her a look. “Cassie only invited her friends from school. And am sure Robert wouldn’t want to see Alvin at the party.”
“Good. Because you should be protecting your daughter from that guy, just like how dad has been doing. He’s a really bad influence.”
“Do you have a problem with Alvin?” Mina asked, suddenly suspicious.
“I don’t. I just don’t want Cassie’s party to be ruined. Just imagine what dad would say if he saw that man there.”
Romina stared suspiciously as Daniela left.
