Cass realized she probably should have made some sort of noise -- cleared her throat or something -- because she'd slightly startled the girl. "Sorry," she quickly replied; it was a word she could never get used to saying.
She nodded when the other girl asked about escaping the crowd. "I'm Cassandra," she replied, then smiled when Kate complimented her party. "Thank you."
Kate wanted to know how she was doing. She thought for a moment. How to answer that. "Better," she replied finally.