Chapter 1

Caroline took a deep breath. It had been a long time since she had been home. Home. What used to be her "home" was now a small town smack in the middle of Virginia. Of course she would blend right in. She had been around long enough to do this song and dance blindfolded.

And today was her first day as English teacher at the local Mystic Falls High School. Why was she so nervous? She had no reason to be. She would do what she always did: come, stay for a decade, and go somewhere else. Once people noticed she wasn't aging with them, she would leave. She wouldn't get close to anyone.

That can never happen.

Becoming emotionally attached just makes leaving more difficult. Better to come, leave, and return when the grandchildren of her students are born. That's the way the game has always been played. The sound of a school bell ringing broke her train of thought.

'Nice, Caroline. First day teaching and you're the one who is late. Why are you that soon at school?'she thought with sarcasm. With a huff she checked to make sure she had everything she needed out of the car and plastered her best First Day smile walked through the school doors.

At least finding her classroom wasn't that hard. 'Room 19, how ironic,' Caroline thought. Being stuck as a 19 year old posing as a school teacher wasn't as easy as it seemed, but Caroline always made it through.

"Good morning class!" Caroline's Academy Award winning smile fell almost instantly. She had never seen so many unhappy faces crammed in one room before, and she had seen a lot of people in a lot of rooms over her time.

It was almost frightening.

When she finally found her voice again she said, "My name is Caroline Forbes, and I'm your new English teacher. Of course, as this school year progresses I hope to be your friend."

If there were crickets in the room you would've heard them.

They were all staring at her.

Did she have a third eye?

"Uh… despite what your other teachers will be doing today, I have something different planned…" Before Caroline could finish, the door swung open. A brown-eyed brunette rushed in and she looked familiar, too familiar. No it couldn't be…

The girl spoke:

"I'm so sorry I'm late, I was just…"

"Oh it's alright. I'm Caroline Forbes, please find yourself a seat and we'll pick up from there." The brunette flashed an awkward smile and found her seat. Hopefully Caroline hadn't scared her with her intense staring. "As I was saying, despite what your teachers will be doing today, I do not follow suite. First days for my classes have always been 'get to know you' day."

The class was still in silence.

"So starting with myself, we will work out way around the room. My name is Caroline Forbes, Miss Forbes in front of the faculty and staff, but you maycall me Caroline anywhere else. I'm 26 years old" it was a lie "from Wales" second lie "and I've been teaching for 2 years now" which was also a lie. "I hope to get to know each and every one of you this year and want to become friends as well as student and teacher."

There it was again. As silent as a cemetery. 20 kids staring. 20 hearts beating in a steady rhythm. Thank God she ate breakfast that morning.

"I'll go next," the brunette said, "My name is Elena Gilbert. I'm 17 years old and this is my first day of sophomore year." 'Elena', Caroline would remember that name. So it wasn't who she thought it was. That was good, the last thing she wanted was her around. As the rest of the class gave their names and everything else, Caroline told the class to write a one-page essay on what they hoped would happen this school year.

Little knew Caroline that it wasn't going to be an easy school year. Not bad either. But it was going to be an overwhelming year