Hello everyone, this story starts with a slightly altered ending to 8x16. I hope you like it!
It was hot. Like really hot. It was all Stefan could feel. No smell, or taste, or sound, or sight. He thought about Katherine, how this must be a breeze for her. What's a little hellfire to 6 years in actual hell? Then it hit him. Suddenly, Stefan felt the silk of his bed sheets, the crisp summer sun hitting his skin, and the smell of pancakes. "What the hell?" he mutters to himself.
He puts on some pants and a shirt and rushes downstairs. As he makes his way into the kitchen, he sees a figure. He moves closer, in disbelief. And with each foot forward, his begins to smile.
"Morning, sunshine." Lexi says, placing another pancake to the pile in front of Stefan. "I thought you'd want a good first meal after, ya know, the whole saving Mystic Falls and being a martyr thing."
"To be fair, I don't want to do these things." Stefan replies.
"You mean didn't. There's no more of this getting yourself killed for others, or putting your feelings or desires to the side. You've found peace, so you better loosen up or I will–"
"It's nice to see you too, Lexi." he replies, with a soft smile.
Lexi furls her lip, holding back whatever lecture she had started into. "Well, just so you know. We won the lottery. Here, we have the indestructibility of our vampire bodies and the taste buds and emotions of our human bodies. The best part– drink, get drunk, and no hangover the next day."
"You obviously have this whole peace thing down." Stefan says as he takes a seat at the island. "Any other things I should know about?"
Lexi freezes. A few minutes pass. Stefan, noticing the tension, works on the pancakes in front of him, plopping butter and syrup on top. As he eats, each bite seems like heaven. The pancakes are light and airy; the syrup and butter, rich, only heightening the flavors of the pancakes. Notes of cinnamon emerge, as Stefan continues to enjoy the breakfast. He was so engrossed in the food, he almost didn't notice when Lexi turned to face him.
"Okay, don't get mad." she finally says.
Just then, there's a knock at the door. Without thinking, Stefan races to answer it, all the while confused. "Who else could possibly be here?"
As he opens the door, Lexi stops in her tracks. She recognizes her. She knew those loose, long brown curls and that damn evil smile. "How could she possibly have made it here?" she thought.
In what seems like Stefan's worst nightmare, he sees Katherine Pierce walk through the door, prancing past him and Lexi and into the living room. "Well, isn't this going to be fun?" she grins.