Freshly mowed grass. Freshly spray-painted graffiti. The smell of the stoners' wake and bake session. The complaining of three thousand teenagers, and the scent of their pheromones mingling. Flashes of braces, acne, awkwardness, and desperation to find a place to belong. The hopes, dreams and aspirations of those who are not-yet-adults but not-quite-children. The trepidation and excitement of preparing to launch, to spread one's wings and leave the nest for good.
This is what greets Bonnie Bennett as she parks in her favorite space and steps out of her little red late model Mazda 3. She stands there for a moment and breathes it all in. She can smell it. Her future. She runs Mystic Falls North, and this year isn't going to be any different, especially since it's her senior year. She's truly on top. She's captain of the girl's basketball team, and it's her life. She eats, drinks, and breathes ball.
She also has a 3.73 cumulative GPA (which drives her nuts, because it isn't high enough), and she's National Honor Society president, among other things.
But best believe she keeps it cute. For the first day she's done her hair with a dramatic side part far on the left (her good side) sweeping all the way over to fall in loose waves on her right shoulder, trailing all the way down her back. She's experimented with some honey highlights, and she loves the way they catch the sunlight and soften her look. She's donned gold bejeweled pumps, soft pink distressed leggings, a gold sleeveless top-all designer, of course- with soft pink lipstick and gold shadow to emphasize the hazel flecks in her green eyes and the extra bronzing her chestnut skin received from the summer sun.
Over her forearm was thrown the turquoise Kate Spade satchel her boyfriend Malachai Parker bought her- "just because," he'd said. It was packed with her piles and piles of textbooks, because she refused to wear a backpack.
She sees a black 2016 Charger with black rims and pitch-dark tint pull in, music blasting. She strides right out in front of it, and the driver stomps on his brakes as she strikes a model pose, a wide-legged stance with one hand on her jutted-out hip, with the other hanging straight, casual, her manicured nails glancing her thigh, with her chin tipped up high. The window rolled down, and out leaned a well-muscled bicep and forearm, and the most sultry azure eyes and devilish grin this side of the Mississippi.
"There's the finest woman in the whole damn school!"
Speak of the devil. He's the six-one starting point guard for the boy's team. He's well-off, painfully good looking and well-dressed (today he's wearing a black henley that's fitted enough to show off his muscles, with fitted jeans, a fitted cap, and retro Jordans, all in shades of black and red).
He puts the Charger in park and hops out, holding up the whole line of cars pulling into the lot. Horns blare but they ignore them as Kai fits both of his huge hands around her waist and hefts her up, over his head, and then brings her in for a kiss. His boys, the rest of the MF North starting lineup, lean out the other windows and alternate jeering them and egging them on. They finish their makeout session and sit on the hood of his Charger and take model-quality selfies. They go straight to Instagram and Snapchat.
#FirstDayBack#MFNorth#SeniorsRunIt#ChillinWitBae
Everyone sees. Everyone is reminded. Just in case they forgot who does, in fact, run it.
Kai parks and puts his arm around bonnie's waist, walking her to first period. "Are you ready for this year?" She asks him, a smug smile on her face. "I'm beyond ready, Sweetheart. I'm feeling like this year can't hold me." "It can't. This year needs to be ready for you. Ready for us." He kisses her again at the door and gives her a pat on the buns. "Have a good day, Babe. See you at lunch. Don't break too many hearts." He winks at her. God, he's fine. She blows him a kiss.
Everything's going her way this year. She's got most of her classes with Elena and Caroline, plus lunch with everybody in the crew, both hers and Kai's.
First period is AP chem- what a way to kick off the school year. But she's always been good at math, which translates well into chemistry. She sits front and center, quick to buckle down and start taking notes. It goes well. It'll be tough, but it's no match for her work ethic. Second period is creative writing, which she's not a big fan of because she doesn't like to live in a made up world. She likes thing concrete, tangible, sure. The good news is she shares it with Caroline, who sits behind her. She leans forward with some gossip.
"Why was I hearing that a Salvatore was here this morning?"
"A Salvatore? Why were you hearing that? It's ludicrous."
"Get this; I heard it was Damon." Bonnie had to turn all the way around and look at her for that one. "Oh em gee, who told you that, Care? Why the fuck would Damon Salvatore be here? That makes no sense."
"I don't know," Caroline shrugs,"that's just what I heard, that there have been some sightings."
"Well, he needs to scurry back into his hole at West before the teams get a hold of him." Bonnie waved her hand, as if to say, away with that foolishness. To say the basketball rivalry is intense is an understatement.
Third period is AP Calculus, also decidedly difficult, but also just another hurdle in her race. And she was going to clear it. And once she got fives on all the tests, she was going to take PSEO courses. She wanted an entire year knocked off of her college education. That way in her fourth year as point guard at Virginia Tech she could get halfway through her master's degree in actuary science.
She and Kai were going to wait until after college to get married, until they both were started in their careers, whether they be white collar or on the court. Make no mistakes about it, Bonnie Bennett has everything planned down to the last detail. She's even thought of wedding themes and baby names. She often daydreamed about making beautiful and talented babies with Kai, and becoming Mrs. Bonnie Bennett-Parker. She's going to hyphenate.
When the bell rings for first lunch she finds him, and his arm goes comfortably around her hips again. They jump the line and get their food; a la carte, because there's no way they'd eat the poison that is known as school lunch. They're making their way to their table, flanked by all of their friends, when a completely outrageous sight stops them dead.
Who's sitting at their favorite table, in the front corner by the window, but Damon-freaking-Salvatore.
He's North's most hated rival, and she and Kai's archenemy since the eighth grade. It was mainly between him and Kai but of course, Kai's grudge had become hers. And Damon Salvatore was king of the assholes. Pompous, womanizing, and cocky, he got by on pure talent. He used his intense cobalt eyes to get his way. That paired with his smooth porcelain skin and jet hair made most girls melt. But certainly not her. She has never been fooled. Most importantly, he's senior captain of Mystic Falls West High School men's basketball team. Only how could that be, if he was sitting right here, in their lunchroom, in their seats which they've had since freshman year, which everyone knows not to sit in?
To add insult to injury, there are turncoat North girls flirting with him and his younger brother Stefan.
So this is unacceptable. It's…it's blasphemy.
The lunchroom goes silent. Fifteen hundred eyes are fixed on the crew, bloodthirsty teenagers wondering what's going to happen next, itching to see a fight.
The smirk on Damon's face is so casual and welcoming it's grotesque. Bonnie crosses her arms over her chest and curls her lip in disgust
Kai, in the meantime, looks almost entertained. "What the fuck you doing here, Salvatore?"
Damon wastes no time. "Come to take your spot, Parker."
Kai's eyebrows go up in bemusement. He starts to genuinely laugh, and looks around at the clique, who start laughing too. "Come to take my spot?" He points both index fingers into his chest. "My spot? You do know this is Malachai Parker you're talking to, right?"
"Oh, I'm well aware. I could smell that overpowering DudeBro cologne you like to bathe in from a mile away."
"That's some tough talk for a man who's trespassing on another man's territory."
"I think that cap of yours is too tight, Parker. It's not letting any information into your brain. I told you. I came to take over."
"Look, this has all been a lot of fun, really it has. Your delusions are always entertaining. But I'll tell you about one true thing I do know, and it's that you need to get your asses out of our seats. Like right now."
"Or what, Parker?" Damon waves an Italian dunker in his face, nonchalantly, as if he's bored with the whole situation.
Stefan stands quickly, to deescalate the situation. "Look guys, we didn't know you guys sat here. We'll just find another spot, no big deal." Stefan is the quiet type that makes you think twice before you go up against him. The good news is, he's also very sensible and not so hot-headed as Damon.
Problem is, Damon isn't backing down. He stands up too. "I don't see your names on any of these seats, Parker. As a matter of fact, maybe I see my own name." He and Kai are face-to-face, and Bonnie snickers because Kai is taller. Stefan tries again to get in between them, but Kai puts a hand to his chest and pushes him back.
"Don't touch my brother," Damon snarls, the fun now gone from his voice, a dangerous edge taking its place. Kai smiles in a predatory way, his pointed teeth glinting. He's always liked to fight a little too much, which has always bothered Bonnie.
A hall monitor steps in just in time. "That's quite enough, gentleman. You'll have to take this pissing contest up at another time. Mr. Salvatore, find another seat. We won't have you instigating fights here because of some alpha male complex."
As he picks up his tray he says,"Lookin' good, Bennett. Maybe I'll be coming for that too." he winks at her. Kai lunges at him, his boys holding him back.
"Don't bring your thirst over here just because all the girls at West are bustdowns," Bonnie snaps at him. Everybody behind breaks out in a chorus of Oooooohhhh's.
"Ooh, kitty has claws." His sneer gets under her skin.
"You just watch your ass, Salvatore," Kai warns.
"Original, Malachai. Very original," Damon tosses back over his shoulder.
He and Stefan get invited to sit with a group of in-between-guys…you know, people who aren't outcasts, but they aren't the top dogs either; probably looking to climb the social ladder. Lots of eyes go with them… Bonnie doesn't like it. She hated to admit it, but both Salvatore brothers were physically hot, and had swag for days. They could use personality transplants, though.
"Really, Damon?" Stefan says in exasperation. "You knew that's where Kai Parker and company sit. You just wanted to make waves." Damon just shrugs. "Am I going to have to be the voice of reason at North, too?"
"Don't trouble yourself, Dear Brother. I know what I'm doing here. North High is about to get shaken up, Salvatore style." He winks at Stefan, who rolls his eyes up to the ceiling and shakes his head.
Everyone sits in their normal seats, with Kai sitting on top of the table, as he does half the time , and they all et back to laughing and joking, pretending that nothing ever happened.
Bonnie laughs along, but can't help but think that things are about change in a major way.