Disclaimer: I don't own 'The Vampire Diaries' in any shape or form. But I do own my OCs.
Title: Calm Before the Storm
Author: Original Huntress
Pairings (for season 1 ONLY, does NOT concern the other seasons): Stefan/OC friendship, Damon/OC friendship.
Summary: Annabelle's life was normal, just like any other teenage girl's. Mystic Falls was normal, just like any other town. Until two brothers make their way into town. How will Annabelle cope with her new knowledge of the supernatural? Pairings for season 1 ONLY, does NOT concern the other seasons: Stefan/OC friendship, Damon/OC friendship, same OC.
A/N: Alright, well, this is the very first chapter of this story. I hope you like it, and please leave reviews to tell me what you think!
This will start in the very first episode of the series, 1x01 'Pilot'.
Love Also Has Thorns
Chapter One
Pilot
Her eyes fluttered open as the all-too-familiar sound was heard from her phone. Grunting quietly, not wanting to get up yet, she turned to lay on her back and blindly searched for her phone on the nightstand with her hand. After a few seconds, she felt the cool texture beneath her fingers and quickly grabbed the phone, bringing it in front of her face and squinting as the bright light irritated her sleepy eyes. She quickly clicked the 'OK' icon, and threw her phone back onto the nightstand before turning on her side and covering herself with the quilt again.
"Anna! Are you up yet?!" there was a knock on the door of her bedroom, and she sat up tiredly, sighing in irritation.
"Yeah!" she called back to her sister, trying not to let the annoyance she felt show in her voice. She then grudgingly threw the covers off of her slim form, hissing in irritation as the cool air hit her bare legs. She quickly grabbed a random hair tie from her vanity, and threw her dark hair up in a messy bun before walking into the bathroom that she shares with her aunt and closing the door behind her. She then quickly stripped her gray-white striped pajama shorts and white shirt with gray neckline and 3/4 sleeves, and jumped into the shower. As soon as the hot water hit her skin, she felt her muscles relax and she sighed in contentment, before quickly grabbing her sponge and pouring her favorite rose-scented body wash onto it. She quickly but thoroughly washed her body, before stepping out of the shower and wrapping a towel around herself.
After stepping out of the bathroom, she quickly dried herself off before putting on gray-white striped, loose, 3/4 sleeved shirt, skinny jeans, and gray vans, as well as a long, silver necklace with a large key charm to compliment the look . She then made the bed, before braiding the front strands of her hair and pulling it back to put her hair in a pony tail, and putting the towel back in the bathroom. After quickly checking if she had everything she needed, she grabbed her school bag and slung it over her shoulder before leaving her room and heading downstairs.
"Toast," she heard a female voice coming from the kitchen. "I can make toast,"
"It's all about the coffee, Aunt Jenna," she said as she walked into the kitchen, seeing her aunt standing in front of the open refrigerator, and her sister sitting at the table. She then put her bag on the chair next to Elena's, before walking over to the coffee machine and pouring herself some coffee.
"Is there coffee?" Jeremy asked, walking into the kitchen, and she nodded, holding up the mug.
"Your first day of school and I'm totally unprepared," Jenna stressed as Jeremy walked over to Annabelle, holding his hand out, making her sigh with a small smile before handing him the already filled cup, since she knew he would want coffee. He gave her a small smile in thanks, and she ruffled his hair slightly before grabbing a cup for herself and walking over to stand behind Elena, "Lunch money?" Jenna asked, walking over to stand in front of the three teenagers, holding some money in her hand.
"I'm good," Annabelle shook her head.
"So am I," Elena said, while Jeremy quickly snatched all the money from her hand, making Annabelle sigh quietly, since she was 99% sure that he won't spend that money on lunch.
"Anything else?" Jenna asked, "A number two pencil?" she joked, packing her things into her bag before looking up. "What am I missing?"
"Don't you have a big presentation today?" Annabelle asked with furrowed eyebrows, remembering what her aunt told her the day before.
"I'm meeting with my thesis adviser at..." Jenna trailed off as she looked at the watch on her wrist, before throwing her hands up in frustration, "Now. Crap," she said as she quickly pulled her strawberry blonde hair out of her messy bun, letting it fall loosely on her shoulders.
"Then go," Annabelle said, and Jenna looked at her, slightly worried, "We'll be fine," the teenage girl added, seeing the hesitation in her aunt's eyes, and Jenna sighed before giving her a thankful smile and rushing out of the house.
"You okay?" Elena asked, looking at Jeremy, concerned, making him scoff quietly.
"Don't start," he said, still holding the cup of coffee Annabelle made him, before giving his other sister a nod and also leaving.
Annabelle let out a sigh as she watched the door for a few seconds, before looking at her twin sister, who was frowning.
"Give him some time, Elena," Annabelle said and Elena sighed, but nodded nonetheless. Annabelle gave her a small smile, before grabbing her bag, "Now, come on. Bonnie's going to be here..." she trailed off as they heard a honk from outside, "Now, apparently," she finished, and Elena gave a small chuckle before getting up and grabbing her things.
"So, Grams is telling me I'm psychic," Bonnie spoke as she drove her car, with Elena in the passenger seat and Annabelle in the backseat, "Our ancestors were from Salem, which isn't all that, I know, crazy, but she's going on and on about it, and I'm like, 'put this woman in a home already!'," she chuckled, and Annabelle couldn't help but smile at her best friend as she turned her head to look out the window. However, as soon as she saw that they were driving past the cemetery, she quickly adverted her gaze and concentrated fully on Bonnie so that her thoughts wouldn't wander off to places she didn't want them to, "But then, I started thinking, I predicted Obama, and I predicted Heath Ledger, and I still think Florida will break off and turn into little resort islands," Bonnie continued, before stopping as she glanced at Elena. Noticing her expression, Annabelle furrowed her eyebrows and leaned over to also look at her sister, only to see her gazing out the window, lost in thought, "Elena!" Bonnie called, letting out a small chuckle, making Elena immediately turn to look at us, "Back in the car," Bonnie joked with a small grin.
"I did it again, didn't I?" Elena sighed as she glanced at her sister, making her nod. "I-I'm sorry, Bonnie. You were telling us that...?"
"That she's psychic now," Annabelle supplied with a small, teasing smile.
"Right, okay," Elena said, clearly not believing a word, "Then predict something. About me," she said, and Bonnie sighed, looking over at her with a smile before closing her eyes for a moment.
"I see-" she was cut off when something suddenly slammed against the car, making them all gasp as Bonnie lost control of the car for a second, before being able to steady it and bring it around the corner, the tires screeching before they halted to a stop, "What was that?!" Bonnie exclaimed as she glanced at the two sisters, who were both trying to take in deep breaths, "Oh, my God," Bonnie leaned back in her seat, also trying to make sense of what just happened, "Are you guys okay?" she asked worriedly, the guilt rising up in her.
"It's okay," Elena said, her voice a bit shaky. "I'm fine,"
"Anna?" Bonnie looked at the girl in the backseat, who nodded shakily.
"Yeah, I... I'm good," she said, trying to get her breathing under control as unwelcome images flashed before her eyes.
"It was like a bird or something, it came out of nowhere," Bonnie spoke quickly, looking at the apologetically.
"No, it's okay," Annabelle said, but Bonnie looked at her skeptically, "Look, we can't be scared of cars for the rest of our lives," she said, and Bonnie nodded hesitantly before looking at the two with a soft smile.
"I predict this year is going to be kick-ass," she said, and Annabelle smiled a little, "And I predict all the sad and dark times are over, and you two," she pointed at the two girls, "Are going to be beyond happy," she finished, and Annabelle and Elena both smiled at their friend, hoping that she's right.
"Major lack of male real estate," Bonnie said as she, Elena, and Annabelle walked down the hallway of their high school, "Look at the shower curtain on Kelly Beach," she grimaced as she looked at the girl walking in front of them, making Annabelle and Elena stifle a laugh as they shared a look. "She looks a hot - can I still say 'tranny mess'?"
"No, that's over," Annabelle joked as she leaned against the lockers with Elena by her side.
"Ah, find a man, coin a phrase, it's a busy year," Bonnie grinned at them, about to open her locker, when something behind them caught her attention. Annabelle's brows furrowed in confusion as she and Elena turned around to see what Bonnie was looking at, only to see a handsome, blonde, blue-eyed teenager, staring at Elena with pain in his eyes. Elena raised her hand, giving him a small wave and a small smile, but he just looked at her for a second longer before moving his eyes to Annabelle, giving her a nod, and taking his books out of his locker, slamming the locker shut, and walking away, completely ignoring the eldest Gilbert.
Elena sighed sadly as she slowly turned back around to look at Bonnie, who was looking at her sympathetically.
"He hates me," she said miserably.
"No, he doesn't," Annabelle said reassuringly, but Elena just gave her a look, making Annabelle giver her a small, comforting smile.
"No, Anna's right," Bonnie spoke up, "That's not hate. That's, 'you dumped me, but I'm too cool to show it, but secretly I'm listening to Air Supply's greatest hits'," she said, making Annabelle chuckle quietly.
"Anna, Elena," came a bit preppy voice, and Annabelle only had a second to turn around before she was engulfed in a tight hug by a beautiful blonde girl, "Oh, my God. How are you?" the girl asked, letting go of Annabelle, "Oh, it's so good to see you," the blonde continued, turning her attention to Elena and hugging her tightly as well, "How are they? Are they good?" she asked Bonnie over Elena's shoulder, making Annabelle smile gently at the concern in her voice.
"Caroline, we're right here," Elena butted in with a small grin, though Annabelle could tell that her sister was a bit annoyed by the blonde, "And I'm fine," she nodded, and Caroline nodded before the three girls turned to look at Annabelle.
"I'm okay, I'm good," the brunette nodded, trying to sound as convincing as possible. "Thank you,"
"Really?" Caroline pressed gently, wanting to make sure that her friends are alright.
"Yes," Annabelle nodded again. "Much better,"
"Oh, you poor thing," Caroline murmured, before pulling her best friend into a hug again, making Annabelle chuckle quietly. The blonde girl hugged Annabelle for a few more seconds, before pulling away and smiling at the three brunettes, "Okay, see you guys later?" she asked, and they all nodded, "Okay, bye," Caroline grinned, and they all returned it, before walking away.
"No comment," Elena shook her head as she turned back to her sister and dark-skinned friend, making Annabelle chuckle quietly.
"Okay, so she is a bit overbearing, but she means well," she reasoned.
"I'm not gonna say anything," Elena muttered, making Annabelle smack her playfully.
As the three girls walked by the school office, Bonnie came to a sudden halt, holding her arm out to stop the two other girls as well.
"Hold up. Who's this?" she asked, and Annabelle followed her gaze, only to see her staring at the back of a tall teenager wearing jeans and a black leather jacket.
"All I see is back," Elena said.
"It's a hot back," Annabelle supplied, making her sister chuckle, amused, while Bonnie nodded in agreement.
"I'm sensing Seattle, and he plays the guitar," Bonnie said while staring at the young man intensely.
"You're really gonna run this whole psychic thing into the ground, aren't you?" Annabelle chuckled.
"Pretty much," Bonnie replied nonchalantly, still not taking her eyes off of the young man but letting a grin slip onto her lips.
"Jeremy. Good batch, man," Annabelle heard one of the students from behind Bonnie say, and she and Elena both looked over the dark-skinned girl's shoulder, only to see their younger brother walk into the men's restroom.
"I'll be right back," Elena said in a hard voice as she sighed before following Jeremy.
"I..." Annabelle trailed off with a sigh while pointing in the direction her siblings headed, before following them, not wanting Elena to get ahead of herself.
Annabelle entered the men's restroom, almost bumping into one of the boys from their school, only to see Elena already holding Jeremy's face in her hand roughly as she looked into his eyes.
"Great," the eldest Gilbert chuckled humorlessly, pulling her hand away as Annabelle arrived by her side. "It's the first day of school and you're stoned,"
"No, I'm not," Jeremy scoffed.
"Where is it? Is it on you?" Elena questioned as she started searching Jeremy's pockets, making Annabelle sigh and pinch the bridge of her nose.
"Stop, alright? You need to chill yourself, alright?!" Jeremy exclaimed, pushing his oldest sister away.
"'Chill myself'?" Elena repeated slowly, staring at her brother incredulously. "What is that, stoner talk? Dude, you are so cool," she said coldly, before starting to search through Jeremy's pockets again.
"Look, stop! I don't have anything on me! Are you crazy?!"
"You haven't seen 'crazy', Jeremy! I gave you a summer pass, but I am done watching you destroy yourself," Elena said, and pushed Jeremy back as he attempted to storm past her, "No, no, no, no, you know what? Go ahead. Keep it up. But just know that I am going to be there to ruin your buzz every time, you got it?" Elena said, and Annabelle sighed.
"Alright, Elena, that's enough," she said, just as they heard a flush come from one of the stalls before one of the students from their school came out, glancing at the Gilbert sisters oddly before leaving the restroom.
"Jeremy, I know who you are," Elena said, speaking in a softer tone this time. "And it's not this person. So don't be this person,"
"I don't need this," Jeremy spat, his voice tight, before storming past his oldest sister and leaving the restroom.
Annabelle sighed as she stared at the door her brother just left through, before walking past her sister, leaving the restroom. As soon as she was back in the hallway, she looked around before barely being able to catch the sight of her brother's retreating back. Without wasting a second so that she wouldn't lose him in the crowd, Annabelle quickly ran after her brother, just barely being able to catch up with him.
"Jeremy, wait!" she called, but her brother didn't stop.
"What, are you gonna yell at me, too?!" he yelled, though Annabelle could hear the pain he was trying to hide in his voice.
"No, I-okay, will just stop and listen to me?!" she caught up with him and grabbed his shoulder, pulling him to a stop and turning him around to face her.
"What?!" Jeremy yelled as he faced his sister, and her face softened as she saw the un-shed tears in his brown eyes.
"Look..." she sighed, and Jeremy looked down at her with his jaw clenched, "Elena got ahead of herself, but we both only want what's best for you, Jeremy," she spoke, ignoring the scoff she received in response, "Look, I know that this is your way of dealing with... everything that's been going on... but you can't keep doing this to yourself. It's your choice, of course it is," she added quickly when she saw his jaw clench. "But please, just... be careful,"
For a moment, Jeremy's eyes softened as he looked into his sister's concerned and worried light blue eyes, before he sighed.
"Well, like you said... it's my choice," he said, before walking away from her.
"Once our home state of Virginia joined confederacy in 1861, it created a tremendous amount of tension within the state. People in Virginia's northwest region had different ideals than those from the traditional deep south. Then, Virginia divided in 1863 with the northwest region, joining the union." Annabelle stopped paying attention to her teacher, whom she found incredibly boring and quite rude, when Elena's phone vibrated. As her sister pulled it out, Annabelle leaned over to read the message she received from Bonnie, and grinned.
'HAWT-E STARING U'
Elena smiled and shook her head, while Annabelle glanced over at the new student, who was very handsome; light brown, short hair, thick, dark eyebrows, leaf-green eyes, and perfect bone structure. And, indeed, his eyes were on no other than Elena. Annabelle bit her lip to stop herself from grinning, when his eyes suddenly traveled to her. She watched as his eyes widened the tiniest bit, and quickly turned back around to pay attention to the teacher, while the new student stared at her for a few more seconds before also returning his attention to the teacher.
"His name is Stefan Salvatore," Caroline spoke to Bonnie and Annabelle about the new student in their school as the three girls slowly walked through the Grill a few hours after school. Annabelle, knowing that her sister wanted to spend some time at the cemetery (again), decided to simply meet up with Caroline and Bonnie, and let Elena meet up with them later, "He lives with his uncle up at the old Salvatore Boarding House, he hasn't lived here since he was a kid. Military family, so they moved around a lot. He's a Gemini, and his favorite color is blue," Caroline finished as she stopped walking and turned around to look at her two best friends.
"You got all of that in one day?" Bonnie asked in disbelief, and Annabelle chuckled.
"Oh, please. She got all of that between third and fourth period," she said, and Bonnie looked at her in disbelief before turning back to Caroline, who simply nodded with a nonchalant smile.
"Yup. We're planning a June wedding," she said, before turning around and walking away from the two girls, who simply stared after her in amusement.
"She's unbelievable," Bonnie murmured with a disbelieving chuckle, making Annabelle hold back a laugh.
"Well, that's Caroline for you," she said, making Bonnie stifle a laugh.
"How's Elena doing?" Annabelle heard a male voice ask, and excused herself from a conversation she had with Caroline.
"Her mom and dad died. How do you think?" she heard Bonnie reply, and stiffened, coming to a halt. The dark-skinned girl's eyes wandered over to where she was standing, and widened, guilt immediately rising up. "Oh, my God. Anna, I... I am so sor-"
"It's okay, don't worry about it," Annabelle managed to say, before gathering the strength to continue walking as she turned to the teenage boy at their table, who was also looking at her apologetically. "Elena's putting on a good face, but... it's only been four months," she said, sadness seeping into her voice, making Bonnie give her a sympathetic smile.
"Has she said anything about me?" the young man asked gently, feeling guilty to seem so insensitive.
"Oh, no. I am so not getting in the middle of that," Annabelle shook her head, while Bonnie raised her hands and shook her head, silently telling him that she won't tell him anything either. "You pick up the phone and call her,"
"I feel weird calling her," he admitted. "She broke up with me,"
"Give it more time, Matt," Bonnie shrugged, giving him a soft smile, before her eyes traveled towards the door that they heard open, and widened as she saw Elena and Stefan enter together. Annabelle didn't know whether to feel sorry for Matt, or happy that her sister seemed to be spending more time with other people instead of spending so much time alone.
"More time, huh?" Matt asked sadly, his voice nearly cracking, and the two girls looked at him sympathetically as he stood up and walked towards Elena and Stefan.
Annabelle sighed and looked down at Bonnie, the two girls sharing a sad look, before following Matt.
"Hey, I'm Matt. Nice to meet you," she heard Matt introduce himself, and couldn't help but admire him. Even when he is so heartbroken, he is still kind, even to the ones most people would hate if they were in his position.
"Hi. Stefan," Stefan shook his hand with a small, polite smile, and Matt gave him a nod before his eyes traveled to Elena, while Stefan's gaze moved to Annabelle.
"Hey," Elena smiled at Matt, hoping to make him feel better, but with no such luck.
"Hey," Matt said back, but not even a smile complimented his greeting.
Elena sighed, hating the fact that she was hurting the boy she grew up with, before looking at Stefan, only to see him looking in a different direction. Furrowing her eyebrows, she followed his gaze curiously.
"Oh. Uh, Stefan, this is my sister, Annabelle," she quickly introduced, thinking that the reason Stefan was staring at Annabelle was because he could see the slight resemblance, but didn't know who Annabelle was.
"You can call me Anna," Annabelle smiled at him, reaching out to shake his hand, making him smile, his eyes remaining on her for a few more seconds.
"So, you were born in Mystic Falls?" Caroline questioned as she, Bonnie, Stefan, Elena, and Annabelle all sat at a table.
"Mm-hmm," Stefan nodded. "And, uh, moved when I was still young,"
"Parents?"
"My parents passed away," Stefan said, and the same look appeared on both Annabelle and Elena's faces, who gripped each other's hands comfortingly.
"I'm sorry," Annabelle spoke sincerely, and Stefan gave her a nod with a small smile.
"Any siblings?" Elena asked, wanting to change the subject as quickly as possible.
"None that I talk to," Stefan replied with a smile, his eyes on Elena. "I, uh, I live with my uncle,"
"So, Stefan," Caroline spoke up, wanting to bring his attention to her instead of Elena. "If you're new, then you don't know about the party tomorrow,"
"It's a back-to-school thing at the falls," Bonnie explained with a smile, and Stefan immediately turned to Elena, who was sitting on his other side.
"Are you going?" he asked.
"Of course she is," Annabelle immediately answered from her sister's other side, not wanting to give Elena even a second to back out. She believed wholeheartedly that after the events that took place during the past four months, Elena deserved to be happy, and if Stefan was the key to that happiness, then she will do anything to get these two together.
Elena felt a smile grow on her lips as she heard her sister, and she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, looking at Stefan shyly.
Stefan opened a cabinet in his room, and pulled out an old-looking journal. He opened it, and took out two pictures that were in between the pages. One was a photo of a woman with a XIX century hairstyle, who looked exactly like Elena. However, underneath the photo it read, Katherine 1864.
Stefan sighed quietly, before putting the picture back in the journal, and looking at the one in his other hand. It was a photo of a beautiful woman with a XIX century hairstyle. The woman looked exactly like Annabelle Gilbert, down to the smallest detail. But it wasn't Annabelle. Under the photo it read: Layla 1864.
"The Battle of Willow Creek took place right at the end of the war, in our very own Mystic Falls. How many casualties resulted in this battle?" the History teacher asked his class the next day. "Ms. Bennett?"
"Um... a lot?" Bonnie answered, though it definitely sounded more like a question. "I'm not sure. Like a whole lot,"
"Cute becomes dumb in an instant, Ms. Bennett," the teacher said coldly, making Bonnie look down, and Annabelle scoff quietly in disbelief as she rubbed the sleeve of her light blue, off-the-shoulder sweater between her fingers. Just to keep warm, she had a white loose tank top under, with skinny jeans and panther-patterned vans, and panther-patterned, gray-blue striped scarf. Her hair fell loosely on her shoulders, but the front strands were pulled back and pinned tightly on the back of her head. "Mr. Donovan. Would you like to take this opportunity to overcome your embedded jock stereotype?"
"It's okay, Mr. Tanner. I'm cool with it," Matt replied, making everyone chuckle.
"Hmm," Mr. Tanner hummed, before bringing his gaze onto the eldest Gilbert. "Elena? Surely you can enlighten us about one of the town's most significantly historical events?"
"I'm sorry, I... I don't know," Elena shook her head.
"I was willing to be lenient last year for obvious reasons, Elena. But the personal excuses ended with summer break," Mr. Tanner said, making Elena look down, while Annabelle's blood boiled at the words that left her teacher's mouth. How dare he be so insensitive and rude?!
"There were 346 casualties, unless you're counting the local civilians," Stefan spoke up, making everyone's attention turn to him.
"That's correct," Mr. Tanner nodded, glancing at Elena one last time, before pointing at Stefan. "Mister..."
"Salvatore,"
"Salvatore. Any relation to the original settlers here at Mystic Falls?"
"Distant," Stefan replied after a moment of hesitation.
"Well, very good," Mr. Tanner praised. "Except, of course, there were no civilian casualties in this battle,"
"Actually, there were, uh, 28, sir," Stefan spoke up, "Confederate soldiers, they fired on a church, believing it to be housing weapons. They were wrong. It was a night of great loss. The founders' archives are, uh, stored in Civil Hall if you'd like to brush up on your facts. Mr. Tanner," Everyone chuckled in disbelief and shared grins, more than glad that their jackass of a teacher finally got what he deserved.
"Just admit it, Elena," Bonnie pressed as she, Elena, and Annabelle stood together at the party near the falls.
"Oh, okay," Elena gave in. "So, he's a little pretty,"
"'A little'?" Annabelle, who was wearing dark gray boots, jeans, light gray loose tank top, light gray crop-top sweater, and a gray scarf, with a few strands of her hair braided from the front and down the full length of her hair, scoffed, making Elena shove her playfully. "He has that romance novel stare,"
"Stefan looked deep into her eyes, piercing her very soul," Bonnie said in a deep voice, making Annabelle and Elena laugh. "So, where is he?"
"I don't know," Elena replied. "You tell me, you're the psychic one,"
"Right, I forgot. Okay, so give me a sec. Grams says I have to 'concentrate'," Bonnie said, the disbelief clear in her voice as she closed her eyes.
"Wait," Elena said, holding her finger up, "You need a crystal ball," she said, "Uh," she looked around quickly, before picking up an empty beer bottle that was lying on the ground behind her and holding it up, "Ta da," she smiled triumphantly, making Annabelle and Bonnie chuckle as the dark-skinned girl reached out her hand to grab the bottle. However, as soon as her and Elena's hands made contact, her eyes widened and turned to Elena fearfully. After another few seconds of Bonnie being in some kind of trance, she pulled her hand away as Annabelle looked between the two girls, confusedly, "What?" Elena asked.
"That was weird," Bonnie said. "When I touched you, I saw a crow,"
"What?" Elena asked, her voice now serious and a bit fearful as well.
"A crow. There was fog, a man..." Bonnie trailed off, before shaking her head, "I'm drunk. It's the drinking. There's nothing psychic about it," she said, grabbing the beer bottle from Elena, although her voice gave away that she was trying to convince herself more than Elena, "Yeah? Okay, I'm gonna get a refill," she said, before quickly walking away as Annabelle and Elena stared after her.
"Okay," Elena said, still staring after the Bennett, "Bonnie!" she called, but the dark-skinned girl ignored her and simply continued walking.
"What was all that about?" Annabelle asked, and Elena shook her head as she took in a deep breath.
"I don't know," she answered quietly, and Annabelle frowned, wondering why Elena sounded so off. However, she didn't have time to ponder on it, because as soon as she turned around, she saw Stefan standing directly behind them. She opened her mouth to tell Elena, but it was too late, as the eldest Gilbert already turned around, only for her eyes to widen as she saw Stefan.
"Hi," he greeted with a smile, and Annabelle gave him a smile in return, while Elena chuckled.
"Hi,"
"I-I did it again, didn't I?" Stefan asked, his eyes on Elena, and Annabelle didn't even bother to ask what he was talking about.
"Yeah,"
"I'm sorry," he smiled, and Annabelle just shook her head with a smile at the two, before giving Stefan one last smile and walking away, looking around for either Bonnie or Caroline.
"You know, you're kind of the talk of the town," Elena said as she and Stefan walked side by side.
"Am I?" he smiled.
"Mm-hmm," Elena nodded with a smile. "The mysterious new guy, oh, yeah," she chuckled.
"Well, you have the mysterious thing going, too," Stefan said. "Twinged in sadness,"
"What makes you think that I'm sad?" Elena attempted to chuckle dismissively, but found it quite hard as she realized that she actually wanted to open up to him.
"Well, uh, we did meet in a graveyard,"
"Right," Elena smiled, "Well, no, technically we met in the men's room," she said, and they both chuckled as they stepped onto the bridge right on the outskirts of the woods. "You don't want to know, it's... it's not exactly party chit-chat,"
"Well, I've never really been very good at, uh, 'chit-chat'," Stefan said, and there was a moment of silence between them.
"Last spring... my parents' car drove off of a bridge into the lake," Elena said. "And Anna and I were in the backseat, and we survived, but... they didn't," she explained, and avoided his gaze as tears rushed to her eyes, "So that's my story," she said and continued walking, but stopped when she couldn't hear Stefan's footsteps anymore and turned around, only to see that he stopped walking and was gazing at her, silently.
"You won't be sad forever, Elena," he finally spoke. "And neither will Annabelle,"
"Uh-uh," Annabelle shook her head, making Caroline and Bonnie give her weird looks, but she only turned to Matt and put a finger underneath his chin, forcing him to look at her and away from Elena and Stefan, who were standing on the bridge by the falls. "None of that sulking of yours tonight, okay?"
"I'm just observing," he shrugged, trying to seem nonchalant, but sighed when Annabelle gave him a look. "Okay, okay, fine," he raised his hands in surrender, but the pain was clear in his eyes, so Annabelle gave him a sympathetic smile as she rubbed his arm comfortingly.
"Come on, let's go back," she said to her friends, and the girls nodded in agreement, also wanting Matt to have a bit of fun instead of sulk over his breakup with Elena.
Matt sighed, glancing back at Elena and Stefan, before letting Annabelle grab his hand and pull him back to where everyone else was either dancing, drinking, kissing, or simply talking. Unfortunately, that was when Elena also went back and started searching for someone in the crowd, and Matt quickly pulled his hand out of Annabelle's, walking over to the eldest Gilbert, making Annabelle sigh. She honestly didn't know how to help him, but she didn't want Matt to go through any more heartbreak; he's had enough.
Just as she was about to walk over to her sister and friend, she saw Caroline walk over to Stefan, who, just now, came back to where everyone else was. Annabelle sighed, knowing, just from the way Caroline walked, that her blonde friend was drunk, and decided to follow her, knowing that Caroline will try to make a move on Stefan.
"I think you've had too much to drink," Annabelle heard Stefan say, and couldn't agree more.
"Well, of course I have," Caroline laughed, and Annabelle shook her head. "So-"
"Caroline," Stefan cut in, wanting to get his point across firmly but gently, "You and me... it's not gonna happen. I'm sorry," he said, and Annabelle took that as her cue to intervene.
"Caroline!" she called, and heard her friend sigh as she turned around, "Hey, I've been looking for you," she said, her voice softer, since she knew all about Caroline's insecurities better than anyone, and knew that Stefan's rejection definitely effected her, "Uh, Bonnie and Matt are by the stock, so..." Annabelle trailed off, and Caroline sighed before walking past her brunette friend and heading over to where Matt and Bonnie were, but not without glancing at Stefan one last time. As soon as Caroline was out of hearing range, Annabelle turned to Stefan, "I'm sorry about her," she said, now wanting the new student to think badly of Caroline because of one night when, not only Caroline was her normal self, but also her drunk self.
"Is she like that with, uh, all the guys?" Stefan asked after giving Annabelle an understanding smile, and she shook her head.
"No. You're fresh meat. She'll back off eventually," she said with a smile, but it disappeared as soon as she heard a glass bottle clatter and saw her brother heading towards the woods, "God, you've gotta be kidding me!" she exclaimed.
"What is it?" Stefan asked, following her gaze.
"Our brother," Elena said, walking past the two without stopping, keen on talking to Jeremy.
"The drunk one?"
"That would be the one," Annabelle nodded, before walking past him. "Excuse me,"
"Need some help?" Stefan asked kindly, but Annabelle shook her head as she glanced at him over her shoulder.
"Oh, no. Trust me, you're not gonna want to witness this," she said, before following her siblings into the woods. "Jeremy!"
"Jeremy!" Elena called as she and Annabelle pushed past the branches and stepped over the roots. "Jeremy, where the hell are you going?!"
"I don't want to hear it!" Jeremy snapped, turning around to look at his sisters.
"Yeah, well, too bad," Annabelle retorted, worried about her brother who had the most stupid idea of first getting drunk, and then also heading into the woods.
The two girls were only a few feet away from their brother, when he suddenly tripped and landed on something. Annabelle quickly ran over to help him, with Elena hot on her heels, only to see that Jeremy was lying on top of a person.
"Vicki? No," he mumbled, before turning around to look at his sisters. "Oh, my God, it's Vicki!"
"Oh, my God," the girls gasped as they stared at Matt's sister, who was bleeding from her neck.
"No," Jeremy mumbled, tears in his eyes, when suddenly Vicki jerked forward with a loud gasp, making Elena and Annabelle jump back and gasp in surprise.
"You'll have to carry her," Annabelle told her brother hastily, and he nodded before quickly scooping Vicki up into his arms as the three siblings made their way back to where everyone else was as quickly as possible.
"Somebody help!" Elena screamed as soon as they stepped out of the woods.
"Vicki? Vicki, what the hell?!" Matt yelled as he dropped his drink and he, Tyler, and Bonnie ran over to the three siblings, while Jeremy placed Vicki gently on one of the tables.
"What happened?" asked Tyler.
"Somebody call an ambulance!" Matt yelled.
"Everybody, back up! Give her some space!" Tyler quickly pushed away anyone who tried to get near them, before returning to standing beside Annabelle as she inspected the wound on Vicki's neck.
"It's her neck!" she exclaimed. "Something bit her! She's losing a lot of blood, and it's bad!"
"Here, put this on her neck," Matt quickly handed her a scarf, and Annabelle put it to Vicki's wound, keeping pressure on it. Elena quickly made her way over to her sister to help keep pressure, glancing at her in admiration for a second. Annabelle never liked Vicki; it was clear to everyone. She hated how Vicki treated Jeremy, and she hated that Vicki was the one who got him into drugs. Not to mention she hated Vicki's attitude. But Annabelle was one of the kindest people anyone in Mystic Falls has ever met, and she was willing to do anything in order to save Vicki's life, even if she definitely did not like the girl.
However, Annabelle was not only helping because Vicki was an innocent human, but because she was important to Tyler, Matt, and, not to mention, Jeremy. And at the moment, Annabelle didn't care that she did not like Vicki at all. No. At the moment, all she cared about was helping her.
"Vicki. Vicki, come on, open your eyes, look at me," Tyler pleaded, while Annabelle looked up to see if anyone called an ambulance. And when she looked up, she saw Stefan looking at Vicki with, what seemed to be, anxiety, before quickly turning around and leaving. Annabelle's brows furrowed in confusion, but she didn't have time to wonder what was going on as she tried to stop Vicki's neck from bleeding.
Stefan ran into the Boarding House, and Zach Salvatore looked up at him.
"What's going on?" he asked.
"Someone else was attacked tonight, Zach, and it wasn't me," Stefan quickly explained, before running upstairs and entering his room. He closed the door behind him, before looking around the room as he felt another presence. He looked over to where his balcony doors were open, when suddenly a black crow flew in, squawking. Stefan's brows furrowed for a second, before he stiffened and turned around, only to see a man standing on his balcony. "Damon,"
"Hello, brother,"
"Crow's a bit much, don't you think?" Stefan asked his brother as the crow squawked from its place on the balcony.
"Wait till you see what I can do with the fog," Damon replied.
"When'd you get here?"
"Well, I couldn't miss your first day at school," Damon said, a sarcastic tone in his voice as he walked around Stefan's room. "Your hair's different. I like it,"
"It's been 15 years, Damon,"
"Thank God. I couldn't take another day of the '90s. That horrible grunge look?" Damon chuckled as he circled his brother, "Did not suit you," he smirked. "Remember, Stefan. It's important to stay away from fads,"
"Why are you here?" Stefan demanded as his voice raised a bit in volume, making Damon turn around from where he was looking at something on a shelf.
"I miss my little brother,"
"You hate small towns," Stefan said. "It's boring, there's nothing for you to do,"
"I've managed to keep myself busy," Damon smirked as he started walking around the room again.
"You know, you left that girl alive tonight," Stefan said as he leaned back against his desk. "That's very clumsy of you,"
"Ah, that can be a problem..." Damon leaned against a desk by the wall, pretending to be concerned before he dropped the act and looked at his brother. "For you,"
"Why are you here now?" Stefan asked after a short moment of silence.
"I could ask you the same question," Damon answered as he pushed himself off the desk and took a few steps towards Stefan, "However, I'm fairly certain your answer can be summed up all into one little word," he stopped right in front of his brother, and looked him in the eye as a smirk grew on his lips. "Elena,"
Annabelle watched from where she was standing next to Elena as the paramedics got Vicki into an ambulance, and Matt quickly got in himself, before they closed the doors and drove off.
"Hey," came Bonnie's voice and the two sisters turned around to face her as she walked up to them, "We're gonna go mainline coffee, wait for news," she said, referring to herself and Caroline, who was drunk.
"We gotta take Jeremy home," Annabelle said, and Bonnie nodded in understanding, before looking at the two girls.
"Guys, there's no way I'm psychic, I know that," she spoke, her gaze serious, "But whatever I saw, or I think I saw, I have this feeling..." she trailed off, her voice a bit shaky.
"What?" Annabelle pressed, and Bonnie stared at her for a while.
"That it's just the beginning,"
"She took my breath away. Elena," Damon spoke as he started slowly walking around Stefan's room again. "She's a dead ringer for Katherine," he smirked at his brother. "Is it working Stefan? Being around her, being in her world? Does it make you feel alive?" he taunted.
"She's not Katherine," Stefan said firmly.
"Well, let's hope not," Damon said, "We both know how that ended," he said, something flashing in his eyes before he smirked at his brother again, "But, like you, I'm sure, there's another little word that I left out, and this one left me absolutely stunned and breathless... Annabelle," he smirked, and Stefan stiffened at the mention of her name. "Now, Annabelle. Sweet, gorgeous Annabelle just stopped me in my tracks. She could pass for Layla any day. And let's not forget that those two aren't just sisters; they're twin sisters at that."
"Anna's not Layla," Stefan said, his voice hard.
"'Anna'?" Damon smirked. "Well, would you look at that. She already charmed you, didn't she?" his smirk grew as Stefan simply stared at him. "Now, tell me something, when's the last time you had something stronger than a squirrel?"
"I know what you're doing, Damon," Stefan said after scoffing, "It's not gonna work," he said, starting to turn away.
"Yeah?!" Damon put his hand on Stefan's shoulder and pulled him back roughly to face him again. "Come on. Don't you crave a little?"
"Stop it,"
"Let's do it," Damon tried to put his hand on Stefan's shoulder again, but Stefan immediately shoved it off, "Together. I saw a couple of girls out there," he said, attempting to put his hand on Stefan's shoulder again, but Stefan shoved it off as he took a few steps back. "Or just, let's just cut to the chase," he attempted to smack Stefan in the head, but it was deflected. "Let's just go straight for Elena. Or, no. You can have Elena, but I'll take the sweeter one, I'll take Annabelle. You smelled her blood, right? It smells absolutely divine, her blood must be top of the line,"
"Stop it!" Stefan yelled, losing his calm demeanor and shoving his brother back.
"Imagine what their blood tastes like!" Damon yelled, trying to provoke Stefan as he saw him shaking with rage. "I can,"
"I said stop!" Stefan yelled, his eyes now red, his veins and fangs now completely showing. He growled, before launching himself at Damon, the two of them flying out through the window. However, as soon as Stefan hit the hard pavement, Damon was nowhere in sight.
Stefan slowly managed to get back up on his feet, groaning in pain a bit as shards of glass pierced his skin, and looked around.
"I was impressed," Damon said from where he was leaning against the bushes, making Stefan turn around to face him. "I give it a six. Missing style, but I was pleasantly surprised," he said as Stefan brushed himself off all the glass shards quickly, "Very good with the whole face -" Damon imitated Stefan's growling, "-thing. It was good," he chuckled.
"You know, it's all fun and games, Damon, huh? But wherever you go, people die," Stefan said, getting closer to his older brother.
"That's a given,"
"Not here," Stefan shook his head. "I won't allow it,"
"I take that as an invitation,"
"Damon, please. After all these years, can't we just give it a rest?"
"I promised you an eternity of misery, so I'm just keeping my word," Damon replied as he took a few steps forward.
"Just stay away from Elena," Stefan pleaded, but Damon's gaze fell to his hand instead. "Stay away from Annabelle,"
"Where's your ring?" Damon asked, ignoring the last part of Stefan's plea, and Stefan looked down at his hand, only to realize that his ring was missing from his middle finger, "Oh, yeah, sun's coming up in a couple of hours, and poof, ashes to ashes," Damon said, pretending to be concerned while Stefan simply stared at him with a sad and a bit fearful expression, "Relax," Damon chuckled, stepping forward, "It's right here," he extended his hand, revealing the lapis lazuli ring in his open palm. Stefan looked at his brother for a second, before taking the ring from his hand and slowly placing it back on his finger. However, as soon as it was in place, Damon's face transformed to one of a vampire and he grabbed Stefan by the throat, before throwing him at the wooden fence a few meters away from them. Stefan slammed against it, before landing back on the ground as Damon walked over to stand above him, "You should know better than to think you're stronger than me. You lost that fight when you stopped feeding on people. I wouldn't try it again," Damon said, his voice dangerous as Stefan breathed heavily, staring up at him. Suddenly, they both heard rustling coming from the house, and Damon grinned. "I think we woke Zach up," he said, before turning around, "Sorry, Zach," he said as he walked back to the boarding house, whistling, while Stefan stared after him.
Annabelle walked over to Jeremy, who was drinking beer despite the police being only a few feet away from them, and stopped next to him.
"Are you okay?" she asked gently, putting her hand on his shoulder as she saw the complete and utter sadness and pain in his eyes. He didn't reply, but didn't move away from her either, which she was glad for, "Elena called Jenna, she's on her way," Annabelle informed him, but he didn't say anything, only looked at her with a bit red, puffy, pain-filled eyes, and she sighed, "Jer," she spoke, her voice soft as she slowly took the beer bottle of out his hand and threw it away before the police could notice, glad that he didn't object, "Look... the truth is... people don't really care anymore. They don't remember that our parents are dead, because they've got their own lives to deal with. And because they don't care, they're gonna stop giving you breaks, Jer," he looked over at his sister again, and she sighed when she saw tears fill his eyes, "The rest of the world has moved on," she said as she grabbed his hand, giving it a squeeze, glad when he didn't pull away, "We should try, too," she said.
"Look, I know how you do it. You bottle it all up, and don't let anyone see how much you're hurting. You're lying to others, and to yourself," Jeremy said, his voice soft but his eyes pain-filled and accusing, "So, tell me. Is that, is that supposed to be you 'moving on'?" Annabelle sighed one more time, but shook her head.
"No," she admitted, "It's not, but... Mom and Dad wouldn't have wanted this for any of us," she said, and she saw her little brother's eyes glisten. Annabelle sighed and quickly glanced around to make sure that no one from their school was around so that he wouldn't get mad at her for making him look like a kid, before quickly wrapping her arms around him, letting him bury his face in the crook of her neck. Within seconds she felt something wet on her skin, "Shh," she whispered soothingly as she stroked her little brother's hair, while tears came to her eyes as well. But she didn't let them fall. No, she had to be strong for Jeremy now.
Jenna Sommers looked over at her niece while they were both in their kitchen an hour later.
"Hey," she whispered, and Annabelle turned around, only to have Jenna beckon her over to where she was standing by the doorway. Annabelle looked at her, confused, but walked over to stand next to her aunt, only to see her little brother sitting on the couch in the living room, staring at the picture of their parents that he was holding in his hands. Annabelle sighed quietly and shared a solemn look with Jenna, "Go talk to him," her aunt whispered, "You're better at it than I am," Annabelle wanted to protest and say that Jenna is also good at comforting people and being there for them, but when she looked at her little brother, she wanted be the one to comfort him, so she nodded and walked into the living room, while Jenna remained where she was.
She watched as Annabelle slowly walked over to where Jeremy was and sat down beside him. Seeing as Jeremy was sitting on the edge of the couch, she easily pulled him back so that the back of his head was resting against her collarbone. One of her hands on his chest as her arm hugged him to her, while her other hand stroked his hair softly. Jenna, despite it being an extremely sad moment for her niece and nephew, couldn't help but smile as she watched the two. After she came to live with them, she quickly realized that Annabelle was the one person Jeremy always trusted and confided in, and even though their parents died and they slowly drifted apart... that connection was never lost.
"Why don't you go to bed?" she spoke up after a few more minutes of watching the teenagers, and Annabelle and Jeremy turned around to look at her. She noticed the tear streaks on Jeremy's face, but didn't say anything. Jeremy glanced at his sister, who nodded in agreement with their aunt, and nodded, before putting the picture on the coffee table and heading upstairs, for once without any protests.
Jenna smiled at her niece and opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by Elena running down the stairs, nearly colliding with Jeremy on the way, to open the front door. Jenna and Annabelle shared a confused look, but it melted into one of understanding once they saw that it was Stefan who was standing on their porch. The strawberry blonde and the brunette smirked knowingly, before quietly backing out into the kitchen, letting Elena and Stefan have some privacy.
A/N: Alright, so here is the first chapter. What did you all think? Yes, no, maybe so? What do you think of Annabelle so far, and her relationship with others (Bonnie, Caroline, Jeremy, Elena, Jenna, Matt)? Who do you think Layla is? What are your thoughts?
