The Roommate Agreement
Shit. It was already seven in the afternoon and here she was pacing through the streets of New York City with a box full of streamers and god knows what else. The inside of the box looked like a unicorn exploded and got glitter on every damn thing. Of course, Caroline would pick the most extravagant decorations for this special occasion. It was Caroline's birthday, and according to Caroline, she might as well throw her own damn party herself instead of getting a surprise one where her tasteless friends end up doing everything wrong. Shit. Now it was 7:15 and she might as well stab herself before Caroline got the knife prepared. It wasn't her fault anyways. She was busy checking out new apartments since she got kicked out of her old one. Let's just say her last break up didn't end well. She reached the cross walk and the yellow box indicated that she had five seconds left to cross the street. With all her speed, she rushed across the street and pushed through the doors of The Grill.
"I got here in one piece Care; please don't break me in two."
"Just give me the box and go blow up some balloons. Everyone will be here in thirty minutes so that gives us enough time to rush and maybe, just maybe, make this shitty place look halfway decent."
"I'm on it! Plus who cares what this place looks like? When we get wasted tonight, it'll look like the freaking Taj Mahal!"
"Just hurry up Gilbert, I need some alcohol in my system to blur out all this tacky décor. Meet me in the back in ten, we gotta make ourselves pretty for tonight!" Caroline yelled as she left the room.
Elena slumped in her chair as she blew yet another balloon. This was the first time she was single in years. She'd been with Matt since high school and stayed with him because it felt comfortable. He'd been the guy you could imagine yourself having a family with, white picket fence and all its glory. In her mind, there were always doubts and it wasn't until last week that she'd voiced it out loud. She called their relationship 'boring and uninteresting' and he took to heart. She'd never seen him so hurt; he told her she needed to leave. And she did. Now all she needed to do was find somewhere else to live. She'd figure out tomorrow, because for tonight she'd forget that she was basically homeless and have a kick ass time with her best friend.
Elena looked in the mirror for the hundredth time that night. Her strapless black lace dress fit her curves perfectly while her brunette locks framed her face in loose curls. Black pumps and red lips. She added silver earrings and turned around to face Caroline. Oh, Caroline. She was always a vision. She wore a bright red one shoulder dress and black studded high heels. Her perfect blonde curls bounced lightly and her bright blue eyes shined through her sparkly gold eye shadow. Caroline's mouth dropped open as she stared at Elena.
"Elena Gilbert. You look hot as fuck." Caroline whistled.
"Thanks, Care. You look pretty fuckable yourself." Elena giggled.
"Are you ready to have a fun night? No stress. You know I hate it when you stress."
"Well, lucky for you. Tonight will be stress free. No brooding on my part."
"Excellent. Because, tonight, and for one night only. I'll be your professional wing woman."
"You'll be the Barney to my Ted?"
"Gladly. Now let's go. Everyone is waiting to be graced with our presence."
A swarm of bodies crowded Elena and Caroline as soon as they entered. They all screamed "Happy Birthday!" in half drunken slurs. It seemed that everyone got buzzed while they got dressed, what a surprise. She hugged every member of their group before heading over to the bar to get some well needed space. She wasn't going to ruin Caroline's night, but she needed a drink to cheer herself up before she could become the life of the party. Stefan caught her brooding for just about five seconds and walked over to give her the Salvatore pep talk.
"Chin up, kid. This is a party, not a funeral." Stefan said with a sense of authority.
"Thanks for the fatherly advice, Stef."
"Come on, Lena. Matt's one of my best buds but we all knew from the start that you two wouldn't last."
"And why is that? It's because I suck, right? Totally, completely suck. I'm the worst. Oh god, I am the worst. How could I hurt Matt? Of all people! Poor, innocent Matt." Elena exclaimed and rested her head on the counter. Hitting her head a couple of times before giving up and hanging her head in shame.
"Elena, it's not your fault. You and Matt didn't work because you don't want the same things in life. Your paths just don't line up with each other and you can't blame yourself for that."
"That's the thing, Stefan. I don't know what I want in life. All I know is that I'm too scared to even try.
Stefan lifted her chin up to meet his eyes. He gave her meaningful look and tug his lips into a comforting smile.
"Elena, I've known you for years. You're destined for something great, kid. I know that Caroline and I are like the parents of this insane group of friends we have and we'd be lying if we said you weren't our favorite. We're rooting for you, all you have to do meet us halfway. It's New York, endless possibilities right at your feet. So, let's get you a drink, preferably something strong, and have fun tonight, for Caroline's sake."
Elena smiled warmly and hugged Stefan with all her strength. He always knew what to say and the right times to say it. Now she'd just need to follow his advice. She turned to get the attention from the man behind the bar.
"Hello Mr. Bartender, I would like thirty shots of tequila please."
"One. Two. Three!"
The group of friends all tilted their heads back to consume the fifth round of tequila they had drunk that night. They all looked at each other and laughed, eyesight hazy and dizzy thoughts rushing through their system.
"We should buy a bar!" Bonnie shouted as if it was the greatest idea ever known, her eyes wide with excitement. The group gasped with pleasure.
"Wait guys…we should buy this bar!" Caroline screamed as the group gasped even louder.
A man with tousled brown hair walked over, smile intact at the customers in front of him. He leaned over by their booth and whispered.
"You guys know that I own this bar, right?"
"Ric!" They all screamed way too loudly, as if all their hearing had been impaired.
"Scream any louder and I think you might send a signal to outer space." Ric replied and walked over to the other customers.
"Woah. Outer Space." Tyler said to himself, clearly stuck in his thoughts.
"Do you think aliens are real? Like what if they come to kill us one day?" Jeremy asked with his eyes shot open as if he'd seen a ghost.
"Dude. Aliens are totally real. The CIA are keeping them locked away somewhere. Everyone knows that." Stefan stated with complete confidence.
"Guys, aliens are more afraid of us and we are afraid of them. Poor little aliens, so misunderstood." Caroline pouted and sulked into the cushiony surface of the booth.
They all went into a temporary silence of thought. Mouths wide open and staring at the ceiling.
"I miss Matt." Elena whimpered, saying her thoughts out loud.
Everyone faced towards her, sympathetic smiles on each of their faces, completely sobered up by her words.
"I invited him, but he said he'd rather 'sit this one out'. Just give it time, 'Lena." Caroline confessed, her hand on Elena's arm in a comforting gesture.
"You guys are friends with him too. It isn't fair of me to make you guys choose between us. I ruined the group. I'm sorry guys, I ruin everything. I even ruined tonight." Elena mumbled, eyes watery with tears.
"Elena, come on. I can't say that this doesn't change things but you haven't ruined anything. We're still going to hang out with Matt and we're still going to hang out with you. It'll take time but eventually those two will merge together and we'll go back to being the seven co-dependent freaks who get drunk every week and tell each other our sob stories." Bonnie pleaded, wisdom intact.
The group shared a small laugh and the mood instantly brightened.
"Besides, Matt might be one of my best friends, but at least I don't have to hear about my sister's sex life all the time." Jeremy joked.
"And we don't have to see you two getting heavy on the PDA either." Tyler added.
"Thanks guys, tell me how to really feel." Elena replied sarcastically.
The loud ring of a cell phone interrupted the moment and everyone faced towards Stefan. He took his phone out of his pocket and looked at the screen of his phone. He stilled, shock shown all over his face. He slid out of the booth and took the call outside of the bar. The group stared at him quizzically as he walked away.
"Who do you think it is?" questioned Jeremy.
"I don't know, I've never seen him like that before." Caroline said, concerned.
"Well whoever it is, is clearly bad news." Bonnie stated.
"Stefan never really talks about his family; you think it's his dad?" Tyler suggested.
"Maybe, I guess we'll find out." Elena said quickly as Stefan entered back into the bar.
He looked unhappy and hopeful at the same time. His body was tense as he slipped into the booth. All eyes were on him, so he sighed and shook his head.
"My brother called."
A/N: Cliffhanger! This chapter focuses mainly on the group but we'll get to meet Damon in the next chapter. Feedback is always appreciated!