I made my way to Elena's door, making sure my head stayed down. I didn't want to be there, and I was hoping she would see that. I couldn't believe that I had gone to all of this trouble to get into a damn suit –okay, it wasn't that much trouble, but I still did not want to be seen at homecoming– for nothing.
I sighed and finally knocked. Within a few seconds, I could hear her rush down the stairs, give her father a goodbye kiss, and open the door. I looked her over quickly, hoping Alaric wouldn't notice, and gave a polite smile. She was dressed in a pink and blue sundress with a clear shawl covering her bony shoulders. She was a little too casual for homecoming, but I figured that it was good enough. Then, my gaze fell on her face and I realized that she actually looked... kind of beautiful. Her hair was halfway down -which made that sweet scent of coconut shampoo all the more noticeable- and she wore the smallest hint of pink lipstick.
Alaric cleared his throat in the living room. I glanced up at him and nodded my head. Elena looked away with a blush. "Sir," I said flatly.
He crossed his arms over his chest. "Have her back by ten, Stefan. On the dot."
I held back the urge to laugh, amused by the authority he thought he had over me. He actually believed that his presence intimidated me; how ironic. If only he knew that I could rip his head off within three seconds...
I pushed my sadistic thoughts away and gave him a -very forced- smile. "Yes, Sir."
Ric nodded to Elena, giving her one last kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you both then."
Elena walked out onto the porch and smiled gently at me. "I can't wait to go," she said kindly once the door was closed. "No one's ever asked me to anything before." Momentarily, her face showed the smallest twinge of sadness, but, as she always did, she pushed it away.
"You know," I said after a short pause. We were now in my car, and I started it, enjoying the gentle purr of the engine. "If you're sad, it's okay to show it."
It was then that she turned to face me. "Do you?"
I furrowed my brows, absently gripping the steering wheel a little tighter. "Do I what?"
"Show it." She smiled just a bit, a sound resembling a gentle, humorless laugh escaping her lips. "When you're sad, do you show it, Stefan?"
Those words bothered me. "Do I need to?" I questioned coldly. I held the steering wheel so tightly under my grip that I wouldn't be surprised if it broke. She continued to watch me intently.
"Well," Elena started softly. "It just seems to me like you lock yourself up inside. I can tell sometimes in school. You stare off and you just look... empty. It's not good to bottle yourself up like that."I looked at her with a glare. How did she know me so well from just watching me? "I can do whatever I want," I said. My voice was sharp and harsh, and she dropped the subject immediately.
We arrived at the school quickly, driving in silence until we got there. Her words continued to spin through my mind, taunting me, disturbing me and I was extremely thankful that we would soon be overwhelmed by loud music.
"It's loud," Elena commented once we walked in. I chuckled and nodded, grabbing her by the arm to weave us through the crowd. When we reached the dance floor, I pulled her close and swayed with her to the beat of a subtle new song.
I kind of liked it, in a weird way, being close to her. It was... nice. Her pulse was soft and innocent, and she seemed to be the only girl in the whole room who wasn't wearing disgustingly overwhelming perfume. She just smelled like Elena, sweet Elena whose scent that sang of honey and coconut managed to waft through the air and fill my body with sensory contentment.
I liked it. I denied it to myself, but I liked her presence.
There was a comfortable silence and I vaguely wondered if she was enjoying this. I brushed it off, reminding myself that I didn't care. So, I mentioned the one thing that hadn't escaped my thoughts since she'd talked about it in the car. "When we were in my car, you said I'm empty inside. How?"
She giggled. "I didn't say you were empty inside. You seem empty sometimes."
I looked at her confusedly. "What's the difference?"
She closed her eyes for a moment and shook her head, and for the first time I felt like the one who was lacking of knowledge; it was definitely a feeling I didn't like, but I was drawn to it. Elena explained, "No one truly is empty inside, Stefan. You either feel everything, or pretend to feel nothing. I see you sometimes, when you think that no one's looking... You look sad. But as soon as you realize it, you put up a wall again."
I swallowed thickly. How on earth had Elena Gilbert of all people noticed this about me, when even I hadn't? I'd never even spoken two words to her, yet she was acting like she knew everything about my life. "You don't even know me."
She sighed. "I don't need to."
I never had the chance to ask her what she meant, because as soon as I opened my mouth, Tyler Lockwood bumped into Elena, spilling his punch all over her stainless dress. "Oh, Lena! So sorry about that!" he apologized dramatically. I clenched my fists, but Elena simply smiled and said it was fine. Tyler laughed and walked away, and I could hear him mumble under his breath something about how he thought she looked better with the wet cloth sticking to her skin. Something inside of me snapped at that.
I stepped away from Elena and walked up to Tyler, my green eyes blazing with a sage fire. "Hey, Lockwood," I snarled out, grabbing him by the arm forcefully. "Watch what you say." My voice was deep and threatening; I didn't know what came over me but I was so tempted to tear his throat out. "That's not how you talk about a lady."
This conversation went on for a few minutes, and just as I was about to throw a punch at his face, Elena interjected. "Stefan, I need to get home soon."
I paused at those words; the night had gone by extremely quickly. Had Elena and I really been dancing for hours? I dropped Tyler with a growl and placed a hand on the small of her back. We walked out of the gym and I shook my head, replaying the previous moment in my head; what on earth came over me? Why did I care what Tyler said about Elena?
"Thank you for sticking up for me," she said timidly. I jumped, forgetting she was beside me. I gave a forced smile in return, so fake that it was clear I wasn't being sincere.
"Don't mention it," I huffed. I averted my gaze and made sure we arrived at my car quickly.
We drove back to her house in silence. When we arrived, she turned to me. There was no smile on her face this time, just a sincere twinkle in her molten chocolate eyes. "Thank you for taking me. I had a nice time."
"Any time," I said quickly, emotionlessly. She sighed and leaned forward nervously, giving me a slow kiss to the cheek. My eyes widened at her action and I swallowed thickly, frozen. My mind went completely blank.
"I'll see you in school," she mentioned, though I hardly heard her.
"Yeah."
With that, she opened the passenger door and left. I watched her go and made sure she was safely inside before driving off. I didn't like the feeling bubbling deep within me; I couldn't describe it and I wanted to push it away, but I couldn't concentrate enough.
Because all I could think about was the way her lips felt on my cheek.
AN: Yes, I finally updated! :D I had writer's block for this story, but your reviews inspired me and I think I'm finally over it! I'm posting this from my iPad, so I hope the format isn't messed up LOL. Please give me your thoughts... I'm still not sure about this story, lol. I've never written a fic like this from a movie/book plot. I'm trying to keep it original though at the same time. Let me know how I'm doing! :) Still think I should keep going?
Xoxo and Happy Holidays!
-Sara
