A/N: I'm new to this whole "posting-my-fics" thing, so I have a ton of chapters stocked up. I'll probably post every day to every other day until I get caught up. Also, I'm new to the site, so be gentle when it comes to formatting. Thanks for reading, and on with the story!
"Caroline. Caroline! It's almost three in the afternoon! Get up!"
I groaned and rolled over. It was two forty-five. It's very easy to sleep until mid-day when you have nothing to get up for.
"Caroline Elizabeth Forbes!" my mother called from my doorway.
"What?" I grumbled, turning on my side away from her.
"I have to leave for my shift, and I wanted to make sure you weren't dead," she said stiffly.
"How considerate," I mumbled.
"Stefan called earlier to remind you to be at the boarding house by six," she said.
"Great," I cheered sarcastically.
"Just be careful, sweetheart," she said.
"I'll watch out for all the vampires and werewolves," I said.
"If only that's what we had to worry about, sweetie," she said. I felt the end of my bed slump under her weight. "I really am glad to have you home."
Glad to have me home so she can ignore me just like she did for eighteen years.
"Goodbye, mother."
I heard her exhale in irritation.
"Have fun tonight," she said. "Tell Stefan I said hello."
"Hmm," I sounded.
I didn't even attempt to get up until I heard her footstep go down the stairs and the front door closed behind her.
I flipped to my back. It was so strange to be back in my old room. Floral sheets, ancient quilt, mint-colored walls. Plus all my trophies, ribbons, and certificates seemed to be taunting me. It was weird how nothing in this room seemed to change in all the years I had been away, but I had changed so much.
I turned to look at my alarm clock. It was just after three, which was three hours before I was expected to be at Stefan's. For the old Caroline, that wouldn't have been enough time, but for lazy, failure Caroline, it was more than enough. I rolled off the bed to get into the shower.
As I stripped down, I stole a glance at myself in the mirror above the sink. In the mirror, I looked like the same old Caroline. Blonde hair, bright blue eyes, and a fantastic figure. Maybe only I could see the age within my eyes. It was amazing how much life could beat you down in such a short time. I used to think that I would be able to shine through anything, but I had been wrong.
"Caroline!" Stefan exclaimed when he opened the door to the boarding house. I couldn't help but smile at him.
"Everybody's in the parlor," Stefan said, pulling me in.
"Caroline!" Bonnie said when I walked into the room.
The room was full with people from my past. Stefan and Damon, obviously, as well as Jeremy and Bonnie.
"Great the former Miss Mystic Falls has decided to grace us with her presence," a delicate British voice said from the door to the kitchen.
"Hello, Rebekah," I said politely. I was mainly polite because Stefan's hand was painfully gripping my upper arm.
Rebekah, to my irritation, seemed to have become more beautiful since I had been away. She still kept her unnervingly blonde hair at shoulder length and her eyes were still bright and slightly malicious. Her face didn't show any signs of age and her legs were nicely tan under her short white dress. She was still infuriating.
"Stefan has been talking about your return for the entire week," she said, sitting delicately down on one of the loveseats. She crossed her legs and looked slightly bored. A signature Rebekah trait was that she looked bored in every situation.
"Nice to see you too," I muttered.
"How's Elena in the kitchen?" Stefan said, going to sit by his girlfriend on the loveseat.
"Everything smells delicious," Rebekah said. "She and Alaric are just portioning everything out."
Stefan smiled down at Rebekah and slipped an arm around her shoulders. I barely stopped my face from slipping into a snarl.
"How was your first day back, Blondie?" Damon asked from his stance at the drink cart.
"Vodka," I said to him.
"You want that mixed with anything?" he asked.
"Surprise me." I didn't really want it mixed with anything, but I didn't want to deal with Stefan's worried gaze if I didn't.
While Damon poured, I answered his question. "Fine."
"You sound excited to be back," Jeremy noted, handing me the glass that Damon had fixed.
"I just stayed around the house," I said.
"Your mom hasn't let up on her workload since you left," Bonnie noted, sitting on the arm of Jeremy's chair.
"Liz Forbes has never been one to be lazy," I said, draining my glass. Stefan gave me a worried look that I decided to ignore. I was almost twenty-five. I could drink as much as I wanted.
"Hey, guys, dinner's ready," a tall, handsome man, Alaric, I assumed, announced.
Everyone made their way into the dining room with me bringing up the rear.
"You must be Caroline," Alaric said, holding out his hand.
I smiled and took it as he ushered me in so he could close the door. Alaric was handsome enough. He was tall with floppy hair that seemed strange for his age. He was a few years older than Damon, but almost ten years older than me, I estimated. He had the same look as Damon –slightly dangerous with a hint of mischief.
"You must be Alaric," I said, dropping his hand.
"Ric," he corrected. "Damon's business partner."
I snorted. "I feel sorry for you."
Ric smiled. "I've been friends with worse."
"Oh my god! Caroline!"
I felt a pair of skinny arms around me. Elena.
"I wanted to come see you yesterday after Bon and Jeremy told me you were in town, but everything at the bakery is so crazy," she said. She let me go and tugged a lock of her long brown hair behind her ear.
A part of me will always want to compete with Elena. Everyone has that one friend that you are in an unspoken competition with, but I think Elena has finally won. She is still absurdly gorgeous, has a lovely house, got a husband that has loved her since she was fifteen, has loyal friends, and a steady job. I didn't even have a car.
"I've heard so much about this bakery," I said to cover my self-loathing.
Elena pulled out her chair and motioned for me to sit next to her.
"I opened it just this last year," she said.
"Oh, so, it's yours?" I asked. Looks, house, husband, friends, own business.
"Yeah," she said with a proud grin. "Damon and I finally decided we were in the right place for me to start it instead of just cooking for the bar."
I gave her a tense smile. "Great."
"What about you?" she asked. "What have you been up to?"
I swallowed hard.
"So," Stefan said loudly from the head of the table. "What have you made for us today, Elena?"
"Well, we're going to start with a light spinach salad with almonds and a vinaigrette," she explained gesturing to the salad bowls in front of us. "Then, for dinner, I've grilled chicken with a new teriyaki marinade I've been working on with sautéed green beans, roasted potatoes, and homemade rolls. Then, lemon sponge cake with a raspberry glaze."
"Let's eat then!" Rebekah announced, gracefully starting on her salad.
Dinner went along without incident. It was polite conversation. I was able to steer the conversation away from myself mostly. It made me thankful that people were generally self-centered. Also, my friends had plenty to brag about. Their lives were amazing. Bonnie was a second grade teacher at Mystic Elementary. Elena was working on the council for the Founder's Day celebration in April. Even Rebekah was working for the interior design firm in town and was finally given her own project just last week.
By the time we got to dessert, I was feeling a bit queasy and more like a loser than I already did.
"Hey, everyone," Stefan said, wiping his mouth with his napkin then placing it on the table. "There's actually a reason I've asked you to come here, and it wasn't so Elena could try out her new recipes."
I looked at Stefan and his smile down towards Rebekah.
No.
"I've actually got some big news, and I'm so glad to finally be able to tell you."
No.
"Rebekah and I are getting married."
No.
I heard squeals from Elena and Bonnie as they went to examine Rebekah's ring, which she had slipped on under the table.
"You might want to breathe," Damon leaned over to say.
I took a deep breath because I had actually forgotten to breathe. My best friend was getting married. My best friend was getting married.
"Tell Stefan I had to go," I said. I got to my feet, but Damon grabbed my wrist.
"No, Blondie," Damon said, tugging me down to his level. "He's been wanting to tell you for weeks, but you've been your usual selfish, bitchy self. Give him this night before you continue to be selfish. He deserves that, especially from you."
He was right. I knew he was, but that didn't make me feel any better. It didn't make it any better.
"Caroline!" Stefan said coming over to me. Damon dropped my wrist.
"Stefan!" I said back. I plastered a smile on my face and threw my arms around him. If he looked at me too long, he would know.
"I finally did it," he said.
He pulled me back. I smiled again.
"I'm glad you're happy," I said. I was. Stefan deserved to be happy. Even if Rebekah was Queen Bitch of Bitchy Town.
"You'll be a grooms-lady for me, right?" he asked.
I couldn't help it. I laughed at grooms-lady.
"Rebekah's going to allow me to be in the wedding?" I asked.
Stefan rolled his eyes. "She knows how important you are to me. Besides, you know her. She'll find something else to focus on soon enough. She's already had ten freak outs about planning the thing."
Typical.
"Of course, I will," I said. "I don't have to wear a suit though right?"
Stefan snorted. "No."
"Good," I said. I looked down at my watch, and pretended to be surprised at the time. "I didn't know it was already past nine. I told mom I would be back soon."
Stefan frowned. "Really?"
"Something about mother/daughter bonding or something," I said with an eye roll.
"Do you need a ride or anything?" he asked.
"No, no," I said. "You stay here and celebrate with Rebekah. This is your night."
"I'll call you tomorrow," Stefan said, pulling me into a hug.
I nodded into his shoulder and kissed his cheek before I pulled too far away.
"Congrats, Stef," I said. "You deserve all the happiness in the world."
"So do you, Care."
I gave a half-smile and slyly made my way out of the dining room.
I grabbed my purse from the living room and made my way out into the crisp air.
I was happy for Stefan. Really I was. Even if he was engaged to the British devil, I was glad that he was making a life for himself. He and Rebekah had been together for almost a decade. I was surprised she had waited for his proposal this long. She must actually love him.
What was a love like that really like? I thought I had that with Tyler, but I was obviously wrong.
I continued to think to myself as I wandered down the street to my house. I eventually had to take off my shoes because even perfect Caroline couldn't' handle a long walk in heels on the stupid cobblestone sidewalks in the old part of town.
"You need a ride, darling?" a voice called from a car on the other side of the road.
I stopped in my tracks. I knew that voice anywhere. I didn't think I would ever hear it again.
It belonged to my ex-boyfriend, Kol.
