A/N I'm going to update twice today because I feel that both episodes/chapters are short.
Cynthia stood by her locker, replacing her books. Jeremy came over to her. She looked at him suspiciously.
"Hey. Last night, we-."
"I'm not your second choice, Jeremy. Leave me alone." She turned to go, but Jeremy caught her arm and spun her back around. She glared him, thinking about why Tyler would do to Jeremy if he walked around the corner. Or even Stefan at this point.
"Hey, I'm sorry." He told her quietly, letting her arm go. She shot him another look.
"For me being a second choice or for the arm grabbing?"
"Both. Look, why don't you come over after school today? Like old times, huh?" He asked. She looked at him, debating it mentally.
"Fine. Just for a little while." She told him. He grinned as the bell rang, signaling the start of their classes.
"Great. I'll see you later." He hurried off.
After school, Cynthia told Tyler she was going to Jeremy's house and then walked with him to their house. Once they were there, they headed into the kitchen. Jenna was still at college and Elena was no where to be seen, so they had the house to themselves. And just like old times, they completely raided the kitchen. They grabbed the pop-tarts, potato chips, Gold Fish, soda, ice cream and even snuck out a bag of the Halloween candy Jenna had bought already. Then they headed up to Jeremy's room. After eating almost all the food they'd brought up and playing several rounds of Jeremy's favorite video game, they heard the doorbell.
"I'll get it." Jeremy got up and went downstairs while Cynthia started cleaning up the room. Not that it was ever clean anyway, but she decided not to add on to the mess with some many wrappers and empty containers. After she'd thrown all of them away, she went to the top of the stairs to see who was at the door. She stopped dead when she saw Jeremy and Vicki making out. She went back into Jeremy's room to grab her bag. Once she had that and her jacket, she headed downstairs and for the door. Vicki had already made her way into the kitchen. Jeremy blocked Cynthia's path.
"Look, I'm sorry. She's high." He said quietly as they heard her rummaging through the kitchen.
"And who's the one that supplies her with drugs?" She shot back a little louder than she meant.
"I can hear you! I just need quiet! Shut up!" Vicki moaned from the kitchen.
"Then why don't you go to your own home!" Cynthia suggested angrily.
"Cynthia, can you just call Matt? Tell him what's going on?" Jeremy asked, interrupting any comeback Vicki might have had.
"Do we know what's going on?" She motioned towards Vicki, who had collapsed against the counters, moaning and mumbling something they couldn't hear.
"Just… Just call Matt." He hurried over to try and help Vicki while Cynthia pulled out her phone and quickly dialed Matt's number.
"Hey, Cynthia, don't tell me your big bad brother is being mean again-." Matt started cheerfully.
"It's Vicki."
"What's with Vicki?" He asked with a sigh that implied he was tired of getting calls that started like that.
"I don't know… She's… She's on something. She's with Jeremy and me at his house… Can you get over here? She's being… well, crazy."
"Yeah, yeah, I'll be there in a minute."
True to his word, not five minutes later, he was knocking on the door. Cynthia opened the door and let him in.
"Where is she?"
"Uh, in here." She shut the door and led him into the kitchen. Vicki had moved to be leaning against the side of the fridge, but was still moaning and mumbling. Cynthia swore that witnessing this was a better deterrent than any 'never do drugs' talk her mom had ever given her.
"What's she on?" Matt asked, looking at Jeremy. Jeremy shook his head.
"I-I don't know."
"Hey, Vicki, how you doing?" Matt asked, kneeling down in front of Vicki. She shook her head.
"Not good, Mattie… I hurt."
"Okay… Where's it hurt?"
"My gums. My jaw hurts. My gums… There's something in my gums and it hurts!" She whined.
"Okay… Well-." He reached out to touch her, but she slapped his hand away.
"No! Just leave me alone!"
"Come on, Vic, don't be like that. Let's get you home." Matt told her calmly. Cynthia felt bad for him; he had obviously had practice in the arts of talking to his druggy sister.
"Just turn it off!"
"Turn what off?!" Cynthia demanded none too nicely. Vicki jumped up and ran to the back of the couch and glared at the TV. The TV was muted. Jeremy went over and turned up the volume to see the news story.
"…Horribly. Three bodies were found dead in what is believed to be drug deal gone awry. The bodies have yet to be identified. They were discovered earlier today over at the old Mystic Falls cemetery."
"That's where we were last night." Jeremy said slowly, looking over at Vicki.
"What happened there?" Cynthia directed the question at Jeremy.
"I don't know; I left."
"What happened, Vic?" Matt asked Vicki worriedly.
"…Homicide and are fast underway looking for suspects. They're asking anyone with information…"
"I'm calling the cops!" Matt said.
"No, don't!" Vicki cried.
"Hate to agree with her, but she's right. Look at her. Just because of how she is now she'll be booked in jail as a prime suspect and no one else was there to say she didn't do anything!" Cynthia reminded Matt.
"I didn't do anything!" Vicki yelled at her.
"I'm not saying you did but no one can say you didn't!" Cynthia shot back. In one swift movement, Vicki shoved Cynthia back hard enough for Cynthia to hit the back of the couch and then hit the floor.
"Are you okay?" Matt asked her as Jeremy offered her a hand to help her up. She ignored it and pushed herself to her feet.
"Yeah, I'm good." Actually, she felt her day had been far from anything remotely good, but she knew that they had bigger problems right now. She moved the shoulder she'd both hit the couch with and landed on experimentally. It hurt. She grimaced and folded her arm across her chest to cradle it.
"Dang, Vicki!" Matt told his sister, turning back to her in surprise. Vicki was never an exactly nice and generous person, but she had definitely never physically hurt anyone, especially Cynthia. She was the younger girl that always hung out with them, the kid of the group that everyone looked after, no one ever hurt. Just then, Stefan and Elena came into the house.
"What's going on?" Elena asked.
"She's really messed up." Matt admitted. Stefan gently shoved Elena behind him.
"Elena, back up." He went over to Vicki and looked her in the eye.
"Vicki, look at me. Focus. You're gonna be fine. Everything's gonna be fine." He looked at Jeremy and Matt.
"Guys, take her upstairs to bed. Shut the blinds. She's gonna be okay." Matt and Jeremy took her upstairs to Jeremy's room.
"What do you want me to do?" Cynthia asked.
"Get an ice pack on that shoulder." Stefan told her.
"There's one in the freezer." Elena added. Cynthia nodded and went back into the kitchen. She could hear them whispering in the living room, but couldn't make out the words. She put an ice pack on her shoulder and then went back out into the living room just in time to see Vicki sprint out the front door.
"We need a leash for her." Cynthia's humor fell on deaf ears. Elena turned to her as Stefan and Matt went out after Vicki.
"Maybe you should go home, get some rest." She suggested. Cynthia nodded in agreement. She handed the ice pack to Elena and went back home.