In the light of the sun, is there anyone? Oh it has begun...
Oh dear you look so lost, eyes are red and tears are shed,
This world you must've crossed... you said...

You don't know me, you don't even care, oh yeah,
She said
You don't know me, and you don't wear my chains... oh yeah,

She said I think I'll go to Boston...
I think I'll start a new life,
I think I'll start it over, where no one knows my name,
I'll get out of California, I'm tired of the weather,
I think I'll get a lover and fly em out to Spain...
I think I'll go to Boston,
I think that I'm just tired
I think I need a new town, to leave this all behind...
I think I need a sunrise, I'm tired of the sunset,
I hear it's nice in the Summer, some snow would be nice... oh yeah,

Boston... where no one knows my name... yeah
Where no one knows my name...
Where no one knows my name...
Yeah Boston...
Where no one knows my name.

Boston by Augustana


Saturday, June 11th, 9:12pm

"Done?" He asked. I had, indeed, finished my plate of food. I must have been starving, I realized. I laid my fork down, and our waitress appeared as if on cue. He handed her a bill. "We're in a hurry, keep the bill," he said kindly. I supposed he too, felt bad for the elderly lady. She smiled at us both, and wished us a good evening. He held the door open for me, and I walked out. It was getting windy; nights in Italy were so blissful. I glanced at Demetri. If only we were living the romance scene of Italy, I thought, blushing. I looked at Demetri, who was unlocking the Ferrari.

"Oh. Um," I began. "Thank you for everyth-"

"I'll take you home," he cut me off. There would be no sense in arguing with him when he was speaking with that tone, but my own car was parked in a garage four blocks away.

"No, no. It's okay," I said. "My car is parked four blocks away. I do need to get that home." Demetri shut his car door and thought for a moment.

"I'll drive you home in that then," he said, locking his car. I was surprised.

"Demetri!" I said, using his name for the first time and surprising us both. He looked at me, his expression again the same unreadable one. I paused, "Really, thank you. But how will you get this one home?" I asked. The corner of his mouth turned up in a broken smile, making my heart fall. Something must have shown on my face, because he frowned.

"I'll have someone bring it home for me," he said. "It's no big deal." He spoke in a consoling tone. I swallowed and had to agree. Could I say no to someone so beautiful who had just helped me? I nodded, and we walked silently together toward the garage. The silence was awkward, and I was afraid to speak. I still really wanted to know how he found me, and I knew he wouldn't tell me that. We got to the garage and approached my care.

"I'll drive," he said, decided. I nodded and handed him my car keys. Our hands touched for the slightest second, and I felt and electric chill pass through us both. We got in the car. The Memoirs of A Geisha soundtrack that had been playing on my way to Pisa turned on automatically. We sat silently as he weaved his way out of Pisa. I tried not to look out of the window. His fast driving was something I would never get used to. He turned down the volume on my stereo, and I stared at him questioningly. He spoke, "Tell me about your father."

"Oh," I sat up straight in my seat. "Well, he's always been a good man. He took care of Rehan and I the best he could. Always. He was," I struggled for the right words, "He was...heartbroken when Rehan died."

"Worse than you?" He asked, looking at me. "I can tell you worry about him a lot."

I nodded. "Sometimes I think I should have stayed in America and spent the summer with him," I said. "He's not alone. He's coaching a soccer team for the summer. But I don't know if that's enough."

"Why did you come to Italy this summer?" He asked softly. I inhaled air slowly, slowly searching for the right words.

"I wanted to see if I could find out any reason why Rehan would kill himself," I said finally, the words paining me. "We were very close. He was never suicidal. Ever."

Demetri looked at me, his unreadable expression creasing his pale forehead slightly. I turned my head and stared out the window, trying my best to barricade all my memories. The blur outside made me dizzy. I asked, "Have you ever gotten a speeding ticket?"

Demetri laughed. It was a pretty sound, like an angel laughing from atop a church tower. My mind slowly seemed to dissolve, syncing into his laughter. He looked at me out of the corner of his eye, the corner of his mouth up in a broken smile. "Never."

I was surprised. I supposed the Italian police weren't very careful. "How long have you worked in the castle?"

"A while," he said carefully, "I have lost track of how long I have lived there." He glanced at me.

"How many people live there?" I asked.

"It varies...from time to time," he said, staring at the road. His tone was firm, and I decided not to ask anymore questions. He spoke again, "Why else did you come here?"

"Huh?" I looked at him, surprised he was bringing it up again.

"You could have searched for the reason Rehan killed himself long before. But you chose to do it almost four years later. Why?" He asked softly, glancing at me. I took a deep breath.

"I also wanted to get away for a little while," I said.

"Why?" he asked, staring at me.

"My dad," I searched for the right words, "Has always been very worried about me. So I wanted to take a load off of him."

He nodded, turning the steering wheel sharply. I looked out. We were at my apartment already. He parked in front of the building and got out of the car. He held the car door open for me.

"Thank you," I said. He handed me something else, something hard and cold. My cell phone. "Oh." I had forgotten about that. "Thank you."

He nodded, the corner of his mouth turning up in a broken smile again. He walked me inside, and up to my floor. I looked at him, in his eyes. "Thank you. Really. For everything." I had never been good with displaying my emotions.

"I owed Lawrence," he said slowly. I looked at him, wondering if that was all. Stupid. Of course that's why he helped. No reason else.

"Well, now I owe you," I said, "Your debt is paid. To him." He handed my my keys.

"Good night," he said, boring his eyes into mine for a second before he abruptly turned on his heel and walked away.

"Good night," I said softly, to his graceful figure glancing back for a moment to look at me before he disappeared in the elevator.


Saturday, June 11th, 8:49pm

"I was sightseeing in Pisa," he said, finally. Victoria's lip twitched, as if she didn't believe him, and a flash of sudden anger passed through Demetri's body. Why didn't she believe him?

"But that doesn't make sense. How did you find me?" she asked again. Demetri looked distractedly away in distaste; why was she being so difficult? He was here, wasn't he? Paying for her dinner? He'd just saved her life from Stefan, and she probably had no idea. Why couldn't she just be grateful and fawn over him, like every other human female would.

Demetri's lip twitched. He didn't want her to fawn over him; that would make her just like every other human. But why didn't he see her as every other human? Because of Allegra? He hoped that was why...

The waitress came over with two glasses of water, her dyed blonde hair spilling over her tightly clad torso. Her eyes lingered on Demetri before setting down the glasses. He still had his sunglasses on.

"What would you like to order?" She asked, pulling out her notepad again and glancing at Demetri first. He looked pointedly at Victoria. He wasn't going to order anything; if he shoved tasteless human food down his throat, it wouldn't do him any good. Aro was most definitely going to have his way; Victoria didn't have to be patronizingly kept from their secret for too long...

"Fettucini Alfredo," she said, hesitating, but for not too long. Demetri glanced at her quickly. Was that her favorite? It was unhealthy...did she have good metabolism?

...most importantly, why did he care?

She glanced across the table at Demetri while handing in her menu. He averted his gaze.

"Nothing for me," he said in Italian to the waitress, handing in his untouched menu. She nodded and left them in peace. Thank goodness, Demetri thought, that she didn't try to convince him to order. Ah...Demetri remembered, reaching into his pocket to pull out something he'd picked up earlier. Her cellphone.

"Here," he held it out towards her. She glanced at it curiously, her blue eyes big and wary, and then recognized.

"Oh," Victoria said, surprised. She blinked, "Thanks,"

"You're welcome," he said, as she enclosed my fingers around it. Her hand trembled as she grasped it and put it away. Of course...it had been in his pocket all along, the phone must be freezing.

"How did you find me?" She repeated, making the mistake of looking at him in the eye, again. Demetri bore into hers and sighed. She quickly broke his glance.

"You're safe. Isn't that enough for you?" Demetri said, annoyed.. "You were oddly lucky today." His voice was seductive, like warm dripping honey. Please, he thought, please just be quiet and thankful that I saved you-

"It's not enough," she answered impatiently, carefully keeping her eyes away from his, and taking a sip of my water. Demetri glared at her, aggravated. Look at me, he thought. Just look into my eyes an-

"Is Lawrence telling you to keep tabs on me?" She interrupted his thoughts again.

Demetri sighed and ran a hand threw his hair, utterly vexed by her constant questions. Why had he followed her? Aro hadn't specifically told him to... "Could you drop the subject?" He said impatiently, a tinge of anger in his voice.

Victoria's mouth shut, and her eyes had almost a hint of fear before she glanced down at the table. Demetri felt a twinge of guilt; he had been glaring at her rather fiercely. The waitress came over and silently put down the plate of pasta. Demetri pinched the bridge of his nose...trying to calm himself down. Why was he so angry? Oh, right. Because he had no idea what he was doing right now.

The waitress came over with a plate of pasta with a scent that chocked Demetri's nose. He watched as Victoria slowly unrolled her silverware, neatly placed her napkin in her lap, and started eating, fully aware of Demetri's eyes on her. She ate slowly, glancing up every few seconds at Demetri to see if he was still looking -- and then would glance back at her food. She said she hadn't had much of a social life...but she seemed amiable enough. What had happened?

"Is it because of your brother?" he asked suddenly, breaking the awkward silence. Victoria choked slightly on the bite of pasta she was chewing, and Demetri held back a smirk.

"Huh?" she said, picking up her napkin. He looked at her curiously, trying to discern her expression.

"Your social life. Were you so upset about your brother?" He asked again. She looked shocked. Not expecting me to talk about him...I suppose.

"I-," she stuttered, pausing. "Yeah. Yes, that's why." She said, blinking her eyes, almost as if she was blinking back tears. He analyzed her every move with his superior vision. She was close to her brother, then? If his loss had made her shut up. Rehan had not mentioned her at all during his visit...

"You were close to him," Demetri said. It wasn't a question. Victoria nodded, still jabbing at her pasta and avoiding Demetri's gaze. He leaned back, and let her eat in silence.


Saturday, June 11th, 9:48pm

"Good night," he said, boring his eyes into mine for a second before he abruptly turned on his heel and walked away.

"Good night," Demetri heard Victoria say before walking inside her apartment. Demetri waited, tracking her in his head to make sure she was safely occupied with something in her apartment, and began to run.

The cold air whipped through his hair, blowing it behind him. He shut his eyes, thinking back to her soft voice as he had left her by the door. He smiled; he had her wrapped around his finger. Aro would be proud.

But a twinge of selfishness in him told him something else. He didn't want her to be so gullible.