Mr. Bell's history lesson was particularly unpleasant that day. He kept coming on to Jeremy with questions and offensive comments at every chance given, enjoying maliciously making the boy uncomfortable. Once the class got to an end and Jeremy thought that his torture was finally over, Mr. Bell stood in front of his desk, looking at his students' empting the classroom eagerly and said: "Mr. Gilbert, can I have a word with you?"
"Sure…" Jeremy muttered, thinking that he would much rather prefer to be ripped apart by a pack of werewolves than spend five extra minutes in Mr. Bell's company.
"Alone" Mr. Bell said, glaring over at Kylie who waited for Jeremy by the door.
The two kids exchanged a look of mutual understanding, before Kylie depart with the rest of the class, leaving the door slightly open.
Mr. Bell indicated for the boy to come closer and paced thoughtfully around his desk, his face red from concentration. He looked battled as though was trying to take a life changing decision.
"What happened to your leg?" he suddenly looked up, a deranged expression upon his face.
"I tripped" said Jeremy mechanically; giving the same answer he'd been giving to everybody who asked.
"Is that so?" said the man rounding Jeremy creepily.
"Yes" said Jeremy boringly.
Mr. Bell jumped forward, grabbed Jeremy from the top of his shirt and pinned him against the blackboard. "What were you doing at my house, Gilbert?" he pressed his nails deep inside the boy's throat, his hands trembling with fury.
Jeremy's heart sank. He tried hard to push the man away from him, but the teacher's saggy, old body was a lot stronger than he expected.
"I was never at your house" said Jeremy, still struggling.
"LIES!" Mr. Bell roared, grabbing a fistful of Jeremy's hair and banged his head twice against the blackboard. "What were you doing at my house, Gilbert?" he pressed his forehead on Jeremy's and whispered inside his ear, "I'm going to kill you".
Jeremy gulped but did not let his fear show. "I was never at your house!" he yelled and with his last remaining strength he pushed the man off of him. He didn't know how or why; maybe it was his will to save his life or maybe Kylie screaming on top of her voice, "Yes, Sir, Mr. Bell is still inside" but the history teacher freed the boy and stepped backwards, away from Jeremy.
The door swung open and Bonnie's dad, Principal Hopkins stepped inside the classroom, looking at Mr. Bell who was standing at the other end of the room, straightening up. Jeremy quickly made his way out in the hallway, leaving Mr. Bell alone with Principal Hopkins who clearly noticed nothing of his employee trying to strangle his daughter's ex-boyfriend.
"How could he know it was you?" Kylie was yapping in his ear after he told her everything that happened, "did you tell him?"
"No I didn't tell him, I'm not that stupid" Jeremy was rubbing his throat that was still in pain. "Plus I don't think he knew it was me, not for sure at least" he said trying to convince himself as much as Kylie.
"He sounded pretty sure to m—"
"I'm going to skip the rest of the classes" Jeremy interrupted her, before she had time to finish her thought.
"No you're not" said Kylie flatly, "your dad will get mad again, you'll be grounded and I won't be able to see you no more"
"He is not my dad, plus he is outside so he won't find out…"
Kylie threw him a disdainful look.
"Okay fine, I'll stay" he raised his hands in defeat, seeing Kylie regain her smile.
Coming home from school that day, Jeremy found an unexpected surprise waiting for him in the mailbox. He held the letter from his school, looking around the Salvatore property for a sign of Damon or Stefan before his eyes turn back on the file, addressed to Damon Salvatore. With shaken hands he ripped the file apart, took out the main letter and his eyes slid down the paper widening more and more at every word until they felt ready to pop.
"Dick" he spoke to the paper, breaking it in his fist and walking toward the entrance of the house.
After absentmindedly disposing the letter in the kitchen trashcan, Jeremy mounted the stairs up to his room. On top of his bed was placed a 'Jeremy do your homework' clip note, written with Stefan's cursive handwriting. Jeremy ignored the note, throwing his coat over it and went to the desk to open his computer, only to realize that Stefan took away his charger, leaving him instead another clip note 'I said do your homework!'
Starting to feel his temper rise, Jeremy looked inside the closet, dived under the bed and rummaged through the drawers, checking for more missing things. He had to admit that Stefan did a pretty good job clearing up his room from all kinds of electronical temptation. Now his PS3, his x-box, his mp3, his iPod and all his games were replaced with more of Stefan's notes, that after some point Jeremy stopped reading.
He lay down on the bed and opened his biology book, thinking of ways to vervain Stefan. He flickered through the first few pages without really looking at the content, before snapping it shut with a little thud. He glanced around his bedroom searching of ways to keep himself entertained, when all of the sudden he remembered. Jumping up to his feet, he limped to the sock drawer and with great relief realized that it survived Stefan's witch hunt and under his layer of socks and porn magazines was still innocently laying a forgotten and abandoned Game Boy Color.
He didn't really want to play with it, in all fairness he would much rather prefer going over to Kylie's house and work on the Mr. Bell case, but the teenage-rebellious part of him wanted to go against Stefan's unreasonable and suffocating rules and playing with the only survived videogame was a way to do it.
It was less than an hour later when Jeremy heard footsteps coming from the side of the corridor. He quickly threw his Game Boy under the bed, grabbed the nearest book from his nightstand and hid his face behind it. Damon pulled the door open without knocking and leaned on the side of the wall, there was a piece of paper trapped inside his fist.
"Do you know what that is?" he asked without as much as a hello and straightened the very familiar school letter that Jeremy disposed over an hour ago.
"No" Jeremy shrugged, his head still facing the book even though his eyes remained very still.
"It's a school letter" Damon informed him in an amused tone.
"Really?" said Jeremy, adding a slight note of innocent curiosity in his voice.
"I found it in the trash" said Damon casually as though the trash was a perfectly normal place to keep a school letter, "you wouldn't happen to know anything about it, would you?"
"No…" said Jeremy attempting an ingratiating smile.
"You wouldn't also happen to know whose is it, right?" Damon seemed to be rather enjoying himself.
Jeremy looked miserably around the room, as though expecting for salvation to come from somewhere. "No" he breathed finally.
Damon nodded in a falsely understanding way, "have a guess"
"Stefan…?" he gulped.
Damon's grin widened, "guess again"
There was a small pause in which Jeremy almost begged his Game Boy to stop playing the annoying Pokémon theme tune from under his bed.
"Me" he said in a voice so small that if Damon wasn't a vampire he probably wouldn't be able to hear him.
"Excuse me?" Damon brought his hand to his ear, "what did you say?"
"Okay fine" Jeremy rolled his eyes, "It's mine, I'm failing history. There I said it! Are you happy now?" said the boy, dropping all pretense.
"Happy? You are failing history, why would I be happy you idiot?" Damon barked at him, looking over at Stefan's pile of clip notes.
"Yeah, that's not good" Jeremy shook his head in fake remorse.
"No it's not" Damon agreed, pacing around the room for a few quiet seconds before sitting on the edge of Jeremy's bed.
"Well, it's useful then that I'm studying" said Jeremy looking pointedly at the book in his hands.
Damon glanced sideways at the boy, "really? How is that working for you?" he asked folding his arms.
"Great!" Jeremy lied at once, "It's a little complicated, but I can manage"
"Complicated?" Damon repeated with a little grin, "then maybe you should try turning it the other side"
Eyes filled with pure horror, Jeremy looked down at the book, that wasn't even history and was also apparently holding it backwards this whole time.
"Shit…" he muttered.
"Get it together, Jer" Damon stood up and with that he brought this depressing discussion to an end.
For the rest of the day Jeremy remained grudgingly inside his room and even when Stefan stopped by to check on the effects of his clip notes, he made sure to let Stefan know of everything he thought about him, his program and his clip notes. He didn't know why he felt so angry. Of course deep inside he did expect to fail history all along, but having Damon over at his school for a chat with Mr. Bell about his grades, was something he couldn't comprehend no matter how hard he tried, especially after Mr. Bell's attempt to strangle him that very same morning.
"So, are you really coming to my school today?" asked Jeremy miserably on Wednesday morning, staring blankly at his cereal as though facing his last meal.
"You are going to his school?" Stefan emerged from the hallway, alarmed looking. "What for?"
"Some parent-teacher meeting" said Damon with a shrug, his tone quite indifferent.
"Parent-teacher meeting" Stefan repeated thoughtfully, "what did you do?" he narrowed his eyes suspiciously at Jeremy.
"Nothing!" said Jeremy in a dignified voice, deeply offended by the false accusation, "why are you always so easy to assume I did something?!"
"Oh please" Stefan sneered, "You're always up to no good"
"It's about his grades" Damon interrupted the what had to be a beginning of a two hour long argument.
"Grades?" Stefan repeated again interestedly and as though to complete the disaster he added, "Don't you think it would be more appropriate if I attended the meeting?"
Jeremy dropped his spoon inside his bowl and milk splashed all over his shirt but he didn't seem to care and only stared at Stefan in a state of shock. Damon on the other hand, simply rolled his eyes and in a tone of genuine interest he asked his brother, "and what exactly makes you more appropriate, brother?"
"That I actually care about his education" said Stefan as though his reasons were obvious.
An irritated smirk came across Damon's face. "While I don't?"
"You don't act like you do" said Stefan casually, but his attitude was set for a fight.
That was what Jeremy noticed and pushed his chair away from the counter and quietly got up to his feet with this place being the last he wanted to be at that moment.
"What you're trying to do is suck up to Elena, brother" said Damon hurtfully, taking a threatening step closer to Stefan.
"Now why would I do that? I have Elena, brother" said Stefan, him too stepping forward so that his face was an inch away from Damon's.
The two Salvatore brothers glared at each other as though wishing to the other nothing less but to drop dead. "SIT DOWN" they yelled in one voice, without looking away from each other but both pointing at Jeremy.
The boy who was only seconds away from leaving the kitchen and could almost smell the sweet air of freedom, cursed from under his breath and retreated to his chair. He placed his head in between his hands and watched the rest of the fight with an expression of utmost boredom, as Damon and Stefan had the same typical fight every other morning. He was very much aware that while this argument was seemingly about his education, in reality it had nothing to do with him at all, it was all about Elena and who was the man of the house.
"You" Stefan turned raptly around at Jeremy, "which one of us do you prefer to come at the meeting today?"
Jeremy could hardly imagine which one them was more appropriate for a parent-teacher conference with Mr. Bell, in fact he felt a burning desire to express his need to stake them both in their sleep, but since one day in the very distant future he was still hoping to drive his car, he kept that thought to himself.
"So?" Damon prompted him.
"Elena could come" said Jeremy with a shrug.
"Elena is busy" said Stefan dismissively.
"Then I really don't care" said Jeremy with a yawn, while stirring his saggy cereal in a disgusting looking mush.
It was around six o'clock in the evening and the sun was already coming down as though him too not willing to witness the rest of that day's going. Jeremy could agree completely since he too wanted to disappear from the world's sight, as he was sitting next to Kylie in the cafeteria waiting. Damon and Stefan were both already at the school having split the classes, while Kylie was still waiting impatiently for one of her dads to show.
"Dad!" she shrieked cheerfully, running up to door and hug Mr. Atkins, who shot Jeremy an unpleasant glare behind his daughter's back.
"Mr. Atkins" said Jeremy moodily, returning the glare.
"Young Salvatore" Mr. Atkins nodded.
Jeremy rolled his eyes and muttered something that wasn't very clear but sounded a lot like "Gilbert" and one very bad word.
Kylie pointed at the classes her dad had to visit and once he left, she sat back down next to Jeremy.
"Don't worry, it's going to be okay" Kylie smiled encouragingly, squeezing his shoulder.
"I'm not worried, I'm angry" said Jeremy sternly and watched as Damon and Stefan walked inside the cafeteria at almost the exact same moment, both coming from different sides.
"So?" Jeremy stared nervously at them, biting his down lip.
"Easy going, smart, attentive and responsible" Stefan quoted some of Jeremy's teachers, looking willing to kiss the boy, "Elena will be so proud"
Jeremy turned around to make sure Stefan was actually speaking to him, "does that mean I can drive my car?" he decided to seize the moment.
"Keep it up like that and I'll be more than happy to let you drive an airplane" said Stefan with a proud smile. "What did your half say?" he rounded on Damon.
"Well" Damon smirked at Jeremy, "part from the biology teacher that was frankly surprised when I informed her of your existence and the P.E coach who thought you were the exchange student, you did quite alright"
Jeremy nodded, that description sounded a lot more like him.
"Okay" Stefan clapped his hands, looking pleased "let's go home"
"Actually there is yet one class left" Damon smirked in Jeremy's direction.
"Oh, okay" said Jeremy looking faintly unsettled, "I'll wait for you at home" he said and made an attempt to follow Stefan to the exit when Damon caught him around the waist and drew him back.
"You're coming with me" he said with an unmerciful smile.
Casting the exit door a miserable look of longing, Jeremy said goodbye to Kylie and Stefan and paced toward the history class of Mr. Bell. He was walking before Damon who kept prodding him in the back for no good reason.
"I don't want to go in there" said Jeremy biting down his pride and allowing a small trace of panic in his voice, once they got in front of Mr. Bell's classroom.
"Too bad, now move it" Damon pushed him a little ahead of him.
"No I really don't want to go in there" he said in a voice a little above whisper.
"And I really don't care" Damon gave him another shove in the back and opened the door of the history class, pushing Jeremy inside first.
Mr. Bell was seated behind his desk; his head leaned over a big pile of files. Once he noticed Damon and Jeremy, he launched himself off his chair and moved toward them with an expression of great distaste on his face.
"Damon Salvatore" Damon introduced himself holding out a hand.
"Are you the father?" asked Mr. Bell shaking Damon's hand with a look of disgust.
"Close enough" Damon patted Jeremy's shoulder.
"You look young" Mr. Bell leered at him, scrutinizing disapprovingly Damon's appearance.
"You'd be surprised" " Damon's lips curled in what had to be a very ironic smile that was undoubtedly addressed to Jeremy.
Mr. Bell turned his back on them seemingly unable to have a glance to spare on Jeremy and sat back behind his desk. "Have a sit" he motioned Damon to the chair opposite him.
Damon pushed Jeremy forward and sat down, forcing the boy on the second chair next to him. There was a moment's silence in which the only sound was coming from the raffling of the papers as Mr. Bell was searching for Jeremy's file.
"So, tell me Mr. Bell" said Damon reading Mr. Bell's name from the name plate on top of the desk. "How is my sweet angel doing?"
Mr. Bell looked up and shot Jeremy a murderous glare, who stared back at him without flinching.
"Let me put it that way" said Mr. Bell finding Jeremy's file and putting it before him, "I like to keep records with all the progress my students make throughout the school-year, this is Mr. Gilberts so far" he handed over to Damon a piece of paper.
"This is empty" Damon noticed, examining the blank paper from both sides.
"Indeed" Mr. Bell smiled maliciously; showing all of his little, yellow teeth.
Damon glanced at Jeremy who shrugged in an answer.
"This is the worst student I've ever had. He is disrespectful" Mr. Bell started, looking slightly disappointed at Damon's calm reaction, he would love very much to see Jeremy get yelled at.
"Respect is earned" said Damon simply.
"He is moody" said Mr. Bell, giving no sign that he had heard him.
"He is a teenager, if he was a happy-happy butterfly then you should probably be worried" Damon interrupted him with a gleeful smile.
Mr. Bell looked as though he had been slapped across the face. "Now I can see where Mr. Gilbert gets his special sense of humor" he said bitterly, and his face recovered to his normal sour expression.
Damon turned at Jeremy with a kind of furious pride.
"I'm sorry Gilbert, I was wrong to accuse you for your impropriate behavior" said Mr. Bell with a falsely sympathetic tone, his face turned on Jeremy. "Parents and irresponsible teachers are the ones to be accountable"
"Teachers?" Damon and Jeremy said in one voice, both rising slightly from their chairs.
"Yes, teachers" said Mr. Bell defiantly, opening Jeremy's file to take a look inside. "Alaric Saltzman in particular, as I understand was close to the family showing obvious favoritism with an A to a student that clearly does not deserve it"
"Say that again" said Damon threateningly and Jeremy could tell that he was restraining himself with extreme difficulty.
"Teachers like Mr. Saltzman are the reason students like Gilbert here exist. Teachers who are irresponsible, soft and –"
Jeremy felt a little breeze of air, as everything changed in the blink of an eye. One moment Mr. Bell was sitting opposite him and the next he was slammed against the wall, Damon's hand at his throat and his legs tangling in midair.
"Damon no…" said Jeremy taken aback, but without really trying to get the vampire off his history teacher, since Mr. Bell was too trying to strangle him a couple days ago, his sympathy was limited.
"What were you saying?" Damon ignored the boy and focused on his prey.
Mr. Bell didn't answer, looking confused and upset he only kept kicking his legs and jerking his head in an attempt to free himself, but Damon was about a hundred times stronger making it all seem pointless.
"Damon, don't kill him" said Jeremy, this time putting some effort to get in front of Damon.
"Why not?" said Damon shoving Jeremy out of the way.
"Because…" Jeremy started but he couldn't think of real answer. Mr. Bell was a jerk that did everything in his power to make him suffer, but death was not a right punishment for being a dick.
"Give me one good reason and I'll let him go" said Damon conversationally, without the slightest indication that he could feel Mr. Bell's brutal struggle to free himself.
"Okay" said Jeremy considering the matter as seeing Mr. Bell's face turning to a nice purple color. "He is a dick, he really is…but so are you, and Stefan and me and so was Alaric"
"You are not giving me reasons Jeremy" said Damon though his grip was getting slightly looser.
"My point is, he deserves to live as much as we do and plus he would be the third history teacher you kill…gets old" Jeremy added hurriedly.
Damon watched Jeremy for a few seconds before throwing Mr. Bell back to his feet. "You are one lucky old man" he said, still keeping Mr. Bell pinned on the wall.
Mr. Bell didn't speak, he looked horrorstruck and almost cried when Damon pulled up his chin and nailed his blue eyes inside the teacher's black.
"You'll remember nothing of what happened" said Damon in a stern voice, "the meeting went great, Jeremy Gilbert is your favorite student and that's why you'll reward him with an A"
"Jeremy Gilbert is my favorite student" Mr. Bell repeated blankly and Damon freed him from his grip.