That night was spent searching other rooms in the house for books. Not only were there mountains of books we had to look through, there were so many rooms. I had spent most of the time complaining about not sleeping the night before until Damon finally let me go to bed. It hadn't been a good night's rest. It felt like my eyes were only closed minutes before my alarm went off. I groaned loudly sitting up in my bed. I rubbed my sleepy eyes and sighed. It was going to be a long day.

…

Caroline approached me the moment I stepped onto the school courtyard. I gave her a look as she twisted her hands nervously in front of her.

"Hi," she said, simply. I smiled at her.

"Hey." She fell in step beside me as I walked towards the school.

"Look, I heard what you said to Matt yesterday and I would just like to say thank you," she finally spat out, "So thank you." I looked at her surprised.

"You really don't need to thank me, Caroline," I replied. She stepped in front of me and stopped walking.

"Well, it occurred to me, if anyone knows what I went through with Damon it's you. And now this thing with Matt, well. You know," she said softly. I looked at her sadly.

"I do," I answered.

"Would you like to help me paint banners for the dance tonight? We can have some much needed girl talk," she asked. I felt a small smile break out on my lips.

"I would love to. I have a thing with Alaric right after school but after that is done I will join you," I agreed. She gave me a sweet smile back.

"Good. I will see you out here then! We should probably get to class now." I nodded and chuckled as we walked into the school.

"Oh! By the way, have you seen Elena? Something seemed off about her yesterday and I just want to make sure she is okay," I questioned. She shook her head.

"No, not yet today anyway," she answered. I bit my lip and nodded. We walked into Alaric's class and I hoped to see her sitting in the back, making goo-goo eyes at Stefan. I was disappointed when I saw neither of them in their regular seats. Caroline seemed to pick up on that. "Hey, it's okay. I'm sure they are just making out somewhere or something." I nodded at her.

"Yeah, probably."

They walked into class about twenty minutes late. Elena looked a little frazzled but I have a feeling Caroline was right. She was probably with Stefan. I gave her a look as she walked in that she ignored.

As soon as the bell rang I stopped her at the door.

"Elena, what happened? Something was wrong yesterday, do you want to tell me what it was?" She grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the school. We sat down at a picnic bench in the courtyard and she sighed.

"A few things have felt so wrong lately Annie. Everything is just getting exhausting," she started. I looked down at my hands and nodded.

"Okay, continue."

"I'm adopted," she stated bluntly. My eyes widened and I looked back up to meet her eyes.

"Wow, okay."

"Yeah, Stefan found out while we were in Georgia. It feels so strange like my entire life has been a lie," she explained.

"Why was he looking?" I asked. She looked sad as she played absently with her fingers. "This has to do with Katherine doesn't it? And why you look like her?" She nodded.

"Yeah, I guess so. I didn't ask for my life to be this complicated Annie. I just wanted to go through high school, with a normal boyfriend and normal friends and parents to see me off to college. I feel different," she said, her voice catching. "My entire life is literally a lie."

"No, Elena. Don't think like that! You had loving parents, who cared very much about you. They wanted you more than you can imagine. You were their first child and they loved you with everything they had until the very end," I said. She looked up at me, tears forming in her eyes.

"You don't know that, you didn't even know them," she said softly. I gave her a small smile.

"If they didn't love you that much, you wouldn't have become the woman you are today," I told her seriously. She let out a small sob.

"Thank you," she whispered.

"I can see why you've been out of it though. That's a big deal. If you want I will help you find your birth parents. I may not have supernatural influencing powers but I will do everything I can," I explained. She let out another sob and tears flowed openly down her cheeks. I moved to sit next to her. I wrapped my arm around her shoulders. "Hey, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you cry."

"No, you didn't do anything. Thank you so much Annie," she wept. I nodded to her.

"Of course. You are my friend," I told her. She looked at me and let out a sad laugh.

"I just realized I don't know anything about you," she said. I sighed.

"You don't need to know anything. What you need to know is who I am right here, right now. My past isn't important," I told her. Her eyes narrowed.

"You're lying." I shook my head.

"It's too dangerous. The more you know, the more trouble you, all of you, could be in. I don't want to put that on you guys. That isn't fair," I explained. She shook her head.

"I don't care how dangerous it is. We are your friends Annie and we will be through everything," she returned. I bit my lip.

"Not today. I will tell you, but not today," I promised. She looked unsure for a moment before nodding. "So is that all that's wrong?" I watched her sigh and brush the tears off her cheeks.

"The vampire I hit with my car… he called me yesterday," she said quietly. My eyes widened and I froze.

"What did he say?" I asked sharply. I saw surprise cross her face at my tone. I tried to shake off my fear but it didn't work. I felt my hands start to shake so I shoved them under the table.

"He was watching me. He told me I got away from him and I wouldn't next time. He also mentioned you," she explained. My mouth dropped open and I let out a shaky breath. I clamped my mouth shut and swallowed roughly.

"What did he say?" She looked at me worriedly.

"He said he was looking forward to seeing you again," she told me. I stood up quickly from the bench and turned walking away. "Annie!" Elena jogged to catch up.

"Can you tell me anything about him? Did you see him?" I asked, my voice pleading. She shook her head, her brown eyes focused on me.

"No, he just sounded like a normal kid. I think I may have seen him but I just saw a kid in a hoodie. It could have been anyone," she answered. I started walking faster. "Where are you going?"

"I have to leave. I have to leave Mystic Falls now!" I snapped, through gritted teeth. She grabbed my arm and turned me back. I noticed her cell phone in her hand and I glared at it.

"Just wait Annie. What's wrong? Is this about your father?" she asked. I pulled my arm away and turned to walk away but instead ran directly into Damon. I let out a small scream as I tried to run. He held my arms tightly.

"Woah, woah girl. Where do you think you are going?" he asked. I hit him as hard as I could in the chest and he just grabbed my clenched fists, an annoyed look on his face.

"You called him?" I snapped over my shoulder at Elena. She looked guiltily down at her phone.

"Well, she texted but it doesn't matter. I'm here and I'm not letting you go anywhere," he said. I tried to pull my hands away and he sighed, holding them tighter. "You never learn."

"Let go of me right now or I will start screaming," I threatened. His eyes grew dark and he leaned in closer to me.

"Try it," he growled back. I opened my mouth and he quickly slapped a hand down over it. I screamed into his palm. He started leading me away from the courtyard.

"Elena!" I cried into his hand. What came out was muffled. She gave me a sorry look as she put her phone back in her pocket and turned to the school. "ELENA!"

"Hush now. We are leaving and we aren't attracting any attention," Damon said as he wrapped his other arm around my shoulders, leading me away. I reached up and grabbed the hand that was covering my mouth. I screamed again and Damon tightened his grip on my shoulders. "Annie stop. I'm just trying to help."

"No you're not! You are going to get everyone killed!" I cried into his palm. He rolled his eyes at my muffled reply. Damon took me to the Grill and sat me down at a table before walking around and sitting across from me. I glared at him. He smirked as the waitress came up and he ordered us both coffee.

"Do you want to explain what was going on?" he asked. I crossed my arms over my chest and continued to glare. "Elena said you were starting to freak out about something. I assume she doesn't mean your normal, daily level of freak out or she wouldn't have contacted me."

"Have you heard about Elena's little stalker?" I questioned. The waitress came and dropped off our coffees. I waited as Damon fixed his and took a sip.

"Of course I have, what about it?"

"Do you know who it is?" He put his coffee cup down slowly and looked at me.

"No, do you?" he asked. I bit my lip and shook my head. "Are you worried that it might be another goon sent by your father?"

"Of course I'm worried," I snapped, "He mentioned me by name Damon. Unless it is someone I know, then it can only be one of his guys!"

"You must have known a lot of people before coming here," he said, shaking my worry off. I reached over the table and grabbed his hand tightly.

"All of whom are dead, or at least I think they are. Where ever I go, my father follows leaving a trail of bodies behind. Do you see now why I have to leave?" I asked. Damon wrapped his hand around mine and leaned closer.

"I promised I wouldn't let anything happen to you. We had a deal remember?" he reminded me in a low voice. I sighed.

"Not even you can face my father and win Damon. He isn't some low class vampire. He is practically the king!" I warned him. Damon rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah. Heard it all before. Undefeatable, untouchable, unkillable. Trust me when I say I won't let him hurt you." I closed my eyes and sighed, pulling my hand out of Damon's and resting it on my lap.

"I won't let any more of my friends die for me," I whispered. Damon leaned back in his seat.

"Good thing none of us are dying."

…

After coffee and lunch at the Grill, Damon dropped me off at the school, making me promise not to take a step off the school property without him or Stefan. I rolled my eyes but agreed. The school day was almost over. I loitered in the hallway until the final bell then made my way to Ric's classroom. He was sitting in his desk, reading an old leather bound book when I entered. He barely lifted his head to acknowledge my entrance. I sat down at my desk, pulled out another worksheet and my textbook before getting to work.

"That must be some page turner. You haven't taken your eyes off of it," I spoke up after a few annoying moments of silence. Ric grunted and looked up at me.

"Oh, it's just some old journal. You know how I love my history," he said carefully closing the book and placing it on the corner of his desk.

"An old journal? That's cool! Who's is it?" I asked, going back to my worksheet.

"Jonathan Gilbert. The Gilbert's were one of the founding families of Mystic Falls. Jeremy loaned it to me," Alaric explained. I looked up at him.

"Founding family huh? That's pretty neat. So is it all boring talk of politics and land claims?" I questioned. Alaric shrugged.

"You'd be surprised. Jonathan Gilbert was a little insane. There is talk of witches and vampires. It's really interesting," he said. I tried to hide my surprise at the word vampires.

"Cool!" I'd have to remember to tell Damon about it. Maybe this could help us out if we couldn't find his father's.

…

"Caroline!" I called, walking out of the school to the courtyard. She looked sad as she turned but a smile formed on her face as she saw me. She lifted her paintbrush up in a wave. "Hey! How is it going?"

"Not bad, almost done actually. Thanks for coming to help," she said as she continued painting. I dropped my bag on the ground and smiled.

"Not a problem." I grabbed a paintbrush and started filling in the letters on the opposite side of the banner.

"So how was the rest of your day? I didn't see you after History," she said, not looking up.

"Not bad. Elena and I talked, she called Damon and Damon took me to lunch," I said a little bitterly. Finally Caroline looked up, her face worried.

"Why did she call Damon?" she asked.

"I had a panic attack and threatened to leave Mystic Falls," I explained quietly. Caroline frowned.

"So she called Damon?" I nodded.

"Yeah. Apparently he is my protector or something now. Anyway, enough about me. What about you?" I asked, returning to painting.

"I keep pushing Matt away," she replied, sadly.

"Why do you say that?"

"I made the mistake of asking him to the dance and he shut me down. Said he had to work. Apparently he got a job as a busboy at the Grill. I didn't know that, I said some things and I came across sounding like a snob," she explained.

"It'll be okay. One day everything will work out," I told her. She nodded but didn't look convinced.

"Are you going to the dance?" she asked. I finished painting in my last letter before answering.

"Yeah, um. Tyler actually asked me to go," I told her uncertainly. I didn't look up at her until I heard her squeal.

"Annie! That's great! I mean, he is still kind of an egocentric jerk but he's not Damon!" she said excitedly.

"Who's not Damon?" I turned to look at the newcomer and my stomach sank. Damon was smiling at me as he wrapped an arm around my waist.

"No one!" I said quickly, before Caroline could say anything. "Alrighty, time to go! I will see you later Caroline." I grabbed my bag off the ground as Damon and I walked away. Caroline waved after us with a knowing smirk on her face. I rolled my eyes at her as I waved back.

"Who were you talking about Annie?" Damon asked, leaning in and whispering in my ear. I shivered and smiled up at him.

"No one," I replied calmly. His jaw stiffened but he offered me a smile back.

…

"Annie!" Stefan called as Damon and I made our way into the house. He met us at the front door with a smile. Damon rolled his eyes and walked right passed.

"Elena wanted to invite you over to get ready for the dance together. She'll be here to pick you up in a few minutes," he said quickly. I dropped my bag on the ground and glared at him.

"No," I snapped. Stefan let out a frustrated sigh. "You know what she did today. I'm angry. I'm allowed to be angry. Your brother literally dragged me away from the school kicking and screaming. Because of her. No!"

"Annie please. You were just becoming friends," he begged. The doorbell rang and I deepened my glare.

"Go, have fun!" he said, pushing me out of the house. I practically ran into Elena, who laughed at my look of surprise.

"Hey," Elena said, sheepishly. I glared at her. She sighed. "I'm really sorry Annie. I truly am! You were scaring me and I was worried about you."

"Don't do it again!" I snapped, walking to the car. She let out a deep breath and followed me.

…

"I have nothing to wear to this dance. If I actually kept clothes I would have the greatest collection ever but no. I just had to get rid of them all," I complained to myself. Elena dug through her closet and pulled out a cute polka dotted dress and some short red heels.

"Here, you can wear this. Why did you toss all of your clothes?" She asked. I looked down at the dress and smiled.

"Well I didn't think I would ever go to high school. Thank you Elena, this is beautiful," I whispered. I walked into the bathroom to put it on.

"I think Damon will like it," she called from her room. I froze as I tied the straps around my neck.

"What makes you say that?" I asked.

"You're going with him right?"

"Uuuummmmm….." My voice increased an octave. I heard Elena gasp and she rushed into the bathroom.

"Who are you going with?" she asked. I looked down at my feet.

"Tyler," I mumbled. She stepped closer.

"Who?" I sighed.

"Tyler. I'm going with Tyler. He asked me," I finally said. Her jaw dropped but she was smiling.

"Good for you," she said. I gave her a half-hearted smile and pulled the shoes on. "You look very cute. Tyler will love it."

"Thank you," I whispered in reply. I pulled my hair into a simple high ponytail. I stood in the bathroom inspecting my outfit. It wasn't the greatest fifties costume ever but it would do for such short notice. I was dealing with fly-aways when I heard Elena call for me.

"Annie? Where are you?" she asked.

"I'm in the bathroom why?" I leaned in to look at her and saw her staring down at the compass. I took a peak at it and noticed the needle wasn't pointing at me. "Call Stefan!" I ordered, rushing out of the room.

"Where is he?" I heard Elena ask. I crept down the stairs. I heard a thump and jumped. Elena came rushing down the stairs after me. "Oh thank God. This compass was spinning. Stefan must be here. Thank you." Elena hung up and suddenly someone jumped down from the ceiling. I pushed Elena out of the way and the figure landed on me. I screamed as he tried to bit me. I opened my eyes and fought as hard as I could.

"Noah?" I asked. Finally recognizing his face. The pizza guy. My stomach sank. The pizza guy who had been invited in. Obviously. His fangs grazed my neck and I screamed again but before they sank in Stefan ran in.

"Elena!"

"Help Annie!" She cried. Stefan pulled Noah off me instantly and threw him across the room. I watched Noah get up and rush out of the house at vamp-speed. I stared at him wide-eyed. Stefan ran over to Elena to make sure she was okay before turning to me.

"Annie, you are bleeding," he said, crouching in front of me. I looked at him confused then held my hand up to a warm spot on my neck. I pulled it away and saw my fingertips covered in blood. "Call Damon, I will deal with this," he instructed Elena. She nodded and walked off. I looked into Stefan's eyes dazed.

"His name was Noah, he was the pizza guy. I should have known," I whispered. Stefan helped me up and led me to the kitchen. He wet a cloth and held it to my neck. I took it from him and met his eyes. "Thank you."

"I'm sorry this happened," he replied. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into a hug. I closed my eyes as tears fell down my cheeks. It wasn't Klaus. He wasn't here to get me yet. I sucked in a shaky breath and let the tears fall.

…

Stefan had me sat down on the couch by the time Damon arrived. I held the cloth up to my neck and stared blankly at the space in front of me. Elena sat next to me, her warm hand on my arm. I could feel them all watching me but I ignored them.

"How did he get in?" Damon asked, angrily, pacing around the living room. Stefan took a seat on the arm of the couch next to Elena.

"He was invited in," Elena whispered.

"He posed as a pizza delivery guy," Stefan explained. I noticed Damon shrug.

"Well, he gets points for that. Did he say what he wanted?" he asked. Elena's eyes grew dark as she glared at Damon.

"No. He was too busy trying to kill Annie," she snapped.

"No one can kill Annie," he said, dismissing her entirely.

"You have no idea who this is?" Stefan asked, I could feel his gaze mainly focused on me. I sucked in a deep breath and shook my head.

"No. Well, his name is Noah. But the only reason I know that is because I asked. Besides that, I've never seen him," I answered. Stefan looked up at Damon.

"Don't look at me like that. I told you we had company," Damon growled.

"You think there's more than one?" Elena asked. Her grip tightened on my arm.

"We don't know," Damon admitted. He sat on the arm of the couch next to me. I tensed up as he got closer.

"Damon, he was invited in," Stefan hinted. I sighed.

"It won't be too hard to get rid of him. He's young. Dangerous, sure. But he is impulsive and it looks like he has got his eyes on Elena and I. We could keep Elena safe and use me as bait-" Elena cut me off.

"No way, I am not letting you do this alone. What do I have to do?" she asked.

"Let your boyfriend take you to the dance. I'll take Annie, we'll see who shows up he suggested.

"I have a date," I whispered. The room suddenly went silent. Elena bit her lip. She was the only one who had known. I felt my stomach flip. Damon was not going to be happy.

"Don't you dare say it's that blonde quarterback," he growled.

"No, it's not. It's Tyler. I'm going with Tyler," I told him as bravely as I could. Damon suddenly grabbed my arm and pulled me from the couch. I let out a small cry as I collided with him.

"You aren't going with him," he snarled in my face. I whimpered and tried to pull back.

"Let me go," I cried.

"Damon!" Stefan shouted.

"Damon! He's taking her. He is picking her up in fifteen minutes. I texted him to let him know where she will be," Elena stepped in.

"It wasn't that long ago I found out you spent the night at his house-" I cut him off.

"It wasn't like that. I collapsed. He found me!" Damon ignored me.

"Then he humiliates you at the Grill." My eyes narrowed.

"Like you haven't done that yourself. Let me go right now Damon!" I shouted. He pushed me away from him and I stumbled back. I would have fallen if Stefan hadn't caught me.

"Damon, stop! She is going with Tyler. You can still watch her. We will keep her safe," Stefan snapped at him.

"Why don't we just let her boy toy in shining armour keep her safe? See how long until he gets his pretty little head torn off," Damon taunted. The doorbell rang and everyone in the room tensed up again. I saw Damon's eyes flicker to the door. He made a move to go answer it. I stepped in his way but he pushed me aside again.

"Damon stop!" Stefan called, running up to his brother. Damon ignored him and pulled the door open.

"Hi, is Annie here?" Tyler asked politely. I ran up to the door but Damon stuck an arm out blocking my path.

"Hey Tyler, would you mind giving us a minute. I will be right out I promise," I said. He nodded and turned back to his car. Stefan closed the door and I turned to Damon. "Don't you dare interfere. I'm going on this date and you can't stop me." Damon's eyes darkened.

"Do you want to bet?" Before anyone could make a move, Damon lunged at me, his fangs piercing my neck. I let out a cry before he dropped me to the ground. "Good luck explaining that, sweetheart." He opened the door to leave. "See you all at the dance." He slammed the door shut behind him. I clamped my hand over the wound in my neck to stop the blood from flowing out. Elena looked at me shocked, her hands over her mouth. Stefan quickly grabbed the forgotten cloth and pressed it to my neck.

"I'm so sorry Annie," he whispered frantically.

"What can we do?" Elena asked. I shook my head and looked up at her.

"I don't know. Tyler is waiting outside. I should just go tell him to leave. I- I don't know," I stuttered. Elena looked at me with sad eyes.

"We could bandage it up. You could say you fell or something," Elena suggested.

"There are people out there who are getting suspicious. I don't know if that will pass anymore," I admitted. Stefan helped me stand up. He motioned for Elena to go get a first aid kit.

"It's going to have to do for tonight. We need you there," he said gently.

Elena ran out to tell Tyler I would be a few more minutes while Stefan bandaged my wound.

"I'm so sorry. I can not apologize enough for Damon's behaviour," he kept repeating.

"It's not your fault. Do not apologize for him," I snapped back in reply. He nodded but looked at me sadly. He gently brushed tears from my cheeks before standing me up off the couch.

"Try to have fun tonight. We will deal with Noah, hopefully without pulling you into it," Stefan whispered to me before giving me a small peck on the cheek.

"It's barely noticeable," Elena tried to help. I looked at the patch job and rolled my eyes. Barely noticeable my ass. I sighed.

"Okay, well. I guess I will see you later," I said before opening the door and stepping outside. I closed it quickly behind me before either of them could say another word. I saw Tyler sit up in his car as he saw me approach. He got out quickly and opened the passenger side door for me. I smiled at him.

"You look gorgeous," he said sweetly before giving me a kiss on the cheek. I looked at his suit and smiled.

"And you look quite handsome," I replied. I got into the car and he closed the door behind me, running around to get back in the drivers side.

"I got you something," he said as he pulled away from the curb. He reached into the back seat and brought forward a box. He placed it in my lap. I opened it slowly and saw a beautiful corsage and beaded bracelet inside. I smiled and slipped it on my wrist.

"Thank you, it's beautiful," I told him. He grinned.

"I'm glad you like it." We talked a little more on the short drive to the school. He didn't mention the bandages and I silently thanked him for that. He pulled into the parking lot and turned off the engine. "Shall we?"

"We shall," I replied back with a small laugh. He got out and opened my door for me while holding out his arm for me to take. I took it and stepped out beside him. We walked towards the gym doors, ready to enter the dance. I let out a deep sigh. This is where things were going to get complicated.

Okay, here is a much longer chapter for you all. I have no idea why this one episode is taking so much longer than the rest but WOO! I'm sorry about the Damon thing. But come on we all saw it coming right. There was no way he would be okay we Annie going to the dance with Tyler, right… right? Okay, anyway thank you so much to everyone who reviewed. You guys are seriously the best. Thank you to everyone who followed and favourited and thank you to everyone who just read it, you are great too!

winxgirl1997: I hope this was soon enough for you. I also love how enthusiastic that soon was :)

.7: poor Annie indeed my friend, poor Annie indeed.

SomebodyWhoCares: Thank you, I'm proud of that cute little moment… I'm sorry I ruined it

tablekorner: I don't have her paired with anyone on the thingy-ma-bob but I have a pairing in mind and eventually it will work itself out. Eventually. It will probably just be little fluff bits with her and people right now but her and her pairing will get together, eventually. Thank you for your comment it made me super happy to read!

Nellychick123: Thank you very, very much. You have no idea how much that means to me.

Amelia-bella1: here you go! I hope you enjoy.

That's all for now. Thank you again to everyone. Until next time my lovelies!