Chapter 25
Lily's P.O.V.
I opened my eyes slowly and found myself in my own bed, facing the door of my room. How did I get here? The lights were turned off, the room was dark. I couldn't help but yawn as I turned around to pick up my phone and check what time it was. From the corner of my eyes I saw a figure standing at the farthest end of the room, and I jumped back. I immediately turned the lights on and my eyes grew wider.
It was Helen, how did she get in here? My hand instinctively reached for the pistol under my pillow. "Don't bother" she spoke in a low voice, "I am not even real" she continued. Was I hallucinating? My heart was racing like crazy, what is all this? "This is just my illusion" she continued, "I am not stupid enough to come to your house after all" her lips broke into a smile and she moved towards me. I backed up against the headboard of my bed as she sat down on the foot of my bed.
"I am just here to warn you" she said, "Warn me?" I finally found my voice. "The moment the sun comes up, life as you know it is going to change, the next 24 hours are going to be one hell of a ride for you and once it ends, I would have taken someone away from you – someone you love" she raised her right eyebrow. Kaleb? No, she cannot kill him especially now that they are powerless. "That's right, Kaleb and you will have to watch it all" it was as if she can read my mind. "After that, I am going to kill your parents, your friends and then when you beg me to kill you, I will grant you your wish" she told me. "You can't touch anyone" I spoke from between my teeth, ignoring the lump forming at the back of my throat. "Brace yourself" she smile and looked me in the eyes.
I opened my eyes and found myself in my room. I immediately sat up, the sun was already up. Had I been sleeping this whole while? Was I dreaming? That was such a weird dream, but it didn't feel like a dream at all. It felt so real, so vivid. My brain tried to reason with me; that must be what people call false awakening. I must be thinking that I am awake, but I must really be just dreaming, right?
I still had this weird feeling, but I shook it off, if I paid too much attention to the dream then I would not be able to function for the rest of the day. I picked up my phone and looked at the time, it was 8:05 a.m. Should I, just for the sake of my sanity, set a timer for 24 hours? I will spend the rest of the 24 hours with Kaleb, and once that passes, I will be sure that this is a dream. I decided to set a timer for 24 hours and get dressed to meet Kaleb.
I still couldn't believe that it was him. I have so much questions to ask, so much to say to him, so much to tell him. I was getting anxious just by thinking about it and that slowed me down like nothing else. I was barely functioning at all. What if it was a dream as well? No, Kaleb is really back, it cannot be a dream, I am sure of it. Does this mean, that I have actually spent all this time with Kaleb without even knowing? He has to give me so many answers.
I rushed downstairs and saw mom and dad in the kitchen, cooking. "Good morning sunshine" dad greeted me with a smile. "Good morning dad" I replied, this was weird. I don't remember the last time dad and mom greeted me with such a big smile. "I have to run" I pointed towards the door, "Let's have breakfast first" mom instructed me as she came around the kitchen counter. "I really need to go" I told her. "You aren't leaving without eating, why are you so anxious?" she asked me, her brows creased together. If I tell them about my dream, they will get worked up. "No reason" I mumbled and walked to the kitchen counter to get whatever dad had cooked.
It was pancakes. It has been such a long time since dad had cooked pancakes for me. Why were they suddenly cooking pancakes? They don't seem even slightly worried that I am leaving after breakfast, alone. All this seemed so – normal. "What is going on?" mom asked me as I kept shoving my breakfast down my throat. "Nothing" I spoke before taking another bite. "I really have to go now" I said taking my last bite and taking the dishes to the sink. "When will you be back?" mom asked, "I won't be long" I told her as I rushed to the front door, picking up my car keys. "Love you" mom said, and I stopped dead in my tracks. Ever since I have left for college, this is one thing that mom, dad and I stopped saying to one another. I turned around and watched mom and dad smiling at me. Were they trying to be normal? "Love – you – too" I mumbled, confused. Why were they trying to be normal?
I blinked a few times and walked out of the door. I will figure this mystery out once I get back after meeting Kaleb. I backed out of the driveway and rushed down the road. Everything seemed so normal in Mystic Falls, just like any other day and yet it gave me such an eerie feeling. Maybe I am just thinking way too much. I am for sure thinking too much, I know once I see Kaleb everything will be alright.
I parked my car in his driveway and got out of the car. As I was locking my car, I saw Kaleb walking out of the huge iron doors of his house. A sense of relief washed over me but apparently, Kaleb hadn't noticed me. I quickly walked up to him. "Kaleb?" I called out just as he was about to cross the road. He turned around slowly, "Yes?" he asked. Yes? For a moment I was tongue-tied, what was this? "Uh – Hi" I stopped a few inches away from him. I honestly expected a warmer greeting from him. My heart sank to my stomach when he still did not hold me in his arms like last night. Did I do something to piss him off? But he wouldn't be this cold to me, that wasn't his personality. "I am sorry" he started, and a smile grew on my face, maybe now he will do something expected. "Do I – know you?" he asked, leaving me puzzled.
Is this some elaborate prank he is pulling on me? "Very funny" I remarked sarcastically but he still did not seem to drop the act. "Why are you doing this? I don't like this prank" I complained. "Uh – I think you have the wrong person" Kaleb smiled and started walking away from me, I caught his hand and he looked at our hands with his brows creased together and then at me. Before I could say anything further, he slowly freed his hand from my gasp. "I don't know who you are, but I have to be somewhere urgently" his words pierced though my heart, leaving me dumbfounded he started walking away from me.
It all happened so fast that I could not process what was going on let alone act on it in some way. Just as Kaleb was about to reach the other side of the road, I saw a car pulling up from the corner of the road. "Watch out!" I shouted as my feet pushed off the ground, Kaleb looked at me and then towards the car but before he could react – which he should have been able to, given that he was a vampire – the car rammed against him and I watched as he hit the windshield and then hit the ground. The car did not stop and rushed around the other corner.
I fell down beside Kaleb, who was already covered in blood. His eyes seemed to be out of focus. Tears welled up in my eyes, my body was shaking violently. 'Be reasonable' I told myself, 'He is a vampire' I reminded myself, he will heal in a matter of minutes if not seconds. "You will be alright" I told him as I took his hands in mine and then I saw it – he wasn't wearing his daylight ring. I frantically looked around for it, did it fell somewhere? And then I realised, the sun was shining brightly, if he had lost his daylight ring after getting run over, he should be burning right now but he wasn't, and neither was he healing.
Before panic could set in my body, I watch him gasp and his eyes closed.
I opened my eyes and immediately sat up, my breathing ragged. What in the world did just happen? Have I been having false awakening all this time? I pinched myself and it sting. I was definitely up now. I don't know why I would have these nightmares, but I did not want to experience that again.
I pick up my phone to see what time it is. The phone slips out of my hand when I see it is 8:05 a.m. but there is a timer set on the phone and it is showing 22 hours 45 minutes left. It cannot be possible, did I put a timer while I was asleep? I got out of my bed and rushed to get ready, I need to find Kaleb.
"Good morning Sunshine" dad greeted me in the same way, cooking with mom. I gasped, this couldn't be – it shouldn't be possible. How am I reliving the whole thing again? "What's wrong?" mom asked, "Mom – I have to leave" I mumbled and started backing away. "Let's have breakfast first" mom said, again walking around the kitchen counter. I looked at what they were making – pancakes. I have never had the feeling of déjà vu, but was this it? I did not like this feeling.
I turned around and rushed out of the front door. "Lily!" Mom and dad called after me. I got in my car and sped down the road as fast as I could go. I was taking a turn near the town's square towards Kaleb's house when I spotted him in the town square and immediately felt a sense of relief wash over me. I sighed as I parked my car and quickly got out.
As I was crossing the road, it happened again. I could not move quick enough but at the same time everything happened in a slow motion, I saw everything clearly. A man walked up behind Kaleb and stabbed him in broad daylight. "No!" I shouted, as I ran across the street towards Kaleb. There was a chaos in the town's square as people rushed towards him. "Kaleb!" I shouted, I sank on the ground next to him. He wasn't wearing his daylight ring again.
As soon as his eyes closed, my eyes opened, and I was in my room again. I quickly picked up my phone – same date – 8:05 a.m. 22 hours 03 minutes left. I got out of the bed. I paced around the room, am I stuck in a time loop? Do I have to watch Kaleb die over and over again? This can't be it. Why is this happening? Just as I was walking, I hit my pinkie toe at the corner of my bed and I doubled over in pain. "Ouch!" I gasped and held my pinkie toe, I could see the blood clotting in my nail. 'Shake it off! You need to find Kaleb' I told myself and straightened up. Biting my lower lip, I went to get ready, trying to ignore the throbbing pain in my toe.
This time I found Kaleb walking towards the woods, and I couldn't get out of the car fast enough to stop. I was only able to reach him the second before he took his foot off a coyote trap.
I woke up with a start, unable to get the bloody scene out of my mind. I think I am going to be traumatised after this whole ordeal. I realised that I still had pain in my toe. I looked at it and saw the blood clot in my nail. "This means, that if I die, maybe I won't come back to life again like Kaleb; is it just me who won't reanimate to life? Or is it just Kaleb who reanimates to life?" I spoke to myself.
Before leaving the house today, I accidentally pricked mom's finger. If Kaleb dies again, and I wake up again, I will see if it is only Kaleb whose injuries disappear.
His deaths has been so random and bizarre, I did not want to go find him again. I did not want to witness him dying all over again. Maybe if I am fast enough, if I just save him once, the loop will break but the problem is. He isn't a vampire in this whole loop, he doesn't remember me. How do I draw his attention towards me?
I had almost missed him again with my brain engaged in the train of thoughts. I saw him standing at the top of the bell tower, looking down. Was he going to be pushed? Why in the world would he be there? I parked my car in the first spot I could find and jumped out of the car. My heart was racing frantically as I ran up the stairs and busted open the door only to find Kaleb standing there alone.
"Kaleb!" I shouted, and he turned around, puzzled. Was he going to slip from there? My heart was in my mouth the whole while. "Please step back" I pleaded, maybe this time I can save him. I took a step towards him. "Don't come any closer" his voice wobbly. "What are you doing?" I stopped dead in my tracks, my brows creased together. "Who are you?" he asked, "It doesn't matter who am I, just step back" I pleaded. What if he doesn't remember who am I after I break the loop this time? He took a step back, towards the edge of the bell tower. "No!" I shouted, stepping forward, my heart leaped almost out of my chest. "Why are you doing this?" I asked him, "Why does it matter to you?" his voice was still wobbly. "I just – I don't know what is going on but please don't do this" no matter what I say to him, it didn't seem to get to him. "I have failed in everything" was the last thing he said before he stepped off the bell tower. "No!" I shouted, and froze in my place, my eyes widened at first as I watched him disappear from my view and I heard a loud thud, probably his body hitting the car. I shut my eyes close, tears welling up my eyes as my heart sank to my stomach.
When I opened my eyes again, I was still standing on the roof of the bell tower. Did he not die? Have we broken the loop? I rushed to the end of the bell tower and looked down and I saw his bloodied body, lying lifeless on a car.
I opened my eyes again in my room and for a minute I couldn't move. Tears streamed down my face as I looked at my phone again 21 hours 21 minutes, 8:05 a.m. again. My body was numb and so was my brain as I tried to erase the memories of Kaleb's lifeless body from my mind, but it kept taking me back to the day he died for real, it had been so long ago, but it was fresh in my mind.
There has to be a loop hole in this. There always is a loop hole, isn't it? I just need to figure it out. What if I don't step out of my room? I can do that. I can tell mom I am sick and just stay in my room. And that is what I did, I successfully spent 3 hours in my room without waking up again until I looked outside my window.
At first, I was unable to recognize who it was from the back but as soon as he turned around to face towards my house, I heard a loud gunshot before he fell on the ground.
I did not even have the time to react or feel something and I woke up again. I counted up to 66 deaths that I witnessed in the span of 16 hours. All of which were bizarre; I understood a few things, it did not matter where I was, Kaleb and I always found each other and as soon as he was in my vision, he would die, I wouldn't even get enough time to warn him or reach out to him. It did not matter if he hadn't seen me, I had to not look at him, but I somehow always ended up looking at him, resulting in his death and I had to see his lifeless body to wake up again. And finally, I was the only one that sustained any injuries.
As soon as I woke up, I rushed to close the curtains of my room without looking out of the window. I have to think of a plan, and I had to think quickly and then something obvious hit me. "Mom!" I shouted, after a few seconds she appeared in my doorway. "Do we have evergreen wood?" I asked her.
Dad, mom and I were sitting in my room. "What is this about?" they asked me, "I know this is about to sound crazy, but I think I have lived this day before – I am certain I have, I have witnessed someone die over 60 times, it always happens, and I always wake up and I know why this is happening" I said, they exchanged glances. "Why?" dad asked, "Helen" I replied in a matter-of-fact voice. "Helen?" dad asked, and I nodded. "Who?" mom asked glancing at dad. Who?! I opened my mouth and closed it again, just how much have things changed. I covered my mouth with my hand, elbow resting on my lap, my brows creased together.
"You do know about – supernatural beings, right?" I had to ask, "Of course" dad replied, puzzled just as mom. I let out a sigh of relief before I proceeded to explain the whole situation to mom and dad. "So, you are asking us for evergreen wood to kill this Helen?" mom asked, "Yes" I replied. "No" mom shook her head, "I have to break the loop mom!" I threw my hand in the air.
"How are we even going to find this Helen?" dad asked, "Aunt Bonnie" I shrugged. "Damon, she isn't going anywhere" mom interrupted. "Elena, Kaleb could die again and we won't remember any of this, and this cycle would just keep happening and you know your daughter just as well as I do, she wouldn't ask for our help again if we don't help her now" dad turned towards mom, "Thanks dad" I didn't know if I should be offended a little that they thought I would hide things from them but well, it was the truth.
"Is it possible to find someone you don't even remember?" I asked Aunt Bonnie. "If I have found her before, I am sure I can find her again, besides there is a life at stake" she comforted me. Everyone agreed that killing Helen was our best shot and that everyone was going to help me. Starting with Dad and Uncle Enzo keeping Kaleb away from me, even if it meant resorting to kidnapping.