Ch 10. Elena's boring dinner
party
"So how did it go with my mom", Caroline questioned as she got into Damon's car. As promised, he had arrived at 9 p.m. to pick her up. Leaving her mom a note on the fridge, she had made sure to grab all her stuff cause she didn't want the fiasco from the morning to get reiterated.
"I would say that it went well", answered Damon turning on the engine and backing out of the driveway. "Though, I don't think that she trusts me yet".
"Well of course she doesn't", she retorted like it was obvious. "She's literally a Sheriff, why would she trust a stranger so easily".
"That's a good point", he said with a slight nod. "All that aside, I still cannot believe that you were actually right about the vervain".
"I am right about many things", Caroline bluntly replied with a cocky attitude, reapplying her lip gloss.
And they say that he's cocky. Though to say that he wasn't even slightly sceptical of her plan was an understatement. But her plan worked like a charm. The visit to the Sheriff's Office had been proven to be fruitful. He could tell that he had garnered some of her trust, even so, he could tell that Liz Forbes didn't fully trust him yet. And the fact that he was dating (fake dating) her daughter was not going to give him any brownie points.
"So what reason did you give my mom about Zach's absence", Caroline questioned curiously.
"Let's just say that Zach won't be in town for a few days", he replied with a crooked smirk.
"And how is that going to work?", she inquired turning Damon's attention to her for a few seconds before focusing it back on road. "It's a small town you know, my mom is bound to find out that he isn't actually out of town".
"Well, I did threaten Zach that I would eat him if he tried leaving the house for even a second", he responded. Displaying his signature smirk he continued, "So he would stay in if he knows what's good for him".
"Seems like your every answer to a problem is to threaten your way out", Caroline resorted bluntly. She knows that she should control what she says around him, but she couldn't stop herself. And believe her, she has tried plenty of times. Caroline has always been a pretty blunt individual. And to make matters worse it seems like Caroline wasn't much scared of him anymore and she doesn't even know why.
"What can I say, it's part of my charm", answered Damon with an obvious flirty tone interrupting Caroline's thoughts causing her to roll her eyes at his yet another attempt to flirt with her.
Taking a left turn a little too hastily which made her clench on the door handle like her life depended on it, he said, "And it gets the job done, doesn't it?'.
Mulling over what he said, Caroline agreed with an understanding nod, "That's a valid point". She herself has often resorted to threatening her way out of certain situations but the major difference between both of them is that her threats mostly revolved around small things where else Damon would always lean towards death threats if he didn't have his way. At least that's what she gathered since this morning.
After a few seconds of silence, Caroline voiced out unable to stop herself, "So why are we crashing Elena's dinner party? It's not to taste her mediocre cooking, is it?".
"Nope, it's to agitate Stefan", he replied giving her half of the truth not wanting to get into the actual reason.
"Wow, so I have to skip my well-deserved me-time because the dude wants to annoy his brother. Isn't that great", she whispered sarcastically.
Damon even though had heard what she said loud and clear, asked anyways, "Did you say something?"
Caroline only scoffed in responses knowing very well that he had heard every single word she just had mumbled. The amusement on his face is proof of that.
Suddenly she yelled out grabbing his attention, "Stop by the bakery on the right".
"Why?", asked Damon confused with the sudden order but still stopping in front of the bakery nevertheless.
"Wait here", Caroline commanded rushing out of the car towards the small bakery leaving a very confused Damon behind not even bothering to answer his question.
After waiting for about 10 minutes running low on patience, he finally saw her hurrying out of the bakery with what looked like cake?
Caroline moved her right hand to open the car door trying her very best to juggle her small black handbag and the box with the cake in the left hand. As soon as she was able to get the door open, she instantly placed the cake box in Damon hands (who in turn was looking at it like it was a bomb) and got into the car shutting back the door and placing her purse to her side.
After buckling her seat belt back on she moved to take the cake box back from Damon's hands while he just was sitting there confused with the whole ordeal.
Noting his silent question she said, "We can just go empty-handed even if we were uninvited in the first place".
Damon raised an eyebrow at her use of we instead of I. Giving a slight nod at her answer, he started his car driving to Elena's house.
They finally seemed to have a breakthrough before reverting back to the awkward silence. The knock on the door caught their attention rendering Elena to smiled at Stefan and Bonnie before going to open the door. Totally not anticipating the guests.
"Surprise", Caroline exclaimed with a wide smile. "Bonnie said you were doing dinner, so we brought dessert." At that Caroline put forward her hands indicating to the cake with a huge smile raising her eyebrows. She could feel Damon presence looming behind her which was distracting her and making her nervous all at once.
"Oh", uttered Elena shocked not exactly expecting Caroline and her boyfriend's older brother at her doorstep. Uninvited, but with a deliciously tempting looking cake nonetheless.
"Hope you don't mind", Damon voiced out, what was for the first time as he hovered behind the blond placing his hand on Caroline's waist causing her to shiver slightly at the contact.
She was about to step in when she felt tuck on her waist. Slowing turning to look at Damon confused she realized as a thought came to mind 'Oh! WAIT! What if this is like Buffy...where he has to be invited in first before he can actually enter'.
Before she could say something, Stefan came into view and half yelled which was directed more at Damon than her, "What are you doing here?"
"I invited him", Caroline answered shifting Stefan's and Elena's attention from Damon to her. "I thought that it was a good opportunity for all of us to get to know each other".
"So are you going to invite us in?", she questioned from where she stood, shifting the weight of the cake from one arm onto her other. Trying not to seem impatient.
"H-he can't stay...we're just finishing up", Stefan argued not ready to back down just yet.
Not wanting to back down as well, Caroline put all of her acting ability to test and altered her expression to a disappointed one before mumbling sadly, "Aw, too bad. I guess we were a little too late. Maybe some other time". Her response causing Stefan to let out a sigh in relief.
As she turned to leave for dramatic effect, she noticed Damon gaping at her with what seemed like a what the hell are you doing? expression. She didn't really care cause she knew exactly what she doing.
"Don't be ridiculous, It's fine", Elena sighed.
Turning around, the blond caught Damon's confused expression, a triumphant grin forming on her face.
"Just come on in", Elena said with a small smile leading them inside much to Stefan's dissatisfaction.
"And that's how it's done," Caroline whispered in Damon's ear as she walked in, making sure to wiggle out of Damon's tight grip that he didn't even notice.
"You have a beautiful home, Elena", Damon commented as Caroline moved away from him handing Stefan the cake before moving to hug Bonnie.
"Thank you", answered Elena.
"Thanks for bring the cake, Caroline. It was delicious. Just what we needed to end this day", expressed Elena.
They all were sitting in the living room drinking coffee talking about random things, with Damon and Caroline sitting together on the same armchair. The atmosphere was so awkward and Damon's constant attempts of flirting with Elena did not make the predicament any better. Though it was successful in annoying Stefan who was now brooding to the max.
"I am curious though, how did get your hands on it. If I ain't wrong this cake is always out of stock", asked Elena curiously. She had tried to get her hands on it today for this dinner but the bakery had told her that it was out of stock. So colour her surprise when she saw the same cake in Caroline's hands.
"I had asked Kate to keep one separate from the rest for me", she answered with a fake smile. She had plans to take that cake along with her on the weekend for Liam and Jess as it was their favourite but it seemed that wasn't going to be possible anymore.
"Kate...?", questioned Elena not familiar with the name.
"The goth girl. Lots of tattoos. Upperclassman", Bonnie let out trying to jog Elena's memory while Stefan and Damon listened in, one more attentive than the other.
"Oh yes, the goth girl. So her name is Kate huh", Elena recollected, chuckling awkwardly. "But what does she have to do with anything?".
"It's her grandma bakery so...", Caroline replied.
"Oh", was all Elena could utter kinda fluster with where this conversation ended too. She also wanted to ask that since when were Kate and Caroline friends but thought better of it.
Noting Elena's obvious embarrassment, Bonnie intervened, "Do you need help with the dishes, Elena?"
"Yeah, that would be great Bon, thanks", replied Elena immediately, wanting to get out of this uneasy situation as fast as she could.
Collecting all of the empty dishes, Bonnie and Elena moved to the kitchen leaving the brooding Stefan, the uninterested Damon and the bored Caroline in the living room.
A/N: That was the end of chapter 10.
I am not that happy with it, but here it is.
I was going to finish up the whole dinner scene in this this chapter up the chapter became longer than expected.
Do you guys think that this story is too slow pace?
Anyway reviews would be appreciated.
Until next time