When I woke up, I felt awful. Like, reminiscent of trying to quit smoking awful. I groaned. So this was what a hangover was like. Never again.

I headed downstairs for breakfast. Elena and Jenna were sitting in tense silence. Oh, boy.

"Hey," I said carefully, getting breakfast and sitting down with them. I drank a lot of water to try and make the dryness in my mouth go away.

"Hey," Elena said. "Let me guess. This is the part where you tell me you know how I feel."

My fuse was short today because I felt like crap. I bristled at her tone. "I do know how you feel, Elena. That's the beauty of also being adopted."

"There's no beauty in any of this!" she snapped. "Jenna lied to me! Did you know? Is this another one of your secrets?"

"I didn't know," I said, eyes wide at the venom in her voice.

She scoffed. "I don't believe you."

I was about to explode at her, but Jenna spoke before I could.

"Please don't fight."

"Fine," I said, angrily shoving breakfast in my mouth.

"Fine," Elena said, already finished eating, standing up and walking away.

I ate in silence until I remembered I had to tell Jenna about the car.

"Jenna… You know the car Elena and I share?"

Jenna looked at me. "Yes, I notice it's not in the driveway, did you leave it at Bonnie's?"

I gave her an edited version of the accident that left out the whole vampire thing.

"I left the car at the scene. I was just so shaken up, I went to Bonnie's to sleep over. She's my best friend," I said apologetically, as an explanation for why I didn't go straight home.

Jenna seemed to consider it, then nodded. "Okay. I'll see what I can do with the insurance company."

I smiled softly. "Thanks, Aunt Jenna. …Elena will come around, you know."

"I hope so," she said sadly.

I went to the house of Bonnie's Grams to meet up with Bonnie.

"I need to tell you something."

We went to her room. I told her everything: mind reading, predictions, whispers, all of it.

"Wow," she said when I was done. "That's…a lot to take in."

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you," I said.

"I get it," Bonnie said honestly. "I wouldn't have believed you at first, and you couldn't prove it with me." I nodded emphatically. "And then, when I would have believed it, our lives were already so crazy and hectic. So yeah, it's okay."

I smiled. I was glad that she wasn't angry I had kept this secret even though she'd been honest about being witch.

I blew out a breath. "Hey… Now we can we freaks together, at least."

Bonnie grinned at me. "Freaks together," she agreed.

We went downstairs.

Her kindness to Bonnie aside, I used to think Bonnie's Grams was just a kooky old lady based on what Bonnie always told me about her. Now I knew there was more to her than met the eye. She was a witch, too. Descended from Emily.

I explained the situation for the second time. Grams pondered it for a while after I was done.

"It sounds like the spell Emily was talking about is a repression spell," she said finally.

My eyes widened as excitement flooded through me. Finally, some answers. "A repression spell?"

Grams nodded. Her tone was gentle. "That's right, honey. A repression spell can't be broken by a witch. It breaks naturally, under very specific circumstances, which is what happened to you."

"What are the circumstances?" Bonnie asked, just as intrigued as I was.

"Extreme supernatural violence," Grams said grimly.

"Like a vampire going around killing people," I realized. Damon attacking and killing Vicki, killing Tanner, killing Lexi.

"Like being in close proximity to a vampire going around killing people," she corrected. I swallowed at the insinuation and fought hard to keep my face impassive.

Grams continued.

"The symptoms of that spell being broken are like what you described. Nausea, shortness of breath, headaches—whenever supernatural violence is about to happen. Have you had any of those episodes recently?"

"No," I answered. The bad feelings had just suddenly vanished. "I haven't."

"That means the spell is fully broken. However, there is one thing that doesn't fit," Grams said. "You said you heard whispers that someone would die when the vampire Lexi lost her life. You've also mentioned having a dream that was psychic in nature."

"Yes," I confirmed. Just thinking about the whispers and that my dream showed me Katherine's picture creeped me out.

"Those are not symptoms of the spell being broken."

My stomach plummetted. I hoped that was just an anomaly, because I really wanted this spell to be the answer I had been looking for.

"Maybe the dream and the whispers were something else," Bonnie offered. "If it's a repression spell, then what was it repressing?"

I waited for Grams' answer with bated breath.

"The spell surpresses one's true nature."

"Not human," I whispered, recalling Emily's words.

"Such a spell is not used often," Grams continued. "Because the spell requires an immense amount of power. People usually don't bother and just kill their problem instead. Someone went through a lot of trouble to ensure that you would seem like a human."

"I seem like a human now," I said, frustrated. "I don't feel any different, even though the spell's supposed to be broken."

"I can't be sure that it is the repression spell," Grams reminded us. "But it's my best guess."

"Okay," I said softly. "Thank you."

Bonnie gave me a reassuring smile. "We're gonna figure this out."

I took comfort in the support of my friend.

We ordered pizza for dinner that night. No one was saying much, not even Jeremy, who picked up on the weird tension.

When we finished, we all went to our seperate rooms. I didn't. I went to Elena's room.

"I really didn't know about your adoption," I said.

Elena studied my face, then nodded. "Okay."

"So…" I tried, but she didn't even give me an inch. I sighed. "How are you?"

"I feel betrayed," she said, her jaw clenched. "First I find out I look exactly like Stefan's ex and both of you kept it from me. Then I find out you kept so many things hidden. And then I find out Aunt Jenna and Mom and Dad never told me that I was adopted." She sighed. "I don't get it. They told you about your adoption."

"I don't know," I said. "Maybe there was a reason they couldn't tell you."

"I dug up my birth certificate. Mom and Dad are on it. This doesn't make sense."

"Maybe it'd make sense if you spoke to Jenna," I said.

She made a noise of frustration.

"Come on, Elena. She's really trying here, you know that. And if you want the truth, you're gonna have to."

"I know," she said reluctantly before changing the subject. "Hey, Stefan came by earlier. He gave me a bunch of vervain to distribute to our loved ones."

"Why now?"

Elena gave me a look. "Maybe because of the vampire that crashed our car? Anyway, I want you to have some."

"Is this when we talk about the elephant in the room?" I lifted an eyebrow. "I know you read that I can't be compelled."

"You should still ingest vervain. Make your blood disgusting to any vampire. …Like the one that crashed our car."

Honestly, after what happened with Logan, that was probably a good idea. "You seem very fixated on that part."

"If you're not human, what are you?" Elena asked bluntly.

We just looked at each other for a few seconds, before I smiled humorlessly. "That's the question. If you're looking into adoptions, maybe you could look into mine, too. Find out what family of freaks I come from."

Elena softened. "You're not a freak."

"I read minds, Elena," I said, exasperated. "For example, right now, you're thinking about how unsettling all the secrets you uncovered in my notebook are. It's freaky. And it's not the only thing that's freaky. I know you read it."

"When you were sick, during game night," she said softly. "It's because you predicted Tanner's death."

"Not really. Well, kind of. I learned some things today, from Bonnie's Grams."

I told her about the repression spell.

"But it's not enough. I need more answers," I said. "And I know you want answers, too, about where you come from. We don't have to be fighting, Elena. I think right now, more than ever, it's important that we don't."

"I agree." She got up and walked over to me before giving me a hug. Surprised, I hugged her back.

"What's this for?"

"You were going through a lot all on your own. I'm sorry if I made you feel like you couldn't talk to me."

"It's not that," I said honestly. "Well, at first, a little? But then vampires came into our lives. I felt like I could tell you, but I was so used to not telling you… It never seemed like the right time."

"I knew you could read minds. I would have believed you, Mel."

I pulled away from the hug, smiling. "Okay, how about this: from now on, no more secrets between us."

She smiled back. "Deal."

When I got back to my room, I had to double-take with a pounding heart.

"Jesus!"

"Not even close," Damon said wryly.

"Don't do that," I said with frustration as I tried to regain my composure. "Don't tell me you're here to kidnap me again."

"That was a roadtrip, and you had fun," Damon insisted.

"I got kidnapped by a vampire with a grudge against you," I pointed out.

He rolled his eyes. "Before that."

"Mourn the loss of Georgia Melanie, because Mystic Falls Melanie is never admitting it."

I noticed a small box in his hands. His eyes followed my gaze, and he lifted an eyebrow. "Your phone got caught in the crossfire of said vampire with a grudge. Figured you could use a new one. Don't worry, I even paid for it."

My mouth fell open. "You mean…?"

That was… The most considerate and thoughtful thing he ever…

"All yours," he said in a sing-song, handing me the box.

I opened it. A brand new phone. With an in-tact screen and working camera and everything, which my current phone lacked.

I turned it on and started configuring everything immediately. I resisted the urge to gush, because this was still Damon. Though I had to lift an eyebrow at the fact that he added himself to my contact's list.

"I deleted your number after the Logan ordeal," I reminded him. "How thoughtful of you to add it again," I said sarcastically.

"We got a crazy vampire on the loose," he reminded me. "Feel free to delete it again after he's dealt with."

I wasn't sure that I would. He smirked like he knew.

I cleared my throat, hoping to get rid of that smugness. "Well, this is very sweet of you," I said, amping up the dramatics as I fake gasped. "Is it possible you do have a heart?"

Predictably, he started backtracking at the first mention of feelings.

"Don't go getting a big head," he said after a scoff. "This is not because I like you. I just figured I owed you one after you… You know." He shrugged, fake casual. "Saved my life and all."

The open window made it pretty cold and caused a chill to go through me, but I didn't even feel it. In that moment, I felt quite warm.

"Well," I said after I realized we'd both gone quiet. "Thanks."

"Sure." He shrugged again. "Call me if our crazy vamp shows up." I watched him go toward my window. I was a little weirded out by the overly casual demeanor and underlying seriousness, but as it turned out, it wasn't necessary. His next comment was more like him. "If he decides to have a taste, try not to bleed out too fast, I'd hate to miss my share."

I grabbed my pillow and chucked it at him but my pillow connected with the wall as he'd already vanished. I rolled my eyes and closed my window. "Ass," I said, hoping he was still close by enough to hear that.

I put my sim in my new phone and read the texts I had missed. I gulped at one missed text in particular.

Caroline: You know cheer practise isn't optional for the co-captain, right?

Since finding out vampires were real, I began to neglect cheerleading in favor of dealing with the crisis of the week. It seemed Caroline was getting fed up with my absences, rightfully so as I was supposed to be captain with her. I couldn't even text her back promising I would do better, because how could I make a promise like that when there was already a new crisis looming?

I sighed and turned my new phone off, though I couldn't repress a smile at watching it. Conflicted feelings were at war inside me—I wanted to just be happy with the present, but then I remembered everything Damon had done, and my smile faded. Why was my life so complicated nowadays?

Elena and I walked into the living room with shopping bags, as we'd bought clothing and accessories for the decade dance.

"I spoke to the insurance company," Jenna greeted us. "The car is totalled. You two will just have to use my car for now."

"So can we borrow the car tonight?" Elena asked.

"I thought we could all go together," Jenna said, smiling.

My eyebrows raised. "You're going to a high school dance?"

"Alaric asked me to help chaperone." Jenna gave a little shrug, but her face betrayed how glad she was for that request.

"Did I miss something?" I asked.

You went on one roadtrip to Georgia and suddenly your aunt was sweet on your history teacher.

"No," Jenna said unconvincingly. Her eyes were all dreamy, the same way Elena got around Stefan. Oh, she had it bad. "I'm just chaperoning with him."

"Uh-huh," I said, teasingly letting disbelief color my voice. At least it wasn't someone like Logan. Not that I knew Mr. Saltzman that well, but he seemed like a good guy.

"Why didn't you ever tell me, Jenna?" Elena demanded. It was immediately clear that she meant her adoption. The playful mood from before vanished.

"Your mom was going to do it eventually," Jenna said honestly. "I never thought I'd have to."

Elena frowned. "If Mom was here right now and I asked, she'd tell me the truth."

Jenna caved and told the story. "One night, your dad was about to leave the office when this girl showed up. She was sixteen, a runaway and about to give birth. He delivered the baby and gave her a place to stay, but a few days later she disappeared and there you were."

She looked at Elena, her eyes shining. Elena was getting a little emotional herself.

"Your parents were trying so hard to have a baby, but it just wasn't happening. They already adopted Mel, and they wanted another child. That was all Miranda wanted, to be a mother."

"But then why were Mom and Dad's names on the birth certificate?" Elena pressed.

"Your father was a doctor, he took care of it. They didn't want to lose you so they told as few people as possible."

I could see Jenna blinking back tears and I understood. Talking about Mom and Dad was never easy.

"What about the girl?" Elena asked.

"I only know her name," Jenna said. "Isobel."

I got ready for the 50's decade dance. I was dressing up as Sandy from Grease in her good girl outfit.

I knocked on Elena's door. She opened it.

"Hey. I'll just finish my hair in the bathroom, wait for me here?"

I nodded and sat down on her bed. I noticed something familiar on it. The watch Damon had used to track Logan. Elena must have gotten it from Stefan.

The device suddenly started going crazy.

"Um…" I called out. "Elena?"

The sound of the blowdryer stopped. Elena entered the room. She immediately took notice of the pocket watch.

"I'll call Stefan," she said, eyes wide. She got out her phone and explained the situation. "Well then where is he, Damon?" I startled. Damon picked up Stefan's phone? "Okay. Fine." She hung up. "Stefan is on his way here. It's probably reacting to him." She gave a relieved smile.

A figure dropped from the ceiling.

"Elena!" I shrieked as the man in the hoodie grabs my sister, letting his fangs emerge.

Before he could bite her, there was a flash of something else and the man was ripped from Elena. Stefan was here. The man fled.

A while later Stefan, Elena, Damon and I were all in the living room.

"How did he get in?" Damon asked.

"He was invited in," Elena said.

"What?" I asked incredulously. "When?"

"He posed as the pizza delivery guy." She bit her lip. "I couldn't find the money."

Seriously? Who invites the pizza guy in when looking for money? Just tell him to stay on the porch like a normal person!

"Well, he gets points for that," Damon said. "Did he say what he wanted?"

"No, he was too busy trying to rip my throat out," Elena snapped.

"And you have no idea who this is?" Stefan asked Damon.

"Don't give me that look, I told you we had company," he replied.

"Why did he come after Elena?" I asked. "Why did he come after me, for that matter? I was in a car crash because of him!"

"Maybe he hated your car." Damon smirked. I glared at him.

"Damon," Stefan said sharply. "He was invited in."

Damon's eyes flickered from Stefan, to Elena, to me. Then he nodded. "Then we go get him tonight. Are you two up for it?"

Elena asked, "What do we have to do?"

"Let your boyfriend take you to the dance. I'll go as Melanie's date," Damon said. My eyes widened, but I immediately schooled my face into something more neutral.

"No," I said flatly.

"And we will see who shows up," Damon continued like I hadn't spoken. He smiled. "It's been a long time since I've been to a school dance."

"It's a bad idea," Stefan said.

"It really is," I agreed desperately.

"Until we get him, this house isn't safe. For anyone who lives in it," Damon pressed.

I frowned. I really didn't want more alone time with Damon. I'd been so determined to hate him, and one involuntary roadtrip later, I ended up saving his life. What would happen after one involuntary date?

"We'll do it," Elena said.

"We will?" I wondered pointedly.

"Yes," she said with her tone just as pointed. I didn't argue. I knew it was important that we caught this vampire. Stefan knew it, too, but his face was still filled with doubt. "Stefan, it'll be okay. I have you and Mel has Damon. We'll be fine."

I felt heat rush to my cheeks at Elena's phrasing. Damon looked over at me and smirked. I looked away.

Stefan and Damon went home to change. They were meeting us at the dance. It was time to catch ourselves a vampire.