A/N: I adore Matt's character, and during this time of 'Jicki', Dani needs a new guy friend. Also, the no-Damon issue WILL come to an end since he's no longer locked away in the Salvatore cellar.

If, like me, you can't stand how Caroline is at the beginning of the show, listen to the song mentioned at the beginning of this chapter. It really does suit her.

QUICK SHOUTOUTS:

morganclaire1: thank you for following Live, Learn, Life, Love, Die, Dust, Gone!

SomebodyWhoCares: I can't hate Matt, either.

ENJOY!

'Rabbit, rabbit, rabbit, rabbit, rabbit, rabbit.'

The now all-too familiar song made me laugh when my cell phone alerted me to a call from the captain of the cheer squad. I'd found 'Rabbit' by Chas & Dave to be perfect for her ringtone.

"Hello, Caroline." I answered.

"Where the hell are you?!"

"Home."

"I mean, why aren't you HERE?"

"Where exactly is 'here'?"

"The high school."

"Caroline, I told you last night that I am not doing the car wash."

"And I told you that you have no choice. As head cheerleader, I am ordering you to put on your skimpiest bathing suit and get over here, NOW!" She yelled that last part before hanging up.

Knowing I'd never hear the end of it if I didn't at least make an appearance, I changed into a forest green two-piece. The top to the bikini tied at the back of my neck, while the bottom tied at both sides. Decorative fringe ran along the top piece, as well as the front and back of the bottom piece. I added a pair of dark blue jean shorts.

The school's parking lot was already full of shirtless guys and bikini-clad girls all scrubbing down cars. I climbed out of my Tahoe and tossed my cell phone, along with my sunglasses, inside the vehicle and made my way across the street.

"It's about time you showed up!" The familiar shrilly voice of Caroline sounded from the booth I was headed towards.

A whistle came from someone behind me right before I was scooped up off my feet. A squeal escaped my lips before I saw that it was the blue-eyed blonde I'd recently started crushing on.

"Looking good, D.W. You should wear swimsuits more often."

I giggled as I wound my arms around Matt's neck.

"When you two are done with the flirting, there are cars to wash."

"Yes, ma'am." Matt responded, eyes still locked on mine.

He carried me over to a Chevy Malibu and grabbed a couple buckets filled with soapy water. His eyes scanned through the crowd of teenagers.

"Yo, Campbell! Take over on the Civic."

A freshman I recognized from the football team gave him a quick nod and headed towards a white car. One of the girls he was talking to followed after him.

I picked up one of the buckets of water and went to the side of the car opposite Matt. We started wiping down the windshield together.

"So, have you talked to Jeremy lately?"

"No. He's been spending almost all of his free time with your sister." I answered, dipping the sponge in the water. "Is this what it was like in the summer?"

"The summer?"

"Yeah. Jeremy mentioned something about them dating during summer break. Or maybe they were just hooking up, I don't know. But he said they hung out a lot until school started back up."

"Yeah, I have no idea. I mean, she was always gone then too. I figured she was just off getting high somewhere."

A few minutes of silence passed between us before his face broke into a devilish grin. He walked around the car with his bucket in hand.

"What are you do – AHH!"

I found myself suddenly dripping with water. Matt had a huge smile on his face while he used the water hose to fill the bucket again.

"You're gonna regret that, Donovan."

"Bring it on, Williams."

We were both soaking from head to toe when a car about twenty feet away somehow caught on fire. Matt grabbed my arm and pulled me towards him, moving to stand in front of me as if in protection. As quick as it had started, the fire went out. I looked around in confusion.

"What just happened?"

"I don't know. That was weird."

Someone must have reported the bizarre event. Police cars, ambulances, and a fire truck arrived shortly after. No one was injured, so they left after asking a few questions.

We finished washing the car we'd been working on, dried it with a couple of towels, and then were handed push brooms and told to 'clean up' the water in the parking lot.

"Is it really necessary for us to do this? The water's going to dry on its own before the morning."

"I think Tiki just likes bossing people around. And it might have something to do with our little water fight."

"Speaking of bossy people... where did Caroline disappear to?" I asked half-jokingly. He laughed.

"Hey, have you seen Elena?" Stefan interrupted.

I only glanced in his direction before continuing to sweep the pavement, but Matt turned around to face him.

"No, not for a while."

Stefan glanced around.

"You think she went home?"

"Not sure."

"What about you, Danica?" Stefan asked. I reluctantly stopped to answer him.

"I don't know. She was with you when I saw her last."

"Okay. Thanks."

He started to walk away, but Matt spoke up again.

"Hey, I'm not saying this for you, I'm saying it for her. But she's big on trust. So whatever you're holding back from her, the more you try to hide it, the more she won't stop till she figures it out."

He started sweeping the water again as Stefan left. I hesitated before my curiosity got the better of me.

"Um, Matt?"

"Hmm?"

"What's the story between you and Elena?"

"What do you mean?"

"How long have you known each other?"

"Since birth. We were practically raised together. Our mothers were best friends in high school."

"Oh. When did you two... become more than friends?"

"A few years ago."

I knew how it had ended from both Elena and Jeremy. I was prepared to leave it at that, so he surprised me when he kept talking.

"Everything changed when her parents died. She became withdrawn. Told me she needed some space to figure things out. Then Salvatore showed up. Guess the joke's on me, huh?"

His face and tone reflected the same feeling of jealousy I was starting to hold towards the girl we were talking about.

"So, how about you? Tell me about an ex from your past."

"There's not much to tell. There's only one."

"Come on, I just bared my soul to you. The least you can do is share something equally humiliating."

"Really, it's not that interesting. I was in the same situation, just with some slight differences."

"How so?" He asked, and I could tell he actually wanted to know.

So, I decided to tell him everything I could without telling him everything. The abuse was not something I wanted to bring up while still in the getting-to-know-you phase with my new friends.

"Adam and I met when we were seven."

"What happened?" He pressed when I paused.

"We were friends for almost eight years before we started dating. I fell in love with him. Or at least, I thought it was love... In the end, things changed, my parents died, I came here." I shrugged, going back to cleaning.

"What sort of things?" He could sense I was hiding something.

"That is a story for another day. Let's ditch this and go do something fun!"

He nodded his agreement. We dropped the brooms and ran to my Tahoe before Tiki could notice we'd left. The rest of the afternoon was spent on my couch, watching movies and swapping childhood memories.