Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Twilight or Vampire Diaries. Those rights are reserved for Stephanie Myer and L.J. Smith. I do own the original characters made up for this storyline. Please support the original release. Thank you.
Writer's Notes: Thank you kouga, Roxhall, and Navywife for your reviews! I hope everyone is well and is having a good Friday and happy Earth Day everyone. *smiles* As always, I appreciate all of you. Don't forget to follow, favorite, and review!
"Bella come on, the Founder's ball is one of the best events!" Caroline whined as she stood outside Bella's locker. School just let out and Bella was putting stuff up for the weekend.
"Care, I don't have anything to wear to this thing." Bella said, shutting her locker. She looked at her friend and she stared back at her with those baby blue puppy eyes. She sighed. "Fine. Do you have something I can wear?"
Caroline smiled wide. "I have plenty. My closet is pretty big."
Bella just sighed and followed Caroline outside into the parking lot, she was talking about the many dresses she owned and which ones she thought would look great on her. She glanced over, spying Edward, who was walking to his car, he was in a hurry it seemed, she found that odd because he normally was never in a hurry.
"Bella."
"Hmm?"
"What size shoe do you wear?" Caroline repeated.
Bella looked at Caroline. "Oh, uh, 7."
"Perfect." Caroline said, beaming. "Meet me at my house after you have your dinner at the Grille. We can have a slumber party and I can do your nails." She was all giddy. "Oh Bonnie and Elena are going to be there too."
"Sounds good. Thanks Care." Bella said and then smiled at her before walking towards her Jeep. She got to her Jeep when she noticed someone lurking over in the trees. She parked at the edge of the parking lot. She liked to use the walk inside the school to just get her mind on straight before she started her day. She frowned and then walked towards the figure in the woods. When she got closer, she realized it was a girl. "Hello?" Bella called.
The girl looked frightened almost. Her hair was a light brown, with some blond highlights throughout, and Bella realized that it was Vicki, Matt's older sister. Vicki had waited on her one time at the Grille.
"Vicki?" Bella asked.
"You know me?"
"You waited on me at the Grille. You're Matt's sister." Bella recalled and went closer. "Hey, are you okay?"
Vicki looked around nervously. "I don't know. I've got this headache, my mouth hurts and the sun is so bright."
Bella swung her bag around to the front and reached in the front pocket and grabbed a pair of her sunglasses she had stuffed in there. She handed them to her. "Here, maybe these will help."
Vicki took the sunglasses and put them on, the sun not hurting as much anymore. "I'm starving."
"Okay, well. I'm going to the Grille, I can get you some food." Bella said. "Matt's at football practice, do you want to-"
"No… no. Leave him be. I uh… maybe not the Grille."
"Okay, I have some food at my house. Come on." Bella extended a hand and Vicki hesitantly placed her hand in Bella's hand. She followed Bella to the Jeep and Bella got her inside before she went around to the driver's side and got in. "You've been missing for a while."
"Yeah." Vicki said, looking out the window. She was still nervous, memories were flashing back to her. She royally messed up, that was for sure.
Bella only glanced over at her and stayed quiet, sensing that Vicki was still trying to come down some sort of high. She pulled up at her house then got out, helping Vicki out and inside. She went straight to the kitchen and grabbed water for Vicki and then she grabbed all the things to make a sandwich. "Go ahead, take a seat. I'll get this together for you."
Vicki looked around Bella's house. "Why are you being so nice?"
"What do you mean?" Bella asked as she started putting the sandwich together.
"I'm a junkie."
"It doesn't matter to me. You're Matt's sister and he's been worried about you. He thought that you were off… somewhere."
Vicki opened the water and she drank it heavily, realizing part of the hungry was just this thirst, but water wasn't quenching it.
Bella finished the sandwich and slid it towards her. "Here." She offered
Vicki looked at the sandwich before picking it up and taking a bite. She ate it like she was ravenous and had never eaten before.
"Oh, maybe I should make another." Bella said and started on another sandwich. Her phone rang and she paused to pull it from her back pocket. "Hey." She answered when she saw Stefan's name flash across the screen.
"Hey you. Practice is cut short today. I was going to swing by the Grille."
"Oh, I'm not there. I'm at home." Bella said. "But I'm supposed to go to Care's tonight, but I'll have to cancel that."
"Girl slumber party with Care and the girls. That seems like something you definitely will try and avoid." Stefan said, his voice smiling.
"Well, there's… something more important." Bella said, glancing at Vicki as she finished the last bite of the sandwich. She slid the new sandwich to her and Vicki picked it up without even pausing and started eating it.
"More important? Everything okay?" Stefan asked, his voice now sounding concerned.
Bella wasn't sure if everything was okay. She didn't know if she should text Matt to tell him that Vicki was here or what she should do. "Uh, not sure actually."
"I'm coming." Stefan said and hung up.
Bella blew out a breath. "Uh, want anything else. I have some fruit. Grapes and blueberries." She offered.
"Yes please." Vicki said, her mouth full as she wolfed down the second sandwich.
Bella turned then opened the fridge, getting the grapes and blueberries out and started washing them for her, putting them in a bowl and gave those to her too. She was worried about how fast Vicki was eating, but she stayed quiet, grabbing more water and giving that to her too.
It wasn't long before Stefan was there. He walked in the house, and called out to her. "Bella."
"In the kitchen." Bella said. She was afraid to leave Vicki alone. She had sliced up an apple and made another sandwich already.
Stefan walked into the kitchen, frowning when he saw Vicki. "Uh, you have a new friend." He wasn't sure who Vicki was.
"This is Vicki Donovan." Bella said with a nod. "Vicki, this is my boyfriend, Stefan Salvatore."
Vicki looked at Stefan, staring at him, like she was studying him.
Stefan was staring at her too, looking into her eyes and seeing what the issue was. Vicki was transitioning. Someone had turned her into a vampire and now she was sitting in Bella's kitchen, putting Bella in very real danger. "Uh, Donovan, like Matt Donovan?" He finally said.
"That's her brother." Bella said. "Vicki, how about I get you cleaned up too. I have a nice shower and you can borrow some clothes. Maybe a shower will help you feel better." She coaxed.
Vicki wasn't sure. "I don't know."
"A nice hot shower." Bella said with a nod. "That might help your head."
"Yeah… maybe." Vicki said, still sounding unsure. "Okay." She said and stood.
Bella lead Vicki towards the stairs, and up to the guest bathroom up there. "I'll gather some clothes and put it on the counter in here. Go ahead." She said and closed the door. She looked at Stefan. "I need to call Matt. She's coming down off something."
"I'm not sure that's a good idea." Stefan said. "She's…"
"Matt needs to know that his sister is… okay… sort of. She's been on a binder of some sort and she's going to need all the help she can get." Bella said, then walked around Stefan to her room to gather clothes and he followed her.
"But, what if she's dangerous." Stefan tried to reason.
Bella raised a brow and looked at Stefan. "Stefan, she can barely even calculate her own thoughts. She's smaller than I am. The only danger, is letting her out of our sight."
Stefan couldn't just tell her that Vicki was transitioning. He just sighed. "Just… don't be alone with her."
"I've been alone with her Stefan, she's not going to hurt me." Bella said and shook her head. "What is wrong with you today? You look like you're the one scared."
"Uh, well. I just don't know her that well." Stefan said.
Bella sighed. "She needs help. I'm going to help her." She said and then grabbed some clothes and brought them back to the bathroom and set them on the counter. The bathroom was already steamed up. "Vicki, I've set the clothes here."
"Thank you." Vicki said from behind the curtain.
Bella left the bathroom heading back downstairs and Stefan followed her. Her phone rang again and she answer. "Care-"
"I figured you would be here by now." Caroline sang.
"Uh, about that. I'm going to have to cancel."
"What? No, you can't do that."
"Matt's sister."
Caroline was quiet. "Don't tell me. I haven't heard anything, did they find her dead. Is she the body they found?"
"What body?" Bella said, her brows furrowing together.
"Nevermind. What about Vicki?"
"She's here… at my house."
"What! I'm coming over." Caroline said and hung up.
Bella sighed. "Of course." She muttered and looked up at Stefan. "Caroline is coming."
"That's a bad idea too." Stefan said, not liking that there were more people for Vicki to use as a blood bag to finish her transition.
"Stefan, you're acting very weird." Bella said. "What has got you so spooked about this?" Stefan didn't get to answer because Vicki walked in then. "Oh, feel better?"
"I'm not sure." Vicki said. "My mouth hurts, like my gums. I just don't understand what is wrong with me."
Bella frowned and moved to the cabinet above the stove, grabbed a bottle of pain medicine and then more water. She opened the bottle and it was sealed, brand new. She sighed and then struggled to open the aluminum paper on the top. When she finally got it open, it sliced her finger as she did so. "Ow." She said, setting the bottle down, with no top on it.
Vicki focused on the blood that made it's appearance on Bella's finger. The scent of it was so sweet and her throat burned.
Stefan stepped in. "Vicki." He said, sternly.
Vicki ignored him and tried to push around him, to go to Bella.
Bella leaned back against the counter where the sink was, startled by Vicki's violent outburst. "What?"
"Bella, go." Stefan said, as he pushed Vicki back.
"No, what is going on?"
"I just want to taste it." Vicki whined, her eyes zeroed in on Bella's hand.
Bella looked at her finger, the blood that slid down from the cut. She frowned and then looked back at Vicki, not understanding, but she turned and hit the faucet handle to turn it on and washed her finger under the cool water.
Vicki stopped, the scent washing away down the drain. She blinked a few times, confused herself. "I… I don't know."
Bella wasn't sure what was wrong either. Vicki looked at her bloody finger like she was hungry. "Vicki… you need to go to the hospital I think."
"No!" Vicki said. "No hospitals. I hate hospitals."
Bella turned the water off, grabbing a paper towel and drying her hand off, hoping the bleeding stopped. "Okay, no hospitals. But we should call your brother."
"No… no… I don't want to call Matty." Vicki whined.
"Vicki, you need help." Bella said softly. "I want to help."
Vicki rubbed her fingers over her temples, her head was hurting so much and she felt so thirsty… hungry.
"Bella, go to the living room, I think it's too-"
"No." Bella said, cutting Stefan off. "Vicki. Calm down. It's going to be okay."
Vicki sobbed a little and then she pushed her fingers on her gums. "I can't!" She said. "It hurts too much."
Caroline was walking in the kitchen now, when Bella didn't answer the front door. "Bella-" She cut off when she saw Vicki's current state.
"Caroline, go in the living room." Stefan said. "Take Bella with you."
"Stefan-"
"Bella." Stefan said it sharply. "I'm trying to protect you." He said, his tone clipped.
Bella shook her head, but she went with Caroline to the living room. "She's not stable." She said. "I don't know what she took, but she's so hungry and thirsty. She said her head is hurting and her gums hurt. Why don't you go and get Matt. She doesn't want to call him, but I think he needs to be here."
"Okay, yeah." Caroline said and left hurriedly to go to the Grille to get Matt.
Bella blew out a breath and looked at her finger. The bleeding had stopped from the small cut. She thought about it. Vicki was set off by her blood. She wanted to taste it. She frowned, thinking about everything. The sun hurt her eyes. It was ludicrous to think that this was anything other than drug related. She walked back to the kitchen and Stefan had Vicki's face framed, and he was looking at her. She seemed to be calmer now. "She okay?"
Stefan wasn't sure, but Vicki was calm at the moment. "For now." He said and then released Vicki, hesitating a little.
Bella nodded and walked in, grabbing the bottle of pain medicine and took two pills out and handed them to Vicki. "Here, this will help with the pain." She said and offered the water.
"I'm sorry. I don't know what's wrong with me." Vicki said, taking the water and the pills.
Stefan was still tense and Bella took note of this.
"Do you remember where you were all this time?"
Vicki thought about it, as flashes went through her mind. "Um. I was in the woods. Getting high with some friends."
"Okay, that's a start." Bella said with a nod. "What came next?"
"I think I was approached by a man." Vicki said. "He… he wanted to take me to a special place."
Stefan frowned. "What man?"
"Um… he was… strange. But he said he had more ddrug and so I followed him."
"Do you remember what he looks like?" Bella asked.
"It's fuzzy." Vicki said and sniffed. "I think he had brown hair. His eyes… green maybe. Like yours." Vicki said, looking at Stefan.
Stefan felt a sort of relief that it wasn't Damon she was describing, but he wasn't sure who else it could be. "Did he have more drugs?"
"Yeah, some high level stuff. He gave it to me… then he started kissing my neck."
Bella was quiet, piecing everything together. "Kissing. He wanted to… party with you."
"Sex. Yeah. I remember him taking my shirt off." Vicki said. "But the drugs were starting to kick in a lot. It was more than I have ever taken before. I guess… we had sex." She said, not sure.
Bella hated that she went through this. "What happened when you woke up."
"Um. I don't know. I remember being in the cemetery. There was a couple people, still sleeping I guess and I just left. I walked until I saw the school and then you were there." Vicki recalled.
"Okay. Think about the man. Do you know if he was young… older?" Bella asked.
"He was young. Probably not older than you." Vicki said. "He was… charming."
"That's something." Bella said with a nod. "Try to remember anything else.
Vicki sat there, thinking about the man. She was sure that she hadn't seen him before, but he seemed familiar. She probably waited on him at the Grille before. A flash of memory washed across her, and she remembered him kissing her neck and then biting her. "Oh."
"You remembered something?" Stefan asked.
"Yeah, he bit me." Vicki said.
Bella thought about that. Biting could be a sexual kink. "So, he was kinky?"
"It hurt at first, but then I felt higher and higher. The drug was working really good." Vicki said. "He touched me a lot. I remember his hands. They were cool."
"Like cold to touch?" Bella asked.
"Not ice cold, but like… his hands were cooler than mine." Vicki explained. "I don't know. The drugs do crazy things to me."
It was odd to Stefan. Who else was in town, preying on other girls. It wasn't like vampires could sense other vampires. They could tell when someone was transitioning because there was a physical blood spot in the eyes that only appeared in someone transitioning. The blood would absorb after the transition.
Bella blew out a breath. "Okay. Hold on." She said and then went to grab her sketch book from her bag and brought it back to the kitchen and set it down. "You said he had brown hair and green eyes, can you describe him at all. Facial structure? High cheekbones or no. Curved or arched nose bridge?" Bella asked.
Vicki shook her head. "No, I'm sorry. It's really fuzzy… his jawline… it was perfect."
"Okay." Bella said and started sketching. Stefan watched the paper, as Bella tried to get a picture of the guy, but it was too generic of a description.
"I'm still so hungry." Vicki said. "My head and gums are still hurting." She whined.
Bella stopped sketching. "What do you want?"
"I don't know. Nothing tastes right, or fills me up. I can't stop this hunger feeling." Vicki said, pushing her fingers against her gums again.
Bella set her pencil down. "Stefan…"
"I'm not sure." Stefan said, worried that soon, Vicki would become too volatile for him to stop.
Bella thought about all the symptoms. She couldn't think of anything that would make her this way. The blood thing was drawing her back and the fact that Vicki's gums were hurting. She stood, going to the kitchen drawer and grabbed a small cheese knife out of the drawer and looked at it. She was crazy, she had to be, but she was sure this was it. She slice her finger open, the blood dripping. It instantly drew Stefan and Vicki's attention.
"Bella, don't do that." Stefan said, panicked.
Bella ignored him and turned, grabbing a glass and letting the blood drip into it.
Vicki fought against Stefan; the scent of Bella's blood was too much for her to ignore. She was crazed, wanting to taste the sweet smell.
Bella slid the glass onto the counter and then grabbed the dishcloth and wrapped her finger. "I'm crazy, I know I am, but I just want to see."
"Bella. This isn't a good idea."
"Why?" Bella said, her dark eyes latching onto Stefan's. She could see him fighting something inside.
"Because this is just crazy."
Vicki growled a little, reaching for the glass. "I need it!"
"Give it to her Stefan." Bella said.
"I can't!" Stefan said, looking at her, his look pleading.
Bella shook her head and picked up the glass and handed it to Vicki. Vicki snatched it, tilting it up to taste the sweet red blood that Bella dripped inside.
Stefan had to turn his back, fighting himself. The scent of blood could make it hard for him to keep a handle on things.
Bella watched Vicki, as she set the glass down. "Better?"
"Yes." Vicki said. "I… I don't understand…"
"You're a vampire." Bella said it out loud now.
The words made Stefan turn around to stare at her, shocked to hear her say those words. How did she come to that conclusion?
Vicki blinked a few times. Memories were clearer now. "I know now." She said, eyes wide. "He took my blood. That's why he bit me… and it wasn't a drug, his voice was… hypnotic. He… he fed me his blood and then he snapped my neck…" She said and rubbed the back of her neck. "Matty… he can't know. I can't… I can't be this… I can't hurt him. What if I hurt him Bella!"
"Shhh. It's going to be okay. We'll figure it out."
"Do you know a lot about vampires?" Vicki asked, still freaking out.
"No. I uh… just took a guess honestly. I guess you could have pproferi or something like that, but your gums hurt. Do you feel something in there?" Bella asked.
Vicki touched her gums again, and then fangs popped out. She gasped. "What!"
Bella jumped a little too, shocked that it was true. "Stefan…"
"Um." Stefan was still in shock of the whole situation. "Maybe… uh… I'm calling Damon." He said and pulled his phone out, dialing his brother's number.
"What? You can't bring your brother into this. He's going to think we're crazy."
Stefan walked away, going into the other room, but hated to leave Bella alone with Vicki right now.
Bella sighed, looking back at Vicki. "So, you're a vampire, which means, you need blood to survive. Um. I'm not sure where to get a bunch of blood."
"I don't know." Vicki shook her head. "Bella, I'm so hungry."
"Okay… so, I guess I could… would that help at all?"
"What? Like me drink your blood more?" Vicki asked.
"I mean, where else are we going to get more? I'll just put more in a glass." Bella said, going back to the counter and grabbing the glass. She unraveled her hand, looking at her finger, it was still bleeding, she had cut it deeper than she thought. She held it over the glass.
Vicki stared at it hungrily. "Bella, my eyes." She said, touching under her eyes.
Bella looked at Vicki, seeing the dark spidering veins pop under her eyes. "Oh, it's probably a vampire thing." She said and then looked back at the glass. There was more in the glass, but it wouldn't be enough, but it was a start. She slid the glass back to Vicki and she took it and tilted it up like the first time.
Stefan returned to the kitchen, the smell of blood still in the air, and realized that Bella was trying to feed Vicki. "Damon is on his way. Bella, wrap your hand good. Stop bleeding."
"But she needs to eat. What else can I give her?"
"Rabbits, squirrel, something with blood." Stefan said.
Bella frowned. "Vampires can't eat animals. They have to have human blood."
"No, they don't." Stefan said.
Vicki set the glass down, having licked it the best she could. "I'm still so hungry."
"Okay, let me take you outside." Stefan said. "We can get you something to drink, just, not Bella."
"Or you." Bella said.
"Bella… she can't hurt me." Stefan said, swallowing.
Bella shook her head. "No, maybe we should try to find like a blood bank or something. It's too risky for either of us to be alone with her." She said and heard the car door outside open and shut, two doors. "Matt and Caroline. Oh no."
Stefan didn't have time. "Bella I'm sorry about this." He said and then grabbed Vicki and then he flashed away.
Bella stood there, shellshocked. What had just happened?
Caroline and Matt rushed inside. "Vick!" Matt called and then stopped when he saw only Bella, holding a dishtowel to her hand. "What happened?"
"Uh… I lost her." Bella lied.
"You lost her!" Caroline squeaked. "How did both you and Stefan lose her?"
"She was calm and then, she ran out while I was talking to Stefan. He went to… find her." Bella lied more.
Matt ran a hand through his hair. "At least she's alive." He said. "Did she say anything?"
"Not really, she doesn't remember." Bella supplied.
Caroline blew out a breath. "Okay. So, what do we do now?"
"I guess we wait." Matt said, shaking his head. "I should be used to her going in and out by now. She used you Bella. Just wanted to get attention. Stefan shouldn't waste time." He said, sounding defeated.
"Vicki just needs help." Bella said. "She'll… come around."
"You don't know that." Matt said. "Thanks for trying." He said and left.
Caroline stayed, looking at her. "Bella, Vicki has been on drugs for a long time. She even tried taking Jeremy down with her." She said softly. "She may not be able to be helped.
"I can't just not try Care. Maybe it's time for someone to help her." Bella said. "What if by me helping her, she'll be okay this time?" She asked, but she knew that Vicki would never be okay.
Caroline sighed. "You can try, but don't… don't get your hopes up." She said. "Anyways. I picked a dress for you for the ball tomorrow. I know it'll fit. Wear the nice sandals you have. I know you don't like heals. It's a blue dress, so if you paint your nails, then blue is the way to go. Makeup and hair, I can do tomorrow."
"Care…"
"We need to keep moving on. If Stefan doesn't find Vicki, then you need to keep going forward. Don't stop your life for Vicki." Caroline said softly. "You can still come-"
"I'm going to wait for Stefan." Bella said with a nod. "Thanks Care."
Caroline went and hugged Bella, and then left.
Bella sighed, leaning against the counter bar. She looked at her hand, still wrapped in the towel. She honestly needed stitches more likely. She heard a knock on the door a little while later and she went to open it. Damon was standing there. "Oh, Stefan said he called you."
"He did." Damon said, looking at her hand. "You hurt yourself."
"Sort of. Come in." She said and Damon walked inside, and she shut the door. "I don't even know where to even begin to explain."
"Vicki is a vampire and my brother took her to try and feed her bunnies to satisfy a hunger." Damon said.
Bella frowned. "What?"
"We're vampires, Bella." Damon said. "My brother and me." He was blunt and straight to the point.
"I…" She looked towards the kitchen. She thought about how he was acting strange, how he wanted her to leave Vicki alone, to listen to him and go away. Because he knew that Vicki was also a vampire.
Damon stepped forward, taking her hand in his, removing the dish cloth. The blood dripped from her finger. "Did you do this on purpose?" He asked, his icy blue eyes meeting hers.
"I did."
"To feed Vicki." Damon said, arching a brow.
"Well…" Bella said. "I was going off a hunch. I thought I was crazy, but then when it worked, then she needed more and I tried to put more in a glass, but I also didn't want to cut my finger deeper. I think I need stitches." She murmured.
Damon nodded. "Yeah. You do." He said then he reached one of his fingers up, and pricked his finger with a fang and then rubbed it over her finger.
Bella watched as the cut sealed. "What…."
"Vampire blood… it heals people who are injured or sick." Damon said, and then took reached down and took the dish cloth and wiped her finger off. "There, all better." He said and lifted it to his lips and kissed it.
"Thank you…"She murmured, staring at him.
"You're not afraid of me?" Damon asked.
"No." Bella said. "Why would I be afraid?"
Damon smirked a little. "Vampires kill people. You have heard that there are monsters that go bump in the night."
"Yeah, but… you walk around in the day, so does Stefan. This doesn't make sense." Bella was still confused.
"Hmm. Well, you have a lot to learn." Damon said with a smile and held up his hand, waving his fingers. The ring on his hand looked like Stefan's. It was silver, with a blue stone in the middle and was wrapped in filigree with the letter 'S' over it.
Bella had noticed Stefan's ring before and Damon's, she thought it was a family ring or crest. "So, without it?"
"Poof. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust." Damon said, his cat grin and icy eyes charming her.
"Oh. And Stefan took Vicki to eat bunnies… why?"
"Because Stefan doesn't eat people." Damon said then walked towards the kitchen and started opened cabinets, until he found the alcohol.
Bella knew the whiskey was there. Her mom was known to drink from time to time, but never heavily. "Oh, glasses are second cabinet from the sink." She pointed out.
Damon nodded taking two glasses down, then opened the bottle and poured some in both glasses. He handed her one and took the other for himself.
Bella took the whiskey and lifted it, drinking it, the burn choking her at first, but she finished it fast. She set the glass down and sighed. "So, now what? Will Vicki be okay?"
"Depends."
"Depends on what?"
"Depends on how she keeps a handle on her emotions. As a vampire, your emotions are amplified. You get angry easier; you love harder and faster. It's intense." Damon explained, lifting his glass and taking a drink.
Bella thought about Stefan and how he acted strange after their rough sexual encounter. "It's hard to control strength?"
"Has Stefan hurt you?" Damon asked, frowning.
"No, I'm just curious." Bella lied. It had hurt, but she never told Stefan any different, even though she was sure he knew. "He can't drink human blood or doesn't like to?"
"He can't." Damon said. "Well, he could, but he would turn into a crazed vampire and start ripping people's heads off."
Bella wasn't sure what to do with that information. She was about to say something when Stefan returned, a little frantic. "Stefan?"
"I… she's fast." Stefan said.
"You lost her?" Damon said, setting his glass down. "Where did she go?"
"I don't know. She is really… fast." Stefan said and looked at Bella. She was sitting at the bar now, an empty whiskey glass in front of her. "Bella…"
Bella swallowed. "Um. We should worry about Vicki right now. It's dark out, so she's okay, but when morning comes, she'll… not be okay."
"We should talk."
"Later." Bella said. "We'll deal later, but for now. I have to focus on one thing at a time. And that is making sure Vicki doesn't go up in flames once morning gets here."
Stefan shook his head. "She knows better. I told her that she can't be out in the day. She'll hide away."
"Good." Bella said and looked at Damon. "There are spare rooms here. Maybe it's smart for you both to stay here tonight, in case she comes back. I'm not very strong…and if she gets really hungry…I'm not sure what she'll do."
Damon nodded. "Of course. A sleepover, this should be entertaining." He said with a smirk, and lifted the glass back to his lips.
Stefan swallowed and nodded. His chest was tight, feeling anxious about talking to Bella about everything. He wondered how much Damon had already told her and if he still stood a chance at not losing her.
"I'm going to… change my clothes, and eat something." Bella said and stood. "I'll clean up this mess first." She said, looking at the kitchen.
"I got it." Damon said. "Go on, go get changed. I'll take care of all this."
Bella nodded, not fighting him on it. She left, going up the stairs to her room.
"I've lost her." Stefan said, looking down at his hands.
"Hmm. Maybe. She's too curious about what we are. Go up and talk to her." Damon said as he moved around the kitchen and started cleaning up the mess on the counter.
Stefan hesitated, thinking it was strange that Damon was so calm during this. He sighed and then walked up the stairs. He knocked on Bella's door, before walking in. "Bella…"
Bella pulled her shirt on and turned and looked at Stefan. "Hey."
"I just want to make sure you're okay."
"I'm not okay." Bella said. "Vicki is out there somewhere. I just found out my boyfriend is a vampire. It's a lot to process and I'm sure tomorrow, I will have some sort of mental breakdown, but right now I'm just too… shocked to really think straight."
"I'm sorry…" Stefan murmured.
Bella sighed. "You could have told me."
"Would you have run away from me?"
"No." Bella said and she was sure of that. "I just don't like being lied to. You kept something huge from me. It's going to take me a bit to come to terms with all of this. I need to process. So please, just give me time."
"You're breaking up with me…" Stefan murmured.
"I didn't say that." Bella said. "I'm saying that I need time to sort this all out and I don't want to jump to any conclusions or anything. I need to understand what's happening. I get that you were scared or whatever, but… still… Just let me be to myself and my thoughts."
Stefan nodded. "Okay." He said, swallowing. "I'll be downstairs on the couch then for the night. That way I can get to Vicki fast if she comes back."
"Okay." Bella said. "Thank you." She said and then watched him leave. She sighed, going to her bed and sitting down. It was a lot to process. How do you even begin to process the night she's had? She wasn't sure what she wanted to do at this point.
