Cracks

"…And yeah, the teacher said that it was good I was using art as a safe way of releasing my violent thoughts and feelings, but mentioned that I probably shouldn't share the pieces with other patients." Kai cocked his head to the side, shaking it and sighing as though in exasperation. There was a silence in the circle, and Matt opened his mouth to comment, however he was interrupted. "I mean, I was thinking though, like, yo teach? If my paintings are as good as you say they are then…"

Rebekah scowled as Kai continued on prattling about his stupid day, tuning him out. There was nothing she detested more than the group therapy sessions; everyone either yelled at each other or rambled on about the crap they filled their days with and how that 'made them feel' (normally sarcastically), making it hard for her to even get a word in. It was boring, and she didn't think she ever achieved anything in the meetings. They were completely rudimentary.

And just when Rebekah thought they couldn't get any worse, attempted murderer Kai rejoined the group again, which meant there was more talking, and the sitting was already going overtime. Another woman by the name of Katherine 'Pierce' had also joined them from up in ward D. Rebekah had met her the previous day in the recreation room, and she already didn't like her. There was something about how the surly looking brunette tried to charm everyone…

The only thing she liked about the sessions was the way Stefan would always seat himself next to her, and how his hand would creep towards hers to latch onto like a lifeline. Him actively seeking out her touch, like he almost needed it, made Rebekah happy. He was the only thing that kept her going in the miserable place. It also probably wasn't allowed; close contact in general with other patients was a bit taboo. But Matt didn't seem to notice, or mind. Rebekah could never tell with him.

Bonnie seemed to be literally sitting on the edge of her seat, probably because she was terrified of Kai, and Rebekah almost felt sympathy for her. She seemed to be trying to put a brave face on, yet looked almost as sickly and pallid as Hayley and Elena did, which meant something. Rebekah had noticed that ever since the familial visits her dorm mate had been acting a bit differently. She wasn't as chipper or 'happy-go-lucky' as she had previously been, no longer attending any of the yoga and creative writing programs she used to attend religiously. Instead, she spent a lot of time in bed, and even then, she always was tired.

Kol was still in temporary isolation after what happened during the family visits. Thankfully, Elijah and Freya had negotiated with the doctor not to move him to another ward, saying that his explosion was out of character and that it was best for his health that he stay nearby his siblings. She kind of missed him, although it was a relief for her to get a break from rolling her eyes at him.

"Okay, Kai!" Matt cut through just as he began talking about how the art classes didn't have enough red paint for him to use. "It's been great to see you share your feelings and qualms about the courses you have been taking, and we can certainly talk about them in our own session later today, but I think that we're certainly past the normal hour we've been allocated. I'm sure Dr. Martin's group are up next and I don't want to keep them waiting any longer than they already have. I'll see you all again on Wednesday!" He chirped jovially, despite everyone already being half way out the room, but for the blabbermouth Kai and the next-to-catatonic Elena.

Rebekah was just glad that Stefan was still holding her hand, although she did have to put up with Damon walking with them as he bitched to his brother about how strange his little girlfriend had been acting recently. As per usual, it was nothing she didn't already know, so she instead focused her thoughts on someone else who had been acting weird recently that she actually cared about; Nik.

While he was in general an erratic and bizarre person, he was acting more odd than usual. Unlike the preceding weeks, he hadn't been hatching escape plans or mooning over Caroline. Even she had noticed, asking Rebekah a few times if her brother was okay, which just prompted a response to the likes of 'piss off'. She decided that today was the day that she got to the bottom of what was wrong with Nik, so while Damon was in the midst of talking about how Elena's hair wasn't as shiny as it normally was, she let go of Stefan's hand (with her heart swooning over the way it took him a moment longer to let go, seemingly unwilling to do so) and picked up a tray, moving towards where her older brother stood in the line.

"Afternoon, brother."

He grunted in response, not even sparing her a glance, shuffling forward.

She paused, pondering on what she should say. "…You look a bit tired-"

"-What do you want?" He snapped back heatedly, twisting around on the heel of his foot, his eyes on fire and his nostrils flaring wildly, staring down at her like prey. It was his intimidation tactic, she knew, Nik always used his height to his advantage when he could. It didn't scare her; it just further confirmed that he was angry about something.

Rebekah looked back up at him, unimpressed, then turned and held out her tray for the lunch woman to plop on her plate what was probably supposed to be a vegetable stir-fry. Suppressing the urge to gag, she walked around her immobile brother, grabbed a glass of cranberry juice and the cup of medication with her name on it, quickly downing both and opening her mouth wide to show the nurse.

Standing off to the side, she patiently waited for Nik to do the same, and then trailed behind him as he found a seat on the far side of the room, by themselves. They both half-heartedly picked at their meals in silence, before Rebekah finally looked up, and sighed.

"You know you can talk to me." She started quietly, and he met her eyes, hesitant. The pain in them was something she had seen before, not only in his in the past but also in her own reflection. Reaching across, Rebekah held his hand, giving him an encouraging smile. "I won't tell anyone."

His jaw clenched and his walls broke down. "Tatia is divorcing Elijah."

"That bitch." Rage instantly engulfed Rebekah over the frizzy haired fuckgirl.

"Don't talk about her like that." Nik protested hollowly, staring down at his hands as he started tearing a paper napkin into little pieces.

She almost growled, slamming her hands down on the table furiously. "Don't you dare try to defend her, Niklaus! She was your first and only friend in high school. The tart basically isolated you from befriending any other people, or girls for that matter, but when you were clearly in love with her she acted as if she knew no better! And of course that was her right, however she went a step too fucking far when she asked, she, asked Elijah out, and he accepted, unbeknownst to your feelings! And then! And then she-"

"-I know the story, Bekah." He cut through sharply, a frown etched deep into his face.

Rebekah just scoffed, leaning back in her seat and shaking her head. "I just can't believe it." A pause. "Actually, I can believe it. She was malicious right from the beginning. Of course years after smashing your heart to pieces she decides to do the same with our older brother." Her heart ached at the thought of how Elijah had to experience his first heartbreak, and how Nik had to relive his. It just wasn't fair that both her brothers, her amazing brothers, were broken down by such a spiteful, unimportant little tramp.

There was a silence, wherein Rebekah continued on letting her fury grow and Nik, having finished with the first napkin, reached for hers to begin doing the same exercise. However she grabbed his hand before he could touch the paper, stopped, then shoved their trays to the side, and stood, pulling him into an awkward hug over the table. Running her fingers through his hair, she gently rubbed his back and cradled his head. "I'm so sorry, Nik. I truly am." She whispered, feeling his release a shuddering breath, one that told her he was trying with everything he could to not cry. "She's not worth it. She never deserved you and she doesn't deserve Elijah."

Although his mouth was pressed into her shoulder, she could still hear him murmur, "I still love her". And she leaned back, feeling her eyes well up at the concept of loving someone who hated, something she knew of all too well.

"I know you do Nik. I still love Alexander. Despite him manipulating me when I was seventeen to get to the family, I love him now and always will." She saw the rage in his eyes in that moment that she knew she would've seen in herself before. "But I now I know, I hate him more than I love him."

He nodded and Rebekah knew he knew how he felt, and vice versa. Nik and Rebekah both understood it in a way they hadn't before. It seemed the facility had done more good than either of them had thought.

"We'll be alright, Nik."

"Always and forever."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The main condition for her to be allowed back into ward A was that she take certain medication that would basically inhibit her from having next to no sexual urges. Her libido was at an all time low, and it was a pretty shitty time for Katherine.

So, she was simply minding her own business, lounging around on the grass area outside, soaking up the sun that she had barely felt in the past nine years. Of course, though, she could never be left to her own devices no matter how much she wanted, and her me time was rudely interrupted by a twittering blonde.

"Oh my Gosh, Elena! You're finally- Oh."

Opening her eyes, Katherine stared up at the face of a disappointed looking Caroline. It had been the third time someone had mistaken her for Elena, and it was beginning to get on her nerves. She hardly saw the resemblance between her and the dull girl that everyone else seemed to see. Katherine was was a ten and Elena was, at best, a seven and a half. And yet, three whole times.

"I'm sorry, I thought you were Elena…" Caroline began as Katherine sat up, plastering a smile on her face that looked as fake as it was, hoping the blonde would fuck off because she was in no mood to deal with the human personification of a Disney princess. "I'm sorry."

"It's a common error." She responded coolly, saying no more and wishing for the best.

And of course because the world hated her, the princess shrugged, taking it upon herself to sit down next to Katherine, crossing her legs and tucking her hair behind her ears, she flashed the brunette an almost artificially bright smile. "We haven't properly met," She began in her nasally voice, holding out her hand, "I'm Caroline."

Sighing obviously, she dropped back down to the ground and closed her eyes. "Katherine Pierce." She muttered in response, waiting to feel Caroline's presence disappear and for the sun the blonde was blocking to reappear. It didn't.

"To be honest, I don't really know why I thought you were Elena…" Caroline started cautiously, and Katherine readied herself to raise and move to an unoccupied part of the grass. "You've got way better hair than her. Much more volume."

She opened one eye.

"I love Elena, I do, but frankly, while she's pretty, you're beautiful." The blonde continued on crooning, and damn did she know how to get on Katherine's good side. "You've go to admit, though, there is a strange similarity between you two."

All Katherine did was hum in response, which was definitely kind considering what she was contemplating on doing before. However, she did give Caroline the decency of opening her eyes and leaning on her elbows, showing she was at the very least receptive of more conversation, albeit mainly if it was compliments, but still.

"Hayley's your new roommate, right?"

"Yes." While she was initially annoyed with the concept of not having her own space for herself as she had in ward D, Katherine actually enjoyed Hayley's company. She was quiet and didn't try to force conversation and getting to know her. As well as that, Katherine knew the minute she laid eyes on her that they had both been through the same thing. It was obvious and for the first time in a while she felt an ache in her heart. Yet, relating to someone else was something she had never experienced before, and despite the awful thing in common, it was… nice. "She's pretty easy."

Scoffing in response, Caroline seemed to disagree. "Really? Because she used to be my roommate and all she did was ignore me." And the like Katherine once had for the princess instantly disappeared, and she felt the strange need to defend the dorm mate she barely talked to.

"That's actually what I like about her." She shot back, her tone acidic. "She hasn't tried to schmooze me into being her friend or harassed me when I clearly want to be left alone. That's exactly what I think someone would look for in a roommate." Tipping her head to the side, Katherine peered at a flushed Caroline. "Don't you think?"

Before the all the blood in her body could rush to her face and she could manage to utter a word out, Stefan joined in on their little chat, once again doing what Katherine was learning to detest.

"Rebekah! Elena! Hey, what are you-" His words, of course, were cut off at realizing it wasn't his wife or wife's roommate sitting on the grass, but rather, people who had similar hair. "Sorry, Caroline, uh, Katherine, I thought you were-"

"-Elena! Yes!" She finally cracked, not longer being able to take the insult. "I know, because I've been mistaken for her for four times now. Maybe by the time that knock off version of me gets out of here I'll have a split personality disorder where one half is actually me and the other her!"

There was a perturbed silence between the three people, and from her peripheral vision Katherine could see a couple of nurses hover some feet away, probably ensuring things didn't get at all violent as she had a history of that happening. Rubbing her temple and wondering what she had done to deserve such shit in her life, Katherine pushed herself to her feet and Stefan wringed his hands out in front of him as she rubbed dirt off her ass. "I didn't mean to offend you, I was just looking for Rebekah…" He said softly, and Katherine almost felt bad for shouting at him. But that moment passed and she was just pissed off again.

Caroline jumped up, her face no longer red but her features distorted into delicate expression of irritation. "It was actually pretty rude of you to shout at Stefan like that, Katherine." She scolded with her arms crossed and one foot tapping, and Katherine had war flashbacks to her mother having the exact same stance when she was angry.

"I don't fucking care."

Her cobalt eyes went aflame and her mouth opened wide, probably to retort with something like 'I don't appreciate your cuss words', however once again her window to respond was cut short by Stefan.

"Hi Bonnie!" He exclaimed a little too enthusiastically.

The petite girl ran up to them, slightly breathless, a grin on her face and obliviousness to the tense atmosphere between the three. "Hey Stefan, Caroline, Katherine!" Bonnie puffed, resting her hands on her hips.

Even though Bonnie had barely ever made eye contact with Katherine (probably because she spent most of her time around Kai, who she had heard from the man himself, Bonnie didn't really like), Katherine already decided she liked the woman, purely because she didn't mistake her for the other one.

"I think Elena's feeling better!" She divulged excitedly, and Caroline's expression immediately brightened up and Stefan looked attentive. Katherine rolled her eyes at their obsession with Elena because by God it was beginning to really fuck her up. "We've all had no idea why she's been acting off lately, not even Damon. I was making my way towards the recreation room from the library and I overheard some nurses gossiping…"

It was at this point Katherine wondered why she was even still there, yet just as she was about to turn away and stalk off, Bonnie said something that peaked her interest.

"Well, they were talking about how they turned a blind eye to some tall, dark haired and blue eyed guy sneaking into room 109, which is Elena's room." The three of them breathed a sigh of relief and smiles broke out onto their faces. "I don't know what's been wrong with her, but if Damon has finally decided to talk to her about it, I think we can try to help her get back on track. She'll be okay, guys, we all will."

And Katherine turned and slinked away, wanting to hide the smirk that had dirtied her lips because she knew.

The tall, dark haired and blue-eyed guy who was sneaking into room 109 wasn't Damon; it was Kai.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It had been a week since he had been put in isolation. He rarely saw anyone else, and when he did it wasn't normally a friendly face. So when the passive-sounding attending nurse told him that he had a therapy session with Matt, he almost cried. Sitting in the brightly colored office, he was surprised to find himself happy to be there.

And then the session started.

"So you were sent to a rehab facility in California when you were seventeen?"

The air in the room suddenly became very thick and hard to breath. "Yes." Kol answered, his mouth dry, swallowing repeatedly.

"Where?"

Kol was silent. He didn't want to talk about this. It didn't matter anymore.

"Kol, if you don't cooperate with me in this, I won't be able to clear you to go back with everyone else, and you'll be kept in isolation, or worse yet, to another ward." As Matt cut the quiet with his scary words, Kol looked down to the clipboard in his therapist's hands, and the thick yellow file beneath it, and he realized Matt would know. But he didn't, not yet. He would find out one-way or another, he just wanted to hear it from Kol himself. "You had an outburst that could've become violent, and you've had a physical fight with another patient. I've protected you from being moved the previous two times. I won't be able to do it again."

The past was coming back; fast, to hit him in the gut. He had no choice but to take it. He couldn't hide anything from Matt, even if he tried. "I went to Anton Center in San Diego." His voice was slightly hoarse as he thought of his time there.

Matt wrote something down on paper of his clipboard, nodding. "I hear that's meant to be very nice facility." He noted, looking up and smiling.

"I'm sure it would be if you weren't in a state of cocaine withdrawal."

Clearing his throat, the smile fell off Matt's face at Kol's harsh response. "How long were you there for?"

Steadying his eyes on the brutally bright lamp in the corner of the room, Kol willed his mind to stop losing it's self in the past and to focus on what he was being asked. But it was hard; it was oh so hard when those memories were as vivid as though they happened yesterday. "Four months." He could feel sweat breaking out across his skin and he suddenly felt extremely tired.

"So you must've had quite a severe-"

"-Listen love, Matthew Donovan." Kol cut through, the subject was breaking him down into smaller and smaller pieces and he no longer wanted to talk about it anymore. He didn't like feeling weak. So instead, he entered a state of denial. "I'm aware that I clearly have some sort of 'issue' currently, au contraire to what I think. However, I don't know what my past has to do with it! I'm one hundred percent sober right now, and I will never let something as little as addiction take me over again. Okay?"

Pursing his lips, although silently fuming, he kept his cool. He opened the thick folder in his hands and Kol leered as Matt's pastel eyes flicked over the words. "You overcoming your drug addiction is the source of your narcissistic personality disorder, so we need to-" The sentence was interrupted by hysterical laughter erupting from the wide split lips of Kol.

After a moment or two more of snickering and wiping a faux tear away, the Mikaelson shook his head dismissively, as though it was the most ridiculous thing he had ever heard. Because it was.

"You overcame an extremely hard time and that is absolutely commendable, Kol. However despite the good that has come out of it you are still not okay because you think you are invincible. That is not healthy."

Sighing dramatically, Kol waved his hand about. "Matt, Matt, Matt. I'm completely healthy, and I'm not sick in my head, as you all think I-"

"-Kol."

The harshness in which Matt said his name made Kol stop in his sentence, and listen.

"You are in a state of denial over your disorder. It's been around three weeks since you've arrived here and you still haven't come to terms with it, you refuse to, and that is not healthy. You think you are indestructible but you're not." Pages flipped through Matt's nimble fingers with a snapping sound, and he stopped at a large paragraph of text. As his blue eyes widened in shock and he swallowed thickly and loudly, Kol knew what he had just read. "You have a restraining order out against you. By Davina Claire." The therapist looked up. "Who is she?"

He sucked in air sharply after realizing he hadn't been breathing. "My girl- my ex-girlfriend."

"You physically assaulted-"

"-Once!" He vehemently blurted out; leaning forward fanatically with his hands gripping the arm rests of his seat. Matt just stared. "I only hit her once! I was drunk, I didn't mean to! But she was saying all these lies about me, these things that weren't true, that aren't true. She said I was sick in the head, that I had a problem, that I was a loser junkie and disgusted her and-"

There was a ripping sound. Kol's fingers had gripped the worn fabric of the chair so tightly that he had torn holes in them. Yet he barely realized, as he hung his head, heaving each breath, his eyes wet and his brows furrowed.

"They were lies. I was fine. And I didn't mean hurt her…"

"Do you think it matters if you didn't mean to hurt her?"

Slowly, Kol met his therapist's eyes, puzzled. "What?" He asked, because he didn't understand the line of questioning. Of course it mattered.

"Do you think it mattered to Davina whether you meant to hurt her?"

And he hesitated, taking only a moment to think about it before saying the first thing that came to mind, the only thing. What he knew. "Yes, of course. I was drunk and I didn't mean to hurt her. I didn't know what I was doing." Kol answered, almost tentatively, as though he was having second thoughts about his response.

"But you did." Matt said as though it was simple. "Your judgment may have been impaired, however in that moment you knew what you were about to do and you did it. It doesn't matter if you only did it once or if you didn't 'mean to', it matters that you did it."

Kol shut down right in front of his eyes, locking and bolting the door that was once open a crack, and all Matt could do was watch. So, for a couple of moments of the many minutes of silence he knew would ensue, he chewed on the words in his mouth, trying to come up with the best solution for the patient before him who was a lot more damaged than he first realized.

"Okay."

Closing the copious profile on his lap, he grabbed the forms that he had on his desk and began the process of ticking some boxes, filling in a as few lines, and then signing his name and signature at the bottom. He exhaled heavily, and looked at Kol, whom had his eyes trained on the lamp in the room.

"I'm having you taken out of isolation, as I think it is impairing you rather than clearing your mind. Seeing as Tyler is still in ward D and doesn't seem to be returning any time soon, according to Dr Fell, you'll now be rooming with your brother and Stefan." His voice conveyed his exhaustion; because he truly hadn't anticipated the emotional toll his job really would take on him.

There was an urgent and sharp knock outside, but before he could even begin to form the words on his tongue, the door slammed open, and a rattled looking Sophie jumped in. Her hair was a mess and her eyes were absolutely panicked.

"Elena Gilbert is in the ER in the medical ward; she just attempted suicide."

There may be a slight delay for the next chapter. It won't be, like, two months like last time, but maybe a couple of weeks. I've just started school again and it's intense. But I finish early a lot, so that extra free time will be good!

Thank you to everyone who has followed and favorited this story! I want you all to know you made my day when I got the notification of a new follower, I appreciate every single one of you, no exaggeration. And please, if you have just a minute, please leave a comment, even if it's just a smiley face! Any feedback always means a lot. If you haven't already, follow and/or favorite if you want to know about future updates! Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed the chapter. X

Next Chapter (a big one to make up for the long wait!) - After managing to sneak into the medical ward, Damon waits out for Alaric and Jeremy to arrive, so he can see Elena with them. There, someone else joins him, and then things unravel before him. Caroline has a session with Matt, and she feels herself about to relapse, but can't bear to tell him. When she leaves his office, she gets into an argument with Klaus over his ignoring her for the past week. He doesn't tell her why, yet soon enough, someone else does. Another part features Kai, but I don't have a solid outline for it yet, and will update when I do.