Review responses:
Prfh: I know, it's not good for Scarlett, or fair. Damon, what a meany / Lo sé, no es bueno para Scarlett, o justo. Damon, que malo. Lo siento si esto no tiene ningún sentido.
Only reviewer: Yeah, Damon tends to overreact, but it's only because he cares...I think. Who really knows? Hopefully I added enough new bits to Memory Lane to keep it interesting for you, or made it better as the case may be. And sorry, but you'll have to wait until the next chapter to find that out. Or possibly the one after that. Hopefully this one will be enough to entertain you until then! :)
Charmedbycharmed: Thank you as always! And don't worry, we'll seen Scarlett and Damon bantering again soon, glad to hear you're enjoying that element of their relationship though. And yes, I know Elena's presence has been lacking in the first few chapters, at least in relation to Sarah. This is kind by coincidence and a little on purpose. Don't worry though, I have a lot of stuff lined up between Sarah and Elena later on. And I'm still more than likely leading towards Sarena end game. But slow burn... Plus this has also given me a chance to build on the relationship between Elena and Scarlett, which I felt like doing. However, fear not, as you are about to get a Sarena moment right here.
Atrinity: Thank you so much, that's very nice of you to say! I too am a big fan of Vampire Diaries. And Originals. And now Legacies, though I'm thinking the last one will get better in its second season.
First off, thanks for all the reviews from the last chapter! Really loving the compliments and opinion being thrown out there. And also, surprise! Another upload! I'm on holiday next week so I won't be uploading then, but either the week after that, or the following week I'll be moving onto Kill or Be Killed. Depends on how much writing I do while away.
Anyway, this one is another original chapter, like Captive, but more filler in a way. It does have some important stuff though. Quite a few moments between Sarah and Ronnie, some Sarah/Elena and I even managed to get Scarlett and Caroline in there too. Had a lot of fun with this one, mostly fluff though, despite one scene with Scarlett. Though I did enjoy giving them both little nice moments to enjoy. I should probably do it more often... Oh well. You guys can always tell me if you want more, right?
As always, feel free to leave reviews, all writers love 'em! Or PM if you prefer, I do my best to reply to you all, even if I'm sometimes a little late. So enjoy, and I'll see you all later!
Chapter 9: Old Flames
Despite the tension in the air over the last few days, Sarah found herself waking up with a smile as her supernatural senses picked up on the breakfast in kitchen. It was a full on English breakfast, Ronnie's preferred choice when cooking. Not Sarah's but she was never one to turn down something Ronnie cooked. He wasn't quite a master chief but he could still cook a damn good meal when the opportunity arose.
The past couple of days he'd stayed with her, though he'd stuck to simple things like the rest of the boarding house's occupants. Had Scarlett still been here he would have done his English breakfast four days in a row, but then there wouldn't be any tension in the house. Sarah was still glaring at both her brothers, ignoring Damon when he wanted her attention and giving Stefan the silent treatment. Ronnie was the only one she was speaking to and even then her conversations got interrupted half the time by her brothers, trying to catch her in a good mood. They were going to be waiting a while before that happened.
But for now she didn't think about any of that. She just got out of her bed and followed the smell to the kitchen. The table in the corner already lined with food free for the picking while Ronnie continued to work away in the kitchen. He did however look over when he heard Sarah enter, smiling at her in her nighty. Not her finest hour, first thing in the morning, but with the curtains drawn and the light minimum in the room she didn't have to worry to much about her appearance. One of the few benefits of having a boyfriend like Ronnie, you could hide in the dark with him when you didn't want to be seen, for whatever reason.
"Morning," Ronnie said as he turned back to his cooking, or rather fraying.
"I see you've laid out all your favourites," Sarah teased, grinning as she looked over the table.
"Don't even pretend like you don't like any of this," Ronnie replied with a pointed look, as he brought over a sizzling pan, and with the spatula, manoeuvred the contents on to an empty plate. Sarah knew it was fresh pancakes before she saw it, the smell alone almost filling up her empty stomach. She sat down and once Ronnie disposed of the pan, he joined her, taking up the opposite side.
"Fine, I'll admit, I love it," Sarah said grudgingly, hating to lose while Ronnie beamed away smugly. "Now pass me those pancakes," Sarah ordered. Ronnie chuckled and happily held up the plate, only for Sarah to scoop more than half the contents onto her own plate.
"You know there's more than just pancakes," Ronnie pointed out with a gesture to the rest of the food as he lay down the pancakes.
"And you know the only reason I keep sleeping with you are for these bad boys," Sarah said as picked up the syrup bottle and aimed it at her pancakes. After loosening the top she squeezed and watched the gold liquid dribble out over her pancakes before creating an equally golden puddle around the base.
"Will there be anything else?" Ronnie prompted sarcastically, as if he were her servant.
"Yeah, pass me the eggs while you're at it," Sarah added, as she slid a few strips of beacon onto her plate, forming a small stack on one side of the plate, keeping the syrup at bay for now. Ronnie obliged, handing her the eggs after taking one for himself. Then While Sarah proceeded to stuff her face, Ronnie busied himself with stacking his own plate. Sausage, beans, toast, it was all good for Ronnie who joined Sarah in stuffing his face. Groans of delight passing between the two as they ate.
"God, these are so good," Sarah sighed, her eyes closed as she leaned back in her seat, pure bliss in her mouth. At least she thought so. Ronnie had never liked his own pancakes but she adored them. "It's been far too long since you cooked for me."
"I wanted to do it the morning after I got here, but you were still…" He stopped, eyes moving awkwardly towards Sarah who slowed in her chewing. "Sorry," he apologised.
"It's alright," Sarah reassured him, before he got back to cutting up his beacon, only to then throw it into his mouth with a fork. "Besides, it's not your fault," Sarah pointed out, an angry frown forming as she continued to chew, albeit a bit more violently now.
"Hey," Ronnie said soothingly as he reached over, taking Sarah's hand in his. She swallowed and resisted the urge to take another mouthful of pancake as she stared back at his comforting blue eyes. "I made this to try and calm you down. So just relax for…five minutes, and enjoy, alright." Sarah stared at him for a moment before closing her eyes and sighing, letting it all float away for now. She could do that, as long as it was just them, she could let go. She smiled back naturally at him and the two continued with their morning meal for all of one minute before Damon then proceeded to enter.
"Morning," Damon sang out as he sauntered into the room, grinning away and looking very pleased with himself. Like he'd been doing since he kicked Scarlett out. Sarah remained silent, eating her breakfast while maintaining a constant glare that was aimed slightly to the side of Ronnie. He knew it wasn't for him, it was for Damon, but she couldn't very well glare at him and ignore him at the same time, so she glared while looking opposite where he was stood.
"Damon," Ronnie greeted politely, in between chews.
There was a moment of silence before Damon groaned, "Oh for crying out loud." Sarah grinned to herself, happy to be getting at Damon after what he'd done to Scarlett, but she didn't show it. "Are you seriously still mad about this." Sarah didn't answer. She did hear her brother's footsteps though as he approached her from behind. "What's the big deal? It's not like she's living out in the woods, she's the Gilberts problem now and we're better of for it. If anything you should be thanking me."
Still Sarah gave him nothing as he spoke to the back of her head. Finally Damon groaned aloud and leaned down next to his sister, glaring at her while she stared ahead at Ronnie. Though she could still see him in her peripheral. "If you want me to say sorry, it ain't going to happen. I'm doing the right thing here." Still he got nothing which only made him angrier. "You're the one always going on about family, and now that I'm finally putting my family first you're ignoring me?" Sarah reached forwards, calmly stabbing a strip of beacon with her fork before placing it in her mouth and chewing slowly. Damon rolled his lips in, angry with himself for letting his little sister get to him, but angry with her for pulling this childish crap with him. "You are aware she can kill us with one bite. Do you really want someone with that kind of power living down the hall from you?"
Finally Sarah opened her mouth to speak and Damon, grinned, thinking he'd finally provoked a response out of her. "Pass the juice will you, Ronnie," Sarah said as she indicated to the jug on the table. Ronnie smirked and picked up the jug before pouring the contents into Sarah's glass. All while Damon turned away, groaning through clenched teeth while also hitting his fist against the table, venting out some of the frustration.
He then turned back to the couple having breakfast, only this time looking across the table and at Ronnie. "Come on, you've got to see why I did this."
Slowly Ronnie nodded his head. The truth was he did see Damon's point of view, and as a vampire himself he wasn't too found of an animal with a one–bite–kill living in the same building as him. That said if Sarah trusted the girl then he had no quarrel with her, but even so he was going to play it safe, like he always did when caught in between two rowing Salvatores. If he didn't whole heartedly agree with Sarah, then he was neutral in the argument.
"I see where you're coming from, Damon," admitted Ronnie, catching both the brother and sister's attention. "I've heard about werewolves. Never seen one, only heard the rumours that I thought were just myths until recently. But if this one bite death mark thing is true, then everything else I've heard would have me worried too."
"Thank you," Damon said smugly as he looked to his sister, but Sarah remained calm, face expressionless. She knew how Ronnie liked to play in this position, which he'd been in a few times before.
"That said, this Scarlett seems like a pretty nice kid, and from I'm being told has saved your butts more than a couple of times and helped you out too," Ronnie pointed out before swallowing and pilling another load of breakfast into his mouth, chewing as Damon glared at him. Sarah let smugness take over her face while Damon was preoccupied with Ronnie, but reeled it in when he turned back to her.
His glare swung back to Ronnie, smugness returning, thinking he had him. "You can't remain neutral with everything." So he did remember his previous encounters with Ronnie and when he'd been in these positions before. When he'd remain firmly on the fence and not budge for anything, something which annoyed Damon for whatever reason.
"You're right," agreed Ronnie with a thoughtful nod after he swallowed. He then looked to Sarah, their eyes locking as he continued to nod. "And after much thought I think I'm going to go with Sarah. So when's Scarlett moving back in?" The question was of course rhetorical so Ronnie didn't bother waiting for an answer as he shovelled more of his plate into his mouth. And still he looked up as if expecting Damon to respond, staring back at the Salvatore's glare with wide eyed curiosity, even though he knew the answer.
Sarah sniggered, but shut up when Damon turned her way.
"When are you dumping him again?" Damon growled. Childish Sarah stuck her tongue out at him and the blue eyed vampire just rolled his eyes before standing up and leaving. "Whatever," he grumbled before subtly snatching the bacon plate from the table, bitting on a strip as he made his way out.
"So things haven't changed that much since I last saw you then," Ronnie said once Damon was gone, trying to restart the conversation. Sarah sent him raised eyebrow as a reward for pointing out the obvious before they continued with their breakfasts, chatting happily away until it was time for her to head off to school.
Waking up, Scarlett was hardly surprised when she picked up Jeremy's scent instantly. It was nice being the first thing she smelt each morning, his comforting scent. She was trying to be optimistic about having to stay with the Gilberts and that was definitely one of the bounces. Of course it then had a major downside, which was it made it harder for her to avoid Jeremy. But since she'd been staying with him and his family, she'd gotten more use to the feeling of guilt when he was around. She didn't consider that a good thing, but it made being around Jeremy a lot easier, now that she no longer wanted to kill herself. What made it a little harder was when she woke up one mornings like this and he was in bed with her.
They hadn't slept together, not since she'd temporarily moved into the guest bedroom, and yet half the mornings she'd woke up there she'd found Jeremy lying next to her, when she'd gone to sleep without him. It was nice, but it brought up a bile of guilt in her throat every time he was just suddenly there. The first time it happened she almost jumped right out of bed and had felt like she was going to throw up when she didn't. However, now that she'd grown more used to it, so she wasn't jumping ever morning.
She rolled over, finding him exactly where she suspected him to be. In the spot next to her on the bed. He wasn't even under the sheets, just in his t-shirt and pants that he wore when in bed, head perched against his hand as he just stared back at her smiling. "You really have to stop doing this," Scarlett said, allowing herself a small smile.
"Why?" Jeremy asked back in that innocent tone of his, grinning away.
"Because your aunt is going to kill you if she catches you again and I don't know what Elena will think," Scarlett answered, pointing out what he already knew.
"I don't care. It's worth it to see you wake up," Jeremy said with a dreamy smile as he brushed Scarlett's hair with his free hand. He got in two strokes before she swatted his hand away and began to grin at him, he beamed back, as best he could for that time in the morning.
"You know, one of these days that corny crap is going to stop working."
"Is that day today?" Jeremy asked, mild concern in his voice, as if it was all he had to offer.
"No," Scarlett answered, her grin growing as she leaned over and kissed him. "But that doesn't mean it won't happen tomorrow," Scarlett warned as she pulled away from him. He merely grinned back, stretching over to pull her towards him. If she'd been making the move she would have hesitated like she just did, but Jeremy mistaken it for her agreement and pulled her into another kiss, getting ready to make the move.
Then the door flew open to the guest bed room and loud air horns followed. Both teen rolled away form the other, Scarlett gripping her ears tightly while Jeremy did the same only to end up rolling off the bed and landing on the floor. Scarlett wasn't sure if she was grateful for the interruption or not until the air horns died down and she saw who had them.
She was no longer grateful in any sense once she saw Jenna and Elena laughing their asses off by the doorway.
"What the hell?!" Scarlett yelled, as did Jeremy from the floor. He was still on his back though so Scarlett couldn't see him. Their yells of anger however didn't seem to sway the two older women though, who continued to laugh away until they finally calmed down.
"You're right, that was fun," Jenna admitted to Elena as the remnants of their laughter began to fade from their throats. Scarlett glared ahead at the two women, half contemplating busting out her werewolf features and seeing how much she could scare Jenna in return. The two women just grinned back at her and Jeremy before heading off leaving the door open.
"I hate my family," Jeremy grumbled from the floor before he climbed up to his feet.
"I'm not too keen on them either," Scarlett added as she sat up on the bed and Jeremy sat down next to her. Then followed a silence as the two sat next to each other. Jeremy inching closer while Scarlett remained stationary. She knew she should stop him, tell him what had happened with Mason, but the wolf inside her was telling her to ignore it and deal with it later, do whatever she had to itch that primal urge.
Jeremy leaned over to kiss her when suddenly Jenna shouted, "If you two aren't down here in five minutes then I'm coming up there and throwing you both out on the street!" Jeremy groaned, a glare forming on his face before he slid from the bed and stomped out the room before heading down the stairs. Scarlett, lingered, playing with her necklace while imagining how things could possibly be worse for her. When she came up with nothing that could make this whole situation worse, that made her really depressed.
"You're sure you're okay though?" Sarah pressed, leaning against the locker next to Scarlett while the young werewolf punched in her combination. She was being tedious, she was aware, as she'd been asking this every time she'd ran into Scarlett since she had moved in with the Gilberts. But only because her egg headed brothers couldn't get over some stupid legend that they weren't even one-hundred precent sure was true.
Scarlett turned to face Sarah as she finished putting in her combination, the lock to the door sliding out. "I'm fine, I promise," Scarlett said, forcing her smile to be bigger than necessary as if to hammer in her point. Sarah smiled back showing she understood, but would undoubtedly end up asking again before the end of the school day. However, once that smile of Scarlett's returned to normal, it didn't take long for it to shrink again. In fact, it took the exact time it took for her head to turn back towards her locker.
"Though I could do without the air horn alarms," she mumbled, not thinking Sarah would pick it up.
"What?" Sarah asked with a face scrunched up in confusion.
"It's nothing," Scarlett reassured her as she took out the single book she needed. Unsurprisingly it was a music book, the only subject Sarah had noticed Scarlett taking any interest in and actually talk about outside of school. Not that they talked about school a lot. It had sort of vanished into the back ground as of recently and most of their little gang had been skipping more than enough days to get noticed. Compulsion helped with that, getting them all of the hook, but for the likes of Scarlett and Elena, they only had one shot at high school, and how they did would follow them for the rest of their lives. Unlike Sarah and Stefan who could just resit it all over again. But no pressure or anything. Sarah was confident that no matter what went down in school Scarlett would get what she wanted out of life, probably the same for Elena. But she didn't have badass werewolf powers to help her out in life.
"What we really need to talk about is this Ronnie dude who's taken my room," Scarlett teased as she knocked her locker shut with her hip. Sarah flinched a little at that remark. She knew Scarlett didn't mean it that way and that she was only joking, but she couldn't help but see it the way Scarlett described it. As them kicking her out to make room for Ronnie.
Thankfully, for Scarlett at least, she didn't have to hear another apology spiel as Caroline appeared beside the two, inserting herself into the conversation as all popular girls did. Being a vampire hadn't changed her that much, if anything it made her worse, now that she had the supernatural heightened hearing.
"Who's Ronnie?" Caroline all but demanded in the friendliest tone possible, but Sarah instantly spotted her preying eyes that wouldn't give up until she got what she'd came for.
Sarah opened her mouth to give her an answer that wouldn't have her pestering her for the rest of the day, but then Scarlett beat her to the punch. "He's Sarah's Ex but he's living with her while he's in town." Sarah's half closed eyes slowly rolled over to Scarlett, glaring at the girl for what she'd just done. She wasn't going to get one minute of peace now, at least not with Caroline around.
Scarlett just grinned back, as if getting even for something Sarah had done to her in the past, but for the life of her she couldn't think what it was… Besides the obvious compulsion and possibly turning her into a werewolf. Anyway.
"That sounds juicy," said Caroline excitedly as she turned her full attention on Sarah, her eyes on the edge of compelling her despite the fact it'd do nothing to the Salvatore. "Tell me everything."
"No," Sarah replied as a matter of solid fact.
"Please," begged Caroline, drawing out the word as she clasped her hands together.
"It's not going to happen so you can–"
"Please!" Caroline pleaded louder, her teeth now showing along with her desperation. Considering she was still getting used to the heightened…everything, Sarah knew she should just give in and give her something. But this was far too personal and although she was beginning to like Caroline a lot more, she wasn't about to spill something as personal about her life as Ronnie.
"That's not going to work on me Caroline!" Sarah shouted over her whining, ignoring the fact that half the hallway was staring at them with confused and irritated looks. When Caroline persisted, Sarah pushed her aside and began to storm off. Of course she made it about five paces before she heard the girl's heels clicking away as she power walked after her. She looked back seeing Scarlett was following the blonde, obviously not wanting to miss the show judging by that grin. Sarah made a mental note to make her suffer for this later.
She rounded a corner, still looking over her shoulder when suddenly she bumped into someone. The usual follow. Books hitting the floor, stammering apologise before they both recognised each other and stopped, shifting gears. "Elena?" Sarah said, somehow surprised even though she knew fine well Elena came to school here and walked the same hallways as her. Heck they shared classes together.
"Sarah," Elena greeted with a smile before noticing the look Sarah was giving her. "Is everything okay?" Elena asked, frowning.
"Yeah, I'm just trying to get away–" Sarah began, brushing aside her hair before Caroline rounded the corner, shouting at her to stop and come back to her. Elena, still frowning, looked past Sarah to Caroline before then returning to Sarah with a questioning grin. "From that," Sarah sighed out as Caroline caught up to them and Scarlett joined shorty after at a more causal pace. There was no way Scarlett could have lost her. With that nose and her ears she could smell and hear her anywhere in the building. Escape really hadn't been an option, as Sarah now realised.
"What's going on?" Elena asked, looking to Caroline and Scarlett for answers, seeing as Sarah hadn't given her anything so far.
"Sarah here was just about to tell us about her Ex Boyfriend, 'Ronnie', who moved in with her while he's in town," Caroline explained with a feisty grin and eyes like some kind of high school gossip predator. And now that she had her prey cornered she had no intention of letting go. Perhaps turning Caroline into an all powerful vampire was actually Katherine's biggest mistake of all, Sarah thought. Not that really helped her in anyway just now.
"Oh, yeah," Elena said with a nod as she turned back to Sarah. Her own eyes slowly filling with curiosity. Like a gentle steam compared to Caroline's tidal wave that had consumed her from the moment she arrived on the scene. "Stefan mentioned him to me before we…" The awkward pause followed, but to Sarah's surprise, Elena shook it off rather quickly and proceeded with, "So? Tell us about him then?" Now the once kind, straight haired brunette, that had dated her brother took on a feisty curious grin of her own. Somewhere in between Caroline and Scarlett, which was odd considering Caroline was in the middle, flanked by Elena and Scarlett. The three have surrounded her against the wall with Elena's books acting as some half made wall between her and them.
"I'd really rather go to class," Sarah squirmed. Normally she could have vamp speeded her way out, shouldering pass the three. But the hallways were crowded and if she tried anything at half strength then Caroline or Scarlett could hold her at by without attracting attention while the peer pressure threatened to drown Sarah unless she give in and tell them what they wanted to know.
"Since when do you want to go to class?" Scarlett asked accusingly, the three girls closing in on her.
"It's really not that big a deal," Sarah tried to sway them.
"Then you won't mind telling us," Caroline shot back, spotting Sarah's breaking point and seeing that she was almost there.
Sarah could easily just refuse to tell them if she wanted. Stone wall them out, wait for the bell and then walk away. But the truth was she did want to tell them, because she did like Ronnie and she was happy when he was around. She liked talking about him but part of her just didn't want to say anything and risk Katherine using him against her again, as if she didn't already realise his value to her.
"Relax guys," Elena said calmly as she turned to the other two girls. And for a brief moment, Sarah sighed, thinking Elena had actually saved her for once. "She clearly wants to tell us anyway." That made Sarah look up with wide eyed astonishment at Elena. It was like she'd just read her mind. And Elena just grinned back almost knowingly, or at the very least confidently. "We just have to give her a second…" She trailed off, again, almost knowing that Sarah was about to burst and tell them what they wanted to hear.
"Alright fine!" Sarah exclaimed as she leaned back against the wall behind her. Victorious and excited smiles formed on the girls around her. If she'd seen this moment ten years ago, Sarah might have killed herself. Now suddenly she was another of those gossiping high school stereotypes which she vowed never to be. But at the same time when it came to Ronnie…she couldn't help it.
"Me and Ronnie. We've been off and on for the better part of a century," Sarah began to explain as if it were some kind of fairy tale. To her it was anyway.
"A century!" Caroline gasped before being elbowed by Elena whose look was enough to tell the blonde to be quiet and listen. "Sorry," she replied sheepishly before pleading Sarah to go on. It didn't take as much to convince Sarah to continue, once she got started it was harder for her to stop.
"Like I said we've been on and off for a while. Usually ending on good terms which made it so much easier to slid back into bed with him." At that Sarah could see Caroline having to bite her tongue, holding back the squeal in her head. "But it's not the just the sex. He's kind. So kind. And you can see it in his eyes. No matter how bad things were, I could always look into those big blue eyes and know, somehow, everything would be alright… God his eyes!" Sarah steadied herself, not wanting to fall further into the stereotypical girl territory by raising her voice every time she talked about him. Even so it showed how much she cared for him, and that was reflected back at her by her smiling friends. "And he was thoughtful, always doing what he could to help me and treating me with respect. He surprised me, he'd take me away, he'd throw the stupidest parties and he'd cook. Oh, he's so good at cooking… And we'd help each other. If he was struggling with blood or depressed because he couldn't go out in the sunlight then I'd stay with him. Spend whole weeks cuddled up in bed just talking about anything and everything."
Sarah's vision blurred as she stared off into all those memories at once, the reasons why she had and still did love Ronnie. "He just felt like a dream," Sarah sighed as Caroline squealed, raising on her tip toes as she practically jumped up and down. She did love a good love story, and after the break up with Matt, she needed to rekindle her belief in romance. Which may not end up being such a good thing for Sarah. "And he gave me my baby."
All of a sudden, three girls' eyes around her widened as their jaws dropped, clearly misunderstanding what she was saying. She smirked for a brief second before she laughed at them all. Elena was the first to catch on to what Sarah was actually saying. "Wait…you mean your bike?" Elena asked, a giddy smile forming.
"Yep," answered Sarah with a smile.
"So Ronnie got you the bike that your super protective off," Scarlett stated, the meaning behind her words obvious to all of them.
"He obviously means a lot to you," agreed Caroline.
"I'd say I care about my bike more," Sarah said as she tilted her head to the side in sarcastic thought.
"It's obviously not that serious then," Caroline said dismissively. Sarah grinned back at her, hardly stupid enough to fall for her feeble attempt at baiting her into spilling her guts some more.
"Yeah," Scarlett agreed as she glanced at Caroline. "I mean, basically every boyfriend asks you to marry him at least once."
Sarah's eyes widened and then her eyeballs almost jumped out when Elena and Caroline shouted, "He proposed?!"
"How'd you know that?" Sarah asked Scarlett whose grin faulted before she recovered.
"Stefan might have let it slip."
"Well it's good to know he spilled all my secrets to you before he kicked you out the house," Sarah replied sarcastically, now even more annoyed with her brother, folding her arms in a pout as the bell rang for class.
"Tell us more, please," Caroline begged before she began to ramble. "When did he propose? How'd he propose? When'd you both meet? How many times have you broken up? How many times have you done it since he came back? Can we see him? Oh, please can we see him?"
"No," Sarah said, answering the last question she heard from Caroline before watching the last of the students clear the hallways. "And now if you'll excuse me, the Sarah, Ronnie, relationship Q and A is done. Bye, bye." And with that Sarah vamp speeded in between Elena and Caroline, using a burst of strength when Caroline tried to stop her before racing down the hallway and into her classroom, leaving the three girl's behind her.
After that Elena and Scarlett were sensible enough to leave her alone for the rest of the day. But Caroline refused to back down. Trying to ambush her in the hallways, corner her before and after classes, and whispering away at her all through class, knowing damn well Sarah could hear her thanks to her cursed vampire hearing. Thankfully she only had a few classes with Caroline and managed to avoid her for the better part of the day. Although things got really awkward in history class with Elena and Stefan. But that was when Sarah realised something. Things weren't awkward, which was strange. The two just sat in their usual seats, avoiding eye contact and going on as if it was business as usual. There was no drama, no aching hearts, no sad or hateful looks when the other was occupied. There was just nothing between them. Hardly right considering how they'd felt about each other, which only made Sarah suspicious.
But she didn't both to pursue her suspicions. Not to day at least, with Caroline on the hunt throughout the school and still acting as Katherine's eyes and ears. Then again so was she, but hadn't seen heads or tails of Katherine since she returned to town with Ronnie. That only made her worry more. As if Katherine was waiting for her to get comfy, to lower her defences before she pounced with another devious plan. Part of Sarah hoped that Katherine had just finally gotten bored of her, but she knew Katherine could never get bored of messing with her and her family.
When lunch came, Sarah decided all she wanted was some time to herself, and to get some peace from Caroline's endless questioning. So she made her way to the roof, breaking open the rusted lock with ease before making herself comfy by the edge. Falling was hardly a concern, she'd survive, though the same couldn't be said for the sandwiches Ronnie had made for her.
She'd been on the roof for about twenty minutes, happily nibbling away at the small meal Ronnie had prepared for her when she heard the door to roof open. She closed her eyes, groaning at thought of Caroline's continued interrogation when all she wanted was to enjoy her lunch. She turned, ready to give the hyperactive blonde a piece of her mind when she saw it wasn't Caroline and it was in fact just Scarlett.
"Don't worry," Scarlett said as she approached. "Caroline doesn't know where I am and Elena's keeping her busy." Sarah smiled appreciatively at that, before turning away as Scarlett sat down beside her. She went to grab one of the tiny triangular sandwiches from the plastic container, but Sarah's hand quickly whacked her away. When Scarlett looked up, she saw Sarah's disapproving frown.
"Ronnie made them for me," Sarah said with a mouthful of sandwich.
Scarlett smirked and replied with, "You know, you're really over protective of the things Ronnie gives you." Sarah knew what the girl was getting at but she didn't bite. She just picked up the plastic container and moved it to her other side, placing herself between Scarlett and the food Ronnie had made specially for her.
She turned back to Scarlett, ready for more verbal sparing but instead found the girl with her head lowered. Her long brunette locks partially shielding her face, her blue eyes just visible as they creeped ahead of the waves of hair. "I didn't come up here to bug you about Ronnie," Scarlett said, her gaze fixed at her feet. Sarah watched her patiently, waiting for Scarlett to continue as she swallowed what was in her mouth. "I actually need to talk to you about something pretty serious. I was going to tell you sooner but then I moved in with the Gilberts and I figured it could wait."
Sarah was about to push her on, wanting to know what Scarlett had been holding in for the past few days when the teenager spoke up. "That night, with the full moon…afterwards you found me…"
"I remember," Sarah confirmed when Scarlett paused. "You were a little jumpy as I remember." It had meant to be a small joke to lighten the mood, but when Sarah saw that Scarlett had no change in demeanour, she stopped. Now realising this was something very serious. "What happened, Scarlett?"
"I…I slept with Mason."
Sarah stared at the young girl who continued to avoid her eyes. For a moment she thought she'd miss heard but when her brain couldn't come up with anything better as a substitute her mouth began to open and close repeatedly. Eyes blinking away like she had some kind of erratic twitch. Then a thought flashed through her mind. A dark thought, one that made her entire body freeze and go cold. Slowly she asked, "Did he force you to–?"
"No!" Scarlett quickly jumped in, turning around to look at Sarah finally, obviously shocked by the suggestion. "No, he never…I mean he didn't…I wasn't…no," was what Scarlett got out before going quiet again, turning away to look at her feet once more. Fingers curling up as her nails dug into her palms. It was a little while before Scarlett continued, but Sarah was willing to wait.
"It was mutual. He wanted to sleep with me…and I wanted to sleep with him," Scarlett admitted shamefully. "But it wasn't as humans. It was when we were wolves, and it wasn't like I was choosing it. It was like a need. Like I just had to have it and I couldn't say no, even though part of me was screaming not to. And in the end I just gave in… Not to him though, more like…to the wolf inside me."
Once again Scarlett went quiet and Sarah could feel the struggle going on inside her, the conflict that was eating her up. It was like watching Stefan deal with his blood issues, only this was much more real. Scarlett obviously hadn't wanted to do what she did with Mason, but the supernatural primal part of her had, and that had been enough to push her. Now she was stuck between a rock and a hard place, the guilt threatening to drown her because she did love Jeremy and felt horrible for what she'd done. Sarah wished she could help her, but she couldn't compel this away like so many other problems. She couldn't fight it or threaten anyone other than Mason, and the damage had already been done. This was something Scarlett was just going to have to learn to live with. But Sarah would do everything she could to help.
For now, all that she had to do was put her arm around Scarlett and pull the teenager into a hug. Something she clearly needed. "What does Jeremy think about all this?" Sarah asked carefully. Part of her didn't want to ask but she had to be sure Scarlett was safe and felt secure where she was, not having Jeremy glaring at her all the time when she went home.
"I haven't told him yet. Elena and Caroline know but they've promised to keep quiet," Scarlett explained before she finally turned to look at Sarah once more. "What am I going to do, Sarah?"
"I don't have all the answers, Scarlett. I might be old, but even I can't tell you how to handle that weight you're now carrying around." That didn't help Scarlett much, and it killed Sarah to watch the girl's blue eyes fill with desperation. "What I can promise you, is that you're not alone. And that I'll be there if you ever need me."
"What about your brothers?" Scarlett asked quietly.
"Screw them," Sarah said with a shrug, making Scarlett grin a little. "Like I told them, your family, whether they like it or not."
"Thanks…and I'm sorry."
"About what?" asked Sarah as she looked down at the werewolf.
"Not warning you sooner." Sarah still wasn't getting what Scarlett was saying when suddenly the door behind her flew open and she heard the triumphant cries of Caroline.
"Ah ha! I've found you!" cried out Caroline as she pointed her finger at Sarah's back.
"We'll talk later," Sarah said with a smile.
"No, no, no, no! We're talking now!" Caroline declared.
"I wasn't talking to you!" Sarah called over her shoulder, grinning to Scarlett before flashing Caroline a smile.
"Well you might as well start 'cause there's nowhere to run," Caroline said gesturing to the roof around them.
"Oh, Caroline," Sarah said as she stood up, a sarcastic sympathetic look on her face, which then morphed into a teasing grin. "You've still got a lot to learn about being a vampire." And with that Sarah jumped backwards and fell over the side of the school. Caroline ran to the edge joining Scarlett before they both spotted Sarah taking off into nearby woods.
"Oh no you don't!" Caroline shouted after the older vampire before leaping off the roof and racing after her in a blur. Scarlett just laughed, taking in the cool wind as she watched and listened to her friends chase each other around the forest.
Thankfully Scarlett had been given free reign of the fridge by the Gilberts. Even more luckily, Jenna had just restocked. Werewolves had big appetites, a fact that Scarlett had only just begun to realise when her food source shrunk. At the Salvatores' she'd had an endless supply of food that never seemed to diminish no matter how much she took. She'd never really thought about it before but now she realised it must have been Sarah, once again taking care of her and keeping their food stocks up for her. As vampires they ate, but blood was fuelled them. Scarlett was the one that had really needed the food.
Jenna was in the living room, working from home happily while Scarlett prepared them both a snack, the least she could do since she was now mooching off the Gilberts. They didn't see it that way but Scarlett did and she wanted to be at least a little helpful. She'd made a small sandwich for Jenna, something that she wouldn't look at and see only the extra weight she'd be gaining. Scarlett's was like four of those stacked up, stuffed full with layers of meat and cheese and anything else Scarlett could think to put on a sandwich. It wasn't even the biggest she'd ever made but she couldn't empty the fridge out right after Jenna restocked. Elena and Jeremy might be willing to look the other way and share their food to stop Jenna getting suspicious, but Jenna wasn't a fool and Scarlett wasn't going to treat her like one.
Hopefully the sandwich would keep her full until dinner.
There was a knock at the door as Scarlett applied the finishing touches to her sandwich. She was about to get it herself when Jenna declared she would since she was closer. Both Elena and Jeremy were out. Elena with Sarah and Caroline and Jeremy was still working on a school project with some other students. So it was just Scarlett and Jenna. Which was fine until the door opened and Scarlett caught a whiff of who was at the door.
It was a good thing she wasn't holding the sandwiches otherwise she would have dropped them. She wheeled from the counter, heading to the archway to confirm her suspicions. "Mason, hey," Jenna greeted warmly as Scarlett cursed in her head. It was fine. She could sneak out back unnoticed. Mason wouldn't be here for her anyway, he had no idea Scarlett was here, and probably had only noticed her scent when the door opened, like she had with him.
"Hey, Jenna. Is Scarlett here?"
The teenager wanted to cry. Why was this happening to her? What had she done to dissever this? She still had a chance though, she could sneak out the back and hop the fence and be gone before Mason even knew what was happening. Or that would have been possible had Jenna not let him in right away. "Sure, she's in the back," Jenna said with a wave. Scarlett wanted to curse her for that, but it was a little hard considering she was letting her live in her home.
Cut off from her escape route, Scarlett backed up and made her way around the island. With Mason and Jenna coming down the hallway, she'd never make it to the back door without being spotted. She had two options. Face him or duck behind the island and hope they gave up and left the room, giving her a chance to escape. Shamefully, Scarlett gave a fair bit of thought to hiding behind the island before she realised that Mason would be able to sniff her out. She could still attempt it, but if she failed - which was most likely - then she'd be even more humiliated that she already was.
So despite what her brain was crying out for her to do, Scarlett stood firm and gripped the counter. "Why are you looking for her?" Jenna asked, frown clear in her voice as she followed Mason.
"It's a personal thing," Mason shrugged it off as he walked into the kitchen, startled a little when he found Scarlett waiting for him. "Hey, Scarlett," Mason said with a nervous wave.
She glared back at him. Jenna, having followed Mason in, suddenly began questioning her decision. She was on good terms with Mason, she'd had no reason to suspect that he wasn't on bad terms with Scarlett, but clearly from the glare she was giving him there was something going on between them. "Scarlett?" Jenna said, trying to catch the girl's attention, but she just glared on at Mason, as if trying to melt him with her gaze. "Is everything alright?"
Deciding not to make a seen, Scarlett turned her gaze ever so slightly towards Jenna, managing to plaster on a smile for her. "It's alright. Could you give us some privacy?" Scarlett asked sheepishly. Jenna nodded, offering a small smile back. She looked to Mason suspiciously, gears turning in her head before she backed out of the room. Scarlett waited until she heard Jenna grab her laptop and head up stairs, shutting her bedroom door before turning back to Mason. Even then she didn't say anything, just glare.
When it became clear to him that Scarlett wasn't going to make the first move, Mason decided to do it instead. He stepped around the dinning table and pulled out a chair, motioning to the one opposite him as he sat down. Scarlett waited a minute before moving over, arms still folded as she pulled the chair out with her foot. Then planting herself down, she slouched into the chair and waited for Mason to say his peace.
"How you doing?" Mason asked softly, his hands clasped together as they rested on the table, his thumbs moving nervously over one another. His gaze jumping up and down from her and his hands. It was a little relieving to know he was at the least feel awkward about what had happened, but if he hadn't then Scarlett would have been even more concerned.
"I'd like to skip the small talk if that's alright," Scarlett cut in firmly. "I don't see any need to drag this out. Say whatever you have to say then leave." That was her offer, he didn't like it, then she'd leave. Frankly he was lucky she was letting him speak to her after what had happened, but it wasn't just his fault she couldn't completely blame him. That said she wanted nothing to do with him and had no intention of forming any kind of relationship with this man. Just being in the same room was making her sick, thinking of how she'd betrayed Jeremy.
Mason let out a little chuckle as his eyes ducked beneath Scarlett's heated gaze. "Most girls like the small talk." He was trying to lighten the mood. Scarlett knew this but she didn't want the mood lightened. She didn't want a friendship or anything from this man. She was giving him one chance to say whatever he had to make himself feel better and that was it. This was made clear to Mason when he looked back up and saw the glare hadn't demonised. Not even an inch.
"Sorry," he apologised.
When he stopped talking after that, Scarlett nudged him, trying to get things moving again. "What is it you want?"
"Just…to talk," Mason answered lamely.
"I don't want to talk," Scarlett said simply, her gaze unmoving, her eyes unblinking.
"I get that. But still, I've got to try." He leaned forwards on the table and Scarlett felt herself tense. Just his proximity was enough to make her start sweating, like something might happen again. As if the wolf would suddenly rip its way out and take Mason like it had in the woods. Scarlett pushed her chair back ever so slightly, not enough to make Mason question her retreat but enough to let her breath and relax. Reassuring herself that the wolf wasn't going to want seconds.
"How is it you had control on the full moon?" he asked. That made Scarlett tense up again. "I saw how you acted that night, how you defended your friends." A soft chuckle as he leaned back. "I mean come on, you can't be that old and from your scent you've probably only seen a handful of full moons. So, how'd you do it? How'd you stop yourself from killing your friends. Any other wolf would have joined me in the kill. But you actively chose not too and chased me off. How?"
It was a fair enough question. Scarlett had some of her own she wanted to ask, but she had no intention of asking this particular werewolf. If another came along, she'd ask him or her. There was no way she was giving Mason a chance to worm his way into her life, for whatever reason. She couldn't tell him about her necklace and risk him taking it from her. It gave her more power and allowed her to change at will, that was something she didn't want to lose. She had to fight the urge to play with it as she stonewalled him, not wanting to give him any kind of leads on her power.
"I've always been like this," Scarlett answered quietly as her gaze fell. He didn't push. Just nodded along as his gaze also dropped for awhile. Then he looked back up, another question in his mind.
"Do you know any other werewolves?" he asked curiously. Scarlett shook her head, gaze still lowered. The only truthful answer she'd felt like giving him so far. "Do you know what a pack is?" Again Scarlett shook her head, but lifted her gaze to meet his, figuring he was about to give her an explanation.
"A pack is what a group of wolves is called. They live together, hunt together, have families together. Defend each other and attack as one. They're lead by an Alpha. Werewolves aren't so different in that regard," Mason explained with a thin smile, thinking of his own pack. "I have pack. I'm what's called a Beta… You would be called an Omega, because you are alone and don't have a pack."
'Alone'. It felt like a good word to describe Scarlett at the moment. She preferred it over Mason word, 'Omega'.
"Just like with wolves, I've got an Alpha that's in charge of the pack. She keeps an eye on all of us, makes sure we're safe and have somewhere to go if we need too. Rounds us up for the full moon so that we can go somewhere and not accidentally kill anyone." He paused there, looking at Scarlett, hope in his eyes. "If you want, you can come with me when I go back to them. I can introduce you to them. I'm sure you'd be more than welcome." His smile seemed genuine and sincere, but Scarlett didn't buy it. She was too cynical for that.
"I'm good thanks," Scarlett rejected, as if he'd been offering her a cup coffee. And that was all she had to say to him. Annoyingly that wasn't all he had to say to her and he seemed a little surprised that she'd turned down his offer.
"You're not good, Scarlett," Mason said lowly, his voice taking on a more concerned tone. "Last I checked, you were living in a town full of vampires, one of which wants you dead because of what you can do to them. How long until the rest turn on you."
Scarlett had had enough, as shown by her hand that suddenly slammed down on the glass table. The whole thing shook, but nothing broke, and Mason slide back an inch, startled by Scarlett's sudden show of force. "You don't get to come here and tell me what's best for me, got that!" Scarlett said firmly, her voice raised but not enough to have Jenna come running. "I've been stuck with a pretty crappy life, at least until a vampire took me in and helped me. That was when I first turned and she saw me do it. She didn't kill me, she didn't run from me, she didn't lock me up! She took me in and gave me a home. I've been getting help through this whole thing by vampires and my friends, and were the hell where you and your stupid pack?! Not here, that's for sure! And now you want me to just give all that up and come with you! No. I am in a good place, I don't give a crap if you disagree, because it's taken you months to show up!"
"And I'm sorry," Mason said leaning forward and taking Scarlett's intense glare head on. "I really am and if I could change it I would, but I can't. But I am here now and I do want to help you, Scarlett. Trust me, the pack is the best and safest place for people like us. Don't throw that opportunity away because of whatever weird thing happened between us or because your pissed off."
"I'm good," Scarlett repeated firmly, her gaze level as she leaned back in her seat. "Now can you please leave me alone."
Mason sighed, seeing he wasn't going to break down her walls, at least not in this meeting. He rose, pushing his chair back and stepping around the table. He was heading for the hallway when he stopped and looked back. "If you change your mind, or just want to talk, I'm always available." Again Scarlett snapped, this time though she wasn't entirely sure why. This time he was just trying to extend an olive branch with no strings attached, just offering her another person to talk about her werewolf troubles, someone with experience. But Scarlett could only see his offer from one angle.
She shot out her seat, advancing on Mason as he wheeled around, backing up as Scarlett forced him back into the hallway. "You're not my boyfriend, so stop trying to act like one! I have a boyfriend and if I need anyone to talk to I have him, I don't need you! I don't want you to care about me! I don't want you to offer me any help! Just stay the hell away from me! Otherwise I'll kill you, full moon or not, you got that!" Scarlett roared, her eyes flashing in pure golden rage that sent Mason running from the door. She hadn't intended too, but her werewolf features were coming out, her face shifting as canines grew in, visible as she took in heavy breathes through her open mouth.
Mason got in one last plea before heading out the door, closing it behind him. Once he had, Scarlett shifted back, her breaths laboured before she suddenly found herself crying. She just wanted this nightmare to be over, to wake up in Jeremy's arms and find out everything since Katherine showed up had been a bad dream. She sank to the floor, landing on her knees and put her hands to her mouth. Trying to hold in the cries so Jenna wouldn't come and ask what was wrong.
She wanted her mother. She would have settled for Sarah but she really wanted her mother right now. It had been the first time in so long she'd wanted her mother. She just wanted her advice her help. Surely she'd know what to do, how to handle it all. But even if she did it didn't matter. She was dead and Scarlett had no one to turn too. She was alone, frightened and had no one to confide in over how she felt. It was only a matter of time until her world came crashing down around her, and after she'd worked so hard to make it one worth living. Maybe it already had crashed, and she was just waiting for the last of the glass shards to hit the ground, shattering like her mind and heart.
With the sun having set about half an hour ago, Sarah was eager to get home. She'd been spending most her day avoiding Caroline, even after school. Eventually though she'd gotten a text from Elena pointing out that the longer she ran the more Caroline was going to take it personally. In the end Sarah met them at the Grill and with the help of Elena, Caroline managed to hold back some of the more personal questions about Ronnie. Once that was over they had a fairly good time though, spending the rest of the day together until Sarah realised what time it was. The two girls had teased her as she left but she didn't care, she just wanted to get back to Ronnie.
She couldn't then help the smile that came over her when she spotted Ronnie standing in the front door grinning away when he saw her coming. "How long have you been standing there?" Sarah asked as she approached.
"I heard you coming," Ronnie answered. Sarah shot him a knowing look, planting her hands on her hips as she stopped before him. He tried to avoid her gaze and keep smiling confidently, but he caved soon enough. His smile faltering as he chuckled nervously. "Alright, maybe I've been standing here since sundown waiting for you."
"You're so sweet," Sarah said as she stepped up to him, grinning until she planted a kiss on his cheek. "Horrible lier though." She had been expecting a snappy comeback. Instead he took hold of her and twirled around into the house. Sarah shrieked, then laughed, even harder when Ronnie dipped her back into the hallway. The room turning up side down as her hair trialed down to the floor.
"How mad would you be if I let go right now?" Ronnie asked.
Sarah shrugged awkwardly from her leaned back position, head still tilted back as she looked into the upside down living room. "It wouldn't be the first time you did. But you would lose any chance of sex." Suddenly she found herself being pulled back up, Ronnie's hands going around her waist as hers clasped around his neck.
"Well, I wouldn't want to lose sex," Ronnie admitted as he and Sarah stared into each others' eyes. "Especially after I went through all the effort of making dinner."
"You made dinner?" Sarah asked eagerly, her eyes widening like an excited child.
"I did," Ronnie confirmed with a charming grin.
"What'd you make?"
"Come and see," Ronnie said with a grin as he swung around, letting Sarah stubble towards the front door before he took her hand and pulled her along after him. They headed through the living room, cutting across towards the dinning room where Sarah found the lights turned down and a few romantic candles lit around the room and on the table. It had a clear air of romance, making Sarah smile at Ronnie who returned it with a smile of his own. He'd set the table too, placing them on either side of the table's centre, but not at the heads. They'd be too far away if they sat there and it'd spoil the mood. This was much better.
In between the two empty plates was an array of food. The main thing being steak as well as several small dishes around the centre piece for them try in association with the meat. "I may have gone a little overboard," Ronnie said slowly as Sarah looked out across the table.
"Eh. I like it when you spoil me," Sarah said with a grin as she turned to Ronnie.
"Can I take your coat, M'lady," Ronnie said teasingly as he slide behind Sarah, hands going to her shoulder to remove her leather jacket.
"Now you're just being stupid," Sarah said with a giggle, but let him take her jacket all the same. He placed it on the chair next to hers, since it wasn't going to be used, and then pulled out Sarah's chair for her. He gestured and she nodded in thanks before sitting down. He then dashed around to the other side at vampire speed and sat down in his own chair at normal speed. It was the kid of thing newbie vampires might do to show off, thinking they're hot stuff. Ronnie did it because he knew that Sarah thought that and found it cheesy. So she laughed as he grinned back.
"Where do you want to start then?" Ronnie asked, arms spreading out in a wide gesture across the table. After picking out a few things, along with a few suggestions from Ronnie, Sarah took a slab of steak and dropped it onto her plate along with everything else she'd gathered. Ronnie did the same and they dug in, pocking fun at each other as they did. It was like they'd never been apart, falling into old patterns as if it was a simple dance they'd all but mastered.
After a few glasses of wine, the pair began to reminisce, still enjoying their meal as they did.
"Do you remember how we met?" Ronnie asked as he carefully swirled his red wine around the glass, watching it twist into a mini vortex as he did. As if by just looking into the centre of his glass, he'd be transported back to that very day.
Sarah chuckled at the question, "Of course I do. In that little place in New York."
"That was all the way back in 1902. I'd just turned a couple years back," Ronnie remembered fondly.
"That you had," agreed Sarah as she let her mind drift back.
Drinking alone was never easy for Sarah. She'd never gotten to experience it as a human, turned at the age of seventeen, she'd never gone into a tavern of any kind. Her father had granted her the occasional drink, but only under his strict supervision. And for a woman to enter a a tavern alone was unheard off. The only reason she'd even gotten served was thanks to her compulsion. She'd only compelled the bartender though, so she was still getting stares from all around the small room gloomy room lit only by three or four candles. She didn't care though. It was this, or draining them all dry.
The cravings were starting up again. They did so every now and then, at least once a year or when she went too long without a good drink of blood. Lexi had been the one to introduce her to alcohol, a self proclaimed expert despite the fact she shouldn't have been allowed near the stuff. But as Sarah had come to learn, as a vampire, the rules don't apply to them. She was to use every tool at her dispose to not only survive, but as Lexi stated, to have fun. There wasn't a lot of fun going around. Hadn't been since her family broke apart. Even after all these decades, it still hurt like it was yesterday. The ageless face wasn't helping either. Every time Sarah looked in a mirror she thought she'd suddenly returned to 1864 and was human again, living with her family. Then she'd remember it all and realise it was almost forty years later and she hadn't seen either of her brothers in years.
Stefan, on his blood free diet, couldn't stand to be around Sarah and had taken off one night abandoning her. She'd been lucky Lexi was there, otherwise things could have turned out a lot worse. Thinking back Sarah remembered how easy it had been, just flicking that switch and letting everything just slip away. How simple it had all been. But Lexi had warned her never to do it again, and every time Sarah considered it, she reminded herself of what she'd done. Her poor brothers…what might have happened had Lexi not got to her in time.
Another reason for her to keep her distance from them both for now. Unfortunately that meant keeping distance from Lexi who was keeping an eye on Stefan. She moved back and forth between the two, taking care of them both like the best friend she was and having her own adventures in between. Sarah knew Stefan needed her more, but all the same she was lonely and missing her best friend. She'd come to New York after a suggestion from Lexi, saying it was a good place to meet people. The other option had been New Orleans since Lexi had some friends there, but said it'd be better if they showed up together. Sarah was fine to wait and had gone to New York, agreeing to stay there until Lexi sent word that she was ready to meet up again. They did there best to keep in contact but it wasn't easy and sometimes it could be weeks if not months before Sarah would hear word from Lexi or even Stefan. He too liked to check up on her from time to time. She hadn't heard from Damon since their last encounter, and she figured that was for the best. Give the wounds time to heal.
But despite all that, she still missed them all and felt alone in the great city of New York. She ordered another drink. Some men across the room, surrounding a small wood table, tutted in disapproval. The only other woman in the place, whispered something to her husband who nodded along. Sarah didn't care enough to listen in. The bartender swiftly poured her another drink and left to serve another gentleman, clearly not happy with the fact that a woman was being served over him. Maybe Sarah could give into her cravings for one night and kill that one. Didn't seem like anyone was going to miss the loud mouth moustached idiot.
She looked over, ready to size up her pray and decide if he was worth the trouble or not, when her eye caught someone else. A man, older than her, but not by much. Good looking, finely shaven, gorgeous blue eyes and his hair hidden beneath a rounded hat. Like most of the men in the room, he wore a white collar dress shirt, black tie around his neck and an unbuttoned jacket over that.
He looked back at her.
Sarah tried to seem dismissive but her eyes kept coming back to those baby blues, as if they were at the centre of a vortex that was pulling her in. He was down at the end of the bar, while Sarah was at the other end, alone, leaning against the wooden counter. Most of the gentlemen had cleared down the other end when she arrived on her own, all sure her man would arrive at any moment and explain when she'd been ordering drinks on her own. Still no man had come and there would be none. Most had figured this out by now and were avoiding her just for breaking the social protocol. They all had been avoiding eye contact with her, but not this one. This one was staring back at her in awe.
To her own disbelief, Sarah found herself smiling at the man. She didn't want to, it was reflex out of her control, an experiment by her subconscious. Surprisingly the man smiled back, before taking his glass and working his way around the bar to join her. All eyes were on them both now, the occupants half wondering if he was her man and if so why he'd stood on his own for so long. And if he wasn't her man, then why on earth was he approaching her.
As he came to a stop next to Sarah, he looked her up and down. She wore a dark dress reaching down to the floor, belt strapped around her waist, pulling the upper material tightly against her chest with a blouse over that which was tied off at the front by a nice large, silk, bow. And atop her head she donned a large matching hat with large feathers nesting atop, the hat resting just high enough to show off her raven hair that was tucked beneath.
His smile grew when his eyes returned to her meadow green. "Now what's a lady like you doing in a place like this all on her own?" the man asked.
"Getting a drink. Is that a problem?" Sarah inquired with a raised eyebrow.
"Of course not," the man said with a quick grin. "May I buy you another?"
"No, but if you like I can buy you another," Sarah replied curtly, as she nodded to his near empty glass.
"I hardly think that's appropriate," the man chuckled.
"Is that a no?" Sarah asked, mock disappointment in her voice.
"No…but I would need to find someway of paying you back. I wouldn't want to risk losing my manhood."
Sarah hummed, thinking for a moment before her eyes landed on the loud gentleman from before, making his opinions of her very clear to the room. "See that gentleman there, the one with the big mouth and the even bigger moustache?"
"Yes," the man with the blue eyes replied.
"You can get me a drink from him," she said it so simply that most people would think she was joking, but this man turned back with a smirk at his lips. Was he actually taking her seriously?
"I'll be right back," the man said with a tilt of his hat before heading over to the moustached gentleman. "Excuse me, Sir." The moustache turned to face the blue eyed man and Sarah watched as the moustached man's face dropped, eyes becoming dazed. "If you'd be so kind as to give me your wrist." The moustached man raised his wrist and the blue eyed one thanked him before biting into his wrist. He then pulled away letting the blood dribble into his glass, filling it up before moving the man's arm aside. "Thank you, that'll be all."
With that the blue eyed man returned to Sarah and people began to notice the moustache's bleeding wrist, all seeming to think he'd caught his wrist on something. All ignoring the bite mark. Sarah's grin broadened as the blue eyed man handed her the glass of blood. "Very nice," she complimented, inhaling the scent of the blood before taking a sip. Not the best she'd ever had, but it was the gesture she was interested in.
"So you're a vampire too I see," the blue eyed man assumed.
"Indeed," Sarah agreed, taking a large gulp fo the blood before setting it down between them. "But now we have a problem you see," Sarah explained as she looked up at the blue eyed man. "I no longer want to buy you a drink."
"That's quite alright," the man said, bowing his head as if he'd just lost the battle, taking it rather gracefully too.
"But I'm more than willing to offer you something else," Sarah continued, eyes dancing with mirth and lust. The man looked down at her, the same look in his own eyes as he grinned back at her.
"Such as?" the man asked.
"That was quite the night," Ronnie reminisced with a grin.
"Yeah," Sarah agreed, head tilted as she stared up at the ceiling as if it was all playing on an invisible screen for her own personal pleasure. "Shame you needed a break. I could have gone all night."
"As I remember it, you were the one that told me to back off because you wanted some sleep," Ronnie shot back with a chuckle.
"Only because you stopped first! I was good to go but you wanted to get a drink from those maids. It's not my fault an hour later I was ready for sleep and you were suddenly in the mood again," Sarah shouted back mockingly before they both broke down into laughter. "You didn't even tell me your name until two days later," Sarah pointed out as she sipped the last of red puddle in her wine glass.
"I don't remember there being much need of names in that room. And with those maids popping by to check on us we had free room service for forty-eight hours straight," Ronnie reminded her.
"Sex and a never ending blood supply. Can't argue with that," Sarah said as she rose her glass.
"Here, here," Ronnie agreed as he raised his own glass and tapped Sarah's. He then downed his wine before throwing the glass aside smashing it against the wall. "Now," he said before suddenly speeding over, leaping across the table and tackling Sarah. The woman shrieking in delight as Ronnie knocked her out her chair and pinned her wrists to the floor, straddling her as he landed on top. "You never did say how you were going to pay me back for that drink."
"Well considering you just broke that glass, I think we're even," Sarah said sarcastically as Ronnie grinned back at her. He then came down on her, claiming her lips with his own as they began to make out. In one swift move Sarah then overpowered him, lifting him up and throwing him down on to the dinning table before mounting him. Taking his lips like he had with her. He didn't fight, just pulled her back towards him when she tried to stop for breath. They then proceeded to bounce around the room, each fighting for dominance over the other in another of their little games. It was just something they did to spice up the sex, the only down side was by the time they were done the dinning room was completely wrecked.
Oh, well…her brothers could clean that up. It wasn't like either of them had a girlfriend to occupy their time with. And cleaning could be a good distraction from the loneliness. Plus it would keep them from bothering her and Ronnie, as they caught up for the umpteenth time since she'd saved him from Katherine. What could she say, she wanted to make sure she hadn't missed anything.