XIII. Tell me why.
-Care? Are you okay in there?
Caroline had hidden in the bathroom, Bonnie had taken the opportunity to go ask the waiters to take the food to Valerie and her date and she thought that Caroline would be out by the time she was done, but no. She was still inside.
-Are you alone?
-Yes.
Her best friend opened the door and yanked her inside, she had been crying, her mascara was running and her eyes were red. Bonnie hugged her, but the blonde pushed her away.
-Not right now, if you hug me I won't stop crying and I need to recover. Can I go sleep in you house? I don't my mom to freak out over this and I don't want to be with anyone else than you.
-Of course, Care. Here, have my keys. Go in your car while I distract everyone and then I'll uber there.
-Thank you so much!- she hugged her this time and Bonnie could feel her crumble a little so she let her go quickly.
-Let's keep this for later tonight, okay? We need for you to be composed so you don't have an accident on the road.
-You're right. Yes. Composed- said Caroline before sniffing and standing straight. Her best friend was a strong woman, so she knew she was getting over this, even though she didn't know what "this" was.
-Okay, I'll call you in ten minutes, when I'll take the uber.
-Thank you, Bonnie.
-No worries, that's what best friends are for- she was about to say bridesmaids but she knew that was just going to hurt more.
She got out of the bathroom with a reassuring smile. Unfortunately, Damon was waiting for her in the hallway.
-Hey, it's everything okay?
-Isn't that ironic? Haven't I asked you that exact same question about this very issue? And what have you responded?
-Okay, Bonnie, now it's not the time to get your claws out.
-Now it's the perfect moment, Damon Salvatore. You knew about this and you went along with it and you even covered for him!
-He has his reasons.
-I don't care. He should've been honest.
He got quiet for a bit and cursed under his breath.
-You're right. But if Blondie's mad because of him hiding this, tell her it's my fault.
-What do you mean it's your fault?
-He wanted to tell her everything, but I knew she'd flip out. I thought it'd be better if she was in a controlled environment where she couldn't throw stuff at him or make a scene.
-Why would she do that? Does he deserve that?
-No, of course not. He's not done anything wrong, other than following my advice.
-Which is as wrong as can be.
-Stop being like this, we need to fix this. They're getting married in two days.
-You should've thought of that before. Caroline doesn't want to talk to him.
-But you can convince her.
-No, I can't. Caroline wants to be alone and she deserves that.
-So you don't want to
-No. I don't want to and I can't either. You know Caroline. Now, let's go to tell the guests that the bride had an inconvenient but that the party keeps going.
-Why?
-Because that's what Caroline would want. She doesn't want for people to realize and talk shit about it tomorrow.
-Fine.
They walked to the main salon, where everyone was on the dance floor except for the groom and his two "surprises". As soon as Stefan saw them he walked towards Bonnie.
-Please tell me she doesn't want to call off the wedding.
-I don't know. I just know that you fucked up.
-Yes, I know. I know and I'm so sorry, I just need to talk to her, I need to explain.
-But you can't right now, she doesn't want to see you.
-But I have to
-Stefan, you know her. Do you think the best thing is to push her right now? I think you guys need to spend the night apart to clear the air and not be too hot headed. Maybe tomorrow you can discuss everything.
-I know you're right, but I know I hurt her and that kills me. Please tell her that.
-Ok, let me just tell the guests that she had an inconvenient so we can save faces. Don't give any detail, tell people she'd be all right tomorrow, that it's not a big deal. I'll talk to her mom so you don't have to lie to her.
-Thank you so much Bonnie.
-Just don't mess it up any harder.
Bonnie finally arrived home, after a few more conversations and reassuring people that the bride was okay. It was particularly hard with Liz, but she told her that she was going to be her doctor the whole night and that seemed to calm her down.
When she came back home, Caroline was a huge mess.
-He's a fucking liar!- was the very first thing Bonnie heard when she got through the door.
-Yeah, he is.
-And her? Why her? Of all people? Couldn't he had brought anyone else to our wedding?
-He's an ass.
-An asshole. This is my day, how dare she come back? And why did he let her?
She kept on that tirade, without really listening to Bonnie's replies, but counting on them, because when she didn't say anything her friend would turn to her and ask her if she was listening. Of course she was, there was no way she couldn't listen to her, hell, even her neighbors were listening to her.
-Do you want ice-cream?- she offered the third time her friend started crying on her couch.
-Yes, please.
-Good. Then we're putting some spoons on the fridge so you can put them in your eyes. You can't have swollen eyes tomorrow.
-You always think about everything, Bonnie. You're such an angel fell from heaven.
-You may be exaggerating, but I like it.
They had their ice-cream while Caroline's phone was blowing up and she only picked up the one call that was from her mother, any other person she ignored.
-Thank you Bonnie.
-Don't worry, that's what I'm here for. How about we go put on pj's and try to sleep?
-Okay. I'll turn off my phone, though, because I don't want that fucking liar to interrupt my sleep.
She knew Caroline was trying to act tough and like she hated him, but deep inside she was hurt. She trusted Stefan more than she did anyone in the world and this betrayal was bigger than anything anyone else could've done because it came from him.
She also knew that she was dying to pick up the phone and yell at him, so she had to stop herself from it by turning it off. she didn't say anything, though, because she wanted her best friend to do as she pleased, after all, Stefan had really fucked up.
The next day they woke up with the sound of someone knocking on Bonnie's door.
-If it's Stefan I don't want him in.
-But it's been a whole night, he must be worried.
-I don't care. I hope he's scared that I'll cancel the wedding. He deserves it.
-Okay, whoever it is that's knocking in my door isn't stopping, so let me get the door.
Bonnie went to open the door and Stefan wasn't the one there. It was Damon.
-What are you doing here?
-I know I shouldn't be here, but we did as you told us, and she still doesn't want to talk to him.
-Because she doesn't want to.
-Come on Bonnie! You know this is stupid, they're getting married tomorrow, they need to talk things out.
-I can't force her to do anything, Damon.
-But you can talk some sense into her. She needs to listen to him.
-What do you want me to do? I don't know anything, I can't convince her. I don't even know if it's a valid reason for him to not tell her
-It is. It really is, she just needs to her him out.
She thought about it for a few seconds. She knew Care was listening to their every word, so maybe he could convince her.
-She hates you right now, you know. She knows it was your idea to wait until the rehearsal dinner for her to find out.
-Well, he wasn't sure she was actually showing up, so I thought it wasn't worth it to worry her with it.
-And Stefan agreed?
-He was afraid she'd freak out about it and want to cancel it because of bad luck of the ex being in the wedding
-That's something she'd do. But still, it was a shitty position to put her on.
-Yeah. I know, but it wasn't even a sure thing.
-But why invite her? It doesn't make sense
-I know that's what it looks like! But Bonnie, you guys don't have the full story and Stefan needed to have some time with this information before he told it to everyone. Even with me, it took him a few days.
-Let him come- said a somber Caroline from Bonnie's room, without showing her face
-I love you Blondie!-screamed Damon while taking his phone out of his pocket- you'll be great for my brother. Texting him right know.
-I still hate you.
-I know and I'll make it up to you by taking Bonnie far away from here
-What? No, she needs me here.
-She's a grown woman, Bon Bon. Plus, they're having make up sex and you don't want to be here for that, she's a moaner.
-DAMON! WHAT THE FUCK?!- screamed Caroline coming out of the room in a second and throwing a pillow at him
-What? The walls are pretty thin, it's not really my fault- he said dodging the pillow.
-Ew. I can't believe you've heard it.
-It wasn't pleasant for me either. Okay. He's on his way, shall we, witchy?
-You okay with this?
-Yeah. We do need to talk alone about this.
-Okay, let go brush my teeth and put on some clothes.
-You look in your pajamas, I'll take you out like that.
-No, but you'll buy me breakfast.
-Oki doki.
After a few minutes Bonnie came out of the bathroom with clean clothes and a fresh face and they left her house to let Caroline have the space to herself. As soon as Damon started the car they could see Stefan getting to the driveway. He looked like shit, honestly, as if he hadn't slept for a singles second since last night and knowing what happened, that was probably the case.
-All right. I know I'm going to find out soon, so it would be nice if you could just shorten the time for me- said Bonnie when they were far enough from her house.
-I can't tell you everything. There's some stuff that I didn't know and neither did Stefan. I can tell you that he had no idea she got him the job, until a few weeks ago. They don't work together, she's part of the buffet but in England.
-Then how did she got him the job?
-She somehow knew he was applying for it and recommended him.
-Really? But why invite her? As payback?
-Because there's something he just found out about and there's stuff he needs to figure out. You'll know soon enough, but that's his secret, not mine.
-That just makes it even more complicated, Damon.
-Well I can't tell you more than that, but I can tell you is that we're going to Little Heaven and then I'm taking you somewhere we haven't been in in years.
-That could be literally anywhere, we haven't been together almost anywhere in years.
-Why are you such a party pooper?
-I'm just a realist.
-Party pooper. Just relax now, we have a long way to go and a great playlist I put on Spotify.
-The best of 2000's?- she asked looking at his phone plugged to the car.
-Hell yeah!
-Weirdo.
She relax against the car seat, they had at least half an hour until they could reach the restaurant and she knew it was stupid and her focus should be on her best friends and their drama but she couldn't help but to remember what Enzo said about her and Damon. It's not like it was the first time someone commented on their "obvious feelings for each other" and she was starting to think that maybe they got a point.
She was suddenly nervous, they were about to spend a whole day with Damon and he was taking her to her favorite pancake place and then also somewhere they hadn't been in years? What was in his mind? Why was he acting like this?
After their breakfast, they got on the road again and as much as she wanted to bask on his presence she was falling asleep, listening to Caroline all night didn't leave a ton of time for sleeping and now she was paying the consequences.
-If you want to sleep you can just push that button and push the seat back, I'll let you know when we get there.
-Don't you need a copilot to keep you up too?
-You're not really doing the work either way, you're falling asleep right now, with your head hanging, that distracts me more.
-Fine. I'll just take a power nap.
-Good.
She fell asleep pretty fast, and pretty deep as well, she even dreamt about the wedding, where everything went wrong and not only Valerie objected but also Enzo, with his reasons being "they shouldn't be up there it should be me and Bonnie". Weird.
She woke up with a gentle touch in her arm and when she opened her eyes, she could see the mountains and a huge, beautiful lake in front of her. He was right, they hadn't been there in years, since the last summer before he left.
-I've missed coming here- she commented with a throaty voice while stretching.
-Me too. And you slept for a very long time, I'm impressed. I even honked someone and you didn't even flinch.
-I believe that sound ended up in my dream… or nightmare, really.
-What happened?
-I don't know, I think Enzo got to the wedding in a car and honked to object? I can't really remember it that good.
-Well, that's a weird nightmare.
She smiled and opened the door to get the fresh air in her face and as soon as it did she breathed deep. God, she really missed this place.
-Thank you for bringing me here.
-You're welcome. Actually, I wanted to come here and you were available so…- he finished with a shrug, but she knew that wasn't true.
-You said you wanted to bring me here, so now you'll have to tell me why.
-Ain't nothing but a heartache- sang Damon loudly.
-Stop diverting, tell me- she said laughing
-TELL ME WHY?!- he sang now at the top of his lungs and a few people who were very far away turned to look at him
-Damon stop, there's people watching
-And? They haven't seen anyone sing before?
-I don't know, but just simmer down- she responded with a soft smile. He smiled back at him with that a very small smile, one of the real ones, making her heart do that thing were it seems like it wants to scape her chest.
-Ok, fine. I'll stop having fun, judgey. But we have to play cards.
-What? That's why you brought me here? We could've done that at your house.
-And miss this amazing view? Nah. Here.
He took a maze of cards from his jacket's pocket and invited her to sit on the sand with him. But before she could sit she heard her phone rang in her pocket.
-I'll take this and then we play- she said before turning around and picking up- Hello?
-Hello, miss Bonnie Bennet?
-Yeah, who is this?
-Oh, come on, you've been three weeks away from the Hospital and you can't recognize my voice?
-Shauna? Yes, of course, I'm so sorry. I was distracted.
-It's ok. I take it you weren't expecting to hear from me?
-Well, I thought that you guys had passed in having me permanently.
-Oh hell no, we wanted to give you some time before you get here for real.
-What? What do you mean?
-I mean that the first day of August is your first day as an official doctor of the Mystic Falls Hospital. Congratulations, girl!
-OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD I'M SO HAPPY!- she screamed before starting laughing of happiness
-We are happy to have you on our team as well. I was hoping I could get you the news myself, that's why you're hearing it from me.
-Oh my God, I love you so much!
-And I have a husband. But I love you too. I can't wait to work alongside you.
-Thank you thank you thank you!
-Okay, all right. It's all good. Now go tell your loved ones the good news and I'll go back to my shift.
-Of course. Thank you again!
-No problem, see you around.
She hanged up and Damon was standing behind her looking puzzled.
-Did you just win the lottery?- he wondered amused by her gigantic smile
-I GOT THE JOB!- she screamed happily and he opened her arms for her with a proud smile on his face, she run towards him and couldn't help but to give him a koala hug while laughing uncontrollably.
-You deserve this, Bonnie- he whispered on her ear while hugging her tight.
-I'm just so happy!
-I get it, I-
-GET A ROOM- someone screamed from a distance, making her feel embarrassed enough to unwrap herself from his body.
-Sorry, that wasn't appropriate.
-That was the most appropriate response to the news- he reassures her with a smile- I feel like playing cards is a little too anticlimactic now.
-Nah. It's the most appropriate thing to do. I feel invincible now
-Too bad you're losing this time.
-Unless you still have the same tell.
-I can guarantee I don't.
-Okay, then let's make this interesting. If you lose you have to tell me something I've always wanted to know- she said while sitting on the sand and he did the same afterwards.
-Okay, and if you lose you have to have dinner with me today- he responded while giving her cards to start the game.
She looked at him cautious about the dinner, trying to figure out his true intentions, but he seemed to be sincere and behind his nonchalant attitude she could see that he was a little bit embarrassed, so that kind of give her hope. Maybe he did have those feelings too.
And then she remembered seeing him flirting with the blonde in the rehearsal party, probably because she was talking to Enzo, who told her he was going to do that to hide his feelings again. Was he right? There was only one way to know.
-Oh, I thought you were going to have dinner with the blonde - she said looking at her cards trying to look unfazed before drawing.
-Are you jealous Bonica Magica?
-Were the hell do you get your nicknames from?
-You're wearing your Hufflepuff earrings. And I thought I needed to spice things up with the nicknames.
He surprised her with that, she had bought those earrings with him when they were teenagers because they had the Hufflepuff colors, she always said that if she were ever to go to Universal she was going to go with those. He was really paying attention.
- I thought you'd forget about these.
- They're too weird to forget
- Oh yeah? Well your date last night was too weird to forget
- What are you a middle schooler? Plus, she wasn't my date, she's Caroline's coworker. I met her last night
- Oh... Interesting.
They stayed silent for a few moments while playing and she knew they needed to talk about serious stuff, but she didn't know how to. She was still from the high of the phone call and she needed to know if Enzo was right and he felt the same way she did but she didn't know how to proceed.
-What are you worried about?-he asked interrupting her thoughts, making her feel caught.
-Nothing, beating you- she blurted out.
-You're not even looking at me, how are you supposed to know if I still have my tell.
-Because it's a feeling.
-See? You're psyquic, witchy.
-Shut up- she said smiling.
-And then you don't want me to give you nicknames like that. You're a walking meme, you deserve the nicknames.
-Why are you talking about memes? You're an old person.
-Oh come one, I'm only one year older than you
-Yeah and I'm never talking about memes.
-Because you're boring.
-Then why do you like hanging out with me so much?
-Because I get to be the funny one. The one with the nicknames, the jokes. I love me when I'm with you.
-You're an idiot- she responded rolling her eyes.
-No, I'm not. Well, a bit. But actually, I don't know why I like hanging out with you, maybe it's just force of habit. Since I'm back in Mystic Falls.
-Yeah, but even before. You were the one that started talking to me.
-Yeah- that put a smile on his face- Stefan didn't want to hang out with me as much because he was always with Lexi. I wanted a friend who was a girl too, see why Stefan liked it so much and then one day in school I saw you on your locker. And I chose you.
-What do you mean you chose me?
-We were already kind of friends because I was always hanging out with Stefan's classmates, I thought it made me cool to hang out with the small ones. I always thought you were cool, but that day I... I don't know. There was something about you, I still don't know what it is, but I just know that at the moment all I could think about was the first nickname I gave you and you never found out.
-What? You had a nickname for me and you never told me what it was?
-Yeah...- he seemed to hesitate but he said it anyway- Little bird.
-What? Why? That's very unexpected
-Because you looked like one. You were not really paying attention to anyone, but you moved anytime someone came close to you so you were aware of them. You reminded me of the little birds that sometimes came to the birdbath in our backyard.
She looked at him like she didn't believe him. This was a detail he had never ever told her about their friendship, she just knew they were friendly and suddenly he took her under his wing and they started being best friends. The reasoning behind it was nuts though. And maybe a little romantic?
-Well then why you never told me you had that nickname for me?
-Because I was a stupid adolescent who believed anything too imaginative was just embarrassing. So I made other nicknames for you like Bon Bon, witchey and judgey. They seemed more appropriate than Little bird.
-Yeah... So you just let that one go
-Oh, no. In my mind you've always been a little bird. It actually made more sense later. When your mom left you looked like a wounded bird. When you recovered from it, you started being more elusive. You wouldn't show the world what you were feeling and if someone asked you, you'd just spread your wings and fly away. From feelings, serious talks, embarrassing talks. You were the queen of flying away. So, you've always been a little bird to me, mostly because you never really got tall.
-I... I don't always run away.
-You are getting better at confronting your problems, for sure. But I can still see the need to just fly away.
-Yeah?
-Like right now, you want to fight me and change the subject. You're starting to get mad because I think I know you after all these years, but the truth is, Bonnie: we know each other like the back of our hands. Years have gone by and I can still predict what you're going to do and you can still hand me my ass because you know every single one of my weak spots.
She stayed quiet for a bit. Because he was right. As much as she wanted to fight it, they just knew each other so well that they both could see how the other had grown and how they had changed. The only thing they couldn't see was the feelings they had for each other all those years ago and maybe even now. Maybe, it wasn't so crazy to think that maybe she didn't dream about him saying he still had feelings for her.
So she made a desicion.
-I can't believe I'm saying this but you're right. I can still see through you. And your tell.
She had won. Like all those other times.
-Oh come on!- he grunted while she laughed- fine, ask away.
-No, I'll ask you over that dinner tonight.
Hi! Hope you guys liked the chapter, I'll keep the mystery for another week, but I'm giving you guys some more backstory from these two beautiful idiots. In case any of you is wondering were I got the "Little Bird" nickname it's from the books, he usually calls her Red Bird, but since our Bonnie isn't a redhead I thought the other one was better.
I loved your comments the last chapter, they really make me feel so much better about writing this story and it's actually making me think about maybe doing a second part or putting more story than what I first intended, one because I intended for this fic to be only 13 chapters, but things escalated a bit and now it'll probably have four or five more chapters, so if you're interested in more, let me know.
Anyways, thank you for reading and tell me if you expected this to happen this chapter or were you thinking something completely opposite would go down?
Thank you and hopefully you'll like this one! Happy reading!