"So what are we doing here again?" Stefan looked around himself in the Harold's Family Dairy which was filled with nothing but silence, except for her voice which was clear like a crystal in his ears.
"We are celebrating." She was too busy in eating her chocolate fudge ice-cream that she missed to hear his chuckles and see the amusement painted on his face.
"But I don't even like ice- creams." His mumbles were followed by her choking sound.
"Who on earth wouldn't like ICE-CREAMS?" With wide eyes, she kept her hand on the left side of her chest, as if holding her heart there.
"Oh wait, I will answer. It's the person who doesn't like anything." He didn't know how, but slowly smiling around her was becoming easier. He chuckled shaking his head.
"Hey, when did I said that I don't like anything?" His argument was baseless, but he has started liking how she widens her eyes when he says something like this, or when he denies her requests, and she, she just starts talking, and in between all those constant talks of her, he is already convinced.
The banging was not that loud, but loud enough to break his sleep. He peaked from his open eye slightly open, and groaned.
12 a.m.
It wasn't that late, but he was tired and exhausted and just wanted to sleep.
The knock came again. This time a little louder than before.
Throwing away the sheets, he stood up, and went to open the door. Whoever this was, he was not sure how was going to keep himself from shooting them.
"Hey!" Caroline was almost jumping on her heels, when his eyes adjusted to see her clearly.
"What the-"
"I passed"
"What?"
"I passed my Mathematics exam. Not just Passed, but I got an A."
"Um, congratulations." He was rubbing his eyes, still in the sleeping zone.
"Thank you very much. And NOW we have to go out." He should have been smiling for her. Instead there was a big frown on his face.
"Why are you looking at me with your serious broody look?" she asked him when he was lost in his own thought.
"My wha…. my serious broody look?" He was snapped out his senses when heard those words from her.
"Yeah, it's kinda different from your regular frown look, and neither of which stray too far from "hey it's Tuesday look."
"Ah, I get it. You think… you think I am too serious." He pointed his index finger on her.
"Well, I wasn't gonna say it like that!" she flipped her hair over shoulder in style, amusing him all of a sudden.
"It's midnight Caroline. We will go later." He was about to go back inside his apartment, when she stopped him by grabbing his hands.
"I am not taking a no for an answer, Stefan."
Few minutes later, they were there, eating the ice-cream. More like she eating and he looking at her enjoying her chocolate fudge.
"Thank you."
"For what?"
"For helping me in my studies." He gave her his usual smile, and her grin became wider.
"Well at least you pick my calls." Damon had his same old smirk on his face.
"Yeah, but after this, I have to sanitize the phone." Lexi had never liked Damon. Why would she? She never had a good vibes from him.
"I want to talk to my brother."
"And he doesn't."
"I know that Princess Warrior. I need your help, so that I can talk to him." Lexi was already getting pissed with his overly acted comments.
"If you really want to talk to him, then work hard on your talking skills, Damon."
With that the line was dead. He cursed on the phone in his hand. He was being selfish. But when he wasn't? But he needed him. His little brother. He wanted both worlds at once in his grasps. And he has to find a way of doing so. He doesn't wanted his brother to hate him even more. After all, Caroline was there too.
She was drunk, too drunk and her head was spinning.
"Are you sober yet?" Bonnie asked while giving her another cup of coffee. Caroline brought her head up to look at her.
After staring at her for a second she replied with a no, and went back to holding her head in position.
"Keep drinking, I have to get you home. I have to get me home." Bonnie asked her with an understanding look.
"Why is it always has to be Elena?" she raised her head again, but this time she had those burning questions coming out of her mouth.
"She is always the center of everyone's world. And I try so hard, but I am never the one."
"Caroline, I am not touching this topic. And this isn't a competition." She had a warning look.
Caroline knew her friend was going to say something like this. She was trying to be neutral.
"Yeah.. it is." Nobody was understanding the deep rooted insecurities she had, not even the best friends she had. Instead they were making it even worse for her.
Bonnie went to the washroom, when she saw him. Black jacket, black shirt, black jeans. Even his hair was as black as the raven.
There was a sly smile on his face, staring at her. She smiled back. Her heart was racing. The guy was really good in his looks.
He stood up from his stool and walked towards her.
"What a girl like you, doing here, all alone by yourself?" She was already standing, almost walking to look for Bonnie, when she met him.
"Well, the world is cruel."
"It is. Indeed." They didn't talked much, but she was impressed, pretty much. Maybe it was too much alcohol in her system that was blocking her senses.
Bonnie came before he could have made his move. She took Caroline's hand and led her the way out.
They were gone. Both the girls. But the devious smile was still there on his face.
He was Damon Salvatore, and he knew his plan was definitely going to work.
"Elena, what are you doing here?" Bonnie was almost shocked to see her friend so early in the morning.
"So I can't even come to see my friend?"
"No, of course you can come." Bonnie knew something was bugging Elena. But, exactly what, she couldn't pin point that.
"So how is work going?"
"Grill is not opened yet. But it will be filled pretty soon." Bonnie said waving her hand around her.
Elena gave her a half-hearted smile. By this point, Bonnie was pretty much convinced that something was wrong.
"Elena are you going to tell me what's wrong?"
Elena sighed and looked in her friend's eyes, which were filled with nothing but worry.
"Okay, no questions asked after this. I have booked two tickets so we will be leaving tomorrow." Elena announced.
Bonnie stood there, raising her one eyebrow in question.
"Going where?"
"Columbus."
"But, why?" Bonnie couldn't help herself in asking this.
"I will tell you in the way."
He was just sitting on his chair when he heard her. The shrieks. His name was in the air. For a second he thought his ears were ringing. But, when he heard it on the third round, he was on his feet, walking faster than ever.
"Caroline?" He tried to knock, but there was no answer. Convinced that, she isn't home, he started to move back.
"Stef-… Stefan? Is that you?" Her voice was low. Definitely in pain.
"Yes. Caroline, are you okay? I… uh heard you-"
"Yes I called you. What took you so long?" Even from outside he could hear her difficulty in breathing.
"Caroline, I am here now. Open-"
"The door is open. Now just come in." She was impatient and was not giving him chance to complete his own sentences. Fortunately, Stefan have more control himself, to push away any kind of anger. He was sober.
He was in her house, heading towards direction of her voice.
She was lying in the bathtub, wrapped in a towel, her leg slightly on the edge of the tub. He didn't know if being sober at the moment was good or not.
"I slipped." She said, while looking at him from the corner of her eyes, her wet hair making a curtain between them.
"How did you managed that?" He said while walking towards the tub.
He tried to pull her up on her feet, and she shrieked in pain.
"You, okay?" He asked, one hand holding her hand, and the other one around her waist, keeping her straight on the floor.
"I can see unicorns." Her voice was casual. But she was far away from being normal. His hands were strong, and were around her. Her breaths were coming in breaks, and her heart raced even more when he moved his hands to hold her more tightly and pulled her towards himself.
"Hmm….. so you are fine."
She bumped him with her free hands, and he laughed.
"I am in pain, and you are in a mood of jokes. Don't be mean okay. " Caroline complaint while they walked out of the bathroom.
"I was just trying to make you feel on ease."
And I think you did.
She wanted to say that, but she kept quiet.
"We should go to the hospital." He slowly helped her to sit on her bed.
"Well, I can't go like this." She waved her hands around herself. His eyes were concentrating on her face, straining more than it should have been for keeping them locked in her eyes only.
"Uh, yeah… sure." He started looking around, and she pointed at her closet.
"Which one?" he asked while looking seriously inside the closet.
"I am in pain, you think I care about fashion right now? Give me anything. Maybe shorts and a tank top."
He took one of the pair randomly and showed it to him.
"Seriously? This short with that tank?" it was a total mismatch and so couldn't help herself in saying so.
He looked for something else, but she still wasn't convinced.
"Caroline!" He warned her, when even after his ten combinations, she was undecided.
"Okay, okay. That once looks cute. I will wear that."
"Name: Caroline Forbes, Sex-"
"I would like to have it" she said out loud without noticing that he was still sitting beside her, filling out the patient's information form.
"What?" his eyes were in shock.
"What?" she mirrored his look when she realized that those words literally came out of her mouth? He didn't pushed it though. It's not like she mentioned his name or something. So, he let it slip and went back to filling out the rest of the inquiries.
"Why do you keep your door unlocked, while taking showers?"
"What? There is a question like that?" she took the form from his hands, her eyes searching for the said question, and after a minute she saw him staring at her with amusement all over his face.
"Shut up." She smacked him from the back of her hand, and they both were laughing. And it hurt him. In a good way. He was not regretting it. After a long time in his life, he got a friend who actually made things easier for him.
"But seriously, why was it open?"
"I usually forget to lock the door. I did that even at home too. Maybe because of mom." he raised his brows and she continued, "She is a sheriff. So I think I always felt safe."
"Well, you should lock it you know. The world isn't safe."
"Yeah, but I can take care of myself. Besides, you are across my apartment. So, if anything happens, you would come for me." She teased him.
"Of course, I will." There was a sense of sincerity in his voice when he told her that.
"Mmmm… my knight in shining armor." She stated and they both grinned. He knows that she is just teasing him. And she knows this too. Joke or no joke, deep down, she has started liking the person in front of her.