AN: Bonnie and Enzo are the smartest people on the show and it's hard to believe that after 3 chapters they haven't figured out what's up. I'll just say, they're super smitten and they're not exactly thinking with their brains right now.
I'm fully committed to be canon compliant as possible so if Bonnie runs off mid kiss with Enzo saying that she's died three times and isn't ready to go to heaven… just go with it. Bonnie needed relatives. I wanted Rayna and Bonnie to have some sort of connection since she is the reason Bonnie is alive in S8.
Kpmindc that is exactly what happened. It went from light to dark. I was so hesitant to post chapter 3. It is so hard making a story canon compliant when you have supernatural elements! Also with Bonnie being mistreated for so many seasons, I'm stuck between wanting to give her what she deserves and but also sticking to canon.
Fansiest: Thanks for saying that about the texts! I was typing them out without typos and I thought please, Caroline is with Tyler like she's going to check her spelling.
Sardonictart: I tried to get some of their famous lines into the fanfic. Since most of them were antagonistic those will have to wait till after the reveal and right now it's all Mr Lockwood! Ms Forbes!
The Sushi Monster: Making out? You want it? You got it!
Crash: Here you go!
Saturday afternoon
Bonnie never had a reason to switch her network phone off, not even for a minute. While she didn't need it as much as say Caroline, she liked having it around in case her grams called or messaged her. Rudy had relaxed their contact restrictions but he was still not too keen to have them meet until Bonnie got married. He didn't want Grams filling Bonnie's head with new age feminist mumbo jumbo.
When Bonnie's phone rang with the ringtone witchy woman, she gritted her teeth with embarrassment. "Forgot my dad rigged it that my phone can't be switched off."
Enzo had been wracking his brain cycling through every word he knew in the English language to find a way to explain that he wasn't Tyler in a humorous manner. She caught him giving her a constipated look.
"You should get your phone too," Bonnie said getting up, "your fruits will be turned to mush with all the notifications you're getting. Maybe your sorority fuckbuddies are getting lonely," she remarked harshly. As much as she bitched about her father she did not tolerate anyone saying anything bad about him in her presence. She knew how angry people were about DAMON and how the anti-DAMON groups would love to hurt him. They wanted chaos and weren't acquainted with reality.
"I do not have any fuckbuddies as you so charmingly put it," he shook his head sagely, wondering why she was so rude to him all of a sudden, he sniffed his armpits. It was a complete mystery how the short woman's moods functioned. Maybe this was how the heroines in her trashy books behaved. Perhaps the religious blonde Bonnie was more reasonable and that was why they were friends. They balanced each other out.
"Sure," Bonnie told him scoffing at the idea of someone as hot as him not having a bunch of sorority girls clamouring for his attention.
"See? It's Sarah," he told her proudly, happy to have evidence that he did not have fuckbuddies calling him on the weekends.
"I... should get this," Bonnie sighed answering the phone on its 7th ring.
"Bonnie!?"
"Good of her to announce who she is," Enzo chuckled as Bonnie gave Enzo a fake smile and exited the ceiling high glass sliding door to take her call in private thanks to Caroline's phone manners.
"Yes Care I'm here," Bonnie slowly angled her body to look into the cabin, though I'd rather be somewhere else she thought as she saw Enzo wave at her while talking on the phone.
"Okay so you know my mom's like a total bitch…" Bonnie could picture Caroline rolling her eyes.
This was the main thing that irked Bonnie about Caroline, she was the only one who still had their mother their life. Sure Abby loved her and she still wanted a relationship with her, but Bonnie simply didn't know how to have a relationship with her mother.
The good thing about talking with Caroline was that you didn't have to do a thing Caroline would carry the whole conversation. "So like she called pretending to be all mother Teresa and..."
"Mother Teresa? Care she's not famous for being a mother she's' famous for..." Bonnie cut Caroline off wondering how Caroline didn't make the connection between her mother worrying for her wellbeing as proof that her mother loved her.
"Whatever, Bon focus. Anyway since Mom hates me enough I couldn't tell her I was with your man, and so I told her that I was with some random frat douche I just met and I'm sure she's called your father ..."
"What the why?" Bonnie asked aghast.
"I don't know… to do what evil sheriffs pretending to be moms do. Besides they are always gossiping. Anyway I told her that if you and Elena could hook up with random strangers so could I. And that she has no right to judge me no wonder Daddy left her for…"
"Caroline," Bonnie said sharply "What was the last thing you said to your mom?"
"She might have asked if you were with your man I think I said yes but that was maybe more because Enzo was licking my…"
"So she thinks I'm with Enzo correct?" Bonnie asked running her hand though her hair raking her scalp.
"Yeahhhh? Bonnie… I...did I do something wrong?"
"Okay talk to you later," Bonnie hung up. She had used up so much willpower to deny her immediate urge to comfort Caroline and tell her that everything would be okay. No she had to focus on the crisis at hand not on how to make Caroline feel better.
Bonnie chewed on her thumb as she awaited the dreaded phone call from her father.
She was still surprised when it came, she gave herself a mini-pep talk, "you're a strong independent grown up woman" she told herself as she steeled her nerves.
"Hi Daddy!" she said brightly then cringing immediately he had a brain like a calculator he'd know something was up.
"How's my baby girl doing?" Rudy asked. He knew that despite their little fights, Bonnie was unlike other children of Mystic Falls even though she was headstrong and rebelled once in a while she was ultimately level headed. Even in the midst of her rebellions she would always do the right thing, she was after all Sheila Bennett's granddaughter.
Bonnie knew she couldn't tell the truth that she was having a good time with the friend of the guy she was supposed to marry. So she would talk about Caroline, everyone loved Caroline. Hearing about Caroline's barren love life made everyone feel better.
"How's things going with…?" Rudy asked.
Bonnie heard a shuffle of paper
"Lorenzo?"
Lorenzo? he's great he's fucking Caroline Bonnie thought. Then she wondered would it be so bad, to have married Enzo, she could have been able to see Grams more often. What if DAMON did work could she have been happy with Enzo? Did she miss her chance? Was she really going to go on the reject list and live in a secluded cabin like Tyler and invite random drunk men over to stay the weekend?
"Bonnie?"
"Yeah Dad?" Bonnie blinked watching Enzo as he disappeared from view, she turned away, she was not a spy. Sure Enzo had some creepy relationship with Tyler having his photos all over his cabin, but Bonnie was not like that she would mind her own business.
"You're with Lorenzo right? Liz called me said she was worried about Caroline getting into trouble."
"I'm with Enzo? Yes. Yes I am," she said slowly, saying the name and looking at Tyler who was back in view. Why couldn't Tyler be Enzo? Bonnie zoned out as Rudy told Bonnie how worried Liz was about Caroline how all the town elders were concerned with the anomaly of Caroline being unmatched.
"Can I speak to him? Seeing as my entire world his in his hands," Rudy chuckled.
Bonnie was certain the NETWORK was more of Rudy's baby than she ever was. "Uh he's busy, I actually don't think it's going to work out Dad. We're so wrong for each other. Nothing in common. Zero interest." She kept the fact that she'd bribed Caroline to pretend to be her. Then again she didn't tell Caroline to seduce him that was all Caroline. That was the chief reason that Bonnie knew that she and Enzo were not going to work out well that and the fedora.
"Nonsense, I oversaw the computations myself. Dorian even remarked he'd never seen a match this perfect. I'll order a Network-Trace on him. Maybe he has a..."
Bonnie pinched the bridge of her nose and squeezed her eyes shut; trust her father to defend his precious DAMON. Enzo was just hit by hurricane Caroline he didn't deserve to have the Armoury nerds go over ever move he'd made in his entire life.
"No dad, it's just a feeling I have. You know how accurate my feelings are. As soon as I saw him I just knew. There was just no... no chemistry." Bonnie shuddered remembering how relieved she had been when it was Caroline and not her talking to Enzo at the cafe.
"Yet you're still with him?" Rudy pointed out, "It doesn't add up."
Yes something doesn't add up because I am more compatible with Tyler Lockwood and your dumb program doesn't work Bonnie wanted to snap but something stopped her. She didn't want to admit something so improbable. They were just friends he was not her type. Her type was the kind of guy who would not fight for her but chase the ghost of a chance to be happy with someone because a computer program told him to.
"Bonnie, don't you think you would get the most compatible match? I don't want to put any pressure on you, but like it or not you are my daughter. Your compatibility match is now being considered as worth being turned into a documentary, a case for why DAMON works." Rudy was using his I am the Mayor tone.
"Just what I always wanted," Bonnie bit her lip, "to be famous for getting an arranged marriage." It was bad enough Bonnie was famous for saving people's lives in Mystic Falls, they even had a terrible billboard with her sandwiched between Matt and Elena. They looked like a stock photo for a high school text book. The Billboard said, Bonnie Hopkins – recipient of two Medals of Bravery presented by Rudolph Hopkins. Rudy's smiling face took up half the billboard.
"Other people in my position have exerted their power to exclude people from certain religions and ethnicities but for you I excluded none of the qualities no matter how much I wanted to protect you from what I had with your mother," Rudy Hopkins was always good with words.
Bonnie hated when her father asked her for anything. She could sense it coming. Despite being almost as bad as Abby at parenting she preferred her father to Abby since he didn't use DAMON to remarry. "Thanks Dad, I guess I can give this thing with Enzo..."
"Enzo? I'm glad you're getting to know each other," Bonnie could hear her father smiling.
"Yeah so I'll see you on tomorrow or Monday latest," Bonnie wanted the conversation to end so that she could call Liz Forbes and convince her that Caroline was okay and that she Bonnie would be the responsible level headed one.
"Bonnie your health app showed a higher alcohol reading than usual," Rudy kept his disappointment out of his voice but Bonnie was an expert at reading parents.
"Dad I know my limit, besides I was in safe hands I was with T… Enzo." Bonnie thought back to how angrily Mary Louise had drank.
"I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure that you're happy Bonnie, you know that don't you?"
"Ha!" Bonnie thought not even the all powerful Rudy Hopkins could separate Enzo St. John from Caroline Forbes.
"Can I speak to him?"
"Talk to Enzo? Why?" Bonnie asked clutching her phone tightly, panic settling in.
"I want to talk to him and see if he is worthy of my daughter considering you won't let me Trace him."
"I uh one second," she stammered then pulled up Tyler Lockwood's profile and sent a message saying, "I need a favour." She face palmed, Tyler would get a message from Bonnie B. Great.
"I can wait," Rudy said patiently, Bonnie did not doubt him, after Rudy forbade her to keep in contact with her Grams Bonnie had stopped speaking to her father. He did not seem phased, he barely blinked when she threatened a hunger strike. Biology and Rudy Hopkin's famous chicken pot pie won out in the end.
"Fantastic," Bonnie said cheerfully and put her father on hold and patiently counted to 10, then marched back to the cabin when no reply came back. Wondering how her simple plan to reject Enzo and go home had evolved into this confusing mess.
Nora had called Enzo because Mary Louise who still hung over had left her alone and bored. Nora was discussing her research project with Enzo. She was still collecting data but her hypothesis was that the DAMON project was shit. It was just a basic scheme for heterosexual fertile couples to ensure the human race did not die out. That the compatibility algorithm was just icing on a cupcake of dog feces. She also claimed that non fertile heterosexual couples and non-heterosexual couples were denied DAMON matches. She said that the need to keep producing children was overriding free will as well as the freedom to love. Nora was now penning a chapter about the geographical limitations of the DAMON project.
Bonnie found Enzo on the phone as soon as he spotted her determined gait he mumbled, "Call you back Nor."
"I didn't get to the best part you prat!" Nora yelled before the line went dead.
"Hey what's wrong?" Enzo asked, his cheeky houseguest looked troubled he didn't like that look on her.
"Did you not get my message? I mean Bonnie's message?" Bonnie reminded herself midsentence that she was not Bonnie Bennett.
"No I was talking to Nora or rather I was listening..."
"Tyler, I need you to pretend to be Enzo don't ask any questions just trust me," Bonnie captured his gaze and willed him to agree.
"Okay?" Enzo said accepting the phone from Bonnie as she tried to come up with an explanation for what she'd just asked him to do her mind was a blank.
"Hullo, Lorenzo St John."
Bonnie was amazed at how smoothly he'd just rattled Enzo's name off, like he'd been introducing himself like that for years.
"Pleasure to put a face to the name," Rudy said running a Trace on Lorenzo St. John, he was a man of his word usually but Bonnie's happiness was his main priority. College dropout, majored in in Literature. Rudy stifled a chuckle, as he read the units Enzo had gotten high distinctions in, Byronic Poetry and Romantic Symbolism in Greek Tragedies. Enzo had been a roadie and was currently a back-up guitar player.
Bonnie crossed her arms across her chest, this was a disaster. She tried to think back to her textbook on Abnormal Psychology, and whether Tyler fit the description of a serial killer. She wondered how he would react when the truth would inevitably come out because neither she nor Caroline could get out of this identity swap nonsense unscathed.
"Likewise," Enzo responded mechanically watching Bonnie wondering what he was supposed to do, his whole life consisted of him poked, prodded and studied, being told what was expected of him. This was free-fall. She was the cause of all of this. Enzo glanced at his phone as a message from Sarah popped up.
SarahN: Why is Mary Mother of Compassion Louise...
Bonnie grabbed Enzo's phone and typed out Bonnie and I swapped phones. He's Bonnie's dad. Tell him you don't want to marry Bonnie!
"I'm a busy man so I will cut to the chase. Do you intend to marry my daughter?"
Enzo read the words on his phone and tried to decipher their meaning as he regarded the restless girl. It was strange, he felt a pull to her she was magnetic. She was beautiful, funny, brilliant and best of all loyal. But she wasn't his type, despite the fact that they got on so well. He knew without a doubt that he had a thing for gentle well mannered soft women, like Maggie.
Caroline Forbes on the other hand was fierce, funny, judgy and cheeky she was not his type. Not at all. Even Bonnie with her candle buying and bible reading was more his type. Even though Bonnie didn't look very religious seeing as how quickly she'd run off with Tyler but maybe he was being too judgy.
"No sir I do not, intend to marry your daughter Bonnie." Enzo liked peace he did not see a future with someone who would fight with him like the green eyed girl standing in front of him wringing her hands had made a habit of.
Bonnie knew relief like no other when she heard him support what she'd just told her father on the phone. As the relief faded an uneasy feeling blanketed her. She wasn't sure but it felt like when Jeremy broke up with her but worse.
"Very well, I cannot force you to marry her. But it is a pity with your compatibility rates off the charts."
"Sir, I mean you no offence, but I believe there must be some mistake in your calculations," Enzo wondered just who this Bonnie girl was, was Tyler in danger canoodling with a well connected girl who obviously had access to the NETWORK? If Tyler was really going to be involved in the anti-DAMON movement he would have to stay away from Bonnie. Judging from Tyler's happy mood, he was really into this Bonnie. Something was not quite right, why would Bonnie have been matched with him if she and Tyler were so naturally drawn together?
"Why do you say that?" Rudy was intrigued, he was never wrong.
"Could I have some privacy love?" Enzo asked walking outside.
Bonnie considered his request and decided no and followed him outside, scoffing at how he pronounced privacy as preevahsee.
"I know for a fact that I am more attracted to Caroline Forbes than your daughter," Enzo scowled at his choice of words but he couldn't find a better explanation. Friends could be attracted to other friends. Attraction didn't have to be romantic.
Bonnie stopped in her tracks, was he serious?
She slowly turned away and contemplated the uncomfortable thought that had just entered her mind. Tyler was exactly her type. He was dark haired and he was artistic. That was her type. No, no, no she shook her head. The first man she'd encountered who she wasn't related to and she'd have to go on and be insanely attracted to him.
"I see. Very well, my daughter seems to have taken a liking to you. If you do hurt her I will do everything in my power to make each day of your life worse than the last."
"Yes sir, I would expect nothing less," after all Bonnie was from a religious family, it would make sense that her father would be strict. Perhaps that was why the blonde, happy for a taste of freedom ran off with Tyler at the first chance she got.
"No," Bonnie whispered to herself taking a calming breath. There was no way that she was attracted to the guy who brought her McDonalds and dedicated songs to her in a club. She was still deeply hung up on Jeremy. She had also quite recently discovered that she was a liar. She decided to convince herself that she did not have feelings for Tyler. If she managed to convince herself that she had feelings for the very convenient Jeremy and then made herself fall in love with him. Why could she not do the reverse?
Enzo handed the phone back to Bonnie, "Love you dad," she said and hung up.
"That was interesting, does he not recognise your voice?" Enzo asked suspiciously. He knew she was mysterious but this was ridiculously odd.
"Voice changing app," she lied smoothly, lying felt wrong but she felt powerful. Her mind wandered off conflating power with lying and corruption.
"So let me get this straight, you pretended to be Bonnie to talk to her father to tell him that things with Enzo aren't working out?"
"Yes," Bonnie decided that her best bet would be to say as little as possible.
"But things between Enzo and Bonnie are working out?" Tyler had told him that he was going to withdraw his name from DAMON because he was going to ask Bonnie to take her name out as well. That it didn't matter if they were allowed to marry or not as long as they were together.
"Yes but uh can we talk about this later?" Bonnie asked. She considered telling him the truth. Ever since she was a child, she had been was expected to put everyone else's needs before her own. How she was expected to be a robot endlessly giving hope and strength to everyone. Would it be so bad to lie for another day? Maybe if he liked her more perhaps he would forgive her more easily.
"Yeah I guess," Enzo trailed off deep in thought, remembering how he couldn't refuse her anything. He felt proud that he felt so strongly for her, he knew it wasn't something like lust or attraction. It was pure friendship. Enzo had come to this conclusion since he was actually compatible with that blonde girl who was obviously more interested in Tyler. Enzo was happy to be able to have made a friend who was a woman that he was not related to. He did prefer their company of women to the company of men. He could come clean about his real identity right now. He spotted the cleaver she had brought to bed last night he slipped it under a dishcloth. Maybe not right now.
"Let's go for a walk," she suggested. If he showed her around, she would have time to come up with a story. Bonnie's entire life consisted of people deciding things for her, what school, what career even Jeremy decided that they should be a couple. He also decided when their relationship should end. Bonnie never knew what it felt like to choose. The first time she actually chose anything was her study area at University.
They had barely set foot out of the Cabin when Enzo spotted Maggie walking over. Bonnie tilted her head watching a woman open a gate and step through.
The word bollocks died on Enzo's lips as he saw Maggie's face light up with recognition and as soon as he heard her start to call out Lorenzo he indicated to Bonnie to follow him past a shrub. When she stood rooted in spot mesmerised by the approaching woman dressed in what was obviously Burberry, she felt her hand grabbed and felt herself being whisked into a blurry of green.
"Who was that?" Bonnie asked hearing the woman called out Lorenzo, yanking her hand back from Enzo, hating that she liked the physical contact.
"Maggie," Enzo said grabbing her hand and pulling her down next to him as he settled against a springy shrub.
"Maggie?" Bonnie hissed stumbling into him and accepting his help in regaining her balance as she plopped down next to him on the soft grass.
"I hope you aren't afraid of creepy crawlies, though if you are you can always jump into my arms," he joked flashing her a smirk.
Bonnie stared at Enzo, speechless, wondering if he really was trying to flirt with her just seconds after seeing the ex-love of his life.
"You must have many questions and I will answer every one of them... after she goes away," Enzo said slowly and softly as he heard stomping footsteps.
"Lorenzo! We have to talk!"
Enzo had been the butt of every oedipal joke from Damon because only Lily and Maggie had called him Lorenzo. Damon teased him saying Maggie had all the qualities that Lily possessed. Joke was on Damon now, though. Enzo flashed Bonnie a wicked grin.
Bonnie cringed because the woman was shouting.
"Come home or give us a call!"
Enzo winced when Maggie said "us." He didn't know what was worse, Maggie saying us or his new friend cringing when he grinned at her.
"I'm leaving you can stop hiding. I expected more from you."
Enzo jumped to his feet and offered Bonnie his hand, she rejected it and got up by herself.
"Two," Bonnie held up two fingers. "One, why were we hiding from here and two, why was she calling you Lorenzo?" she asked stabbing him in the chest with her finger when she said you.
"I didn't want her to dob us in for trespassing," he lied, shaken by seeing Maggie, not because he still harboured feelings for her but just the idea of Bonnie seeing Maggie made him anxious.
"Fine," Bonnie said crossing her arms, looking around she couldn't see the cabin but she could see Maggie walking up the drive to a house and was greeted by a man she couldn't see clearly but he was a dark haired man.
"Spit it out love," Enzo sighed, he knew he wasn't going to like what she would say.
"How do you expect to move on from her if you hang out in Enzo's house to be near to her?"
"I am over her love."
"Oh?" Bonnie scoffed. "Sure you make an effort to come out in the middle of nowhere to hang out at your sister's place to be around the two people you hate."
"I don't hate them. I'm ready to be her friend. I am waiting for Damon."
Bonnie sighed you have got to stop letting them control you. "You cannot live like a dog waiting for some good table scraps."
"Fancy hearing that from you love, your father is controlling your life but you do nothing but say complain," Enzo shrugged. He had nothing to hide, his love for Maggie had transitioned from romantic love to familial love.
"What? Did? You? Say?" Bonnie's nostrils flared as she glared at Enzo daring him to repeat what he dared say to her.
"I said your father is controlling you and you let him. Maybe you don't want to see your grandmother. Maybe you like your father controlling your life so you can blame him for your lack of thrill fun free existence."
"I'm sorry I'm not the one shacked up in Jeremy and Anna Gilbert's backyard spying on them!"
"I am not spying and this is not by choice," Enzo frowned at the angry brunette.
"A man not taking any responsibility? I'm shocked?" Bonnie said crossing her arms.
"After mother sacrificed and risked everything for us. The least I could do is honour her wishes and try to patch things up with Damon."
"You're... squatting here trying to make up with Damon for your mother? Not to get Maggie back?" Bonnie asked slowly.
"Caroline you are vexatious. Maggie was a friend then she was a lover and now she is my friend again. She did not break my heart that was my brother's doing," Enzo bent down and picked up a dried out twig, "he broke my heart the way he cast me aside. Maggie was the one who told me. He chose to hide to run." Enzo snapped the twig.
Bonnie didn't point out that they both had literally hid from Maggie a few minutes ago.
"I understand. Honestly I do, my mother chose a new relationship over her own child that really changes how I see the world. Maybe that's why people think I am judgy because things don't end well for people like me."
"You're still not telling me anything that would explain your loyalty to your father."
"I've never told anyone but, when I was nine years old in hospital. All I wanted was my mother. My grandmother was sleeping in an armchair," Bonnie opened Enzo's hands and extracted the snapped twig parts out of his hand. "So late at night my door opened. I thought it was my mom. It was actually my dad he tip toed in with the cutest little bear," Bonnie smiled, remembering the first time she saw Ms Cuddles. She had never felt her emotions change that quickly, despair to joy. "Whenever my father does anything questionable I remind myself that he is the only parent who fought for me." She watched the pieces of the broken twig fall to the ground from her hand.
"You do understand..." Enzo murmured gazing in wonder at the girl he was fighting with just a moment ago.
"I just can't get my head around you not hating Damon and Maggie. I get that you're disappointed but I just can't forgive them," Bonnie now had her hands on her hips.
"My family taught me how to love and she taught me how to receive love. That I didn't have to earn it that love could just be given whether you thought that you deserved it or not. If I hated them I would have nothing in my life worth loving."
Bonnie just stared speechless. Once again her mind refused to accept that this was Tyler Lockwood. This was something someone who read classical literature would say. Not someone who was a frat boy and partied all weekend.
"Where are we?" she asked clearing her throat and tearing her eyes away from his as she felt a drop of rain land on her nose. She wanted nothing more than to ignore the confusion in her mind.
"Not too far from the cabin," Enzo volunteered, he'd never lied this much in his entire life than he had this weekend. They had somehow come closer to Maggie and Damon's property.
Bonnie felt a connection to the elements be it a bonfire or an ancient burial site or when she would be the only one to have her skirt blown upwards by strange gusts of wind much to the delight of Jeremy Gilbert. She was also famous for discovering hot springs on her family reunions which weren't marked on tourist maps. She could tell a big storm was imminent, in her bones.
Bonnie had a strange attraction to bodies of water, when it came to any liquid she felt a connection. She could usually tell the ingredients of everything she consumed, but despite all her grandmother's efforts Bonnie's cooking could not be called anything but mediocre. Rudy took this as a good sign, Abby was an excellent cook, he felt that Bonnie was more his daughter than hers because she did not have the natural flair for cooking.
"I suppose you want to go for a dip," He grumbled. "Seeing as we're already wet," he pulled at his t-shirt that was sticking to his skin with a grimace
Bonnie ignored him and walked towards the water, Bonnie already had two near death experiences when it came to water. The superstitious part of her was telling her third time's a charm. Sometimes Bonnie swore she could hear voices in her head but it wasn't in a language, they were more like feelings. Bonnie didn't tell anyone about the feelings when it was discovered that Rayna was hearing voices, Rudy had institutionalised her in a heartbeat. Bonnie had visited Rayna every month. Bonnie didn't use the words insane and crazy lightly but since she'd done two years of psychology she felt that if anyone was crazy it was Virginia. She'd accused Bonnie of taking her meds and slashed her with her shard of mirror. Rayna had shielded Bonnie and earned a slash down her back as some woman in a suit dragged Virginia away.
That was months ago. Bonnie and Abby had discovered that Rayna was actually Bonnie's half sister when she was declared a miraculous match for Bonnie's bone marrow transplant operation. Abby was furious that Rudy had never told her that Rayna existed. Bonnie was so happy to have a sibling. Rayna was athletic, rude and rough everything Bonnie wasn't. The two weren't close, Rayna resented Caroline and Elena, Bonnie had accepted that it was best to consider Rayna a cousin. Rayna loathed Jeremy Gilbert and she was always challenging him to see who was better at art, archery anything Rayna could think of.
"Caroline?" Enzo followed Bonnie, she looked entranced, surely it wasn't a good idea for her to be so unaware of one's surroundings especially when around a place that she wasn't familiar with. He surveyed the powerful waterfall that thundered in front of them and the crystal clear lake which lay ahead of them.
Bonnie suddenly turned to Enzo, she told herself that it didn't matter whether Maggie lived next door or whether she believed that he was not pining for her. She told herself that Tyler Lockwood was not her type. He was dark haired, he was tall, he had a nice body from how the wet fabric clung to him and he was artistic. If she was going to lie to him and her father all weekend why not lie to herself?
"I didn't mean to offend you love." Enzo lifted his hands in the air "I wasn't trying to get you to take your kit off…"
"Too bad it worked," Bonnie smirked wickedly said pulling her t-shirt over her head. The water was calling to her. Not that she would ever tell anyone that she could hear nature speak to her.
He followed the journey of the t-shirt that she threw at it at him, he caught the wet clothing before it landed on him.
"What" she laughed at Enzo who was staring at her wide eyed, she had found a bikini in its original packaging in a clothes hamper labelled "for charity". Bonnie figured she'd leave some money for Sarah and take the swimwear with her. It was crocheted and horrendously ugly. Sarah wouldn't even miss it.
"What happened there, love?" Enzo asked voice laced with concern asked looking at her shoulder.
"Oh some bitch stabbed me at hospital," Bonnie shrugged.
"And that?" he asked concern distorting his facial features, he looked at the nasty scar at her side and then looked Bonnie's face wondering how someone so young had so many serious injuries.
"Kai," Bonnie shook her head.
"What is a Kai? Some surgical procedure?"
"No. He's a distant cousin who got less distant since my family tree dwindled after the war."
Enzo's mind swam, no wonder she was so judgy and cagey, after what she'd been though no wonder she wasn't soft and trusting like Maggie.
"Why aren't you taking off your clothes?" she asked hands on her hips, she looked upwards and got rewarded with a raindrop landing right in her eye.
"I can't swim. Only my hands or my feet will ever enter that mass of water," Enzo declared, shuddering from the chill in the air.
"Oh come on Tyler, I'll teach you to swim," she coaxed him pushing her hair back and walking towards him.
"No... what why?" He asked wary.
"There's something I've always wanted to do with someone," she took a deep breath standing in front of him chest to chest, as raindrops softly landed in her hair.
Enzo involuntarily took a step back, why was she walking towards him? She was supposed to go into the water and obscure her beautiful body from his eyes. This was dangerous. He did not like it one bit. He decided to take another step back for good measure. Bonnie had other ideas as she grabbed his hand and arrested his stride.
"When I came to Whitmore I thought I'd do it with Enzo but..." Bonnie let out a soft sigh and had a faraway look in her eye.
Enzo gritted his jaw was it possible to want to kill yourself in a murderous jealousy?
"If I teach you to swim would you..." she smiled up at him as he watched a rain drop travel from her brow to her lips.
"Yes definitely," Enzo croaked out, if he had proper control of his mental faculties he'd have face palmed.
"Teach me to play guitar? Now come on," Bonnie flashed him a toothy smile and pulled him to the water gently.
"Brilliant. I play guitar," Enzo said nodding vigorously. Perhaps it wasn't such a terrible idea, after all wasn't it was a waste having a waterfall on his property and not being able to swim. Besides how bad could it be? He yanked off his t-shirt and threw it next to hers on the ground.
While Enzo had history with fire, it was water he hated. He was certain the dripping of faucets in the orphanage were intentionally tampered with to drive him mad.
"Help out a girl?" Bonnie called trying to undo a knot on the ugliest bikini top he'd ever seen. It looked like something some old colour blind lady must have crocheted while on hallucinogenic drugs.
"Thanks," she said shivering as his fingers made contact with her bare skin as decided to ignore his body heat and she threw the bikini aside and started pulling off her shorts.
Enzo turned around promptly "I know no peeking," he said and tried to strip as quickly as he could to get into the water before she see him in the nude. He wasn't ashamed of his body, he didn't quite understand the American aversion to nudity. He was still quite European in some respects. He however respected that she was definitely an all American girl and she would not be pleased to see his dangly bits and all.
"I saved my cousin from our high-school pool, so you're in good hands," Bonnie called over her shoulder as she stepped into the water. It was cold the water felt like the softest fabric on her skin, she felt a welcoming embrace as if the water was a kind and loving relative. When Bonnie had heard Caroline screaming Matt's name she had been terrified but she didn't even think twice about plunging into the pool dragging Matt to the surface and getting him onto solid ground to perform CPR on Matt as her friends all watched.
Stripping off wet clothes proved harder than Enzo had anticipated when he finally he turned around he saw her in the water watching him intently. Enzo mustered up as much dignity as he could and walked towards the water his hands cupped in front of his groin. While rain droplets pelted him as he advanced to the water's edge.
"Pigs bollocks tits bloody fuck!" Enzo exclaimed wrapping his arms around himself as soon as he stepped into the water. He fell backwards as Bonnie laughed behind her hands and then managed to say an unconvincing sorry.
After almost losing Matt and Elena to drowning Bonnie had stayed away from large bodies of water. She had missed being enveloped so completely by water. Also the quivering virginal shivering damsel in front of her made everything better.
The rain had slowed down Enzo sat his bare bottom on a bumpy rock ignoring the woman laughing at him, he didn't know if she was crying from laughter or it was rain on her face. He crossed his arms around himself and wondered how to escape the pool without mooning or flashing her.
He flexed his hand, he'd impress her later with his guitar playing skills and maybe she'd forget about this humiliating display of utter lack of masculinity. He watched from the edge of his vision as she waded near. He gave up trying to ignore her it was impossible. Warning bells went off in his brain. She was danger. She was water. Land was good. Distance was good.
"You can trust me, come on," she held out both hands to him.
"Okay but nothing fancy," he wondered who was speaking, there was no way he had clasped her hands and was agreeing to get off the rock he was perched uncomfortably on, there was no way that he Lorenzo St John was willingly getting into deeper water with this water goddess. He regained some self preservation and snatched his hands back "Promise me you'll be gentle and slow."
"I promise," Bonnie said. Skinny dipping in the rain in the middle of nowhere in the daytime with a man she had just met yesterday where his ex lover could walk in on them? Bonnie Bennett what are you doing? Shaking her head slightly she watched him try to be courageous.
"Pardon me," he said apologetically as their legs touched he was looking everywhere but at her.
She'd never felt this safe with a man. She knew that she had complete control over the situation. She could tell he was scared and that he trusted her. Apart from Jeremy the last time shed been this close to a guy was Matt, but the school started the kissing cousin jokes about them. She didn't even want to think about Kai.
Gradually through smiles and small encouragements she'd guided him to the middle of the pool. Enzo looked amazed when he surveyed where they were. She suddenly let go off him. His eyes widened in fear. He had the most theatrical look of betrayal in his eyes.
"I'm here," she told him, "I'm just one kick away," she demonstrated the said kick and coming within kissing distance and then kicking away.
Enzo let out a deep breath and he felt his fear leaving him. He closed his eyes and stilled his body spanning his arms and smiled as he heard the thunder of the waterfall and felt the water support his weight. He couldn't even feel the raindrops anymore. He could sense his swimming teacher though. He had heard that water had healing properties but this was incredible. He was at in the middle of the lake, he couldn't swim and he wasn't bothered in the least, he felt free.
"You look happy," she told him.
"Doesn't take much," he opened his eyes "the company of a beautiful woman and god's green earth,"
"Ha you're so cheesy!" Bonnie splashed him. She knew she that was good looking but her romantic track record hadn't reflected this but then again wasn't that what she wanted? To be loved and to be wanted for her personality and not her looks? She was not used to receiving compliments for her looks not when everyone levitated towards Elena and Caroline.
"Oh it's like that is it?" Enzo asked splashing her back remembering what she'd said when he'd shown her to his room.
Bonnie shrieked reminding him of their tickle fight the night before but the fact that they were naked made him take care with his splashing he didn't want to do anything inappropriate. She on the other hand was possessed by some deranged harpy happily splashing him with no concern for his swimming ability.
Before soon they were out of breath, "truce!" she called and swam over steadying herself by grabbing him. Bonnie loved the weightless feel of swimming, it felt magical. The water was cool but her body had adjusted to the temperature and the rain had almost stopped.
Unfortunately Enzo hadn't gotten the hang of the dog paddle and suddenly they both went under.
Bonnie let go of Enzo in fright. It was Matt all over again.
While Enzo was a fighter, he liked the sensation of sinking. It was scary, he liked a good scare. After his childhood nothing shook his resolve. He was finally feeling something. The terror had made him freeze, it was remarkable to be able to feel things after your heart was broken by the person you loved most in the world.
Enzo's thoughts of Damon were interrupted as he was whisked to the surface of the water. Enzo sputtered gulping mouthfuls of air as Bonnie hummed behind him and told him it was okay and that he was okay. She roughly brushed her hair away from her eyes.
"You're all right," she told him softly.
"Yes," he agreed slowly as she loosened her grip on him and he treaded water turning to face her, "I won't haunt you if I drown I promise," Enzo finally said. He felt guilty that Bonnie was babysitting him. She looked like she belonged to the water and that water belonged to her.
"I'm not leaving you," Bonnie said tapping his nose with her closed fist.
"You saved me," Enzo said catching her hand
"I guess I did, it's what I do," Bonnie said lightly, trying to ignore the thrill that her hand in his caused.
"I could have died," Enzo said he didn't think about dying much, he felt nothing could hurt as much as Damon's abandonment. But his nostrils and throat burned like a hot poker.
"Give me some credit, I've saved two people from drowning after all," Bonnie shrugged, "I'm an expert."
"Three," he said softly
"Three," she agreed his eyes were so shiny, "I have a billboard," she blurted out, she had to keep words coming out of her mouth before her lips found something else to do.
"A billboard? What shall I give you to commemorate your bravery?" Enzo couldn't keep the sultry tone out of his voice, granted he wasn't trying very hard. Not with Bonnie's hand in his and her looking at him like he was someone special to her.
"I don't know… what do you have to give me?" she asked studying his eyes as his gaze landed on her lips.
"The truth," he said he gritted his jaw as she firmly removed her hand from his
"About?" she asked, the truth… she also had some truth to spill. Her secret was bigger than anything he could tell her. Hopefully his truth was something bad so he'd be more likely to forgive her. She impatiently awaited his confession.
Enzo decided to risk it, surely the water goddess wouldn't be so cruel as to let him drown if he confessed to her right now? Especially since she'd just saved his life. Naked to his bones. It would be fitting, he would bare his soul to her as he bared his skin.
"Caroline…"
As soon as he said Caroline's name Bonnie felt an irresistible urge to confess, if he was going to look at her with puppy dog eyes he should at least call her by her real name. She knew that unless she used her lips for talking they would be glued to his. Just when it felt like rainbows were about to erupt with unicorns prancing about when she closed her eyes and leaned forward she felt him pull back.
Enzo felt himself caught in her orbit and he felt invisible hands pushing him towards Bonnie. Suddenly Enzo froze and tensed up, he wasn't psychic but he usually knew when Damon was about to rain holy hell on him. He pulled away squinting towards the direction of Damon's house.
"What?" Bonnie asked eyes wide open. She had brushed her teeth and she had swirled around some mouthwash before they left the cabin just in case a kissing opportunity presented itself, so she knew it wasn't her breath.
She truly was remarkable only a psychic could read him so well. Due to his traumatic childhood, he was nothing if not resilient and thus nothing fazed him and he was always caught in a perpetual state of not feeling anything other than his need for anarchy and craving his brother's love and attention. He then channelled those feelings into his music. "Its Damon," he said almost reverently, it had been years since he'd spoken to Damon. Why would Damon deign to seek him out?
"Is he better than Maggie at hide & seek?" Bonnie asked furrowing her brow and pursing her lips.
"He's good at everything he puts his mind to," Enzo said flatly.
Bonnie looked around, "there's a low hanging branch by the base of the fall. We can hide there he'll…"
"That's no good, love. He's almost upon us," he said dejectedly. Perhaps it was time to face the music, he would see Damon and Caroline would discover that he was a liar and he would never see her again. Enzo had never expected to feel this low when he spoke to Damon again. Then again he never counted on skinny dipping with Caroline Forbes either.
"Oh Mr Butter-Fingers. Where are you?" a man's voice rang out in a pop goes the weasel tune.
Enzo felt his heart being squeezed mercilessly by an uncaring hand, he'd yearned to hear Damon's voice and he wasn't ready for the exhilaration of finally being reunited with his brother.
"I cannot do this. I am not ready," he confessed.
"How long can you hold your breath?" Bonnie asked as the footsteps came closer.
"What?" Enzo asked feeling apprehensive, he had plotted for days on how to reunite with Damon. No scenario included him in the lake naked with a girl he'd just met the day before. It was hard to convert what she'd just said into meaning.
The petite brunette took in a deep breath and he felt his body propelled by hers as she pulled him along under water. He knew she was a good swimmer and it was obvious that she had amazing lung capacity. He was too shocked to react. He hated being immersed. He hated the feeling of any form of restraints and her grip under his chin it was too much. He wanted to be free so he started to struggle they weren't that deep he could reach the surface if he could just shrug her off.
Bonnie let him go, she should have let him take a deep breath, next time she'd share her plan before pulling him into it without rehearsal.
Enzo thought his lungs were on fire, he met her eyes and pointed upwards. She shook her head and then suddenly grabbed his face and planted her lips on his. He stopped struggling immediately as she blew a breath of life into Enzo's mouth. Bonnie broke their fragile contact and let her hands fall away as Enzo simply stared at her. She placed her arms around him and with a couple of powerful kicks they would be under the cover of the tree branches.
Bonnie broke the surface it felt like it had been minutes under water and not just seconds, her skin was peppered with goose-bumps. She was hyper aware of every sensation around her. She smiled at Enzo encouragingly as she laid a hand on one of the low hanging branches and used it to support her weight.
Enzo knew that it wasn't a kiss it was a necessary act of kindness. He knew without a doubt that she was dangerous and he would have to refrain from having any contact with her if he was to maintain his Tyler Lockwood façade. He couldn't help being drawn to her, he didn't know what this was. She was not his type. It was not a kiss but he could not help wanting to get closer to her. He had never felt this way, it felt like a cinder, a spark just begging to turn into a flame.
He was hyper aware of how close they were, he felt like a naughty child, hiding from Giuseppe when he knew he was in for a belting. He smiled thinking how naturally he and his new friend were falling into the established patterns of behaviour that he and Damon had made in their youth. Granted Damon was always too busy to coax Enzo into the lake, as Enzo preferred to read while Damon took his many lovers into the lake for "swimming lessons." Enzo was supposed to be his wingman or rather a lookout, a job he took quite seriously.
He finally looked at Bonnie and met her smile with one of his own as they both turned to look in Damon's direction. Out of breath the two swimmers watched Damon yell unintelligibly as he angrily flung their clothes into the lake. Though she could not make out what he was yelling she could sense that he was not a happy camper and he had definitely threatened Enzo and was leaving.
Bonnie felt pleased that she had been able to spare him Damon's wrath but a little bit guilty knowing that perhaps their hiding had made the brothers reconciliation more challenging.
The least she could do would be to collect their clothes for them since she was the stronger swimmer. He looked like he was deep in thought so she set to collecting the articles of clothing. Anything to forget the feel of his lips on hers, it wasn't a kiss. It was just like Matt it was CPR under water. Nothing at all to feel guilty about.
Bonnie threw Enzo's clothes at him and hopped out of the water and dressed as quick as she could, not bothered if the guy she'd just kissed saw her naked. Neither attempted to communicate since they could barely even meet each other's eyes.
It wasn't a kiss, not really.
They retraced their steps back to the cabin, each very aware of the other, ensuring that their eyes never met nor any part of their bodies touched.
When Enzo could no longer take the silence, he stopped in his tracks, "watch where you step here," he said wisely and then slipped and fell face first onto the ground.
Bonnie shook her head stifling a chuckle and offered him her hand which he took gingerly after brushing his muddy grass stained hands on his wet clothes.
They returned to the cabin, stealing glances at each other.
*I had to google that under water kiss, it was a right pain in the arse.*