Author's note: It's been a while, I know… But my vacation was fantastic! So… I won't say I'm sorry lol But – I would love to say that I am grateful for reviews and support :) I know that Jalaric is not the most popular couple on the show so it makes me appreciate your interest even more. You're great!

Another long chapter, but you know me :))) I can't help it. Some of you will hate me by the way. Not as much as after the next one but still. I am not particularly happy with it either, to be honest. Aaand... I should probably shut up here. Dig in!


Chapter 8

He knew he should have been surprised. In the back of his mind he knew he saw it coming. But Isobel's words shook the ground beneath Alaric's feet all the same. Instantly, his mouth had gone dry and he swallowed hard, his eyes never leaving her face.

"Why are you going this?" He asked in a hoarse voice.

"Do what?"

"Why all these games, Isobel? I think you made your point clear two year ago." He fought not to sound bitter but couldn't help it, not really. After all, it was she who chose immortality over what they had. It still hurt. It always would, one way or another. "Why bring this all up again now and make it worse? Why can't you just go?"

She was standing close as her eyes traveled around his face studying it as if searching for something, her own expression calm and assured of… well, whatever I was, she was pretty confident about it.

"Because it wasn't right. I made a mistake. I was wrong. But it shouldn't end up like that. There is always a way to make it work. And you know it, Ric." She gave him some time to process her words. "What exactly you've been looking me for if not this?"

"I wasn't looking for you for this," his voice dropped to a whisper.

For a very long moment they just stared at each other. The only sound Alaric could hear was hammering of his heart and a rush of blood in his ears. So fast, so loud that he was almost seeing black spots before his eyes. Hell, it wasn't supposed to be like that. It wasn't supposed to be happening at all.

And then Isobel grabbed him by his jacket and pulled him close and before he had time to understand what was happening, she pressed her lips to his not giving him a chance to recoil or turn away. For a moment he was totally paralyzed, surprised beyond himself. It felt… so familiar. The taste of her, the feel of her… something he didn't think he'd ever experience again. The memory he carried deep inside. And all the pain, and sorrow, and anger, and everything he'd gone through in the past years was back. Everything he'd lost. And for a moment he wanted to just grab her and press her against himself and just hold her because… wasn't it what he fought for all these years? Wasn't it what he wanted more than anything for so long?

But the moment was gone as fast as it came leaving him drained and empty, and suddenly it was so wrong. This kiss and the scent of Isobel's perfume washing over him, and her grip on him. It was like going back to where he had started in the first place. Something that he knew he shouldn't be doing. It felt like a huge mistake, and Alaric knew on instant that he didn't want to have anything to do with it.

He pulled away and stepped back trying to ignore the chaotic carousel of thoughts that exploded in his mind, his eyes on Isobel's face as he tried to predict and prevent whatever she might do next. She didn't do anything though, just gave him a long thoughtful look and let her lips twitch into a half-smile, half-smirk.

"We both know what the answer is, Ric, because the choice is obvious, isn't it?" She said then, and it didn't sound like a question at all. "In the end, you're going to choose me."

"Leave me alone."

"Who are you lying to now?"

"Don't do it, Isobel."

His voice was betraying him, and knowing that she could perfectly hear his quickened heartbeat wasn't exactly helping the matters. He knew she could see right through him because no matter what kind of monster was inside of that body, there still was a part of his Isobel there as well. The same Isobel that knew him as well as he knew himself. The same Isobel that could read him like an open book. Now that was a downside of having to deal with his ex, vampire or not. That was what was making him vulnerable, and Ric hated it. Her presence – once desirable – was now suffocating and pressing in a way that was making him want to be anywhere but in the room with her. And a part of him hated himself for that thought.

Wasn't it what you wished for most? little evil voice inside of his head asked. No, he wanted to say and knew that it was a lie. He just… he simple didn't know what to think and do anymore.

"You and I, Ric. It's forever."

Not gracing her words with any sort of reply, Alaric shook his head, turned on his heels and walked out of the house and into the dusk not even bothering to try and sort out his thoughts and emotions knowing it was an impossible task. He had to get out of there. He had to get away, period. It was getting late, Jenna was going to come to his place really soon. Because… because there was something in his life now that finally started making some sense for the first time in a long while.

He jumped into the car and sped off, taking the turns without actually paying attention, his mind still off and pretty much blank as if his conversation with Isobel drained him completely. Absently, Ric rubbed at his forehead. Why? Why would it have to be happening?

But the real problem was that he was scared. He was scared of actually giving in and believing Isobel again.


"Seriously, why do you even bother?" Jeremy looked up heaving an exasperated sigh.

He was sitting on the floor in his room, his legs crossed and his back leaning against his bed when Anna lay on her stomach with a text book before her.

"What do you mean?" She looked curiously at him.

"All this." He swept their books and notepads with his glance. "How many times have you been to high school, anyway? Twelve? You probably know all this stuff better than… I don't know, anyone."

Anna giggled. "It's ten." He snorted and she continued. "I had to maintain the image of a high school girl not to get in a trouble. There were times when social services were… well, thorough."

"It's horrible. Even one time is way too much, but ten…" He shook his head slamming the book shut. "How comes you're not a nerd?"

She folded her arms on the bedspread and put her chin on them. "Who says I am not? Remember where we met?"

"The library," Jeremy chuckled. "But really, Anna. You have, like… all the time in the world, and you waste it on high school?"

He sounded so bewildered that she couldn't help but laugh.

"Eternity is over-rated, believe me. At some point you get so bored that even high school feels like a gulp of fresh air. Besides, times change. People change. Going through it all over again from time to time is interesting. And in the end it doesn't mean anything. I mean it's not like I have to go to college or, I don't know, plan my life, or anything. It's about having fun."

"Yeah, that changes everything, I guess. No pressure." He made a funny face at her. Paused for a while considering her answer. "It can probably make high school less boring."

"But it always has to come to an end, you know. You have to go before people start noticing that you don't age. That's a side effect. Not a bad one but uncomfortable sometimes."

He turned to her then leaning against the bed and propping his head on his hand. "So, how long do you think you'll stay here? I mean with your mom gone and all…" He trailed off and cleared his throat both eager and fearing to hear her answer.

Anna looked down at the pen she was twiddling in her fingers. "I don't know." She answered honestly lifting her eyes to his face again. "I've been thinking about it. And I wanted to leave right away, you know. It's not like anything's… well, there is something that keeps me here. But I don't have anywhere to go. Not really." She rolled over onto her back and peered at the ceiling. "It's getting a pressing issue though. Especially now with all these killings and your Uncle knowing who I am." She frowned.

"He's not going to touch you," Jeremy's voice was firm and determined. But then her words kicked in and he straightened up. "Wait… what? What killings are you talking about?"

She turned her head to study his face, surprised. "Don't you watch TV? A few people had gone missing, some bodies drained from blood were found in the area. It wouldn't take long for some people to put two and two together. I don't want to be here in the middle of the war."

"But…" His brows furrowed. "Really? It's all over the news?"

"I—I don't know. Damon told me." She paused. "Well, he actually asked if I heard something about it. I thought… I thought you knew. Your sister is dating Stefan. She must have heard about it."

Jeremy's lips twisted into a humorless smirk. "Sure she did, as always." He scoffed. "But then again, just like always, she's keeping secrets."

Anna fished her book from under her head and held it up before her face. "Look at the bright side."

"Which one?" Jeremy rolled his eyes.

"Your aunt is dating your history teacher. You're not going to fail at least one test." She pointed out and giggled when he nudged her.


At five minutes past eight Jenna knocked on the door to Ric's apartment. Waited for a few seconds and then put the paper bag with groceries in another hand and turned the knob. The door wasn't locked and gave in easily. Jenna pushed it open and stepped inside.

"Ric?" She called out.

He definitely was at home. His car was parked outside and the soft sounds of music were coming somewhere from the depths of the apartment, probably from that stereo system he had in the living room. And the air smelled… like food.

"Ric?" She repeated.

"Come on in," Alaric called back. "I'm a little stuck here with… something."

Curious, Jenna craned her neck and saw him standing in the kitchen, his back turned to her. She put the grocery bag onto the small table at the door, shrugged out of her jacket and put it on the hook. Grabbed the bag again and went to the kitchen where Ric stood at the stove. Seeing him like that for the second time of the day was… well, it was nice. Like, really nice, and Jenna smiled to herself noting that she actually liked the idea of getting used to it.

"Sorry, I didn't hear you knocking." He looked at her over the shoulder and smiled, making her heart give a small leap. His eyes stopped at the bag in her hands then, curious. "What's in there?"

Jenna put it onto the counter and looked inside. "Um, some stuff I grabbed on the way." She shrugged. "What are you doing?" Looked over his shoulder then at the pleasant smelling substance in the pot on the stove that he stirred with a spatula recognizing the notes of tomatoes, garlic, basilica and some spices she failed to identify.

"I should have asked earlier perhaps, but what do you think about Italian?" Ric looked down at her.

"Sounds good." She sniffed the air. "Smells fine, too. I thought you said you didn't cook?"

"Not much anyway." Ric chuckled. "That's why I went for pasta. You've got to try real hard to ruin it."

"And this is-?"

"It's a sauce," he explained. "Wait a moment." He scooped a little on the spatula and turned to Jenna blowing on it until it cooled down. "Here," offered it to her. "Try it."

She looked at the mass a little suspiciously, mostly out of wish to tease him, then glanced up at his face and took the risk holding his gaze, her hand coming to rest on his waist.

"Mm, it's nice!" She admitted not without surprise.

"Yeah?"

"Hm."

Smiling, he bent down and caught her lips with his. A feather-light touch that deepened in a few moments as Jenna responded eagerly leaning a little into him, a whiff of her familiar perfume mixed with the scent of chilly November air reaching him, making his head spin a little. He felt her smile and something fluttered inside of him. She did taste good. Like, damn breathtakingly good, he noted getting lost in the moment.

"Not bad at all," he agreed in a whisper. "Maybe some salt…" He pressed his lips against hers again, traced the outline of her mouth. "No, it's good the way it is."

"Don't we risk getting it burned?"

"A little," Ric laughed. Unwillingly, he pulled back straightening up and got back to stirring. "Would you like to have something to drink? I've got beer in the fridge." His own bottle, uncapped and missed a couple of swigs, stood beside him on the counter.

"That would be nice," Jenna nodded.

"Okay," he looked around the kitchen. "Take this for a moment." Gestured to her to take his place at the stove. "Keep doing it."

"Like that?"

"Exactly."

With his mind still a little fuzzy from the conversation with Isobel. Two hours that had passed since then were not enough for his thoughts to settle. He was still feeling a little too distracted, although Ric did his best to concentrate on here and now. He fetched a bottle of Corona from the fridge and twisted off the cap before handing it to Jenna.

"Thanks," they reversed places again.

She took a swig from the bottle. "Do you need a hand with anything?"

"Oh, I don't know. Not really. But… you can take care of the salad if you want."

"Okay, sure." She put the beer aside.

"Thanks," Alaric offered her a small warm smile, feeling guilty for all the mess in his head and somewhat surprised – in a very pleasant way – by how good and comfortable it felt to have her around. It reminded him of why he fell for her in the first place – because it was… right somehow. The feeling that he couldn't quite explain but it was the reason of why he kept coming back to her. "So, the knives are here," he pulled out the drawer to the left from him with his free hand. "And… the bowls are over there." Waved towards the last cupboard to the right. "Go ahead!" He winked at her making Jenna let out a short light laugh. "And this," Ric checked his watch in half a minute and turned off the burner before putting the pot onto the chopping board not to damage the surface of the counter, "is ready. I… think."

Obvious doubt in his voice made Jenna turn to look at him over the shoulder. The expression with which he was peering at the contents of the pot was pretty much indescribable slash quite amusing. He felt her gaze and lifted his head up.

"Oh well." Grinned at her.

"Have you even done this before?" Her eyes narrowed.

"Honestly?"

"At what point should I start to worry, exactly?" Jenna asked with suspicion turning her attention away from chopping cherry tomatoes in two halves.

Still smiling, Alaric emptied the bowl of pre-boiled pasta into the baking pan, poured the sauce over it and then sprinkled it all with grated Cheddar cheese before putting it into the oven and setting the timer. Wiped his hands with the kitchen towel after that and sighed with relief. He took another swig of his beer and then poked into the grocery bag that was still set on the counter.

"What have we got here?" He retrieved a bottle of white wine, a smaller paperback with French bread, a can of small salad mozzarella balls and a pack of— "Strawberries?" He turned to Jenna, one of his brows quirked up slightly.

"Well, there are still white spots," she told him. "I didn't know if you were a cake-for-dessert kind of guy."

"Not really," he shook his head chuckling.

"That's what I thought."

"I have a couple of ideas though," he added after a short consideration before dipping in for another kiss.

"That's what I thought, too." Jenna held his gaze meaningfully.

Ric chuckled. "I can take it from here." He sidestepped her neatly away from the counter and took the knife from her hand ignoring Jenna's half-hearted protest. "Why don't you just enjoy yourself tonight?"

Shaking her head, Jenna put the bottle of wine into the fridge and took a sip of her beer feeling the warmth spreading all over her body when rich amber liquid settled in her stomach. She came up to Ric and leaned against the counter beside him.

"Thanks," she said. Waited for him to look at her. "For this. A much needed break."

"Everything's going to be okay," he said, the tone of his voice changing momentarily, and she wanted, oh so wanted, to believe him.

And that was why she held back the skeptical chuckle that nearly escaped her and just nodded instead. "How did the whole… thing with Damon go?" She asked casually. Reached out to pick a piece of tomato from the bowl before him and threw it into her mouth.

Alaric hesitated. "Um… well…" gave her a quick uncertain glance out of the corner of his eye.

"What?" Jenna strained.

"It's not exactly appetizing," he said at last.

"What is it, Ric?"

Alaric put the knife aside trying to collect his thoughts together. He hated himself for having to ruin the moment because god knew they had so few of them that each and every was precious. And he would gladly try to keep her out of all of that if she wasn't involved already. But she was and he had—

"The notes you've been getting, they were written in blood," he breathed out watching her face for… well, anything. "Not red ink."

Jenna lowered her beer onto the counter feeling that her fingers started to shake a little as her eyes grew wider. "What?" As if she wasn't sure she heard him correctly.

"Told you," Ric said softly and smirked humorously. "Not appetizing."

"Are you serious?" She asked instinctively, her voice disbelieving, until it occurred to her that Alaric wasn't the one to joke about such things. "Of course you are." On a heavy sigh she turned around leaned against the counter propping herself on her hands. Lowered her head and peered at pink and gray veins of the marble with such intensity that they might have as well had deeper meaning to them.

"Jenna…"

"Oh God," she straightened up sharply and ran her fingers through her hair, her heart pounding in her throat and her knees trembling slightly as she wondered if Ric had tequila stashed somewhere around here because beer wasn't quite helping much. Short bitter laughter escaped her lips.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly. Hesitated for a moment and then reached out to stroke a soothing hand down the side of her face. Her skin felt cold against his fingers. Alaric waited for her to look up at him and mustered a small smile. "Look, all this crap is still going to be here tomorrow. But today we are going to forget about it. We will have dinner and talk about simple things, okay?" Jenna didn't reply straight away. "Jenna?"

She let out a long breath but… he was right, wasn't he? "Okay," she smiled back and then made a funny face.

"Good." Everything about him eased visibly and his own smile became less strained and more genuine. Resultantly, Ric let his hand fall from her face and went to the fridge to retrieve some lettuce. Rinsed it in the sink, then grabbed a bottle of olive oil and went back to Jenna. "So, how was your day? In the normal-verse." He asked conversationally.

She couldn't help but roll her eyes, really.

But fine. They were playing this game, she could do it.

She took a deep breath, sipped a little from her bottle again and then put it aside and folded her arms on her chest. Well, it was a good idea after all, she thought. They might have as well tried to get the best of what was coming their way, no?

"Oh… well, Elena and I are kind of working on the clean the attic project," she replied watching his profile and noted that the corners of his mouth tugged up a little at her wording. "So, I spent half of the afternoon buried in old photos and other stuff, some of which I have no idea why Grayson or my sister kept."

"That sounds…" he trailed off searching for the right word. "Exciting."

"Not quite," Jenna laughed. "But we found a bunch of old Gilbert journals the other day, so it wasn't a complete waste of time after all."

"Really?" Now, he was interested.

"Yeah. We're all about family history now." Ric snorted softly as Jenna searched her mind for something else. Something that had nothing to do with the nightmares and psychotic creatures running in the night. "My school starts next week." She said then, and explained, "It's a pre-midterm thing, a few classes, some research work before I have to hand in some stuff and move on to the field study. Hopefully, it'll keep my mind off of… um, everything else." Ric gave her a quick look and she returned a small smile shrugging. "What about you? How's school going?"

"No bad." He sprinkled the vegetables with olive oil. Reached for the salt. "And as soon as this whole Founder's Day craziness is over and we can finally get back to real life, I plan to leave behind the history of Mystic Falls for a while and move on to the real stuff, like World War II period."

"Sounds interesting."

"It is. I—I spent a while studying it back in university. I told you I was pathetic, right?" The smile that she didn't attempt to hide warmed him from inside. "Anyway, it'll be good for them to learn something about the rest of the world, and it'll keep us occupied for the next few months." His features softened and his voice changed a little when he continued. "You know, it is still a bit strange to work at school. I got used to having an older audience, like, grad students. People who are more… serious about that." He chuckled. "It's not always easy to keep high school kids interested."

"But you keep trying," and it was more of a statement than a question.

"Of course. Isn't it the point?

Slowly, Jenna nodded. "So… do you think you'd like to get back to the university routine one day?" She asked matter-of-factly. Too matter-of-factly.

Her question surprised Alaric a little. "I don't know," he replied after a short pause. "Honestly, I didn't really think about it." Truth be told, until recently he didn't think much about anything but finding Damon Salvatore and killing him. Speaking of proper life goals, huh? "But yes, I guess it would be nice, all this field research and serious stuff." And it was only then that the real meaning of her question kicked in. He gave her a quick look noting that a shade of disappointment flashed across her features. "But right now I am happy to be where I am," he said subtly in a soft voice, intentionally not looking her way before letting his smile widen not able to hold it back. "Can you please give me the pepper? It's—somewhere there," he waved his hand indefinitely behind his back.

"Sure," she found the bottle on the stand with spices. "So, Italian… is there anything else to it, beside obvious simplicity?" She asked returning back.

"Thanks. Well, it tastes good if you don't screw it up-" he started.

A knock on the door cut them off and made them turn around.

"Are we waiting for a company?" Jenna asked uncertainly.

"Not that I'm aware of," Ric replied with doubt, feverishly trying to recall if they actually were.

"I'll get it," Jenna said when another knock came.

She was out of the kitchen before Alaric could say a word leaving him to follow her with his gaze. He hesitated for a moment debating whether he should go after her. Maybe someone just got the wrong door? He heard muffled voices from the hall and before he came up with any decision, she was back with a small box in her hands.

"Who was it?" He asked curiously.

"A courier."

"And this is—"

"Whatever it is, it has your name on it," Jenna shrugged and put it onto the counter. "Do you expect anything?"

"Mm, no, not really." He put the bowl with the salad aside, his mind more set on dinner and the pasta-something in the oven than anything else. Napkins. He needed napkins. Linen ones, not paper, Ric thought absently. And they were—"But I am still in the process of moving here," he added automatically addressing Jenna. "Some of my stuff is still at Duke, books, journals. Things that other people borrowed."

Jenna took the box in her hands and gave it a cautious shake. "It's too light for the books," she informed him.

"Who sent it?" Now, that was getting interesting.

"I don't see the sender's address." She studied the box thoroughly all over, then lifted it above her head to take a look at the bottom. Not that there was a Don't turn upside down warning but who knew? "Nope, only your address and the stamps."

"Just open it," he offered.

Plates. Right. He put dark blue napkins aside and went to retrieve two ceramic plates from the cupboard grabbing the forks and wine glasses on his way back to the table. Candles would be nice, too. He smiled to himself. Yeah, candles were a good idea.

And it was only then that Ric realized that something was wrong. All of a sudden it struck him and everything changed, as if someone tuned the switch. His apartment and the scent of parmesan and garlic were gone, and so was the comfort – too short-lived to actually get used to it or enjoy it. All of his senses sharpened by the second making the sounds become louder and the colors brighter, and his body went stiff for the reason he couldn't put his finger on. But he knew better than not to trust his instinct that was screaming Wrong! It was almost like a panic attack that consumed him wholly, practically making him suffocate as if all air was sucked out of the room, and he fought so hard to grasp onto reality and try to figure out what the hell was going on.

There must have been something – a sound, a thought… something he didn't pay attention to because it was too insignificant. Slowly, he turned around hoping it was false alarm, waiting for it to go away. Over the years his mind learned to play tricks with him, his sense of self-preservation getting a little amplified to a somewhat paranoiac level from time to time. Not that he could do much about it though.

His eyes moved to Jenna, her hands on the box cutting through tape on top with the kitchen scissors…

Like in a slow motion replay.

"Jenna, don't!" The words went out before he knew and then he stepped towards her, knowing it was too slow, too late.

She opened the box and they both saw the contents of it simultaneously as time seemed to slow its pace by the second. And then she gasped and stepped backwards, her hands jerking away from the cardboard, purplish from blood on the inside, as if it electrocuted her.

Horrified, she span around and bumped into him. "Don't look." Ric's arms were around her on instant holding her as if trying to shield her from what had just happened, pulling her away from the counter, his mind foggy and refusing to accept the picture before his eyes.

"There… there-" Jenna mumbled not able to go further than that, her conscience incapable of wrapping around what she'd just saw.

She shut her eyes so tight that it hurt and buried her face in his chest clenching onto the fabric of Alaric's shirt with her fingers so fiercely that her knuckles had gone white and taking short convulsive breaths in attempt to keep down the beer and a few pieces of food that she'd eaten, and god help her, it wasn't easy. The image seemed to be etched into her mind forever.

Inside the box lay what had probably been a crow not so long time ago. A crow that, judging by the bloody and feathery mess, someone probably put into the meat chopper before sending it to Ric. The thought made her swallow hard and draw in a sharp breath as she willed it to just switch off before she actually had gone crazy.

She felt Ric's arms close around and somehow it kept her world in one piece. Felt her own body shake as one wave of nausea went through it after another and tightened her grip on him.

"Why would… Who…" She muttered. Finishing her thoughts was an impossible task though.

"It's okay," Ric whispered against her hair, although they both knew that he was lying. Everything was anything but okay. But for some reason it worked for a very short period of time. At least her breath stopped being forced and convulsive eventually and that alone was a good thing.

Alaric turned away from the horrible image locking his eyes on the wall across from them as he counted slowly in his mind – to ten first, then to twenty, and so on – in order to collect his own hectic thoughts together. It would be nice if at least one of them kept their cool. So much for the normal night, huh?


Elena walked out of the bathroom in her tank top and pajama pants… and stopped short when she found Damon lying on her bed, his hands behind his head and his eyes glued to the ceiling as if the answers to sacramental questions were written there. Automatically, she looked up, too, and then back at him. He didn't acknowledge her appearance in any specific way, but the corner of his lips tugged up a little which meant he noticed her. Well, sensed her, heard her… whatever.

"Damon?" She closed the door to the bathroom and made sure she kept her voice low. "What are you doing here?" Walked up to him somewhat cautiously wondering if she was up to yet another bunch of bad news because obviously it was the reason of his visit. Or well, it normally was. But then again, it was Damon – he was beyond logic.

"Babysitting," he shrugged, as much as it was possible when one was lying on the back.

"Baby—what? What are you talking about?"

He rolled his eyes. "Stefan's hunting. These cute fluffy creatures. Hey, do you think they can band up and attack him in his sleep at some point?" He gave this thought some consideration and then untucked one of his hands from under his head and patted it on the bedspread beside him inviting Elena to join when she didn't answer. "He's going to stop by a little later. But now… you have me!"

Which was… uncalled for, and thus more than a little suspicious, if only because it probably meant that something was not right again.

"What's going on?" She asked coming closer, still a little confused and maybe a somewhat unnerved to find Damon feeling… well, quite at home, all relaxed and pretty comfortable in her room. If only she didn't know that the impression was deceiving. It was Damon after all.

In a smooth movement that was too fast for her to notice, Damon caught her by the wrist and jerked her down. She flopped onto the bed beside him, her hair a dark halo around her head on the comforter, and stared at the ceiling too, her heart going wild in her chest, out of surprise mostly, and then maybe something else – something she didn't want to go into. Totally despite herself she noted a whiff of Damon's perfume mixed with the scent of fresh night air coming from his jacket perhaps. She swallowed hard and fought to keep her thoughts together.

"I am not so sure Jenna would approve of you hanging out here," she told his not bothering to get up.

"Relax," Damon waved his hand before putting it behind his head again. "She's staying with the history teacher tonight. Thus, supposedly, she couldn't care less." He paused thoughtfully, and then added as an afterthought, "Besides, your brother has a girlfriend in his room, so you can always use it as an excuse."

Elena frowned and turned her head to look at his face trying to figure out if he was kidding or not. It was never easy to be sure about such things with Damon. She studied the outline of his profile for a while as he kept peering upwards. He wasn't smiling but he didn't look stressed either so she let herself relax a little. This, of course, could be deceiving, too. Her bets were on that, but oddly, it was comforting to have him here.

He felt her watching him – practically burning a hole in his head. So, he turned his head too and studied her face thoroughly taking in every detail and wondering how was it even possible to take Elena for Katherine. They were as different as two people could possibly be. Come to think of it, they didn't even look that alike. Elena was more… gentle, he decided. There was some softness to her that he could never see in Katherine. Well, not really. Katherine was good at mustering it if she needed of course. But for some reason he never ever had this overwhelming need to protect Katherine from the rest of the world that he felt about Elena.

And wasn't it pathetic? This some-people-never-learn thing was getting a tad annoying, really. Especially the part where he couldn't quite control it. And even more – the part where he didn't want to do it.

"How do you know?" Elena asked, seemingly oblivious to the train of his thought.

"About Anna? I can hear them talking. School stuff. So boring I can't be bothered to eavesdrop." He faked a yawn.

"About Jenna," she told him bringing him back on track.

Damon faltered. "Oh, that… Ric called me," he said matter-of-factly. "They had an… incident."

"Incident?" Not liking the sound of it, Elena turned to her side and propped herself on the elbow, frowning. "What kind of-?"

"She's fine, believe me. Now that this vampire hunter has a huuuge thing for her, she is as safe as she could be." He snorted. "Well, until someone is dead serious about killing her, or whatever."

The killing part made her strain. "What happened there?"

"Let's say, she received an unappetizing gift." He flinched with disgust.

"Could you please be serious for a moment?" Elena looked pointedly at him.

"I am," and his expression implied that she said something extremely insulting. "How exactly did she piss off someone so much?" Damon asked, although it was quite rhetorical. Her expression was Huh? though, so he explained, "This whole stalking thing, you know. I mean yeah, she's awesome and all but…" He trailed off chuckling.

"Wait," she peered intensely at him. "What do you mean?"

"About some vamp that is after her." He grimaced with frustration. "We usually don't bother that much for no reason, you know. So, she's staying at his place and Stef and I are going to watch the house… just in case."

"Damon, wait… what? A vamp?" Now that was what she didn't expect to hear.

"Yep." He frowned. "You didn't know?"

"No, I—she left out the vampire part." Elena let out a long exasperated sigh, ran her hand through her hear and then flopped on her back once again, her heart thudding dully against her chest, and wondered somewhat absently if any of this was going to come to an end any time soon. A vampire was after Jenna. Again. Now that was just amazing, wasn't it? As if Logan didn't cause enough trouble.

"So, what would you like to do?" Damon asked pretty cheerfully. "Movies? Charades? Oh, wait! You'll love it – phone pranks!"


A few hours later Jenna fell asleep on the couch, her head lying on the pillow that rested on Ric's lap and her breath finally deep and even.

Alaric dimmed the lights leaving only the reading lamp in the corner and muted the TV not quite remembering how it happened to be turned on in the first place or why he didn't switch it off. Flickering images were of no help to his restless mind as he peered sightlessly at the screen for what felt like eternity and not seeing a thing, his thoughts anywhere but in this room. Brief moment of normality was gone without a trace too fast for Ric to even notice it leaving him with the feeling of deep dark despair. He felt trapped in the vicious circle and there was no escape.

The box with what had once been a bird ended up in the dumpster, and Alaric called Damon on his way back to his apartment to fill him in briefly. He didn't remember much of that conversation though, everything about him was tense and on alert when he had to cross these several yards of the back yard as his eyes kept darting around, and he only let his breath out when he closed the door to his place and checked the locks. Double checked.

Everything was getting out of control. It was obvious that whoever was after Jenna for whatever reason, they were keeping an eye on her, following her, with crow or without. They knew that she was at his place and they knew that she knew about the bird. How did they find out? Was it his appearance at the Gilberts' in the middle of the night? Damon hanging around? Something else? Or they saw it in her mind? God, he didn't want to even start going into imagining what else they picked up rummaging through Jenna's brain.

The thought made Ric's breath hitch.

And then another followed, pretty much inevitable. Could it really be Isobel? Could she really be doing this Jenna? To him? To them? Was she capable of something like that?

His mind drifted back to their conversation earlier today and the words she'd said to him. Why was she doing it? Why would she do it all to him in the first place? Turning, leaving him, ruining everything they had and could have had. And why would she have to come back to ruin everything all over again just when he started moving on at last?

And he truly hated himself for even thinking about it but he couldn't help it. Isobel's words and her offer… it stirred something in him, which made Alaric feel so endlessly guilty that it almost hurt. How could he ever—

But what if Damon was wrong? What if he was the type after all? What would he do if she offered it to him two years ago? He loved her. He loved her so much that… that he probably wouldn't want to lose her no matter what, right? Alaric knew the answer to that question. But now-now everything changed. He changed. And still… What if Isobel's return actually meant something? What if it was a sign? Could he really do that? Could he trust her with everything once again? Was he even capable of making that leap and taking the risk? And what was the most important – did he still love her?

Jenna sighed in her sleep, and all of his thoughts were gone on an instant, his mind focused on a woman beside him. His features softened minutely at the sight of her. God, she was beautiful, Ric thought and his heart constricted making his blood run faster. Bittersweet joy mixed with sadness filled him as he reached out absent-mindedly to stroke her hair. He caressed her cheek with the back of his fingers wondering ruefully what she did to deserve all the crap that was happening to her. As if the whole family tragedy wasn't enough.

Slowly, her eyes fluttered open, and Jenna blinked sleepily a few times as she took her time to understand where she was and how she ended up there. And then she turned her head and looked up at Alaric.

"Hey," he said with a small smile. "You feeling better?"

That was an interesting question, Jenna thought ruefully. Better, she guessed although the thought about their untouched dinner was more or less unbearable.

"Yeah, I-I'm fine," she said in a sleep affected voice, her thoughts a little unfocused and her mind somewhat foggy. "What happened?" The question came out in a whisper, as if it was what dimmed lights required. As if neither of them could speak normally, period.

"You dozed off." Ric looped a strand of hair behind her ear.

"What time is it?"

He checked his watch. "A little past three."

Unsteadily, not entirely awake yet, Jenna pushed herself up to a sitting position and let her gaze travel around the living room once again before returning to Ric's face. She ran her fingers though her hair. "I should—I should probably go."

"You're not going anywhere," he shook his head, his smile faded to be replaced by a concerned frown.

"No, Ric, I can't—" she protested. "I have to… Jeremy and Elena—"

"Are fine," he finished. "Stefan is there, and Damon is… around." He knew it wasn't consoling, not even a little, and her doubtful expression spoke volumes, and truth be told, he could perfectly understand her reasons and all, except that this time he was right and knew that she knew it, too. "Look, they are safe until the vampire is invited into the house, and they're not going to let it happen." Yeah, good job! Freak her out even more! "You being there… it won't change anything, Jenna." Uh-huh, that was the part where mental kick was a must. "They are fine. And you're safe here, and you really need to have some rest."

For a long moment Jenna just watched him, debating his offer and torn between what she thought was right and… well, everything else, still not at all reassured or convinced. He was making sense, yes. Whoever was after her definitely knew where to find her. The poor bird was sent to Ric's although the message was definitely for her, that she was sure of. And maybe it was better that way. Maybe Elena and Jeremy were safer when she was away.

On the other hand, having two vampires hanging around her house, even for a good cause, was more than a little unnerving. If she couldn't keep them away – which was obvious – then she wanted to at least try to be in control of it as best she could. But the truth was, she was scared like never before in her entire life. Hell, up till now she had no idea what scared was. And maybe it wasn't such a bad thing to let someone help her handle it for once.

Seeing the emotions flicker across her face, Ric took her by the wrist and pulled her close. "C'mere." He shifted so that Jenna could sit with her back leaning against his chest and wrapped his arms around her as she snuggled into him. "I want you to stay with me."

"I am the worst parent ever," she groaned burying her face into his neck, her breath and eyelashes tickling his skin.

He laughed softly, his lips brushed against her hair. "No, you're not. You're just not quite grown-up yet. It takes time."

"Thanks, you're very helpful."

"Don't be so harsh on yourself," he protested, a little amused.

"He's a vampire, Ric," Jenna looked up at him. "He's dangerous. They all are, you know. Miranda would have killed me if she knew her daughter was dating a vampire," she breathed out. "She'd have a heart attack first and then she'd kill me."

"I am not going to disagree but it's not like you can lock them up."

"I know. Although the idea had crossed my mind, believe me." He fingers flexed on the sleeve of his shirt as she held onto him. "But… It doesn't change the fact that I am screwing up."

"You're not."

She didn't seem to hear him though. "I know how to be their friend," Jenna's voice dropped a little when he ran his hand up and down her arm soothingly. "Someone they could come to to moan about their parents being too strict and curfews and school and other things they couldn't talk to Miranda and Gray about. That was my thing. That I knew how to deal with." She paused. "I gave Elena a fake ID for her sixteenth birthday. I told Jer what stuff girls dig."

Alaric chuckled, not surprised. "You really are a dream of an aunt."

"Last year I helped Elena sneak out the house and took her to a party with me." She confided. "Student stuff, you know? It was crazy. We spent the whole night there. And Miranda was so mad when she found out." The memory made Jenna smile. "I have never heard her shout like that in my entire life. I thought she was going to kill us both."

"Why don't I have a problem imagining that?" He shook his head, and snorted when she attempted to elbow him half-heartedly causing him to laugh softly.

"Elena was grounded for two weeks. And I bet my sister hated me for the fact that she couldn't exactly do the same thing to me." Absently, she took his hand and entwined their fingers. "But I don't know how to be responsible for them and make the decisions that they'd probably hate me for."

"They love you."

"Do you think they are in danger because of what is happening?" Jenna's gaze fixed on the paining on the opposite wall as she fought to keep her voice flat.

Alaric sensed the change in her mood. "I don't know," he said honestly on a sigh. "Hopefully, no."

"Why would anyone do that?" Inevitably, her thoughts drifted back to all the events of the past few days, and the car-crash, all the horror of it, and notes written in blood – the thought made her shiver from the cold that grew and spread inside of her – and the crow, and Jenna swallowed hard fighting nausea that started to come up her throat once again. "Why?"

To that Ric had no answer either. And no reassuring words that would sound convincing enough came to mind as well. And he didn't want – and come to think of it couldn't – lie to her.

"Come on," he faked a smile in a lousy attempt to cheer her up a little. "It's just a vampire, nothing we didn't have to deal with before, right?"

Jenna half scoffed, half snorted and looked up at him. "Yeah, just another day in the neighborhood, huh?"

He leaned in finding her lips with his. "We live in a screwed up neighborhood."

Jenna giggled. "Uh-huh," she mumbled incomprehensively taking Ric's lower lip between her teeth playfully thrilled by the low growled that formed in his throat and the flutter of butterflies in her stomach. "You were saying?"


Jenna turned the knob and pushed the door open slowly hoping the hinges wouldn't creak. They didn't and she took it as a good sign. She poked her head inside listening intently to any sounds that might come from the depths of the house – music in Jeremy's room, running water in the second floor bathroom, soft footsteps somewhere – but it was plunged into complete silence at this "barely after dawn" hour.

She opened it wider and tiptoed inside pulling Ric in behind her as she gestured at him to stay quiet. Carefully, she closed the door behind them making sure the lock didn't click too loud.

"I should probably stop coming back home in the morning at some point," Jenna whispered as her eyes darted towards the second floor area where the doors to Elena and Jeremy's bedrooms remained shut before finding Ric's face again. "It's like being back to school."

"And isn't it fun?" He whispered back.

"Only I'm afraid it's nowhere on the Parental figure slash role model for teenagers Guide."

Alaric chuckled and instantly Jenna covered his mouth with her hand muting him. She froze for a moment listening again and when no sound came from upstairs, she removed her palm, stretched up on her toes and replaced it with her lips.

"Shh."

"Uh-huh," he mumbled. Slipped his hands under her unbuttoned jacket wrapping his arms around his waist and pulling Jenna close, feeling her smile against his mouth.

"I'm serious, Ric. I don't want to wake up the whole house." His hands went up and down her back under the jacket and she giggled. "Hey, it tickles."

"I thought you didn't want to wake anyone up," Ric reminded her in a mock serious voice.

"And you're not helping me," she drawled. And saw that he was struggling oh so hard not to burst out laughing, too. "Thanks for the ride by the way."

"My pleasure," he breathed out.

Jenna looked up the stairs again, considering, before turning back to him "You don't have to leave just yet, do you?"

Alaric's eyes flickered to the clock on the mantelpiece in the living room. "No, not really."

His first class was supposed to start in about an hour, although it probably wouldn't hurt to arrive earlier and go through his notes. With everything that was going on in his life lately, keeping track of the school program wasn't all that easy. On his list of priorities and among "Keep Jenna safe" and "Don't let anyone die in the process", it was probably on the second place. From the end. Somewhere between "Unpack the rest of the boxes" and "Call to the Duke Library to cancel the catalogue subscription".

"Good," she smiled. "Come on, I'll make us some coffee."

Smiling back, Ric started to follow her but then his eyes slid habitually along the living room and stopped on the object lying on the shelf. A book. Its worn leather cover standing out too much to miss it. Like a gemstone lying in the sand. Alaric stopped, frowning. It looked familiar, and he fought to understand why.

"What?" Jenna turned when he hand slipped out of hers.

"What's that?" Ric nodded towards the book, his eyes glued to it.

She followed his gaze. "One of the journals, I guess." She shrugged. "I told you Elena and I found a bunch of then in the old Grayson's things. Elena must have forgotten it here."

A shade of confusing crossed his face for a moment. "Oh, right. Mind if I—mind if I take a look?"

She cocked one of her eyebrows, but did not comment knowing he wouldn't be able to pass by it. "Sure, go ahead."

In the kitchen Jenna slipped out of her jacket and hung it onto the back of one of the chairs standing around the dining table. She threw a quick glance over her shoulder and had to bite her lower lip to keep herself from grinning like an idiot. It was ridiculous, the way Ric was making her feel. Especially in the light of recent events. But she couldn't help it, and to be honest, didn't really want to.

Like a school girl, really. Jenna shook her head smiling to herself as she rummaged though the cupboards in search of an open pack of grinded coffee knowing they definitely had one.

It was the sound of the opening door that made her snap her head up in alarm as her heart jumped up her throat and span around. And then she all but let out a sigh of relief when John stepped in. Now, it was getting just annoying, being so jumpy and neurotic all the time, wasn't it? Jenna's fingers flexed on the plastic pack while she waited for her breath to get back to normal.

John meanwhile scanned the kitchen and then his eyes inevitably stopped on her. "Jenna?" Apparently, she didn't expect to see her. "Hi."

His gaze slid towards her jacket and then past it to where Alaric was standing in living room near the book shelves, too lost in thought to pay attention to anything. It wasn't hard to put two and two together. He closed the door and walked in, also not looking like he was jogging or just stepped out to grab croissants for breakfast.

"John," she called back taking in his black jeans and leather jacket. By the looks of it, he didn't spent the night at home either, she figured. Not that it was any of her business of course. "Busy night?"

She walked past him grabbing the spoon from the drawer along the way and came up to the coffee machine almost sure he'd just leave.

"You can say that."

He didn't though. Instead, he came up to the table and grabbed the apple from the bowl – she could see it out of the corner of her eye. Looked at it thoughtfully and then took a bite. His eyes seemed to be drawing to Ric every now and then.

"So, how are you doing?" John asked her all of a sudden startling Jenna. At first she didn't even realize he was addressing her until she turned to meet his gaze and saw him looked back expectedly at her.

"Why?"

He shrugged. "Just asking. It's called conversation."

Jenna sneered. "Don't bother." And then under her breath, "Like you care."

"I do, actually. Assuming that you're a sole guardian of my nephew and… niece." He cleared his throat hoping the hesitation wasn't too obvious. As far as he was aware, Jenna had no idea about his relationship with Isobel Fleming-Saltzman and the reason why Elena ended up in the Gilberts' family in the first place. He was sure that Alaric knew, but apparently he kept it from her. "You know that you can always count on me if you need anything. Any of you."

Jenna processed his words and swallowed witty comment that nearly escaped her. Quippy, yes. But she wasn't mean. She knew he cared. In his own way, but whatever. "Yes, I know. Thank you." There was some uneasiness about him that Jenna couldn't quite figure and it left her curious despite her wish.

He nodded. "So, you and Alaric—" the end of the phrase was left hanging.

"Me and Ric what?" She scoffed humorlessly. "Please don't tell me you're going to lecture me. Not after someone kidnapped you and Jeremy because of your unresolved issues."

"I told you it was a mistake."

"Which doesn't undo the fact that you put him in danger," she pointed out coolly.

"I was not going to lecture you,"

"Fine! So, what is this little chit-chat about?"

"Plain curiosity. I don't remember you making coffee for me, back when… you know"

His words surprised her. The very fact that he brought it up again, assuming that their relationship back in the day could've been qualified as nothing but frenemies with benefits, and then one day he'd just left without so much as goodbye. Arrogant selfish son of a bitch, that was what he'd always been, as if being a Gilbert was akin being some sort of god. Keeping back something and making a lot of fuss around it. Well, now she knew what it was. Not that it was making any difference.

Jenna took her time to fill in the coffee machine with water and coffee. Checked the timer and turned it on. She walked across the kitchen to place the pack of coffee back into the cupboard before turning to face John again.

"What happened between you and me was a huge mistake of a long time ago," she told him in a casual voice, although her eyes glaring daggers. "So why don't we leave it in the past where it belongs and never go back to it again?"

John opened his mouth to say something in response but then his gaze shifted sideways and over her shoulder, and her heart plummeted down into her stomach as she turned slowly to find Ric standing in the doorway, his face disbelieving.

Oh, crap!

"I think—I should probably go now," he said breaking the pause in a while sounding a little distracted. "Yeah, I should-"

He turned around and walked out of the kitchen and in thick silence that reigned now – so thick it was practically tangible – his footsteps echoed almost deafeningly.

"Damn it," Jenna muttered following him in a hurried brisk pace, her heart drumming against her ribcage. "Ric, wait!" He was out of the door before she reached the hall and slammed it behind his back. She swung it open. "Alaric!"

He stopped and turned slowly, a foot away from the porch steps, his hair rumpled by the wind and his breath puffing out into chilly air in small white clouds. And Jenna all but took a small step back at the feel of disappointment coming from him in waves, and her shoulders slumped down in defeat. Hell if she knew what to say to make it up. Hell if she knew what to say when he was looking at her like that, damn it!

Alaric studied her face for a long moment and then let out a short bitter chuckle, looking away for a moment and then fixing his gaze on Jenna once again.

"You could have told me."

And the way he said it, his voice, the way he made it sound – it was like a slap in the face. And it hurt so damn much. Jenna put her hand on the door frame, both out of habit and to keep herself from falling when her knees went weak.

And suddenly his implied accusation, and someone stalking her, and the vampires in town, and everyone she cared about being in danger because of that – it got just a little too much to bear. She felt like her mind was going to explode, and… it was so unfair! Not Ric. Fighting with him, proving something to him – something as ridiculous as a meaningless affair with John Gilbert – she couldn't do it. She just couldn't add it to the list of things that were wrong in her life.

"Like how?" Her own short laughter that she simply couldn't help was as humorless as it could be. "Hey, Ric, this is John, one of the biggest mistakes of my past? Would it make you feel better?"

Her defensive snap took him by surprise. "Yeah, maybe it would, I guess."

"I didn't know it was such a big deal. Does it really matter?"

"It is not, but the fact that you kept it-"

"The fact that I kept it?" Jenna echoed and then snorted shaking her head. "You know what? I didn't find out about your vampire of an ex until she attempted to rip my head off. Were you ever planning to tell me about her if it didn't happen? Yeah, let's talk about trust, Ric." And she knew it was too much, and she knew that it was time to stop, and that it was a cheap blow because his face turned into a mask of pain momentarily but she was too sick and tired of all these secrets and half-truths and whispered lies that she just couldn't care less. Gee, she thought she was over it already! "This could be a nice head start."

"That's different."

"Of course it is," she agreed easily, the tone of her voice sour, "because me not telling you about one unfortunate relationship that deserves nothing but to be scratched out of history cannot possibly be compared to you not mentioning a bunch of killing creatures, one of whom accidentally happens to be Elena's boyfriend, running around the town."

Yeah, this was when she probably overstepped the border, what with her voice ringing with long-kept emotions. But the way he was looking at her for no – well, not really big – reason hurt so damn much that it made Jenna want to scream. It felt so wrong, so bad. It couldn't have been them. It shouldn't have been happening. But it was, and she was losing control, and not being able to do anything about it left her so desperate, so endlessly helpless.

One minute – and she was losing the best thing that had happened in her life. Why would it have to be like that?

"And you just have to live together?" It was simply mean but it slipped out of his mouth before he couldn't stop it even though Ric couldn't understand why he was taking it like that in the first place.

Jenna cringed inwardly. It was meant to be a question, and she knew it, but it wasn't, and being so thick with sarcasm, it felt like a sucker punch. "It's not like I can kick him out of his brother's house that doesn't even belong to me," she voiced the obvious and kicked herself mentally for letting her feelings slip. She wasn't supposed to. But it was a dead end. It definitely felt like it.

To that Alaric didn't know what to say, the words flashed and died in his mind before he could actually form a coherent thought that wouldn't taste foul in his mouth.

For a very long while, they just stood there several feet away from each other looking at one another not able to move or break the silence, and then all of a sudden Jenna felt so tired and overwhelmed with everything that it just stopped having any matter. All her fury and rage, so hot and blinding, were gone as fast as they came, and only a wish to hole up somewhere until everything was over remained leaving her drained and empty.

"Ric…" she started in a tired voice.

But then he was speaking, too, and when he said, "I think I should leave now," all she could do was nod if a little absently trying to ignore the pain that swallowed her at the sound of his words, and say in oddly calm and detached voice, "Yes, you probably should."

To be continued…


A/N: Reviews, comments, opinions are always appreciated :) Thank you!