UNDER CONTROL

"Jeremy? Elena? If we don't go to school now, we're gonna be late!" I called upstairs, while quick-walking towards the front door.

Jenna came scrambling from the kitchen, holding out my thermos, "Forgot this."

"Thanks, Jenna," I told her. "Tell Elena and Jeremy I'll wait for them in the car."

"Will do."

Smiling, I opened the front door, almost walking straight into someone: Uncle John. Alright, not to be mean or anything, but for the few times that John would actually show up, he spent it making others feel humiliated and embarrassed, which wasn't very nice. He never really said anything insulting to me, but dad and mom were always on edge when he was around. To translate: John = Asshole.

At least, that's how he'd seem.

John's hand was raised in a fist, obviously about to knock. He instantly smiled when he saw me, "Ariana!"

"Uncle John!" I said as enthusiastically as possible, without sounding fake, "Hi."

John then shifted his gaze to Jenna behind me, "Jenna."

"John, you made it." She said, not bothering to hide her distaste.

"I said I'll be here before noon." He said obviously, entering the house. What was he doing here again?

"Oh what you say and what you do are typically two very different things." Jenna stated, slightly glaring at John.

Elena and Jeremy finally descended the stair case, both surprised upon seeing our visitor. "Oh, it's you," Elena said, not glad at all.

John's smile faded. Jeremy called out, "Uncle John, what's up?"

"Hey!" John greeted back. But, Jeremy simply slapped him on the shoulder, and walked passed him, out the front door. Okay, then. Jeremy was, of course, still sad about Vicki. Even after these few months, I was still sad, and what made it even more so, was the fact that Jeremy had not only lost both his parents, but a girlfriend whom he had loved dearly. He was happy with her, and then he had to find out she was dead.

Elena nudged me as she walked behind Jeremy, indicating for me to follow her. Oh, that's right, I had to drive them to school. John recovered awkwardly from my siblings behavior, and explained, "I had some business in town; I thought that a visit was in order."

"Oh," I asked, curious, "How long are you staying?"

"I don't know yet." He answered, looking guilty. Did I even want to know what this "business" was?

"Okay, well," I said, confused, "School starts in a few minutes, so, I'll see you later." I gave him a smile, and walked over to my car.

I heard John say "Bye," to me, but I didn't look back. Anyone else would think he was just a family member coming to see his relatives, but, there was something off about him. More so now than ever before; it was unnerving.

Elena, Jeremy, and I, went our separate ways once we arrived at school. Matt waved me over from his locker, and I smiled as I walked over there. He seemed happy, trying to get over the loss of his sister. I told him about Uncle John, and how he suddenly decided to show up. Well, actually, apparently he had communicated with Jenna, but she didn't tell me or my siblings.

"Uncle John, I never really liked that guy," Matt said, taking out books from his locker. Wow, if Matt didn't like someone, then I guess no one else could. Unless, Matt was jealous, but that wasn't usually the case. He had integrity, so he rarely lied.

"Not many people do," I said, "There's just something... off about him."

"Well, I'm here for moral support if you need me." Matt said, smiling.

"Thanks, but it's okay," I said, "We all have our own problems to handle."

"You don't have to do it alone though," he said, paused, then changed the subject, "Thank you by the way, for just... for everything you did at Vicki's funeral and the memorial. I couldn't have done it without you."

"Of course, Matt." I said, "I'm here to help you, 'cause I care about you."

Matt looked at me for a long time, smiling. He could communicate without words, telling me that he was grateful. "I care about you too." He said, finally breaking the silence.

I changed the subject, "So, was Caroline still baking for you guys, around the clock?" Since Kelly wasn't exactly the best at cooking, Caroline would come to Matt's house, bringing dinner and pastries. I could relate to Kelly though, I sucked at cooking. Thank God, for Caroline. It was sweet too, Caroline was actually very caring, even if she didn't seem to be at times.

"She finally went to her dad, which is a good thing because my mom was going to strangle her if she dropped off one more lasagna." Matt explained, smiling. I laughed. He closed his locker and walked with me as we joked about other things. It was nice, and I was really happy for him. Caroline seemed like a good match, they acted differently, and therefore evened each other out. But I knew that my best friend was pining over Matt, and soon enough, Matt would feel the same way towards her as well.

After History class, Alaric told me to stay in, probably something more personal than academic. Turns out, it was a bit of both.

"I made a copy of a paper Jeremy wrote for me." He said, taking it out of his teacher's desk, "I think you should take a look at it."

He handed me the few pages of paper, and I took it, confused. On the front was the title: Fact or Fiction: The Truth about Vampires in Mystic Falls

My heart sped up, Jeremy knew about vampires? "Jeremy wrote this?" I asked Alaric, hoping it wasn't true.

Alaric shrugged, and took a seat on the desk in front of the chair I was sitting on, "He's very clear that he didn't think it was real,"

I looked at the paper for a few more seconds, thinking to myself. "Do you think that...that I should just come clean... with all of it? Not just to Jeremy, but to Elena too?"

Alaric lowered his voice, "It's your decision to make."

I sighed, and gave Alaric the essay back. I wanted to tell them, but the truth was, I was scared. Scared of how they'd react, whether they'd hate me or not. Elena and I were just starting to get along again, did I want to further ruin that relationship?

"So, how do you deal with it?" Alaric asked me.

"What?" I wasn't paying attention, lost in my own world of confusion.

"How do you deal with the lies and secrets?" He questioned, "You have to lie to everyone who's important to you."

I shook my head, "It's hard," I admitted, "Which is why I'm having second thoughts on not telling them, but it's for their own protection; to keep them safe. I'm mean, how do you tell someone you love about all of this? Especially when you don't know everything yourself?"

"I don't know." He said. We sat there in silence, lost to our own thoughts for a minute or two. Then, I came back to reality, when Alaric suddenly stood up, the table creaking under the release of pressure. He spoke his thoughts in a gust of air, "I think Stefan's a good guy. But at the end of the day, he's still a vampire."

"Being a vampire doesn't necessarily change a person, other than them drinking blood." I explained to him, "Stefan's different; he would never do anything to hurt me."

Alaric nodded, but he didn't seem entirely convinced.

Stefan arrived at my house after I called him, wanting to tell him about Jeremy. Stefan and I sat on my bed, and I was worried that Jeremy may have remembered something, but Stefan said otherwise.

"Damon took those memories away for good, you don't have to worry about that." He said.

Then, I thought of something, "You know Anna?" I asked Stefan. He nodded, "Maybe she told Jeremy something."

"It's possible," he agreed, "Tell you what: Why don't you just ask him?"

I sighed, "I... I want to. But I'm afraid of what he's gonna say afterwards. He might never trust me again. And if I tell Jeremy, then I'll have to tell Elena, and she probably won't ever talk to me again. Especially since I haven't even told her that we're adopted." Everything was so frustrating!

Stefan placed a hand on mine, and smiled, "They're your siblings, they'll forgive you." he said, "You can decide whether or not you want to tell them everything or just a part of it."

I closed my eyes and suppressed a groan. That's basically the same thing Alaric said to me. Were they correct? Was it really my decision to make? It was not like I was a vampire or anything. Alright, I'd tell them by the end of the week. No more secrets, no more lies, and no more "cover ups". After that, I'd just have to worry about Jenna. Hopefully, she wouldn't have to know, and could therefore live her life the way she deserved to.

I took my mind of that, and decided to focus on Stefan. He seemed a bit on edge, suppressing... something. Bloodlust. "How are you doing?" I asked him, this time giving him my full support.

"Much, much better," he said, "I'm still, you know... a little jittery, sometimes a bit too alert, but I'm gonna be okay."

"That's good to hear," I said, smiling, "I've been worried, and I really miss you,"

"I just needed to lay low for a while, and let my body readjust." He explained, "It's only been a few days."

"It feels like a lifetime." I joked to him.

My lips tingled as we kissed, and he whispered to me, "I miss you too." Then he deepened the kiss, and leaned forward, pushing me gently so that my back was flat against my bed. My breathing quickened and so did his as we continued to kiss with passion, all of my worries and thoughts leaving me. I rolled over so that I was suddenly on top of Stefan, and smiled as I kissed him. Electricity buzzed through me, almost becoming overwhelming. Then, I heard a low growl rumble from deep within Stefan's chest, as he somewhat aggressively rolled us back over, his body hovered just barely above mine, pressing against me.

His hands caressed my body; my thighs, hips, waist, back, face, while I ran my fingers over his hard muscles on his back and shoulder. There were no thoughts of coherency.

Suddenly, Stefan stopped. At first, I didn't realize it because I was still trying to make sense of my surrounding, but once I saw his face right above mine, looking concerned, I asked, trying to control my breathing, "Stefan, what's wrong,"

His features changed; leaf-green eyes turning red; veins spreading across his cheeks; fangs appearing right between his lips. I sucked in a deep breath at this, and Stefan suddenly disappeared. He threw himself backwards, flying across the room, and hit the far wall and my dressing table. He fell onto the hardwood floors, followed by my jewelry, and the sound of my lamp shattering.

I stared at him, shocked. What the heck was happening? Was Stefan really okay, like he had claimed?

Stefan left promptly after the event, afraid of hurting me if he got too near. He had apologized profusely, said he loved me, but then... just left. There was definitely something wrong; his bloodlust was getting to him, and I wanted to help.

I heard a knock coming from the front door, and breathed out a sigh of relief. Opening it, I found Damon on the other side, smirking as usual. I had called him to help with Stefan, I needed to know what he knew.

"Thanks for coming." I told him, as he walked in.

"You ask, I come," He said, "I'm easy like that."

Yeah, sure. I gestured for him to follow me upstairs, and started to walk towards the staircase.

Damon's voice turned loud, as he eyed Jeremy and Elena who were eating breakfast in the kitchen. "No Ariana, I will not go to your bedroom with you."

I rolled my eyes, suppressed a laugh, and caught his arm, pulling him with me as we went upstairs. He was laughing the whole way there. I sighed, I wondered what Jeremy and Elena were thinking.

Opening the door to my room, I let Damon in, then closed it behind us. "Ah," he stated creepily, as he looked around, "Just like I remember."

I scoffed. I didn't even want to know what the hell he was talking about. He walked over to me bed, and plopped down onto it. Despite my bed being kind-size, his feet almost hung over the edge. He grabbed the stuffed teddy bear in the middle of the pillows, and fiddled with it. The bear was white, with black beads as eyes, and had a red ribbon tied around its neck, while it carried a matching heart that said, "I love you." in script. It was a gift from Matt last Valentine's Day, when we were still going out, and it brought back many memories that - for the time being - I decided to push away.

"Did you know that your uncle has been kicking it with the Founder's Council?" Damon asked me, interrupting my thoughts.

"John?" I questioned. Great, so did this mean he knew about vampires? Was that why he was here?

"Yep." Damon stated.

"Perfect," I said sarcastically. So it was true, "Not like we have enough problems as it is."

Damon's eyes narrowed in on the space between my dressing table and armoire, and his chin jutted out, as he asked, "What happened over there."

I looked over to where he was looking at, and realized that I had forgotten to pick up the pieces of jewelry and broken glass that Stefan had smashed into yesterday. "Uh..." I said, uncomfortable, "Don't worry about it."

He looked at me, eyebrows raised, but didn't question it aloud. Anyways, I didn't plan on answering his unspoken question. Instead, I changed the topic.

"I'm worried about Stefan," I started, "He says the everything's okay but... he's struggling. And... I wanna help."

Damon got up from my bed, and walked towards me, handing me the soft, plush teddy bear that I accepted. "Why are you so worried?" He asked me, "What's the big deal?"

"He's still Stefan, but he's acting differently." I said, "He seems uncomfortable and I just wish for him to feel better. He doesn't have to go through this alone." I placed the teddy bear back onto my bed.

Damon looked away and walked passed me, walking to my dresser. He opened the top drawer, and said, "Well, maybe the problem is that he had spent too long not being himself."

My eyebrows furrowed, "What do you mean?" I asked.

"What I mean is," Damon explained, looking at me through the reflection of my mirror, "that my baby brother should've gone through this phase a long, long time ago. The blood lust thing... uncontrollable huger... it comes from trying to run away from it, when he should've dealt with it. Translation: Since Stefan drinks from furry little creatures, at his first taste of human blood, in a long time - especially yours," he gave me a look, "Is enough to send him into a frenzy."

I pondered over this for a few seconds, though it was still too much to take in. Could it be possible? After all these years of not drinking human blood, he tasted mine, and suddenly couldn't push the urge back down. Is someone tasted heaven, how could they go back to how things were before?

Damon reached into the open drawer, and pulled out something. I was so distracted, that I had forgotten that drawer contained my bras. The one in his hand was a lacy red and black one I got from a lingerie set at Victoria's Secret. Sighing, I walked over to Damon, who smirked, and plucked the cotton article of clothing out of his hands, stuffing it back into the drawer, closing it.

"What can I do, Damon?" I asked him.

Before answering, he reached behind me, and when he drew his hand back, I saw him holding a photo of Elena, Jeremy, and I, about a year back. My hand shot out, trying to claim it back, but he moved away quickly, still smirking, "You can't do anything," he said, shrugging, "It is what it is, Ariana. The Stefan you know was 'good behavior Stefan', 'reign it in Stefan', 'fight against his nature into an annoying level... Stefan'. But if you think there isn't another part to this then you have not been paying attention."

I listened attentively, as I walked closer to him. I walked so close to him, that I could see my reflection in the lenses of his eyes. Now that he was distracted, I swiftly swiped the photo back from his fingers, before he even had time to react. I walked backwards as he finally came out of his daze, placing the photo back in place, on the frame of my mirror.

Turning back around, I said, "I know that there are... different sides to a person. I usually choose to see the good in people, and try to look past all the bad things they've done." I gave him a look, and he gulped a little, not out of fear, but nervousness. "So, even though Stefan may be going through a ... difficult phase... at the end of the day, he's still Stefan. Bloodlust was part of me accepting him as who he is, and now, I want to deal with the consequences."

Damon stood there, silent for a few seconds. The time passing was just about to go over the brink of "awkward", when he finally asked, "What if I told you he was turning into me?"

I almost scoffed at that, "He's not you." I stated. "You may be brothers, but inside, you're two completely different people."

"Well, he doesn't want to be me." He said, obviously. He started walking towards me. "That doesn't mean that deep down..." he lowered his voice "...he's not."

As he came closer, I automatically took a step back, finding no where else to go. The dresser pressed against my lower back, and Damon stopped only an inch in front of me, so close that his entire body was almost pressed up against him. He looked down at me with a weird glint in his eyes. The body heat radiating off him warmed the short distance between us, and the strange fire I always got when around him started to come back again. I shouldn't have been thinking about this, but I couldn't help but admire how beautiful he was. It was enough to drive any girl mad.

I almost sighed in relief when he stepped back from me, and walked out of my room and into the hallway. Shaking off the jittery feeling, I impatiently waited as my heart beat slowed down. My breathing returned to normal, and I was flooded with a strange sense of calm. What the hell was wrong with me?

I knocked on Jeremy's door, deciding once and for all that I would tell my siblings, that Elena and I were adopted. I wasn't ready to tell them about vampires yet. "Hey," I called out to Jeremy.

"What's up?" He asked me, turning his computer away from me quite suspiciously.

"Do you have some time to talk?" I asked him.

"Uh, yeah, sure." He said, gesturing for me to come in.

"Not here." I told him, "I need to talk to Elena too. Come on;" I smiled, "let's get out of the house.

After getting Elena to come along with us, I decided to take them to the lake. We walked along the dirt, the intersection between the water and the woods. At first, I didn't know where to start, but, I eventually told them about the adoption. I left out the major details; like how Isobel, a vampire turned by Damon, was our birth mother. Of course, they didn't believe me, especially Elena, but after providing all the evidence I had, it started to sink in. They were both silent for a while, and Elena seemed to be on the brink of raging.

"I just can't believe mom and dad never told you guys were adopted." Jeremy finally said, standing on my left, and we avoided a rock in our path.

"Pretty annoying if you ask me," Elena said, on my right.

"I'm sure they would've told us eventually," I told her.

She narrowed her eyes, "And when were you planning on telling me?"

"Elena, I wanted to." I stated, "But I needed to know enough before I could just suddenly blurt it out. I needed to have some questions answered. Unfortunately, trying to find the answers only raised more questions..."

Like; who my birth father was; when I'd see Isobel; what was she like as a vampire; how she could relate back to Katherine... The list went on.

"Still," Elena muttered, "You could've told me sooner. I feel like everything that I've ever known..." she shook her head, "Is all a lie."

"That's how I felt when I first found out." I admitted, "But, it doesn't really change anything for me. Mom and dad were our parents, and whoever our birth parents were... it doesn't really matter." But it did. I wanted to know my birth parents, but I wasn't sure whether Elena had the same level of curiosity I had when it came to these things. She'd either "go with the flow", or completely ride against the current.

We were silent for a few minutes, then Jeremy spoke up, "When you first bought up the subject, why were you worried about what I thought?"

I shrugged, "We grew up, thinking that we were all related." I said, "Finding this out..."

"It's kinda weird," Elena answered, speaking my thoughts.

"Does it bug you guys that we're not?" Jeremy asked us.

We shook our heads. "No Jer." I said, "You'll always be our brother, no matter what."

He smiled in reply.

"So," I started, uncomfortable about having this conversation, but I had to know, "Mr. Saltzman said you've been doing great in History now."

"Yeah, yeah, he's really been helping me out." Jeremy agreed, "He gave me some extra credit and stuff."

"That's great," Here comes the dreaded question; in my point of view, at least. I tried keeping my voice light and playful, as I said, "He loved your vampire paper."

"He thought I had a clever angle," Jeremy explained.

"Did you take interest in the subject?" I asked, "Is that why you decided to write a paper on that topic?"

He shrugged, "I don't know. I was bored." I concluded, "I'm just as nuts as the long line of Gilbert crazies."

"Gilberts aren't crazy." Elena defended.

"Easy for you to say," Jeremy told her, "You're not one."

She scoffed, reached over and pushed him playfully. They ended up way ahead of me, running around like little children as they bantered back and forth. But the smiles on their faces made me feel content. It was times like these that made me glad I had this life, but it also made me realize, that I couldn't keep them out of the dark anymore. It wasn't fair to them. I'd explain everything to them later, but for now, I'd enjoy this moment.

Arriving at the Mayor's house for the Founder's Day 150 anniversary celebration, I was greeted with comfortable lighting and people dressed in formal attire. I wore a dark green V-shaped neckline, sleevless mini-dress with gold heels and matching gold jewelry. My hair was loose, but neat.

I smiled when I found Stefan standing by the bar, drinking from a glass. "Hey." I greeted him.

His eyes lit up when he saw me, and he said, "Hey. How are you."

"Good." I answered, and he leaned in to give me a kiss on the cheek. That's when I smelt the alcohol on his breath as he pulled away, and the way he sort of wobbled, his movements jerking. "Are you okay?"

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine." He responded, "I admit, that I'm a bit drunk, and even though it's a little weird, it's really been helping me. The alcohol takes the edge off."

I chuckled a bit at his resemblance to some of the other guys I've met at parties, "You're totally that drunk high school guy at the party sneaking booze." I joked.

"I totally am, yeah," He agreed, and smiled.

I turned serious. If his bloodlust urge was more complicated than he was letting on, I needed to know, in order to help him through it. "You gonna be okay?" I asked, concerned, as I placed a hand lightly on his arm.

"Yeah!" He replied, "No, yeah. You don't need to be worried. It's just until the cravings go away." He turned completely towards me, and touched my upper arm, "Listen, I think we should enjoy it while it lasts." He lowered his voice, and smiled sexily, "Would you like to dance with me?"

I raised my eyebrows at him, "Dancing?" I joked sarcastically, "Is that word even in your vocabulary?"

"Maybe not when I'm sober," He replied cheekily, "But the drunk me loves to dance."

I looked out to the dance floor, seeing it empty. Everyone was gathered up in twos or threes, chatting off to the sides, and drinking champagne or wine. The music was classical and barely audible.

"There's really no one else dancing," I explained obviously to Stefan, smiling though. There was no one dancing.

"That's because they need something better to dance to," he stated and squeezed my hands, "I'll be right back." His warmth left me as he turned to someone whom I supposed was the guy controlling the music.

"Yeah...That's not gonna work." A voice said from behind me. I turned around to see Kelly looking at Stefan and the DJ. "I already tried to bribe the guy with twenty bucks and a date." I smiled, "He said Carol Lockwood has complete control over the music choices." She finished sourly.

Looking at Stefan, I saw him lean in to the guy, and watched as the guy looked hypnotized. Oh my gosh, he was actually compelling him. "You'd be surprised at how..." I looked for the right word, "Influential, he can be when he so chooses to."

The music changed to a rock-pop song, and around the room, people started to sway their hips in time with the beat.

Kelly was happily surprised, "Thank God!" She said relieved, and sauntered over to Stefan with a smile. He turned around, took her hand, and they moved to the center of the dance floor, where other people were also dancing. At least they were having fun.

Someone walked up from beside me and stood next to me. I looked up, and saw Damon in a suit. He looked at Stefan quizzically, "Have I entered an alternate universe where Stefan is fun,"

Oh, not the "f" word again. The other word that wouldn't be in Stefan's sober vocabulary.

Though I was happy that Stefan was laughing, smiling, and dancing, I was worried about it all meant, "Is he gonna be okay?" I asked Damon, worried.

"Eventually," He stated, and shrugged, "One way or another."

I gave him a look, and he simply smiled back. Okay, then. Not the best answer, but, I guess it was better than nothing. We went back to watching Stefan dance with Kelly, as he twirled her around. I smiled slightly. He would be okay, I knew it.

Jenna and Elena came up to me a few minutes later. Jenna wore a modest midnight blue, short-sleeved dress, while Elena was clad in a black U-shaped neckline, knee length dress.

We were laughing and joking about some of the hilarious things that have happened over the years at parties, when Elena suddenly said, "Oooh, history teacher, three o'clock."

Jenna turned around, and I spotted Alaric coming towards us. Jenna turned back around, and asked frantically, "How do I look."

"Beautiful," I immediately answered, "As always."

She didn't have time to say thank you, so she just nodded, as Alaric came up to us. "I was looking for you." He said to Jenna, while his eyes drifted to me. "Well uh... things have been a little crazy but I'm here now." What was that supposed to mean? Jenna wouldn't expect anything, but I'm guessing the reason for his discomfort was because he believed Jeremy knew something about vampires. At this point, it wouldn't surprise me. My brother's been hanging around with Anna, so I had no idea what she's told him. Alaric turned back to Jenna, "Do you want to get a drink?"

"Sure," She answered, giddy.

"Okay," Alaric smiled, and they walked over to the bar. I smiled at their retreating figures.

Elena looked at me, and said, "I'm gonna go use the bathroom, and then probably just walk around. I haven't been here as many times as you have."

I nodded, "Okay. I'll see you later."

She nodded, and went in the opposite direction from where Alaric and Jenna had disappeared into.

Matt walked up, a smile on his face as he surveyed the area and the people who were dancing in time to the beat. "When did this happen?" He asked me.

I shrugged, pretending to be ignorant, "I guess the DJ himself got bored."

He laughed, "Do you want to dance?"

I hesitated for a second, and looked around for Stefan, making sure that I wouldn't be ditching him if I were to go onto the dance floor.

"Yes." Matt insisted, with a humorous glint in his eyes, "Come on." He caught my waist and pulled me to where the others were dancing, twirling me away, and back to him.

I laughed, and allowed myself to enjoy the time with him. He was a good friend after all, and right now, I admit, I was having a lot of fun. Maybe there was nothing for me to worry about. I should just learn to let go, and move on. Everything would resolve in its own way, somehow.

We danced for quite some time, when Matt's gaze looked behind me, and he said, "Your boyfriend's coming, I better go."

I shook my head in amusement as he turned around and started to easily mingle with the other girls there. He was a very likable guy, which was what probably drew me to him the first time I met him.

Just as Matt had said, once I turned around, Stefan caught me in his arms, and pleaded, "Please dance with your alcoholic vampire boyfriend."

I giggled, as he pulled me to him, and then twirled me out. I bumped into something from behind me, and gasped when I realized it was not "something", but a guy.

He tuned around, and I said, "I'm so sorry, my fault, I can be a little clumsy sometimes." I was usually pretty elegant and balanced, I mean, I had to be, I was a cheerleader. But when I was with Stefan, I sometimes felt as if I was weightless, like no one could penetrate the little bubble around us.

"Then maybe you should get off the dance floor." He said, not really looking at me. He looked to have been drinking at bit, like Stefan.

His rude comment was like a slap to the face. My head actually jerked back a bit, and Stefan came into view beside me, glaring at the man in front of us. "That's no way to talk to a lady." He instructed the man, as if scolding a naughty child.

The man whom I bumped into finally looked at me completely, and his eyes widened in surprise. "Sorry," he muttered blandly, and started to walk away.

Stefan's arm shot out, and he grabbed the man's arm. The guy's head whipped around in alarm, while Stefan compelled him sternly, "Now say it like you mean it."

The guy looked at me, under the spell, and said, "I'm really, really sorry."

"Stefan, it's fine." I told him, but he didn't listen.

"Now walk away." Stefan pushed the man, and he stumbled away from us. I touched Stefan's arm, concerned. What the hell was that? He's never acted like that before. I wasn't exactly afraid, but I was worried for him. Was he really going to be okay?

Stefan looked at me, and his eyes softened, the hardness melting away. He touched my face gently, and questioned, "You alright?"

I nodded numbly, but before I could ask the same, he stated: "I- I need a drink." He walked away from me, and I stood there dumbly on the dance floor, wondering whether or not I should take action. I couldn't work on my own though, I needed help.

The last time I tried asking Damon, it ended with me having conflicted feelings and zero advice. I didn't have to look for him though, because he came up to me a few minutes after Stefan disappeared to... wherever.

"Have you noticed what your brother has been up to?" I asked Damon. Stefan had been compelling people for simple things like a song change, or to have a guy apologize again after already doing do. I wouldn't be worried, because really, it was not that big of a deal. But Stefan didn't take away a person's free will, no matter how small, it just wasn't like him. So this sudden change of personality was a little unnerving, and I wanted to know what Damon thought of it, since they were brothers.

"No," Damon replied, "I've been too preoccupied with yours." I looked up from the table I was staring at, and into his eyes, willing him to continue. "Jeremy had been asking questions about Vicki Donovan's death."

My eyebrows furrowed, "I thought that he knew it was ruled as an overdose."

"Really?" Damon started mocking my brother, "'Oh but, sheriff, someone buried her. Who would do that?'" Damon raised his hands and pointed to himself, whispering, "I know I know! Me!" He shrugged, "I mean I could compel him but he's wearing vervain."

I shook my head at Damon, "No, I don't want you to compel him."

"If he keeps asking questions..." He trailed off.

"Damon, please," I said to him, "I'm not going to do that to him again... Actually... I think it's time I told him the truth. Him and Elena."

Damon raised his eyebrows, "Are you willing to take that risk?"

I nodded, not allowing myself to feel guilty. "I can't hide the truth from them anymore." I told him, "Jeremy already knows... something. And Elena's part of it too. Our birth mother's a vampire... they deserve to know everything. It's unfair to them otherwise."

"Okay," Damon said, with a shrug. He reached over to a flower vase on the side of the table, and picked out the deepest red rose there, without even a hint of purple in it. He gracefully held it, and handed it to me, "It's your choice. Don't say I didn't warn you."

I took the delicate rose gingerly between my thumb and forefinger. He stared at me for a few seconds, before letting go, and leaving.

Jeremy sat on the couch in one of the rooms, staring off into the... wall. I sat down next to him, deciding to find out what he knew before telling him what I knew. "Jer?" I said, and his head turned to look at me, "I heard about your conversation with Sheriff Forbes."

He sighed, and turned his body so that it was somewhat facing me on the couch, "No one is trying to figure out what happened to her." He said, "They all want to believe that she OD'ed."

"What do you believe?" I asked him.

"I think somebody killed her and buried her body and I don't think we should write it off 'cause it's easy." He answered, and I was initially shocked by it. So he really did believe this, and it actually wasn't far off from the truth. How much did he really know? "Do you still think it was an overdose?" I didn't answer. "Is there something you're not telling me?"

I hesitated, but eventually asked, "Jeremy... do you really want to know? Is this what you want?"

Jeremy nodded. "Tell me."

I took a deep breath, and said, "Okay. Wait here, I'll go get Elena."

"Wait," Jeremy questioned, "What?"

"She needs to know as well." I told him, then left the room in search for my sister.

I must've spent a good hour explaining everything to my siblings in the dark, dimly lit room. I started from the beginning, introducing them into the world of vampires. Jeremy already knew about the supernatural creatures because of Anna, but that's where the information ended.

Elena thought I was crazy at first, but once she started thinking about it, she realized that I was right. The secrets between us almost seemed infinite, and so I told them everything.

I explained how Damon and Stefan were vampires, turned in 1864 by their love Katherine Pierce, my ancestor, who creepily looks exactly like me. The weaknesses of vampires included; vervain, a stake to the heart, decapitation, heart extraction, sunlight, and fire. The ring on their fingers protected them from the sun, because it was spelled by Emily, Bonnie's ancestor, and a witch. Upon hearing Bonnie as a witch, Elena was at a loss for words, but I continued the story.

When Damon came into town, he caused trouble, ranging from compelling, to killing, to turning Vicki Donovan. This was a sensitive subject for them, especially Jeremy. I explained about how she lost control in her bloodlust, and Stefan had to kill her. With Jeremy in so much pain, and Elena so traumatized, I had Damon compel away their memories.

The reason Damon had come to Mystic Falls in the first place was to get Katherine out of the tomb. Lifting the spell had an undesired effect for Bonnie and I, since Grams had died channeling all that power. Katherine was thought to have been sealed in the tomb underneath the church, along with other vampires including Anna's mother; Pearl. But, it tuns out Katherine was never in there, and Damon was heartbroken, and healing.

Isobel, mine and Elena's birth mother was a vampire turned by Damon, and Alaric's ex-wife. Our birth father was still unknown, but I promised that when I found out who it was, I'd tell them.

Jeremy and Elena asked many questions throughout my story-telling, asking about why I was still hanging out with the Salvatore brothers, and why I never told them in the first place.

Finally, after the sadness and fear left them, it was replaced by hurt, anger, and betrayal.

"Why did you have Damon compel us?!" Jeremy asked me, his eyes shining with anger. "I thought we were closer than that, that you could trust me no matter what!"

"Jeremy," I answered, "It was to protect you. You were so heartbroken, and I didn't want you involved in all this. What I did was wrong, and I promise that it won't happen-"

"No, no." He said, shaking his head. He rose from the couch, towering over me, "No more promises. Don't make a promise if you can't keep it."

"I'm sorry," I said, tears about to fall from my eyes. "I should've told you guys, and I made a mistake. I'm really sorry,"

Jeremy shook his head in anger, "I - I can't, Ariana." He said, frustrated, "Not right now. I - I need to go, before I do something stupid." He swiftly walked to the door in anger. Before he was completely out of my line of vision, he said a bit more quietly, "You should've told me from the beginning. I would've been there for you. But now," His voice wavered, "I need some time."

Then he left.

I was almost scared to look down to where Elena was sitting on the couch, staring at the floor blankly. She must've been feeling sick in the sudden deluge of information. Before this day, she never knew about the supernatural, or that she was adopted; that her mom was a member of the undead. Her breathing was heavy, and she looked up at me.

Her eyes were the color of dark chocolate, similar to mine, except I had a lighter brown and softer pair of eyes. She said nothing, but got to her feet, never once breaking her gaze with me. I felt uncomfortable, but I didn't look away.

I expected her to yell at me, but she just continued to stand there, staring at me like I was a stranger. I couldn't take it anymore, and choked out, "Elena-"

That's all I was able to get out, because suddenly, she lifted her right hand, and slapped me across my face. Pain radiated everywhere, and my head snapped back. Instinctively, my hand reached up and gently caressed my left inflamed cheek, looking back at Elena in confusion. She showed no reaction, her expression remaining neutral, and walked out of the room.

Tears rolled down my cheeks, and I fell to the hardwood floor, sobbing. I deserved this. I've lied to my siblings, and I felt like stabbing myself. The pain I felt right now could not compare to any physical pain. It was excruciating. I've just lost Elena and Jeremy. Who knows how long it would take before they would forgive me. Perhaps never.

But, I eventually knew that I couldn't stay in there forever. So I wiped the tears away, and exited the room. Though, it felt like an eternity, it had only been an hour. Music still came out of the speakers.

Since I was distracted, I wasn't looking ahead of me, and I bumped into someone. Sea blue eyes looked down at me. "Hey, Ariana, how's..." Matt trailed off when he saw my expression. "What's wrong? You look sad." He used his fingers to lift my face. His eyes turned hard, "What the hell happened to your face?"

"Don't worry about it Matt, it's fine." I tried to convince him.

"What do you mean?" He questioned, "It's not fine! Who did this to you? I swear to God, I'll kill them."

"Matt," I said, placing a hand on his arm, trying to placate him, "Elena and I just got into a little argument. Anyways, I deserve it."

"No you don't," He disagreed, "I'm gonna go talk to her."

He started to move, but I tightened my grip on his arm, not letting him go. "Don't Matt. Hey, look at me." I put my hands on his face, and his eyes looked into mine, "I'm fine, okay?"

He took a deep breath, and nodded, his jaw still tense. He placed his fingers on my chin, and titled my face up so that he could inspect my cheek more easily. He sighed, and said, "It's gonna be alright. Put some ice on it when you get home and it should be gone in a couple days."

I nodded, "Thanks, Matt." I said, grateful. He was the quarterback for our high school team, so he knew what the best way for wounds to heal were. I remember freaking out when he got a huge gash of his forehead from getting tackled after his helmet fell off. It had healed up in less than two weeks. "Anyways, thank you for making me dance as well, it was fun,"

"Your welcome," he said, smiling, and he hugged me. After a few seconds, he breathed out, "Air, I need some air. Come with me?"

I looked at him, and said, "Sure."

He took my hand, and we walked across the room, heading towards the doors. "You haven't seen my mom, have you?" He asked me.

"No," I responded, "Not in a while," Because I spent that time explaining to Elena and Jeremy about the supernatural world. Yeah, not gonna tell Matt that. But, who knows? Someday I may have to. After all, his sister Vicki was turned into a vampire, and then killed by one.

We went out into the cool night... to be faced with a shocking scene. Well... I found Kelly. "Um, Matt?" I questioned, my eyes trained on seeing Kelly kissing... Tyler, who was Matt's best friend.

Matt's eyes flared up at the sight, and he let go of my hand, rushing towards them. This would not end well...

Matt caught the back of Tyler's shirt and flung him away from his mom, "What the hell are you doing, man?" He asked Tyler in rage.

"Matt?!" Kelly said, guilty, surprised, and scared. I did love Kelly, but she really did need to be a better mother for Matt.

Matt turned his glare to his mother, "Mom!"

"Whoa, dude, calm down." Tyler said to Matt.

Matt punched Tyler in the face, triggering the start of the fight. Tyler punched Matt back, and he landed on the table, breaking it, and knocking Kelly over. Matt rolled onto the floor, and Tyler took advantage of it by punching him repeatedly on the face. Blood dripped from Matt's nose and forehead.

"Matt!" I screamed in terror, getting closer. I wanted to stop this, but I couldn't. I wouldn't be strong enough. "Stop it! Tyler, please! Stop it, you're hurting him!" I stated obviously. My heart rate sped up, as I watched Tyler beat up Matt. If somebody didn't stop him soon, Matt would become severely hurt, if he wasn't already.

Alaric finally arrived and caught Tyler, pushing him to the wall, off of Matt. I immediately rushed to Matt, helping him up onto the nearby chair. "What the hell was that?" Alaric exclaimed.

The Mayor arrived, and told his son, Tyler, to go get cleaned up. He assured everyone that everything was fine, telling them to enjoy the party.

Matt had blood running down from his nose, and wound on his forehead, and two on his cheek. "Are you okay?" I asked him, trying to blink away tears.

"Yeah, where is she?" He asked, referring to Kelly.

I looked around me. After she fell to the ground, I lost sight of her. "I don't know," I told Matt, "Here, let me see."

I put my fingers under his jaw bone, and looked at his wounds.

"Did he break anything?" I asked.

"No, no, I'm fine," He said.

I nodded, "I'll take you home."

"It's okay," he said, "You came to this party, and you should enjoy it. I can go home myself."

"Are you sure?" I asked him. Could he even see straight?

"Yeah," Matt said, "I've had way worse than this."

I nodded, "Okay, be safe."

I wandered around the parking lot of the Lockwood estate after the party, searching for Stefan. "Stefan?" I questioned, "Stefan?" I looked in between to cars, and saw a guy lying on the ground, in pain. I ran over to him, "Hey! Are you okay? What happened?"

I reached to help him up, but he got up himself, clutching his arm. I recognized him as the guy from the dance floor, whom Stefan had compelled.

"My arm," he groaned, "I lost my balance and fell. I can be a little clumsy sometimes." My heart sunk to my stomach. That last line was the exact same thing I had said to him at the party. Had Stefan compelled him? What was really going on?

Stefan... what's happened?

When Jenna and I got back to the house, we went up the stairs, and parted ways as she entered her bedroom. I slowly tried to open Jeremy's door, but it was locked. He didn't want to see me, and I respected that. But it still hurt. I was too scared to open Elena's bedroom. I didn't want to know how she'd react to me.

So, instead, I walked into my own bedroom. I looked into the mirror, and gasped, turning around. Someone was in my bedroom. Then, I calmed down. It was just Stefan. I placed a hand over my chest, "You scared me."

"Sorry," Stefan replied solemnly. There was definitely something wrong. "And um, I'm sorry I ran off earlier."

"What's happened?" I asked, "Is everything okay? Are you okay?"

"Uh..." Stefan finally admitted, "No,"

"Talk to me," I told him, "Tell me what's wrong." I walked over to the bathroom door, and closed it. I didn't want Jeremy seeing Stefan here if he were to use the bathroom. I walked back over to Stefan. I sat down onto my soft bed, and patted the place next to me, "Stefan, Tell me."

He sat next to me, a bit reluctantly, and said, "I tried so hard to keep it together tonight, and it was working, it was working but then Matt's mom, she got hurt and she was bleeding and I had her blood on my hands." He paused, and I patiently waited for him to continue, "And then that gut in the parking lot, I wanted to feed on him and it took everything inside of me not to."

"But you didn't." I stated.

"No, but I wanted to," He admitted, almost painfully, "Ariana," he reached his hands up and they hovered next to his temple, "My head is pounding. I feel like my skin is on - is on," He gestured to his face in emphasis, "Fire. I have this hunger inside of me that I've never felt before in my entire life and all I keep thinking about is how I promised that I would never keep anything from you, and so I'm telling you this," he closed his eyes.

I nodded, "That's okay; I need you to tell me these things, it's good that I know."

"But I don't want you to see me like this." he retorted, "I don't want you to know that this side of me exists."

"Stefan, you're gonna get through this." I told him, sternly, "I'm gonna help you pull through. It's gonna be okay, you're gonna be okay," I reached up and caressed his face, but he pulled away from me and stood up, walking backwards.

"No, no, no, no, no." He said, closing his eyes, then opening them again. "I'm sorry, I can't, I'm afraid of what I could do to you."

I stood up and walked towards him. I was the one afraid for him. It shouldn't be the other way around. "I'm not." I stated, "If it's you, then I'm not afraid for my safety." I took his face between my hands, and was glad that this time he didn't fight me. "Stefan, I'm not afraid." I whispered, looking into his eyes, and kissed him. "I'm not, okay?"

We embraced each other, and he whispered, his voice cracking, "I love you so much."

"I love you too," I said genuinely. It was because I loved him that I was hurting inside as well. I could almost feel his pain, and I wanted him to feel better, to become comfortable, and most of all; happy.

Hey guys! Sorry I couldn't update this a little earlier, but I had to go skiing with my friends. I hope you enjoyed my chapter, but even if you didn't, I'd appreciate you leaving a review, so that I could improve on my writing. Thank you!

-Spiralcloud