"So now that we had time to sleep on it," Alyssa asked with crossed arms standing in the parlor with Damon, Elena, and Stefan, "anybody have any idea's about what we're going to do about the newest vampire problem?"

Damon who was boarding up the window that Frederick and Beth-Anne broke through answered, "I say we go to Pearl's, bust down the door, and annihilate the idiot that attacked us last night.

"Yeah. And then what?" Stefan asked. "We turn to the rest of that house of vampires and say, "Oops. Sorry?"

The mentioned of the house filled with vampires made Elena say, "I can't believe you made a deal with her."

"It was more like a helpful exchange of information. And it's not like I had a

choice. She's...scary. Besides, she's gonna help me get Katherine back."

Alyssa looked at him incredulously, "you're like the kid who keeps putting his hand in the socket even though he knows he going to get shocked when he does. He still does it."

"Your extra snarky today."

"I've more than earned the right to be after learning what I have. You deciding to be be extra stupid this week doesn't help either."

"Neither is this." Stefan said ending the verbal fight. "We're gonna figure out a way to deal with Pearl and the vampires."

"And how exactly do you expect me to do that?" Elena asked.

"Damon and I are gonna handle everything, I promise." Stefan assured her and Alyssa rolled her eyes.

"Yeah cause that's worked out so well so far" She left the room and headed for the front door. She was so over the constant vampire infestation the town seemed to have and wished she had never stumbled on to the town's secret.

Damon stepped in front of her closing the front door after she had opened. She stepped back and looked at him annoyed.

"Just so we're clear Stefan and I and only Stefan and I will be handling our latest vampire problem which means you stay out of it. You're not to go looking any of the tomb vampires. In fact you are to stay as far far away from anything that resemblance a vampire. Or I will find a nice closet to lock you in until I'm sure you can follow directions." He opened the door and stepped back to let her out.

She walked passed him without responded and drove home where she stayed for the remainder of the day. Mostly she just laid in bed staring up at the ceiling allowing her mind to go blank.

"Bad day?" She turned her head to the door and saw Jenna leaning up against it.

"Bad few months," she sat up and Jenna took that as her cue to come join her.

"Anything you want to talk about?"

Yes, she thought but she knew there was no way she could explain to Jenna how she was feeling without telling her what caused her to feel the way she did. "Actually yeah," she thought of one subject that she might be able to discuss with her. "Why are guys such idiots?"

"I wish I knew the answer to that. I could write a book stupid men." She looked at her asking, "Is that a general questions or are you alluding to someone in particular?" She felt she'd already knew the answer to that but she wanted her to confirm it.

Alyssa crossed her legs and faced her aunt, "you know who." There was no sense in pretending otherwise.

"Tall, dark, and mysterious, yeah I know. It's pretty obvious with the way he's always around."

"Yeah, except I'm pretty sure he has a thing for Elena." She knew it wasn't only because she looked exactly like Katherine. "And I' know he's still hung up on his ex and he's older and has major anger issues which makes him that much more attractive."

"It's the whole wounded puppy thing. We want something we can fix, it's in our nature."

"Is that your personal or professional opinion?"

"Both."

"So what do I do? How do I stop caring? Because he definitely doesn't deserve it."

"I don't think it's going to be as simple as you think."

She groaned and laid her head on her shoulder, "why is being a teen so hard?"

"Being a grownup isn't all it's cracked up to be either," Jenna sat her head on top of Alyssa and they sat in silence for a few minutes and Jenna sat up and looked at her. "Pizza?"

"Yes please," they got off the bed and went downstairs. Jenna headed straight for the phone and Alyssa grabbed the car keys. "I'm going to the store to get something to go with the pizza," she called out from the door, "you want anything."

"Ice cream, anything chocolate," she called back and Alyssa opened the door.

"Will do," she left to make a snack run and came back twenty minutes later to see Elena and Damon together by the door.

"Whatever it is, I don't want to know." She said walking passed them. She wanted a day free of worrying about vampires, friendly or not, and just wanted to sit on the couch watch reruns and eating things that were very bad for her.

She sat the bag down on the table and pulled out the small carton of ice cream she had gotten for her and Jenna, a bag of mini marshmallows, and chocolate syrup.

She didn't even bother with a bowl. She just grabbed a spoon and took everything into the living. She flicked on the T.V and flipped through until she found some old reruns of bewitched and settled for watching that.

"You started without me." Jenna said when she walked in and saw Alyssa.

"Yup, yours is in the fridge," she answered not taking her eyes off the television.

She kept her eyes on the television even after Jenna had left and came back. She dumped a handful of mini marshmallows into her chocolate ice cream now that she had made a sizable dent and handed them to Jenna. She then covered it in syrup and began to eat again.

She didn't stop until she reached the bottom of the carton and by then the pizza had arrived. She was her third slice in when her phone rung. She leaned forward just enough to see who it was. She saw that it was text from the guy she met the grill the other day and grabbed the phone.

They exchanged a few texts before he asked if they could meet up. She agreed having nothing else better to do and asked him to meet her at the school. She and Vicki use to break into school after hours to go swimming in the summer time or to retrieve something that was taken from them by a teacher.

With all the vampire activity, she had been thinking about Vicki a lot and it had been one of the first things to pop into her had. When he agreed, she stood up telling Jenna that she was going out for a bit and left to grab her coat and an umbrella because it had started to rain.

She met him at the school forty five minutes later and they walked into the school. She silently lead him to the pool though he continued to ask her where they were going and what they were doing there.

She didn't look at or answer him until they had got to their destination and even then she didn't utter a word. Instead, she just stripped down and got into the pool.

"Are you coming or what?"

He hesitated but began to strip. She dove underwater sitting at the bottom of the pool until she heard him get in. Only, that didn't happen and she found herself alone once she had came up for air.

"Jason?" She looked around for him but didn't see him. Doing a 360, she turned to the spot where she had last saw him and saw Damon standing there holding a towel.

"Seriously," she called out in frustration and walked back over to the edge of the pool and climb out.

"I thought I said not to do anything stupid," she took the towel from him and wrapped it around her.

"What did you do to Jason?" Her tone never lost it's annoyance.

"He's still breathing, for now."

She screamed in frustration, "can I not get a minute to myself where I'm not constantly interrupted by a vampire or vampire problems."

"In this town," he furrowed his brow thinking about it, "probably not, but I know it won't be today." He tossed her her clothes and she caught it going into the locker room. She kept an extra set of clothes in there just in case she'd ever need them.

"What are you doing here anyway?" She had went into the stall to change her wet clothes and came out. He was leaning against the lockers.

"Looking for Rick," he watched her pull on her shirt and jeans. "Stefan got himself taken by those tomb vampires and I can't get into the house that they're in cause the women who owns it was compelled not to let me in."

"So you need a human to go in for you?" She laced up her boots. "I'm guessing Elena is with you." She pulled down her pant legs over her boots, "which means she going with you."

"No."

"No, she's not going with you?"

"No, your not coming."

She looked at him in disbelief, "but I didn't even-"

"I know you." He cut her off. "As soon as you found out Elena was coming, you're going to want to come alone to make sure she doesn't get hurt."

"She's my sister."

He pretended to think about it. "The answer's still no." He leaned up from the lockers and left the locker room.

"You say no but you and I both know that I'm going just follow you anyway."

He stopped which made her do the same and turned to her once they were out in the hallway. "I know." He said in answer to her statement.

She looked down at his hand to see him holding a piece of metal in his hand and then looked back up at him. "Damon," she doesn't get a chance to say anything else before she's inside of a broom closet. "Damon!" She bangs on the door after the lock would budge.

"I can't protect you." She heard him say and she stopped banging. "I don't know how many vampires there are in there. That's how long it takes you to get your head ripped off. I have to be able to get in and get out. I can't be distracted with your safety. Or this will end up a bloodbath that none of us walk away from...Including Stefan."

It goes completely silent.

"Damon," she called out when she doesn't hear anything on the opposite side of the door. "Damon!" she hit the door with the palm of her hand but realized that he left and goes searching for a light.

She pulled a string from above her and looked around the room to see if there's anywhere she can escape from. A piece of silver peeks out from behind a portable shelf and she pushed it aside. It's a vent big enough for her to climb through and she gets it opened and climbed through it emerging in the hallway twenty minutes later after getting lost.

She clicks the vent until it comes out and left the way she came in. When she got outside, she saw that Jess's car was no longer there but she was thankful that hers was. She opened the door and got in starting the car. She put it in drive and hit the gas but it didn't move. She tried it a few more times but still nothing so she opened the door and looked out of the car and saw that he tires had been flatten.

"Damon," she gritted her teeth silently cursing his name and reached for her phone that she had left in the car. It lit up with six missed calls and text from both Matt and Jeremy. She checked Jeremy's first. "Oh no," she hurriedly grabbed her things and got out of the car.

She started towards the Donovan house calling Matt to let him know she was on her way. She got there before the rain picked up and was let in the house.

"I just checked my phone." She said to Kelly hugging her as soon as she saw her. "I would have been here sooner but I caught a flat." She let her go. "How's Matt?"

"He's in his room." She walked back into the kitchen and poured herself anything drink.

Alyssa watched, preparing herself before she went into Matt's room but he was already coming out. "Matt," she ran up to him and hugged him and he immediately embraced her. "Matt, I'm so sorry." She hugged him tighter.

She stayed at the Donovan house long after everyone had left for Matt and to help clean. Kelly had went to bed hours ago probably having passed out and only she and Caroline were left.

"I can stay here if you need to go," she Caroline told her as Alyssa put away the last dish.

"I don't want to leave him." Alyssa leaned against the counter in exhaustion and disbelief. She always knew this day was going to come, she just didn't expect it would be so soon.

"She was your best friend." Caroline said Alyssa knew she wasn't just stating the obvious. "It's okay if you're upset too."

"I know. But I can't." She said holding it in like she had been day she died. "If I do I won't to be able stop and I'm not any good to Matt or Jeremy."

"Well if there's anything I can do."

"You know I think I'm going to actually take you up on your offer. I want to get home and check on Jere," she grabbed her stuff. "Tell Matt I'll see him later."

She nodded, "of course."

She walked passed her and out the door.

Jenna was waiting for her when she got home and she just walked passed her, "I don't want to about it aunt Jenna. I just want to sleep."

She checked in on Jeremy before going to her room and getting ready for bed. She felt surprisingly numb as she stared at herself in the mirror as she brushed her teeth. She didn't know why she felt that way. It wasn't like she didn't know that Vicki had been dead this whole time.

She supposed it had something to do with the fact that now everybody knew and it made it more real. There wa a body which meant that there was going to be a funeral. She was going to probably have to say a few words at the funeral. She would have grieve along with everyone else like she hadn't known all that time she wasn't going to come back.

She rinsed and placed her tooth brush back, turned off the lights and walked in her room. She walked over to her dresser and grabbed a hair clip. She turned around and walked over to her bed passing Damon as she went. She turned down her covers content on ignoring his presence when she caught sight of the picture of her and Vicki on the night stand.

She couldn't hold it anymore and kept her back to him as the tears she spent months holding in follow fell. He lightly touched her arm and she turned around wrapping her arms around his neck and he held her around her waist.

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