.
Feels like I'm falling, into a world
Into a world I can't control
I hear it calling
Down in my soul
Gripping my bones
It won't let go
Wake me up
Won't you wake me up?
Caught in a bad dream
Bad Dream - Ruelle
A.N.: I'd like to thank every single one of the people that read, subscribed and revied thus far :) As always, feel free to share your thought. Not only do they make my day but it often makes me update faster.
Olivia pulls another drink from the trays that were circulating at the party making the total count, thus far, of four glasses that she had consumed since her arrival. Drinking was quite possibly the stupidest decision she could make, she was well aware, but she had to calm down her frenzied nerves before she made a mess of things and one of the vampires lurking in the room noticed - hell, she didn't give a damn if Stefan noticed but Damon was a completely different story. She didn't even want to be here but it hadn't been like she was given much of a choice. Even if she could have said no to her rather eager blonde friend that had invaded her bedroom early in the morning to prepare - and boy it was hard to say no to Caroline - Cassandra would have dragged her there. The whole family was attending the stupid event.
It had crossed her mind to fake an illness - hell, she'd catch an illness just to escape being in the same room as Damon - however, that would have meant fussing, people, well, not people people, the Jacksons fussing around her 24/7. Sure, it wasn't that bad of a trade off even if she despised their behavior when they entered the insane concerned mode... on the other hand Damon and what Damon could do to her was far worse. Damon slightly off his rocker, mind you... But she didn't fake an illness, things had being going so off her plans - apart from saving Tanner's stupid ass and keeping Caroline way from Damon, everything else had failed- that she didn't knew what could happen in said party so, maybe, it was better if she was there. Who the hell was he using as a substitute for Caroline? Was Stefan going to spike his drink? Was he even getting locked in the cellar?
She did wonder, as she made the bubbly liquid swirl in the glass, just when had her almost palpable fear of Damon started. She had honestly used to love bad Damon and his abrasive and sarcastic nature through the season one. Sure, he was an ass and as the story progressed she was glad to discover more sides of him. She mostly rooted for him and now, now the bare mention of his name made her almost pee in her knickers. She was aware that as far as antagonist went, he wasn't even the worst she could come in contact with. That made her heart beat wildly again, good lord, how was she supposed to survive an encounter with Klaus?
She takes another eager gulp, finishing the drink in her hand almost automatically and ditching the glass in a nearby table. She needed another one, she needed another drink so that her buzz calmed her down. Not enough to get plastered and say something that would make the one she wanted to avoid murder her, but enough so that her heart wouldn't beat of her chest if she saw him. She hadn't come in contact with either of the Salvatores, but she was fully aware that they should be around - one of them was since she had seen Elena.
"There you are," Caroline mumbles as she warps her hand over her wrist. Olivia jumped on her feet making the blonde look at her worriedly. "You okay Libbie?"
"Great," she says with somewhat out of breath. If her skittish behavior didn't end she was going to attract attention and she couldn't afford that. "You scared me Care."
The blonde shakes her head as she pulls her away from the table she had dropped her glass at. "You've been strange since we got here."
"'Fraid to burst your bubble but Fred's always been strange," Alex states giving an unimpressed look at the blonde. His gaze sweeps her face trying to find something that pointed that his sister wasn't okay.
Caroline scoffs pulling his attention back to her. "Scared off your date already?"
Most of the Jacksons, herself and Cassandra excluded, had brought dates to the party. Well, Daphne had come with Jenna so she wasn't aware if it counted like a date. She had been surprised when she asked Alex if he wanted to come with her. Sure, Caroline had stated that she was free to stick with her and Tom but she seriously didn't want to be the third wheel... again. So, she asked Alex if he was okay with accompanying her. In a truly bored fashion he informed her that a girl from his class had asked him and he said yes - it was like he had accepted his invitation like he had nothing better to do by the tone of voice he used. Now, apart from being in a party that she didn't want to be, with someone that she really didn't want to see also attending... she was forced to do it alone. Well, sort of. She and Bonnie had bonded over the fact that they seemed like losers with no dates. But now Bonnie was bonding with Elena - and possibly Stefan - which had led her to sulk as she had a couple of drinks of liquid courage, or something of the sort. It was more of a case of liquid 'let me control my heartbeat' sort of thing.
"Nah." There was a smirk at his lips. "She went to freshen up or some crap with her friends. Should be here shortly."
Caroline groans making Tom caress her shoulder in a vain attempt of calming her down. "Don't know why she asked you to be her date."
"'Cause I'm apparently really attractive," he shares with the smirk still in its place. "You should know, you tried to get in my pants-"
"Alex!" Tom half yells with a glare as Caroline gaps looking positively mortified. If it had happened with her she was sure that she would have fled the scene. God, she felt second hand embarrassment and it had nothing to do with her.
He seemed unperturbed almost as if he hadn't said anything wrong. "What?"
Olivia, knowing that this would only get worse, sighed. "Okay. Both shut up." She gives a pointed look to the brothers that were glaring at each other. "Seriously, enough." While Alex looks to her sheepishly, as if he was trying to convey that this wasn't his fault, Tom sighs. "Thank you."
"How do you stand him? He's such a dick." She gives a pointed look to Caroline that immediately pouts. "You heard what he said!" The blonde defends herself. "Who in their right minds says this sort of crap?!"
Olivia sighs. Now she felt like having alcohol for a completely different reason. One way or another this party was off to a terrible start. "I get it," she says tiredly. "You don't like each other. I, however, do. I like you, him and him." She says pointing at Caroline and the Jacksons. "And I'd very much like that every time that we're together that we don't start this."
Alex scoffs. With a small smile on his lips, as if the whole thing had be a fruit of her morbid imagination, he ignores the couple. "Wanna have a drink?"
She grins. "Sure!"
"No!" Caroline narrows her as grabs her arm before she could walk away with Alex. It was now Caroline's turn to glare at Alex. "We are supposed to spend some time together, remember?"
She did. She had promised Caroline (at the blonde's insistence) that they would spend time together and have, at the very least, one dance. "We're just getting a drink away from prying eyes," Alex counters pointing to Cassandra that was at the other side of the room chatting with Caroline's mother. "Not running away. Even though that running from you sounds like a great idea."
Olivia rolls her eyes feeling exasperated. They acted like children sometimes, unbearable children. "I promised that I won't disappear," she tells her gently ignoring Alex's input. "I'm just really bored Care."
"Fine." Caroline lets go of her arm. "You owe me a dance." Once the words were said, a small smile appears on her lips.
Olivia nods. "I'm sure that meanwhile, Tom will gladly keep you entertained." She nudges him. "Right?"
He kisses Caroline's temple. "Of course." With some flourish, he extends his hand to her. "Care to join me for a dance?"
Alex rolls his eyes moving his attention to Olivia. "What's your poison?"
"Your pick."
Alex grins mischievously. "I know just what to get you."
And that had been how Olivia had found herself with Tyler, Vicki and her brother. Their fight hadn't occurred yet - hell, it wasn't even dark - but it was clear that they weren't having a good time and that something unpleasant was brewing. Both of them looked surprised as she and Alex made way to them but it was clear that they were somewhat relived. She did wonder what exactly had been happening before she and Alex appeared for them to act like that.
Even if Olivia had been forced to reevaluate her opinion of Tyler - she had never liked season one Tyler to begin with - she still thought that the guy deserved a good smack in the head. Sure, she understood that his issues with his dad did colour his views of life and made him act as an ass and there was also the fact that he was a werewolf and they were known for being violent. Yet, she couldn't really condone the shitty way he treated Vicki. Yeah, she was by no means her favourite character... but an ass was an ass no matter who he was being an ass to. But then again, he had been nice to her when she was searching for Alex to avoid his possible dismemberment.
"You two running from the party too?" Vicki made a point to look to Tyler who promptly rolled his eyes ignoring her jab.
Alex shakes his head before elaborating, "Came for drinks."
Tyler grins as he pulls something from his pocket. "Came to the right place." He hands the flash to Alex. "Don't spread the word."
Alex scoffs. "Yeah, yeah." He looks to her and raises an eyebrow. "You wanna go first?"
She nods and immediately accepts the flash he had extended. "Thanks."
Tyler gives her a curt nod before looking at the door. "Coast's clear."
Whatever it was, it burned her tongue and she could feel herself flushing pink. She takes another gulp, a bit larger before passing it to her brother. Now she was feeling a bit warmer. She seriously hoped that the swirl she drank was just what she needed to calm down. "Thanks."
Vicki was giving her a weird look. "You alright?"
"Yeah." She smiles trying to reassure the girl that whatever she thought that was happening, wasn't. "These things are boring."
Alex has already finished drinking. "Could be worse," he told her. "Now, we should get inside before the golden couple sends a search party for us."
"Or your date," she says as a possible alternative.
Tyler laughs at Alex's shrugs. "You look really excited man."
"So do you," Vicki quips making him frown. Whatever relief her and Alex's presence had offer, it was now disappearing.
Alex shares a look with her. "Uh, so yeah. Later," he mumbles awkwardly before pulling her away. "That will not end well," he whispers to her once they were at a distance.
She nods. She knew the outcome better than he did. "Yeah."
"Is there a reason why you're drinking so much?" When she raises an eyebrow he smiles. "You had three glasses of champagne already and ever since the summer... you slowed down. No more party animal Olivia Jackson."
Again, she had no clue what Olivia Jackson had been up to or the things that she did before. "I really didn't want to be here," she confides with complete honesty. "Plus, everyone has a date and I don't want to spend the party with Cass..."
He scoffs. "You could have gotten a date if you wanted," he points out. "You want to stick with me and my date?"
She shakes her head giving him a look that clearly stated that he was crazy for suggesting it. "I'm okay, just bored. Go have fun, I'll be alright."
"If you say so," he mumbles as if he wasn't completely sure if he should believe her or not.
Olivia found herself relaxing as time progressed. She spent time with Caroline - the pair dancing and laughing as if they had lost a couple of marbles but thoroughly enjoying themselves as Tom observed them with a giant smile - with Bonnie, who was hiding the magic issues she was having and she even spent a bit of time with James and the date he brought (a nurse from the hospital). As time progressed she started convincing herself that she wouldn't face Damon. That today was not the day that she would come face to face with the season one big bad. It was dark already and she hadn't been pulled to any of the drama. So, she was in a splendid mood and the alcohol she had consumed had lowered her inhibitions to the point that she was actually having fun. Maybe playing dress up and going to silly parties - as long as she wouldn't meet a vampire that could kill her - wasn't that all that bad.
She was dancing with Bonnie, making the other witch giggle and laugh at the crazy and rather silly dance moves she pulled, when Elena approached them. Stefan wasn't in sight - if Olivia was a bit sober, she would have wondered what was happening in the background - so, she and Bonnie, pulled the brown haired girl by her hands to the dance floor. They made the girl move by either pulling or tugging her hands or giving her gentle nudges.
"You two are having fun," Elena states with a grin on her lips as she stops all movement.
Bonnie looks to Olivia and smiles. "It's all her. I was moping half an hour ago."
Olivia laughs and bumps her hip against Bonnie's before twirling said girl that giggled at her antics. "I just reminded her that we are strong women and strong women don't need men to have fun."
"Alcohol helped too," Bonnie quips. "How about you?"
"I'm having fun too," she states before grimacing a bit.
Bonnie sighs and raises an eyebrow. "What is it?"
"Nothing," she says unconvincingly making Bonnie give her a pointed look.
Olivia wondered if Elena didn't said what was bothering her because she was there. "Uh... I can go get us a drink," she suggests.
Bonnie rolls her eyes. "You don't have to." She grabs Elena's hand and gently squeezes it. The girls start walking away from the dance floor to one of the empty tables. "Something happened?"
"Not really... It's being a bit strange," she states with a sigh. "I know I shouldn't complain... Stefan is amazing, but there's something really weird going on between him and Damon."
Bonnie frowns. She was looking like this wasn't the first time that she and Elena had this particular conversation. "He tried to kiss you again?" Olivia gaps, she wasn't expecting to hear this particular discussion. Bonnie interpreted her reaction wrong because soon she was explaining what she knew, "Damon is Stefan brother... At the night of the game he tried to kiss her. He's a total creep."
Elena nods with a frown. "I think he's trying to use me to hurt Stefan," she explains. "I don't know what happened between them and their ex... but there's this weird thing going on."
Olivia closes her eyes and pinches her nose. What could she say? She already knew why he was doing it and, well, what he was doing. But she had to have some sort of appropriate reaction or the girls might find her behaviour suspicious. "Did you speak with Stefan?"
Elena shakes her head. "I didn't want to add to the fire," she mumbles quietly. "They seem to have enough problems as it is," she adds as an afterthought.
"You should," Bonnie states with a worried look. "We really don't know the whole story or if Damon isn't going to lie and say you were the one that tried to kiss him." Elena looked offended. "I'm just sayin'... you don't hide things when you did nothing wrong."
Elena sighs. "I know, but saying... Hey Stefan, your brother tried to kiss me isn't going to end well either way."
"It's better if he knows from you," Bonnie insists moving her attention to Olivia. "Right?"
Olivia nods. "Stefan doesn't seem like the sort that would lose his plot over that. I'm aware that your relationship is new and everything is handled with care, but communication is important."
Bonnie looks at her with a grin. "Exactly, listen to the girl that has been Caroline's conscience for the last years. She knows what she's speaking about."
Even if Olivia knew it was harmless teasing, Bonnie's words didn't sit well with her. Caroline in the first season wasn't really what she'd call a mature person, she was filled with insecurities - normal insecurities even if they were a bit silly - and nobody deserved to be mocked for their insecurities. "Don't say that," she mutters shaking her head. "Care is great and I don't like-"
Bonnie raises her hands in the air. "I didn't mean anything by it."
She gives Bonnie a pointed look. She obviously did. "I know that Caroline isn't the easiest person to deal with," she tells Bonnie calmly. "We all know how she is... But she is my best friend and I love her to bits and pieces. Even if you were trying to be funny, it wasn't amusing."
"Hey, hey," Elena mumbles raising her hands in the air trying to prevent a possible fight. "Bonnie really didn't mean anything by it," she insists.
Olivia sighs. Those two would always cover for each other. "I know, I just don't like it."
"I'm sorry," Bonnie mumbles. "I swear I didn't mean anything by it."
Olivia nods. She was ready to drop this topic since it wouldn't get her anywhere. "Okay. So, what are you going to do?"
Elena nods to herself as if she was trying to convince herself that what she was about to say was the right decision. "I'm going to speak with him. You guys are right, we have to speak."
"It's going to be fine," Bonnie promises with a smile. "We're here for you." She looks to Olivia who nods in agreement.
Olivia noticed that something wasn't quite right because Elena shared an almost panicked look with them. Then, the source of her distress - and Oliva's - sat unceremoniously next to Bonnie. He smiled pleasantly. On that second it as like the world had frozen and she could only feel her heart beating against her ribcage. "Hey." He moved his attention to Elena. "Do you know where my brother is?"
"He went to the bathroom," Elena says. "Olivia this is Damon."
She wanted the world to swallow her whole. He was looking to her with a charming smile on his lips and picked up her hand, planting a kiss there. She had to fight off the urge to pull her hand. There was an almost maniac glint in his eyes that reall scared the crap out of her. "Pleasure to meet you."
She forces a smile and nods. "As well." Her heart was beating a little wildly, but given that he was merely looking smug about it, she figured that he didn't think anything by it. "You girls having fun?"
Bonnie didn't look impressed. "We were," she states. "Shouldn't you be with your date instead of high schoolers?"
Olivia laughed relaxing a bit. In this moment Damon wouldn't attack her, she was alright. This was why she adored the other witch. Damon seemed a bit taken back, but took it in stride. "I didn't bring a date," he states, shrugging a bit. That surprised Olivia but then again, she had removed Caroline from his radar. However, she had expected him to invite some random girl. "No one had caught my attention." At that he looks to Elena and smirks.
"Damon," she chides him with her eyes narrowed.
He merely smiles and takes a gulp of his drink. "Oh, here he is." He looks back, the girls following his gaze, and sees Stefan with his arms crossed over his chest. The younger Salvatore didn't seem pleased. He first looks to Elena and then to Olivia, before sitting between his brother and Olivia. "You look grumpy," Damon provokes him.
Bonnie had her eyebrows furrowed and was now looking at Elena questioningly. "You look like you had one too many," Stefan counters. "You girls okay?"
Elena nods with a small smile on her lips, reaching for his hand. "Yes."
"I interrupted their girl talk," Damon adds smiling when he saw annoyance in Stefan's face. "I think they were speaking about you."
Stefan sighs. "Damon," he mumbles tiredly.
Elena seemed to be the one that was the most uncomfortable, so she took it upon herself to make small talk. "I was surprised to see Alex with a date." She was giving Olivia a look that was begging her to reply.
"So was I," Olivia mumbles in agreement. She just wanted to leave but she didn't want to rise suspicion. "He didn't sounded really excited but well... you know him." She then smiles as she looks at the dance floor where both of the Jacksons were with their dates. "I think he's having fun."
Damon raises an eyebrow. "Alex?"
"Her brother," Elena replies.
"One of her many brothers," Bonnie adds.
Damon moves his attention to her. "Big family?"
"Seven siblings," Stefan replies for her with his eyes narrowed. "Did you need something Damon?"
Damon shakes his head. "I was bored and thought that would be a good idea to bond with my little brother friends and girlfriend. You know… meet the people you care about." There was a threatening edge to his words that Olivia knew that the other two girls hadn't caught.
On that moment Caroline, holding hands with Tom, joins them. "Hey!" She greets everyone excitedly. For a few seconds Olivia almost holds her breath as Damon and Caroline look at each other but soon, Caroline was looking to her again. Unlike she had expected neither acted strangely and Damon resumed looking to Elena as if Caroline hadn't caught his attention. "You disappeared on us."
"She was dancing with me," Bonnie tells Caroline with a small smile, sharing a look with Olivia. "It was groovy."
Despite feeling tense, Olivia ended up laughing. "I'm glad you're having fun," Tom says squeezing her shoulder.
Caroline pulls a chair and places it next to Bonnie, leaving enough room for Tom to sit next to her. "Nice to meet you," she tells Damon with a polite smile on her lips. "I'm Caroline."
"Tom," he says as he sits next to Caroline. "Olivia's twin."
Damon furrows his eyebrows and looks at them. "I can see the similarities," he says before introducing himself. "Damon Salvatore, Stefan's older brother."
Tom furrows his eyebrows moving his attention to Stefan. "Didn't know you had a brother."
Damon looked like he had just won the lottery. With a grin he quips, "We don't get along that well."
"Nothing we should discuss right now," Stefan interjects.
Damon nods and gets up. "I see I overstayed my welcome." He looks to the people on the table, ending with Elena. "It was a pleasure."
Once he was away Stefan sighs. "I'm sorry."
"We all know that you can't be blamed for how your brother acts," Tom says with a small smile. "Not your fault... and I'm sorry for what I said. I was just surprised."
Stefan shakes his head. "I should have said something but I wasn't expecting him to show up."
Olivia gets up as well. "I'm getting a drink. Does anyone want something?"
"Oh, bring me something," Caroline requests with a smile on her lips. "My feet are hurting so I'll be here for a while."
"I'll help." Tom motions to get up when Stefan raised his hand so he stopped his movement.
"Since I also want a drink," Stefan mumbles sharing a look with her. "I'll go." He looks to Elena with a smile. "You want something?"
Elena shakes her head. "Just the dance you promised me." He laughs and nods.
"Bring me something too," Tom adds looking to his sister. "Anything is fine."
The walk to the bar was quiet. Olivia was mentally congratulating herself for not acting out - something along the lines of rushing out of her seat screeching bloody murder - whereas Stefan seemed troubled – he didn't know what to think of his brother behaviour. The only thought on her head was that it had gone far better than she had initially predicted. She also thought that now that she had interacted with him she wouldn't, quite possibly, speak with him again today. But then again, ever since she came to this world, luck hadn't really been a part of her life – if the past events hinted at something.
Once they ordered the drinks he looked at her with a somewhat serious expression. "You okay?"
"I survived," She tells him cheekily making a small smile appear on his lips. "How about you?"
"Worried," he declares looking like he wouldn't elaborate. He glanced at the table, seeing the occupants laughing at something before turning his attention back to her. "Did he say something?" His worry and fear were almost palpable.
Olivia shakes her head trying to reassure him. "Nothing out of the ordinary."
He sighs before nodding. "You're having a good time?"
"It's nothing being as terrible as I assumed," she shares. Nothing bad had happened at this point. "I just need a bit of fresh air and I'll be hunky-dory."
He laughs. "I can take care of the drinks," he offers.
She nods. "Thank you. Tell them I went the restroom and that I'll be there shortly." She tilts her head feeling a bit rude all of the sudden. "How about you? Having fun?"
He looked a bit surprised but nodded. "Things would have been better if Damon wasn't around."
"Elena is having a good time," she ends up stating making the vampire smile. She wondered if she should warn him about the conversation that Elena would have with him. On one hand it seemed like she would violate her privacy but in the other hand if she warned the vampire, things could go more smoothly for them. "Okay, you have to keep this a secret." He nods looking serious all of the sudden as if he would hear one of her deepest secrets. "Relax, nothing that important." He furrows his eyebrows in confusion. "Elena is going to address the fact that Damon almost kissed her soon."
He nods. "Thanks for the heads up."
"You were doing me a favour so I returned the courtesy," she says as she grabs a glass of champagne that someone had ordered but hadn't picked up. "I'll be outside."
He nods. "Call if you need me." To any pry ears, it would seem like he was a concerned friend but she was well aware that what he meant was that she should call if Damon did something, so she nods with a smile on her lips and walks away.
As she walked to the garden, ignoring the looks she was receiving, she realized that she did stick out like a sore thumb. It wasn't her clothes, even if the Jacksons weren't swimming in money - after all the bills accounted for eight whereas only three had jobs - they all had appropriate clothes to use in formal events. She was wearing a simple black dress that had Caroline's seal of approval and her blue hair had been tamed into a lovely - even if a bit messy - bun. Caroline had also done her make-up and she was well aware that she looked perfectly fine. Maybe it was the blue hair itself or maybe it was the fact that she really didn't act all that sophisticated. If she was honest, she figured that this was most likely her first formal event. That paired with the fact that she was nervous because of Damon made thing a bit tricky.
Her musings come to a stop when she goes outside. It seemed like Tyler and Vicki were having an argument but instead of the girl leaving the party in a rush, Tyler was the one that left her alone in the garden walking away with his mother. The girl seemed like she was going to cry. Her hands were slightly trembling and she sat on the ground, leaning her head against the wall in a rather tired - and somewhat desperate - fashion. Olivia was debating if she should approach the girl or not, when Vicki started weeping. She couldn't shake off the feeling that she owed something to the girl, so she walked to her decided to at least try to make her feel better - it was the least she could do after leaving her alone with Damon at the night of the comet. If it failed at least she would have tried.
Olivia flattens her dress and sits in the ground next to Vicki. When said girl sees her, she quickly wipes her tears. "You're here to mock me or something?"
"No." She makes a pause trying to come up with something to say that wouldn't make everything worse. She gathered that there were no appropriate words for this situation. Vicki had clearly heard Tyler's mother and he hadn't defended her. She most likely had her hear broken. "You want to talk?"
Vicki shakes her head, she squints her eyes in a suspicious fashion. "Why aren't you at the party?"
"I really don't like these sorts of things," she answers her honestly. "I needed a bit of air away from all that and you looked like you needed someone to speak with."
"Why do you even care? We're not friends and have never been," Vicki states harshly with her eyes narrowed.
Olivia sighs. Well, good intentions paved the way to hell or whatever it was the saying. "I am aware. If you want me to go, I will…"
"I don't know what the fuck is wrong with him," Vicki mumbles after a bit. It was like she couldn't decide if she wanted to confide in Olivia or not. Her gaze was firmly placed at her hands like she didn't have courage to face her. "Or me. I can't get my shit together and I keep making a mess of everything… maybe that's why he doesn't like me and keeps doing this shit to me." She places her head on her hands hiding her tears from view, the only thing that indeed hinted that the girl was crying was her chest movements.
Olivia sighs as she looks straight ahead. "Look, I'm certain that things are hard for you… you don't have the easiest of lives and even if you make mistakes, everyone muddles up at some point," she shares with the girl. The girl looks to her as if she was waiting for Olivia to tell her it was all her fault and that she her previous words where just to further mock her. "And you shouldn't really let him affect you this much, neither of them." She gives Vicki a pointed look making her look to her hands in shame. "It's true that I don't know you well but I really think that you, and everyone really, should try to improve themselves because it's what they want-"
"Please, if I had a life like yours-"
"You also don't know me Vicki," she tells the girl with tone tinged by sadness that made the girl shut up. "It's really easy to judge someone when you don't know them and I'm not turning this into a competition of who has it worse. Everyone has problems. You, me… even Tyler." She makes a pause trying to access if her words where making sense to Vicki. "You deserve to be happy, everyone deserves to be happy. If you really want things to get better you have to change things, you can't do the same and hope for a different outcome."
Vicki frowns. "Yeah, like anyone cared for the 'trash'."
"You're not trash," Olivia tells her sternly. "You are a girl with problems and doesn't see a way to fix them. But you can if you want to, it's on you. It's not on Matt, Tyler or anyone else. It's on you. And if you fuck it up at least you tried, that's what matters… that you tried to change it."
"Behind all that blue hair there's wisdom," Vicki teases with a small smile. "Thanks…"
"You're welcome and for whatever it's worth, people care about you."
Vicki snorts. The way she looked at Olivia could easily be translated to 'are you serious right now?' sort of look."C'mon at least don't start bullshitting me."
"I wasn't going to say me." Olivia rolls her eyes. "I barely know you. I mean your brother, he clearly loves you."
Vicki smiles. She clearly agreed with Olivia's stament. "He does, doesn't he?" Olivia nods. "What are your problems anyway?" Vicki was looking curiously to her making Olivia raise an eyebrow. "I could hear you too..." She offers.
No one could help her with what was wrong with her but she was aware that she should give something to the other girl, so it would seem that she hadn't been lying just to make her feel better. "I feel like I don't belong," she shares. Hell, she knew that she didn't belong. The other girl snorts making her narrow her eyes. "I'm serious. People sometimes expect me to act in a certain way and when I don't, they get..." she sighs. "Look, like I said, I'm not saying that my issues are more important than yours. Maybe it's stupid." It really wasn't since she had one day woken up in a different world, however, she couldn't say that to Vicki. To be honest, she was aware that she couldn't say that to anyone given the reaction that the Jacksons had.
"You are different than you used to be," Vicki shared after a couple of seconds of silence. "Last year you wouldn't give a fuck if I was here crying." Olivia shrugs not knowing what to say. "You really think I can turn this around?"
Vicki looked vulnerable on that moment, like she needed reassurance to believe in herself. "It's not going to be easy but if you really want to, you can."
"I'm going to try," the girl states with conviction. "No more running after him, no more drugs." She grimaces, the confidante demeanor disappearing instantly. "I don't know if I can."
Olivia squeezes her shoulder gently. "One day at the time. You can expect tomorrow to be perfect. Baby steps." Vicki nods. "Baby steps and if you mess up, try again till you get it right."
"I don't think that anyone ever told me I could do it." She sighs. "Sure, Matt believes in me but he's my brother... he's supposed to. Thank you Olivia."
A wide smile appears on her lips. Olivia felt like she had done something right. "You're welcome and if you need to chat, I'm here."
Vicki nods and gets up. "I'm going home now." Olivia raises an eyebrow. In the show she went to Jeremy's house. "I need a bath and a good cry."
"Ice cream helps," she advises making the other girl chortle.
"Yeah, ice cream and sappy movies." She extends her hand to Olivia and pulls her up. "Have fun."
Olivia snorts. "Doubtful, but thanks."
She watches Vicki leave wondering if her intervention had made things better. Even if she knew what happened in the plot, she couldn't really predict what consequences her actions would have. She shakes those thoughts from her head, now it wasn't the time to think about it. Maybe once she was home she could try to predict everything but for now, she had to survive the rest of the party. She wondered what would happen with Damon and Stefan. No Caroline - nor date - meant that Stefan didn't have someone to spike the drink... Things had definitely changed from what she had seen, she just didn't know if it had been for the better or not.
Not everything had changed in all fairness. A mountain lion had been caught - killing a couple of people - and Damon was still trying to annoy the crap out of Stefan. Elena was still clueless and Bonnie was struggling with the knowledge she had magic - she did wonder if the latter was aware that the Jacksons were witches. Jeremy was still addicted to drugs, Jenna was still struggling with her parental authority… so, in a way, everything was the same.
She spent a bit more time with her friends before they went to dance with their dates. A guy from school invited Bonnie and even if the girl had seemed reluctant to leave, she ended up going at Olivia's reassurance that it was fine. She was sitting in the same table, taking small sips of her champagne glass - one that Tom had handed to her when he went to dance with Caroline - observing them. Caroline and Tom where laughing as they danced, she had truly never seen the blonde as happy as when she was with Tom and it worried her knowing what was coming and due the fact that she didn't know if their relation would survive the hardships. Elena and Stefan were also dancing, seemingly on their own bubble; Alex was now making out with his date and she had quickly move her attention to something else since it did make her feel a bit nauseous - maybe she did thought of him as a brother and that did make her smile. Even if, like she had told Vicki, she didn't belong, she had forged friendships.
She was distracted, so distracted, that she only noticed Damon when he sat next to her.
Her heart was now beating rather loudly and she automatically narrowed her eyes. He had scared her. Damon, in true Damon fashion, smirked. "Still boozing it up?"
She sighs trying to will her heart into calming down. "It would seem so," she states feeling proud that her voice didn't waver or hinted at her massive discomfort.
He was giving her a curious look. "So, tell me... You and my little brother are friends?"
"We share a couple of classes," she tells him. "My brothers are on the team with him." She pointed to Tom's general direction - who was still dancing with Caroline.
"Not friends?"
She really would like to know what the guy was planning so that she could give him whatever it was that he was looking for. Spending more than an instant with him didn't seem like the logic or the wise thing to do. "That would be a bit of a stretch."
Damon grins. "Ouch. You seemed to be having a pleasant conversation by the bar."
That you totally overheard. "And so are we," she points out. "Still wouldn't say that we're friends."
He laughed and for a second she almost forgot why this guy scared her to death. Almost. It was as if he found her terribly amusing. "Stefan always had trouble making friends. But he seems to be faring better," he added as he looked to Stefan who was dancing with Elena. He made a point in raising his glass when said vampire looked at him.
"Wouldn't presume to know what goes on in Stefan's life," she states also raising her glass hoping that it would signal that everything was okay... for now. "Like I said, I'm not really his friend."
He sighs, as if he was a rather concerned older brother. He lowers his tone as he looks to her worriedly. "It's just... well, after his ex." He was looking at her face trying to see any changes in her demeanor. "I don't think he ever got over her, now he's with Elena... And Stefan always went head first... I'm worried he'll get hurt. That things don't end well this time... He deserves to be happy, you know? Even if he sometimes fucks it up."
She raises an eyebrow. So, he was feeding her information in the hopes she'd blab to Elena? And could she safely assume, due the words he was using, that he had overheard her conversation with Vicki? "Damon," she called him almost gently. "Maybe you should have this conversation with him? Even if we forget the fact that I'm more of an acquaintance than anything... I have nothing to do with how he lives his life, nor with how Elena lives her life. Got my own drama to deal with," she told him trying to effectively dissuade him from trying this again in the future. "Older siblings, schoolwork." She makes a pause and grins. "Getting more alcohol without getting caught."
He gives her an appreciative smile. "I can help with the latter."
"I'm sure you have better things to do," she told him. "Now, I'm going to go before my older siblings notice we're here speaking with alcohol and launch an interrogation that would make the Spanish inquisition weep in embarrassment." She forces a smile. "Have a good night Damon."
He raises his glass to her. "My offer still stands Olivia."
"Thank you." She gets up, leaving the glass behind, and walks to the bar.
Speaking one on one with Damon had been hard. It helped that he hadn't threatened her but the mere fact that he had been so close and could have snapped her neck before anyone had noticed did make the adrenaline pump. She wondered if he had noticed that her heart at time had beat a little too violently and if he had what had been the explanation her had come up for it. Had he noticed that there was something strange with her or had he been too preoccupied with his plans?
Soon her worries completely disappear. The party was coming to an end and several people had started to leave - plus, she hadn't seen Damon after their weird conversation. She was waiting at the entrance for James. Cassandra had been one of the first to leave claiming that she was beyond tired; Daphne left with the Gilberts since she had driven Jenna there; Tom and Alex had also left with their dates and the first had gotten permission from the older siblings to spend the night at Caroline's house. She was beyond happy that the night had been uneventful. Well, it had its dramatic bits but nothing like people getting bitten so she was taking her victories where she could find them. If she knew what was coming, she would have insisted going with James to the car instead of giving him time to spend with his date and snog her a couple more times before driving them home.
The first sign that something was about to go to pot was that there were almost no one there, there was only a couple of people and they were at a distance. If movies and series had taught her anything it was that when there weren't many people around things went from bad to worse in a blink of an eye. The second sign - more like a neon sign that really screamed 'danger' - was the fact that Damon was walking to her with a smile. Maybe it had been stupidity or nativity, but even if her heart acted as if it was about to explode, she had assumed that he wouldn't do something to her. Nothing in their exchanges had been that strange so she assumed that she had nothing to fear as long as she didn't provoke him - and she wasn't mad enough to provoke Damon Salvatore. She held onto the illusion that he just wanted to tell her something and that it would end fast and well. She hadn't done anything to provoke him and even if he was off his rocker, she didn't think that he would attack her and draw attention to himself. Then again, it wasn't like there were that many people around… he could always try to take her to a secluded place and bite her head of – given that he was a vampire, that could literally happen.
"You're leaving?"
She nods with some hesitancy. "My brother's getting the car." What she really meant was that he should put a stop to whatever he was planning because her disappearance would be noticed.
He takes a swing of his drink. "You look tense," he comments conversationally as if they were discussing the weather.
"I'm tired," she points out. She wasn't in a mood to play one of his games, so she tried to get him to say whatever it was that he wanted to share. "Do you need something Damon?"
"I need a lot of things." There was a grin in his lips that did nothing to calm down her nerves. "For now I'll just ask why you are so scared of me." He had a faux offended expression and had placed his hand over his heart for good measure. "I've been nothing but pleasant to you all night and I have this weird impression that you were avoiding me."
She tried really hard to not let her fear be visible. "Why would I?"
He shrugs. "At first I thought you wanted to jump me." There was a smug grin in his lips. "But you couldn't leave fast enough the second time. Even now." He makes a motion with his arm, pointing to her clearly defensive posture. "Every time to take a step you walk way." As if to illustrate his point, he walks to her making her walk backward. "And that just hurts my feelings."
She felt so relieved when she Stefan placed himself between them. She felt like thanking him repeatedly and kissing his face in reverence. "What are you doing Damon?"
"What are you doing brother?" Damon seemed like he was having the time of his life. "Shouldn't you be escorting Elena home, giving her a good night kiss and promising to dream about her?"
"Damon," he mutters sternly. "Stop. Olivia has nothing to do-"
Damon sighs, interrupting him. "Olivia is scared of me. Now why would a girl be scared of me brother?" He looks to her over his brother shoulder. He smirks and wiggles his eyebrows a bit. "I'm charming and really attractive." He narrows his eyes. "The only reason I gathered is because she knows something she shouldn't know." He smiles. "Which leads us to our next point. Should I kill her or should you? You've been sloppy Stef... And I'm offended that once I decide to clean up the mess you make one." He grins looking at her. "Don't worry sweetheart, it won't hurt... much."
"You won't do a thing," Stefan mutters clenching his fists.
Damon laughs. "And who's going to stop me?" He looks condescendingly to his brother. "If you don't drink the yummy stuff you aren't strong enough to stop me," he mocks Stefan. "So I'd like to see you try."
Getting tired of his games, Stefan walks to Damon and grabs him by the arm. "Leave Olivia."
"Didn't work," Damon mumbles with amusement. "My turn."
Olivia was walking away calmly, trying not to further worsen the situation when she feels a swoosh of air against her exposed skin. She didn't have time to scream as Damon dragged her away. The force he was using to take her with him made her bones hurt - she was going to have nasty bruises if she survived this - and she was positive that she had met her end. The pain was only fueling her adrenaline and she knew that to survive this she'd have to attack him before he had a chance to harm her. The issue was that she was low on magic juice and if she depleted her power, he was going to kill her before she could let a word out. This had gone bad too quickly and she was starting to think that she had been really silly to have gone to the party. She should have known that he was going to notice that something was wrong with her... she should have faked an illness.
Even if she rationally knew that the run to the woods - where Damon had dropped her on the ground adding to her injuries - hadn't been long, part of her felt like it had taken an eternity and another part felt like it had been way to short. Despite everything, all the feelings of wanting to return to her world and really not belonging (or wanting to belong)... Olivia didn't want to die. Death was permanent and as long as she could breath, there was a chance that she could fix her situation.
His face - vampire face - did nothing to calm her down and she assumed that he hadn't bitten her yet because he was not only thriving on the fear she was oozing but also because he wanted Stefan to witness her death. His vampire face seemed scarier than she had first deemed possible. She didn't know if it was the weird veiny texture bellow the eyes, the colour of said eyes or even the pointy fangs. Bloody hell, this was like a scene straight out a horror movie and the passage of time was punctuated by her whimpers. She was sure that she had broken or twisted her leg and that there was no way that she could possible run from him.
"You're doing fine baby," he coos mockingly. "Just like that... you should cry a bit more... that will make Stefan lose it."
"Don't do this," she mumbles trying to fight the urge to cry harder. She needed Stefan to get there so she had a chance at survival.
Damon smiles looking even more frightening. "You know that I have to."
"Damon!"
Stefan's yell had been what he had been waiting for. When he lunged, nicking the skin of the junction of her neck and shoulder, she used every bit of magic making him screech. "Mother fucker!"
Stefan quickly runs to her, tossing his brother way. "Don't come close to her." With his eyes on his brother, he picks her up, his own fangs appearing due the smell of her blood. "I'm sorry," he mumbles as his face returns to normal.
She does her best to cover her wound. "I'm going to let go of him," she mumbles. "Okay?" He nods as he supports her weight.
As soon as she stopped hurting Damon, he jumps up of the ground. He looked angry but then he laughed. "A witch?! You're a witch?"
She narrows her eyes. "I told you to leave her alone," Stefan reminds him as he hands her his jacket. Instead of dressing it, she places it against her wound trying to stop the blood. "Now look what you've done!"
Damon laughs. "This was a plot twist." He was looking at her. "You're tasty." He makes a grand gesture of licking his lips making her harm him again.
"Stop that," she says with a high pinched voice. "You are suck a wanker. Bloody hell, I want to kill you! I finally understand why so many people want you dead, you are infuriating!"
"Part of my many charms," he quips with a smirk. Feeling angry with what he had put her through and his 'not a care in the world' behavior, she harms him again.
Stefan squeezes her hand and points to him. "He won't do a thing now." Reluctantly, she stops hurting Damon. It wasn't like she could keep it up any longer. Soon, she'd be bleeding from her nose.
"This was exciting," Damon mutters as he gets up, slower this time. "But I gotta go. People to hurt and whatnot." With his eyes fixed on her he smirks. "I'll be seeing you." After winking his eye, he runs away.
Once he left it was like the last bit of strength she had disappeared and her legs immediately buckle. She still couldn't believe that her heart was beating – and it was beating rather violently. The worst part was that even if she had survived she was positive that this was merely one of the many life threatening situations that she would find herself.
She slides against Stefan's side almost falling down – she still couldn't decide if her legs giving out had been due relief that the situation had ended or if she really had lost all of her strength. He did a good job of holding her but it was clear that the fact she was bleeding was taking a toll on him. The veins in his eyes kept flickering and she started to wonder if he'd try drink from her. He helps her to the ground and once she was settled, he bites of his wrist, extending it to her. She didn't know if he was ashamed of his action but it was clear that he was feeling uncomfortable. He couldn't meet her gaze and his arm was merely sticking in the air, blood dripping in the ground, as he waited for her to accept what he was giving her.
"I'm really sorry," he mumbles. "You should... drink so you don't have any wounds."
She knew that if the Jacksons discovered what had transpired things would definitely explode in her face. With a slight hesitancy, she touches his arm. Even if she didn't want to drink his blood – if she died she was sure that her issues would triple – she couldn't return to the house like that. They would either lose their plots or lock her up – after extracting information from her by any means they deemed necessary – or they'd launch a search in the area and find and stake both of the brothers. Neither of the possible outcomes seemed good. Hell, in all honestly she couldn't decide which was worse, and that really meant that both were shitty.
With her eyes closed and mentally preparing herself to the awful taste his blood was sure to have, she pulls his arm closer and places her lips in his wound. She was surprised that drinking his blood wasn't as gross as she had first expected. Sure, it wasn't something that she'd like to do again... it did taste like she was licking a metal spoon and the thickness did turn her stomach but she felt magic entering her system. The fact that the blood was pouring also helped, she was sure that if she had to duck his wound things would have been far worse. Plus, it was seriously giving a magic buzz… maybe vampire blood wasn't at all bad. It was almost like she was getting magic like when she siphoned from one of her siblings. She only noticed that she was in fact also siphoning magic from him when he pulled his hand from her with a slightly frightened expression.
"What was that?"
Oh, she had fucked it up. "I'm sorry," she mumbled closing her eyes in shame. Oh, she was making a mess after the other.
She felt movement next to her and soon he was sitting on the floor next to her. "Was that... normal?" When she peered at his face she could see that he was confused but had deemed her not dangerous.
"For me," she states. "I kind of lost control for a bit." Maybe it was because he didn't know the first thing out of witches or because he knew that she was odd regarding the normal standards but he didn't press.
She heard him sigh. "I am really sorry. I didn't think he'd attack you."
"Neither did I. I discovered that too late." He nods. She could see him struggling. He opened and closed his mouth a couple of times before sighs. "What is it?"
Stefan had a sad smile on his lips. "Thank you for not killing him."
"Next time I might not have a choice," she pointed out closing her eyes. "I apologize in advance."
He laughs, surprising her. "Damon's an ass but I don't think that he'll try to harm you again. I'll make sure he understand that it isn't in his best interest."
"He should stay clear out of my family too," she states. She was about to elaborate when her phone rings. She looks with panic to Stefan that immediately grabs her hand and squeezes it in reassurance and comfort.
"Say you went to the bathroom. We'll clean you up and he won't notice."
She nods before answering the phone. "Jimmy."
"Where the hell are you?!"
She sighs. "I had to use the bathroom."
"I'm waiting for five minutes," her brother states with a harsh tone. "You should have warned me. Why are you taking so long?"
With her eyes locked in Stefan's she says the only thing she knew that would make her brother stop questioning her. "I just got my period." Stefan widens his eyes making her smile. "I had to find some-"
"Are you almost done," her brother asks with a much gentler tone.
"I need a couple more minutes. I found someone that is going to lend me some tampons," she says almost feeling her brother discomfort.
He sighs. "Okay Ivy. We'll make a pit stop for ice cream."
"Thank you Jimmy."
When she disconnected the call, Stefan picked her up and took her back to the house. The number of people had diminished but thankfully they weren't caught by anyone. They entered the bathroom and he helped her remove all traces of blood and dirt from her person. It didn't take that long since there were two pair of hands dealing with the mess. While she was tugging and slapping the dirt away from her dress, he was gently cleaning her face with a wet piece of paper. If the whole thing hadn't been traumatic, the fact that Stefan Salvatore was fixing her make-up would have made her laugh like a mad woman. Surprisingly enough, he also fixed her hair making her laugh as he reminded her that he did in fact had a talent with hair - one of the perks of being his friend. He completely dissembled the hairdo that Caroline had made hours ago – it seriously felt like days had passed since the morning – and with a much gentler touch than she had deemed impossible to someone that wasn't a hairdresser to have, tugged her hair till it was an almost exact copy of what Caroline had done.
He kept speaking with her, making several humorous and slightly self-decrepitating remarks as they worked. The skin deep humour was noticeably out of place. It was clear than neither wanted to discuss what had taken place in the woods and the ramifications of said event so it was easier to joke as if she hadn't almost died and as if his brother wasn't really a danger to Stefan and everyone around. Olivia didn't even know why wasn't she walking to the Sheriff and giving Damon's name. The guy was clearly a nutcase and even if things got better in the future, it was possible that he was going to harm her and the Jacksons or maybe even kill one of them. She also didn't know what it meant for the events to come, wasn't he going to be locked out in the cellar today?
Once she looked like nothing had happened, under the careful watch of Stefan - that despite knowing that the odds of Damon striking again were dim - walked to the car and drove away with James. Only when the car was out of view and he could no longer hear the engine, did he leave the party. The day had gone way worse than he had ever predicted. Stefan had expected his brother to provoke him and try to mess with his and Elena's relation - like when he told her the story behind the original Salvatore brothers - but he had never expected him to go after Olivia. Sure, it was clear that the girl feared him, her heart would always thump loudly when he spoke with her... but to attack her without knowing for sure that she knew something was a testament just to how out of control his brother really was. And the girl hadn't really acted like he had expected her to. Sure, she had avoided his brother - that much he had predicted - but he didn't understand why she had allowed him to drag her away. Was it to keep up the pretenses that they were all human? Had it been for their benefit or theirs?
She had looked so scared when he gotten to the woods. Lying on the ground, looking like a mess with her mascara all smudged and fat tears rolling down her cheeks almost as if she was really a human ready to meet her end. Then she did what she had done when he and her brother gotten in a fight. She probably gave Damon the worst headache he ever had on his life and even then his brother continued with his stupid banter. For the second time (or was it third time?) since he had gotten to Mystic Falls he almost lost control. She was bleeding, a superficial wound, right next to him and he could feel his control slipping. Maybe she didn't notice, she hadn't cowered in fear nor had tried to put distance between them but he knew that his brother had. His gaze had taunted him as if he had expected Stefan to drink her dry. He didn't, he was better than that nowadays... the point was he hadn't expected his life to get so complicated all of the sudden. He just wanted to be happy and with Elena he was. He had found someone with whom he could almost be himself. There were things that for both of their benefit he had to hide but he was happier than he had been in years and he couldn't help but to feel that his pursuit of happiness was putting everyone in danger.
He had to do something about Damon because one thing he knew and was sure that hadn't changed in the years that they had spent apart. His brother didn't know when to stop and despite everything, he didn't really wanted Damon dead... And this time around, he wasn't the only one that could seriously harm his brother. This time Mystic Falls had inhabitants that could very easily make sure that his brother never harmed anyone again. Knowing Damon, it was just a matter of time till he pissed one of them off.
Even if the day had just started, Olivia felt like it was dragging itself. Stefan was missing from the classes, she had overheard a conversation between Bonnie and Elena where the later told the first that Stefan had sent a message informing that he had to deal with something that had come up. It all pointed that he had locked his brother in the basement but she did wonder how did he accomplished it without spiking someone's drink.
Last night had made her reevaluate things. She had been right, Damon was dangerous but she had come out of it relatively unscathed. Okay, she had been bitten but she had been able to defend herself and Stefan had given her his blood... so now there wasn't even a trace of what happened in her body. She was still a bit sore but it was to be expected. Being tossed around by a vampire never ended well. The point was that she was stronger than she had given herself credit... maybe she could really deal with this mess.
She was leaving the bathroom when she felt a swoosh of air. Her first thought was that she had been wrong and that Damon hadn't been locked out and was now going to enact some sort of torture on her as a revenge. That didn't last long because Stefan rapidly told her that it was him so she could stop struggling. Once she placed her in the ground she narrowed her eyes as she debated if she should harm him nor not - he had scared the life out of her.
"Don't do that," she mutters with her arms crossed over her chest. Once again she was at the wood – she was honestly starting to really hate the place. "You can't kidnap me... There are laws."
He was looking sheepishly to her. "I just wanted to speak with you... See how you were doing and." He makes a pause, sighing. "To tell you that Damon's not a problem."
If she was in the right state of mind, her next words would have never left her lips. "You locked him up?"
He nods slowly as he observes her face. "How do you know?"
It was now her turn to smile sheepishly. "I... guessed?" She had to admit that she had done a terrible look at looking convincing.
He shakes his head, giving her a pointed look warning her that he wasn't fooled. "We can address that later. How are you?"
"I'm okay... my neck and leg are still a bit sore," she adds. "And you?"
He sighs as he runs his hand over his neck. "I'm okay. Damon shouldn't be a problem any longer..." When he realized that she didn't look at all convinced her squints his eyes. "How did you know Olivia? What else do you know?"
She knew that this conversation could get bad really fast. She didn't believe that Stefan would harm her but she wasn't so sure that if he discovered the extent of her knowledge that he wouldn't try to use it to his advantage... if there was one thing that she really didn't want to, was to have Stefan call her at every second of the day to know the future. "Look, I have to be honest with you." Her tone of voice was strong without being harsh. She had to end this before it started or she'd never have another moment of peace. "I know things, I really know a lot of things. I'm not opposed to help you from time to time... but in no way or manner am I to become your crystal ball. I'm my own person," she finishes. "And what you've done will just piss him off once he gets free."
He furrows his eyebrows. "But he's not going to." She merely raises her eyebrow. "He's locked in a cellar full of vervain. He's not going to just break free."
"I don't know who he's going to use but trust me, he's going to break out." She sighs. "Warn Zach... he's the one that is in the most danger."
His tone of voice becomes stern, "Olivia what do you know?"
"I need to get back. I have classes," she mumbles as she tried to walk away. Promptly, his hand was warped in her upper arm. "We already spoke Stefan. I'm not going to tell you what's to happen... you can mess it up even more."
"Why?"
She sighs as she removes his hand from his arm. "You mean well and as the saying goes... the way to hell is paved with good intentions. Plus, I don't know everything," she lies. "If I tell you things and you change them I'll know nothing."
"You can't-"
"I can do what the bloody hell I want," she snaps with her eyes narrowed. "Me waiting to help you is not to be confused with me being at your service. I'm my own person Stefan, I have my own agendas." She forces a smile. "Can I go now or is this going to end badly?"
Part of him didn't really believe that she could see the future whereas the other did - mostly because she had guessed that he had locked Damon. What he did know was that pressing the matter would make things worse. By her demeanor she wasn't kidding nor bluffing. He didn't know Olivia Jackson well, if he was honest the more he discovered the less sense the girl seemed to make – starting from the moment she interrupted her brother's fight with him, saving his life, to how she had acted last night - but he had seen her posture countless other times over the century he had lived. Per say. She didn't really look menacing. Maybe it was because that she was small or it was the insanely coloured hair… She looked like a cat trying to pass as a lion, however, he had seen what she was capable of. He knew that if she wanted, this could end badly. If he pressed she would break and that would mean that he'd loose whatever friendship he had forged with her. And, if she hadn't really just taken a good guess – and missed a couple of screws because no one in their right state of mind would pretend to know the future – giving the situation he was with Damon, he was possibly losing a valuable friendship.
Instead of pressing, and to end the uncomfortable silence, he decides to tell her what he should have last night. He sighs, trying to wordlessly let her know that he wouldn't discuss the matter further. "You should be careful for about 34 hours, by then all traces of my blood will disappear. You had quite a bit."
She grins, looking pleased with his decision of changing the subject, and nods. "Got it, no dying or I'll be craving blood. Thank you for that."
He shakes his head. The entire thing had been his fault, he should have been more careful with the way he had handled Damon. He had been fully aware that their encounter wouldn't end well and he still allowed it to happen. If anything, he should be apologizing to the girl. "You don't owe me anything. Oh, I know." He smiles cheekily. "If you really feel indebted you can always accept my friendship."
She laughs. "I can do that. Can you give the friend you kidnaped a lift to school? I really don't want to be late."
"Of course." He lifts her from the ground and flashes her a smile, glad that she was seemingly collaborating with him and letting go of the tense moment of a couple of seconds ago. "What are friends for?"