She Knew

by WhiteHairedD

Elena and Angela Gilbert were born on June 22nd, 1992 in Mystic Falls, Virginia. But Angela knew. And because she knew, it was easy for her to carve out a purpose for herself in her new life: protect her family (blood-related or otherwise) and prevent as many pointless deaths as possible. One thing she didn't know, however, was just how difficult that would prove to be. [SI-OC OT3]

21. Salvatore

This is the chapter you've all been waiting for, perhaps since the beginning. Well, one of them at least. I think (read: hope) you'll be very satisfied. Buckle up and enjoy the ride, my loves. ❤

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CHAPTER 20

SALVATORE

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At seven o'clock in the morning, Angela Gilbert was on Vicki Donovan's doorstep. She would tell him this later, with no small measure of shame to her countenance. Blood would rise to her pretty cheeks and her fingernails would pick at each other, chipping off a piece of black polish so small it would only be noticed by him. "I had to make sure she was alive," she would say. "I know I told you to go home, but then I couldn't sleep and my nerves got to me." Sleepless, again. He hated when she was sleepless. He had no wish to see her suffer. She deserved all that was good in the world. Anything less would be a crime.

While Angela Gilbert was on Vicki Donovan's doorstep under the guise of giving her Damon Salvatore's phone number, Stefan Salvatore was stepping out of the shower. He dried his body and changed into his clothes, then examined himself in the mirror for no longer than was necessary to ensure he was presentable. Angela found him beautiful. He supposed he was. A combination of sharp and smooth. Balance between his eyes and nose and lips. Clear skin, unusual for somebody who looked this age. A mask. The intricate, refurbished façade of an old building whose inside was in a state of disrepair and rot. A crime. He was not what she deserved. Yet there was nothing to be done about the way she affected him. The painful way his heart raced when she was near. The softness she both welcomed and returned. The carelessness she inspired in him. She made him feel like a boy again, enveloping him in her wickedness and virtue. She made him feel alive. She made him crave.

"Wow," Lexi said when he exited the bathroom. She was wearing the clothes she had arrived in, having instructed him to shower first by mocking his nonexistent stench. Her feet were propped up on his desk and she was slumped inelegantly in his chair. The curtains were closed and artificial light filled the room. A leather-bound journal was open in her lap. "You are so gone."

Stefan marched over and stole the journal from her grasp. This was the second time he caught her in the past few hours. He skimmed the page. She had been reading one of his passages about Angela. Yes, indeed, she did make him feel like a boy again, whose mother discovered his shameful, written musings about the girl he liked. "This isn't for you."

Lexi met him with a large, teasing grin. "Oh, come on. I'm your best friend. I think I'm entitled to all the information I can find about Angela, in her lucent, bewitching beauty." She imitated him at the end, then cackled. "I see your fondness for adjectives hasn't changed."

She read about their dance in the fountain. How mortifying. Stefan clenched his jaw and turned away, slotting the journal in the cabinet with the others. Damn her for knowing how to pick locks. "You could have asked me about her," he said.

"Yeah, but you'd never tell me the juicy parts."

He dared to face her again. Her grin had died down to something more reasonable. Something that didn't immediately make him defensive. She motioned for him to sit down in the armchair nearby. He felt like the schoolboy most of Mystic Falls thought him to be, being called to the principal's office for doing something naughty and having no choice but to comply.

"I can think of something naughty you can do," Angela said in his mind, with that sinful gleam in her eyes and that barely-restrained smirk on her lips that made him want to touch and take and ravish until there was nothing left of her but desire. "Or maybe I should be naughty instead." Then she would sink to her knees and take him in her mouth and– His fingers twitched against the arms of his seat, fighting the instinct to bury his face in his palms to prevent Lexi from perceiving any trace of lust that would betray his train of thought.

"So…" Lexi gave no indication that she sensed anything untoward. "How long have you been in love with her?"

"Who says I'm in love with her?" That sounded childish, even to him.

Lexi was unimpressed. "You're right. I've known you to wax poetic over every woman that enters your life."

Stefan allowed himself to smile. "Fine. You got me."

"Say the words."

"I'm in love with her."

"There we go! Knew you could do it." Lexi put her feet on the floor and sat straight. "How long?"

"The first time I admitted it to myself was late September."

"Well, good news. Judging by what I read, it's safe to assume she's just as into you as you are her."

Oh, he doubted that. He did not doubt Angela's affections or sincerity, no, not after that slip of the tongue two nights past, but it was impossible for her to feel as deeply as him–to imbibe in the same maddening cocktail of emotions he did–unless her feelings were also supernaturally heightened. He had been hiding it well enough, but he found that his days were consumed by her. By the thought of her smile, her laugh, her scent. By the flutter of her eyelashes and the softness of her skin. By the acceptance she showed him, which he did not deserve. By the memory of her doing something that made him want to weep from joy or spill into his hand while calling out her name. By the good in her. By the bad. He loved her. He loved her. Lexi was right. He was gone. His mind was gone and his heart was gone, belonging firmly to Angela now, for as long as she wished to have it.

"And here I was convinced," he said, "you would have come to the conclusion that she's in love with you."

Lexi's eyebrows rose and fell suggestively. "She's got taste, I'll give her that. I still think the whole reincarnation thing is weird, by the way. But if Bree says she's legit, then I trust her."

"I can't believe you and Damon share a friend. Bree, for one, has horrible taste."

"Watch it. Angie and I share you. Your oldest friend and your all-knowing girlfriend teaming up against you? That sounds terrifying." Lexi didn't look terrified. She was bursting with glee.

"She's not my girlfriend."

"Oh, shut up, you kid." Lexi stood up, resting her palms against the desk. "You're practically married."

Now there was a thought. Angela with a ring on her finger and messy hair, trying to resist the call of his embrace as she climbed out of bed to tend to the crying baby in the other room. Then he would find her sleeplessness delightful, just as she would find his whenever it was his turn to tend to– No. That thought was dangerous. Children were not for him.

"Sorry for stealing your biggest fan," he said, returning to less paralyzing notions.

"It is a shame, actually. She's pretty. Lee and I could've shared her."

Stefan had no fucking clue how to respond to that.

Lexi waved a hand. "Whatever. I'm just glad you didn't go for the Katherine look-alike. That would've been creepy as hell."

"Angie's still her sister."

"Yeah, not too happy about that, but it's a step forward. And she wants to help with your blood problem. That's good." Lexi smiled down at him. "I'll need to coach her if she's serious about this. She should know what to do if you fly off the handle."

"Now that sounds terrifying."

"I think it sounds fun."

"Of course you do."

"She's bound to take to my methods quickly. She does like torturing you, after all." Lexi's eyes shimmered with devious intent. "Her lips licked like fire against mine. It took everything within me not to devour her whole. Nary a day has passed that I have failed to remember the taste of her tongue, her skin, her–"

Stefan was beside his bed in seconds. He threw a pillow at Lexi's head. It flew past when she ducked. She strode to the bathroom while continuing to recite the humiliating passage from memory until finally he shoved her in and shut the door. Her laughter echoed off the tile. She was terrible. An absolute pest. He adored her.

It was not long after this that Angela arrived at the boarding house. "I drove straight there," she would admit later, with that rosy blush still on her cheeks. "It's a miracle I didn't crash, to be honest. I felt blind the entire way."

He was in the middle of making coffee when he heard the telltale sound of her car pulling up into the driveway. It took everything within him not to dash straight to her, as it always did. He poured the coffee into a mug and waited for her to ring the bell before walking to the foyer and opening the door.

Every time he saw her, she took his breath away. This morning, her hair was down in its natural waves. She was wearing black jeans along with a fluffy, black and white striped sweater. A black scarf was wrapped around her throat, to protect against the cold and hide the bandage that covered Damon's bite. Her black coat, purse, and boots tied the look together. Monochrome, drawing attention to the only pop of color. Her pink, inviting lips. As if he needed further distraction. Her strawberry-scented skin and general presence were enough.

He smiled like a gentleman, hoping desperately that his thoughts were not written on his face. Obsessive. He was obsessive and perverse. "Good morning. What are you doing here?" He repeated the question in his head and resisted correcting himself. That sounded rude, like she was unwelcome. She was never unwelcome. He always wanted her.

He followed each millimeter of her lips as they stretched when she returned his smile, each hair of her eyebrows twitched imperceptibly from her eyes crinkling, each pore on her face shift as the apples of her cheeks became more pronounced. She was light and dark both. Black and white. He loved her.

"Would you believe me if I said I was here to claim my dance?" There was a teasing lilt to her intoxicating voice. He wanted to drown in it. In her. She could be the death of him and he would thank her for it. How ironic that would be. Twice in a row, he would die because of the woman he loved. Although he never loved Katherine. Not truly. He couldn't have.

"How could I not?" he responded in kind. "It would be unforgivable of me to doubt your sincerity."

Angela laughed, and his heart felt full to bursting. "Yes, it would be. I came to wish you a happy birthday in person. I know you don't really like your birthday and I wasn't sure what to get you besides, so I came here empty-handed." She winced. "Which sounds terrible when I say it out loud."

"No, it's fine. I prefer it, actually. Receiving gifts makes me feel… strange."

The curl of Angela's lips became mischievous. He wanted to wipe it off, to ruin her, to be ruined in turn. He was a wreck. "What about the gift of my company?" she asked coyly.

"That would be wonderful." He let her inside, closed the door, and lifted his mug. "Want coffee?"

Angela frowned. He briefly worried that she was displeased, but then understood she didn't wish to overstep. "Aren't you going to drink that? I'd hate to steal it from you."

If that was her only concern, it was unfounded. He would give her everything if it would satisfy her. "You can have it. Unless you don't want it, of course."

"How could I ever refuse your handiwork, Mr. Cullen?"

Stefan groaned and handed her the mug. "Thanks for letting me go home like that, by the way. Lexi wouldn't stop laughing for a solid ten minutes."

Angela's eyes shimmered in a way that reminded him of Lexi herself. Trouble. Letting them meet would cause nothing but trouble. "Then I was right. She's here."

"In the shower."

"Oh, fun! That's how Elena caught her last time. I wonder if I'll get to see her in a towel too."

For the second time that morning, Stefan had no fucking clue how to respond.

"How'd she get past Zach?" Angela asked.

"She waited for me on the roof and pounced when I came home. I told him it was safe to let her in."

"That makes sense." Angela took a sip of coffee. "This is really good."

Pride filled his chest. He fought to keep a smile at bay. "Thank you."

"So. Does Lexi, by chance, have any plans for tonight?"

"No, and–"

"Funny you should ask." Lexi walked into view. Her hair was damp and indeed, her body was concealed only by a towel. "I was about to ask you the same thing." She stared at Angela expectantly. "I heard you wanted to see me in this specific state of undress."

Angela looked ready to faint. She was awestruck. Entirely smitten. It was almost enough to make Stefan jealous. "Oh my God," she said with reverence. "Lexi Branson. You're here. I'm talking to you. We're in the same room together."

"Am I everything you hoped I would be?"

Angela nodded numbly. "You look more like Taylor Swift than I thought you would. You're stunning." Some of her wits evidently returned to her, as she made a salacious joke. "I never thought the first time we met, you'd be naked, wet, and willing for me."

"Oh my," Lexi purred. She placed a hand on her chest as if she was honored. "I'm going to enjoy you." There was a predatory edge to her sentence that Stefan wasn't quite sure he was fond of.

Angela bit her lip. She was very fond of it, if the speed of her heart and amused expression were anything to go by. "Please do," she said seductively. She wasn't serious. He knew she wasn't serious. Neither of them were. That made things easier.

Angela broke first, turning her head away to giggle. Lexi soon followed, though her laughter was more brazen as always. It was one of the things Stefan liked about her the most. Nothing was boring when Lexi was near.

"To answer your question," Angela said, "I suppose you might want to go out for drinks, though I suggest avoiding the Mystic Grill. Some… unpleasant characters loiter there during the weekend. Cops get called. It's not as fun as it sounds. There's one or two other bars you can try, though their drinks aren't as good."

Lexi gave Stefan an impressed look. "Why stay in town? Charlottesville's not too far, is it? It's a college town. I'm sure there's plenty of places we can hit. Oh! Stef! Pub crawl!"

Stefan groaned good-naturedly. "You know what happened last time." He was stupid to say that. Of course Lexi would take the first opportunity she had to embarrass him in front of his– Angela. In front of Angela.

"He tried to steal a man's dog because he thought it was cute." Lexi was the Devil incarnate. "Almost managed to compel the poor guy before I realized what he was up to and dragged him away."

Angela beamed. "I vote for the pub crawl."

"See, Stefan?" Lexi said. "She votes for the pub crawl. You're outmatched. You're coming with us."

Angela seemed taken aback. "Wait, us? You want me to come with you?"

"Do you not want to?"

"Oh, no, that's not– I just wouldn't want to intrude. This is your day, after all." Angela said that to Lexi, even though it was Stefan's birthday. She never failed to surprise him. Lexi had announced that it was her day only hours past.

She surprised Lexi as well. "Oh. Wow. Uh. I'd love for you to come with. I've been dying for a chance to talk to you. You're a super important person in my best friend's life."

Stefan nearly kicked her then, like a child once more, upset at his mother for hinting his feelings to the girl he wrote about.

Angela's heart skipped a beat. He heard it pump harder as red appeared to stain her face. He loved it when she blushed. It somehow made her more beautiful. "That's a huge compliment coming from you," she said, truly touched. "Thank you."

"Would you like to stay for breakfast?" Stefan asked. "You did say you wanted me to cook for you."

"I'd love to," Angela said. "Just for breakfast though. Jeremy needs my help with this project he has. It's due tomorrow, so naturally he started today. I have to go around town and ask as many people as possible to trace their hands on paper so he can turn them into turkeys. It's for Thanksgiving. I think it's ludicrous that they're starting the festivities already."

"I'd be willing to help," Stefan volunteered. "I could trace my hands while you're eating. Do you need any paper?"

Angela seemed particularly pleased by that. "No. I have the supplies in my car. Lexi, I don't suppose you'd be willing to help too?"

"Jeremy's your little brother, right?" Lexi said. "I have a bit of a soft spot for those. Let me dry off. I'll be down in a couple minutes."

Angela waited until Lexi was out of sight before facing Stefan with her suspicion. "How does she know that Jeremy's my little brother?"

Stefan struggled to find words. "Ah," he croaked. "I talk to her. Sometimes. About you."

"I see." Angela stepped closer, bringing with her the scent of spring. She looked up at him the way he imagined her earlier, as temptation made flesh. If she continued his fantasy by dropping to her knees, he didn't know what he would do. "I trust you only ever tell her the good parts?"

"There's only good parts for me to tell."

"Well then… how about you get started on breakfast while I bring everything in?"

"What would you like to eat?"

She cocked her head, thinking hard. "You know what? I could really go for waffles." She could ask for authentic Parisian croissants and he'd start swimming.

He followed her with his hearing as she left and returned. He would whisk the batter from scratch, foregoing the two-in-one pancake and waffle mix. Made properly, they weren't meant to taste the same. She deserved the best. He took a vanilla stalk and let it sink into the warm, melted butter. It would add a subtle richness to the flavor. He allowed it to steep while he worked with the dry ingredients.

Angela placed two sheets of A4 paper, a pencil, and an eraser on the kitchen island, then picked up the coffee–the coffee he made, that he enjoyed providing–and took a sip. "This is probably bad for me," she said. "My adrenaline is already at an all-time high from meeting Lexi. Caffeine is the last thing I need." A joke, as despite her words she drank again.

"Well, if you'd really rather not, I'd be more than happy to take it back." He made a show of prying the mug from her hands.

She held on tight, not letting him. "No, no," she said dramatically. "Do not pity me. This is my burden to bear."

Amused, he let her keep it. "You should know something. Lexi's aware that this is your second life. That you have foreknowledge."

"You told her?"

"She did her own research. On the reincarnation side, I mentioned that you met Bree, not realizing that the two of them were close friends. I'm sure they got drunk and gossiped about us both. As for the foreknowledge, she sort of… stole my journals. Sorry."

"Oh." Angela contemplated this for a time. "I guess out of all the people with the potential to figure me out, I'm glad it was Lexi. I trust her more than most."

"It's good that the two of you like each other. That's important to me."

"Is it? Am I allowed to ask why?"

Because I imagined us having a child together. "Because you're important to me. Like Lexi said. You both are."

That made her happy. She shone like the moon when she was happy. He wanted to graze his fingertips against her, to feel her warmth. How cruel that he had to tear himself away from her brilliance so the butter wouldn't solidify. She sat on a stool and continued drinking her coffee. His coffee, that he made and gave to her. He felt disgustingly primal for placing importance on such a thing.

"I have a question." She did not wait for his response before she posed it. "The day you enrolled, Caroline said that you're a Gemini. How can that be possible when your birthday's in early November?"

Stefan turned his head to look at her. "Is that not the November one?"

"No. You're a Scorpio."

"Oh." Stefan frowned. "Gemini's the only one I know."

"Ah. I see."

"You're laughing at me."

"I am not." Angela tried to hide it. "I'm smiling. Really wide."

"You're laughing because I don't know astrology." He narrowed his eyes. "You think I'm old."

"I know you're old."

"Being old comes with experience in cooking. You're welcome for the food, by the way."

She could tell he wasn't truly upset. "Thank you, Grandpa. Wait. Did Caroline only ask for your zodiac sign rather than your full birthday?"

"Yes."

Angela did not hide her laughter then. "You know what? That's perfectly on-brand for her."

The two of them stayed in companionable silence until the waffles were ready. They turned out perfect. Their outside was crisp and encased a soft, fluffy interior. Their color was a stunning golden brown. A single cube of butter rested atop the steaming tower, flanked by fresh strawberries to match the woman who would eat it. Powdered sugar blanketed it like a thin layer of snow. He laid the plate in front of Angela, between the utensils he'd already placed. She stared at it like it was her god.

"Today is the best day of my life." She picked up the knife and fork. "Part of me doesn't want to eat it. I just want to stare at it forever."

Stefan laughed bashfully. Any more of that and his ego would run wild. "I can make more whenever you want. Don't worry about destroying it."

"Oh, I'm going to destroy it alright." With that, she cut the topmost waffle and took her first bite. She chewed. She swallowed. Her eyes fell shut and she sighed deeply through her nose. "Marvelous."

Stefan was pleased. He felt free to make himself a second cup of coffee, for him to drink this time. By the time he joined her, Lexi came downstairs, perfectly dry and in her sleepwear.

"No breakfast for me?" she admonished Stefan. "You're a terrible host."

Angela piped up. "I can be your breakfast."

Lexi barked out a laugh. "You're too much." She reveled in the flattery. It was obvious. "Should I go ahead and start drawing?"

"Please, feel free," Angela said. She watched Lexi pick up the pencil and begin tracing her hand. There was a calculating gleam in her beautiful green eyes. "You said you have a soft spot for little brothers?"

"Of course I do," Lexi said. "You're sitting next to one."

"Was he your first?"

"That's a conversation for when we're drinking, cutie."

Angela clearly approved of the nickname. "I'll hold you to that. What are you planning on doing after today?"

"Making my way to New York to see Bon Jovi this upcoming weekend." Lexi switched her attention to Stefan. "The offer to join me still stands, by the way."

"Can't," he said. "Too much is happening here."

Lexi clicked her tongue. "Figures. I'll be sure to tell you what drugs I took at the private party I'll compel myself into."

"Are you going with your partner?" Angela asked. "Or are you more long-distance right now?"

"Lee's out visiting some friends in Montana. We're each on our own little solo trip. We do that sometimes. Keeps things interesting when we reunite." Lexi said the last part suggestively, much to Angela's joy.

"I bet," she said. "Would it be weird if I asked to see a picture of him? I understand that you know what I am. I'm curious to see if he looks the way I remember."

"Would it be weird if I thanked you for giving me an opportunity to gush over the love of my life?" Lexi set the pencil down. The outline of her hands was finished. "Hey." She leaned in closer to Angela. "Want to see a magic trick?"

"Always."

"Close your eyes."

Without a second thought, Angela obeyed. A few strands of her hair became displaced when Lexi used vampiric speed to go upstairs to Stefan's bedroom and return to the kitchen. Two seconds. She was getting slow.

"You can open them now." Lexi presented her newly retrieved cell phone like she was on a game show. "Ta-da!" Angela humored her by feigning amazement. Lexi started scrolling through her photos. "Now let's see… oh, this one's my favorite." She turned the phone so Angela and Stefan could look at it. Two bright, matching smiles met the camera. Lee's arm was around Lexi's waist, and she clung to him in a side hug. They were dressed for the summer, in the middle of a coffee shop.

"You're in daylight," Angela pointed out. There was a crease on her forehead, betraying confusion.

"It's a vamp café. There's a bunch of them scattered around the world. This one's in Argentina." Lexi's long nail clicked against the screen when she tapped the windows in the background. "UV rays are totally blocked. The owner is one of us. He sleeps in the back."

"Oh. Right. I forgot those existed. You wouldn't happen to know a Rose-Marie or Trevor, would you?" Angela's question was sarcastic, but it left Lexi speechless.

"How do you know Rose?"

Angela's face turned ashen. "Wait," she stuttered. "You actually know her?"

"She's my friend."

The knife and fork clattered to the kitchen island. Angela placed her hands on either side of her head, staring at Lexi in disbelief. "Are you serious?"

"Why would I lie? What, do you know something about her?"

"I– Uh. N– No? Nothing that should concern you. Sorry. I didn't mean to get all… I just… you know. No, actually, you don't. And now you look worried. Great. There's nothing wrong with her, I swear, even if her taste in men is questionable."

Lexi was still alarmed, but allowed the change of subject. "It is, isn't it? She turned down a date with Stefan because apparently my description of him was boring. I mean, come on. Who would turn down a date with Stefan Salvatore?"

He hit her arm with the back of his hand, warning her in silence.

"No one." Angela's smile was directed at him. "He's absolutely perfect." She was flirting. It drew a matching smile from him, although she was wrong. The only perfect one between them was her.

Lexi looked proud of herself. "Speaking of Stefan." She placed the pencil and empty sheet of paper before him. "Turkey time."

"Yeah, yeah," he said and got to work. He glanced at Angela. "How's everyone holding up after last night? Is Elena okay?"

Quietly enough that humans couldn't perceive her voice, Lexi muttered, "She just called you perfect and you're asking about her sister?"

Angela didn't take it personally. "She's managing. Didn't seem upset or anything this morning, just a bit withdrawn. That's to be expected, I think. I haven't spoken to the others yet. I'm sure Tyler's still livid with me."

Stefan tried to reassure her. "You've been friends for years. He'll come around."

"Yeah. I hope so." Angela's nose crinkled in displeasure. "How am I going to convince Jenna to let me go out tonight?"

"Jenna?" Lexi prompted.

"My aunt. She's been taking care of us since our parents passed away. She knows about vampires, and after a hostile one showed up at last night's Halloween party, I promised I wouldn't leave the house after dark. But I really want to go out with you."

"Come on now." Lexi adopted a conspiratorial tone. "What she doesn't know won't hurt her."

"You want me to sneak out?"

"You have the whole day ahead of you. Make sure she sees how exhausted you are, so she doesn't ask follow-up questions when you say you're going to bed earlier than usual."

"Something tells me you were quite the troublemaker when you were young."

Lexi grinned. "The concept of teenage defiance wasn't born in the twenty-first century, baby."

"Keep calling me names and we might have to get a room of our own, baby." Angela said that in so sultry a tone it left Stefan's throat dry. He wanted her to look him in the eye and say it again.

"I cannot wait to get drunk with you," Lexi announced. "Maybe if we gang up on this one," she jerked a thumb towards Stefan, "he'll finally let loose and live a little."

"He does still owe me that dance."

Stefan set the pencil down, finished. "I don't know about that kind of dance."

"Why?" Lexi raised a mischievous eyebrow. "What kind of dancing would you like to do with Angela?" A trap if there ever was one.

Stefan refused to fall prey to it. "Chicken dance sounds pretty good." Lexi gave him a flat look; one that he returned.

"Unironically," Angela said, "I would love nothing more."

"Then you have no choice," Lexi told him. "Be sure to cluck convincingly."

Stefan smiled. "I think I prefer the freestyle."

"Thought so. Now… I'm going to get some shut-eye until the sky can no longer kill me." She turned to Angela. "Can I expect to see you around sundown?"

Angela shrugged. "Assuming I don't die. How are we getting to Charlottesville?"

Lexi gasped. "Stefan. You wouldn't happen to have that old Porsche of yours, would you?"

He snorted. "Of course I do. But it doesn't run. Can't figure out how to fix it."

"Because hiring a mechanic is impossible."

"I wouldn't let this town's mechanic touch my most prized possession with a ten-foot pole."

"Matt's really good with cars," Angela said. "I remember he built and rebuilt the engine of my dad's old Camaro so many times he started getting paid for it. Maybe he could take a look? Your Porsche is so gorgeous I would love to take a ride." Her demeanor was sweet, and he could never deny her when she spoke to him like that.

"I guess there's no harm in it." His voice was quieter than before. "I'll give him a call. See if he can come over in a couple hours." That pleased Angela greatly.

Lexi gave him a brief, knowing look. "Awesome. Well, I'll see the two of you later. It was nice meeting you, Angie. Enjoy the waffles and perfect company." She winked, making Angela blush again.

"Thank you, Lexi. It was wonderful meeting you too. Sleep well."

Stefan gave Lexi an affectionate graze down the back as she walked away.

"I was right," Angela said when they were alone. "She's the best."

"Yeah," he replied. "She is."

"I'm surprised the windows of the boarding house don't have that UV filter. You wouldn't have to pull the curtains closed every time a vampire without a daylight ring comes over."

"It was built before that was a thing. But you do have a point. I'll see if I can get them replaced."

"I suggest leaving the library windows intact. That room would make a really good trap."

He narrowed his eyes. "If any of my books burn when a vampire bursts into flames, I'm coming to you for compensation."

"Oh?" Angela tilted her head. "What kind of compensation would you like? Should I wear an embarrassing costume as well?"

"I think you've forgotten the fact that you're ticklish."

"You wouldn't dare."

"I would dare now if I were cruel enough."

"You're still cruel," she said with a pout. "You know my biggest weakness when I don't know yours."

You are my weakness. "I thought you'd like the challenge of figuring that out."

"I do like the occasional challenge." She pierced what remained of the waffles and finished them off. She switched her focus to the coffee.

Stefan nodded at the single strawberry that rested on the rim of her plate. "Are you going to eat that?"

"Why? Do you want it?"

"If you don't."

Angela set down her mug. She picked up the strawberry and, with a false air of innocence, invited him to bite it from between her fingers. "Well then, what are you waiting for?" Her feline eyes watched him without blinking, anticipating his reaction. For a moment, their green turned to brown. Her hair lightened to hickory. This was familiar to him. He had danced to this tune before, as part of a slow and insidious seduction.

"If you want something from me, Stefan…" she said once, dangling a dark cluster of grapes before him. A calculated smile spread across her lips, as clear now in his mind as when it first occurred. "Come take it."

He could not help himself then, and he could not help himself now.

Stefan leaned forward. Angela pulled the strawberry back, drawing him near to her. They were not touching, yet he felt the heat of her skin and each slow breath that left her lungs. Her lips were not those of her ancestor, but they had the same smile.

Her gaze was on him as she bent her head and wrapped her mouth around the fruit, sinking her teeth in and severing it from its calyx. He followed the movement of her throat when she swallowed. Her tongue slid out to gather juice from her lower lip. Her eyes–green and not brown–were dark in a way that made his stomach ache. "I changed my mind," she whispered as if it were some grand secret. "I want it all for myself."

Stefan could not breathe. She made no move to kiss him, and had given him no permission to move in her stead. He was forced into a state of limbo, floating between uncertainty and desire. Between love and hunger. She returned him to the haze of youth, to a time when he required no façade and was as beautiful on the inside as his mask painted him now.

Why could she not have met him first? She would have ruined him as thoroughly as Katherine had, yet her ruin would have been welcome. He would have followed her always, because she would have followed him. She would have loved him as deeply as he loved her, and given him a choice in everything. And if Damon ever developed feelings for her, she would have taken him to the side and told him that, though she did not return his affections, she wished him all the best in finding somebody who did.

He and his brother would have remained human, never thirsting for blood, their sibling bond unshakable. Stefan never would have killed. Never would have ripped and drank and murdered. He would have been a father, one far better than his own. He would have held his children and grandchildren in his arms, telling stories of when his joints did not ache and his body was still strong. And in the end, he would have died in his bed, old and gray and holding the hand of the woman he loved most. As he was now, he did not deserve that love. But oh, how he coveted.

Angela looked every bit the siren, lulling him with her song and dragging him to a blissful doom. "Thank you for the breakfast. It's always a pleasure spending time with you. Unfortunately, I should go. I have things to do."

Stefan managed to speak. "The project."

Her smile was enigmatic. "Yes, indeed. Once your car gets fixed, I think it would be best if you and Lexi picked me up. I have no way of reaching the boarding house that won't alert Jenna. Maybe park a block away, so she doesn't get suspicious?"

"Good idea." Only half of him was listening.

"Wonderful." She touched his forearm in a measured gesture, giving him enough affection to keep him wanting more, but not so much that he would break then and there. "Take care until dusk. I'll see myself out."

He followed her with his sight and then with his hearing as she reached her car. The engine started, the wheels turned, and she drove away, the sound of her fading into the distance.

Damon rounded the entrance of the kitchen. He leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms, watching Stefan with a faint, sad smirk. "Remind you of anyone?"

Stefan closed his eyes. He turned away, sweeping the crumbs and remaining sugar off of her plate, into the garbage. "She's not Katherine. Neither of those sisters are."

"Individually, you're right. But together… Elena has her looks and Angela has her mind. How interesting that you would choose her essence after all the lectures you've given me on the horrible things she's done."

"You're wrong. Katherine never cared about you or me. Maybe she thought she did, and I know you still do, but you don't play with someone you care about the way she played with us. She was incapable of care. Of love. At times, Angela's love is strong enough to cripple her. That's why they're different. That's why it's not the same."

"You're living out a fantasy, brother," Damon said. "You're falling in love with her again, because this time she's not so wild and ruthless as to make you afraid."

"I am not," Stefan snapped. "I never loved her to begin with. I was compelled. The entire time, I was compelled."

"You cannot possibly believe that."

"I do because it's the truth."

Damon scoffed. "I do not recall you being compelled when you danced with her at the Lockwood estate, looking like a puppy would at his mistress. She was more than capable of compelling someone with her feminine wiles alone."

"Not me." Never him. It was impossible. How could he have loved the monster behind his and his brother's undoing? He was no fool. He must have noticed the signs. He would not have allowed himself to be put in a situation where his dissent was so easily cast aside.

Damon was not convinced. "Whatever you say, little brother. Tsk. And people think I need therapy…" He rounded the corner, removing himself from the kitchen and Stefan's presence entirely.

Stefan realized that his hands were clenched into fists. He flexed them open. He would not think of Katherine. Not today. Lexi was here, and he had the entire day to relax, and they were going out to drink with Angela come nightfall. The day was too happy for him to think of Katherine.

He needed a distraction.

A masculine voice greeted him on the other end of the call, and filled him with relief. "Hey, Matt. Weird question. You wouldn't happen to know anything about vintage sports cars, would you?" Matt eagerly offered to meet within the hour, and refused Stefan's payment. According to him, fixing a Porsche was reward enough.

.

"Black or plum?" Lexi asked, holding up two shirts with a similar cut.

Stefan shrugged on his dark leather jacket. "Black always looked better on you." He took his wallet off the bedside table and slipped it into his pocket.

She turned away from the full-length mirror and narrowed her eyes at him. "I think you mean, 'Oh, Lexi, you're so pretty that everything becomes stunning when you put it on.' That's what your girlfriend would've said to me."

"She's not–" Stefan sighed, knowing it was a lost cause. "Just wear the black shirt."

Lexi tossed the plum shirt onto his bed and pulled the black one over her bra. He was used to seeing her in various states of undress over the years. It stopped being awkward a century ago. They were family.

"I'm getting you together tonight," she said when her outfit was complete. "You're welcome in advance."

"It's not that simple."

"Oh please, you're both whipped for each other."

Stefan sat on the edge of the bed. "That's not what I mean. She's scared of something. It's preventing her from… getting overly attached to me. It has to do with her foreknowledge, I think, though she didn't say so explicitly. I'm not going to do anything until she does. Until she's ready."

"You're waiting for her to feel safe."

"Yeah. I am."

Lexi sighed wistfully and slipped into her heels. "That's sweet. I raised you well."

He rolled his eyes. "My thanks, Mother."

"I guess I'll just play the part of the super cool best friend and nudge you together even if nothing comes of it. No harm in making you more whipped, is there?"

"Wouldn't you feel like the third wheel?"

Lexi started putting her earrings on. "I'll be having too much fun flustering the two of you for that. Besides, I'm planning on getting to know her as much as possible in one night. If anything, you might feel like the third wheel, seeing how much she tends to flirt with me. Not that I mind, of course."

"Of course."

"Actually made me realize how long it's been since I had a human girl. I'll have to look for one when Lee and I reunite. They're so cute when they blush, it makes me–"

"I guarantee that whatever's about to leave your mouth is something I can go forever without knowing."

Lexi grinned. "Have it your way." She finished getting ready. "Should we go?"

"Yeah. I'll text Angie where to meet us."

He did feel mildly guilty that she was lying to Jenna about being safe in her bed, but her excitement at getting into his red Porsche, along with the black, turtleneck mini dress she was wearing beneath her coat were enough to erase that guilt. She was breathtaking. A line of silver glitter followed her winged eyeliner, and her lipstick was burgundy.

Lexi, who absolutely insisted on sitting in the back with Angela, was on her as soon as she climbed in. "You look so good! This is going to be amazing."

Angela was visibly giddy. "You look amazing too! Well, even more so than usual."

"Oh my God, we're wearing matching hoops. Twins!"

"I could only ever dream of being your twin, Lexi. I love your nails. Where'd you find a salon that was open at night?"

"It's not hard to make them open at night."

Angela gasped. "I love the way you think. Why use your powers for good when you can use them to look good?"

"Please." Lexi swept her long, blonde hair off of her shoulder. "As if the sight of us is anything other than a blessing."

"I'm going to start the car now," Stefan stated simply, which made the girls laugh.

"Sorry," Angela said. "You look good too, my darling."

The pet name made his heart stutter. The way she said it was so domestic. As if she'd been calling him that for years. Though the intensity of her flirtations today confused him, he would be lying if he said they were unpleasant.

"So," Lexi said. "Anywhere specific in mind?"

Angela made a noncommittal gesture. "I found a series of bars we can work our way down since they're close together. There's a nightclub too, a little farther away. Other than that, we can hit whichever ones catch our fancy. I'm feeling spontaneous."

"Oh yeah." Lexi was abuzz with energy. "We are so bringing you out of your shell tonight, Stef."

Stefan smiled, something warm brewing in his chest. "I'd like to see you try."

"Is that a challenge?" Angela asked.

"Totally." Lexi responded for him. "He doesn't think we can do it. I think we can do it."

Angela nodded. "I think we can do it too. How should we start?"

"Well, the thing that usually works for me is…"

They continued plotting his demise, discussing their interests, and complimenting each other on the entire journey there, with Stefan occasionally offering input that they greedily accepted. It was sweet. He had never seen Angela so upbeat, and it was rare for Lexi to be this talkative so soon after meeting someone. They were becoming fast friends and they hadn't started drinking yet. Perhaps this was cause for concern if he valued his continued survival.

It took them roughly twenty minutes to reach Charlottesville, and another five to reach downtown. Stefan parked at the first place they would be visiting–oh, how he missed the purr of that engine–and they all got out, with the girls finishing some joke about how vampires that straightened their hair could resist heat damage.

The establishment was cozy and rustic, with a decent amount of patrons despite its small size. They decided to sit at the bar, with Stefan on Angela's right side and Lexi on her left. Any arrangement that did not include the newest member of their group in the middle would be rude.

"Could you leave us alone for a minute?" Stefan said in an imperceptibly quiet voice. Only Lexi heard him.

She winked and tapped her fingers against the top of the bar. "I'm going to use the little girls' room. Order a Moscow mule for me when the guy comes over."

"You got it," Angela said. She watched Lexi leave, then turned towards Stefan. "I love her."

He chuckled. "I know you do."

"I mean, I knew she'd be easy to get along with, but her charisma is unmatched. If I were a touch more insecure, that would make me jealous."

"There's nothing to be jealous about. You have a special brand of charisma yourself."

It showed itself in the sultry look that overtook her features. "Oh, do I?" He wondered if she realized just how alluring she was.

"Yes, you do. I know it's a bit late for this, but I wanted to make sure you were okay. Jenna's right. Being out after dark isn't the safest thing these days."

"Lexi is… how old again?"

"Roughly three-hundred-fifty."

"I have a vampire that's three and a half centuries old looking after me tonight, and I have you. Not to mention the emergency hunting gear in my bag." Angela laid a hand on his wrist. "I'm safer now than most people will be in their entire lives."

"If you're sure."

"I am. Thank you for always caring so much."

"How could I not?"

"You're right. There's no way you could not, because you're that kind of person." Her smile was radiant. "Your compassion never goes unnoticed. I hope you know that." Then, she leaned forward to press a gentle kiss upon his cheek, and pulled back before he could react.

The bartender approached them. They ordered a glass of bourbon for Stefan, a cherry vodka sour for Angela, and of course, Lexi's Moscow mule, which she latched on to when she returned after undoubtedly eavesdropping. The heat that had risen to Stefan's cheeks did not recede for a long time.

"So," Lexi said while playing with her drink's leafy garnish. Her shimmering eyes were locked on Angela. "It must suck knowing how some people die, huh?"

Surprise colored Angela's features. "Yeah. It does. But as of today I know that I can change those deaths, or prevent them altogether."

"As of today?"

"Vicki Donovan was meant to die last night. Last I checked, she was still alive this evening."

"Interesting." There was an air of triumph about Lexi, as if she just learned the world's biggest secret. "I suppose that must ease some of your fears then."

"You have no idea."

"I think I do." Lexi took a sip of her drink, letting the statement hang in the air. "If I knew how to prevent people's deaths… well, I wouldn't have experienced my life's biggest heartbreak."

Angela tilted her head. "Would you be open to elaborating?"

"I suppose we are drinking, aren't we?" Lexi fell silent, tracing the rim of her copper mug as she thought of how to begin. "Do you know how I came to be a vampire?"

"I'm afraid I don't."

"When I was twenty, an illness took my mother and father. It was the three of us and my baby brother all crammed into this tiny little farmer's cottage in the Lincolnshire countryside. It's a miracle that we children didn't fall as well."

"Lincolnshire?" Angela echoed. "I never knew you were English."

"My father was English. My mother was Greek. Alexia, they named me. But I'm neither one nor the other. Not culturally, at least. Not anymore. I sailed to the New World shortly after I turned, since I didn't need money to do so. Not with what I'd become. We never had enough money after our parents passed away. I continued working the field, but with nobody's help, it was too much work for too little pay. Not to mention, as the man of the house, my brother was expected to take care of the business side of things, but he was too young to till the soil let alone strike bargains with men ten times his age. The merchants would not respect me when I tried to take over.

"The man of the house at five years old. Can you imagine? He was a child. The sweetest little boy I ever knew. And he went to bed hungry more often than not. I sacrificed my portions whenever I could, but they were so small I usually could not afford to, for fear that I would die. One day, I realized that pursuing the farm would lead us to our doom, and it was time for change. I'll admit, I did some things I'm not too proud of, but I am proud of the fact that the city guard never caught me. In the seventeenth century, no one suspected that the person behind a string of robberies could be a woman."

Angela's eyebrows shot up. "You used to be a thief?"

Some joy returned to Lexi's disposition. "Pretty cool, right? I felt cool the first time I realized I got away with it. Keep in mind, I only ever robbed rich people. There is honor among the poor, or at least there was with me. Now, again, I said I never got caught by the guard. But tell me, in your experience, what kind of person is most likely to have enough money to buy a big, fancy house without losing any of it; a house that would look all too tempting to a poor little thief like me?"

"A vampire?"

"A vampire," Lexi confirmed. "He must've heard me break in, but he let me figure out the combination to his safe before grabbing me by the neck and pinning me to the wall." She kissed her teeth in disapproval. "Nice guy. I started freaking out, as you do, but in response he smiled at me, like he found my struggling cute. 'Relax, darling,' he said, and I did so against my will. 'I only wish to have a chat.'" Lexi's English accent was flawless, even after all these years. "He compelled me to tell him everything. Why I was there, what I was doing, whether anyone sent me, yada yada, blah blah blah.

"I think my audacity amused him. That I would dare break into his house. 'Tell me,' he said. 'Since you are so very devoted to what little remains of your family, how would you enjoy the chance to live forever so you may continue to care for it? You would never grow old, never fall ill, never go hungry unless you so choose. You would stay as you are now forever, but better.' I was young and stupid and about as sheltered as you can be when there's no TV or internet and you live in Fuckall, Nowhere. I should've known there was a catch. But I was desperate. I said yes the moment he stopped talking.

"He fed me his blood and snapped my neck. When I returned to the land of the living, a man was waiting for me. He'd been compelled to let me feed from him. I did, and even though I was newly-turned, I managed to stop myself before he died. In an attempt to teach me how little human life mattered, my sire finished him off. That had the opposite effect. I felt intense grief, like he was my father come again and I just witnessed his second death. I vowed never to hurt a human unless it was in self-defense. I've stuck to that vow ever since." Lexi took a long sip. Angela was the very picture of sympathy.

"The next sunset," Lexi said, "my sire told me he was about to leave for Spain. 'It's time for you to go home now, little girl. Can't have you meddling in my affairs. Well, go on then. Leave.'"

Stefan snorted. "How chivalrous." He'd heard this story before, but Lexi painted such vivid imagery with the different inflections she used that he was once again her captive audience.

"I know, right? Little bitch. He was kind enough to teach me the art of compulsion at least. My brother ate the best he ever had that night. But when the sun crested over the hills and slipped in through the window of my room, I woke just in time to save myself from burning to ash. There was no way to keep this secret from my brother. I told him what I was. He was scared, but the more nights I spent compelling us food before coming home and using my newfound powers to work the field so we had an alibi for surviving, the more he understood that I was the same person I'd always been. That I'd never hurt him. I was twenty-one at that point. He was six.

"A decade passed. Thanks to my supernatural strength, speed, and ability to compel the merchants, our farm became a legitimate source of income. I never married. Never moved out. And as my sire said, never got older. Eventually, people noticed. A decade is a long time when you're human. They thought I was a witch. That I bathed in goat's blood and consumed the flesh of children to keep my beauty intact." Lexi rolled her eyes. "Never mind the fact that there were no missing children at the time. But once someone is convinced of something through belief alone, there's very little you can do to convince them otherwise. Especially if you actually are guilty of something, even if it isn't what they're accusing you of.

"My brother was sixteen when they burned down our cottage. He became trapped in a ring of fire. I tried to reach him, tried to save him, but he remembered the incident with the sunlight and knew that I would die if I passed through the flames.

"'Go, sister,' he told me. 'All that you've worked for will be lost if both of us perish here tonight. Leave and sail somewhere far away, where these evil men cannot find you. The colonies, perhaps. What a long voyage that would be. I remember little of our mother, but her stories have been taught to me through you. Her stories of Achilles and Odysseus and the epic feats they accomplished so many centuries ago. Now, it is time for you to forge an epic of your own. For you to become Odysseus himself, to invoke Poseidon's wrath, to become Nobody, to sail to your new home. And in the end, should you find yourself crossing the river Styx and being ferried into Hades, I will await you as loyally as Argos did, and recognize you as though I were Eurycleia. Run, sweet sister. Run.' And run I did.

"So you see, in the end, my quest to protect my brother is the very thing that caused his demise." Lexi aimed a small, sad smile at the floor. There was a lump in Stefan's throat. "I guess it is somewhat fitting, considering his final words to me. His story did end like a Greek tragedy.

"If I knew how to prevent his death, I would have done so in a heartbeat. Even if I died in his stead. He was the person I loved the most. His love is the reason I survived the first two decades after that incident, since I knew that if anything happened to me, it would break his heart. Because though he was already dead, his love was strong enough to transcend death, and mine was too. I hope it still is. That's the point of everything, isn't it?" Lexi's smile became contented. A tear slipped down her cheek. "Love."

Angela stood up and brought Lexi into a fierce hug. Her back was to Stefan, but he saw it shudder.

"Oh." Lexi must have felt it. "Don't do that. You'll make me cry too."

Angela shook her head. "You're already crying."

"Yeah." Lexi's voice trembled. "I guess I am."

Angela pulled back, cupping Lexi's cheeks and wiping her tears away as though they were sisters. "Our early lives may not have been the same, but I do believe they mirror each other. Our parents died when we were young, and at one point or another, our love for our little brothers defined us. I would become a vampire too, if it meant I could protect Jeremy. The only thing stopping me from doing so is that, if I die as a vampire, I'll be gone forever. But if I die as a human, I'll return as a vampire and be with him again. I don't know what I would do if he died before his time. Especially if my emotions were as heightened as yours were, and still are. You're braver than I can imagine. What happened was not your fault."

"Yes, it was."

"No," Angela said with conviction. Then again, more gently. "No. You did not light the match."

Lexi raised her hands to Angela's, prying them away but keeping them in her grasp. "Thank you. For listening, and for the kindness you've shown me."

Angela smiled. "Thank you for trusting me with your story. And for helping me heal my wounds a little further, simply by showing me yours."

"Anytime, baby."

"Careful." Angela made an attempt at humor. "In the absence of any bedrooms, I'll have to drag you into a stall."

Lexi chuckled. She let go of Angela, who wiped her own tears away. "Honestly?" Lexi said. "They're nicer than I thought they'd be."

"Don't tempt me."

That lump was still in Stefan's throat, but he brought himself to lift his glass of bourbon. "Well… I think this is cause for a toast. To life. And to the brothers we can't stop ourselves from loving."

The girls raised their drinks. "To life."

Once the first round was finished, they switched to shots of tequila as per Lexi's demand. They got two more rounds in before Stefan suggested that they move on to the next bar if they didn't want to black out before the night was over. "Hell yeah!" Angela shouted in response, her cheeks rosy from alcohol. "Party!" It was an incredibly childish reaction. Stefan nearly snorted tequila out of his nose.

The next establishment was larger, yet similarly rustic, and included a restaurant. "Are you hungry?" he asked the sole member of their company capable of human hunger.

"No," Angela said. "But I do thirst. Thirst that can only be quenched by a mean fucking martini."

Lexi slung an arm over her shoulders. "That's my girl! Hear that, Stef? She's mine now. Back off."

"Yeah!" Angela stuck her tongue out. "Back off, Edward! I'm with Alice now!"

Stefan laughed. A full, proper laugh, which was rare for him. "You two are going to be the death of me."

"You don't get to die," Angela said as they picked their table. It was surrounded by three armchairs, perfectly equidistant. She sat down with a pout. "Not while I'm around."

"I'm going to get our drinks," Lexi said as if it wasn't a calculated move to leave them alone. "What do you want, Cullen?"

He gave her a look. "Really?"

"Tell me before I get you something with one of those little umbrellas sticking out of it."

"Negroni. On the rocks."

"Thank you," Lexi said in a sing-song, then walked away.

Angela was staring at him. "Say that again."

"What?"

"Negroni. Say it again."

"Negroni?"

She bit her lip, trying to contain a smile. "Your accent is so cute."

"My accent," he echoed, utterly lost.

"Do you not hear it? You say it with an Italian accent. It's cute. You're cute."

"Well, it is an Italian cocktail."

"Do you speak any Italian? I mean, I don't want to assume, but your father–"

"Sì, certo."

Angela beamed. "Would you be willing to teach me at some point? We could have secret conversations no one else would be privy to."

"Intrigue is the first place your mind goes to?"

"Well, you are very intriguing."

"Ah." Stefan shook his finger. "Good one. I don't see why not. I'd love to have you as my student."

"Oh, would you now?" Angela adopted a lecherous tone. "You wouldn't punish me if I got my answers wrong, would you?"

Stefan's gut instinct was to assure her that he could never do such a thing, but the more he scanned all that was visible of her–the dark, heavy look in her eyes, the way she accentuated her features by leaning forward and resting her chin atop her knuckles, the maddening curl of her deep red lips–the more he realized that no. No. He wanted to play too.

"Only if you'd like me to," he replied, leaning back and opening his posture in a blatant display of power. Of confidence, that he would win their little game. It delighted her.

"If I liked it, it wouldn't be much of a punishment, would it?"

He considered this. "I suppose you're right. Then perhaps I should be cruel, and dole out my punishments as rewards."

"Oh… now there's an interesting proposition. And tell me," she said with feigned ignorance, "what would these rewards entail?"

"You'll have to discover that yourself."

"You haven't thought of anything, you mean to say," she challenged him. "You haven't thought of what you could possibly do to me while I sit before you, utterly helpless and at your mercy. Am I truly to believe that?"

Heat bloomed in Stefan's belly. "It seems to me that you've thought of it quite a bit. I'd be open to suggestions, if you have any. They are your rewards, after all."

"Depends on how much you want me to fight back."

His smile showed teeth. "You could never overpower me. Although you're welcome to try."

"I think you'll like what comes after I overpower you."

"Oh? What's that?"

"You."

Admittedly, that had been unexpected. It made Stefan's face warm. He lost. "Are you proud of yourself?"

"Very."

He spotted Lexi returning with his and Angela's drinks. "Then I think we should celebrate," he said. Right on cue, Lexi set their glasses on the table.

Angela gasped. "Lexi! I love you."

Lexi patted her head and sat down. "Love you too, cutie." In that unnaturally quiet voice, she said, "Don't worry. I stopped listening when she first mentioned punishments." Stefan hadn't been worrying, but now he was terribly embarrassed.

"Where's your drink?" Angela asked Lexi.

"Right there." She pointed behind the bar, at what was previously a decorative, oversized margarita glass now being filled by the bartender.

Stefan raised his eyebrows. "You compelled her, I assume?"

"Sure did. Should've seen her trying to get all the salt on the rim." Lexi sighed. "It was hilarious."

"You know," Angela said, "I think you'd get along really well with Aunt Jenna. She's a retired party girl. You'd bring out her wild side."

Lexi placed a hand on her chest, a faux look of shock making her jaw drop. "You're asking me to meet your family when our date isn't even over? Must've really made an impression on you."

"You know what you do to me." Angela took a sip of her martini, her gaze on Lexi all the while.

"I'd love to meet Jenna the next time I come over. Maybe we could have a girls' night?"

"That sounds like heaven. Though any time spent with you is heavenly, Lexi."

"I really need to hire you to cheer me up whenever I feel bad."

"I'll gladly compliment you at all hours of the day." Angela winked. "Just give me your phone number."

"Ooh, smooth! Here." Lexi made grabby hands. "Give me yours and I'll give you mine."

Angela slid her cell phone over to Lexi, accepting the exchange. "While you're in there, could I possibly ask that you give me Rose's number too?"

Lexi glanced at her over the top of the phone. "I thought you said there's nothing about her that should concern me."

"There's not. She's just… important. She can get me in touch with someone I need to talk to. She'll be perfectly fine, I promise. I'm going to make sure of it."

Lexi shrugged a shoulder. "Alright. I trust you."

"That means a lot to me. Thank you." Angela finished inputting her number and they traded back.

A waiter brought Lexi's oversized margarita to the table, which she was ecstatic to see. The three of them had multiple conversations over that round of drinks, starting as lighthearted, becoming deeply profound, and ending as silly when one of them said something that made the other two break. Usually, it was Angela. Although rather tipsy, she ensured that no moment was dull and that everyone was comfortable.

They hit two more bars–at one point during which Lexi swept the floor at a game of darts–before reaching their next and final establishment. It was an intimate, bustling nightclub. Blue, moody lighting filled the hall, and a live band was playing rock music. Angela gave her coat to the coat check.

Lexi was already bobbing her head to the beat. "Alright, Salvatore. Time to dance."

"No," Stefan said. Despite this, a tiny part of him did want to let loose. He blamed it purely on the alcohol. And no, it did not matter that his magical blood was rapidly sobering him up.

"Too bad you don't have a choice. Right, Angie?"

"Right." Angela slipped her warm hands into his and started dragging him to the mass of dancing college students. The outline of her body glowed blue beneath the lights, and she resembled the moon more than ever. She pulled herself close to him, the smile on her face small and nymph-like. "I'm claiming my dance now," she said like he had no choice in the matter. Perhaps he didn't want one. Lexi was right. He was whipped.

"Fine," he said, though with a hefty enough amount of displeasure that the effect Angela had on him wasn't terribly obvious.

"I'm going to find someone cute to dance with too," Lexi said. "You kids have fun." She winked, then became lost in the crowd.

Angela laughed. "Does she think she's anything other than obvious?"

"I don't think she cares," he said.

"You're probably right. Now come on." Angela started swaying her hips. "Dance with me."

"Are you sure you don't want a drink or two first?" he asked as a final, half-hearted attempt to escape the situation. "Some of the rum on that shelf is excellent."

She shook her head with a wide, amused grin that told him she knew exactly what he was doing. "No way. There's something I want to do before we get home that I need to sober up for. Don't be shy. I know you've got moves. You've shown them to me."

"That was when I was trying to make you feel better." That had been what made him submit so quickly, yes, but he never would have been able to resist for long with how enchanting she had been that night.

Angela made a show of sighing. "Fine. Guess I'll have to find someone else to dance with me." It was clear that she only said that to provoke him into acting, and like a fool he let it work.

He maneuvered her arms so they were loosely slung over his shoulders, wordlessly committing to staying here and doing as she–and he too, in secret–so adamantly wished. He started moving in time with the beat, though not entirely as confident as Angela perhaps would have liked.

She at least appeared to like it. "There you go!" She slid her hands down his arms and puppeteered him by the wrists, coaxing him into more movement. "Let yourself have fun for once. Wild fun. Freedom." The intensity of her motions increased, better suiting the harsh drums and electric guitar.

Her energy was infectious, and it led to him, bit by bit, letting loose. His dancing was always more subdued than hers, as evidenced by the fact that his hair wasn't flying everywhere, but he couldn't recall the last time he felt so carefree. It was as if nothing could touch him. Nothing but Angela, whose touch was electric.

Whenever Lexi got bored of dancing, she went to the bar for shots of vodka. Each time she returned to the dance floor, the partner she chose was completely different from the last. Age, race, gender, height, width… Lexi didn't discriminate when it came to having fun. Or ever, really. Occasionally, she would meet his gaze and give a thumbs up, encouraging him to make as big a fool of himself as possible. He couldn't bring himself to feign modesty.

"You mentioned that Jenna was a party girl," he told Angela, having to raise his voice to be heard, "but you never mentioned that you were the same."

She looked nowhere near as put-together as she had at the start of the night. Her skin was flushed from jumping up and down, there was a light sheen of sweat that, beneath the low lights, only he could see, and her black hair was wild, with a few strands sticking to her lips in a way that made him desperately want to brush them off.

"Oh, Stefan… don't you remember? Today is the best day of my life."

She pulled him closer, switching up the tempo to match the new, more sensual song and leading him to do the same. They brushed against each other more often then, especially once Stefan got over his fear of doing something she was potentially uncomfortable with and rested his hands on her lower back.

"You know," he said into her ear. "If you want to sober up, all I have to do is feed you my blood." Angela slowed to a stop. He pulled back just enough to gauge her reaction.

She looked hesitant. "I don't know if that's a good idea. Vampire blood… does something to me. The more I drink, the more I crave. It's become increasingly difficult for me to stop once I start. It doesn't taste like blood to me. It tastes like food."

That was strange. And not something he'd ever heard before. Even to one such as he, blood tasted like blood. It was delicious on its own. But if she truly was incapable of stopping, he would have no trouble making her. "I can handle you," he said, and felt like he was talking about more than just the blood. "What do I taste like?"

"Honey."

He contemplated this. "One of my fondest memories is harvesting and eating honey with my mother, straight from a beehive we kept on the property. Could that be why?"

A crease appeared on her forehead. "That's not a bad theory. Maybe. I don't know. I haven't found much info on it. Sheila has been kind enough to help me with the research, but who knows if she'll find anything either. She wasn't able to find much on what I am in general." Angela's carefree attitude was beginning to vanish, and he couldn't have that. He wanted her to be happy.

He brushed the hair away from her lips, then cupped her beautiful face. "Hey. No business talk tonight. Let's save that for tomorrow. Alright?" He smiled in hopes of making her mimic him. "We can afford to have fun for one night."

Angela's nod was tiny. "Yeah. You're right."

"Of course I am. Now, again, I can handle you. Do you want my blood?"

Her gaze strayed to his jugular. "I really am drunk. I only now remembered. Damon bit me. It needs to heal naturally."

A terrible idea crossed Stefan's mind. One that he regretted instantly, but felt he had to say for the sake of transparency. "What if you get him to bite you again?"

Angela's eyes snapped to his. "What?"

"One day isn't long enough for the sheriff to notice a change in healing rate. Come to the boarding house with me tonight, before I take you home. I'll be there the entire time, listening from a different room. You'll never have to be alone."

She bit her lip, thinking for a long time. "Okay."

"Okay." He raised a wrist to his mouth and made his canines elongate, ready to bite. Angela wrapped her fingers around his arm and stopped him.

"That'll raise suspicion." She tapped the side of his neck. Her touch made his hairs stand on end. "Can I feed from here?"

What a mental image. Angela with her lips on his throat, draining him of his essence and incapable of pulling away. It was more erotic than it had any right to be. Doubly so because in the dark recesses of his mind, it served as a twisted way of giving him a taste of his own medicine. The Ripper, ripped apart. Desire shot through him like lightning. Truly, he was perverse.

"Yeah." His voice was husky. "Yeah, you can feed from there." With enough force, his nail was able to slice a line down the spot she marked. It hurt, but not as much as it would if he were human. In a way, the pain begot pleasure in anticipation of what would follow.

Angela pulled him down, forcing him to conform to her height, and latched on to his throat. She tangled a hand into the back of his head and pulled him closer, drinking him from a better angle. Her other hand grabbed his shirt, keeping him in place. He had no choice but to hold her by the hips, both so he could gain some purchase and so he didn't raise suspicion to all the clueless humans in the club. His heart pounded along to the beat. He felt it in his ears and throat, being consumed by the succubus before him.

She let out a soft, gentle moan into the blood, which made his desire grow so acutely he nearly gasped. It was as though she could taste it through him, and in response moaned again. Stefan gritted his teeth, angling his lower body away from her. If she kept that up, she would risk witnessing precisely how perverse he was.

The hand that clutched his shirt slipped around to press against his back, pulling his torso impossibly close. She redoubled her efforts, digging her own blunt teeth into the wound and ripping him further. Rip. Ruin. Wreck. He began to throb. Angela whined in sympathy. How did she know? How did she always know?

He was briefly transported to his youth again, when he was in bed with a completely different succubus. One that fed without his consent and continued doing so; continued touching and kissing and fucking when, had she not compelled him to allow it, he never would have done so after she showed him what she was.

Here, with Angela, he allowed her to feed of his own free will. Should he ever wish for her to stop, getting her to do so would be easy. She would be glad that she didn't overstep his boundaries, even if the initial bloodlust made her want for more. Even if she became a vampire and fed from him then, he would be able to make her stop. He would always be older than her, so he would always be stronger, no matter what diet she preferred. He could always tell her no.

The feel of her against him, the scent of her so strong, her tongue and teeth within, moaning and whimpering for more made him ache profoundly. This had to end before she made one wrong move and felt it.

"Enough," he whispered. He weakly pushed at her hips, not entirely wanting her to obey. "Enough. You're sober now."

She made a noise of displeasure and continued to feed. A small seed of panic grew in his chest, but he knew there was no way she could disregard his wishes. And how contradictory those wishes were. He wanted her to stop, yet continue. He wanted her to obey, yet disobey as well. He didn't know what to make of it. All he knew was what he had to do for the greater good.

He pushed her by the shoulders then, harsher yet not so harshly that she would feel pain. It worked to dislodge her mouth from his throat and make her stagger backwards. When she tried to drink again, he kept her at bay.

"Enough," he repeated, collecting whatever blood was on her lips with his thumb. "You're okay." I'm okay.

Angela lightly shook her head in an effort to clear it. "Yeah. Yeah, you're right." Her voice was husky too. "I'm sorry. Did I hurt you?"

"No."

"Good." She grabbed his thumb and sucked it into her mouth, cleaning him of his own blood. He stifled a moan as he throbbed. He was unworried about his neck. Vampire blood didn't gush out like human blood did. The most that would be left was a muted, red line. Lipstick, if anyone asked, or perhaps a hickey.

"How do you feel?" he said.

"Amazing."

"That's good."

"Mm."

He was lost for words beyond that point. His thumb remained by her mouth, and he rested his palm on her cheek, not wanting to move. She was so very small compared to his hand. Delicate, but not weak. Fragile, but sturdy. A marvel.

"Put me the hell down, lady!" a masculine voice yelled from the outskirts of the crowd.

Lexi was holding a college kid in the air by the collar of his shirt. Her eyes were narrowed, her mouth was twisted into a scowl, and she looked one second away from flinging him into the nearest wall. "Didn't Mommy teach you not to grope strange women? Never know if one of them will kick your ass."

The guy struggled to escape, but it was impossible. Lexi brought him closer, glaring deep into his eyes and compelling him.

"Go home and sober up," she said. "You reek of booze. And for the love of God, start treating people with respect, you stupid sack of shit." She set him down gently, not wanting to hurt him now that she forced him to be a better person. He staggered off, rubbing the back of his head in a way that implied Lexi had, at one point or another, struck him.

It made Angela chuckle. "Maybe we should go," she said, recapturing Stefan's attention. "Not sure I'll be able to wake up in time for school if we don't."

Stefan decided to tease her. "In that case, you should thank me for curing your insomnia."

"Thank you," she said sincerely. "You make everything better."

He was saved from having to respond to that incredibly sweet sentiment by Lexi, who only stumbled once during her journey to them. Her tolerance for alcohol was impressive, even by vampiric standards. She was roughly a dozen shots of vodka in, never mind the previous drinks she had. "I see you brought him out of his perpetual broodiness," she told Angela before falling into her arms. For a moment, she looked ready to cry. "I'm so proud. So, so proud. I'm so happy you exist." Perhaps she was a touch drunker than Stefan initially thought.

"Thanks," Angela choked out. "I can't breathe."

"Oh! Sorry." Lexi pulled back. "I think you're right. We should go. Don't know how well I'll be able to protect you if something happens. Your face is blurry."

"But gorgeous?"

Lexi gave a sloppy wink. "Always."

"You two can start heading out," Stefan said. "I need to use the restroom real quick."

"Don't keep us waiting." Angela pointed at him menacingly. "We're way too hot to be kept waiting."

"I wouldn't dream of it."

Stefan walked into the men's room and gripped the edge of the sink, breathing in deeply through his nose and slowly out his mouth. White porcelain cracked beneath the pressure. He concentrated on the thought of Damon until the sweet, torturous, throbbing ache disappeared. Thank the heavens for his brother.

He met the girls outside. Angela's coat was fully closed to combat a chill that did not affect him. It made him worry. If she was cold, they should get moving. Lexi was at the end of regaling her with a story about how she celebrated her hundredth birthday by dining with Maria Theresa, which Angela was listening to as though spellbound. Stefan let her finish before deciding to speak.

"Are we ready to go?"

Angela lit up. "Yes!"

"Actually," Lexi said apologetically. "I think this is where we part ways. Charlottesville is closer to New York than Mystic Falls is, and if I'm lucky I'll make it to Baltimore before the sun comes up."

"Ah." Though Stefan was a touch disappointed, he understood. He ensured that no negative feelings were present on his face so Lexi wouldn't feel any guilt. "I should say my farewells then."

Lexi rolled her eyes. "Don't phrase it like that. I'm going to see you again."

"Next time you do, I'm beating you at a game of darts."

"Fifty bucks says you won't."

"Deal."

"Why would the sun coming up be an issue?" Angela asked.

Lexi frowned at her. "I don't have a daylight ring."

Angela reached into her purse and drew something out. Resting loosely around her index and middle fingers were a pair of rings. Embedded into each of them was a stone of lapis lazuli. A small, devilish smile appeared on her face. "Yes, you do."

Lexi went pale. Not an inch of her moved. Words failed to escape her throat. Angela took the opportunity to explain.

"All that's necessary for the spell is sunlight and precise knowledge of the vampire it's for. If the witch isn't familiar with them, DNA or a picture will do. Your DNA, taken from the paper on which you traced your hand, and Lee's picture, who I found on Facebook after discovering what he looked like. It was easy to calculate your ring size from your tracing, and I eyeballed Lee's size by comparing his hands to yours in that picture you showed me. Even if I'm wrong, it'll work as long as it's touching him, so you can thread a chain through and turn it into a necklace. Jeremy has no project. Lee's is the one with the square stone. Yours is triangular. Here. Take them."

Lexi numbly accepted the rings being dropped into her palm. She was not often lost for words, but now, she broke off multiple sentences after the first syllable. Eventually, she settled on, "Oh my God." She clutched the rings like they were her only link to life and brought Angela into a breathless hug. "I have no idea what to say. Who cast the spell? I've never met a witch that knows it."

"One of my best friends. So far, vampires have been kind to her. She wasn't against helping two that I assured her were good."

"Thank you. Oh, I… thank you." Lexi's voice was wobbly. She pulled away. "What would you have done if Lee wasn't on Facebook?"

"I would have recruited Stefan to steal a picture of him off your phone. Thankfully, that wasn't necessary. I wanted to keep it a secret and end the night with a bang. I have a feeling it worked."

Lexi laughed wetly. "Of course it worked. This is the best gift I've ever received. I can't possibly thank you enough."

"Thank me by taking Lee on a vacation to Australia and sipping mojitos by the beach. It's going to be summer there soon. Oh, and tell him to take down his social media, please? It's not smart to leave a digital footprint if you're immortal."

"I will. Anything you want. If you ever need a favor, no matter what it is, I–"

"Only do me favors because we're friends. It's not a gift if I expect something in return. I'll tell you if I need anything. Know that you can always do the same."

"You bet your ass we're friends." Lexi hugged her again, before putting on her ring. She admired it for a moment, watching the way the streetlight above made the blue stone glitter. "I suppose it's only fair that I receive presents. It is my day, after all."

It was only then that Angela remembered Stefan's presence. She looked at him, her eyes warm, her smile content, the definition of tranquility. Her parents named her well. Regardless of what she thought of herself, all that Stefan saw before him was an angel. His angel, and his demon too, when she wanted to be. Wickedness and virtue enveloped him like a red, velvet ribbon.

Having been thrust into darkness over a century ago, Stefan had spent his years desperate to find the light. A pure source of dignity and righteousness, to pull him out of his damnation and fashion him into something that wasn't broken. But now, since meeting Angela, he was slowly coming to terms with the fact that anything pure he touched would be corrupted in turn. Perhaps Damon had the right of it. He was stupid to fight his own darkness. Only when he accepted it could he bring it under control. He needed balance. Light and dark. Black and white. A combination that Angela perfected when she let Damon bite her one day and called Stefan perfect the next. When she killed a boy she used to go to school with and gave Lexi the key to her freedom. No, not only her freedom. Her lover's freedom too, because he was important to Lexi, and Lexi was important to Angela.

Perhaps Stefan had been damned from the start. After all, good and evil were interchangeable ideals. A villain in one man's story was a hero in the next. Good came from evil, which was why it was so often drawn to it. Even when Stefan had been good, he had been drawn to–but never loved, because that was impossible–Katherine, who, in his story, was a monster. All this time, he had been fighting the inevitable. It would be difficult to stop, but he was determined to try. Certainly, Angela would help.

"It's technically not your birthday anymore." Lexi held up her phone, showing him that it was past midnight, now the second of November. "But I hope you'll accept this hug as a parting gift."

He welcomed her readily and rested his chin on her shoulder.

"I have another gift," she mumbled into his ear, "in the form of some valuable advice. Angie was afraid that you'd die, you utter moron. Saving that girl the other day let her know that she could save you too. If you don't kiss her tonight, I'm finding her tomorrow and returning the favor by putting a ring of my own on her finger. Oh. Did I say advice? My bad. This is a threat. Love you." She pulled away before he could respond.

Suddenly, it all made sense. Angela saying that it wouldn't be long until they could be together; that Vicki Donovan brought a memory hurtling back; her insistence that the girl be safe when she never once mentioned her being a friend; being so forward throughout the day; calling him her darling with no forewarning… "Oh, Stefan… don't you remember? Today is the best day of my life."

Lexi was right. He was a moron. An absolute dullard. He could have kissed her already, this morning when she teased him with the fruit, or a few minutes ago, when she consumed his blood and drove him mad with lust. The moment she rang the doorbell to his home, he could have sped to her, grabbed her by the waist, and planted a kiss on the lips that were so fond of tempting him. How had he been able to divine her feelings from the start but was so incredibly blind to this?

While he was mentally berating himself for being a fucking incorrigible idiot, Lexi bid them adieu, with Angela responding in a far more involved fashion than he. Still, he managed what was expected of him, since he knew that he'd regret not saying goodbye to his best friend on the one day of the year he was guaranteed to see her.

Lexi, no longer bound to the night, disappeared into the distance after musing that perhaps she would tour Richmond before heading to Washington, D.C. Stefan was happy for her. Truly, he was. Elated, even. He also was eager for her to leave so he could finally do what he'd been dying to do for the past however-fucking-long with the woman he was infatuated with.

But no. He shouldn't be impatient. He couldn't just grab Angela like he wanted to. He had to ensure that she wanted it too, because as likely as it was that Lexi was right, there was always a chance that she wasn't. He would never forgive himself if he violated Angela's trust in such a way. He would always give her the choice that he himself had been deprived of, even if it killed him.

"You look like you've seen a ghost," Angela said. Her heart was pounding. Could she be planning on doing the same thing?

Stefan approached her. Slowly. Carefully. Letting her keep a distance if she so wanted. "Not a ghost," he said, deciding to voice his thoughts from earlier. "An angel."

Her cheeks adopted a lovely shade of pink. She averted her gaze, and her nails began to pick at each other. "I… um… do you know what I did this morning? Right after I woke up, I went to Vicki Donovan's house." Black polish floated to the ground. "I had to make sure she was alive. I know I told you to go home, but then I couldn't sleep and my nerves got to me." Sleepless, again. He hated when she was sleepless. "And when I showed up at the boarding house… that was immediately after. I drove straight there. It's a miracle I didn't crash, to be honest. I felt blind the entire way. I had to see you, and I had to see Lexi besides, so I could put my plan into motion. Do you know why Vicki was so important to me?"

"Yeah. I think I do."

"Of course you do. Somehow, you always figure me out."

"Actually, it was Lexi." That seemed to surprise her. "I'm not sure how she put two and two together, but if her theory is correct, saving Vicki told you that you could save me. You've seen me die. Haven't you?"

Angela let out a long, shaky breath. "Lexi's powers of deduction are terrifying."

The left corner of his mouth curled upward. "You're telling me."

"Do you want to know how? Sheila wanted to know. I'm not sure exactly when, but at some point in the near future she's supposed to die. Well, not supposed to, but…"

"Maybe just my cause of death. I'm worried that if you tell me the circumstances surrounding it, I'll make it a self-fulfilling prophecy."

"You are never dying. I don't care what I have to do. But I understand your concerns. You died by Hellfire."

Now that, he hadn't been expecting. "Hellfire? I went to Hell? Hell exists?"

"Assuming nothing's changed, yes, Hell exists, but you never went to it. You sacrificed yourself to its flames to defeat an enemy. I think that's the most I can say without revealing information you don't want me to."

"So… if I die, even if my death isn't the same, am I going to Hell?" After all he'd done, he would more than deserve it.

Angela shook her head. "That's not how it works. It's not like biblical Hell. From what I understand, there's a supernatural purgatory informally known as the Other Side where supernatural souls go to after their deaths. From there, they can either find peace or be sucked into Hell by this guy named Cade; the Devil, in a very loose sense of the term. I'm not positive on how it all works from a cosmological standpoint, but if you die, you'll probably stay on the Other Side for a long time. That's what happened to people that are morally far, far worse than you. Not that contemplating your afterlife is productive, because as I said, you are never going to die. I won't let you."

"It is fascinating though, discovering what variations of the afterlife exist."

Angela let out a quiet laugh. "You're becoming increasingly better at handling earth-shattering information."

"I'm probably going to have an existential crisis later."

"That's fair."

He smiled. There was an irresistible urge to reach out and touch her. Any part of her, no matter how lightly. He grazed his fingertips against her jaw and felt her shiver. "Are you cold?"

"No." She leaned into his touch, humoring his wish to be near to her like the selfish wretch he was.

"I'm glad," he murmured. He moved from her jaw to her cheek to her temple and down her nose, her lips, her chin. He could trace her features forever, until he found that he could recreate her face from memory. She was too much and not enough. His heart ached for her.

"Stefan… do you have any idea what you've done to me?" Angela's chin trembled. Her nose became pink. Tears welled up in her eyes. "You broke me." She sounded broken simply saying that. "You broke me from the start. Everything about you did. Your strength. Your resolve. Your compassion. You are so very good to people, not out of some social obligation, but because it genuinely hurts you to hurt others. I cannot say that I am the same. If I deem hurting someone to be necessary, there is little guilt in my actions. Perhaps in that way, my nature never changed.

"I was a bad person in my previous life. Truly bad. The people I hurt then did not deserve it, but at the time I couldn't bring myself to care. To feel. I'd like to tell you about it sometime. You deserve to know the truth. It's due to that truth that I saw myself in you. We've both done things we regret, and we've both tried to atone for them, albeit in different ways. I saw myself in you, and I saw that you were beautiful. I think, deep inside, it gave me hope that I could be beautiful too."

"You are," he whispered. His vision swam. He cupped her face to make her listen. "You are so beautiful. You compliment my strength and resolve, but they are qualities that you possess as well. And you possess compassion, regardless of what you think. You would do anything for the people you love. I myself have witnessed it. And you're brave. You never allow yourself to be backed into a corner, always prepared to defend yourself, to play a different card. And if you are defeated, you rise again, stronger and wiser. You are a creature to be admired and feared.

"You say that I broke you, but Angela, you haunt me. You haunt my every waking moment and my dreams as well. There is no thought I can have without it circling back to you. I see you in everything. I sense you always, like a specter just beyond my reach. You look at me, and I am lost. And when I feel you… when I touch your skin as I am now, I know there is no salvation. You have bewitched me. I am in love with you."

Angela's breathing was heavy. Her heart raced like that of a rabbit as it pumped sweet ichor through her veins. "I'm in love with you too," she confessed in hushed tones.

Stefan asked for permission, as he always, always would, even if this time it was without sound. He brushed his nose against her cheek, feeling each warm breath that escaped her in rapid succession, making his intentions clear. She didn't shy away. He closed his eyes and savored the moment, enjoying the quiet intimacy, the distant sound of nightlife, the faint buzzing of streetlights only he could hear. Angela placed her hands against his chest, not quite pulling, not quite letting them be. He could never resist for long. Stefan dipped his head down, content with there being no return from this, and pressed his lips to hers.

It was gentle. Soft. Sweet. Yet behind it all lay a torrent of passion, ready to crash against him and swallow him whole. Angela melted, raising a hand up to his cheek. Stefan was the first to pull away, though not by much, and they breathed each other's air.

Angela chased his mouth, not allowing for a break before initiating their second kiss. It was less chaste than the first, but he should have expected that from her, unafraid to take the lead on things as she was. She clutched his shirt in a fist and molded her body against his.

He tangled a hand into her hair and deepened the kiss further, parting his lips to skim her with his tongue; an act she fully accepted. It released some of the overflowing tension that had accumulated within them both, though it would never be enough. Nothing would.

She broke them apart for a moment too long, and he trailed his lips along her jaw, allowing her to speak. "How are we getting to the car?" she breathed out. "I never want this to end."

"That's the easy part," he murmured against her skin. "How am I meant to drive?"

They shared a quick, quiet laugh. He wasn't certain who leaned in first, but their lips met again, and they basked in each other's warmth. Going home was an issue that could wait. For now, he was content to kiss her for as long as she let him. With luck, it was forever.

---

Angela: I think I'm in love with you.

Stefan, frothing at the mouth and ready to wife her up/die: Aha that's crazy.

IT FINALLY HAPPENED. HOLY FUCK DUDE. I CAN FINALLY WRITE THEM AS A COUPLE. AAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaa (now for the 500k+ words until they get with rebekah)

Side note, while editing, I realized a fun little parallel between Angie and Elena. In the show, Elena said that being with Stefan made her feel safe because she felt like he would never die. But Angie was terrified of being with Stefan because of the possibility that he would. Unintentional, but I think it accurately showcases their different outlooks on life.