The Forgotten One- chapter 21
Episode: Ghost World
A/N: I want to improve this story and my OC, I've been thinking that Aria picks WAY too many fights and I would like to fix that, with your help, how can I make her grow as a character, what kind of situations and yada yada.
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I ended up leaving Matt's at around 3AM and when I got home everybody was already asleep. I tried to sleep but I just ended up tossing and turning, it was a futile attempt. I put my earplugs in and switched the song onto Too Late by M83 and dressed down to a tank top and underwear, like I used to when I was human. I didn't have to worry or think, I could just throw my hands up in the air and sway my hips like I just don't care. This is my happy place. I closed my eyes and danced around the room as the song repeated and repeated, it spoke to me in a way, relaying my Elijah situation.
"You still dance in your underwear." I heard a familiar voice say from behind me, I turned around and gasped as tears started to stream down my cheeks in thick rivulets. Her bright, strawberry blonde hair was out and her skin still glowed with happiness.
"Jenna?" it was a gasped question, it couldn't be her. She's dead.
"It's me honey." She says and wraps her arms around me and I stifle my sob in her shoulder.
"I couldn't save you." I cried out, "I'm so sorry." I breathed out and turned my head into the crook of her shoulder while my shoulder shook with angry sobs.
"I don't blame you. And besides, I've found my peace, I'm not with the others, I get to rest now. I got to come back today because there was an opening and I took it. I needed to see you." She cupped my cheek as I pulled away and angrily swiped away the tears that had started to crust on my face, "still always trying to hide your emotions." She says and frowns, "it's okay to be weak, you know? It's okay to think of yourself and be selfish. You held back with Elijah, you didn't show him how much you loved him and now it's too late." I lower my head, she spoke the truth. "Emotionally numbing yourself won't help. Letting yourself feel will." I shook my head and hugged Jenna again.
"Are you happy Jenna?" I ask and she nods.
"I wish I could've stayed longer but it wasn't my destiny."
"Your all enlightened and crap." She shrugs. "Destiny is such a horrible word, they need to come up with something better." She laughs and we sit on my bed with her arm around me still.
"I agree." She nods to herself as a spark that I've identified with 'Jenna Just Had An Idea', "You should get a dog or a cat. Or a bunny." She says and squeals.
"And have Stefan eat it once he's back to his vegetarian self? No thankyou." I say but she shakes her head and walks over to my laptop, she types in RSPCA (A/N: does America have an RSPCA? If not just go with it.) And starts flicking through pictures of animals.
"I could get a lion." I say, she shoots me a disapproving face. "Your right, too hard to toilet train." I tap my chin in contemplation, I was feeding her ridiculous idea, like feeding petrol to fire, not a good idea. "Anyway, this idea is stupid. I live in a world where werewolves and vampires are normal, a puppy would never survive." I say and think of a movie I once watched 'fear', it had Reese Witherspoon in it, the dog ended up getting its head chopped off, I could never imagine what kind of horrible things would happen to my dog. Probably get eaten. Or ripped apart and left to rot in some original vampire's mansion.
"Well then can we at least take you to get a tattoo or piercing? We always said that after your eighteenth birthday I would take you… can we please, just for today, while I'm here?" she asks and I nod and it brightens her face instantly.
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We entered the florescent lighted tattoo and piecing parlour a town away from Mystic Falls. It was five in the morning but there was still somebody working, he had a blur tipped Mohawk and tattoos of snakes going up his arms and disappearing into his shirt sleeves. We skimmed over the selections and I frowned. Nothing spoke to me really.
"How you doin', darlin'?" he said to us with a Texas accent.
"Were doing fine. Just looking to get my niece a tattoo." Jenna says and points out a rose, I shake my head and regard everything with distaste. I always wanted a tattoo but now that I'm here, it didn't feel right. I wanted it to be meaningful in some way.
"These don't feel right." I say to Jenna and she pouts.
"Damn." She says.
"So what are ya'll names?" Mohawk guy asks us, I could feel his eyes roaming our bodies, should I be flattered or creeped out? Whatever, he couldn't try anything, I'd just rip his throat out. With my teeth. "Hey red head, whatcha doin' lat'a?" he asked in his Texas accent. "Cause ya could be goin' ta din'a wit me."
"Uh. No thanks, flattered really but unavailable." Which translated to 'I'm only here for so long before I got back to heaven or wherever I was'.
"Let's go. This is a bust." I say and Jenna nods and we leave.
"It's been so long since I've been asked out. Since I was alive actually. I'm flattered."
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Jenna dropped me off at home before leaving in my car to as she put it 'run some errands' how many errands could a dead person have? I dropped onto my bed with a sigh, she had been gone an hour maybe more. She wouldn't have forever here and as selfish as it is, I wanted her to myself, maybe that why I hadn't really tried to reach anybody, I called Ric, Elena and Jeremy once but they didn't answer so I gave up on my half-assed attempt. Selfish and horrible but this is why I have never ever called myself a saint just for this reason, besides when was the last time I did something for me?
I had been especially wrapped up in everybody else's drama. Hybrids, doppelgangers, switched off vamps who didn't sparkle, original siblings and drunk hunters. What a wonderful life I lead.
Just as I was reprimanding myself, I think I heard a bark downstairs. I went downstairs and saw my aunt Jenna holding a leash. That was attached to a puppy.
"What is that?" I asked dumbly and pointed to the fur ball that was scratching at the wood dining table.
"It's a German Shepard." She says in a 'duh' tone.
"I can see that. What I meant to ask is, why is it here?" I ask again and glare at the strawberry blonde.
"I told you that you should get a dog, you were never going to so I got one for you." She says and shoves the leash into my hands. The puppy turns around and walks over to me and licks my toes with its war, moist tongue. It was a tickling sensation and I giggled quietly but Jenna heard and grinned. "See you like it already!"
"Beside the point." I couldn't help but feel a bloom of joy when I looked at the puppy, its innocent brown eyes looking at me with a playful expression and its thick warm coat bristled and stood up in certain areas from where he must have rolled around in the grass or something.
"It's exactly the point." She says and we crouch to watch the dog roll around on the floor happily. "Don't let yourself be controlled." She says and look over at her surprised at the urgency in her voice. "People are going to try to use you. You have connections with both sides, Klaus and Rebekah, and Damon, Stefan, Elena and everybody, they'll take advantage of that." She says and I nod, I know this. It's always been bound to happen.
"I know. Are you mad at me?"
"For what?" she asks confused.
"For not hating the people responsible for your death."
"Never." She says and holds my hand in silence. We laughed when puppy slipped on the hard wood floors and shook his head dazed that ruffled his cute pointed ears. That's how we spent the rest of the day, playing with puppy who still didn't have a name. "So are we calling it 'no name pup'?" Jenna asked and I nodded.
"Until I come up with something better." I said and pursed my lips. "Have you been to see anybody else?" she shook her head sadly, "why not?"
"They're doing so well. They don't need me anymore." Jenna says.
"But they do. Everybody does. I do." She nods.
"What you need is to let people in. you've been hurt and you've had your trust broken but don't let that stop you. People disappoint, it's a flaw that everybody has but it won't always happen, people can help you, just like you help them. Let people help you." She says and I nod. "I have to go now." I didn't look at her, when I looked back, she was gone.
"Bye." I whisper to myself and feel comforted when puppy licks my cheek.
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"Jer!" I call out as he trudges up the stairs.
"Yeah?" he asks and I walk up to him.
"I need you to design me a tattoo."
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I walked into the same tattoo parlour that I went to today and showed Mohawk guy the piece of paper that had Jeremy's sketch on it.
"This is what I want." I say and the guy grins and I lay on my stomach in only my bra to cover the top of me. I look at the sketch as the guy gets to work on my left shoulder, it was a bunch of red peonies with Jenna's, John's, Miranda's, Grayson's and Isobel's name were laced through in black cursive writing, it was beautiful and perfect. A sort of homage to all the dead people that I loved. A way to remember them. I can't forget them now that they're quite literally engraved in my skin.
They guy finished and I paid, I left and went back to Mystic Falls, I sat on the couch with my new puppy and sighed.
Today was good. Today was sad. Today was an ending and also a beginning.
A/N: Poll till the next update- dog names and gender! Help a girl out and review suggestions!