Okay, be prepared, this chapter is kinda long. Little Jyler, sad I know. But this story is starting to miss some much needed angst. For the people who aren't that big a fan of Elena, really sorry, I'm not either but she's a big part of this chapter. I hope you like it :) !

Chapter 28

Coincidence

The day started like any other.

Jeremy woke up to the sound of his alarm clock. Took a shower and got ready for school. He had met up with Tyler in the bathroom that no one hardly ever used anymore since it was in the small useless hallway that was practically abandoned through the years. Once the bell rang the two finished their... "activities" and parted ways for class.

Yes, Jeremy's day went how it usually did.

School had finally ended and Tyler had text him earlier saying he'd be there after practice. He didn't fail to taunt Jeremy though by saying that he'd probably need a hot shower to get him clean enough.

Jeremy opened their front door, slung his bookbag on the couch and walked in the kitchen seeing Elena with her books all out on the table.

"Wow, what all are you studying?" Jeremy asked while he grabbed a bottle of water.

"I've got a killer project due and it's going to take me and my partner forever so we just decided to work on it here." She explained.

Jeremy turned away to look at his messages and when he finally turned back his grip on his phone loosened so much that it nearly dropped. Probably because it wasn't everyday that the guy his boyfriend had made out with was just chillin' in his kitchen.

"Jeremy this is Michael." Elena didn't even bother looking up from her textbook as she so nonchalantly introduced him to her brother. Jeremy looked in the eyes of the jock that was sitting at their dining room table with an expression mixed with shock and jealousy.

Earlier...

Michael's p.o.v

Of course. If there's anything I can rely on, it's Karma.

And it certainly bit me in the ass this time.

Mrs. Graham called my name to pair me with another student and as I heard her say aloud "Elena Gilbert", my heart not only sank but my stomach flipped. Mrs. Graham had already explained that this project was going to be brutal and if we wanted to get any real progress done then we'd have to meet up outside of school.

You'd think that when Elena asked if I wanted to meet her at the library or her home my automatic thought would be anywhere Jeremy wasn't. Well you could think it, but you'd be wrong.

Ever since him and I talked at the Grill he hasn't left my mind.

Jeremy's appearance, his voice, his talents, any and everything that could seem as girly as possible ran through my mind about him. Probably because when someone is told not to think about something, it eventually grows to be the only thing they can think about.

Of course, that'd only be half of it.

...Now

p.o.v over

"You've met Jeremy before right? I think I saw you guys play pool a few weeks ago. Maybe a month, something like that?" Elena directed the question to the both of them and most definitely picked up on the awkward silence that was floating around them. She may have had one of the most bizarre lives of anyone she knew but Elena Gilbert wasn't so blind that she couldn't see something else that seemed a bit bizarre.

The fact that Michael and Jeremy both kept dodging glances and neither of them spoke to one another told Elena only one thing: that is TOTALLY how awkward you act after sex!

As soon as Elena made the comparison she started choking on her water not able to even look at her brother. And after he was so honest about Tyler; shame on him.

While Elena was trying to recover from her episode she held her pointer finger to Michael signaling that she needed a minute and subtly dragged Jeremy by the arm away from the kitchen where Michael couldn't hear.

Truth be told, Jeremy would've done anything to be out of the position he was in so when his gagging sister started pawing at his chest and shoulder pulling on his top he willingly followed her to where she led them. Heck, he would've chased her half way to Spain if it meant he didn't have to be near... him.

"Elena, Elena are you okay? Can you breathe at least?" Jeremy asked sounding concerned.

It was as if Ashton Kutcher came from around the corner and said, "Jeremy Gilbert, you've been punk'd!" because as he gently touched his sister's shoulder trying to comfort her he felt a startling and some what painful smack to the back of his head.

"What the hell, Elena!" Okay, he knew it didn't hurt that much but damn. Unless he was wrong, she shouldn't be having mood swings for another 2 and half weeks. So that smack had better have a good reason behind it, he thought.

"No, Jeremy. I believe the better question is: would you like to explain to me what that was out there?"

Not even 5 seconds went by before Jeremy widened his eyes slightly and straightened up his posture. All if took was a slight recognition of that... guy out there and he felt himself getting tense.

"Well?" Elena pushed. She knew she was getting closer to the answer. Jeremy's body language wasn't exactly subtle. She picked up on how his demeanor changed and the way his hands bundled together as she mentioned the other boy.

"I, -uh, ...look," Jeremy pauses, "th-there isn't... that wasn't anything." Okay, he went from loosened up to tense to something that just looked... painful. He gnawed at his lower lip and his eyes started to get all... twitchy.

After a slightly dramatic gasp, Elena says,

"I knew it!" Her mouth flew open the same time it tried to smirk yet with those eyes that you could tell were judging you.

Jeremy started wondering deeply on what she could've meant from that. There would be no way that she'd be able to guess something indepth as the truth from just a couple of moments of awkward interaction.

"Kn-knew... what? What're you talking about?" There was a tone of hesitance coming from his voice.

Elena says slowly,

"You, and Michael, ...you guys had sex didn't you?" It comes out as almost a whispered hiss.

Jeremy's eyes also weren't subtle, they were very blunt and obviously surprised. He furrowed his brows so close to one another that they could've started a fire from the friction and his eyes opened at least twice their size.

"Wait a second, what?" This too comes out in hushed tones.

"Where the hell did you get that from?" Jeremy went from nervous to a little mad knowing that his sister was just drawing up all sorts of assumptions about her brother. Really, does she even know him? He wouldn't do that to Tyler. His Tyler.

"Oh don't play that card with me Jeremy. I saw you two. You both avoiding to look at each other and when I asked you both a question that you two were free to answer, neither of you said a word except for stammers and heavy breathing. Plus, you started blinking like you used to do when you got nervous. Why else would you guys have been acting like that? Huh? And what about your boyfr-", her non-ending ramblings were finally put to a halt when Jeremy cut in saying,

"Tyler cheated with him."

Those words.

Those very words that seemed to come out so easily out of his mouth were the very words that Jeremy had been wrestling against for what seemed to be decades. It was the first time he'd been able to say it aloud so plainly with zero hesitation. Jeremy just figured that why was it him getting the first degree when he did nothing wrong?

Elena. That poor girl. The face that had been so cold and threatening from before seemed to change instantly and her eyes were now filled with sadness and guilt. Guilt for the fact that her brother just admitted to her that Tyler cheated on him and with the very person she was just accusing Jeremy of doing the same thing with.

"Wh- when...?" Was all she could muster up.

"It's been about 2 months or so ago. I... I dunno."

Jeremy sighed, bringing his eyes back up to look at his sister's. He could tell she felt bad about what just happened. He could tell she felt bad for what he just told her. Then suddenly, he could tell his older sister was getting pissed. Her face took on a tint of red and her eyes scowled.

"You mean to tell me that Michael, who is sitting so casually in your house messed with your boyfriend and we're doing nothing about it!"

He wanted to, he wanted so badly to stop his lunatic of a sister from barging in to the kitchen and probably do something that could get her 20 to life in the slammer. But Elena was too fast and at this point, too angry to grab a hold of her.

"Get. Out!" Was all Jeremy heard from where he was at.

When he got back in to the kitchen he could see Elena taking her notebook and hitting Michael with it just as hard as she could. If Jeremy wasn't so mad himself, he'd probably think it was quite hilarious. This 6'2 athlete getting swatted at by a girl as small as Elena with a thin notebook was definitely something Jeremy didn't see everyday.

"What the hell, stop." Michael tried getting the book away from her and finally he swiped out of her hands as he stood up and away from the table.

"Look, stop. Okay? I know you're mad and you have every right to be." Michael said to both Elena and Jeremy. More to Jeremy than anything else but if it'd calm Elena down, heck he'd apologize to her too.

"I'm not going to tell you again, get out", Elena screeched.

"Alright, alright", Michael said as he held his hands up in defeat.

"But look, I amsorry, you have...", he paused looking at Jeremy with genuine sorrow in his eyes, "you have no idea how sorry I am. But I actually...",

Elena retaliated before he could speak again, "I don't give a damn what you are or what you've got to say. Jeremy doesn't deserve whatever the hell you did with Tyler, get the hell out of our house dammit!"

"Elena stop, look I'm pissed, but just-, I want to talk to him." Jeremy raised his eyebrows slightly to Elena, which meant he wanted to talk to Michael alone.

She shot him a glare before scoffing out of the kitchen scowling at Michael as she did so.

Soon it was just the two of them alone in the kitchen still looking away from each other.

"Finish what you were going to say." Jeremy's tone sounded harsher than before. A part of him wanted to throw steak knives at the other boy but then he realized... Michael wasn't the only one in that whole ordeal. It'd be hypocritical to be pissed at one and not the other so Jeremy reasoned and decided that if Michael wanted to say something, then Jeremy would at least pretend to listen. But at this point, he was very much interested.

Michael licks his lips slowly and looks over at Jeremy. His eyes trace the younger boys frame and lusts at what he knows he can't have.

"I don't blame you if you hate me or anything that you might feel right now but there's something that I've wanted to tell you, ...I'm sorry for what happened. I know that you didn't deserve it and that's exactly what I told Tyler. I even-, ...I even apologized to him too."

Jeremy's mouth open slightly as he thought over what he just heard.

"Wait, when did you talk to Tyler?" Jeremy didn't know Tyler talked to him. When the hell was he going to bring up that little tidbit?

"It was after that night that we talked at the Grill. He was pissed that I talked to you and told me to stay away. That was when I told him that I didn't just brush off what happened. That I've been feeling guilty ever since then. Especially now."

Michael stopped at what almost felt like a cliffhanger to Jeremy.

"Especially... what?" Jeremy was curious.

"That ever since that night at the Grill I haven't thought about anything else."

Jeremy's face was priceless. He looked as if he'd just seen the ghost of Elvis Presley cartwheel his way out of his house.

"What?" He tried saying more but Michael had just thrown too much at Jeremy all at once.

"I know. I know it's weird, and I know it's twisted, and wrong, and obviously won't do anything but... I like you. A lot."

Toulip Fontana heaves a big sigh and realizes this story must come to an end soon. :(

It's sad for me because I absolutely adore Jeremy and Tyler together so that's why after this story is finished, I'm planning on doing another Jyler fic! Since I love hearing from my reviewers, if there are any requests or ideas you guys want to throw my way, I'd be honored to see them! :)