CHAPTER 3 – THE REAPING
-ELENA-
"It's Harry Winston!" Caroline says, her voice in a much higher octave than usual. Along with Bonnie, we've been crowded around the dining table for going on an hour now – catching up on each others lives all the way back to our Freshman year in college! "Three full karats!"
"I think your ring is bigger than my car, Caroline." Bonnie laughs, holding Caroline's fingers and turning her hand this way, then that way, watching the sunlight coming in through the open windows twinkle and sparkle and glitter.
Unintentionally, the fingers of my right hand begin to spin my ring – its both my engagement and wedding band – and I have the sudden desire to leave my girlfriends at the table and wrap my arms around my husband.
"Yours is pretty too, Elena." Caroline gives me one of those, poor thing, smiles, patting my arm – mistaking my unfocused stare and the touching of my band of glittering white gold to be longing for her large… no, huge, engagement ring and diamond covered wedding band.
I smile back, putting my hand ontop of hers now resting on my forearm – her ring is magnificent, very Klaus and Caroline. But to be honest, Stefan could have given me a key-ring and I'd wear it with the same pride I see I Caroline's eyes right now.
Don't get me wrong, I love my granule ring – It's perfect! But in my opinion, it's the man, not the band. Two years ago, I wouldn't have believed it if you would've told me that I could possibly love Stefan more – but every day that I wake up and find him next to me, still reality and not a dream… I fall in love with him more.
With me daydreaming about my husband – everything from the way he chops vegetables to the deep cut of his muscular back – and Caroline finally at the end of her story of how Klaus proposed, our conversation has stalled.
Just so you know, Klaus proposed to Caroline on live television. Yes. Infront of hundreds of thousands of people during Caroline's coverage of New Years Eve in Dallas TX. It was on a jumbo tron and the crowd chanted "Say yes, say yes, say yes!" and when she said yes, there were fireworks and thousands of people clapping and the clock struck midnight as she kissed him. Very Klaus. Very Caroline.
Anyway, so Bonnie is slurping down her bloody mary and I'm picturing Stefan shirtless last night and I think I see Caroline about to start in on her wedding plans when Damon stands up and groans loudly – rolling his eyes at no one in particular and heading out to find Stefan, I assume.
He's been sticking close to Katherine most of the day, like he doesn't want to let her out of his sight – it's ridiculous for him to be worried about her and Stefan. I trust him… I trust her. When I woke in Klaus' coffin, in his crypt, I was terrified and sick and in a panic about Allie and Stefan. But Katherine was there. She'd been there for over thirty hours… waiting. Ready to help me. Help me get myself together and set me on my way to find my husband and my daughter.
Before the compulsion, before leaving for Rome with Stefan, Katherine and I found a happy-medium – a common ground. A lot of time had passed and our lives had become even crazier than before, but when I sat up from my coma-like state and found Katherine waiting for me, I have to say I was thrilled to see her.
She brought me fresh clothes, money, food and blood as she wasn't sure which one I'd need, and we spent a couple of days in a hotel room as we acclimated to living and she prepared herself to find Damon. I gave her pep-talks about how much Damon loved her. She gave me some insight into how Stefan traveled, the way he hid out in years past.
When we said our goodbyes and went our separate ways, we both shed tears. Funny how things turned out between us – going from immortal/mortal enemies to friends… family.
Katherine is acting weird, though. Or maybe I am. I don't know. I'm not sure how to merge my little family with my high school friends and my former enemies.
I'm having a terrible time interacting with Klaus. Things are awkward between Katherine and I, but Klaus and I haven't even spoken – not once. Not a single word. He's been with Stefan pretty much all day, they went to pick up our lunches together and have been on the deck ever since. Drinking, laughing. I guess Stefan is having an easier time with this.
I feel bad for not being able to move past the history I have with Klaus – Stefan and I have talked about their strange relationship, about how he hates him and really likes hanging out with him at the same time. My best friend is crazy about him, literally glowing as she tells me and Bonnie about their wedding plans – I force myself to focus and listen to her and smile and nod about her choice of colors. Agreeing with a bright smile when she shows us her red, amber, and gold color scheme on her Iphone – flipping through pictures of ruby red bridesmaid dresses for us to choose from – while I promise to do a better job with Klaus, and Katherine.
"Katherine, come over here with us." Like the three other times I've invited her to do something with us – take the kids for a walk down the beach after breakfast, have lunch on the deck, look at pictures of Allie, Grayson, Lola and Liam - my tone sounds so false. I have no idea why I can't be sincere about wanting her to join us.
"I'm fine. Thanks." Katherine gives her standard response, just like the other three times she's turned down my poor solicitation.
Bonnie and I stare at the back of Katherine's head for a long moment. It kind of bugs me that she won't even turn around on the couch and face us, pretend to be slightly interested. "Are you sure?" I try again. My gaze moving to Jeremy, barely awake on the loveseat – his eyes drooping. "We're planning a wedding over here!" My voice is come on, its fun light.
Still not turning to us, Katherine gives a heavy sigh, like it's annoying her to have to keep turning me down, "I'm over five-hundred years old, Elena. I've planned more weddings than you can imagine. If I hear something I find even a little interesting, I'll join in."
Caroline rolls her eyes, shooting an annoyed look over her shoulder towards Katherine before focusing on her phone again. Bonnie and I share a look – she shrugs and silently mouths, I'll tell you later.
Another strange turn in our lives, Bonnie and Katherine have become, and I quote, "great friends."
No one saw that coming… especially not me.
I'll never admit it to anyone but Stefan, but I'm secretly seething with jealousy every time I see my best friend with my mirror image in pictures on Facebook, or when I talk to Bonnie on the phone and she tells me about their shopping trips, or something funny one of the kids did with Auntie Kat.
Auntie Kat… ugh.
-DAMON-
I can't stand to sit here any longer…
When her head tilts down and those curls frame her devilishly sexy face, her eyes and the locks of her hair the same semi-sweet chocolate brown, that's when I can feel it radiating off of her. That's when I can feel it in the deepest pit of my gut... her disappointment in me. Worst part, there's nothing I can do to fix it. I know I'm not the only one of us who's about ready to throw up my hands and say to hell with it.
Fuck it.
We've tried… tried to the point that it's becoming a routine and a chore.
It's not the resort-style bungalow on the beach of Thailand, not the douche-bag his and hers Range Rovers, not the land, and not the money that he obviously has… hell it's not even Stefan that I see in Katherine's envious eyes – it's the family.
Princess Allie and Little G, as I call them.
Now, don't get me wrong, Katherine is not the least bit happy that Elena's living the life she's always felt she deserved – living in paradise with an adoring husband and a fat bank account. All the years Stefan spent playing human while I lived my vampire-life to the fullest extent, he was working and saving and studying and investing. The February morning that I woke up sick and sore and fucking human, all I had was five-thousand dollars in the bank and a freezer full of blood.
One was useless to me and the other didn't get me through spring.
Two years as human and I'm going on twenty-six years old – or one hundred and eighty three – whichever way you want to look at it, and I'm a sophomore in college. A God-Damned sophomore.
I've been working part-time as a document server for a couple of law firms in hopes that once I graduate and start applying to law school I can get a recommendation… Can you believe this shit?
You have no idea how badly I miss compulsion.
Anyway – I'm sick of watching Katherine's kitten-round eyes absorbing Elena's expensive décor and her priceless family, so I've left her to sulk on the couch while Elena, Bonnie, and Caroline discuss non-psycho girl things around the dining table.
Jeremy was there to keep her company… surely she and I are doing better than Jeremy and Bonnie Gilbert – right? Maybe he'll tell her about the piss-pour salary he makes as an art teacher in Mystic Falls and how expensive kids are and Katherine will get to feeling better about our entire situation, not just the lack of money.
I guess Katherine chose the wrong Salvatore.
Stepping out onto the cedar deck – only rich fuckers have cedar decks – I spot Princess Allie asleep on the hammock and as much as I hate to admit it, I'm a little envious of the kids too. Thankfully, my brother's distant voice breaks my wandering mind before I can wallow in the fact that Katherine and I have spent two full years trying unsuccessfully to get pregnant.
I'm not a yeller – instead, I shrug and smirk and turn my palms up to say what in response to Stefan calling for me from the white sand. He's been trying to worm away from Klaus for most of the day, but I'm enjoying watching him squirm and Elena is too wrapped up in her high school friends to notice.
Stefan slumps, brooding at me from fifty yards away, with Klaus moving the tables and chairs into place. We stand that way for a long moment – me on the rich-fucker cedar deck and Stefan in the rich-guy white sand – staring one another down, before I finally break into a smile and start down the few stairs to go play interference for my baby bro.
-STEFAN-
If I've got to pick one to hang out with, I pick Klaus over Katherine and Damon every time. Damon alone, he'd be my first choice, but I can't be around Katherine.
You probably think it's ridiculous that I can be friendly with Klaus – joking around and giving him a hard time about being so attentive to Caroline (seriously, he's as whipped as I am). I guess I feel like Klaus paid his dues – he did his time. Katherine on the other hand… like always she made out smelling like roses.
She doesn't deserve to be part of this life.
"When did you become such a douche?" Damon asks, sipping his beer and watching Klaus and I position the row of tables. "A clambake? Really?"
His attitude and his full-on resistance to even offer to help with the manual work makes me smile, glad my brother is the same ol' sarcastic ass he's always been.
I shrug, wiping sand from my hands, standing straight and stretching my back. "Elena and Caroline's idea." My human muscles sound like popping fabric threads as I twist from side to side.
"Caroline has been talking about having a clambake since Elena invited us." Klaus adds, tossing me my bottle of water and retrieving his beer. "I suggest you go with it." He teases Damon and I laugh, imagining the fit Caroline would throw if something got in the way of the dinner.
"Not all of us care about Caroline's temper tantrums, Nikki."
Nikki – Damon has called him that a few times today. I don't know what kind of history there is behind that, but every time Damon jabs at Klaus with the nickname I see a flare of anger in Klaus' eyes.
I give Damon a stern look, a quick shake of my head. Hope he gets my look of stop fucking with him.
Luckily, Klaus seems to let it roll off of his shoulders – leaning against the wooden tables for a quick rest, he just gives a short chuckle while looking towards the house. "Then I have to figure that's only because you've never been on the receiving end."
I laugh, once again thankful that all of this hasn't changed Caroline either. She may be annoying at times, a bit tactless, very loose lipped – but Caroline is perfect the way she is.
Damon must have understood my glare as he leaves the subject alone – instead he begins bugging me about why I'm not drinking.
I don't want to talk about it – my fears are groundless, that's what Elena says, atleast – so I make up some excuse about being dehydrated from running this morning and change the subject by trying to excuse myself. "We've done all we can do. I'm going to go get Elena and have her put the table settings together."
"Stefan Salvatore can't decorate for a clambake? I'm shocked." Damon ribs me, kicking some sand towards me.
"I'll go." Klaus offers, chugging the last bit of his beer. "I need another, anyhow."
Damon and I watch him go – I don't know why we both wait for Klaus to get a distance away before we speak.
"Who invited him?"
"Stop, Damon." I raise my hand to him. "Seriously. Don't start anything with him."
With a heavy sigh and a roll of his eyes, Damon groans, "You've got to be kidding me! All's forgiven?"
Forcing my thoughts to stay in my mind and not form into audible words, I wonder why he thinks I shouldn't forgive Klaus but accept Katherine without blinking! I just shrug – having trouble holding my tongue. I take a large drink of the warm water and pretend to be inspecting one of the wooden table legs in attempt to distract myself.
"Oh wait, I get it. It's because of Caroline." Damon stretches out her name, breaking the three syllabuls into a sing-song melody. "Didn't you get enough of her when Elena was loony? Or is you're married sex-life getting boring already, brother."
"Shut up, Damon." I try to sound light about it, but I do not want to open this gate. Give Damon an inch and he takes a mile – if I allow him to start down this road of talking about our sex-life, it's going to end in blows.
"Alright. Alright." Damon holds his hand up very dramatically, "I get it, you don't want to talk about it." Maybe five second of silence and Damon seems to think that was a long enough pause. "Let me give you some advice, baby bro."
"I don't want your advice, Damon." I sigh, starting off towards the garage to get the tiki torches Elena bought especially for the clambake.
"Spice it up, Stefan!" Damon calls behind me. "With a woman like Elena you've got to keep her interested or she's going to start shopping for a back up." When the muscles in my arms start to tense, tingle in anticipation, I start taking wider strides as I walk. It takes every ounce of control I have to pretend I don't hear him when he shouts, "Let her know I'm available!"
He hasn't changed at all. Dick.
-CAROLINE-
"I'm going to try." Elena smiles, adjusting Grayson in her lap as he does his best to pick up the cheerios she's placed on the table for him. He's adorable. Little G', that's what Damon called him and I think it's a perfect nickname – Little G' is a Gilbert, dark eyes, dark hair, huge smile. "We've talked about moving back before, but never really had time to hash it out, you know?"
"You've got to move back, Elena!" Bonnie squeals, brushing her hand down Grayson's soft baby hair.
"You've got three months." I don't know why I always fall into this role, commanding and demanding and making deadlines, but it's just easy and natural… it's how we've always been. I make my demands and Elena and Bonnie either do their best to meet my request or they ignore it all together. "Thanksgiving weekend is officially our wedding date!"
"I thought you were already married?" Katherine's voice startles us as she hasn't said anything in half an hour.
"We are, but we couldn't decide between a weekend away to elope or a huge wedding, so we're doing both!" My voice is nearly a coo, bragging a little at my good fortune, my epic love. "Klaus wants me to have everything I can dream of." I think Katherine is about to respond, but Klaus comes in from the deck and she immediately sinks into the couch… her odd behavior making more sense now that I realize that Klaus has been chasing her for 500 years and I doubt she's able to befriend very easily. "Speak of the devil!" I smile at him, the moment our eyes meet his lips curl into a prideful grin.
I stand to kiss him.
And kiss him…
I think they've all looked away by the time our mouths break away from each other. It wasn't overtly passionate, so I don't know why they're all acting like children about it.
"Darling, Stefan asked that I retrieve Elena to put out the décor' but I know how you love to handle these kinds of things." Kiss on my nose, "Head out and help him would you? I'm going to get another beer then I'll be out."
I nod, kiss his cheek – his scratchy beard feels ticklish against my lips. He holds my hand as he walks away – our arms extending completely before our fingers loose grip.
I watch him go, the swagger of a man who is confident in every aspect of his life… God, I love that guy.
When I turn back to Elena and Bonnie, they're both gaping at me – I just ignore them. They're going to have to get used to Klaus not being the evil villain, the big bad.
He's big alright – hehe – and maybe a little naughty, but Klaus is not evil. He's my soulmate. Klaus is not the vampire they all know. He's a wonderful, amazing man… intelligent and artistic with a brilliant mind. My hands move to my stomach when I think of how he's going to look holding our baby – bleached blue eyes looking into bleach blue eyes.
I realize my belly touching is probably weird seeing as how no one knows I'm pregnant, and try to play it off my straightening the fabric of my teal halter-top as I turn in my place and head out to help Stefan, smiling at how Klaus has helped find me a few minutes alone with him to tell him the news!
-ELENA-
When Caroline leaves and Klaus follows her out soon after, the atmosphere of the room seems to change the moment he steps out of the living room. Katherine get up – nonchalantly walking around in a pair of cut off jean shorts and a red bikini top, looking at pictures on the wall, running her fingers over the wood of the furniture.
"So I haven't been doing so great on my diet… does anyone know if clams are terribly fattening?" Bonnie groans, slouching back on the leather dining chair and rubbing her stomach with both hands. From what I can see, Bonnie is as small if not smaller than she was before the twins – I don't know what she's talking about! Diet?!
"They aren't bad." Katherine answers, "And really neither are Bloody Mary's" Taking a seat in front of me, she taps her fingernail against my wine glass. "But there are as many calories in a glass of wine as in a soda."
I'm suddenly self-conscious; my confidence fading away as I do some quick math and realize I've drank in nearly 500 calories… not counting the amazing breakfast Stefan made or the take-out lunch. I know it's all mental, but I think I actually feel my shorts fitting more snug around my growing waist line.
Damon and Klaus come in through the door and I cross my arms over my belly – belly, that's the appropriate word, not stomach or tummy… I have a belly.
With Klaus back, I expect Katherine to close up again, but she continues. "Stick with clear liquors, Elena. It'll help you save on the calories – get you back down to your old weight."
Bonnie interjects, "She looks amazing, Katherine – what are you talking about?"
Katherine's response happens to match my thoughts exactly, "You're just saying that because you're her friend. You expect me to be honest with you, right Elena?" I nod. Sure. Why not? Tell me I'm fat… no one knows what my body should look like more than my doppelganger. "You've still got ten or fifteen pounds to go."
Damon, Bonnie, and even Klaus all scoff aloud at the same time. Like it's ridiculous! It's not… she's right. I push my half full glass of wine away a bit, feel my belly growing even as I sink smaller and smaller in the room.
"No way, Kat." Bonnie frowns, looking me over like I'm a piece of wall art she's considering. "You two are the same size!"
I half expect Katherine to look offended about that, but she just purses her lips together and frowns at me – shaking her head no in an apologetic way.
I can't stand to be in this room any longer – I can feel the heat radiating from my reddened face, a full on flush turning my cheeks red. Starting out to the deck to find Stefan, Damon tells me he's in the garage and I have to stop in stride, turn around, and my exit becomes a big ordeal.
I can feel everyone's eyes on me – watching my extra ten to fifteen pounds wiggle as I walk. You have no idea how happy I am to finally get to the kitchen – out of their sight – I beeline through the laundry room, and force a smile to my face as I open the door to the garage.
My heart hits the floor. I think I hear it actually *thunk* against it…
Stefan is leaning back against his SUV, his hands holding Caroline's face in the gentle way that he does, their foreheads pressed against one another… but what makes their intimate embrace and close stance seem wrong, ominous, is the quick break away when they hear me open the door. The high pitched Elena that slips from Caroline's mouth as she straightens up her teeny-tiny shirt around her waist.
I want to scream. I want to throw something at them. I want to cry and accuse and ask what in the hell is going on here…
Instead. I smile. "Um, Klaus is looking for you two." I say through gritted teeth, then quickly shut the door and leave my husband to return to his embrace with Caroline… his beautiful, sunny, optimistic ex-girlfriend.
***MORE TO COME***
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