[1x02; The Night of the Comet]
Lucy's phone had been buzzing since she woke up, text messages and worried calls from Mrs. Lockwood, the mayor's wife distracting her from getting ready for school. Lucy answered all of them diligently, reminding her to have patience for the controlling woman who meant well.
Before the accident, Lucy and her mother often spent hours going over the traditions of Mystic Falls and what it meant to be a member of a founding family. Since the Gilbert family was a founding family, it meant that they were held to higher regard than others and they had certain responsibilities. In Miranda Gilbert's case—and now Lucy's—it meant helping out with town events.
Lucy wanted to honor her mother, so before school had started back up, she applied to be student ambassador on the town's planning committee. To her shock, and also satisfaction, she was chosen. Surprisingly, Lucy thrived in her role of responsibility—she had helped plan a small back-to-school supply drive for the middle and elementary schools and it was so successful that she had Mrs. Lockwood and the other members of the committee beaming with pride.
So now Mrs. Lockwood gave her more responsibility, starting with the celebration of the comet which would pass over Mystic Falls the next night. Her responsibilities weren't hard; all she had to do was design and organize the pamphlets and hand out candles to people who were at the event.
Lucy finished getting dressed—a simple dress-and-cardigan combination, adorned with a crown braid—and grabbed her phone and bag, heading out of her bedroom. She closed her door and was immediately grabbed by Jenna, who dragged her into her bedroom.
"I need your help," Jenna declared, sitting Lucy on her bed.
"With what?" Lucy wondered before looking around Jenna's room. It was a disaster with clothing strewn about everywhere. "Fashion emergency?"
Jenna nodded. "I'm meeting with Tanner about Jeremy."
Lucy raised her eyebrows. "Already?" she asked, slightly impressed—even Joel hadn't caused enough trouble in school to warrant a guardian visit the third day of the year.
"Yeah," Jenna groaned and reached into her closet, which still had a lot of clothes, even though most of them were laying around the room. She picked out two dresses; one was a modest dark purple number and the other was slightly less professional. "Which one?"
"The purple," Lucy picked easily. "Tanner would judge you hardcore if you came in that," she gestured to the other dress.
Jenna nodded thoughtfully and let the other dress fall to the floor, walking over to her bathroom with the purple dress in hand. Moments later she came out fully dressed, making Lucy nod her approval.
"Okay, what should I do with my hair?" Jenna wondered, looking into her vanity mirror. She paused, both of them hearing Elena's bedroom door open. "I'm gonna ask Elena."
Lucy and Jenna walked out of the latter's room and headed down the hallway, reaching Elena just as she was about to climb down the stairs. Jenna grabbed her arm, stopping her.
"Do I look adult?" she asked the older sibling. "As in respectfully parental?"
Elena looked at Jenna up and down. "Yes, though it depends where you're going."
"Jeremy's parent-teacher conference," Jenna walked over to the mirror on the wall, gathering her strawberry-blonde hair into a makeshift bun. "Hair up or down?"
Elena hummed thoughtfully. "Sexy stewardess—"
Jenna let her hair fall to her shoulders.
"—boozy housewife."
"Up it is," Jenna promptly decided.
Lucy snickered and turned to Elena, amused at her behavior. Her older sister hadn't acted so carefree in a while.
"You're acting weird," she pointed out with a smile.
"I feel good, which is rare," Elena shrugged, wearing a small smile. "So, I've decided to go with it. Fly free, walk on sunshine, and all that stuff."
"Good for you," Lucy said happily. She turned to Jenna, wondering about her little brother. "Where is Jeremy, by the way?"
"He left early," Jenna claimed, fixing her lip gloss. "Something about getting to wood shop early to finish a birdhouse."
Lucy furrowed her eyebrows in confusion and exchanged a look with Elena, both of them thinking that there wasn't even a wood shop class at their school. Jenna caught the expressions on their faces and sighed.
"There is no wood shop, is there?"
"Nope," both Lucy and Elena confirmed.
Jenna scoffed. "Yeah."
"Originally discovered nearly five centuries ago, it hasn't been over Mystic Falls in over one hundred and forty-five years," Mr. Tanner lectured about the comet to Lucy and her classmates. Lucy hardly paid attention, knowing most of the information from when she was designing the event's pamphlets. She took this time to draw an in-progress lion in her sketch book. "Now, the comet will be its brightest right after dusk during tomorrow's celebration. Are we bothering you, Mr. Salvatore? Miss Gilbert?"
Lucy looked up from her sketch, concerned that Mr. Tanner had been calling her out. Thankfully, it wasn't her he was looking at. The teacher's gaze was firmly set on Elena, who Lucy presumed to be having a staring contest with Stefan. Elena shook her head at Mr. Tanner apologetically.
The bell rang before Mr. Tanner could go on about the comet, causing everyone to gather their things and head to their next class. Lucy snapped her sketch book shut and picked up her history text, heading over to Elena.
"I need your help after school," Lucy said to her sister as they walked out of the classroom. "Pamphlets aren't going to fold themselves."
"Will we get them done on time?" Elena wondered, furrowing her eyebrows. "How many did you print off?"
"Close to a thousand," Lucy said nonchalantly. When she saw Elena's wide eyes, she quickly added, "I'm going to ask Bonnie and Caroline for help, too. Don't worry."
"Oh," Elena nodded her approval. "Yeah, we can go to the Grill or something after school and start."
Lucy beamed happily at her sister, glad that she had agreed to help.
"Hey."
Lucy and Elena immediately turned to Elena's right, shocked to see Stefan walking beside her—they hadn't heard him at all. He smiled at both of them and was holding two old books. Lucy waved slightly while Elena greeted him happily.
"I brought it," he told Elena, handing her one of the books. "Told you."
"'Wuthering Heights' by Ellis Bell," Elena read the title. "You know, I can't believe she didn't use her real name."
"All the Bronte sisters used pseudonyms," Lucy offered her knowledge. "It was the time."
Stefan nodded, giving Lucy an impressed look. "She's right. Female writers weren't very accepted then," he gave Elena a charming smile before looking back at Lucy. "Are you interested in literature?"
Lucy shrugged lightly. "I like certain things."
"Well, Elena mentioned that you liked musicals," Stefan said. He handed her the other book he had been holding. "So, I thought you might like this."
"'The Phantom of the Opera,'" Lucy mumbled, looking at the novel that her favorite musical was inspired by. It was old but very well taken care of. "Thanks, Stefan, where did you get these?" she gestured to Elena's book.
"Uh, they were passed down," Stefan said hesitantly. "Through the family."
Lucy nodded, impressed. All her family passed down through generations was creepy journals and weird jewelry.
"I have lots of books," Stefan continued. "Go ahead and keep them."
"Oh, no, we—" Elena went to protest, but hesitated. "but I would like to read it again…"
"I'll read it and give it back," Lucy promised, her eyes searching the hallway. She smiled when she caught sight of Caroline and Bonnie. "Thanks again, Stefan. I'll see you guys later."
She didn't wait for a response, walking away from the couple-to-be to approach her best friends. She bounced up to Bonnie and Caroline, squishing in between them to walk in the middle.
"Hey, Luce," Caroline greeted with a smile.
"Hey," Lucy smiled back. "So…you two, me and Elena. Pamphlets, after school. The Grill."
Bonnie smirked teasingly at her. "Was that supposed to be coherent?"
Lucy waved her off. "You know what I meant. Are you in?"
"Will you buy me a strawberry milkshake for my labor?" Bonnie wondered, Caroline nodding in agreement.
"Of course I will!" Lucy exclaimed. "We can't go to the Grill and not order a milkshake. Please."
"Then we're in," Caroline stated.
"Thank you so much," Lucy said, gratefully. "So, what were you guys talking about?"
"Whether Bonnie is psychic or clairvoyant," Caroline informed Lucy. She turned to Bonnie, "So, which is it?"
"Technically, Grams says I'm a witch," Bonnie said matter-of-factly. "My ancestors were these really cool Salem witch chicks or something. Grams tried to explain it all but she was looped on the liquor so I kinda tuned out. Crazy family, yes. Witches?" she shook her head. "I don't think so."
"Yeah, well, feel free to conjure up the name and number of that guy from last night," Caroline sighed wistfully.
Lucy raised her eyebrows. "A guy?" she nudged Caroline. "You saw a hot guy and you didn't tell me about it? Bonnie, did you see this mysterious handsome man?"
"No, I didn't see him," Bonnie said. She looked at Caroline and reminded, "You did. Why didn't you just talk to him?"
"Yeah, since when doesn't Caroline go after what she wants?"
Caroline shrugged at Lucy and Bonnie's questions. "I don't know. I was drunk."
Lucy, Bonnie, and Caroline giggled together, heading off to their next class.
Lucy leaned up against the bar at the Grill, waiting for the four milkshakes that she ordered to go. She and the girls were going to stay at the Grill to fold pamphlets, but there was something about milkshakes in a to-go cup that made them better. She tapped her manicured nails against the polished wood impatiently, when a familiar face caught her eye.
"Hi, Matt," she greeted her blue-eyed friend, giving him a quick, comforting hug. She smiled sadly when she pulled back from him and rubbed his arms. "How are you and Vicki?"
"I'm okay, Luce," Matt smiled slightly. "I'm getting food for Vick since they're keeping her overnight. They're making sure that there's no infection, but she should be able to come home tomorrow."
"That's great," Lucy felt so sorry for Vicki, but especially Matt. Although Vicki was the one who was attacked in the woods, it was easy to see that Matt was more affected. He always took care of his older, drug-addicted sister and with their mom gone, Vicki was all the family he had. "I'm so sorry this happened. Did they catch the animal who did it?"
"I don't think so," Matt shook his head. "But I heard that there's some talk of missing campers."
Lucy winced. "Did Vicki say if it was a mountain lion or a bear or something?"
"No, she said it was a vampire," Matt murmured, making Lucy blanch in shock. Matt saw her reaction. "She was out of it," he explained. "drunk or something."
"Oh," Lucy nodded slowly, smiling at the waiter who brought out the drink carrier full of milkshakes. "Well, I have to get back to the girls. I hope Vicki gets better."
"Thanks, Luce," Matt smiled gratefully. "See you."
Lucy grabbed the drink carrier and headed outside to the table where her sister, Caroline, and Bonnie were waiting, already folding brochures. She set the drink carrier on the table and picked up the one closest to her, reading the label.
"Strawberry for Miss Bonnie," she handed Bonnie her drink and picked up another one. "Vanilla for Lenabug and chocolate for me and Care."
"Thanks!" Bonnie, Caroline, and Elena chorused.
The four teenagers got to work, folding brochures, chatting, and drinking their milkshakes in between. They got through a quarter of the pamphlets before they started talking about the night Elena and Stefan spent talking and the comet that was set to pass over the next night.
"Well, I was talking to Grams, and she said the comet is a sign of impending doom," Bonnie informed them about the comet. "The last time it passed over Mystic Falls, there was a lot of death. So much blood and carnage, it created a bed of paranormal activity."
Lucy raised her eyebrows, interested in what Bonnie had to say. She wasn't sure she believed in supernatural or paranormal happenings, but she sincerely hoped that the comet wouldn't bring more death. That was the last thing she needed in her life.
Caroline paused her folding and teased, "Yeah, and then you poured Grams another shot and she told you about the aliens."
Lucy bit her lip in amusement when Bonnie gave Caroline a harsh look. Caroline simply ignored it.
"So then what?" she asked, looking at Elena.
"So then nothing," Elena shrugged.
"You and Stefan talked all night?" Caroline asked in disbelief. "There was no sloppy first kiss or touchy feely of any kind?"
"Nope, we didn't go there."
Caroline looked unimpressed by Elena's answer. "Not even a handshake?" she said, shocked. She gestured to Lucy and Bonnie as she went on, "I mean, Elena, we are your friends, okay? You're supposed to share the smut."
Lucy wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Yeah, I, for one, want no knowledge of my sister's sex life."
Elena snickered at Lucy and shook her head. "We just talked for hours."
"Okay, what is with the blockage?" Caroline looked frustrated, though Lucy didn't know why. Caroline had told her how Stefan had rejected her, but she guessed the blonde was moving on and helping Elena with her almost-relationship. "Just jump his bones already. Okay, it's easy: boy likes girl, girl likes boy? Sex."
Lucy laughed at Caroline's bright smile. "So profound, Carebear."
Caroline winked at Lucy and went back to folding pamphlets.
The others went back to work, folding brochures and then refolding them if they didn't get the lines straight enough for Lucy's taste. They all knew the youngest girl was a perfectionist, but they never realized how hard she could make them work.
It was only fifteen minutes after the end of Caroline's speech that Elena put down the pamphlet she was folding and grabbed her bag.
"Where are you going?" Bonnie wondered, making Lucy look up at her sister.
"Caroline's right, it is easy," Elena explained. "If I sit here long enough, I'll end up talking myself out of it instead of doing what I started the day saying I was going to do."
"But you're my ride," Lucy said, looking at her sister with wide eyes. "And I can't—"
She didn't finish her sentence but Elena, Bonnie, and Caroline knew what she was going to say. Lucy was still getting used to riding with Jenna, Joel, and Elena. Riding with Caroline and Bonnie—especially Caroline, who had a lead foot—was too much for her at the moment. Bonnie and Caroline weren't offended by Lucy's fear; they understood that she still needed time to heal.
"You're coming with me," Elena told her younger sister, piling the unfolded brochures and settling them gently in her bag. When Lucy started to protest, she added, "After we see Stefan, we'll fold all night, okay?"
"Fine," Lucy conceded, taking the piles of brochures that Bonnie and Caroline handed her and sliding them into her bag. She smiled uneasily at her friends. "Thanks for your help, girls."
Bonnie and Caroline waved her off with large smiles and wished Elena good luck with Stefan. Lucy and Elena left the Grill and started walking to their car, ready to head to the Salvatore Boarding House where Lucy was sure she'd be a third wheel.
The Salvatore Boarding House was on the outskirts of Mystic Falls, so that meant a twenty-minute drive. The house itself was huge, the architecture reminiscent of the early twentieth century. It used to be like a sort of bed-and-breakfast, but it hadn't been open to the public for a couple of years now due to the reclusive nature of the oldest Salvatore and the owner of the house, Zach.
Elena parked in the large, oval-shaped driveway and got out of the car, Lucy following shortly after. They walked straight to the door where Elena rung the old-fashioned bell and waited for a response.
Of course, Elena was an impatient person by nature, so within twenty seconds of no answer, she knocked on the door. The door pushed open, squeaking ominously. Elena opened it further, looking into the house.
Lucy grimaced. "Please tell me you're not—"
Before she could finish her sentence, Elena walked into the house, uninvited, just like Lucy was hoping she wouldn't do.
"—and you're walking in," Lucy sighed. When Elena ignored her and continued into the foyer, she hissed, "Elena, what are you doing?"
Elena waved her off and looked around the foyer, impressed by the decoration. Lucy reluctantly followed her, hoping that they wouldn't get caught by Zach Salvatore and be arrested by her best friend's mother.
"Stefan?" Elena called as the two ventured further into the house. "Stefan?"
Behind them, the door—which Lucy had sworn she had closed—squealed open. Lucy and Elena turned to see if anyone was coming in, but there was no one there. Lucy took a few steps toward the door, confused, and then ducked, her heart beating wildly, when a black bird squawked and flew through the door.
Lucy squeaked and turned to Elena, only to gasp in fright when she saw a man behind her sister. Elena turned as well, her eyes widening when she came face-to-face with the man.
The man studied Elena closely, as though he had seen her before. Lucy noticed several emotions cross over his face; longing, loneliness, and intrigue.
"I—we're sorry for barging in," Elena apologized, stuttering slightly from surprise. "The door was…" she pointed to the door, which was now closed again. "…open."
"You must be Elena," the man said before looking at Lucy. "And her kid sister, Lucy."
"Younger sister," Lucy corrected him under her breath.
The man didn't seem to notice. "I'm Damon, Stefan's brother."
Elena cocked her head in confusion. "He didn't tell me he had a brother."
Lucy mentally disagreed. When asked if he had siblings, Stefan didn't say he had none. He just said he didn't talk to them. By the way that Stefan avoided his brother in conversation with Elena, Lucy deduced that he probably didn't have the best relationship with Damon.
"Well, Stefan's not one to brag," Damon shrugged. "Please, come. I'm sure Stefan will be along any second."
He gestured further down the hall, where it looked like it turned into a large room. Lucy followed Elena and Damon, gaping in delight when she saw the room. It was large, with high ceilings and antique furniture.
"Wow, this is your living room?" Lucy wondered, looking away from the room at Damon.
"Living room, parlor, Sotheby's auction," he said, looking around. "It's a little kitschy for my taste."
"It's amazing," Elena breathed.
Damon smirked at the older sister. "I see why my brother's so smitten," he said, making Elena smile. "It's about time. For a while there I never thought he'd get over the last one. Nearly destroyed him."
Lucy listened curiously, seeing Elena's furrowed brows.
"The last one?" Elena asked quietly.
"Yeah. Katherine, his girlfriend," Damon cocked his head knowingly. "Oh, you two haven't had the awkward ex's conversation yet."
"Nope."
"Oops, while I'm sure it'll come up now," Damon looked apologetic, but Lucy didn't buy it. It was clear—to her, at least—that he brought up Stefan's ex-girlfriend on purpose. "Or maybe he didn't want to tell you because he didn't want to make you think he was on the rebound. We all know how those relationships end."
Elena was speechless as she stared at Damon. Her mind whirled, trying to figure out why Stefan hadn't told her about Katherine and wondering if she really was Stefan's rebound girl.
Lucy, seeing her sister's struggle, spoke up, "You say it like every relationship is doomed to end," she narrowed her gaze as she spoke to Damon, getting a bad feeling from him.
"I'm a fatalist," Damon said unapologetically. "Hello, Stefan."
Lucy turned, shocked, because Damon hadn't even looked to see if Stefan appeared. Stefan also came in without anyone noticing; he was silent as could be. The Gilbert sisters looked at Stefan, who was glaring coolly at Damon.
"Elena, Lucy," he greeted without taking his eyes off his brother. "I didn't know you were coming over."
"I know, I should have called, but I—"
"Oh, don't be silly," Damon interrupted Elena's apology. "You two are welcome any time. Aren't they, Stefan?"
Stefan didn't reply, he just continued to glare at Damon.
"You know, I should break out the family photo albums or some home movies," Damon offered to Elena. "But I have to warn you, he wasn't always such a looker."
"Thank you for stopping by, girls," Stefan said abruptly and unemotionally. "Nice to see you."
Lucy raised her eyebrows, slightly shocked at Stefan's behavior. From what she'd seen, the youngest Salvatore really liked her older sister. It was weird that he was so brisk with her. On the other hand, it didn't surprise her; Stefan obviously didn't have a good relationship with Damon. He was probably just aggravated with is brother.
"Yeah, we should probably go," Elena hesitantly agreed with Stefan. "It was nice to meet you, Damon."
"Great meeting you, too, Elena," Damon said, taking Elena's hand and pressing a chaste kiss to the back of it. "You as well, Lucy."
Like Elena, Damon grabbed Lucy's hand and pressed his lips to it. At once, Lucy felt the tingling sensation in her fingers that was getting familiar. Damon quietly yelped at the pain and ripped away from Lucy within a second.
"Sorry," Lucy muttered, staring at her hand in confusion. Why was that happening so often? "I didn't mean to shock you."
Damon looked at Lucy, trying to see if she had any malicious intent. He didn't see anything but the pure confusion and apologetic look on her face. She was being truthful when she apologized, which meant that she didn't know what was happening.
He looked at Stefan, who had watched the exchange and saw Damon in pain from Lucy's touch. Stefan finally moved his gaze from his brother to Lucy, wondering what had happened.
"Come on, Lou," Elena murmured, grabbing her sister's hand and pulling her out of the house. She didn't look back at Stefan, but he wasn't even paying attention; he was more focused on the fact that Lucy hadn't shocked Elena when she grabbed her.
As soon as the door closed and the brothers heard the car engine start up, they looked at each other. Stefan was bewildered, wondering what could have happened, while Damon was thoughtful, trying to think if Lucy could be a supernatural creature.
"What was that with Lucy?"
"I don't know," Damon said, still thinking. "I felt weird when I touched her."
Stefan furrowed his eyebrows. "Weird how?"
"Like she was draining me of my energy," Damon replied, looking at his hand to see if there were any marks from where he touched the girl. "It stopped as soon as I stopped touching her."
Stefan hummed thoughtfully. Lucy didn't seem like the type of girl to try to hurt someone. And he doubted that Lucy was supernatural. None of the other Gilberts were, except for the fact that Elena was the exact copy of Katherine.
"She has to be something," Damon declared. "And when I find out what she is, I'm gonna kill her."
"What?" Stefan exclaimed, growing angry. "No, you're not Damon. She's an innocent girl and she's done nothing to you."
"Whatever she is, she has no control over it," Damon said, indifferent to whether Lucy was innocent or not. If she was a threat to him, she had to die. "It's better if I kill her now—"
Stefan growled angrily, interrupting Damon's threat. He could feel the veins under his eyes threatening to pop out as he thought of Damon killing Lucy. For some reason he was growing protective of her and the last thing he wanted was for her to die.
Damon laughed. "Oh please, like you could stop me. You already look exhausted. Let me guess," he smirked cockily, thinking of the girl he attacked in the woods. "You went to the hospital."
"Someone had to clean up your mess," Stefan spat, still angry.
"Well, were you successful? Did the power of persuasion work?" Damon wondered playfully. "Remember, if you don't feed properly, none of those little tricks work right."
Stefan glared at his brother, furious, and changed the subject. "Why are you here, Damon? I mean, other than threatening to kill an innocent girl?"
Damon shrugged and started walking out of the room. "I guess you'll just have to wait and see, won't you?"
Lucy spent most of the day after school helping Mrs. Lockwood set up for the comet celebration. She divided piles of brochures amongst Caroline, Bonnie, and Elena to hand out before Mrs. Lockwood sent her to find the candles they had ordered to use when the sun set.
By the time Lucy found the candles—they were in the back of Mrs. Lockwood's SUV underneath a pile of flannel blanket—the sun was starting to set. Thankful and impressed with the teenager, Mrs. Lockwood let Lucy off the clock to enjoy the event with her friends.
So Lucy gathered up a handful of candles for her friends and made her way over to them. She passed Stefan on the way to them and cheerfully handed him a candle, moving on without a word. She reached the picnic table where Caroline, Bonnie, Elena, Matt, and Tyler were sitting and chatting, and held up the small, white candles.
"I brought the candles!" she declared, handing them out.
Tyler took a lighter out of his pocket and lit his candle. Once the wick was lit, he held it out to Matt, who lit his own. Eventually Lucy's candle was lit up and she admired it for a second before taking a seat next to Caroline to watch for the comet.
"Ugh, look at how sweet they look," Caroline said to Lucy, nodding over to where Elena and Stefan were standing close to each other.
"Mmhm," Lucy hummed, her eyes glued to the sky, searching for the comet.
It took a few minutes, but eventually the comet appeared, flying over the town. The crowd around Lucy gasped excitedly. She couldn't help but smile at the sight of the ball of snow and ice and the fact that she was alive to witness its return.
All too soon the comet disappeared from view and Caroline, Bonnie, and the boys were begging to go to the Grill to order food. Lucy agreed after a quick check in with Mrs. Lockwood, who said that the clean-up crew would handle break down.
The group of friends settled at a table toward the middle of the restaurant and ordered. Their food came quickly, despite the crowd surrounding them, and they devoured their meals, eventually splitting off to play pool.
An hour after the comet's passing, Lucy was ready to go home. She was exhausted by the work she had done plus the late night she had folding brochures. She was just about to go and find Jeremy when he strode right up to their table.
"Hey," he greeted the group of teenagers. "Has anyone seen Vicki?"
"You're her stalker, you tell us," Tyler scoffed, earning a dirty look from Lucy and Elena.
"I can't find her," Jeremy said worriedly, ignoring Tyler's quip.
"She probably found somebody else to party with," Tyler smirked. "Sorry, pill pusher, I guess you've been replaced."
Lucy glared at him. "Tyler, would you shut up?" she snapped.
She knew that Jeremy used drugs, but she had no idea that he sold them. And she very much doubted that he did. He wasn't like that and Joel had given his brother a talk in the middle of summer, telling Jeremy that he didn't care if he smoked for the time being, but he couldn't sell and ruin his future.
Elena furrowed her eyebrows and asked Tyler, "What's with the pill pusher?"
Tyler shrugged. "Ask him."
Jeremy shot daggers at Tyler. "You want to do this right now?"
Elena bristled at Tyler's comment and glowered at Jeremy. "Are you dealing?"
"Of course not, Lena," Lucy assured Elena for Jeremy's sake. There was enough going on at the moment that a sibling squabble wasn't ideal.
"She's never gonna go for you!" Tyler shot at Jeremy, raising his voice to be heard.
"She already did," Jeremy snapped. "Over and over and over again."
Lucy grimaced in disgust, not wanting to hear about her younger brother's sex life.
"Yeah, right."
"You slept with Vicki Donovan?" Caroline asked after Tyler stated his disbelief. "I mean, Vicki Donovan slept with you?"
"There's no way," Tyler commented.
"And I didn't even have to force her into it," Jeremy said, giving Tyler a disgusted, yet knowing look.
Lucy gaped at Tyler, shocked by Jeremy's accusation. Forcing anyone into a sexual situation without consent was a very big deal. It made her respect for the mayor's son plunge. She knew Jeremy, he wouldn't just randomly accuse people of sexual assault.
"What the hell is he talking about, Ty?" Matt asked angrily. He was clearly not happy with is best friend's behavior toward his older sister.
"Nothing, man, just ignore him. He's a punk," Tyler brushed Matt off.
"Guys, we should probably be looking for Vicki," Lucy spoke up, looking between the three guys.
"Right," Matt agreed. "We need to shut up and find my sister."
"Caroline and I will check the back," Bonnie volunteered, nodding at Matt.
Matt sighed. "I'll check the square."
Jeremy jumped at the chance to go with Matt. "I'll come with you."
"Oh, no, no," Elena grabbed Jeremy's arm and dragged him toward the bathroom. Lucy didn't bother following her siblings; the last thing she wanted to hear was Elena giving their little brother a lecture.
"I'll come with you, Matt," she offered, patting his arm.
Matt nodded and the two left the Grill, heading toward the square. The square was still full of people socializing with other town members, discussing the comet and the upcoming Founder's Ball. Eventually Lucy and Matt split up since there was too much ground to cover.
Unfortunately, Lucy was caught by Mrs. Lockwood. She wanted to be looking for Vicki, especially since her little brother cared so much for her, but she knew she wouldn't be able to get away from the mayor's wife so soon. Mrs. Lockwood rambled on, praising Lucy for her work on the event and informing her that she wouldn't have to help with the Founder's Ball because there were so many volunteers.
Lucy's phone buzzed in her back pocket three times before Mrs. Lockwood said her goodbyes. She checked her phone, sighing in relief as she read the text messages from Matt declaring that Stefan had found Vicki with her stitches ripped open. She messaged him back, giving her well wishes for Vicki.
Lucy shoved her phone back into her pocket and looked around, seeing that the crowd was starting to thin. She hoped that Elena was still around for a ride home, but she figured that she'd have to walk. A call to Elena confirmed that she needed to walk; Lucy was grateful she had chosen to wear her Keds.
"Lucy!"
Lucy turned at the familiar voice, smiling when she saw Stefan jogging up to her.
"Hi, Stefan," she greeted kindly. "What are you doing?"
"Uh, I saw you walking," Stefan explained, walking beside Lucy as she began to walk again. "Why didn't you catch a ride with Caroline and Bonnie?"
Lucy grimaced, embarrassed. "I kinda have a hard time in cars," she said quietly. "It's embarrassing, I know."
"No, no, it's not embarrassing," Stefan assured her, a sympathetic smile on his lips. "You went through something horrible. It's okay not to be okay."
"I know it's okay," Lucy made sure not to make eye contact with Stefan. "I just…I don't want to be this way. I'm supposed to be taking Driver's Ed but when Jenna signed me up I nearly had a panic attack. Is that how I'm supposed to live for the rest of my life? Being afraid?"
Lucy glanced at Stefan from the corner of her eye, her cheeks flushed. She couldn't believe that she had just practically poured her heart out for someone she hardly knew.
Before Stefan could say anything, she spoke again, "I don't know why I just told you that. I mean, I hardly know you. It's just, even if I haven't really spoken to you for more than five minutes, for some reason I think you're easy to talk to," she took a deep breath and continued, "And I hardly know you, which somehow makes it easier to talk to you because even if you judge me, which I don't think you will, it wouldn't really matter, because I don't know you. If I told Elena or Joel what I just told you, they'd think I'm broken and I'm not broken, you know? I can get better, I want to get better—"
"Lucy," Stefan's voice was soft and nonjudgmental. He smiled when she took a deep breath, cheeks flushing further when she realized that she was rambling to a stranger.
Strangely, Stefan knew how Lucy felt. She didn't seem like the type of person who would judge him, just like he wouldn't judge her. It felt like he had known Lucy Gilbert his whole life. He didn't know where his relationship with Elena was going to go, but he knew he should be friends with her little sister. And, honestly, he wanted to get to know her for her, anyway, not just to win points with Elena.
Something about Lucy was just endearing and intriguing. Stefan could hardly figure her out; sometimes she would stand up for herself and show her backbone. Sometimes, like that moment, she'd show how vulnerable she was. She took charge of things, like with the comet celebration, but she also let others take the lead. Stefan had only known Lucy for a week, yet he knew she was a complex person. Honestly, she reminded him of the good parts of Damon.
"Sorry," Lucy breathed apologetically. "I ramble a lot. People tell me it's a bad habit."
"Who cares what people think?" Stefan shrugged. "And you're right, I don't think you're broken, either. You won't be sad forever, Lucy."
Lucy and Stefan slowly stopped walking right outside Lucy's house. The lights were on still, so Lucy knew that Jenna was probably waiting up for her.
Lucy looked at Stefan hopefully, wondering if he really believed what he said. "Do you really think so?"
Stefan smiled. "Of course," he paused thoughtfully. "Give me your phone."
Lucy gave him a confused look but pulled her phone from her jeans, anyway, handing it to him. Stefan carefully took it from her and typed in his contact information.
"Here," he handed the phone back to Lucy. "If you need to talk, call me. I'll be there for you."
Lucy bit her lip, silently appreciating the fact that Stefan, whom she had just met, was being so kind to her. She didn't really talk about the accident—she couldn't with her siblings and it felt weird with Caroline—so she really valued his offer.
She could only laugh, though, because she was pretty sure he had just quoted 'Friends'.
Stefan realized his phrasing soon after her first giggle.
"Did you just…?"
Stefan sighed, his lips twitching in amusement. "Yeah."
"Okay," Lucy's laughter died some. "I may take you up on that, Salvatore."
Stefan grinned. "Make sure you do, Gilbert. See you tomorrow."
"Goodnight," Lucy waved and turned, walking up the sidewalk that led to her porch.
Her day was busy; the beautiful comet passed, she impressed the mayor's wife, and she made a new friend. All in all, it wasn't bad.