[4x19; Pictures of You]
The second scanner in a line of three in front of Lucy beeped, signaling that she could remove the picture and stick a new one in. She went through the motions methodically, picking up another photo out of the huge pile that she had collected and carefully placing it face-down before snapping the lid shut and pressing the green button. She did this each time a scanner went off and she would continue to do so until the huge pile of pictures were all scanned and sorted into her computer.
It was officially prom time and they were getting down to the wire. There wasn't much planning left to do but Lucy and Caroline each had a few projects that needed detailed work. It meant that they couldn't delegate them, which led them to doing the projects themselves. Lucy was stuck with the pictures and Caroline was stuck making a personal photo booth prop for each senior.
Pictures of You was the prom theme and Lucy was so proud of herself and Caroline for coming up with it. Their prom would be a walk down memory lane for them, their friends, and their classmates, showcasing highlights from the past twelve years in school together. It was nostalgic while still be classy enough for a formal prom.
When Lucy thought too hard about the theme and that there were only two weeks of school left, she got choked up so she tried not to think about it. Damn heightened emotions.
Lucy smiled as she slipped one of her own pictures into the scanner. It was an old one from middle school and she, Caroline, Bonnie, and Elena were huddled together, dressed for school spirit day. It was a good time in Lucy's life; her parents, Jenna, and Jeremy were alive, she, Elena, and Joel were human—well, as human as a siphoner and a doppelganger got—and she didn't know about vampires.
Don't get her wrong, she loved Stefan and her siblings so much but vampires were exhausting. Being a vampire was exhausting. Being a vampire-witch was exhausting. Everyday she had to drink blood, her worst nemesis when she was human, or she'd start to desiccate. She could hear everything going on around her. She could see the details of dust particles in the air, that's how great her eyesight was. She was faster than a vehicle. The last three could be counted as perks of being a vampire but she didn't think of it that way. They were just things that didn't make her human anymore.
Yeah, her life had changed a lot since middle school. Some for the better but most of it...not so much.
Lucy was just sliding a picture of Elena and Matt on the first day of freshmen year into a scanner when there was a knock on her door. She paused, looking across her apartment—she was finally able to move back in, which was great—and listened for a hint of who it might be.
There was a heartbeat; not fast like a human but slow like a vampire. She knew a lot of vampires, though. It was the person's scent that cleared up who it was; bergamot, fresh laundry, and coconut. It was Stefan Salvatore on the other side of that door.
A bright smile spread her lips and she jumped to her feet and sped over to the door, getting there within a second. She opened it and almost melted when she saw Stefan; he was as handsome and beautiful as ever. She didn't think she'd ever get bored of him.
And then he flashed her that dimpled smile that only came out so much and she could have fainted—okay, that was a little dramatic, but still. "Hey, pretty girl."
"Hi," she grabbed his free arm and yanked him inside, wasting no time in order to plant a kiss on his lips. Stefan eagerly returned the kiss but it didn't get very far on account of the wonderful smell she was picking up from the white cardboard box in his other hand. "What's that?"
"Oh, uh, I got these for you," Stefan presented the box to her with a grin.
"Thank you," Lucy gave him another quick kiss and opened the box. "Stefan, you didn't..."
In the cardboard box were five coconut cupcakes with a letter made out of red icing on each:
Prom?
"Stefan Salvatore just gave me a prom-posal?"
Stefan rolled his eyes fondly. "Yes, he did."
"With coconut cupcakes?"
"Mmhm," Stefan hummed. "Now are you going to say yes or should I attend prom by my lonesome?"
"Of course I'll go with you," Lucy giggled and looked up at him with sparkling eyes. "When did you get so cheesy?"
"When I fell in love with you," Stefan pecked her forehead. "So, what are you working on?"
"The pictures for prom night," Lucy sighed, wishing that she had time to leave the pictures for later so she could spend some quality time with her boyfriend. It seemed like they hadn't had any to themselves in a while; lately all their time was spent babysitting Elena so she wouldn't kill more people and trying to track down the cure.
She sat down in front of the scanners, digging one of her precious cupcakes out of the box.
"Need some help?" Stefan stepped over the scanners in order to sit by her side. She scooted over so that he would have more room. "Oh, hey, I brought a picture for you to add to the pile."
Lucy raised an eyebrow at him while licking some frosting off the top of her treat; his eyes followed the movement, his pupils darkening ever so slightly. "Really?"
Stefan nodded and pulled out a photo from his pocket. "You can't have prom without a picture of us up on a screen."
As he handed her the picture, she grinned widely. It was a picture of them at the Miss Mystic Falls pageant but it wasn't one of the official ones that she had framed on her nightstand. This must have been something that Caroline had taken but it was when they were in the middle of the dance, their heads pressed close together. She was grateful that Caroline took the picture; it showed a more serious side to their relationship that they kept close to themselves.
"I love it," she told him, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek. "I kind of want to frame it, though."
"Well, you're scanning it," he reminded her. "Afterwards you can put it anywhere you want."
Lucy furrowed her eyebrows at him teasingly. "You're already on my nightstand, though."
Stefan laughed. "I'm sure we can make some more room."
"Elijah, being human means a fresh start," Rebekah pleaded to their oldest brother as they, plus Lucy and Klaus sat around a table for an incredibly important discussion. "I can grow old and have a family and fill my days with meaning, knowing that each one matters."
Apparently, when Lucy got off the phone with Elijah in Willoughby, he had gotten the cure from Katherine hours later. Because Klaus was being tortured by Silas for the cure, Elijah had to make a decision between them; they each had to plead their case while Lucy and Elijah listened.
Lucy didn't really know why she was there for the meeting. Yes, she was a part of the family, but the cure didn't really concern her that much. The most she cared about it was giving it to Stefan and since her siblings had all but claimed it, she wouldn't be able to do that. Besides, she wasn't so sure he would actually take it now that everything had changed.
"Well, that was poetic," Klaus laughed mockingly; Rebekah gave him a dirty look while Lucy rolled her eyes.
"Well, if you can provide us with a more compelling reason for wanting the cure, Klaus, please..." Elijah gestured for him to speak.
Klaus leaned forward in his seat, resting his elbows on the table. "Silas can appear as anyone. He got inside my thoughts and convinced me that I was dying," he stated. "He will torment me until I give him the cure."
"And in doing so, he will break down the wall to the other side," Rebekah objected.
"So it doesn't trap him there when he dies," Klaus argued. "He wants to reunite with his lost soul mate. You," he nodded at Rebekah. "of all lovesick fools, should applaud his devotion."
"He will open the floodgates for every supernatural being that has ever died!"
"Including our dear brothers Kol, Finn, and Henrik."
"And Mother and Mikael," Lucy pointed out; as much as she wanted to see her brothers and Alaric again, there were downsides to destroying the Other Side. Downsides that they couldn't really risk.
Klaus shrugged. "Either way, we'll have our family back."
"Please!" Rebekah huffed in irritation. "You hated Kol and you kept Finn in a box for most of his life."
Says the one who befriended Finn and Kol's killer, Lucy scowled to herself.
"Elijah, please," Klaus begged him to shut their sister up.
Elijah didn't speak for a moment. "Your personal discomfort might not be sufficient reason for putting the entire world in jeopardy, Klaus," he mused. "I think our sister deserves a shot at happiness."
Rebekah inhaled deeply, shocked and satisfied with Elijah's answer.
"Tell me you're joking," Klaus' voice was flat and angry. "Tell me you're not fating me to an eternity of torture."
"I've made my decision."
In a fit of anger, Klaus jumped from his seat and grabbed the back of Rebekah's, bending down so she could hear him clearly. "When you're sick and dying and you beg for my blood, I will laugh in your face and compel you to forget me."
"Oh, Nik," Lucy sighed in exasperation while he stormed out of the room.
Rebekah cleared her throat awkwardly and perked up, looking back over at Elijah with a small smile. "Where's the cure?"
"Rebekah, it's no secret that you are impulsive, emotional, and at times morally questionable," Elijah stared at her firmly. "Prove to me this isn't just another one of your whims, that you know precisely what you are giving up here."
"Fine," Rebekah nodded. "Anything."
"I want you to live a day as a human," Elijah told her. "This day. No vampire privileges...No strength, no compulsion, no nothing. If you succeed and still believe this is what you want, the cure is yours."
Rebekah didn't take any time to think. She eagerly agreed, "Fine, I'll do it."
"Good," Elijah nodded in approval. He stood from his chair and quickly ducked down to kiss the top of Lucy's head. "Have a wonderful prom, Luciana. Excuse me."
Lucy smiled at him gratefully before he walked out of the room and got to her feet. She went to leave the room but suddenly Rebekah was there, holding her back so she wouldn't move another muscle.
"What's wrong with you?" the older vampire asked. "You haven't spoken to me in two days."
Lucy sighed and turned around to face her. "Maybe it's because you teamed up with Elena only a few weeks after she killed our brother."
She didn't know how Rebekah could stand spending time with Elena, let alone let her live in her house. If someone talked about Elena for too long around her, she would grow irritated and leave the room pretty quickly. It was one of the reasons she moved back into her apartment and out of the Boarding House.
"You really think that I'm friends with her?" Rebekah asked in disbelief. "I know what she did and I won't ever forget it. I'm faking it all, okay? The only reason I haven't ripped her head off was because I wanted the cure."
"And now that you have it?" Lucy raised an eyebrow.
"Well, today I'm to act like a human. We'll see about tomorrow."
The tension between Lucy and Bonnie was palpable but they each did their best to ignore it for Caroline's sake. Her prom dress had some last-minute fitting issues that needed to be addressed and she was stressed out enough about that and Tyler's absence without Lucy and Bonnie adding to the fray.
Surprising enough, Bonnie has approached her with a very heartfelt apology that seemed to be genuine. Lucy didn't forgive, of course, but she accepted the apology without any fuss. It was nice that Bonnie had seen the errors of her ways but she had really hurt Lucy and her siblings and defended Kol's killers. It was safe to say they had a long, long road back to friendship.
Besides, Lucy did kind of feel bad for Bonnie. It wasn't until Caroline killed those witches that she came out of whatever funk Silas had put her in. She had told Joel that the last thing she remembered was finding the cure. She didn't remember the hunter stabbing her, Lucy being changed into a vampire by Silas, or Jeremy's death. Joel had admitted that it was hard to see her completely break down like she had—according to him, she was worse than Elena without burning the house down kind of dramatics.
And now she was having dreams of Jeremy, which didn't bode well.
"What kind of dreams?" Lucy asked as Caroline came out of her dressing room with her pinned dress on and stood in front of the mirror where Lucy and Bonnie were waiting for her.
"Usually I'm at his grave and all of a sudden, he appears to me."
Lucy frowned and ducked her head. She wished that she was having those kind of dreams—for any of her dead loved ones. She would love to see them all again, even if it was just a few minutes.
"Well, you never got to say goodbye, Bon," Caroline smoothed down the torso of her dress. "You're grieving. That's normal."
"When I woke up, the couch was on fire."
"That's not so normal," Lucy commented, a little concerned.
"Yeah," Bonnie nodded in agreement. "and I don't know if it's because I was emotional in my dream or if Shane was right. Without his help, I'll lose control of my magic."
"No, it's because you need a night off from mourning," Caroline said earnestly. "And Lucy and I are gonna make sure that you have it."
Lucy smiled weakly and nodded in agreement.
Bonnie smiled at the both of them. "Um, you look super-hot, by the way," she told Caroline before turning to Lucy. "I haven't seen your dress but you rock everything you wear."
"You think?" Caroline asked, her nose wrinkling in pleasure.
Bonnie nodded. "Oh, yeah."
In agreement, Lucy added, "Hot enough to rock anyone's socks off."
"Matt and I are gonna have the sexiest date there," Bonnie continued with a grin. "Besides Stefan, of course."
Despite all that she and Bonnie had gone through, she couldn't help but smile and nudge her playfully. It was senior prom night, she could forget about all the hostility. Otherwise, the night would go by without her friends and wasn't that the whole point of prom? To celebrate the end of your high school days with your friends?
"You know what, I love friend prom," Caroline declared as she turned away from the mirror once again. "And it's exactly what prom should be, friends and memories...Yes, it sucks that my boyfriend can't be here but the five of us are gonna have the night of our lives."
Lucy grinned. "Yes we are."
Unfortunately, their happiness faded when the bell rang, signaling that the door was being opened, and Elena and Rebekah walked into the store. Lucy frowned in their direction; she didn't want Elena to ruin this night for her or any of her friends and she hated the fact that Rebekah was right there by her side.
"Hey, Bonnie," Elena greeted her best friend casually. "Heard you got your mind wiped. That sucks. Lucy," Elena nodded at her coolly, disdain in her eyes—that was matched in Lucy's—and then turned to Caroline. "Pretty dress, Caroline."
"I know. You helped me pick it out months ago when we were friends," Caroline stated, a fake smile on her lips. "before you tried to kill me."
Elena blinked and studied the dress. "I thought it looked familiar."
Caroline rolled her eyes and called for the seamstress, "Can you press this for me? I'll pick it up later."
The quicker they got out of there, the quicker they'd get away from Elena and Rebekah. Lucy was grateful; she only had so much control.
"Bonnie, Lucy," Caroline called their names and gestured to her dressing room, knowing it wouldn't be best to leave Lucy with Elena.
Lucy sent Elena a dirty look before she followed Caroline and Bonnie into the dressing room.
Lucy stared at herself in the mirror, biting her lip in frustration. She was trying to think of what to do with her hair now that it was curled into glossy waves but she was coming up short. There were so many options yet none of them appealed to her.
She glanced at the clock on her phone and winced; Stefan would be arriving at Klaus' house—where her oldest brothers insisted that she and Rebekah got ready—in the next twenty minutes and she wasn't ready. Her hair wasn't done and her dress and heels weren't on; at least she had the forethought to do her make-up—muted gold eyeshadow, a pinkish-nude lipstick, blush, and mascara—before she did her hair.
Another burst of frustration shot around her body; it didn't surprise her when all the soap bottles in the shower fell from their shelves and burst open from her fit of magic. She clenched her fists and bowed her head, wishing that something would go her way.
Seconds later, there was a gentle knock on the door. She opened it, expecting it to be Rebekah, but was surprised to see Elijah standing on the other side. It was a pleasant surprised, nonetheless.
"Luciana," Elijah smiled softly. "I heard your struggle."
"Sorry, Lijah," she sighed. "I'm just having a little trouble with my hair."
"What about it?" he studied her head of shiny brown waves. "It looks good."
"It looks plain," Lucy huffed. "and I have no idea what to do with it and Stefan is going to be here and I'm not even dressed."
The light bulbs above the mirror started to blink, affected by her frustration. Elijah only glanced at them for a second before he was giving her an assuring smile.
"If you allow me, I can help."
Why not? It wasn't like Elijah would mess it up; she had memories of him braiding her hair when she was young so that it would match Rebekah's. He even did Rebekah's hair, too. Besides, Esther and Rebekah, he was the best at braiding.
"Sure."
Elijah shuffled into the bathroom and let Lucy sit in the chair in front of the built-in vanity. With a comb and hairspray—which they definitely did not have back in their day—in hand, he went to work on her hair, combing gently and braiding tightly.
It was nice sitting in silence while Elijah worked his magic. It had been a long time since they had any time to themselves. She wasn't the closest with him—Klaus, Kol, and Rebekah were younger and therefore spent more time with her—but she always felt safe in his presence. Right then, she felt the calmest she had been she was turned.
"All right, all done," Elijah proclaimed, finishing up with a few hits of hairspray to keep her braid in place.
Lucy couldn't help but beam at her reflection. Her hair was now in a style that she had seen on Rebekah and herself a thousand years ago. A braided crown gently wrapped around her head but the rest of her hair was down, flowing in waves to the middle of her back. She absolutely loved it; Elijah had performed a miracle.
"I love it," she told Elijah. "It's absolutely beautiful."
"I'm sure that's just you," Elijah smiled at her. "Now, why don't you get dressed? I'm sure Stefan will be here any moment."
"I will," Lucy nodded. "Thank you, Elijah."
"It was my pleasure."
After Elijah left her designated room at Klaus' house, she started to get dressed.
Her dress, which she had picked out months ago, was a dark emerald green with a flowing bottom with a mid-thigh slit and off the shoulder sleeves that led into the lace. It showed the perfect amount of cleavage and back, and also showed off her fit legs, especially when she slipped into the strappy gold heels that she had picked out with it. For a finishing touch, Lucy added the bracelet Stefan gave her—it was now vervain free—and the star necklace she received from him just before he left Mystic Falls with Klaus for the summer.
She had never really been self-conscious of her appearance—she knew she was hot and one of prettiest in the school—but right now, it was arguably the best she had ever looked. She looked absolutely beautiful and she knew with Stefan by her side, they were the hottest couple in town—maybe even the world.
Just as she finished looking herself over to spot anything that needed to be addressed, she heard a vehicle make its way down Klaus' driveway. The familiar engine of Stefan's Porsche slowed to a stop and there was the closing of his door.
Lucy grinned and left her room, making sure to take her clutch with her. She took her time on the stairs, afraid she was going to break a heel if she used her vampire speed, and by the time she got to the bottom, Stefan was standing next to Elijah, Klaus, and Rebekah—who was wearing a lovely yellow dress.
Stefan looked drool worthy— if that was even a thing. His black suit fit him stunningly—as usual—his cuff links were gold and vintage, and his green tie matched the exact color of her dress. That wasn't even her doing; Stefan had gone on a mission to make sure they would be matching.
If it wasn't prom night and Lucy wasn't who she was—obsessed with making sure the night went right—she probably would drag him back to her apartment and rip his clothes off. Stefan looked at her in the same way; lovingly with a hint of lust.
Stefan took her hand, steadying her as she stepped of the last step.
"You are so beautiful," Stefan murmured, only a centimeter away from her lips, before crashing his mouth to hers; she was grateful that the lipstick she picked out was pretty much stain-proof.
The kiss went on for maybe thirty seconds before Elijah and Klaus cleared their throats in unison.
"You look amazing," Lucy breathed, giving him a quick peck on the lips before pulling away to an appropriate distance.
Stefan grinned back at her as Klaus cleared his throat again.
"Enough of the PDA," Klaus groaned. "We need pictures before you guys head off."
Lucy raised an eyebrow at him, surprised at his want for pictures but gave in anyway. She, Rebekah, and Stefan were soon posing for a couple million photos by a surprisingly excited Klaus, who seemed to hide away his anger with Rebekah for the moment. They took all kinds of pictures; ones with just her and Rebekah, ones with her and Stefan, ones with her, Rebekah, Klaus, and Elijah, and so on. She wouldn't be surprised if all the storage on Klaus' phone was gone from the sheer number of pictures he took.
Hopefully he would send her some.
Once the pictures-taking was done, she and Stefan left in his Porsche.
"I'm so glad that you didn't rent that limo," Lucy commented, amused, as they got closer to the school.
"I wasn't going to rent a limo, Lucy," Stefan denied with a playful smile.
"I overheard you talking to Damon about it."
"That was before I realized that you wouldn't want one," Stefan shrugged. "Besides, then we would have had to share with Damon and Elena."
"Gross."
"Tell me about it."
After they parked, Stefan told her to sit and wait for him as he closed his door and walked around the car to her side, opening her door for her. With a smile on her face, Lucy accepted his outstretched hand and allowed him to help her to her feet. She straightened the skirt of her dress and looped her arm with Stefan's before heading off to the school, tickets in hand.
Lucy grinned in satisfaction when they stepped onto the red carpet that would lead them to the gym where the dance was taking place, proud of her and Caroline for pulling such a thing off. The walkway was lined in television screens, each one playing a different slideshow of all the pictures that Lucy—with Stefan's help, of course—had scanned.
Despite the fact that she had already seen the completed work of decorations, her eyes stung with tears as she gazed upon it. Tonight was her last high school dance with her friends and it made her so emotional. Logically, she knew that she would keep in contact with Matt, Bonnie, and—of course—Caroline, but it was the ending of an era.
"This looks great," Stefan told her as they walked down the carpet; he came to a stop, his eyebrows lit up in amusement. "Is that you and Caroline?"
The picture he was talking about was from the summer before freshmen year, right after cheerleading tryouts. Fourteen-year-old Caroline and thirteen-year-old Lucy were standing side-by-side with big cheesy grins while holding out their letters of acceptance. Lucy smiled; she remembered that day and how they were so excited for the new adventure ahead of them.
"Yeah," Lucy confirmed before sharing the story with him; Stefan responded with a sweet smile.
They started walking again, only to stop a few screens down. This time the picture was of them at the Founder's Day celebration the year before. In all honestly, Lucy didn't remember taking a picture but Caroline must have taken it without them noticing. It showed Lucy, a daisy painted on her cheek, painting a sun onto Stefan's. Lucy hadn't noticed that night, but the way Stefan was looking at her, it was clear that he didn't think of her as just a friend at that time.
"That night was the first night I realized I had feelings for you," Stefan confessed, pressing his lips to her head.
Lucy raised her head to look at him. "Are you serious?" he nodded. "Babe, that was the night that I realized I had feelings for you."
Stefan smiled gently. "We wasted so much time."
Lucy shook her head; yes, if they had known that they had feelings for each other way back then, it would have been nice, but Stefan was also still in love with Elena at that point. It was the way things went that eventually brought her and Stefan together and though they had some tough times, Lucy was happy with how it turned out. She loved Stefan with all of her heart and she knew that he felt the same.
"We have all the time in the world," Lucy stated earnestly.
Stefan smiled and raised her hand to his lips, gently kissing the back of it. Lucy grinned back at him but stiffened when the picture of them faded into a picture of her, Jeremy, and Elena the first day of her sophomore year and Jeremy's freshmen year.
Tears stung her eyes as she stared at the screen. She wished that Jeremy was there. She wished she had her brother back.
Stefan squeezed her hand, bringing her back to herself. She gave him a watery smile. "Let's go in."
The inside of the gym was just as nicely decorated as the outside. A stage had been built at the far end, the scoreboard was covered with a lovely piece of ivory satin cloth, and the small circular tables that filled up every space but the dance floor, stage, and food and drink area were set up like a five-star restaurant. She and Caroline had thought of everything, including a photo booth were the official photographer was set up for pictures, and favors that were red t-shirts with all of the seniors' names written in on them rolled up tightly with a bow.
Lucy and Stefan met up with Bonnie and Matt, who both looked amazing, and shared a few minutes, telling them that Caroline had called Lucy—Elena had stolen her dress and now she had to borrow one from Klaus—to explain that she was going to be late. They took a few pictures together before Stefan pulled her out onto the dance floor.
She smiled when she heard the start of one of her favorite Ed Sheeran songs.
It's just another night
And I'm staring at the moon
I saw a shooting star
And I thought of you...
Lucy rested her chin on Stefan's shoulder, listening to the slow but calm beat of his heart. The feel of his skin as he intertwined their fingers, the way he hummed along to the song, the way his hand was splayed against her waist. She was so enthralled by Stefan Salvatore. She didn't even think that it was possible to love a person so much but now she knew that it was. She loved Stefan that much.
And the best part of loving him so much was that he loved her just as much. She would never doubt his love for her, ever. There had been many women before her but he had told her that he was just waiting for her. He told her that once and Lucy believed; the amount of truth and love in his voice told her all she needed to know.
Their love was like the sun. It was bright and warm and when the earth died, it would still be burning.
So open your eyes and see
The way our horizons meet
And all of the lights will lead
Into the night with me...
"I love you, Stefan," she whispered to him, pulling away from his shoulder to face him. "I will love you, always and forever."
"Always and forever," he hummed back, his lips quirking. "Isn't that a Mikaelson thing?"
Lucy shrugged and laughed lightly. "I guess it is. I am one, you know."
"Mmhm," he smiled. "Well, then, I will love you, always and forever, too."
And I know that these scars will bleed
But both of our hearts believe
All of these stars will guide us home...
Lucy beamed at him, tears in her eyes, and paused their movement so she could pull him into a kiss. It wasn't a heavy, passionate kiss that would lead them to the bedroom. No, it was gentle and loving and everything that Lucy could ever ask for.
God, she loved him so much.
When their kiss ended, Stefan smirked playfully at her and held out his arm, quickly twirling her out and then back into him. Lucy laughed and did the same to him, finding that he was just so, so handsome when he let go and had fun. Lucy craved that smile; it was her favorite dimpled grin that he gave out only once in a while. And she didn't want to boast, but most of those times it was for her and her only.
The Ed Sheeran song bled into another and after three songs, they were still dancing. When Party Rock Anthem by LMFAO came on, the greatest moment of Lucy's life happened. Stefan kept in step with her as she danced to the song and even started "shuffling" when the song told them too. Lucy had almost broken into tears because she was laughing so hard and she was so happy.
They left the dance floor after that so they could meet up with Damon, who had already tried and failed to get Elena to turn her humanity back on. While Damon was complaining about it to Stefan, Lucy's eyes searched the room for her best friend. A grin split her face when she saw her dancing with Joel, looking beautiful in the gown Klaus had given to her to borrow. The two looked cozy together and she could hear that Joel was giving Caroline a little pep talk about Tyler—how he would either come home or he wouldn't and she was strong enough to handle both situations.
Caroline seemed to be taking his words seriously and Lucy wondered if she appreciated her brother's advice. Lucy thought it was nice but she wasn't Caroline. Sure, Lucy knew Caroline better than she knew herself but when it came to relationship troubles, it was hard to know what each other were thinking. Either way, she hoped that Caroline would be happy. That's all she wanted for her.
"So, can you try?" she tuned back into Stefan and Damon's conversation. "You guys used to have a connection."
"I don't know, Damon."
"Look, I know that deep down, she still has feelings for you—"
Lucy's stomach tightened and she clenched her fists when she realized who they were talking about. Despite the fact that before she turned off her humanity, Elena and Damon were basically in a relationship, she still had feelings for Stefan. And now, Damon wanted Stefan to use them against her—whatever that meant. She trusted Stefan but she was ninety percent sure she would never trust Elena again, especially when she didn't have her humanity.
Still, just because Stefan had to try to get Elena to cooperate with them didn't mean that anything was going to happen. If it did, Stefan was more than strong enough to get out of the situation. Elena was like a little puppy when it came to Stefan's strength and power. He was able to take care of himself.
"You should do it," Lucy spoke up.
"See?" Damon pointed at her in agreement. "Listen to your Twitch."
Both Lucy and Stefan rolled their eyes at him.
Stefan gave Lucy a worried look. "Luce..."
"It's fine, Broody," Lucy forced a smile on her face; the look that Stefan gave her told her that he wasn't convinced. "Really, it's fine. You don't need my permission to do anything."
Stefan frowned unhappily but nodded, nevertheless. Lucy gave him another smile and excused herself, telling him and Damon that she was going to get some fresh air. They let her go and soon she was back outside, walking down the red carpet again.
Even though she knew and believed that Stefan loved her it was hard for her to not be affected by what was going on in the school at that moment. Stefan and Elena were together for almost a year and they had been in love—granted, they both had feelings for other people while being together. Either way, she had heard so many people describe Stefan and Elena's relationship as being epic.
A slight rustle of the grass just feet away from her caught her attention. When she turned to see who it was, she was surprised to see Stefan. She cocked her head in confusion; he was supposed to be inside trying to get Elena to turn on her humanity.
"What are you doing outside?" she asked him, making her way to him.
Stefan smiled at her. "I came to see you," he told her. "You look so beautiful."
"Thank you," he had already told her that a couple of times that night but more compliments never really hurt anyone.
"I mean, you don't compare to Elena, but..." he shrugged. "I guess you can't help that she and I were meant to be."
Lucy reared back as if she was slapped. "Excuse me?"
What the hell was he doing? Why was he saying those things?
"The truth, Lucy," Stefan insisted, stepping closer to you. "I mean, Elena is who I came back for and it's who I stayed for. You weren't even a blimp on my radar."
She raised an eyebrow, her mind racing. "And what, I was just some distraction?"
He wasn't being himself.
"You could say that," Stefan nodded casually. "I mean, you and me? Bleh. Me and Elena? Now we were epic."
Lucy lifted her chin in realization. Now she knew what was going on. Silas was here and he was messing with her, just like he was messing with Bonnie for those weeks after Jeremy died. He was trying to turn her against Stefan but why? Why would he care about that in the middle of his huge scheme for taking down the Other Side?
"Silas."
"Yep," it was weird to see how casual and loose Silas made Stefan look.
She carefully took a step away from him. "Why are you here?"
"Three reasons. One, I like messing with people. It's so amusing," Silas smirked. "Two, I know that you and your Original sister know where the cure is. And three, I wanted to see you."
"You wanted to see me?" Lucy asked in disbelief. "Why? You killed me."
"In my defense, I didn't know you had vampire blood in your system," Silas defended himself, taking another step toward her; Lucy grimaced and fought to keep herself still. Who knew what Silas could do to her? "And I came to convince you that this thing with Stefan isn't going to work out."
"Did I miss the memo that said you were psychic or something? Stefan and I are great and in love, thank you very much."
"Sure, you're in love," Silas rolled his eyes. "But I wasn't lying. I heard your thoughts and you weren't lying either. Stefan and Elena were epic...You and me, on the other hand, we were...hey, what's more than epic?"
Lucy shook her head, bewildered. "Silas, what the hell are you talking about?"
"I'm talking about the fact that I have been waiting to see you for two thousand years, Lucilla. Every time you were born again, I could feel it. Every time that you died, I could feel it. I was in that tomb for more than enough lifetimes and when I wasn't thinking about destroying the Other Side, I was thinking about you."
"You're lying," Lucy spat; there was no way that Silas had loved her all those years ago.
"I'm not, but I'm sure you'll figure that out soon enough," Silas smirked again and reached for her; she flinched away, taking a couple steps away from him. "I can see you're not ready but that's fine. Thank you for giving me the location of the cure, Lucilla."
Lucy blinked and then he was gone.