Disclaimer: I only own my OCs

A/N: Another favourite chapter of mine. The next few chapters are just full of drama! Big shout out to my friend TimeLord293 for all her help and for answering all my random questions!

XXX

I rested my chin on the firm chest that I was laying on. I smiled up at the gorgeous face of my boyfriend. I loved moments like this. They were just so relaxing. After speaking to him the other day and getting the answers I needed, it felt like things were truly right between us. No more secrets. Well, other than the truth about the Salvatores. But that wasn't mine to reveal, as much as I wanted to properly clear the air. I just couldn't do it.

"Do you mind?" Luke smirked, raising an eyebrow as I just stared up at him.

I blinked, "Nope."

My beautiful boyfriend rolled his eyes, "You're terrible."

"Thank you."

His hand started running up and down my spine. I arched my back against his hand. His hand slipped underneath my top and I shivered at the light touch of his calloused hand upon my skin. His other hand rested on my side and lightly traced patterns on my ribs. It felt so good, I was like putty in his hands. And he knew it; the smug smirk that adored those kissable lips told me that. I narrowed my eyes. He wanted to play this game, eh? Well bring it on.

I lifted myself up using my arms and moved towards him. My lips lightly pressed against his. And the moment he leant forward to deepen the kiss, I moved back. I lowered my head, allowing my lips to drift across the smooth skin of his chin. When I reached his neck, I gently kissed the hollow between his neck and shoulder. I raised my head and laughed at the disgruntled look on his face. He really should have known better than to challenge me.

Strong hands gripped my hips as I moved so that I was straddling his waist. I looked down at him with a devilish gleam in my eyes.

"You're such a tease," Luke growled, lightly squeezing my hips.

"I know," I smirked as I leant forward and kissed him. I braced my hands above his head as Luke deepened the kiss.

I hummed contentedly as I pulled away.

"You are such a tease," Luke groaned as I smirked down at him.

"Damn straight," I was proud of myself.

"Oh god, you two are sickening."

I shot up to see Jeremy standing in the doorway, leaning against the doorframe. I could feel my cheeks burning and I glared at my brother. What the hell? Doesn't he understand privacy? I mean, yeah, we are in the living room but still, he could have knocked or something.

"What's the matter, Alexa? Cat got your tongue?" my not so adorable brother teased. "Or should that be Luke got your tongue?"

I know, I know. He's not technically my brother. But I've always hated technicalities. And if I wanna say that Jeremy is my baby brother, then I will sure as hell say it. Besides, as the all-knowing Bobby Singer once said, 'Family don't end with blood'. And he was right.

I grabbed one of the cushions from the sofa and flung it at my brother. Oh, he was so going to pay. Like seriously. He knew better than to try and play this game with me.

The little brat managed to duck the cushion and I cursed. Damn him and his reflexes.

"Alexa, why are you throwing cushions at your brother?" Aunt Jenna sighed as she appeared in the doorway. Ok, where the hell did she come from? Are all of my family ninja's or something? Elena? Are you going to appear? Hello? No? Ok then.

"Because Jeremy is being a brat!" I declared, crossing my arms over my chest. I was acutely aware of the fact that Luke's fingertips had slipped unseen under my top and were drawing little circles upon my skin.

"Jeremy, leave your sister alone," my wonderful aunt told my brother, rolling her eyes. "She's spending time with her boyfriend."

"Why can't they be all lovey-dovey at his house?" Jeremy grumbled petulantly. I knew he was only joking. He had that glint in his eye that looked scarily a lot like my evil glint.

... I think I've corrupted my brother.

And after what he got up to with Vicki, he knew that he couldn't throw stones. I had kept that secret from my aunt and sister, so he knew that he wowed me for that.

"That's a good question, why are you two here?" Aunt Jenna turned to face us, a curious look upon her face.

"You're making it sound as though you don't want us here!" I pouted, trying to deflect the question.

"Alexa."

"Fine. Fine. Heather and Eric kicked us out. Eric said something about corrupting other people's sofas," I rolled my eyes as I explained and examined my nails. "No idea what he meant by that."

"Sure you don't, Alexa," Jeremy smirked, hiding behind my aunt.

"Watch your back, brother," I warned him, pointing at him. Oh god, that was such a Damon thing to say. Apparently I've spent so much time around him that I've started picking up his speaking habits. Great. Just what I needed. Oh well, as long as I don't do it around him, it'll be fine.

"Oh, go back to making out with your boyfriend," my brother snarked and I smirked. Oh kiddo, you're gonna regret trying to take me on.

"Ok, I will."

And with that said, I leaned down and snogged my boyfriend, giving my brother the finger at the same time. I internally grinned at Jeremy's groan of disgust. Sounds like I won. Again. Hahaha, he can never beat me. Afterall, I was the one who taught him all he knows. The student is yet to surpass the master.

Once I was sure that Jeremy had stormed off in a mock sulk, I pulled back, slightly breathless.

"Why'd you stop?" Luke gasped, his hands gripping my hips.

"We're not having sex on my sofa when we both know that my aunt and my brother are in the building," I told him, rolling my eyes. I swear, all the blood the normally goes to his brain has gone somewhere else.

"You're so boring," Luke mock sighed, stroking his hips and doing his best to get me all hot again. He paused before adding, "What about your bedroom?"

I smirked down at him, "How I ever told you just how smart you are?"

XXX

Luke had been called home by his parents. They were always doing that. Calling him home when they had deemed that he had spent too much time with me. The funny thing was, before we starting dating, they didn't mind. In fact, they encouraged him to spend time with me. But now I get the feeling that they don't approve of me going out with their son. Don't know what changed. But tough. It wasn't there decision to make. And another decision that isn't theirs; what Luke does with his future. They keep trying to force him to be a professional vampire hunter. To give up all hope of ever having a family. The same with Jazz.

Now that I think about it, they most likely think that I am a bad influence on Luke. That I am encouraging him to ignore what they are saying and to follow his own path. Well, they would be right in that respect. I am encouraging him to ignore them, it's his life and he should do what he wants to do with it. His parents don't get to decide for him.

Anyway, angry girlfriend rant over.

When Luke left, I once again claimed the sofa, stretching out my aching legs. What? Don't judge me. I have nothing else to do. Elena was with her boyfriend and Jeremy was... somewhere. So I could relax my body which had just had a good amount of exercise. Wink wink.

"You know, I'm never going to sit on the sofa ever again."

Oh, there he is.

I turned my neck to see him sitting at the kitchen table. Books surrounded him as he worked on his extra credit essay for Mr Saltzman. It was due tomorrow and he didn't have much left to finish. But I was proud of him, he was really making an effort with his schoolwork now. And that was important.

"Aren't you? Oh goodie!" that may have been a little bit too sarcastic. "That means that you won't be stealing it from me anymore."

"Stealing it from you? Since when he has it been your sofa?" Jeremy scoffed as he put down Jonathan Gilbert's journal.

I looked at him like he was an idiot. He was actually asking me that?

"Jeremy, darling, who is the oldest out of the two of us?" I asked slowly as I moved onto my knees and rested my arms on top of the cushions.

"You are," Jeremy frowned, resting his chin on his hand. "Why does it matter?"

"It matters because it means that I was here first, ergo, the sofa was mine before it was yours."

"Well, that's…" Jer searched for the words before giving up. "Y'know what? I'm not going to say anything."

I flicked my hair in a dramatic gesture, "Just goes to show that you can't argue with my amazing logic."

"Logic?" my annoying little brother scoffed. "Okay, Alexa, you can call it logic if you want to."

"I want to."

Jeremy rolled his eyes and laughed, "You may be older by age, but you certainly have a lower maturity level than me."

"Pffft, that's what you think," I waved a hand, brushing away the comment. "It's all a part of my secret plan."

Jeremy just looked at me. I grumbled and moved so that I was lying down on the sofa.

"Point to me."

I gave him the finger.

XXX

It was nearing mid-afternoon when Elena tried to sneak into the house. The key word in that sentence being 'tried'. She failed. The door closed loudly. The keys clanked against the table. Her bag made a thudding sound when it hit the floor. It was as though she wasn't even trying. Tut tut, twinnie, tut tut.

Jeremy had long since abandoned me. No idea where he was going, but I suspect that a girl was involved somewhere. He had been meeting up with this girl called Anna. You wanna know how I know this? I read his text messages. Silly child doesn't lock his phone. So I look through it. Silly goose. And don't judge me, you know what teenagers are like these days. It was my duty as a sister to make sure that he wasn't getting into any trouble.

Anyway, he was either meeting this Anna girl or he just wanted to get away from my teasing for a while. What? Don't judge me. It was fun. And his responses were just perfect. And hilarious. It was my way of teaching him. Performed well, he did, my young apprentice.

Just as Elena was about to go upstairs, I made my presence known.

"And where have you been, my darling twin?" I drawled from where I was stretched out across the sofa.

She turned around and rolled her eyes.

"You know where I've been," she told me, crossing her arms.

… I do? Well, that's news to me.

She sighed at the blank look on my face, "I told you this morning. Before I left."

Ohhhh, I remember! I would have listened to her, but I was texting Luke. It was distracting. And don't judge me.

"You weren't listening, were you?"

I don't know why my sister looked so surprised. She knew how short my attention span was. Especially when I had my phone. And I'm pretty sure that I had a stupid smile on my face as I texted Luke, so she really should have known that I was listening.

"Nope."

"You know what? I'm not even surprised anymore."

"Well, that's disappointing. I'm going to have to try harder now. I feel as though I have been issued a challenge."

"Alexa…"

Uh on, not that tone. Abort, abort.

"I'm just messing with ya, twin. How was your day with Stef?"

"My day with Stefan was fine, thanks for asking."

"What did ya do? Did you do the naughty naughty?" I wiggled my eyebrows and laughed at the disgusted look on her face.

"Alexa, why would you ask that?"

I shrugged; I really don't know why I ask that. I think it's because it makes her all awkward. And an awkward Elena is really fun to tease. She goes all red and flustered. It's funny. And even when she was dating Matt, I didn't really get these opportunities. So I was going to enjoy it as much as possible.

"You really want an answer to that, Elena?" I asked with an eyebrow raised.

"On second thought, I really don't an answer to that."

"Thought so."

Elena decided not to go upstairs and walked into the living room. She moved my feet from the other end of the sofa and sat down, putting my feet on her lap. I wiggled my toes, indicating that I wanted a foot rub. My sister rolled her eyes but did as I asked. I did love my sister.

"So what did you do today, Alexa?" Ellie glanced over at me as she soothed my sore feet.

"Went to Luke's for a while, got kicked out by his parents, so we came back here and sat on the sofa together."

"Why'd you get kicked out by his parents?"

I had to fight back the burst of anger and frustration at the question. It wasn't Elena's fault that Luke's parents were being dumb dumbs. But just thinking of the situation made me angry.

"Because they don't approve of me and Luke dating."

"What?! Why not?" Ellie looked shocked, which was quite sweet.

"Y'know that the Nolan family are vampire hunters?"

"Yeah."

And she did. When I got home the night that Elena returned from Georgia, we both laid down in her bed and I told her all about it. Everything. And we made an agreement. She'll keep the Salvatore's away from the Nolan's and I'll keep the Nolan's away from the Salvatore's. Although I suspect that they suspect that Damon is a vampire. It wouldn't surprise me. I mean, he's so obvious that they would be idiots to not suspect him. Which reminded me, I needed to have words with him to tell him to stop being so damn obvious.

"Well, Luke doesn't want to be a vampire hunter and his parents are basically forcing him to become one. And I have been encouraging him to ignore what they are saying and follow his own path."

"I can't imagine that they would be too happy with that."

"They're not. They barely let me in the house anymore and they hardly talk to me."

"Oh Alexa."

"I don't mind so much. It's how it's affecting Luke that bothers me."

"I'm sure they'll get over it eventually."

"They'd better."

I snuggled down into the sofa a bit more. I had done absolutely nothing today. And I mean nothing. Well, nothing productive. I had done other things, wink wink. Oh, what a wonderful day it has been.

"Just to confirm, you have got some vervain on you, haven't you?"

I looked at her weirdly. Of course I do! What with the amount of time that Damon spends around me, it would be absolutely madness to not have some.

"Yes, Elena, I do," I told her, using my 'duh' tone. "Stefan gave me some a while ago." I held up my locket, giving it a shake. "He said it was some kind of family heirloom, which was quite sweet of him. But I'm convinced that he did it as some kind of dig against Damon."

"Why's that?" Elena frowned, flicking my toe when I dug my heel into her thigh.

"Because they're siblings? And underneath all of their beef, they like to screw with each other in a way that only siblings can."

Ellie rolled her eyes. She knew exactly what I meant. While I did adore my sister, I also never missed an opportunity to mess with her. Or Jeremy. She did give as good as she got though. So she wasn't exactly innocent in all of this. I was just better at screwing with her. And as Jer was my amazing student, he also managed to get under her skin just as much. I was so proud of that kind.

"Well, at least that's you sorted," my sister sighed, playing with her own necklace. "Stefan gave me some extra vervain and jewellery with some in it. For family and friends."

"Awww, that's nice of Steffie."

I had to stifle a giggle at the look my sister gave me for that one. I had tried so hard not to give Stefan one of my weird nicknames. But even I couldn't hold out forever. It was sign of love though, so no judging.

"Why do you call him that?" my twin groaned as she debated tickling my feet.

"I don't know," I shrugged casually. "I just do. It's a habit."

"What nickname have you given Damon?"

"… I don't think that I've given one to him. Oh my god. I haven't given Damon a nickname. Why haven't I given him a nickname?"

"Oh wow, I think that that is the first time that you haven't given someone a nickname!"

I knew that she was being sarcastic. But I decided to ignore that. Ha, take that twin.

"I need to think of one for him now."

"Well, don't strain yourself," Elena rolled her eyes and smiled, patting my legs. She lifted them up, moved out of the way and placed them back on the sofa.

She smiled at me one last time before disappearing upstairs. Oh sister, how I love thee so.

Now, where has Jeremy gone…

XXX

The doorbell rang.

Hmmmmm, the pizza must be here. And about time too! It had taken far too long for it to arrive. I wonder if I put a complaint in, I would get a free pizza? Of course, I think about doing it, but I know what I'm like. I never would. I'm far too lazy for that.

I lifted my head up from where it was dangling off the edge of the sofa. Don't ask why I was lying like that. It just felt comfortable. I saw Jeremy walk to the door and called over, "Jeremy, there's some money by the door. Use that."

"It's not enough," Jer frowned over at me.

I sighed, "Blame our idiot sister, she was the one who sorted it."

Jeremy rolled his eyes as I made no attempt to move. He took a couple of steps towards the bottom of the stairs and yelled up, "Elena! We need more money!"

My darling brother then turned to the pizza delivery guy who was witnessing our little family drama, he held out the money and smiled, "Uh, here's some of it."

While we waited for Elena to appear with more money, Jeremy sighed, "May as well come in. Just put the pizza on the table."

Honestly, I don't know what was taking my idiot sister so long. I knew that she was dressed and I knew that she had her purse with her. And it was really awkward with the poor delivery guy just loitering on our doorstep. And, on a slightly more selfish note, I was getting cold. With the front door wide open, all of the cold air was coming in. And I wasn't dressed for the cold.

The pizza delivery guy must have accepted the invitation inside; as I soon saw his head poke round the side of the door. His gaze flicked up and down me before he looked around the room.

"Hello," I smiled at him and waved. Hmmm, he was kinda cute. I likey like. Maybe if I wasn't already dating someone, I would make some moves. But luckily, I was already taken and so I didn't need to worry about the fact that I was not dressed to impressed.

The pizza guy smiled back and disappeared from my line of sight. Well, at least I didn't need to worry about my lack of decent clothing now.

"Elena! Hurry up! I wanna eat!" I shouted, rolling my eyes. God, she was taking her time. I wanna eat my pizza! Like seriously, what was taking her so long. The pizza was going to get cold at this rate!

Elena eventually made her way downstairs and paid the rest of the bill with a smile. Damn right you should smile. That poor guy was just waiting around for you.

Jeremy walked in carrying the two pizzas and I quickly scrambled upright. The smell of pizza had my tummy rumbling and I couldn't take my eyes off of the boxes.

We were having a family movie night. It had been months since we had last had one and Elena thought that it was about time that we had another one. And I had to agree. They were something that we had done so often with mom and dad. And I had missed them. They were something that we all attended. No matter our busy schedules or any petty arguments, we always sat together to watch some movies and eat some food. So I completely supported my twin when she brought up the suggestion.

Aunt Jenna came in with a bowl of popcorn as Elena set up the first film. It was Jeremy's choice. Drop Dead Fred. Which was a good choice from the kid.

Elena and Jeremy sat on either side of me. Aunt Jenna sat next to Jeremy. All of us were squished onto the sofa, but I didn't mind. It felt nice having my siblings so close. Where I could keep an eye on them and make sure they were alright. I rested my head against my twin's shoulder and smiled. I loved family movie night.

The pizzas were devoured by the end of the first film. The popcorn by the end of the second film, which was Evolution. My choice. I loved that film. It was epic. It was funny, it was weird and it grossed Elena out. Ticks all the boxes.

The third and final film was 10 Things I Hate About You. Elena's choice. She really loved that film. No idea why. But I do have admit, Heath Ledger is gorgeous. And, just for you, I've made my own list: 10 Things That I Hate About Damon. Not that I hated him, but Jeremy dared me to. So here we go:

One- That infuriating smirk of his. It drives me up the wall! It doesn't help that it makes him look so much more sexy... No! I didn't say that! And don't you dare say that I actually like it.

Two- His snide comments. He is the only person that I know who has the ability to out snark me. And I hate it. Even if it makes the banter fun, I hate being out-snarked.

Three- His hair. His gorgeous, messy, just-rolled-out-of-bed hair. I could just run my hands through it... Moving on rapidly!

Four- Those captivating, ice blue eyes... Ok, I don't really hate his eyes. They just make me so mad! They were so perfect and gorgeous and perfect and sexy and... you get the picture.

Five- His personality. He was smug, annoying, selfish, irritating, infuriating, sarcastic, rude. But he could also be infuriatingly sweet without any warning. Makes a girls head spin.

Six- His tendency to stalk me. I mean, nearly everywhere I go. He always manages to pop up somewhere, even if he never actually approaches me. It was actually quite creepy.

Seven- His choice in clothing. He always wears really dark colours. And that leather jacket of his. Well, it was a nice jacket and it was very soft, but come on; doesn't he have any other jackets that he can wear?

Eight- The way he just saunters around the place as though he owns it. He doesn't own it!

Nine- His constant flirting. He never stops. A woman appears in his general area and wham! There he is, flirting away, without a care in the world. It drives me insane. And no, I'm not jealous!

Ten- His body. His perfect, muscular, lean body. I just... words escape me when I think of it. Yummy... No, I hate it!

And there is my special list for you. Please don't show it to Damon!

XXX

I sat with Jazz at lunch. She, unlike her parents, actually approved of mine and Luke's relationship. I hadn't been able to spend much with her recently. I have, I am ashamed to admit, been spending more time making out with my boyfriend. But she had a little secret someone of her own. Not that she would give me any names, that cheeky little thing. But I knew her well enough that she was getting it on with someone.

"Alight there, Jazzlett?" I asked as I walked over to her after getting my lunch from Elena. It frustrated my sister to no end, but she let me keep doing it. After all, if she didn't bring me lunch, I would just beg for some lunch money from her. So really, it was the cheaper solution for the dear.

"No," she sighed, resting her chin on her hand.

"Aww, what's the matter?" I cooed as I sat down next to her.

"I've got to go away this weekend."

I frowned, "That's a good thing. Isn't it?"

"Well, that depends on where I'm going."

"And where are you going?"

"Whitmore College. My parents have arranged for me to spend some time there, studying with this professor guy who knows a lot about vampires and crap."

"Well, that sounds as boring as a Mr Tanner lecture."

Jazz sighed and rested her head on my shoulder. I ran my hand through her beautiful blonde hair and gave her shoulder a squeeze.

"Life's become so messed up. Mum and Dad are so utterly convinced that there are vampires in Mystic Falls that nothing else is important to them."

"But I thought that the vampire problem ended when blondie was staked?"

Oh Alexa, when did you get so good at lying.

"Don't you mean when Logan Fell was staked?"

"Oh shit, yeah, forgot about him."

"How could you forget about him?" Jazz was definitely judging me.

"Blame your brother," I deflected, feeling quite proud of myself when she smiled.

"How is it going with you two?" Jazz couldn't look any more eager.

I laughed and pushed her away, "It's going well. Other than your parents."

"Ah," Jazz's smile fell and I couldn't help but feel bad. "They still not approving of you two?"

"Nope," I frowned down at my lunch. "And I don't think they are going to any time soon."

"Why's that?"

I glanced over at my friend, "Well, I may be the reason why your darling brother has started rebelling against your parents plan."

"You're the reason why he said that he doesn't want to hunt anymore?" Jazz looked more impressed than I expected her to.

"All I did was tell him that he actually had a choice and that they couldn't dictate what he did with his life," I paused before adding. "Same for you."

Jazz looked pensive, almost like she didn't believe what I was saying. But I would persuade her. Just like I had her brother. No one told my friends what to do with their lives, especially their own parents. And especially when the orders meant that their lives were constantly in danger.

XXX

After school, me and Luke went to the Grill for dinner. Well, I say for dinner. We never actually ate anything. We were sitting at the bar, acting all lovey-dovey. Again. It was very physical, our relationship. I think it's because we were friends for so long. And if what Jazz said was true, then we had both been denying ourselves for a long time. So as we didn't have to go through the getting to know each other stage, we could jump right in with being all physical.

"Well, well, well, look who's finally started dating."

We looked over to see Ben McKittrick standing behind the bar. He had a huge grin on his face as he rested his hands on the bar. I couldn't help the blush that formed at the dig about our mutual pining.

"Ben?"

"Hey Ben, good to see you."

Luke and Ben had been quite close when Ben was at school. So, as a result, I was quite close to him. The two boys did some kind of fist bump thing that boys did. I just rolled my eyes and patted Ben's other hands.

"Good to see you too, guys."

"It's been far too long," Luke looked so happy that his friend was back in town.

"You working here now?" I asked as the boys did one of their 'bro' handshake, fist bump things. I don't know how to describe it. It was just 'bro'ish.

"Temporarily," Ben rolled his eyes. "Just until I get settled back in."

Well, wasn't that interesting news. I wonder… I smirked and leaned forward. And if I happened to show a little bit of cleavage, well, that was just completely accidental.

"So, Ben," I drawled, drawing circles in the wood of the bar with my fingernail. "You know that you've always liked me..."

Ben laughed, not fooled for a second, "Are you asking me for alcohol, Alexa?"

"Why, yes, I most certainly am," I didn't bother looking contrite. I was always going to take advantage of the opportunity that was presented to me.

Luke rolled his eyes next to me as Ben returned my smirk, "What do you want?"

"Hmmmmm, a whiskey would be divine."

"A whiskey it is."

Ben quickly gave me my whiskey. He didn't even bother looking around. Clearly someone felt confident. I made a mental note to make sure that I knew his schedule. Can't give up these sorts of opportunities innit.

"Thanks darling," I smiled down at my whiskey, itching to take my first sip.

"Now, I would love to stand here and catch up, but I actually have work to do."

"Ugh, work, how boring. I can think of something much more fun to do."

I smirked and turned to face Luke. He returned my smirk and leaned forward. Our lips met and I ran my fingers through his hair. Luke deepened the kiss and I moaned with desire. Probably a bit too much for the Grill, but I was far too into the moment to feel embarrassed.

"You two really are sickening."

Tyler Lockwood's voice interrupted us. Geez, what is it with people calling us sickening? We really weren't that bad.

"Ty!" I exclaimed happily, jumping down off of the barstool and giving my favourite Lockwood a hug. It felt so good to be able to do this again.

"Hello to you too, Alexa," Tyler laughed, returning the hug. It was hard to ignore that he squeezed a little harder than normal. And I knew that meant that he had missed it as much as I did. We weren't just friends; we were practically siblings. I know that I had often referred to him as a brother. And Tyler felt the same way.

When we parted, he and Luke did the macho chest bump thingy. Honestly, men. Insert eye roll here.

Realising that there wasn't enough room for all three of us, we looked around and found ourselves a booth. Tyler took one side while Luke and I took the other.

"So, what are you two doing?" Tyler asked before a cheeky grin formed. "Other than putting everyone off of their food, that is."

"We just felt like hanging out here," Luke answered before I could.

"Actually, Elena forced me to come here, so I brought Luke with me," I corrected my idiot boyfriend.

"Where is Elena?" Tyler asked, looking around.

"She's sitting with Bonnie somewhere," I shrugged, waving a hand in the air. "Although, she's probably ditched me by now. Silly girl never tells me where she is these days."

We sat in silence for a few minutes before Luke broke it.

"The other day," he announced grandly, puffing up his chest. "I was reminiscing."

"That's weird, because so was I," I laughed, jabbing the idiot in the ribs.

"Really? What were you reminiscing about?" Luke asked, grabbing my hand so I couldn't jab him again.

"The time when we all watched Pitch Black around Ty-Ty's house," I shrugged, unable to hide my joy as Luke pulled me into his side.

"Remember the time that we watched Saw?" Tyler smirked, looking like he was doing some reminiscing of his own.

I winced, "I couldn't sleep for a week, after that."

"Neither could I!" Luke laughed, shaking his head.

"We never got caught, though," Tyler stated proudly, giving us a fist bump.

"Of course we didn't," I snorted, feeling properly smug. "It's us. We're epic."

"The most epic kids in the town," Luke agreed, his hand stroking my thigh.

We sighed happily, remembering the good times. Before life went to shit.

"Remember that school dance that we crashed?" Tyler brought up, shaking his head as he remembered.

"Oh yeah!"

"That was fun."

"We got into so much trouble!"

"I thought my dad was going to burst a blood vessel."

"What was it that he said? That is not appropriate behaviour for the Mayor's son?"

"It was more like: how dare you embarrass me like that! You are the Mayor's son! That is not appropriate behaviour!"

"You nearly laughed in his face."

"That's only because you, Luke and Jazz were pulling faces behind his back!"

"Haha, forgot about that."

Tyler rolled his eyes, not looking surprised, "You would."

"Oh shut up."

"Highway to Hell."

I glanced at Luke before the memory hit me like a two-by-four. Oh hell, I had forgotten that on purpose.

"Karaoke night."

"Oh man, we were so pissed."

"Elena could have killed you."

"Nah, she wouldn't have laid a finger upon me."

"What makes you so sure?"

"Because I would have just blamed you two."

"Hey!"

"No fair Alexa!"

I laughed at the indignant expressions on their faces.

"We were the terrible trio of the town, weren't we?" I sighed, missing those days.

"Yeah, we were."

"Were? We still are," Luke snorted, shaking his head.

"Yeah," Ty verbally agreed but I could see that he didn't properly agree.

And I was with him on that. We haven't been a trio since that horrid fight between me and Tyler at the beginning of the summer. Tyler wasn't too happy with my alcohol dependency issues. He confronted me about it after I had gotten so drunk that I couldn't even walk. Luke had asked him to watch over me while he went to get his car.

Tyler was... he was worried about me. He was scared about what would happen to me if I continued to behave the way I did. I lashed out at him. I knew that I shouldn't have and the he was only looking out for me. But it was too soon after my parent's death, too soon after Elena nearly died. So I screamed at him to mind his own business and to get the hell outta my life. Tyler snapped back and stormed off. Ever since then, we haven't been friends. I was too proud and embarrassed to make the first move and Tyler was just too proud. Every day since that fight, I had regretted every word that I had screamed. I so desperately wanted to take it all back. But I couldn't. And it had taken me so long to make it right.

"I've gotta go to the toilet," Luke announced, standing up. He glanced between us before disappearing to the toilet. Huh, maybe he was giving me an opportunity to make it right. Because he had gone to the toilet not long before Tyler came over. And he had not drank enough in that time to need to go again.

"Alexa." "Tyler."

"No, sorry, you go first," Tyler motioned with his hand. He looked kind of relieved to not be the one speaking first.

I took a deep breath and moved around to his side of the booth. Taking Ty's hand in mine, I just let the words blurt out, "Tyler, I'm sorry. For what I said. I know you were only looking out for me and you didn't deserve to be treated like I treated you. I have wanted to make it right for so long. But I haven't been able to stop drinking and you deserved a proper apology, not a hypocritical one. And yeah, while I am still drinking, I promise you that I am going to try and cut down."

Tyler gave my hand a squeeze, "Alexa, I forgive you. You were going through a bad time, I understand that. And I'll help you best I can in cutting down."

Ah crap, don't you dare get emotional. No crying. Just think of the makeup.

"Thank you Ty-Ty."

"You're welcome Alex."

We hugged each other. I wrapped my arms around his strong chest and buried my face in his shoulder. I had missed this so much. I had missed my adopted older brother. He could comfort me in a way that no one else could. I think the fact that he was just as much of a little shit as me helped there.

"Awww, how sweet. Now get your hands off of my girlfriend."

I laughed shakily and pulled back. Luke's arms wrapped around my waist and pulled me up.

Oh my darling, jealous boyfriend.

XXX

"Elena, where are we going?" I asked as I sat in the passenger seat of Aunt Jenna's car, which Elena was driving. Since my idiot twin had crashed hers and was still waiting on the insurance details, Jenna had been kind enough to lend my twin hers. It was a bit smaller than Elena was used to, but she didn't complain. She was just lucky that Jenna and I had let her behind the wheel of another car.

"I've already told you once Alexa," Elena sighed, rolling her eyes. "We're going to the Boarding house. I need to see Stefan."

"But why do I have to go?" I whined and pouted, crossing my arms. I could be in bed right now. I could be warm right now. But noooooo, my twin was a meanie.

"Because you are a good twin who does what her sister asks," Elena replied sassily.

I stared at her. My mouth hanging open, my eyes wide. Oh daaaang, either that girl is grumpy today or she was finally revelling in her evil side. Maybe I need to tell Stefan to give her some of that D. Hint hint.

"Don't look at me like that Alexa."

I shut my mouth with a click and turned to face the front.

Well, I didn't expect that.

XXX

When we got to the Salvatore Boarding House, Elena disappeared into the living room with Stefan. I had absolutely no idea what she walked to talk to him about, but whatever it was, it was important. When I got home last night, Elena was looking really freaked out. And I mean, freaked out. Something had disturbed her. The rib-breaking hug that I had received when I had walked through the door was proof of that. It would also explain why she had forbidden me from going anywhere on my own. Which was weird.

Elena had forbidden me from listening in to their conversation. Normally, I would listen in to their conversation just to annoy her, but, instead, I decided to look for someone even more fun to annoy.

Damon Salvatore.

Besides, Stefan would have caught me eavesdropping with his vampire abilities and snitched on me to Elena. He's a spoil sport like that. Although, he would just say that he was looking out for me. He was far too noble for his own good. And I think he knew that it annoyed me. Cheeky little sod.

I tip-toed through the living room and up the stairs. Elena had her back to me, so I knew that she wouldn't see me. She didn't approve of me hanging out with Damon. She disapproved even more since she returned from her trip to Georgia with the vampire.

Stefan caught my eye as I crept past them. He rolled his but didn't tell on me. Yay Stefan!

He always seemed to find it amusing when I annoyed Damon. Perhaps the thought that a lowly human girl could get his smooth older brother so flustered amused him.

I made my way through the upper floor of the Boarding house, poking my head into every room that I passed. I was looking for Damon's bedroom. I knew that I had been in it before; I just couldn't remember where it was.

I knew that if I couldn't annoy Damon face to face, messing with his bedroom would be the perfect way to annoy him. That, and I didn't get a good look at it last time that I was there. I was too busy freaking out. From what I could remember, it looked like a lovely room. But of course, my breakdown meant that I couldn't remember any details.

I eventually managed to find Damon's bedroom. But, unfortunately, it wasn't empty. Damon was lying on the bed. Really? Did he have to be here? All I wanted to do was explore and mess up his bedroom and he was gonna ruin my fun.

But anyway, I decided to ignore the vampire lying on the bed and carry on with my plan. All I would have to do is be more subtle.

I was poking around the bathroom, which was epic and actually rather beautiful when Damon finally spoke.

"Do you actually know how to knock? Or do you just barge in to annoy me?"

I looked over at the bed to see the vampire staring at me. Hmmm, should I tell him the truth? That I only barged in because I didn't know that he was there? Or should I make something up to annoy him?

"Well, since you are always trying to annoy me, I thought that I had best return the favour," I replied, deciding on the more fun option. "And besides, you haven't been able to enjoy my presence recently, I couldn't deprive you of that, now, could I?"

Damon rolled his eyes but he didn't look surprised, "You really should learn to knock. What if I was... indecent?"

There was a very suggestive smirk on his face and I felt my cheeks burn. I glared at him and turned my back to him. I couldn't help but think about it. Naked Damon...

No! Naughty thoughts!

Once I got bored with looking around the bathroom, (and secretly moving things around), I turned around and pranced over to the bed, collapsing on it. It was a lovely bed. So soft and comfortable and big. Trust Damon to have such a brilliant bed. Ugh, I would love to nap in this bed. But I knew that that would never happen. Unless I banished Damon from the house.

I grinned up at the vampire next to me. He raised an eyebrow and looked down at me. There was an odd look on his face. I don't know what it was... but it was odd.

"Whatcha doing?" I smiled brightly, ignoring the odd look on Damon's face. He often had an odd look when he looked at me. It bugged me to no end but I knew that I wouldn't get an answer from the vampire. So I did my best to ignore it.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Damon countered, rolling his eyes.

"Uhhh, sleeping."

"Exactly."

I knew that what I said next would piss him off so much, but the look on his face would be worth it. And picture perfect. I just wish I could take a picture.

"I thought vampires didn't sleep," I did my best to look as innocent as possible. "Or is that just the Twilight vampires?"

The look of pure disgust that Damon gave me was priceless. I will remember it for the rest of my life. Oh what a lovely memory. I laughed at him, completely ruining my attempt to play innocent. He bared his teeth at me and snarled.

Oh Damon, how fun it is to torment thee.

"So, who are you going to the 50's Dance with, Damon?" I asked, trying to ignore the dirty looks that he kept giving me. Twilight was an abomination but hot damn, it gave me so much material to wind Damon up with.

"I'm not going," I tried to hide my disappoint at the news. "Who are you going with?"

"My boyfriend," I rolled my eyes. "Duh."

"Ah yes, the blonde idiot."

Hey! Don't insult my boyfriend! Only I get to do that. Girlfriend rights. And my rights only.

"He's not an idiot!" I protested, giving a dirty look of my own.

Damon just smirked down at me. I crossed my arms and pouted. Why was he so mean to me? What had Luke ever done to him? I don't think that they've even met! Have they...? Nah, Luke would have said something.

We sat there in silence for a while. It was a comfortable silence. I laid there on the bed while Damon picked up some musty old book and started reading it. Apparently he had given up on sleeping. Whoops, my bad.

I closed my eyes and smiled. It was peaceful. Which was weird. As the words Alexa, Damon and peaceful shouldn't exist together in the same sentence. Even though we were friends, it was a friendship full of bantering. And I usually tried to keep the conversation going so I wouldn't blurt out something embarrassing.

But, there was something that I needed to tell him. It was very important for me to tell him. Even if I didn't want to make this all emotional.

"Damon?" He looked down at me, his gorgeous blue eyes full of curiosity. Once I had ensured that I had his full attention, I took a deep breath and continued, "Thank you."

"For what?"

I looked into his ice blue eyes and tried to calm down my heartbeat, "For bringing my sister back from Georgia alive and unharmed."

He looked confused, "But I was the one who took her there in the first place."

I shrugged, "And you brought her back."

When he opened his mouth to argue, I rolled my eyes and snapped, "Oh, just accept the gratitude and shut up."

"Well, that was rude," he deadpanned, putting his book to the side.

"Pot. Kettle. Black."

"When have I ever been rude to you?" he asked, dramatically flinging a hand over his eyes in mock offence.

I snorted and rolled over onto my tummy. The annoying thought of how much cleavage was I showing wouldn't leave my brain. But I couldn't glance down and check without being obvious. So I just prayed that it wasn't a lot.

"Do you want me to list the offences in alphabetical or chronological order?"

Damon leaned forward, one of his annoying and delicious smirks on his face, "How about you don't list them at all?"

I could feel his breath on my face. I narrowed my eyes and leaned forward. There was a miniscule smirk on his face. The air felt thick around me as my crush reared its ugly head. A part of me wanted to lean forward and just find out what he tasted like. But the sensible part of me screamed that I was in a happy relationship. But even then, I just couldn't move away. The look on Damon's face had my heart thumping and I couldn't deny that I found him incredibly attractive.

"Alexa!" Stefan's shout woke me allowed me to jolt out of the trance. Seriously, Alexa, what the hell?!

I pushed myself away from Damon and shot off of the bed. I stared at the vampire for a moment before bolting out of the room. What the hell was I doing? I knew that I still had a crush on Damon, but I didn't realise that it was that strong. Shit. I was so screwed.

Elena was waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs. Right, I was going to just forget what just happened. Not that anything happened. Nope, nothing at all. Denial is obviously the best way to go.

"Heya twinnie, finished your chat with Salvatore Junior?" damn, I hope I don't sound too manic. Just breathe and be normal, Alexa. You can do this.

Elena rolled her eyes, clearly not impressed with me pulling out the 'twinnie' card, "Yes, Alexa, I'm finished."

"Awesome. Let's go."

I grabbed Elena's arm and pulled her from the house. I ignored my sister's protests as I dragged her behind me.

"Bye Stefan!" I shouted over my shoulder, remembering my manners as I reached the front door.

"I'll see you later, Stefan," Elena shouted as she realised that she wouldn't get the chance to have a more romantic goodbye.

"Bye Elena, Alexa."

Stefan sounded amused.

"Alexa, what's the rush?" Elena asked as I pushed her into the driver's seat of the car.

"Damon's in there," I replied before darting around to the other door. "And I stole his soap."

As I settled into the seat, I pulled some soap bars out of my pocket.

"You're terrible Alexa," Elena sighed, shaking her head. But I could hear the laughter in her voice.

"You love me anyway," I smirked, feeling incredibly proud of myself.

XXX

"We should probably start getting ready for the dance," Elena sighed, tapping my hand.

I shook my head and tightened my grip on her waist, "I'm comfie, I no move."

Since we returned from the Salvatore Boarding house, we had just spent the day lying on Elena's bed, watching TV. It was just crappy TV, nothing exciting. But it was peaceful, which I think we needed. Especially after the craziness of the past few days.

I had my head on her shoulder and an arm around her waist. She had an arm around my shoulder and her head resting on my head. It was something that we used to do a lot. And my sister was a secret cuddle addict. She would never admit it to anyone, but I knew how much she loved cuddles. Which is why I loved to indulge her. Gave me more cuddles too.

Elena pulled herself from my grip and got off the bed. I let out a high-pitched whine and reached out for her. We were so comfy, why would she move? Mean twin.

"Come on Alexa," my twin smiled, grabbing my arm and pulling me up. "Let's go get something to eat and then we can get ready."

The mention of food had me cooperating. I had cooked a lasagne for dinner last night and we still had some leftovers. And, not to toot my own horn, I made a damn good lasagne. So I was excited to have some more.

"I don't know how to have my hair," I complained as I followed Elena downstairs. Don't get me wrong, I loved my short hair, but when it came to period dances, it did pose a problem.

"I'll do it for you, Alexa," Elena smiled fondly, shaking her head.

"Thank you!" I laughed, hugging her from behind.

I trotted into the kitchen and made myself a mug of coffee. I hadn't had a caffeine hit in a few hours and damn, I needed one. Especially since I was trying to cut down on my alcohol consumption. It did help that my sister was around as I couldn't let her find out about my little drinking habit.

"Spoke to the insurance company," Aunt Jenna's voice floated over to me. "Car's totalled. You can keep using mine."

I smirked to myself. Elena had forbidden me from saying anything about it but I was over the moon. Elena had crashed the car! And I had been told that I would be the first person to crash the car! I mean, I'm not happy that she crashed her car. I was freaking out when I found out and insisted that she get checked out by a doctor. But the petty part of me was pleased that I wasn't the first one to crash. Maybe now, I could actually be taught how to drive.

"So you're coming to the dance?" Elena asked, her voice neutral.

I turned around to see Aunt Jenna dressed for the occasion. She was wearing a beautiful chequered blouse, a pinky-red skirt with a thick black belt. Her hair was tied back with a matching ribbon. She looked gorgeous. Like seriously, hot damn auntie. Wonder if she was trying to impress someone. Cough, Alaric, cough.

"Alaric asked me to chaperone," Aunt Jenna smiled, a blush forming. Oh daaaamn, I was right. She was trying to impress my history teacher. And I was totally supporting it. Alaric seemed like a nice guy. And Jenna deserved nice. After the Scumfell, my darling aunt deserved only loveliness. And I would hurt anyone who tried to deny her it.

Elena had a pensive look on her face. She hadn't been Aunt Jenna's biggest fan ever since she found out about the adoption. And that was putting it mildly. I didn't understand why. It wasn't Jenna's fault that we never found out. I figured that she was mad at our mom and was taking it out on Jenna. Which sucked. So I did my best to help comfort Jenna. And berate my sister.

"Why didn't you tell us, Jenna?" she asked, turning to face our aunt. I moved so that I was standing next to my twin.

Aunt Jenna's face fell.

"Your mom was gonna do it eventually," she sighed, twisting her hands. "I never thought that I'd have to do it."

"Aunt Jenna, as much as I don't want to get in the middle of this, you have to admit, if mom were here and we asked, she'd tell us the truth."

Jenna winced, unable to deny the truth in those words. I hated saying them. But it was true. And besides, if I said it, then I could at least be a bit gentler about it.

"Your dad was about to leave the office one night when this girl showed up," Aunt Jenna started to explain, walking closer. "She was 16, a runaway and about to give birth. He delivered her babies and he gave her a place to stay, but a few days later, she disappeared. And there you two were. Your parents were trying so hard to have a baby. It just wasn't happening. All Miranda ever wanted was to be a mum."

"Why are our parents' names on the birth certificates?" Elena asked, frowning in thought.

"Your dad was a doctor, Elena," Aunt Jenna smiled slightly, shaking her head. "He took care of it. They didn't want to lose you, either of you, so they kept it quiet, told as few people as possible. But if anyone ever wanted proof, they had documentation."

"Do you know anything about the girl?" I asked, feeling curious. Not that it mattered to me, but it did to Elena.

"Only her name," she replied. "Isobel."

XXX

The dress that I had chosen to wear was a red halterneck dress with black polka dots. It came down to my knees with a thick black belt around my waist. I had a black beaded necklace and thick black hoop earrings. I was lookin' good.

Elena had done my hair for me. She had straightened the front part, put a bright red bow in and then spiked up the back part. It's a shame I was taken, cos I would have had all the boys fighting over me. Although, now I could watch my sexy boyfriend get all jealous and be possessive. He was so hot when he did that. And I benefitted from it.

Elena had gone for a blue blouse and leggings. Her hair was in a similar style to mine. She looked gorgeous. Stefan was a lucky vampire to get a girl as beautiful as my twin. Likely seriously, it was unfair just how gorgeous my sister was.

I was sitting on my bed, taking selfies, when my sister called my name. I rolled my eyes and yelled out a "Yeah?"

I didn't bother getting up. I knew that I would be on my feet all evening, so I was letting them rest while I still could. Unfortunately, my sister didn't approve of my plan. Silence answer my response and I sighed. Goddamnit sister.

I walked out of my room, my shoes in hand, and saw her standing in her doorway. The look on her face had an unwelcome feeling form in the pit of my stomach. But I ignored it, hoping that I was just being paranoid.

"What's up, Elena?" I asked when I caught her attention.

"I thought I heard something..." she tailed off, looking behind her. She disappeared into her bedroom and I rolled my eyes. That was really helpful, sis. Thanks for sharing.

I swiftly followed her and saw her looking at the Gilbert watch. Uhhhh, how did she get that? Actually, more important question, why was she so worried. And oh crap. It's moving. That means that there is a vampire in the area. Oh that is so not good. Goddamnit, can we not have one day without vampire drama?

My twin grabbed her phone and dialled a number. She threw the compass at me and as I caught it, she grabbed my arm and pulled me downstairs. Ok, Elena, calm down. Before you dislocate my shoulder. I kept my gaze fixed on the compass as it flicked around. The fact that I was moving meant that vampire was close. But the question was, how close? And could they get inside.

"Where is he?" she demanded into her phone. Where was who? Seriously sis, I need information here too. Especially if I was to keep you safe.

"Oh, thank god," Elena sighed in relief, letting go of my arm. "The compass was spinning. Stefan must be here. Thank you."

Stefan must be here? Does that mean that she's talking to Damon? Damn, poor girl. I knew that she hated speaking to him as Damon just loved to wind her up. That was part of the reason why she let me deal with him. I had the knack for Damon-handling.

She hung up the phone and smiled at me. Then, suddenly, a vampire dropped from the ceiling.

He grabbed Elena and I screamed. I went to pull her away but he pushed me to the floor. I landed heavily against the banister. I froze for a moment in fear. My heart was racing. And my test felt tight. But I needed to protect my sister.

The vampire went to bite my twin just as I was climbing to my feet. But we were saved. Stefan appeared and ripped him off of her. Oh thank god for Stefan. Elena fell to the floor and I pulled her into my arms. I buried my face in her hair. She was fine, she was unharmed. My heart still thudded in my chest but I was able to relax a little bit, with my sister safe in my arms.

"Alexa," my twin mumbled against my neck.

My sister hugged me tightly, shaking slightly. I pulled back and looked into her brown eyes.

"You're fine," I stated, partly to reassure her and partly to reassure myself.

I pulled her back into a hug.

"You're fine."

XXX

Stefan called Damon and he soon appeared. I know it sounds crazy, but I actually felt safer with Damon there in the house. As much as I adored Stefan, his diet meant that he wasn't as strong as other vampires. But Damon? He was strong and I knew that he wouldn't let anyone hurt us. Especially Elena.

My sister and I were clinging onto each other on the sofa. Stefan was sitting next to my sister, holding her hand. After what happened, I refused to let go of my sister. Which may have been slightly selfish of me as I could tell that Stefan wanted a hug of his own. But I was only able to keep my panic at bay by holding my sister.

"How did he get in?" Damon asked as he walked behind the sofa. His hand trailed across my bare back and my skin tingled. Damn it crush, now is not the time.

"He was invited in," Elena said shakily, still unable to believe what happened. Stefan squeezed her hand while I ran my fingers across her neck in a way that I knew soothed her.

"He posed as a pizza deliver guy last night," Stefan continued when Ellie couldn't. And I was not happy about that. Is there anyone that we can invite inside anymore? Or did we have to vervain everyone before they could come in? I was going to hold a family meeting. New rule, the words 'please come in' were never to be uttered again. Maybe I should put a sign on the door too. To make sure everyone remembered.

"Well, he gets points for that," Damon sounded reluctantly impressed. "Did he say what he wanted?"

"No, he was too busy trying to rip my twin sister's throat out," I growled, my anger was warring with my fear. I was so gonna stake this vampire when I next saw him. I don't care what happened, this git will die. No one hurt my sister. Especially in our own home.

"And you have no idea who this is?" Stefan questioned, looking directly at his brother. That's a good question, actually. Knowing Damon, it was likely that he might have some clue as to who the soon-to-be-dead vampire was.

"No." Stefan just stared at him, unconvinced. "Don't look at me like that. I told you we had company."

Wait what? They knew that there were other vampires lurking around and they never told us. Well, that's just rude. I was especially disappointed in Damon. Last time he told me when we had a vampire in town. Note to self; yell at Damon after the dance. Honestly, we should have been told.

Elena glanced between them, "You think there's more than one?"

She sounded worried. Heck, I was worried. This was seriously not good. I miss the old days. When we didn't have to worry about vampires trying to eat my sister.

"We don't know," Damon replied, shrugging a shoulder. That was so not reassuring. Thanks Damon. You utterly failed to help there.

The elder vampire sat down on the arm of the sofa. Which was right next to me. I felt his leather jacket brush against my bare arm. My skin tingled at the contact until I put it out of my mind. Seriously, now was not the time. And what the hell was wrong with me? I'm dating Luke, for godsake. Why was I still crushing on this guy?

"Damon." Damon looked at his brother. "He was invited in."

Something significant passed between them.

"Then we go get him tonight."

Ok, I'm gonna assume that it has something to with the vampire.

Damon glanced at my sister and then me, "You two up for it?"

"What do we have to do?" I answered before Elena could insist that I sit this one out. I was not going to let her leave me outta this. She needed me there and I needed to be there for her. And I wanted revenge. This guy tried to kill my sister, I needed him to pay for that.

"Let your respective boyfriends take you to the dance," Damon told me, glancing down. "We'll see who shows up."

"You trust Luke with my safety?" I asked in surprise. I have to admit, I wasn't expecting that. Given Damon's intense dislike for my boyfriend, I never would have thought that he would trust him with my safety. Especially since he doesn't know that Luke was a vampire hunter.

"I'll be there to keep an eye on you."

Oh, that explains it then.

"Damon, it's a bad idea," Stefan announced, giving his brother a look. He did not sound happy.

"Till we get him, this house isn't safe," Damon shot back. "For anyone who lives in it."

He looked down at me and my sister, "It's worth a shot."

Elena looked at me and raised an eyebrow. I nodded at her and titled my head. She gave a tight smile in return. Well, that's decided then.

"We'll do it," Elena decided after we had our silent conversation. "I'll be with the two of you. Alexa will be with Luke and you'll be keeping an eye on her. We'll be safe."

A car horn beeped from outside and I leapt up. Oh lord, was that the time already? Crap.

"That'll be Luke," I said as I bent down to give Elena a hug. "I'll see you guys at the dance."

"We'll be looking out for you," Stefan assured me. I smiled at him before nodding at Damon. He returned my nod and I left.

I quickly ran to Luke's car and climbed in.

"Hello handsome," I smiled at him and leaned in for a kiss.

"Hello beautiful," he whistled before returning the kiss. I rolled my eyes but returned the kiss. I knew that this dress did wonders for my cleavage, which was naughty for the time period. But if it meant driving Luke crazy, then I didn't care about authenticity.

When I pulled back, he drove off. Although I did have to remind him to keep his eyes on the road a few times.

"Hey, Alexa," he started nervously after we'd been driving for a few minutes. "I won't be able to stay for the entire dance."

"What? Why?" I pouted in disappointment. Oh Luke, you can't leave me alone there. That's just not fair.

"My parents have arranged for me to go away for the weekend," he replied, sounding just as disappointed. He did not sound happy with his parents. I wasn't happy with them either. This was probably one of their stupid plans for splitting us up and getting Luke to drink the family coolaid again.

"Are you going with Jazz to see that professor dude?" I asked, hoping he was. Whitmore college was kind of close by. So he wouldn't be too far if we wanted to meet up in secret.

"No," he sighed, killing my dreams. "I've gotta train with some hunter guy. Connor something."

"Well, that sounds boring," I pouted, grabbing his hand and holding on tight. "When will you be back?"

"No idea."

"Oh Luke," I sighed, giving his hand a squeeze. That meant that he would be missing a lot of school. And I wouldn't see him for ages. And damn that sucked ass.

"I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too, babe."

XXX

When we got to the dance, the party was in full swing. I caught a glimpse of Bonnie and Caroline through the crowd. They were looking beautiful. As usual. Honestly, if I didn't love them so much, I would definitely be starting beef with them over how lovely they always looked. It was enough to give a girl a complex.

Caroline caught my eye and waved. I returned the wave as she gestured for us to go over. I hesitated. It wasn't that I didn't want to spend time with my friends, I just wanted to have as much alone time with my boyfriend as I could. It was Bonnie joining in that persuaded me.

"Come on," I tugged my boyfriend in the direction of my friends.

As soon as I got within arm's length, Caroline pulled me into a careful hug. I decided to be a good friend and patted her gently on the back. Plus, I knew she would kill me if I ruined her outfit.

"Looking good, Care," I smiled as I gave Bonnie a hug too.

"It took long enough so I hope so!" she laughed, gently patting her hair.

"You two on a friend-date?" I asked as Luke wrapped his arms around my waist.

"Only way to roll," Bon rolled her eyes, repeating one of my favourite phrases.

"Damn straight," I nodded sharply as my idiot boyfriend continue tapping his fingers on my side, deliberately trying to distract. "Maybe I should trade this goof in for you two.

Caroline laughed as Luke pouted in offence. He knew exactly what he was doing. Ever since he asked me to the dance, he had been talking about dancing all night long. And not because he was being romantic. Nope, it was because he was horny. Honestly, teenagers.

"Maybe I'll trade you in," Luke muttered petulantly, resting his chin on my head. "Hey ladies, fancy ditching this mean little one for a better model?"

"Oh please," I rolled my eyes before either of my girls could respond. "Why would they ever want to trade down?"

Luke and I continued our banter while Caroline kindly got us a drink. I gave her a bright smile before taking a sip of punch. I could see her new vervain bracelet on her wrist, courtesy of my sister. Since she knew about vampires before, I assume she had been wearing vervain previously. But my sister shared my paranoia and wanted to make sure her friend was protected. Bonnie had been gifted a new anklet and I'm guessing her grams was keeping her full of vervain too. Jenna and Jeremy were sorted, so it was just Matt and Tyler that I needed to worry about now.

We complimented Care on organising such a brilliant dance. Every year she organised such incredibly events. I honestly don't know how she did it. But damn, I'm glad she did. I could tell my boyfriend was getting restless behind me as he started tapping his fingers again and constantly shifted his feet.

"Wanna dance before I have to leave?" Luke whispered in my ear as the other two girls talked between them. I shivered as his hand stroked the bare skin on my back and nodded.

"See you later, my lovelies," I smiled at my friends before my boyfriend led me away. I didn't have to look at them to know that they were rolling their eyes. The two giggled behind me but I didn't mind. After all, I would just return the favour when they got their next boyfriends. Alexa always gets her revenge.

He led me to the dance floor and placed his arms on my hips. I wrapped my arms around his neck. I could feel his warm hands though the fabric of my dress.

I smiled up at him and swung my hips to the beat of the music. He smirked down at me and moved his hands up my body until they reached my hands. He removed them from his neck and used them to swing me out before pulling me back in so that my back was pressed against his chest. His arm was now pressed against my waist. I titled my head up and kissed his jaw. He shivered slightly at my touch and titled his head down so that he could kiss my lips.

When air became an issue, I had to pull away. I panted lightly as I looked up at him.

"Y'know, there has to be an unattended room around here somewhere," he smirked, his mind immediately going to a naughty place. One that my mind was already at.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Let's get going."

We snuck out of the dance. Making sure that no one saw us leave. Especially none of the chaperones.

XXX

When Luke had to leave, I reluctantly returned to dance. I stopped by the toilets first, to make sure that everything was still looking on point. By this point, my sister and the Salvatore's had arrived. I saw Elena frantically looking around the room. The moment that she caught sight of me, she relaxed. Huh, guess she was looking for me. Ummm, oops?

I pushed my way through the crowd until I reached her.

"Alexa! There you are!" she exclaimed as she pulled me into a tight hug. "I was getting worried."

"Yeah, sorry about that," I rubbed the back of my neck sheepishly as I nodded a hello at Stefan. "Luke had to leave early as he's going away this weekend, so we had a little alone time."

Elena rolled her eyes as she let go, "Why am I not surprised?"

"Hey! We're not that bad!"

From the corner of my eye, I could see Stefan hiding a smile. We honestly weren't. And even if we were, we were young and hormonal. So we would totally be allowed. My sister just looked at me before glancing over my shoulder.

"Uh oh, Damon's bothering Bonnie and Caroline."

"Well, that's nothing new," I snorted, turning around to witness the entertainment. The two were strong united in their Anti-Damon sentiment. Caroline was still holding a grudge over the way he dumped her. And the fact he dumped her at all. Bonnie was learning how anti-vampire witches were. And she still remembered that he would have attacked her that night she was possessed. It was only me getting in the way that stopped it. So I couldn't blame them for not liking Damon. And they respected my friendship with him.

We watched as he spoke to them and managed to drive them off. Lol it was so funny. They gave identical 'screw you' looks to the vampire. At least I managed to get to speak to them before they were driven off by the older Salvatore.

"We'd better go over there," Stefan said, directing the two of us over to Damon. He didn't sound too surprised by what happened. He must have heard what they were talking about.

"Where did they go?" Elena asked as we walked up behind him.

"I don't know," Damon replied innocently as he turned to face us.

Elena raised her eyebrow as Stefan said, "What did you say to them?"

Huh, maybe he didn't listen in on the conversation. I mean, I totally would have. But then again, that was me. It's probably a good thing that I don't have super-hearing.

"I was perfectly polite," Damon defended himself. I snorted. Since when was Damon Salvatore polite? Don't get me wrong, it's entertaining as hell watching it. But Damon just didn't do polite unless he was trying to charm the panties off of someone.

Damon glanced over at me and held out his hand.

"Alexa, would you like to dance?" he asked me, giving me one of his most charming smiles. And damn it, it worked more than I was happy with.

"Might as well, especially since my boyfriend has had to leave early."

I accepted his hand and he pulled my in the direction of the dance floor. I grinned at Elena as I passed her and she rolled her eyes in response. I knew exactly what my sister was thinking and I would do everything in my power to avoid her until something distracted the snarky comment from her mind.

Damon pulled me into his arms when we reached the dance floor. I wrapped my arms around his neck, making sure to keep a couple of inches between our bodies. I was not going to get too close to the vampire. Damon placed his hands upon my hips. It took everything in me to not melt in his arms. Like seriously, I wish my crush would just go away. It was very inconvenient.

"May I say that you look absolutely ravishing tonight, Ms Gilbert," he smirked down at me as we started swaying to the music.

"You may, Mr Salvatore," I smirked in return, internally reminding myself to stay cool. "And you are not the only person to think that."

"Ah, yes, your boyfriend," the vampire frowned and I couldn't help but wonder why. He didn't know that Luke was a vampire hunter and he didn't know Luke well enough to not like him. So why would he be frowning like that?

"Yep, my boyfriend," I smiled at the thought of him, pushing all thoughts of Damon from my mind.

Damon must have seen something in the happy, blissful look on my face as he smirked wickedly and leaned forward.

"Have you been having sex with your boyfriend on school grounds, Alexa?" he whispered in my ear. His warm breath on my ear made me shiver and feel warm all over. "Tut tut."

My cheeks burned and I nudged him away. Goddamnit, just when I had scratched that particular itch. And now my boyfriend had ditched me. This crush was really kicking my ass.

"Oh shut up," I growled, avoiding eye contact.

"Embarrassed?"

"If you're gonna mock me then I'll just leave."

I unclasped my hands from behind his neck and stepped back. But before I could walk away, Damon grabbed my arm.

"I'm sorry. I'll behave," he said, actually looking contrite. I stared at him for a moment, looking for any signs that he was faking it, before moving back into his arms.

"The day you behave is the day that hell freezes over," I told him as I tried to ignore the feel of his hands on my hips.

"Is that so?"

He raised an eyebrow before suddenly knocking my leg, causing me to fall. I barely had the chance to think 'oh shit' before hands grabbed my waist. Damon pulled me back up and I gripped onto his shoulders as I regained my balance.

I glared up at him.

Honestly, there was no need for that nonsense.

"What the hell was that?" I raised an eyebrow to show my disapproval.

Damon moved his head down so that his forehead was resting against mine.

"What the hell was what?" he asked as I told my heart off for beating so fast.

"You know what."

Damon laughed and spun me around. I couldn't help but laugh too. It wasn't often that I heard Damon laugh. And it was a lovely sound. So what the hell. May as well enjoy the dance. And enjoy Damon's company.

XXX

"So, what were the 50's like?" I asked.

The song had changed to a slow song and I was back in Damon's arms. It felt nice. He wasn't overly flirty. He was just Damon flirty. And I had learnt to ignore it by now. Despite the fact my crush was jumping for joy. Stupid thing.

I rested my head on Damon's shoulder and fiddled with his jacket.

... What? I'm a touchey-feely person. Leave me alone. I had to appease my crush somehow.

Damon's arm around my waist tightened slightly and the fingers on his other hand fiddled with my hair. His thumb occasionally brushed against my neck, causing my body to tingle. Which was great, apparently my neck had decided that being sensitive was a wonderful idea.

"It was all varsity sweaters, milkshakes, peppy cheerleaders, big skirts, annoying jocks," Damon replied. The annoyance in his tone was clear.

I smiled slightly, "You really didn't like the 50's, did you?"

"They were alright. The cheerleaders were particularly amazing."

I rolled my eyes. Why was I not surprised? Oh yeah, because it's Damon. But despite his deflecting, it was easy for me to tell that he really didn't like that decade. Whenever he talked about it, his arm around my waist tightened slightly and he glanced around the room.

"I bet they were."

I could feel Damon grin into my hair. Sweet. Nice one Alexa. I had no idea how long we had been dancing for, but my feet were starting to ache. And I was starting to get thirsty. Time just seemed to flow when I was with Damon. It was easy and is that weird? I know he's a vampire and he's killed a lot of people. But it was easy being with him.

"I wanna drink," I mumbled into Damon's chest.

I felt Damon huff out a laugh, "Alcoholic or non-alcoholic?"

As much as I wanted an alcoholic drink, I knew that I shouldn't. I was at a school dance for godsake. That, and I was trying to prove to myself that I don't need to drink. My reconciliation with Tyler had really driven it into me. So I was going to stop being so dependent on alcohol. I had to, for the sake of my friendship.

... Let's see how long I last.

"Non-alcoholic," I replied with a despondent sigh.

"Punch bowl is over there."

Damon let go off me and gestured in the direction that the punch table was. I grinned to myself; I knew that he wouldn't offer to get me one. That was too nice for Damon. And he had a rep to protect, innit.

"You want one?" I asked before I left him. See, I do remember my manners.

Damon smirked, "Are you offering?"

His eyes flicked down to my neck. Cheeky little shit. I rolled my eyes and walked off. I knew that he wouldn't feed from me. Elena would go mad at him and he seemed to care what Elena thought about him. And I'd like to think that our friendship was strong enough that he wouldn't feed from me without permission. Although I don't know if I ever would give permission. That time Vicki bit me hurt so much. I don't think I'd want to go through that again.

I made my way over to the punch bowl only to see my little brother standing behind the table. Haha, Jeremy was on punch duty. Sucker.

"Hey, hey, hey, whatcha doin Jer-Bear?" I sang as I walked over to him. As his sister, it was my sacred duty to torment him over the fact that he was kinda working at a party.

"Oh no, it's you," he groaned as he turned around and saw me.

"That's not very nice," I pouted and crossed my arms. "Why didn't you tell me that you where on punch duty?"

"Because it's you. And you would torment me mercilessly."

I put a hand over my heart in mock-offence, "Brother, you wound me with your cruel words."

Jeremy stuck his tongue out at me and I laughed at him. He's so immature, isn't he? God I love that kid.

"But anyway," I put my hands on my hips. "I actually came over here to get some punch."

"You mean you didn't come over to here to torment me? Alexa, I am shocked."

"Oh shut up, you little brat, and gimme a drink."

My adorable little brother laughed and passed me a drink.

"Thanks kiddo," I smiled at him. "Now, try and have some fun. Don't spend your entire time at this table. Enjoy yourself. God knows that you deserve it after all your hard work these past few weeks."

"Thanks Alexa," Jeremy smiled at me. "And I shall do my best."

I grabbed his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze before leaving. Now, where was Damon?

XXX

I found him talking to Mr Saltzman, my favourite teacher. Ever. And now Damon was tormenting him. Honestly, that man just loved to piss people off. Looks like I'm off to play mediator. Yawn. So not what I wanted to do at a party.

"Hello Mr A," I grinned as I made my way over to Damon's side.

"Hello Alexa," he smiled down at me. I really like Alaric. He was always really kind to me. And he was actually a really good teacher. He actually cared about his students and wanted them to do well. Like with Jeremy. He gave my baby brother a chance to work on his grade.

"I was just talking to Damon," Ric told me, as I sipped at my punch.

"Oh no, he didn't insult you, did he?" I groaned as I nudge the vampire with my elbow.

"Hey! I don't insult everyone that I meet!" Damon protested, glancing down at me with one of his looks. I just raised my eyebrow at him. Yeah right. That was how Damon introduced himself to people. He insulted them. He huffed and turned his back to me.

Alaric laughed, "Damon has been perfectly polite."

"Well, that's unusual," I squinted up at Damon. "Are you feeling alright?"

"That's enough out of you," Damon rolled his eyes and tried to grab my punch to distract me.

"That's enough out of you," I mouthed mockingly when Damon's back was turned. I caught Ric's eye and he stifled a laugh. Oops, looks like I got caught.

"So, Ric," I caught my aunt's eye through the crowd and an idea came to me. "Have you met my Aunt Jenna yet? She's chaperoning here, tonight."

Ric smiled, "I met her a few days ago. And again tonight."

I raised an eyebrow, "You did? Huh, she didn't mention that. Remind me to have words with her." I plastered on one of my most adorable smiles. "Well, I happen to know that she is single and a great catch."

"You trying to set me up with your aunt?" Ric laughed and shook his head.

"Well, if she's dating someone then she won't be on my back about my boyfriend," I shrugged before quickly adding. "And I happen to think that you two would be adorable together. Especially since her last boyfriend was Logan Fell. She needs to see what a good boyfriend would be like."

Oh dear Lord, Alexa, stop rambling.

Almost as though he was reading my mind, Damon interrupted with a snarky "You just want the house to yourself."

"Well, duh," I rolled my eyes as I silently thanked him.

Mr Saltzman glanced at something behind me before smiling at us both, "Enjoy the rest of the dance, you two. And Alexa, I shall see you in class."

"You can count on it, Mr A," I beamed, making sure I focussed on what I was saying. "Prepare to watch me get an A."

Rick just shook his head and walked off. How dare he doubt my ability to get an A! Fiend! I was actually capable of getting an A. Even if I was a solid B student.

Damon turned to face me again as I finished my punch.

"Thanks for the save," I smiled as I placed my empty glass on the table next to us.

"Someone had to stop that car crash," Damon rolled his eyes. Which was very rude. It was bad, but it wasn't that bad.

"Oh shush," I pouted as Damon dragged me back onto the dancefloor. "It wasn't that bad."

"Not that bad? Were you listening to what you were saying?"

"Unfortunately. That's going to make history interesting."

"I could always compel him," Damon wiggled his eyebrows as he offered.

I rolled my eyes, "No thanks. I can't risk my aunt's wrath if she finds out."

Damon laughed as the music picked up. One of the faster songs of the night came on and I found a chance to get some teasing done of my own.

"Do you know any cool dance moves?" I asked him, eager for the answer. He should do. He did live through the damn decade, after all. And it would be so cool if he showed me. Would definitely be a highlight of the dance.

"Of course I do," the vampire scoffed.

"Will you show me any?"

Damon just smirked at me. Well, damn. But worry not, I have my secret weapon.

"I bet Stefan will show Elena."

"Don't be ridiculous. Stefan won't perform any dance moves."

And, as if by a miracle, (or, more likely, Stefan had heard him), the brother in question swung my sister in some complicated dance move before pulling her in for a kiss.

I smirked up at Damon. Point proven, "Wow. Your brother certainly has the moves. Shame it doesn't run in the family."

I knew that I had wounded his ego when Damon narrowed his eyes at me. I grinned in anticipation and Damon didn't disappoint.

He used my arm to swing me to the side before quickly pulling me in. He wrapped that arm around my waist in one fluid move before lifting me up and spinning me around. And, just to surprise me, he placed his other hand on my ass and used it to push me over his shoulder. I instinctively landed on my feet. Damon turned around to face me and pulled me to him.

"Wow!" I stated breathlessly as I tightened my grip on Damon. "That was epic."

"Now who has the moves?"

I laughed.

Then I realised just how close to Damon was I was. His face was barely an inch apart from mine. My eyes flickered down to his lips. My breathing picked up as I couldn't take my eyes off of his lips. My body felt too warm as that feeling from earlier returned. Despite my brain screaming at me, I just couldn't stop myself. There was something magnetic about him. Something irresistible.

And, almost as though I was in autopilot, I leaned towards him. It felt... right. Like it was what I was meant to do.

Then, just as our lips were going to meet, someone knocked into me.

It woke me up. What the hell was I doing?! I have a boyfriend! I was in a happy relationship! This wasn't me. I didn't do that. Seriously, was my crush on him that strong?

I gazed up at Damon with wide eyes before I pulled myself from his grip and fled.

XXX

I soon ran into Elena.

"Alexa, where's Damon?" she asked, firmly grasping my arms.

"Uh, over there somewhere," I replied vaguely, waving a hand over my shoulder. I was still all flustered over what almost happened. Not even a cool glass of water had helped. My heart was still thumping in my chest as the thought of his lips lingered on my mind.

"Lexa, I need to know," the seriousness in her tone caught my attention. "He's here."

"The vampire?" I gasped, my heartbeat picking up for an entirely different reason to before. Elena nodded. "C'mon, follow me; I'll help you find Damon."

I grabbed my sister's arm and pulled her through the crowd. Damon wasn't where I left him. Not that I expected him to be. But as I scanned the crowd, I couldn't see any sign of him. Which had my hands shaking. He had to be somewhere. Especially with that twin-targeting vampire on the lose somewhere.

Then, as I was pulling my twin through the crowd, her phone went off. She forced me to stop as she answered the phone. I wasn't pleased about stopping but my sister held firm as I tried to tug her forward. She didn't say anything but I could tell from the terrified look on her face that it was not a good call. You don't think... nah, there's no way that the vampire has her number... is there? Elena started scanning the crowd, presumably for whoever was calling her. I helped, even if I didn't know what I was looking for. Her gaze flickered towards a nearby open door.

"No," Elena stated firmly. Yeah! You tell him! We needed to stay where there were people. There was safety in numbers.

My twin shot around until she was staring in the direction that Jeremy was standing. I followed her gaze to see a man dressed in black standing near my baby brother. The vampire. It had to be. The fear on my sister's face indicated no other option.

"Don't you dare touch him," Elena growled, tightening her grip on my hand.

"I'll kill him if he does," I snarled, an ugly rage building in me. That ass did not get to threaten my brother, not after everything he had done to my sister. Elena glanced over at me and shook her head. I don't know if it was because of something the vampire said or to stop me from doing something stupid. I let go of her hand and crossed my arms. My nails dug into my skin and I stopped myself from rushing over and hiding my brother behind me.

Elena backed up a few steps, expecting me to follow. When I didn't, she grabbed my arm and pulled me with her. The vampire followed us. Elena hung up the phone and ran out of the room. I ran with her. I didn't even know if the vampire was targeting me. But I couldn't let my sister face this alone.

We frantically ran down the school corridors, me cursing the black pumps that I was wearing. Not only were they awkward to run in, they were far too noisy. I could hear the vampire's footsteps slowly following us. He didn't need to run. With his speed, he could find us in seconds. Which terrified me even more than I was before.

There was a set of double doors in front of us. Elena reached them first and tried to open them. But they didn't move. I heard the rattling of chains and cursed.

Not good. Not good. Not good.

My heart was racing and I struggled to breath. Eyes wide, I spun around, looking for another exit. There had to be one around here somewhere! Come on! Just think, Alexa. You need to breathe and think.

My eyes zoned in on the door to the canteen. Bingo. There were multiple ways out of that room. I grabbed Elena's hand and pulled her through the door. We bolted across the room; trying doors as we went passed them. But they were all locked. This was not what I wanted! Goddamit, why was everything locked?

Elena reached the last door in the room before I could and suddenly, the vampire was in front of her. She dodged to the side. But the bastard caught her hair and used it to pull her towards him.

"Elena!" I screamed as she screamed in pain and fright.

The vampire used his grip on her hair to push her across one of the tables. I slid over to her and shielded my sister as the vampire threw the table to the side. I knew that I couldn't get her out of here, not with his speed. But I could distract him long enough for my sister to get to safety.

My plan worked; he didn't go for Elena again. Instead, he picked me up and pushed me against the wall. Fangs bared; he went for my neck. I closed my eyes and waited for the pain. This wasn't how I imagined tonight going but if it saved my sister, I would do anything.

But before he could rip my throat out, Elena pulled me to the side and stuck a pencil in his chest. Where had she even got a pencil from? Wait, no, that's not important right now.

He grunted in pain and surprise before raising his hand, intending to hit my sister. Oh no you don't. I snatched a pencil out of her hand and shoved it through his raised hand. You don't get to hit my sister, you little fucktard.

Elena finished the job by stabbing the last pencil in his chest. The vampire fell to the ground but, unfortunately, he was still alive. We needed something bigger, that could pierce his heart. Oh lord, why weren't our vampires around when we need them? Like seriously, they had one job!

As he began pulling the pencils out of his body, I frantically looked around for another weapon. I spotted the mop. The mop with the wooden handle. Yahtzee.

I ran over to it and snapped it in half over my knee.

"Ellie!" I shouted and as she turned, I threw half of the mop-turned-stake to her. She caught it and spun around; wood aimed directly for the heart of the vampire right behind her.

But he caught her hand.

Elena froze as he pulled the stake from her grasp and threw it to the side. No, no, no, no. I had to save my sister. Damnit, we needed to get out of here. I charged forward, trying to get him with my stake. But before I could kill him, he grabbed my stake as well. Oh shit.

He used it to push me backwards. I hit the floor hard. My head pounded as it bounced off the floor. It was my sister screaming that got me moving. Despite the fuzzy feeling in my head, I bit my lip and pushed myself to my feet. I had to save my sister. Protect Elena, must protect Elena. Fear flooded my veins as my twin's screams took on a terrified pitch.

"NO!"

Just as he was about to draw blood, Stefan appeared and pulled him away from her. The Salvatore sent the evil vampire flying over a nearby table. Oh Stefan. Our hero. I was so relieved to see one of our vampires. I stumbled my way over to my twin and grabbed on to her. Ellie clung on to me in return. I breathed in her familiar scent and relaxed.

"Hey, dickhead!" Damon called. I turned my head to face him. I have never felt so relieved to see him. With him in the room, I felt so much safer. We were safe. Thank god.

"Nobody wants to kill you," Stefan spoke up and I had to internally scoff. Speak for yourself. "We just wanna talk." No, I just wanna kill his twin-hurting ass.

The stranger tried to run, but Damon threw one of our improvised stakes to Stefan who used it to stake the vamp in the stomach. The vampire fell to his knees in pain as Damon strolled over. I buried my head in Elena's shoulder and tightened my grip on her waist. I just knew that I wouldn't want to watch was about to happen.

"Now you feel like talkin'?" I heard Stefan growl. Yikes, I had never heard him sound so serious. And he even sounded a little scary.

"Screw you!" was the reply.

I heard a disgusting squelching sound and I cringed. I just knew that that was the sound of the stake being pushed deeper into the vampire's body. Made me even happier that I wasn't watching. Just the sound of it was enough to turn my stomach.

"Wrong answer!" Stefan snarled as Elena's hand came up to rub my sore head. "Why are you doing this?"

"Because it's fun."

I flinched as the stake moved deeper.

"What do you want with the twins?"

"They look like Katherine."

I knew that bitch would be involved somehow. But why would he go for me? Yeah, I have the same facial structure, hair colour and skin colour as Katherine... ok, nevermind.

I could feel Elena's surprise through her tense body. I ran my hand up and down her back in an attempt to sooth her. I knew that Katherine brought up bad feelings for her. It was hard for my sister to reconcile the fact that she looked identical to Stefan's ex.

"You knew Katherine?" Damon spoke up for the first time, surprise evident in his tone.

"Oh. You thought you were the only ones. You don't even remember me."

I didn't have to be watching to know that the vampire was sneering at Damon. And Damon was probably sneering back.

"Tell me how to get in the tomb."

"No."

The stake went deeper.

"The grimoire," the vampire gasped out.

"Where is it?"

And deeper.

"Check the journal. The journal! Johnathon Gilbert's journal!"

Wait. My family journal? That's what Damon now needs? Well, at least that one I could help him with.

"Who else is working with you?"

Silence. Except for pained panting.

"Who else is there?"

Uh oh, Damon was getting angry.

"No. You're gonna have to kill me."

Elena buried her face in my neck as the Salvatore's did as requested. They killed him.

"What do we... how are you gonna find the others now?" Elena gasped out. Her hands shook as she tightened her grip on me. She was in major shock. And so was I. My head pounded and my legs felt unsteady. It was only my sister's grip keeping my upright.

"He had to die," Damon stated calmly.

I turned my head to face him. His eyes locked with mine.

'Thank you,' I mouthed. He nodded slightly in reply. My family were now safe. Thanks to him and his brother. And was it bad that I didn't care that they had to kill him? My sister seemed so upset that someone had just died. But that someone had repeatedly threatened my sister. He threatened my brother. He had been invited into my home which meant that my aunt was at risk. I couldn't bring myself to care that he was dead. Does that make me a bad person?

"But..." Elena protested weakly before she was interrupted by Stefan.

"Elena, he's been invited in."

XXX

Stefan took us home from the dance. While he and my sister talked downstairs, I quickly retreated up to the safety of my bedroom.

I got changed out of my dress and into my comfy PJs. I dry swallowed an aspirin to help my pounding head. I probably should have gotten it checked out, but I just didn't care. I felt fine, headache aside. And since no one had seen me hurt it, there was no one to force me to go the hospital.

I curled up on my bed and tried to relax. But it was so hard. After what happened, my body hummed with adrenaline. Relaxing was not going to happen. So I did what I knew would relax me. I rummaged around in my magic duffel bag and pulled out a bottle of wine. Wine made me sleepy, so I knew it would be a safe choice.

I settled down on my window seat, a blanket over my legs, and sipped at my wine.

Well, we can certainly throw a party in Mystic Falls.

I blocked out the part with the vampire. I didn't need to relive that. I really didn't.

What filled my mind was the almost kiss with Damon. I felt something in those few moments. I don't know what the hell it was, but I felt something. And it scared me. To think that just being around him made me lose control and completely forget my morals completely terrifies me. And to think that I almost cheated on Luke. It was inconceivable.

But I did learn one thing through the entire experience.

There was a small part of me attracted to Damon Salvatore. No matter how much I try and deny it.

XXX

A/N: Hope you all enjoyed, my lovelies! xoxo