A/N: Thank you so much guys, for favoriting, following and giving me feedback! Keep them coming; they always make my day! :)
Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries or any of its characters. This is a work of fiction written for entertainment purposes, but the original characters and original storylines present in "My Paper Heart" are my own work.
My eyes shot wide open, and I knew instinctively that I had slept for too long.
The night before hadn't exactly been restful. Still unconsciously gripping the stake under my pillow, I squinted at the clock: 7:42 am. Crap!
I jumped out of bed, grabbed the first pair of pants I could reach, and took the fastest shower of my life. My hair still dripping, I rushed down the stairs and went for the door. It wasn't until I had one hand on the knob that I hesitated for a second. But I couldn't feel her presence outside, so, after taking a deep breath, I pulled the door open quickly and then slammed it behind me.
I rushed into the street and started to walk at a brisk pace. I struggled to put my jacket on while walking. I pulled my hair a few times trying to sling the bag over my shoulder- which only increased my bad mood. As I walked, a creepy feeling suddenly nagged at the back of my mind.
"Someone is in a rush this morning!" Katherine sing-songed playfully, appearing out of nowhere.
"Oh come on! Don't you have anything better to do than stalking me?" I snapped, my irritation overtaking my fear for a second. I didn't stopped or even slowed my pace and she started to walk to match my tempo, but backward to look at me straight in the eyes. It was extremely annoying that she was able to do that without stumbling or even hit a street lamp.
"Aren't you happy to see me?" she asked, mock hurt in her voice, a pout on her lips.
I shot her a nasty side glance, not even bothering answering and increased even more my pace. She chuckled at me and quickened her footsteps to keep up, still staring at me. I sighed in annoyance.
"What do you want from me?" I asked harshly.
"Nothing," she answered, nodding her head slightly. "I just find you intriguing. And funny."
"I guess I should feel flattered," I said blankly.
"You should. It's a really pleasant combination that I rarely find in people."
"It's probably because you don't look hard enough. You should go do that."
"See? Funny," she shot back in amusement, tilting her head to the side. At that exact moment, I was torn between laughing and slapping her in the face.
"You're following me just because you find me intriguing and funny?" I asked in disbelief.
"Yes."
"And you expect me to believe that?" I shot back, raising my eyebrows.
"Why not? It's a pretty good reason if you ask me," she answered with a small pout on her lips.
"You do realize that your previous record of twisted games and evil schemes make it really hard for anyone to believe that?" I questioned unbelievingly.
Why was I talking to this woman? And so openly? It was then that I realized how slow I had been walking since starting my conversation with Katherine. I needed to reach the school as soon as possible. Sure, I wouldn't be safe inside there, either- but at least Stefan, Caroline and Bonnie would be there to help me out.
"Sometimes things are exactly what they seem to be," she said, shrugging one of her shoulders carelessly. I rolled my eyes before I could stop myself.
"Fine. Let's say I believe you. Why am I intriguing you?" I asked suspiciously. She shot me a mischievous grin, obviously enjoying the fact that I was curious after all.
"Because you're not scared of me. And I terrify everyone, including Damon- despite his efforts to pretend otherwise." I almost froze in my spot at her sentence but managed to keep my legs moving.
"I'm scared of you," I stated simply, utterly surprised by my own honesty.
"No, you're not." I laughed humorlessly at her conviction.
"I think I would know better. Trust me, I am! I'm just really good at hiding it…" I couldn't believe I was arguing with a deadly vampire, trying to convince her that I was terrified of her.
"I can hear your heartbeat, you know?" she said with a raised eyebrow. "I can even see your pupils dilating or see you sweating." She gave me a knowing smile. I didn't know what to say. How could I argue with that even though I was indeed scared of her? Thankfully, I was only a few feet away from the high school doors. The area was empty because I was late, but I really believed that I was fast enough to reach the doors and run to the classroom if it was necessary.
I braced myself and suddenly rushed toward them- but once again, Katherine didn't make a move to stop me.
Ignoring her suspicious behavior, I snuck through the doors. Before they closed behind me, I heard Katherine say, "Have a nice day, Maya" in a maternal voice.
I gritted my teeth so hard that it hurt.
The three graces gave me a worried look as soon as I stepped into the classroom. They kept glancing at me as I was reaching my table, seeming confused by my lateness and my obvious dark mood. While pulling out my stuff off my bag, I mouthed them silently "I'm fine" and reassured them again at the end of the class, telling them that I had just overslept. Which was partially true.
Elena, Caroline and Bonnie had already had their hard time with Katherine, and since I couldn't spot her presence around the school anymore, I didn't want to worry them.
The day went by slowly. When I finally got out of basketball practice, I knew that Caroline had finished her cheerleading practice, too. I rushed to the parking lot to catch her.
Even though I had managed to pull out a pleasant face the entire day, I was very anxious about going back to my house alone. I really wasn't looking forward to stumbling upon Katherine again, and I was hoping that Caroline's presence would dissuade her from showing up. If not, I would be safer with her anyway.
"Caroline!" I called out, spotting her next to her car.
"Hey you! What's up?" she greeted me with her usual sparkling smile.
"Could you give me a drive home?" I asked a bit urgently.
"Why? You live just next to the school."
"Is that a no?" I said, a little bit hurt.
"No, of course not!" she cried a bit too loudly. "Jump in the car, I'll drive you." She flashed me a warm smile before taking place behind the wheel.
"Thanks." I was even more grateful for the ride than she would ever know.
"No problem," she answered lightly, pulling her car out of the parking lot. "Now, are you going to tell me what this is about?" She gave me a quick side glance, encouraging me to talk with a smile. I really should write a note to myself somewhere about that 'start hanging out with idiots' thing.
"I just thought we could study our history lesson together. Unless you already did?" I knew Caroline didn't like history, so there was a big chance thatshe hadn't even opened her book yet.
"Oh! No, I didn't…" she mumbled, looking like a five year old who just got caught a hand in the cookie jar. I stopped myself to laugh at her childishness.
"I guess it's okay. My mom's working tonight anyway," she added, flashing me a cheeky smile.
"I'm serious about studying, Caroline," I chided her. Her smile dropped instantly, and I couldn't stop myself from laughing. "But we can order your favorite pizza if you want." Her face lighted up again and I thought to myself that she could totally kill someone with cuteness.
We managed to get through our history lesson, and with Caroline, that was not an easy task to accomplish. Since Katherine hadn't shown up, the evening was a total success.
I was trying to convince Caroline to stay overnight. I was glad that her presence seemed to keep Katherine away, and a morning without an encounter with the evil vampire was really tempting.
"You said your mom was working all night anyway! Why being both alone in our own house when we could have a sleepover?" I argued, trying to make my point.
"But I don't have any clothes!" Caroline shot back, panicked. Her obsession with clothes and fashion was one of the few things about Caroline that were getting on my nerves.
"Don't be silly, Caroline. I can lend you some clothes."
"But you're taller than me! And more muscled."
"You say that like I'm a bodybuilder! You're the one who does crazy stunts during practice, not me!" I said, raising my voice in annoyance. "You can perfectly fit in my clothes Caroline, and you know it." She looked at me with unconvinced eyes and a pout on her lips. "Come on. What if I let you choose anything you want in my wardrobe?" Her eyes suddenly shined with mischievousness and a big smile appeared on her face.
"Let's go!" she shrieked, clapping her hands together. I chuckled and followed her upstairs. While she was going through my closet like she was on a mission, I busied myself by changing the bed sheets.
"So why did you oversleep this morning?" she asked suddenly, still focused on my clothes.
"I couldn't sleep last night," I said simply, removing the last pillowcase.
"Why?"
"Because of life," I dodged quickly. She didn't complain about my evasive answer, which was really surprising for Caroline. When I turned my head toward her to check if she hadn't mysteriously disappeared, I saw that she was giving me an 'are you kidding me' look. But I wasn't going to give any more of an explanation. The sudden spark in her eyes and the smile growing on her lips didn't seem good to me.
"Who is it?" she asked in a cheerful tone.
"What?" I wasn't prepared for that one. Caroline was usually avoiding that subject with me and I was really happy about it.
"Well, you said you couldn't sleep. It could be because of someone…" she explained softly, with an encouraging smile.
"Or it could not."
"Oh, come on! I'm absolutely certain that a lot of guys at school would die to go out with you!" she teased me, obviously enjoying this conversation a little too much.
"Oh my god!" she suddenly cried, pulling an orange summer dress with a yellow waistband out of my closet. "It's gorgeous! Why haven't you ever worn it?" she asked, looking at me like I had committed a capital crime.
"Because I don't wear dresses, Caroline," I sighed in annoyance.
"Then why do you have one in your closet?"
"Because my mom bought it for me," I answered simply.
"Oh." Her expression changed instantly into sadness and embarrassment but she didn't say more. Instead, she cautiously put back the dress on the hanging rail, focusing once again on the inside of my wardrobe. I was thankful that she didn't push it further or even try to apologize.
I only had time to put on the fitted sheet before she remembered our previous conversation.
"You're beautiful, you know," she said, looking at me over her shoulder. "And hot!" she added with a coquettish grin. "I'm serious when I say you drive boys crazy. I guess in the same way that Damon drives girls crazy…" she continued more for herself, wincing in disgust.
"Jeez, thanks!" I shot back. Her reaction irritated me. I had accepted the fact that Damon and I looked alike but I still didn't like to be compared to him.
"Oh no, that's not what I meant!" Caroline exclaimed, realizing the grimace she had made. "Damon is still a first class jackass but beside that, the guy is steamy! I would know…" A flash of sadness crossed her features.
"Caroline…" I didn't know about the supernatural dramas at that time, but I had heard about her story with Damon since. And I had witnessed her brokenness after Damon had finished toying her.
"It's okay," she said at last, brushing off the painful memory with a genuine smile like she always did. "The point is, you have the same beauty and charisma as him but you have something he doesn't. A great personality! Which makes you every guy's dream."
"I believe you really overestimate me Caroline, but thanks for the compliments…" I gave her a soft smile before tucking up the top sheet on the bed, hoping it would close the subject.
"I'm not. And it would be about time that a lucky guy makes you lose your sleep!" she insisted merrily. For the past two years, my friends never saw me dating anyone. And for good reason.
"There is no guy, Caroline," I answered sternly. "Now time to go to bed!"
"Oh come on!" she whined childishly.
"We have school tomorrow," I cut her off, giving her amused side glance.
"But I hadn't find my outfit yet!" she cried in a drama queen tone.
"Sure you did."
"You're right," she laughed, a playful smile on her lips. "What do you think?" she asked, proudly showing me the girliest and skinniest outfit that I owned.
"Perfect," I said, smiling to myself. "Now, come to bed," I continued, lying down on my favorite side. She reluctantly climbed in after me. I turned off the bedside lamp and rolled onto my side toward the wall.
"Maya?" she whispered softly after a few minutes of silence.
"Shut up and sleep, Caroline."
"But…"
"We're not having this conversation again! There is no guy, period," I sighed annoyed.
"I was going to say… are you okay?" she murmured. I could hear the worry in her voice and I instantly felt bad for chiding her. I smiled at the thought that Caroline was actually a good friend. A little bit too insightful for her own good, but still a really good friend.
"I'm fine, Caroline," I assured her gently, my voice betraying the smile on my face. "Goodnight."
"Goodnight," she answered back softly, crossing the bed toward me and snuggling closely along my back. I tensed slightly at the touch. God, this girl had no sense of boundaries…
The next morning went smoothly; there was no trace of Katherine. I was starting to think that she had begun to focus on the reason she was really here for- and that I had finally gotten rid of her myself.
The only drama I had to face was an explanation to Elena and Bonnie. They wanted to know why they hadn't been invited to the "sleepover"- they had noticed Caroline wearing my clothes.