𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝒐𝒏𝒆

𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 12 ♡︎

Katherine leaves Stefan early in the morning to find the woman who owns the house and tell her that she can go back to her routine. When the vampire goes back to the house; Stefan has already packed their things and he's ready to move out.

"So, which hotel are we staying in?"

"Whichever you want," Stefan replied.

Since he woke up this morning, Stefan has had a smile on his lips. Last night has changed his opinion on Katherine even more. He had expected her to jump on him as soon as the door would be closed but she had simply led him to the bedroom and made him sit on the bed. Slowly, she had taken off both his clothes and her own until they were only in their underwear. Stefan had watched patiently and silently. But then, Katherine had just slipped under the covers and snuggled up against him. They had fallen asleep in each other's arms, like they had been doing for the past few weeks, but something had changed. Something was different last night. Their relationship has evolved. Seeing how Katherine looks at him right now, Stefan knows she must have fought her inner desires because it's a real fire that burns in her eyes.

"I want one with a king sized bed."

He chuckles and picks up their bags.

"Okay, let's go. I know where we're going."

It's later that same day that Stefan receives a call from Elena while he's playing pool at the Grill with Caroline. For good reasons, Katherine still stays out of sight during the day. When Stefan feels his phone vibrating in his pocket, he pulls it out and checks the ID. Elena's name appears on the screen.

"Who is it?" Caroline asks as Stefan suddenly stops playing.

"No one, a mistake," Stefan replies easily as he refuses the call and slips the phone back into his pocket.

Caroline looks suspicious for a few seconds but he smiles at her so she chooses to forget about it.

"So, tell me about Katherine."

"What do you wanna know?"

"Well, what's going on between you two?"

Stefan sighs and he stretches before answering.

"I don't really know where we stand. There is this complicity between us, and we were never exactly friends, it's always been more than that. Last night, we—"

"You did it?"

"No, if you'd let me finish you'd already know."

"Okay, shutting up right now!"

"We kissed."

Caroline grins like an idiot at her friend's obvious happiness, and Stefan actually has to punch her arm to make her stop.

"You're mocking me," he accuses her.

"Not at all! It's just… I've never seen you so happy. It looks good on you. I mean, Broody Stefan is all sexy and mysterious; but Happy Stefan is so much more fun!"

The older vampire finally cracks a smile and he throws one arm around Caroline's shoulders.

"Come on, let's have a drink. Then maybe I'll take you to our hotel and you'll have a talk with Katherine."

"This will be the part when I threaten to stake her if she does anything to hurt you?"

"Well, you can try to do that and we'll see how she responds to your threats."

"But seriously though, I'll kick her ass if she breaks your heart."

"Thanks, I appreciate."

It's Matt who's working behind the counter and he pours them two shots of random liquor. The Mystic Grill is crowded because it's a Saturday night and that there is a band playing later that night.

"Are you guys staying for the concert tonight?"

Stefan and Caroline share a look and then they both shake their head no.

"We've got a lot of catching up to do, so we'll head someplace quiet."

"Okay, well, have a good night."

"Thanks, you too."

"Yeah, I have a feeling it's gonna be fun tonight," Matt answers ironically but with a small smile.

The two vampires talk with him for another ten minutes before Matt has to prepare the tables for the night. Damon appears at the door and as soon as Caroline spots him, she gets up. Stefan looks at her surprisingly.

"C'mon, I wanna go now."

"Why?"

"Damon's here."

Stefan wants to argue, but if he's honest with himself he doesn't really want to talk to his brother right now. Together, they walk past Damon, toward the exit. The elder Salvatore doesn't even try to stop them.

Stefan brings Caroline to the hotel because she insists on talking to Katherine. When he opens the door of their room, Stefan calls Katherine's name and she appears in front of them.

"Well, well, look who's here."

Stefan's glare prevents her from adding a snarky comment. Instead, Katherine fakes a smile and steps aside to let Caroline in. The blonde vampire really wants a fresh start with her best friend's girlfriend so she smiles back.

"Hello Katherine."

Silently, Stefan hopes that the night won't end up in disaster.

They talk for hours without realizing it. The beginning is awkward, and Stefan is the one who leads the conversations, but after a few glasses of alcohol everything seems to get better. To his surprise—and Caroline's too—Katherine apologizes for turning Caroline into a vampire. He didn't expect her to ever do that so he's pleased. Maybe they can really get that fresh start. Caroline, to her credit, accepts the apology and tells her that what's done is done and that there's no need to fight over it anymore.

Around midnight, Stefan's phone starts vibrating again. He ignores it the first times, but when Katherine gives him a look at the fourth time, Stefan understands that he has to pick up. He excuses himself and leaves the hotel room. He's confident now that no one will end up dead while he's gone.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Stefan. It's me."

"What do you want, Elena?"

"Can I… Could we talk?"

He sighs. He knew that she would want to talk to him eventually.

"Stefan, please."

"Okay, fine. I'll come over to your house. I'll be there in ten minutes."

"Thank you."

He hangs up and wonders if he should tell Caroline and Katherine where he's going. That probably isn't the best option, so instead he listens for a few seconds to their conversation and when he hears that they're talking about Klaus, Stefan decides that it's safe to leave now. With luck he can come back before they even realize that he's gone.