Convergence [KLONNIE]

Chapter twenty-five

Chapter Twenty-Five

Bonnie froze, looking into Mina's eyes as the two words she spoke slid and lingered on her mind. She had known Elijah for a while and she'd be lying if she thought Mina would go for him of all originals. Bonnie slid backward so that her back was against the hardwood headboard. For her, Mina seemed like the type to go for Klaus, hell, Kol even, but... "Elijah? When—? Why—? How—?"

"When?" Mina started. "I was nineteen and in my sophomore year of college. It was November ninth, and it was two days after my mother died. I was in a bar, drowning myself in alcohol when he came up to me and asked if I was alright. No one had asked me that so I immediately broke down," Taking a deep breath, Mina folded her legs up in her chair. "I don't remember much but I remember that when I woke up there was aspirin and a water bottle. I went to that bar every single night for like two weeks hoping I would run into him again."

Bonnie smiled, watching her cousin's face light up when talking about him. "I'm guessing you did."

"Yep," Mina grinned. "He was so gentle with me. He was kind and so fucking sexy. Long story short, we dated. He fell first but I fell harder. I loved him with my whole heart. He was the only person to console me after my mother passed; the only person to care about me. Not my linage. Me. Not only that, but he introduced me to my best friend."

"Mina," Bonnie watched as Mina's eyes drooped. "We don't have to talk about this if you don't want to. I don't want you to relive this."

"No, it's fine," Mina continued. "After about two years, he vanished. I searched for him for months only to find out that Klaus had daggered him. I wanted to search for his body, to find him, but Klaus had hid him so well and had him cloaked with magic I couldn't overpower. So, I waited. I had a locator spell ready for whenever he was uncloaked. When he was, I noticed that he went farther and farther away. That landed me in Mystic Falls."

Bonnie nodded slowly. She knew that Elijah had come into town first, searching for Elena. She winced. That was it.

"To my horror," Mina started, wiping a stranded tear from her eye. "He was standing by Klaus's side. The man who had kidnapped him, the man who had taken him away from me. So I left. I didn't give a shit to find out why they were there. I met back up with Elyza in New Jersey and I traveled until I found out about you."

Bonnie wiped away the tears that had started to fall. "I'm so sorry," Bonnie admitted. "About Elijah, about your mom, about all of it. I know how it feels to be alone."

"I've never been alone, Bonnie. Don't worry," Mina smiled, her pearly white teeth shining, the blue in her braces sticking out. "Elyza has always been there for me."

"So Elyza knew Kol was daggered too?"

"Yes," Mina replied. "We just didn't know where his body was. But she left for New Jersey soon after Klaus told her no again when she demanded he be undaggered. But that was after Elijah had vanished."

Bonnie merged that information with what she learned from Klaus. The younger Bennett now understood exactly why Elyza was so protective. "Can I ask another question?"

"Shoot."

"Do you still love him?"

Mina sighed and looked down at the floor. The blanket covering the side of the floor near the bed was way more interesting than she thought. "I don't know. A part of me will always love him, but I can't ignore how he's treating you."

"You don't have to hold yourself back from him because of some pledge to protect me. I want you to be happy and as angry as you are with him, I can tell that you still love him," Bonnie confessed. "That you're still in love with him. Don't steal that from yourself."