Tourniquet || Damon Salvatore (1)

Chapter 27: Under Control?

•

I woke up remembering what went down last night. I remembered the blood bags that littered stefan's room and the crimson red that coated his mouth.  His eyes showed me an inner conflict within himself. It made me worry how bad his relationship with human blood really was.

As I got out of bed, I heard my phone ring and saw that it was Caroline. I picked it up and before I could say anything I heard Caroline croak out, "Arina...Vicki's dead. I found her body last night. The police say she died from an overdose. Matt and his mom had a private funeral for her."

Even though I had known Vicki was dead for a while, a part of me genuinely wanted to pretend that she was somewhere else. I could picture her somewhere sunny like California and she would send me cheesy postcards every so often.

I couldn't pretend anymore because now the Donovans and the rest of Mystic Falls knew she was gone. As I continued to remain silent, I heard Caroline add, "...Arina?"

She must've thought I was in shock. I quickly responded sadly, "Sorry... I just- it's hard to take in." 

"I understand. You were friends with her. Of course it's going to be hard." Caroline replied before sighing. I could hear her voice shake as she continued, "I tried to comfort Matt last night but he pushed me away only to open his arms to Elena. It feels like I can't do anything right. I want to be there for him but he won't let me."

I frowned as I heard Caroline vent to me. I sadly responded, "I'm sorry he did that to you...If you try to force him to let you in he might push you away even more. I think it is best to let him be. I know it hurts to watch someone you care about crumble apart but just tell him you'll be there for him if he needs it."

"Thanks and once again I'm sorry about Vicki," Caroline softly murmured into the phone.

"Thanks Care. I'll talk to you soon," I replied then hung up after she said a soft goodbye.

As I walked to my dresser to grab my outfit for the day, I found myself feeling very woozy. I firmly gripped the bed post, feeling myself falling. My legs sank to the floor as my vision blurred.

I released my hands from the bed post and let them fall in my lap. Raggedly, I exhaled as I stared at my hands which had root-like veins pulsating at a rapid rate beneath my skin.

All I could hear was a loud ringing in my ears, causing me to close my eyes. When I looked back down at my hands, I gasped as they began to transform into a light shade of olive. Panic struck me as I watched it spread. Thankfully the green hue stopped spreading when it reached my wrists.

When I had enough energy I quickly got up and reached for the Greek mythology book Ander gave me. As soon as I obtained it I hurriedly opened it hoping to gain some sort of insight.

"Arina, are you okay? You're going to be late for school." I heard my father comment outside my bedroom door.

I anxiously called out to him, "I'm not going, I don't feel well."

As soon as I finished my sentence my bedroom door opened, revealing my father who stared at me unconvinced. I awkwardly revealed my green hued hands, "This, is why I can't go. I don't even know why it's happening and how to stop it. " I then softly sighed before adding, "And I really wanted to go to the founders day kick-off party tonight..."

My father's stern facial expression morphed into a calm one as he finally replied, "You'll be fine. You're turning green because you've been disconnected from nature. Hamadryads thrive off of nature and sunlight. It'll go away by tonight if you connect with nature."