SHE PROMISED ( the originals )

0024. I FEEL LIKE I'M HELLA COMPLICATED (L.O.L. I'M REALLY NOT)

SHE PROMISED
( part one, chapter twenty-four )

PUSHING THE BLANKET AWAY FROM her body, Elle sat up on her bed and drew her knees to her chest. Nightmares were one of the things Elle hated most, but she also hated not being able to talk to her friends about them. Besides Klaus, Elijah, and Hayley not really talking to her, Davina had seemed to disappear almost completely off the grid. The older witch had barely mentioned where she was and what she was doing.

Before she had gotten so wrapped up in Mikaelson drama, she had only had two friends: Cordelia and Kaleb. But after meeting several people, including multiple vampires and Originals, Elle had gotten used to so many people and friends, but now she was reverting back to her old self. The old version of her that had only two friends, spent most of her days at the Witch Hazel or in her room, and cried herself to sleep three times a week (but not because she was lonely).

Elle ran a hand through her tangled hair, chills running up and down her spine. She nearly confused her own heavy breathing for the drunken breath of Joseph, but she calmed herself.

She swung her legs over the bed, standing up and heading over to kitchen. Cordelia was standing in the kitchen, looking down at something on her phone. She looked up and smiled. "Hey, Elle," she greeted. "I made hot chocolate, you want some?"

"Yeah, thanks," Elle said.

"Hey, is everything okay?" Cordelia asked. "Something going on with you and Kaleb?"

Elle shook her head. "No, we're fine." A lie, but she didn't want Cordelia to worry more than she already did.

Cordelia moved to sit at one of the barstools, holding her phone in one hand and a cup of hot chocolate. "Then what's wrong? Go on and tell me your deepest darkest secrets." Her sister had a mischievous look on her face.

"It's complicated, you don't wanna know."

"Hey, I'm your sister. Let me help and give you advice on whatever it is you need help with."

Slowly, Elle eased herself on the opposite barstool. "Okay, if you'd like," she said. "A year ago I was just Elle; I had maybe two friends, ran a cute little shop with my sister, got my G.E.D., all that fun stuff. But when I met the Mikaelsons, I felt... needed, differently than you need me. And there was always something about them that made me feel different, that made me feel like I wasn't just Elle. I felt like I was actually one of them, which is stupid because not just anyone can join the elitist group that is the Mikaelsons." She ran a hand through her hair, ruffling up the waves. "Now that they don't need me, now that they're doing God knows what in their compound, I feel... useless.

"I feel like the old Elle," the witch said. "I don't want to be the old me. Not again."

Cordelia pressed her lips together in a thin line and said, "Damn... I didn't know you felt that way."

"Trust me, neither did I." She looked at her sister. "So you got any advice for me, Dr. Phil?"

"Um..." She paused and leaned on her elbows. "Wow, this is actually pretty difficult." The two sisters chuckled. "Look, Ellie, I know that my advice probably won't help you because you know I don't like the Mikaelsons... but you don't need them to feel useful. Do you have any idea how helpful you are to me and Kaleb?"

The younger witch shook her head. "No."

Cordelia chuckled and rubbed her sister's back. "Well, then I guess we're doing a pretty shi 一 crappy job at reminding you," she quickly had to correct herself. "You've helped with the shop so much ever since we took ownership of it, even sacrificing the chance to go to high school to keep it up and running; you're someone Kaleb and I can rely on. You're amazing and you don't need the Mikaelsons; they're vampires and us? We're witches. Witch bitches need to stick together, you know?" She stuck out her fist. "So pound it?"

Elle squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. "I will 'pound it' if you promise me one thing." The girl opened her eyes. "Never say 'pound it' ever again."

The two sisters laughed. "All right, okay, fine," Cordelia said and put both her hands up in surrender. "I promise I will never say 'pound it' or anything similar to that ever again. In fact, I'll never say any nineties' slang if you want."

"Good," Elle laughed and hit her fist against Cordelia's.