Barely A Memory

Chapter 9

Overwhelmed by her, Stefan swallowed. "I'm... uh... Stefan."

She laughed again, making her way even closer to him with a confident sway in her hips, a sway that Elena hadn't quite mastered. "I know." She grinned, a smile that was all red lips and white teeth. Katherine slowly placed her palm over Stefan's beating heart, her eyelids heavy as she concentrated on her movement. "We've met."

He swallowed nervously, looking down at Katherine's hand. "I know. I'm—"

"You're human?"

Stefan nodded quickly. "I am."

She finally raised her gaze to meet his again, and a sense of intimidation flooded through Stefan's body. It finally dawned on him just how powerful this woman before him was, how experienced... "It's like 1864 all over again," she observed with a smirk. "We're going to have so much fun together."

XXXX

"Slow down! Wait, let me get this straight." Caroline was sitting at a picnic table, waving her hands back and forth like a lunatic. Her blue eyes were glimmering from the sunlight and also from the exciting information her best friend had just given her. "He kissed you, you freaked out and broke up with Damon and..."

Elena sighed and clasped her fingers together, staring down at them. "I'm going to tell him everything. I want to make things right. I love him, Caroline." Elena smiled to herself at the thought of reuniting with Stefan after their mini-eternity apart.

Caroline let out a squeal that hardly sounded human, jumping up and down a little bit to exemplify her joy. "It's about time you got your head straight! But I mean he just kissed you? Like it was nothing?"

Elena smiled modestly and nodded.

"That is the sweetest thing ever!" Then, the blond grew serious. "When you tell him about everything that happened though, he might need some time."

Sighing, Elena looked down. "I know. I just have to hope that eventually we'll find our way back to each other. And if we don't, we don't, I guess."

Caroline rolled her eyes, dramatically hitting the table. "That will not happen. He loves you more than anything! He's your epic love."

"Loved. He loved me more than anything." Elena bit her lip, her chest suddenly feeling heavier. "I don't know if he'll ever love me the way he used to." And, damn, did the truth in those words hurt. Because she knew, just like she knew that the sky was blue, that the "epic love" that was once Stefan and Elena would never be the same.

But none of that mattered now. Even if he couldn't love her, she would love him. She'd love him enough for the both of them.

"Speaking of Stefan," Elena said, looking behind her at the parking lot, hoping to spot his red Porsche, "Have you seen him today? I was hoping I'd talk to him."

Caroline sighed. "Nope. I don't think he showed up."

The strangest sense of apprehension and dread filled Elena's entire body.

XXXX

Katherine stretched out on the leather couch that rested in the middle of the Salvatore mansion's parlor. Had it always been this comfy? She grinned to herself contently and watched as Stefan poured her a glass of bourbon. Poor thing, his hands were shaking like crazy. He nearly missed the glass!

When he approached her and handed her the glass, Katherine brushed her fingers against his for a moment too long. She took note of the way his lips quickly parted so he could let out the breath he'd been holding. She smirked to herself, loving the effect she had on him. It had been a long time since Stefan had looked at her like that, and by a long time, she meant over a century. And she was enjoying every minute of it. "So," she said casually. "Now you know why I look like Elena. I've answered your questions. Time for me to do the asking. Why did you call me?"