a/n: Char's outfit for the chapter is above!
✫彡𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒏𝒆
There was but a sneaky ray of sunlight, shining through the transparent beige curtains. It provided a bit of heavenly grace to the mess that was Charlotte Bernard's suite. Strangers lied around every inch of the room, in peculiar and slightly uncomfortable positions, some dressed and some...not.
Bottles of liquor rolled around the floor before the door was slammed open. A noirette strolled in, taking in a deep breath. What a mess you made, Char. Lina pulled the curtains open as Angelina escorted the humans out of the extravagantly large suite.
"Get up, Charlotte, get up."
Charlotte squinted her eyes a few times before looking up at the two very discontent faces of her best friends, "Oh, hey, you are back from New Orleans," She rolled off the couch, landing flat ass on the floor, "Help yourself."
Lina ran a hand over her forehead, "What is this, Char?"
"My suite...I was having a party," She groaned, stretching her arms behind her back, "I think we stayed up a bit late."
"You think?" Angie huffed out, settling on the couch, "This is a disaster. You are spiraling. That's not the vacation of your life, Cher."
The Bernard vampire pulled a maroon blanket off the couch from under Angelina and lied on the ground before draping it over herself. "Really? Really, Charlotte?" Lina shook her head, taking the blanket off of her, "Get up and get in the shower. Enough Costa Rica for you."
"But why," The brunette whined out, her lips forming a pout, "I am having the vacation of my life and my first one, ever."
Lina placed her hands on the hungover brunette's forearms and pulled her up, seating her back on the couch, "Charlotte, you don't drink. You hate alcohol."
"I don't know about that, it's starting to be nice. I am getting used to the taste."
The Gilbert exchanged a look with Angelina who shook her head. That mess had been going on for too long. They tried to look away for a bit and give her space when she started this in Athens. She is heartbroken, let her live a little. Then came Bali, Tokoyo, Dubai, and even Bora Bora.
Sure, Charlotte Bernard wasn't hurting anyone. She didn't feed on anyone or hurt them. And yet, Lina couldn't help but feel like this wasn't the way. Charlotte was hurting, and she didn't want to face it—she was trying so hard to bury her emotions into the alcohol and one-night stands that were starting to become a twice-a-day type of thing.
"You are supposed to start college in a couple of days, you know," Angie shrugged, reminding her, "Pretty sure they have some sober policy in college."
The Bernard girl rose to her feet, slowly rubbing the back of her head, "Well, then I guess college will have to wait till next year or decade."
"What?"
"You heard me."
"Yeah, I don't like what I heard," Lina spoke back, shaking her head, "All of this, is way too much, even for Stefan. You are done. Cut off. No more."
Angelina added, folding her arms together, "Yeah, finito."
Charlotte turned to them, raising an unimpressed eyebrow, "Sorry, I missed the handout where you two became my parents. Leave, you don't tell me when I am done."
"This is self-destructive."
"Nobody judged you when you were miserable over Elijah even though you are the one that left," Charlotte shot back, sitting down on her bed and crossing her legs together, "But somehow, I have become a charity case for partying and drinking. You are a hypocrite, Lina."
Angelina sat down beside Charlotte slowly before patting her shoulder, "Nobody is calling you a charity case. We want you to have fun, but this is clearly not fun. You are barely ever sober."
She shrugged her shoulders, "I am sober now."
"You just woke up, and you have a hangover."
Charlotte rolled her eyes, sitting back in bed before laying down and pulling the blanket over her head, "Tell that cute guy from earlier to come back later."
"What guy?"
She pulled a pillow to her chest, murmuring, "He is tall and speaks Spanish."
"Everyone here speaks Spanish."
"Yeah, that's so weird," Charlotte commented before dozing off.
❃❃❃
Lina insisted that they were leaving tomorrow, first thing in the morning, and as Charlotte was now sober and slightly more aware of her actions, she didn't put up much of an argument. Yup, that was their last night in Costa Rica, and she wasn't allowed a single drink. Angelina stood in front of the entrance and compelled every human going inside not to offer her petite friend a drink.
She pointed her out as Charlotte waved, yes, zero subtlety.
"Well, go on, dance. It's your last night here."
Charlotte crossed her arms, leaning against the bar, "How can I? You compelled everyone to stay away from me."
Angelina pulled her drink away from her lips to correct her, "Not true. I just asked them nicely to keep any alcoholic drinks away from you."
"How come you get to drink?"
"I am old enough. You are not," She pointed out as Charlotte scoffed, "Char, underage drinking is a serious crime."
"I am a century and a half old. I am quite literally overage."
"You died at seventeen," Lina shrugged her shoulders, "Sorry, we don't make the rules." The Bernard girl turned to her, not very amused by this, "Oh, don't pout now, Cher. It's cute, but it doesn't erase your recent behavior."
Charlotte blinked, shaking her head, "I didn't kill or compel anyone."
"Yeah, you just slept with anyone who has legs," The older vampire countered, sipping on her vodka, "Did you even check them for STDs?"
"I am a vampire; I can't get STDs."
Angeline interjected with a gentle smile of her own, "Maybe, but let's not go down on every tourist and citizen in Costa Rica to prove that."
"Ew, do you really think that low of me?" Charlotte scrunched up her face, grimacing, "I didn't go down on anybody, plus have you heard the noise they make? Such a turn-off."
Lina raised her eyebrows in delight, "See that, that is good. That is something we can cheer you on. You have earned yourself one drink tonight."
"Wow, so generous," The younger vampire huffed out, "In that case, I would like to have it far away from you two—you ruin the mood."
"We love you too," Angie cheered, raising her glass as Charlotte strolled away from them and right into the dance floor. In another normal happy world, the Bernard girl would be running away from this scene any day. However, that has been her normal scene for the past months, and she was starting to see the appeal of it all.
With the music so loud, and people so close, her thoughts could barely sneak in and torment her. It was a distraction, her favorite. It can only get better with a drink and a partner for the night, but Lina also said no one-night stands tonight. She will have to sneak out then.
She felt soft hands circling around her waist as someone's body inched closer to hers, "Hello, there."
"Hi," She looked over her shoulder at the brunette girl towering over her.
Yes, one other thing about traveling all across the world is experimenting and exploring one's self. Well, that's how Angelina explained it when Charlotte first came to her about a girl flirting with her and her weirdly enjoying it. She didn't go further than that, mostly because she didn't know how to.
"You are here alone?"
"I wish," Charlotte responded, pursing her lips together. She titled her head to the right before pointing out her best friends, "They are babysitting me until I can get my act together."
That seemed to pique the girl's interest as she raised an eyebrow, "Why?"
"Apparently, I have slept with too many people, and they are worried about my health," She rolled her eyes, answering, "Even though, I have assured them that I am more than well."
"Wanna add someone to the pile?"
"Very straightforward, I need a drink first, and I don't even know your name," Charlotte pointed out before introducing herself as she turned around and coiled her arms around the girl's neck, "I am Charlotte."
To the Bernard's surprise, she pulled her even closer, "And I am your newest friend."
❃❃❃
She peeled her eyes open, blinking back a couple of times. That wasn't her room, she could tell. Charlotte sat up and realized that was probably a different hotel as well. The brunette looked around her and groaned. It was one drink. How did she even get here?
Spotting a clock on the wall, she read, 10:30. "Shit," She jumped out of bed and pulled up her jeans shorts before turning to look for her top. It was nowhere on the floor, she turned again towards the bed and realized someone was in bed. And it definitely wasn't the girl from last night.
Charlotte gaped, recognizing the blond guy in bed. Double shit. She could vividly remember someone joining them last night—he looked familiar, but Charlotte was drunk, and she thought all blondes looked the same. As far as she knew, this particular one had no business being in Costa Rica, to begin with.
Her top was somewhere under his head, and she inhaled sharply before leaning over to get it back. The petite brunette put it on and tied it quickly. She found her phone on the nightstand but none of her accessories from last night. Her daylight necklace was thankfully still on her neck.
She huffed out when she couldn't spot one of her favorite bracelets. Why must someone so pretty be a thief?
Putting on her shoes, she resorted to being optimistic. Maybe he didn't recognize her.
"Charlotte?"
Yeah, too late. Way too embarrassed and aware of her actions, Charlotte quickly walked out and closed the room's door behind her. She almost ran through the hotel's corridors. Way to end a vacation.
Her phone rang in her hand as she got into the elevator and pressed for the ground floor, "Hello."
"Charlotte, you should have been back a week ago!" Came Caroline's screeching voice from the other line, "College is starting in two days, and you didn't even come to double check everything."
"Yes, yes, I know," Charlotte cleared her throat, nervously rubbing the back of her head as she processed last night's events, "I will take the first plane back today, I promise."
"Finally!"
She hung up and stopped the first cab on her way out of the hotel. There were at least twenty calls from both Angie and Lina. As embarrassed as she was that she had drunkenly slept with someone she could never see that way. Part of her wanted to send him a thank you letter for being her wake-up call.
❃❃❃
I have written and rewritten this in so many ways but finally, I think I am okay with this version