I sighed heavily and dropped my head down onto my desk. I am a witch, and there seems to be no spell to help me with my math homework. If I don't figure out this equation I think my mind might explode. I rested my head on my arms for a moment before I decided it was time for a break.
I spun around in my chair only to gasp harshly and jump. Damon was standing behind me, leaning against my wall with a smirk on his face.
"What the hell, Damon." I exclaimed as I placed my hand over my chest.
"What? You did it to me? It's only fair." He shrugged
"You knew I was sneaking. I almost had a heart attack." I exclaimed dramatically. Damon laughed lightly and took a seat on my bed.
"I need your help." He sighed
I turned my chair to face him and lent back with my arms crossed. "What is it?"
"My witch friend, Bree, told me that there's another way to get into the tomb." Damon explained
I held my hand up and feigned being hurt. "Wait, wait, wait. You have another witch friend?"
"Don't worry, you're my favourite." Damon said with a smile. I returned the smile and laughed lightly.
"Fine. So, another way into the tomb?" I asked him
"Yes. Emily's grimoire. I don't know where it is, I tried to ask Bonnie but she wouldn't help me." Damon said
"Of course she wouldn't, you tried to kill her. Which I'm still mad about, by the way." I said. I took note of his hopeful and desperate expression, he was still trying to get Katherine out of the tomb.
"I don't know where it is. I have no ties with Emily, I don't even know how I would track it down." I said
"I thought as much, but I thought I'd ask anyway." He said with a shrug, looking mildly dejected.
"Sorry." I said
Damon shrugged his shoulders "Eh, it's not your fault." He then stood up and walked over to me. "Anyway, I'll leave you to your...math or whatever." He said as he looked confusedly at my homework. He then walked out of my bedroom and closed the door behind him. I sighed and slouched down in my chair, listening to him walking away.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I sat at my desk staring at myself in the mirror. My makeup and hair were finally done for the school's 1950's dance. It's nothing new for me to have to go to so many events. This town seems to have no shortage of ideas for parties. I ran my hand down my dress and stood up from my desk, satisfied with how I looked.
I was just about to head down the stairs when I heard Elena calling for me. I stepped out of my room and headed over to her door.
"What's up?" I asked her
"Nothing, just thought I heard something." She shrugged. "You look nice." She added as she turned around and headed back into her room.
"Thanks." I said with a small smile, I then noticed that her posture had grown tense. She ran over to her bed and picked up a very familiar looking item. Dads old watch, the vampire tracker.
I walked over to her to see that it was spinning rapidly, indicating that a vampire was nearby. Elena picked up her phone and dialed Stefan's number while I kept watch.
My eyes darted all around as I looked for any sign of a vampire, I could only hope it was Stefan or Damon. But, Elena has had a vampire stalker of recent. I raised my hand up to my necklace and allowed the magic to flow through me, taking a small amount of the power from it.
Elena then suddenly ran out of her room. I furrowed my brows and chased after her, not wanting her to be by herself. She raced down the stairs and I followed quickly behind.
"Elena." I called out, trying to get her to slow down.
"Where is he?" Elena suddenly asked
Elena then sighed heavily. "Oh, thank god. This compass was spinning. Stefan must be here. Thank you."
I glanced around the livingroom one last time as Elena hung up the phone. I could feel the presence of someone. There was a vampire nearby, and while I wanted to believe it was Stefan, this one felt way too close.
A man suddenly dropped from the ceiling right in front of me. I screamed and very quickly pushed Elena out of the way. My heart was beating rapidly as I faced down the unknown man. His fangs extended and he lashed forward, grabbing onto me and attempting to sink his fangs into my neck. My mind was in such a panic that I didn't have it in me to use my magic. It felt like I was frozen.
Stefan suddenly appeared out of nowhere and grabbed the man, throwing him away from me and knocking him over the living room couch. The force of Stefan knocked me over in the process, causing me to land harshly on my back. The vampire growled angrily and sped out of the house.
Elena got up from the floor from where she had landed when I had pushed her and immediately hugged Stefan. I sighed shakily and lent back, laying on the hardwood floor. That was way too close. If Stefan hadn't already been on his way, I would have been dead, and so would Elena.
I couldn't help but beat myself up over it. I should have been faster, I should have used my magic before he even managed to get his fangs anywhere near me. But I had frozen up. I could have gotten us killed.
Elena and Stefan were suddenly kneeling by my side. "Are you okay?" Elena asked worriedly.
"I'm good. That was a close one, huh?" I said, using humor to mask my genuine fear.
"Too close. I'm going to call Damon. Elena, can I borrow your phone?" Stefan asked. Elena nodded and Stefan got up, grabbing Elena's phone and dialing Damon's number.
"Are you just going to lie on the floor?" Elena asked me lightly, trying to shake off her own fear.
"Yes. I live here now." I said dramatically
"You do live here, you're in our hallway." Elena replied
"That's true." I nodded before reluctantly pushing myself up off the floor. I stood up just as Damon opened the front door.
I glanced at him in surprise as he walked in and closed the door. "That was fast."
Damon walked up to me, his eyes racking over form for any sign of injury. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. No bites, no scratches. Just a sore tailbone. If Stefan hadn't been here, it would have been a different story." I said
Damon nodded and sighed, his shoulders deflated slightly, making me realize just how tense he had been. He then gestured towards the couch. "You should sit down, you're shaking."
"I'm not..." I trailed off as I looked down to notice my hands were trembling. I nodded and walked over to the sofa taking a seat. Elena walked over and sat down next to me, she looked just as scared as I felt. Stefan took a seat beside Elena, trying to give her some comfort.
"Well, how'd he get in?" Damon asked as he paced the livingroom floor.
"He was invited in." Elena said
"He posed as a pizza delivery guy last night." Stefan added
"Well, he gets points for that. Did he say what he wanted?" Damon asked
"No, he was too busy trying to kill us." Elena said
"And you have no idea who this is?" Stefan asked Damon.
"No." Damon said.
"Don't look at me like that. I told you we had company." Damon said. I assumed that Stefan had given him a disbelieving look, but I wasn't really looking. I had been staring at a vase of flowers, using it as a focus point as I tried to calm my still racing heart.
"You think there's more than one?" Elena asked
"We don't know." Damon replied.
"Damon, he was invited in." Stefan emphasized as Damon took a seat on the arm of the Sofa beside me.
"Then we get him tonight." Damon said. He then gently nudged my arm to get my attention. I looked up at him, giving him my attention.
"Are you two up for it?" Damon asked
"Sure." I nodded, trying to act brave. If we don't get him soon, then he might come back later to finish the job.
"What do I have to do?" Elena asked
"Let your boyfriend take you to the dance. We'll see who shows up." Damon said, he then turned his attention to me and placed his hand on my shoulder. "Do you have a date?"
"No." I said, usually I would go to these things with Amy, but she's going with Sophie.
"Well, now you do." Damon said with a smile, satisfied with his plan. Vampire security guards.
"That's a bad idea." Stefan spoke up
"Till we get him, this house isn't safe. For anyone who lives in it. It's worth a shot." Damon argued
"I'll do it." Elena said
"I'm in. It's worth the risk." I added. My heart was beating rapidly in my chest as I tried to hype myself up. I can't freeze up again, not this time. I stood up from the sofa. "I'll be back." I muttered before I walked up the stairs.
I quickly pulled out the grimoire and flipped through the pages, trying to refresh my mind. I quickly reread the fire spells, knowing that fire is deadly to vampires. I flipped a few more pages to find the freeze spells. They might be more helpful, if I can stop the vampire from even making a move to hurt someone, then someone could stake him.
A small knock appeared at my door and brought me out of my thoughts. I glanced up to see Damon standing in my room, looking at me with concern.
"You okay?" He asked
I sighed and shut the grimnoir, placing it back on my nightstand. "I froze, Damon. I almost died."
Damon sighed softly and walked over to me, taking a seat beside me on my bed. "You were scared, don't be so hard on yourself."
I nodded hesitantly, then an idea came to mind. Maybe if I was used to seeing a vampire face, I wouldn't freeze up as fast. "Will you show me your face?"
"What?" Damon asked, not understanding what I was talking about because I was looking right at him.
"Your...vampire face." I said hesitantly, unsure of how to word what I meant.
"Oh, right." Damon nodded before he concentrated. His eyes turned black and the dark veins ran down his cheeks. He opened his mouth to reveal two pointed fangs. I shuffled closer to him to get a better look, studying his face. For some weird reason, I didn't feel as scared. Even though Damon was more dangerous than that other vamp. I raised my hand and gently traced my finger over the dark veins that crept down from his dark eyes.
"Thank you." I said as I lowered my hand. Damon nodded and retracted his fangs, bringing his face back to normal again.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The music was blaring so loudly I could feel it reverberating through my chest. People were dancing left, right, and center and they were all dressed in 50s attire. Elena and I stood in between Damon and Stefan as we walked through the crowd.
Elena grabbed my hand and dragged me through the crowds, bringing me over to a table. Stefan and Damon were standing together nearby, keeping an eye on us from afar. I glanced around the room, taking note of the people who I recognised. Jenna was talking to the new history teacher. And Amy was with Sophie, the two of them were dancing together and laughing, evidently having a good time.
It didn't take long for both Carline and Bonnie to join us.
"Having fun?" Elena asked the two girls
"Mm, no, but this took about two hours, so I'm staying at least half of that." Carline said as she gestured to her outfit.
Bonnie's face changed from happy to serious in a split second. "What's Damon doing here?"
"Unfortunately, he's my date." I said. Saying that caused a strange feeling to stir in my chest, but I was quick to push it down.
"Your date?" Bonnie stated with wide eyes.
"What is this, Elena dates one brother so you take the other?" Caroline asked
"No. It's not like that. We're not dating, he's just my date." I said
"What's the difference?" Caroline asked
"There's a big difference." I defended myself
"Sure." Caroline said with a smirk.
I sighed gently. "I'm gonna go." I turned away and walked off, heading into the crowd to avoid any more speculation about Damon and I. There is absolutely nothing between us, at all. We are just friends, at most.
I felt a tap on my shoulder, causing me to spin around. Damon was standing behind me with a smile on his face. "I wouldn't be a very good date if I didn't ask you to dance, would I?"
I laughed lightly as he held his hand out for me. "I guess one can't hurt."
I took a hold of his hand and allowed him to pull me into the middle of the dance floor. We stopped in a free space and I turned to face him. Damon placed his hands on my waist and I put my hands on his shoulders. He began to sway to the music and I followed his lead. As we danced, I caught sight of Caroline over his shoulder. She had an 'I told you so' look on her face that made me roll my eyes lightly.
"So, any clues on what this guy looks like?" Damon lent into me, speaking the words close to my ear so I could hear him over the music.
I adjusted my arms so they were wrapped around his shoulders, bringing us closer together so we could hear each other better. "Um, he was wearing all black, had a hoodie on. He had brown hair and I don't know his eye color because he looked like a vampire."
"Okay, so we're looking for a guy in dark clothes with brown hair and his hood up, we better be careful that we don't stake Jeremy." Damon said jokingly, causing me to actually laugh loudly.
"Oh, my god. I did describe Jeremy." I laughed into his shoulder. Damon laughed along with me as we swayed to the music.
They had been playing a mixture of 50s songs and more modern songs. The next one that came on was 'wicked game' by Chris Isaak. "I can guarantee that this song didn't come out in the 50s." I said to Damon as we continued to dance.
"Neither was the last song. But you're right, I think it was the 80s or 90s." Damon said
"I sometimes forget that you actually existed during all those periods. What was it like?" I asked him
"It was...normal I guess. The times changed and I changed with them." Damon replied
"I already have a hard time keeping track of what's happened In my life and I'm only 18. I couldn't imagine trying to remember centuries." I said
"Yeah, a lot of it merges together sometimes." Damon said with a shrug
"Are there pictures?" I asked him
"Of what?" Damon asked
"Of you, and Stefan. From those different periods?" I asked him
"Yes." Damon nodded
"You have to show me them someday." I asked, wanting to see what they looked like back then.
"I'll think about it." Damon said.
The two of us swayed in time with the music, I listened to the song, trying to not let the lyrics get to my head.
'What a wicked thing to do, to make me dream of you. And I don't want to fall in love. No, I don't want to fall In love with you.'
It's not going to happen. People are putting these thoughts into my head and making me overthink. It's spiraling around my mind and tricking me into thinking of something that I shouldn't.
I can't go there. I won't. It would only end in heartbreak, for me more than him. He's already in love with someone else, I would just be setting myself up for pain. I don't even know why I'm letting myself think of this like it's something that would actually happen. Because it's not.
The song came to an end, and I gently stepped away from Damon. "I need a drink."
"Me too." He replied. The two of us then walked off the dance floor towards the drinks table, I couldn't lie and say that my mind was still spinning after that.
We grabbed a drink and then went and sat at an empty table. I glanced over at Elena and Stefan to see they were having fun on the dance floor. I smiled and took a sip of my drink.
"Hey, I don't recognise you. How'd you get roped into chaperoning?" Mr Saltzman, my new history teacher, suddenly asked Damon. I hadn't even noticed him walking over. Damon glanced up at him in confusion, so Mr Saltzman introduced himself. "Alaric Saltzman. I'm the new history teacher."
He then lent around Damon and gave me a cautionary smile. "Hello, Florence."
"Hey, Mr Saltzman." I replied with a small, polite smile.
Mr Saltzman held his hand out for Damon to shake. "Ah, the cursed faculty position." Damon said
"So I've been told." Mr Saltzman said
"Damon Salvatore." Damon replied
"Salvatore? As in Stefan?" Mr Saltzman asked
"He's my little brother. I'm his legal guardian. Hence, the chaperoning." Damon replied, lying effortlessly
"I hear he's very bright, not that I've had a chance to see for myself." Mr Saltzman said
"Well, his attendance records a little spotty. Family drama." Damon said
"No parents?" Mr Saltzman asked
"It's just the two of us now." Damon replied
"You, uh, live here your whole life?" Mr Saltzman asked
"On and off. Travel a bit." Damon said
"Really? Where? Around the states?" Mr Saltzman asked him. At Damon's silence, Mr Saltzman chuckled "I'm sorry. I'm nosy. I don't mean to pry. Look, it was nice meeting you."
"You too." Damon said.
"Enjoy the rest of the dance. You too, Florence." Mr Saltzman said before he walked off.
"Is it just me, or was that weird?" I asked Damon quietly
"No, that was definitely weird." Damon replied. I wonder why Mr Saltzman is acting so strangely around Damon?