2012
"So, I'm the source of magic?" I furrowed my eyebrows in annoyance and Kai raised his eyebrows as if it was no big deal.
"Hey, if you know of anything else that I can use, feel free to inform me," he replied, sarcasm lacing his voice.
I did want to get out of here.
"Okay, fine but what about the ascendant?"
"Easy: Portland." he smiled, playing with the coin he had found sitting on the coffee table.
"Portland? Kai, that's just too easy—"
"Exactly. And you're going with me," he slapped the coin flat with his thumb, looking down and then meeting my gaze again.
I didn't have a choice, did I? Can't really let my stubbornness get in the way, again.
"When?" I said, sighing deeply.
"Now."
"Okay, let me just grab some things for the road," I get up from the couch, heading towards Stefan's room.
It only really took me ten minutes to gather everything, but when I came back downstairs, Kai wasn't there.
Where the hell did he go?
I walked around before finding the door gaping open, hearing the revving of a car's engine. I peeked out to the garage, watching Kai... eating from a bag of pork rinds.
Great, I'm going to place my entire wellbeing and chance of freedom in the hands of an absolute man child.
He honked the horn, dragging me out of my daze and I shut the door behind me. "Coming," I yelled out, walking to the car's passenger door.
Kai had put a cassette tape into the car, "I love some good old fashioned rock. How is it now?" he turned to face me, before chucking his chip bag outside of the car's window.
"It's not as good, don't get your hopes up." I answered bluntly,
He said nothing in return and began reversing out of the driveway of the boarding house.
God, I really hope this bullshit works.
-
I think the urge to strangle Kai to death left at... the fifth hour, but it definitely came back stronger at the eleventh hour.
"Okay," he pulled over randomly at a Motel 6.
"If we take a 3 hour nap here, then we can get back to driving and get there earlier in the next morning."
"Or... I can just drive and save the extra waste of time. Plus, you can get all your rest and stuff," I suggested, but he quickly looked at me funny.
What is this dude's deal?
He stayed quiet for a brief moment of deliberation, "Fine, don't get us killed."
I almost laughed in his face, because he was clueless.
Did he not know? I mean, I looked the same after eighteen years.
"Yeah, whatever. Can't die, anyways," I moved my bag to the back and got out of the car to switch our seats.
He settled into the passenger seat, quickly flipping through a small shoebox of cassette tapes that he had thought to bring on the road trip.
"Mazzy Star?" I almost laughed at the idea of him listening to such soft songs, before I remembered exactly who he was.
Cold-blooded killer.
That's the difference between him and me. He killed because he could. I killed because it controlled my every instinct, move and thought.
He was just plain evil.
"I happen to have very good music taste, thank you," he defended, and I said nothing. After a few seconds, I pulled off toward the road and drove us for a few more hours.
He had fallen asleep at around thirty minutes after we had pulled away, but woke up on the twentieth hour.
"Where are we?"
"We're in..." a sign flew past us, but I could barely catch the writing on it.
"uh, somewhere in Nebraska," he rolled his eyes at me, which I returned with a glare.
"It's been so long," he broke the stillness in the car, adjusting himself to sitting back up fully.
"Yeah, this car drive is making my ass hu—"
"No, I mean, it's been so long since i've been out of here... How are the cars? Do they, like, look cool?"
"No, not really. They kinda suck, to be honest. Also, it's only been eighteen years, nothing has really changed." he feigned a look of disappointment but moved to open the glovebox.
"Hmm, window cleaner... and a bag of blood."
"Considering this is Stefan's car, that fits. Why are you going through his stuff?" I reached over and shut the glovebox, but his gaze at me flattened in annoyance.
"Relics, memoirs... The whole shebang. I'm not leaving without something from this place." He attempted to defend himself.
"So," I tried to change the painfully bland topic, "Why'd you do it, Kai?"
His jaw immediately tensed, but I turned my focus onto the road again to avoid his stare. A moment of nothing goes on, yet again, before he says anything.
I knew I was prying... walking on tough matters.
But I knew him, the coven, all of it. Why kill innocent children? Where did Joshua go wrong...?
"Hm, I don't have to explain anything to you."
Okay... I expected that.
I gripped the wheel, "What's your favorite color?"
No, you have to be fucking kidding me.
Is he bipolar or something? One minute he acts all big and bad, then... this?
"You know, you were much more tolerable when you were lying dead on the ground." It was a double sided threat from my end, although I knew he'd just come back and annoy me even worse.
"Really? Is that why you stayed? All those hours, it must've been... so lonely," he raised one eyebrow, smiling slyly at me.
"Don't start. I was just figuring out what to do with your body, and then I had a long debate over cremation or burial."
He scoffed at my response, then moved his palms clasped together to support the back of his head against the seat.
"You know, you really suited the 90s style," he looked me up and down, "but this. Much better. Do all girls dress like this now?"
"Shut the hell up."
I sped the car even further, eager to end our conversation and random road trip. I thought I'd be able to tolerate him, but my fingers itched to just snap his neck so I could have peace for another couple hours.
-
Me and Kai switched a few more times, but eventually ended up getting to where we planned.
The long driveway creeped ahead of me, taunting me almost. Most of my worse memories of magic came from the Parker house. When he threw me against the wall, siphoned me...
"Coming or are you gonna stand there?"
I rolled my eyes, unfolding my fists and walking behind him.
He doesn't turn fully, but he looked at me from over his shoulder. Probably wary of me...
"So... Damon," he threw out, but my stride faltered slightly while I tried to keep myself composed.
"What about him, Kai?"
"You said he... killed you? What's that like? Being killed by a vampire... Scary?" he joked, but I remained silent.
"O-kay... awkward." He attempted to smooth the tension that he had just created.
"So... you're back though. Does that mean you're... you know?" He stopped, turning to look at me and we stood upon the lawn of his house.
"Yeah."
"Hmm." Every response I had received from him was either rude or bland, which just irritated me.
"Kai, this doesn't matter. This won't really affect us getting out of here, will it? No. So, let's just get this stupid piece of shit and start our work."