as I stood outside the door, waiting. What if he's not in? What if he doesn't want me here? But I wasn't left to fret over the possibilities very long, as the door slowly swung open. Although I was definitely not greeted by my brother.
"Hi," the stranger greeted, with a slightly confused down pull of his brows. He was taller than I was and very very ginger. "Are you lost?"
I cleared my throat and hoisted my bag further up my shoulder. "Actually, I'm looking for Jeremy Gilbert. I was told this was his room."
Gingers brows shot up in surprise. "You're looking for Gilbert?"
"That's what I just said, isn't it."
"Yeah, I just, uh," he shook his head. "Never mind, come in." Then he moved out of the way and let me inside. "He's in class right now, but he shouldn't be long. You can wait here for him if you want too."
I sauntered past him and I didn't realise that I would be walking into hell, until it was too late. Jeremy had never been really tidy but this was something else altogether. The room looked like it belonged off some horrid TV show, something that did make-over kind of things, but this was what the rooms looked like before they were transformed into something pretty. It was disgusting and for a moment I was horrified that I related to someone who could live like this.
There were four bed, none made and at least one was missing a duvet. Junk food wrappers littered the floor and tables and there was clothes everywhere.
"Do none of you know how to clean?" My nose wrinkled and I didn't know where to stand. I don't want to touch anything.
"We're teenage boys," Ginger said like it was obvious. And I guess it should have been, but I never expected them to be this unhygienic.
"It's disgusting."
Ginger started moving around the room, grabbing the discarded clothes from the ground and the proceeded to chuck them in a hamper. "I know. Trust me, I hate having to clean up after them all."
"When was the last time you cleaned?"
"Believe it or not, three days ago."
"How the fuck does this happen in three day?"
Ginger paused and looked at me. "Teenage boys."
I shook my head and watched as he tidied. "You know you don't actually have to do that, don't you. Leave it and eventually they'll clean it themselves."
"I'm not living like a pig just to make a point."
"You're one of Jer's roommates then." I stated.
"What gave it away?" He said sarcastically.
"Your self-righteous attitude, Jeremy attracts those kind of people." I glanced around. "Which bed is his?"
He pointed to the far one, pressed up against the wall just under a window. I walked over to it, dropped my bag to the side and went about making it. It wasn't as messy as I expected, but the duvet sure did confuse me for a moment. How the hell had he managed to twist it within the covers. When it was presentable, to the best of my ability - I wasn't the best at making beds either- I plonked myself down on it.
"So," I started, "who are you?"
He glanced over his shoulder. "I could ask you the same thing."
"I asked you first."
He rolled his eyes. "Jamie. Your turn."
"Lillie."
"Wait - Jeremy's sister?"
I smirked. "The one and only."
"I thought he had two."
I waved my hand dismissively. "Yeah, but we're not talking about that right now. But I'm glad to know that he's spoke of me."
"All the time," he groaned. "Although none of us have seen any pictures. I thought you were his hook-up or something."
"He's seeing someone?" I asked, surprised.
Jamie finished making the last bed and then sat on the one opposite me. "She wishes he was," he scoffed.
"Ah," I said. "Stalker?"
"You could say that again." Jamie collapsed back on his bed, hands behind his head as he stared up at the ceiling.
"Tell me about her."
"Never met her," he said. "Only heard what Jeremy says. Black hair, tall, kinda pretty in a i-should-be-drunk-all-the-time-to-look-at-you kind of way."
"That doesn't sound very attractive." I frowned. "I'm offended that you originally thought I was her."
"I only went with the black hair. If it makes you feel any better, I was getting ready to tell Jeremy I didn't need to be drunk to look at you. I might have even offered to take you off his hands; you're hot."
"Aren't you sweet." I said with a sarcastic smile.
He cocked his head to look at me and winked. "I know."
"Cocky too, apparently."
The door opened. "Jamie, your brother said to meet him somewhere." Jeremy walked in. "Don't remember where I was supposed to tell you."
"Gee, that's helpful," Jamie said, with a roll of his eyes.
Jeremy closed the door and dropped his bag on the floor. He looked the same and I expected that but he looks good and - he looks his age. He finally looks like a 16 year old. Someone normal, not a boy who has killed his fair share of vampires, someone who had beheaded a hybrid on our porch. A part of me kind of regrets coming back here, ruining what it is he has going on.
Jeremy moved around the room, obliviously. Crouching down by their mini fridge and grabbing a soda. Not even noticing me.
"By the way dude, your sister's here," Jamie announced, casually.
"What?" He turned around and his eyes found me. "Lillie?"
"Sup, brother. How you doing?"
He quickly made his way across the room and yanked me off the bed into his arms. "What are you doing here? I've missed you, you haven't been answering any of my calls."
"Elena told me not to, to let you adjust to your new school."
"You're talking to Elena again? That's great. How are you feeling after everything?" He head rested on mine and he held me tightly. Arms securely around me.
My hands clutched the back of his shirt and I let myself relax against his hold. Savouring a single moment with my brother.
"When was the last time you two saw each other?" Jamie spoke up.
Jeremy pulled away from me and rolled his eyes. "Don't you have a brother you're supposed to meet."
"Yes, but someone forgot where. Not naming anyone."
"Phone him."
"Ooh," I piped up. "Speaking of phones, wanna take me phone shopping? I'm borrowing this one off Hollee but i'd like my own one again. I'm still pissed Klaus broke mine."
"Didn't you steal Stefan's at one point?"
"Yes, he wanted it back though. Do you have another class today?"
"Yeah he does-" Jamie started.
"Nope!" Jeremy quickly countered.
I gave him a stern look. "I didn't come here to mess up your education, Jer."
"Look, it's nothing that I can't make up at another point. I'm already up-to-date."
My eyes flickered to Jamie for a moment. "Is that true?"
He shrugged. "How should I know?"
"You're no help." I said. "But okay, fine, considering i'm the fun sister, skip class and take me shopping."
"Ooh, demanding." Jamie commented.
Jeremy's jaw clenched and he glowered at his friend. "Seriously?"
"What?"
"Stop it."
"I can't help it. She's hot."
"She's my sister - off limits."
I patted Jeremy's chest. "Don't worry Jer, he's not my type. You have nothing to worry about."
Just then a phone rang. "That's probably your brother." Jeremy said. "You should get that."
Jamie chuckled. "You know, I'm going to remember this when my sister comes to visit."
"Do you have a sister?"
"Yeah, I wouldn't lie about that. Although she's married so I don't have anything to worry about you."
"And Lillie has a boyfriend. And trust me, he's scary."
I slap him, lightly. "Damon wasn't that scary. And we broke up. It's why I decided to come and visit. Well, actually, Stefan sort of convinced me to get out for a little bit. But i'm here aren't I? And I want to go shopping."
"Take her shopping, Jeremy. Don't keep her waiting. And let her know about Dom's party tonight."Jamie slipped his phone out of his pocket and answered, holding it to his ear and shot me a wink. "Hope to see you there."
Jeremy gave me a short tour around the campus, showing me the coffee house, his classes- whilst avoiding the one he was currently supposed to be in- and the library which, apparently, he spends a lot of his time in. And then he finally took me into town. Getting a new phone didn't take long and I could feel Jeremy's disapproval at the compulsion I used. But I'm not going to pay for a stupid phone when I can get it for free.
By the time we'd finished, the sun was hanging low in the sky, dipping down past the horizon and Jeremy and I were sat in a small cafe, a cup of coffee in both our hands.
"So, what's this party Jamie was talking about?" I asked, taking a sip.
"Another room mate of mine, Dom kinda teams up with Greg across the hall and they host the wildest parties. There's one tonight."
I jokingly gasped. "Jeremy, are you a wild partier?"
"Dom doesn't exactly let us sit these things out," he replied.
I reached across the table and pinched his cheeks quickly before avoiding his swatting hands. " Aw, I really did rub off on you. Elena would hate this."
"That's why she doesn't know."
"I mean, what did she expect you to do as a normal teenager. Be boring and just study? Of course you were going to let loose. Although how loose are we talking?"
"What are you trying to get at?"
"Well," I started, "Jamie mentioned something about a stalker. Have you been hooking up with people?"
"If I had? You gonna tell Bonnie?"
My brows furrowed and my fingers curled around my warm cup. "Why would I do that? It has nothing to do with her anymore. But I just want to know about the stalker, that's it. Want me to compel her for you?"
"No," he said, "I came here to be a normal teenage boy, i'm not about to let a vampire cheat that for me."
"Fine," I sighed. "But if she gets out of hand, i'd happily do something."
"I know, and I appreciate the gesture, Lils, but I can deal with it. Although I'd like to ask you one thing."
"Shoot."
"Don't humour Jamie's flirts."
"He's not my type," I assured.
Jeremy barked out a laugh. "He's exactly your type."
"He's ginger," I huffed.
He raised a brow, "And?"
"He's ginger."
"Just don't go there with him," he shook his head. "And if you promise that, Perhaps I could take you to Dom and Greg's party."
"And if I just want a cozy night in my with brother, reminiscing?"
"I'd hit you upside the head and ask what you did with my fun sister."
"See," I said. The corridor was alive. Loud, bass music thudded through the walls and enveloped us. People everywhere, standing along almost every inch of the walls. "I am the fun sister. Don't ever think otherwise."
Jeremy grinned. "Oh yeah, you sure showed me." He grabbed a hold of my sleeve and began leading me through the tight throng of partying teens and into a dorm room. It was just to the left of Jeremy's and I could only assume it belonged to whoever the hell Greg was.
The music was louder in here, and slightly busier too. Only one guess as to why - and it's something you consume in a liquid form.
"Jeremy! Sup, man!" A tall, dark stranger, bounced over to Jeremy and instinctively fist bumped him.
"Greg! Great party!"
Greg handed him over a beer that Jeremy gratefully accepted, only to turn to me and extend it. I smiled, "Thanks." Fortunately the beer was cold and I was happy that It also wasn't the cheap, nasty stuff. I twisted the cap of in a single, sharp twist of my fingers and took a long sip.
"Thanks, dude! Who's this?"
"Lillie!" I yelled over the music. "Jeremy's sister."
Something in his eyes sparked in recognition. "Jamie mentioned you; said you were hot. Figured I'd see for myself at some point."
I ignored his comment, and set my focus on my beer. It's been a while since I had done something like this, especially the bonding with Jeremy, no matter how much of a bad influence I happened to be.
"Where is Jamie and Dom?" Jeremy asked, accepting another drink of Greg.
A blond squeezed herself between Jeremy and Greg, pressing herself into Jeremy's tall friends side. She leaned up and whispered into his ear and a wide grin formed on his face. He nodded and kissed her.
I looked at Jeremy and saw his confusion. She then strutted across the room, blending into a large group of giggling, drunk girls.
"Who was that?" Jeremy questioned.
Greg smirked. "My latest conquest."
"Gross," I said.
Jeremy snorted beside me and tapped his beer to the neck of mine, clinking them together.
"Everyone has their fun, she happens to be mine for the next couple of hours."
"Again," I said, "gross." I tipped my bottle back and a few dribbles slipped out. Great, empty. "I'm going to get another drink." I told Jeremy. Him and Greg had fallen into a conversation and he only waved me away before falling back.
"Love you too, bro." I muttered.
I found the make-shift bar easily, but that was almost an hour ago and almost seven drinks prior
"Drink! Drink! Drink!" A crowd of people chanted. I swallowed back the constant stream of booze, keeping up with the guy pouring it into the funnel.
"And she's done!" a guy shouted and the liquid stopped flowing. "She did it!" The crowd cheered loudly and clapped over the music. I ripped the funnel from my mouth and yelled, "Whooo!" Fisting my hands into the air at my success. I sat up -too fast as it would seem and the world around me spun and twisted violently. I toppled forward, having leant over too far and fell head first off the counter. I landed on my hands and knees and then broke into a stream of giggles. The tiles were cold against my clammy, overheated skin, but it felt nice and relaxing. I let my arms buckle and my cheek landed on the chilled floor. I sighed at the contact and once again laugh.
"Having fun?" A voice spoke above me.
I tried looking up without moving away from the floor but I could only see the tattered trainers and stone-washed blue jeans. "Yup," I replied. One worded answers were the only thing I could manage at the moment. Anything more, and the drunkenness of my voice was noticeable and slurred.
"What are you doing on the floor?"
"I fell."
"Need help?"
"Nope."
Two warm hands gently grabbed my arms and pulled me up slowly. At least they're considerate of the fact that fast paces will eventually make me puke my guts up. One of my arms hooked around their neck and he wrapped one of his around my waist, hoisting me to my feet. I wobbled to and fro for a moment and they tightened their hold on me.
"The floor was cold," I slurred drunkenly. "It felt nice."
"How much have you had to drink?"
I looked up and untamed, flaming hair was the first thing I noticed. "Jamie," I giggled. "More than you have, obviously."
His face was flushed almost as deep as his hair and his eyes were glazed. "That's because you happen to be a show off."
"My best friend said to flaunt what you got. I did that."
He nodded to the counter he had lead me away from. Someone else had hopped onto it and was having a go, but after only a few moment they started to choke and the crowed roared loudly with laughter. "She teach you how to do that?"
I grinned. "Nope, that was all me." I swiped two full, red solo cups from a table we passed and handed one over to Jamie. "Drunk up."
"Drink," He corrected.
I shook my head, taking a large sip, cringing at the horrid taste - what the fuck was this? "No, drunk. I'm going to get you drunk and happy."
"Cheers to that then" he tapped his cup to mine and then raised it to his lips, draining the contents in one solid go.
"Cheers." And I followed his lead.
"Never have I ever-" Jamie cut himself off by tripping over his own feet, slamming into the wall beside him. "Ouch!"
I cackled noisily and leaned up against the wall for support.
"Stop laughin'!" There was no seriousness to his voice and he tumbled into a howl of his own laughter. I reach out a hand, that he grabbed and I pulled him to his feet. A bit too hard it would seem as he tumbled into me.
"You're strong," he mumbled, steadying himself with his hands pressed to my shoulders. "Very strong." He burped. "I think I'm drunk."
"Me too," I slurred. I pushed him into a door. "This is yours."
He looked up, surprised and then patted the wooden door. "You're mine. My door, my room." He opened it and bowed dramatically. "After you."
I playfully patted his cheek, although the loud slap echoed through the busy hallway and my jaw dropped. Jamie's eyes widened and he cupped his cheek protectively. "You just slapped me."
"It wasn't supposed to hurt!" I gently pulled his hands away from his red cheek and bit my lip. The faint outline of my hands, tarred his skin. I brushed my fingers along the light bruising. "I'm so sorry."
He looked down at me for a moment in silence and then shrugged. "I don't feel it right now, it's kinda numb."
That didn't make me feel any better right now. "Sorry," I squeaked.
He grabbed my hand in his and tugged me into his dorm room. The door closed and it muffled the loud, thumping music. My ears were grateful for that and I let out a sigh.
"Want to play a game?"
"I thought we were already playing one," I replied. "Can I crash here tonight? I don't have anywhere left to go." How much of that he could understand, I'm not sure because even too me, some words didn't sound english.
Jamie walked over to the end of his bed and pulled a box out from underneath. I crept up behind him and peered over his shoulder.
"Aha!" He exclaimed. "Found it!"
I rested on his shoulder, my face alongside his own. "Tequila. You are my favourite person right now." I pressed a kiss to his cheek and snatched the bottle from his hands. I twisted the lid off and took a sip.
"Hey! Share."
I held the bottle out to him and waggled it. "You want it? Come get it." I took another gulp. "Ahh!" I yelled in surprise as my body was lifted from the ground. A gruff chuckle sounded by my ear and warm breath fanned my neck. We spun around in a circle. One of his arms tight around my waist holding me up, the other extended forward to try and snatch the bottle from my grasp. I held my arm out as far as I could, but Jamie just pressed himself closer. And his arm is longer than mine. When he finally got a good hold on it, I let go. But he didn't move. He stayed exactly where he was, body pushed firmly to mine, arms on either side of me too.
The sound of the bottle being put down on a table was all I could hear and then the feel of his warm fingertips began to trace the bare skin on my arms.
"What are you doing?" My voice was quite.
He hummed and it vibrated through his chest. "Do you want me to stop?" His gentle caress fell lower and his fingers locked with mine.
"Depends," I replied.
"On?" I could feel the closeness of his lips. They brushed my ear with that one simple word and a jolt a excitement rushed through me.
I turned around. He was suddenly so close, a hairs width apart. He was at least a foot taller than I was but that did nothing to detain the close chemistry. "On whether or not you're just going to tease me."
A grin stretched across his face. "Oh definitely not."
"You have got to be kidding me!" A voice exclaimed angrily. I blinked blearily, sleep clouding my vision, that and a horrid feeling of sickness and dread overwhelmed my senses. "Lillie! Wake up!"
"Go away," I murmured, hiding further beneath the covers. Something moved at my side and I froze. Freezing in place as an arm pulled away from around my bare waist. That woke me up. My eyes snapped open and I found myself staring straight at a toned chest. Oh my god. . . No.
The events of last night came rushing back to me. Spending the afternoon with Jeremy, partying, drinking. . . Jamie. "Oh my god," I wheezed. I rolled over, clutched the covers to my chest and sat up. My gaze found Jeremy's. His eyes flared with anger and I could see more than just disapproval - there was hurt and betrayal hidden beneath. I did exactly what he warned me against, exactly what I had promise I wouldn't do.
"Mmm," came from the other side of the bed. I finally willed myself to look over at Jamie and he was still fast asleep. His red hair, even more disheveled than before and he was smiling.
"Jeremy, I'm so sorry," I apologised pathetically. "I didn't - I didn't mean too."
"You never mean too. That's my friend, Lillie! My roommate!"
"Shut up," Jamie groaned, shoving his face into his pillow. "What do you want now, Jeremy?" His voice was muffled.
"I can't believe either of you."
I hurriedly snagged my pants and shirt from the ground and pulled them on. "Jeremy, please-"
"I told you!" He snapped. "And you promised. What happened to him not being your type, huh?"
I didn't know what to say, there was nothing I could say that could justify what I had done. I was disgusted with myself. How could I do something like that, and not only to Jeremy but, oh god, Damon too.
"Lillie's a big girl, she can make her own choices, dude." Jamie said. I shot off the bed and tossed the covers over Jamie, who was looking horribly smug.
"Can we just talk about this? Maybe even look past it and forget it?" I tried.
He shook his head. "I can't do that."
"I'm sorry Jeremy," I said, sincerely. "I really am, but do you really have any right to be pissed about this? I can sleep with whomever I want."
"Even my friends?"
"You dated my friend."
Jeremy opened his mouth to retort but quickly closed it as he realised I had a point. "I never slept with her though," he muttered.
"Doesn't matter, it's the same."
Jamie, thankfully had decided to remain quiet, although out the corner of my eye I saw him slip out of bed and get dressed.
"Jeremy i'm sorry."
The door suddenly slammed open. "Are you ready, Jeremy?" a familiar voice called out. My head snapped to the door and everything inside my flared. My nerves ignited with the twitching feeling of anger.
"Kol," I said through gritted teeth.