CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
To say that Adrian and Olivia were exhausted after the dive into their subconsciousness was an understatement. It had drained their energy to let the witches magically assault them when manipulating their memories.
Things took a turn for the worse once Alaric Saltzman regained consciousness and found the group of teenagers in the one place that he had forbidden them from entering. Without missing a beat, the headmaster sent them all fleeing to their dorms in time for curfew but that didn't mean that they all went to sleep.
It was just before dawn when Adrian finally gave up. Hope had fallen asleep seconds after her head hit the pillow, but her boyfriend had spent all night tossing and turning, his mind and heart burdened by what was going on with both Olivia and the memories of his parents.
Disentangling himself from the sheets, he slowly slipped out of bed and put his jeans and sweater on before he left his sleeping girlfriend and disappeared out into the hallway. Adrian made his way out into the forest in the back acres of the school, following the trail down to the Salvatore Lake where he took a seat on the edge of the dock.
He fiddled with a packet of newly purchased cigarettes before he shoved his hand into his back pocket to retrieve a lighter. He wasn't addicted to smoking yet often relied on nicotine to take away his problems, even if it was temporary — though it should be noted that it does not take away problems but rather might have a calming effect or at the very least give him time to process things.
He put the cigarette in his mouth and lit the end before inhaling, letting the nicotine do what it did best so he could have a breather for the first time in what felt like forever.
"You're gonna end up smoking yourself into the next life"
Adrian let out a deep sigh and withdrew the cigarette from his mouth. He loved his friends, but they had a knack for showing up when he wanted to be alone with his thoughts, and none of his friends were as persistent as Owen.
Normally, Adrian would have appreciated how caring his friends could be, he liked that they didn't stop caring even if he could be an asshole towards them. Still, considering the recent events as well as the upcoming plans that had already been set in motion, he needed to detach himself from his friends as soon as possible before everyone left for spring break.
"Then again, that's probably why you're smoking, isn't it? Death's more alluring than life and all that"
The cigarette was ripped out of the werewolf's hand as his roommate sat down beside him. Owen took a long drag before he spoke, "I heard Doctor Saltzman ripped you a new one" He chuckled, breaking the silence again, "He's kind of spiraling, isn't he?"
"I know he has a school full of killers to take care of but he was the one who built this school in the first place, so this is kind of on him, isn't it?" The blond let out an exasperated sigh after being met with silence.
He nudged his friend, "Where is everyone's favorite murderous midget?"
"She's going to kill you if she finds out that you called her that" Adrian couldn't help but chuckle at the idea of Hope kicking Owen's ass for his name-calling. She had threatened him just a few days ago when he had called her 'the dark lord with no soul' after she had suggested that her boyfriend should cut all contact with his sister.
"Well, she's not gonna find out, is she?" Owen countered
Adrian shrugged in response. They both knew as well as anyone that Hope would find out and there was a fat chance that her boyfriend would be the one to let it slip.
The Whitaker boy picked up the lighter between them and played with it, plighting a flame and letting it extinguish, "Are you going to tell me why you're out here at the ass crack of dawn or do I have to go with the first thing that comes to mind?"
"I couldn't sleep," The Aquilo boy answered, "All I see when I close my eyes is my mom. All I hear are her screams. It's that kind of bloodcurdling screams you only hear in movies, the kind that makes every single hair on your body stand up,"
The roommate hesitated, opening his mouth to say something, but decided against it. Adrian turned to him, "Do you remember when I first got here?"
Owen nodded, "Yeah, I was ready to bury an axe in your skull cause I thought you were the fucking drama club. I've got a bone to pick with anyone who is a part of that club. My roommate, the one before you, was a drama guy. He used to stay up until four am shouting at himself in the mirror. I once caught him there, talking about a fucking hot dog someone shoved up their ass before a court hearing. I slept for like an hour every night until he was finally shipped off to a school in Scotland and I suddenly had a single" He blew out a cloud of smoke, "Then you came along and I almost killed you,"
"But I'd rather have you as my roommate than the hot dog guy. So, if it isn't clear yet, do not join the drama club or I'll be forced to tie cinderblocks to your feet and let you drown at the bottom of this lake," the blond cleared his throat, "Anyway, what was that you were saying about when you got here?"
"I think I killed my parents,"
Owen hummed, "I think I heard you wrong"
"I'm pretty sure I'm the reason they died. Maybe I couldn't trigger the gene until I was eighteen and maybe my parents knew that, and just maybe, they decided to step in and protect me and got killed instead. If that's why we're in this shit-"
"Maybe you should learn a new word," Owen advised him, "And I hope you heard how fucking dumb you just sounded. I mean, that might just be the stupidest thing to ever come out of your mouth"
"Why?"
"What do you mean, why? You're blaming yourself for something that you know wasn't your fault"
The Whitaker boy turned so he could fully face his friend as he continued, "I'm not trying to humanize your grandfather here, but maybe he was scared and wanted to get rid of your dad before he and your mom had kids so none of you would inherit the gene. We both know that having the gene means eventually triggering it which means having to take a life andthe only way to escape it is death. Triggering the gene is inevitable"
"Your only fault was being born and even that is debatable because when it comes down to it, your parents should've worn protection,"
Adrian huffed, "I don't know if anyone has ever told you but you're kind of an asshole"
"Not yet. But I kind of feel like one for leaving you on your own during the spring break"
"I'll be fine," the brunet assured his friend, just like he had at least three times before he went to sleep in his girlfriend's room when they were sent upstairs by their headmaster.
"But will you? Like... actually?"
✶
The Mystic Grill was buzzing with crowds of people the next morning, older spring breakers who came to town for a historical vacation, and the local high school students who had officially welcomed spring break with open arms.
Penelope Park scanned the crowd for one of three people she'd publicly call her friend and found him at a booth-style table that would seat eight.
"I caught you red-handed"
Adrian looked up as the witch took a seat across from him, "I have no idea what you're talking about"
The girl leaned forward, "I saw you walk into the hardware store across the street and get this" She pulled a hunting knife out from the inside pocket of her jacket and laid it on the table in front of them.
Penelope met his gaze, "You know, you look pissed for someone who has no idea what I'm talking about. I stole it right in front of your nose"
She pushed the knife towards him and he buried it in his waistband under his shirt, "Why not take one from the school? They're sharper and some are even cursed"
"Do I look like Landon Kirby to you?" Adrian asked, "I'm not that stupid. Besides, Saltzman made sure to have everything spelled to be tracked no matter where they were,"
When entertaining the idea of murdering his uncle, the young werewolf quickly realized that he would need a weapon. Thanks to Landon Kirby, stealing one from the school wasn't an option and since a small town like Mystic Falls had a limited amount of shops, he was soon left with no other options than a hunting knife from the hardware store.
"You forgot to add that you don't want your girlfriend to know"
"I don't want her to worry"
"It's too late for that" Penelope leaned forward to keep nosy table neighbors from hearing, "She also knows that you stopped taking those pills Emma gave you because you're terrified that you'll fall asleep and relive your parents' death over and over again like you have every single night since you got here"
"Emma said they'd help the nightmares but they don't work so what do you want me to do?"
"They're not going to work when you continuously tell your body it's better off without them," Penelope stated, "You're forcing your body to reject the pills"
"This conversation never happened," the werewolf said, "They're here"
"When did you develop vampire hearing?"
"I can smell them"
"Aw, what a good doggy" Penelope reached across the table to pat the boy on his head but he swatted her hand away.
The witch turned towards the doorway in time to see their usual group of friends enter. She let out a groan when her eyes fell on the blonde and brunette witches behind Owen and Jed with her sister in tow, "Why were the Saltzmans invited?"
"Lizzie invited herself. Owen said we needed someone to balance everything out so you wouldn't try to strangle her in the middle of eating and that's where Josie comes in. She's the only stable person we know, it's good to have her around" Adrian explained, "While we're on the topic of unwanted guests, I'd like to know why Santana is here,"
"She's my roommate," Penelope argued, "And this is the last time I'll see her before she moves,"
"Just say good riddance and move on,"
Owen was the first to approach the booth with a shit-eating grin on his face, "You missed our high and mighty mature for her age Elizabeth Saltzman getting into a screaming match with a five-year-old,"
Lizzie slumped down beside the blond, who would serve as a buffer between her and Penelope for the evening, "He wasn't exactly innocent. He threw his lollipop at me and it got stuck in my hair!"
Jed and Santana were still laughing as they and Josie took their seats between Lizzie and Hope, who sat beside her boyfriend, "She was ready to deck him until she realized that it was just a kid"
Once everyone was seated, they took their turns overwhelming a waiter with their orders of everything from burgers and fries to pizza and pasta.
"What are you guys doing for spring break?" Josie asked, thankfully, starting another conversation.
"Josie and I are visiting the Florida Keys with our dad for the week," Lizzie told the group, "It's a well-deserved and relaxing trip that I can't wait for,"
"You think a few days in Florida is going to defrost your heart?" Penelope asked, "Besides, didn't you get back from your trip a day ago?"
"First of all, I don't see how that is any of your business. Secondly, it was four days ago, but it doesn't matter. I've been waiting for this ever since someone ruined my spring break three years ago. Just like she did in the fifth grade... Hope"
"You're blaming me?" the tribrid asked.
"Uh, did you miss the part where I said you ruined my spring break more than once?"
"What are your plans for spring break?" Josie asked the group, again, desperately trying to drown out the voices of her twin bantering with the tribrid.
"Miami," Owen answered.
Josie nodded, "Sounds fun. What about you, Adrian?"
He hadn't paid too much attention to the group since they arrived, there was a looming feeling of dread slowly creeping up his spine that was occupying his mind. Hope nudged her boyfriend to get his attention, "Adrian"
He looked up to find everyone's eyes already on him, "What?"
"Spring break" Josie repeated, "What are your plans?"
"Well, I'm not gonna get fucked up on some beach, that's for sure. I'm just hanging out in the pool until school starts" the boy answered, "On second thought, I'd be safer in my bathtub where I won't contract any water-borne diseases still stuck there from all the pool parties that went out of hand and then, once school starts again after the break and I'll be std free with my liver still intact. What more can I ask for?"
"You miserable little shit"
Penelope rolled her eyes, "Don't listen to him. He's just gotten sand up his ass one too many times," she smiled at the alpha and he flashed his middle finger at her to which she responded with two fingers.
Owen nearly choked on a laugh, "How do you know what he has up his ass?"
Santana turned to the Aquilo boy, "You know, you're pretty vocal about STDs for someone who has to get tested every few weeks,"
Adrian rolled his eyes at the brunette's words. Thankfully, he had never contracted any kind of disease, sexually transmitted or other, and he was going to continue to be as safe as possible.
"He wasn't the one who got gonorrhea of the throat, twice," Owen reminded the witch. He stepped in, not because his friend needed to be rescued from the conversation, but because he had been waiting for an opening to take a jab at her andhe took it.
Santana narrowed her eyes, "What are you, his defense lawyer?"
"Yes, actually" The Whitaker boy smiled, "You got a problem with that?"
"You should check your sources. It's hard to find credible ones these days, you know how people like to spread lies,"
Owen snorted, "My source is your file in Nurse Jackie's office. I find it very credible,"
"Why are you suddenly so invested in my life?"
"Please, anything anyone ever learned about you has been against their will," Lizzie butted in as the plates and drinks began to fill the table.
"Hope," the blonde siphoner spoke, "Are you going to wallow in self-pity with your boyfriend? Or are you doing something this time?"
"I'm just heading home for a few days" Hope avoided going home as much as she could, she didn't want to be faced with the reminders of all the tragic events that their family had gone through. She, like the rest of them, knew that she was going to have to face her traumas one day, "I have to talk to my aunt Freya and there's a chance that I'll find the solution to our Malivore problem in New Orleans"
"I think Penelope and I take the prize for the most exciting break," Santana told the group.
Lizzie rolled her eyes, "No one cares,"
"Who gives a shit?"
Owen and Lizzie looked at each other, shocked to have spoken in unison and that they agreed on something for the first time since the seventh grade.
"We're flying to France," the witch continued.
"What's in France?" Josie asked.
"French hotties with accents and excellent tongue expertise," Santana replied, "Do you need anything else?"
Owen opened his mouth to speak but Santana put her hand up to silence him, "Let me stop you before you even ask. No, I'm not keeping her chained in a basement the entire trip," she leaned forward, "It's the twenty-first century, women don't need permission from their boyfriends to do what they want. So if you think you're the one in charge of this relationship, you are out of your mind"
"What's wrong with taking pride in doing things the way your significant other wants you to? People have different love languages,"
Santana turned to the Whitaker boy, "So you enjoy being her bitch?"
"Why don't you fuck off?" the boy fired back and Adrian almost got down on his knees to kiss his feet and thank God that someone else hated the witch as much as he did.
Santana faked a sad pout at the wolf, "Aw, I would, but your girlfriend actually wants me here,"
Owen rolled his eyes in response, clearly over the conversation. Santana smiled triumphantly, "Don't worry, she'll still be more into girls when she returns"
"Maybe you should stay out of other people's relationships and keep your opinions to yourself,"
The table fell silent as the teenagers observed the two witches.
The look Santana shot the tribrid was lethal and if Hope hadn't been Hope, things might've gone very differently from how they were going to go, "Maybe you should stay out of our conversation" Santana fired back
"The one you're having loud enough for the entire world to hear?"
Santana leaned forward with her arms crossed over her chest, "I didn't say anything bad and I don't recall saying anything about your relationship,"
Hope crossed her arms, "We're going to have a problem if you do"
"And what are you gonna do, huh?"
"Ignore her," Owen told Hope, "She usually stops if you don't give her the attention she so desperately wants,"
"And if she doesn't?"
"We can dump her in a ditch," Adrian answered.
"I can't believe I'm saying this but there's always going to be one thing me and that decaying corpse over there will agree on and that's how much we both hate Santana," Lizzie admitted which earned her a high five from Owen.
"Yeah, if Lizzie Saltzman not only agrees with you on something but admits to agreeing to it, that means the world must be ending," Jed commented.
"And when the tsunami hits, we can all use Santana and her big ass hat as a boat,"
"Oh, fuck all of you,"
✶
tw!: mentions of sexual assault and murder (not gruesome but still) in this part of the chapter. If you want to skip, you canscroll until you see the next page break star.
Owen entered the dorm with a scowl on his face. He kicked the door shut with a thud, gaining his roommate's attention, "We need to talk to Saltzman about the bathroom situation,"
"What's up with you?"
Adrian knew exactly what it was. Everyone within a mile's radius knew what was going on because Owen hadn't shut up about it since it happened. The pipes in their bathroom had burst and water had flooded the floor which meant that the roommates had to shower in the communal showers downstairs until the problem was resolved.
"I'm tired of things breaking and needing to be fixed all the time," the Whitaker boy began as he got dressed for bed, "I'm gonna talk to Alaric after the break. We need a bigger room. Preferably the one at the end of the east corridor on the third floor, but I'm not so picky,"
Adrian nodded, "Okay, are you sure that you're in the position to complain and negotiate when you're the one breaking stuff and cutting pipes in our bathroom?"
Owen stopped in his tracks to face his roommate, "Are you telling me you don't want one of the best dorms our school has to offer? Because you should know that I have no problem moving without you. A double can easily become a single,"
Adrian put his hands up, "You won't hear any objections from me but we're getting a TV in celebration of me killing my uncle,"
"I killed my dad, what can we buy to celebrate that?"
There was a short moment of stillness before he continued. Adrian, shocked into silence took a seat on his bed to face his friend. If Owen had killed someone— his father, out of all people, there had to be a reason.
"It's how I triggered the gene," Owen clarified, sensing the clear change of atmosphere in the room, "I was thirteen when it happened. My mom never showed up for pickup after school one day and I thought, maybe she had to stay longer at work or one of my sisters asked her to do something and she just forgot what time she was supposed to get me"
"She didn't"
The blond shook his head, "I ended up getting a ride from a friend's mom and I saw my mom's car in the driveway so I knew she was home. The house was empty so I went upstairs cause I figured maybe mom went to take a nap or something but the bedroom door was open. My dad was on the bed, he was on top of my mom and she was just lying there with this weird look in her eyes. It was like something in her had died, it felt like staring at a corpse."
"I knew that it was normal for a couple to have sex. I mean by that time I'd had a couple of sex-ed classes, but what they— what he was doing to her? None of that was normal,"
Owen sighed, "It wasn't the first time" He could still see his mother's empty eyes staring back at him, "I don't know why I never did anything before. Maybe because she fought him off the other times? But then she wasn't fighting him this time. It was like she had given up or decided that maybe he'd leave her alone if she didn't fight," Adrian watched his friend, listening and attempting to provide him some sort of comfort even if he didn't need it.
"I don't remember going downstairs to get the knife, but I do remember when he fell off the bed with a knife stuck in his back. I remember thinking that stabbing him once or twice wasn't enough and that a few more would have him back home from the hospital in a couple of days"
"I didn't want him to come back. I wanted to make sure he was out of our lives for good so he could never hurt anyone again. I wanted him dead and it happened"
"That look in her eyes haunted my nightmares for the first year, I still see it when I look at her and it kills me but I can't find it in me to hurt her by saying no when she asks me to visit,"
"If I hadn't killed him, he would've killed her. As far as I'm concerned, I did us all a favor," Owen laid down on his bed, "It's not a secret or anything like that. I just don't like to talk about my life before Brady's death because there's nothing to tell, it wasn't good times with him around. My life began the moment his ended"
A moment of silence passed. The brown-haired boy turned to his friend, nudging his leg with his foot, "That's the deepest shit I've ever heard you say"
Owen fought a small smile as he turned his head to face his roommate, "I'm not supposed to encourage you to go on your suicide mission but you're lucky enough to get another shot at killing your uncle, so you better make sure he's fully dead this time,"
Adrian hummed, "I would've done the same, by the way"
Owen nodded, "If you ditch me for Milton, something worse is going to happen to you,"
"Aw, don't be like that. You know you're special to me," The dark-haired wolf got up from his bed and hugged his friend tightly.
The blond fought him off, "No, fuck you"
Adrian laughed, "Fuck you, you're the one ditching me for Miami,"
Owen grabbed a pillow off his bed and hit his friend with it as hard as possible to get him to release him. Once he did, the boys slumped down on their beds with laughter in their throats.
The blue-eyed wolf turned to his roommate, "I'm visiting my mom, asshole, have some fucking compassion,"
"I'm killing my uncle,"
Owen couldn't help himself when he let out a laugh, "And what? You want me to hold your hand?"
✶
Come midnight, the Aquilo boy sat in front of the fire in the Ares lounge. Tomorrow he'd be well on his way to kill his uncle, but he needed to get to his sister first, and after their last encounter, there was no way anyone was going to let them anywhere near each other.
"Got you a milkshake,"
Adrian turned to face his girlfriend with a smile when he saw the milkshake in her hand, her favorite, a peanut butter blast. He hated it but she stood her ground and tried to convince him that it was the best milkshake.
"Okay, so I got myself a milkshake but felt bad on my way out so I got you one too," Hope handed it to him and he just stared at it, trying to prepare his taste buds for something they might not heal from.
"You're not going to drink it?"
Adrian met the intense gaze already searing his skin. Hope hadn't taken her eyes off of him for even a millisecond once he had taken the milkshake, "Can't do that when you're staring like you're daydreaming about force-feeding me"
"Just drink,"
The wolf brought the straw to his lips and immediately cringed when the milkshake touched his tongue, "I think I threw up in my mouth,"
He forced a couple of sips down his throat before he set the milkshake down beside him, giving up, "I can't do it. Not even you can get me to drink this"
Hope rolled her eyes, "Remind me to never do nice things for you,"
"It's downright cruel to make me drink it"
The two settled into a comfortable silence in front of the fire. For a moment, all of their troubles were gone and they were just normal teenagers. Maybe that was what life would feel like once the malivore thing was over and once Adrian had set a stop to
"I heard Owen told you about how he triggered the gene,"
"I'm guessing you were there when they brought him here?"
"Doctor Saltzman has this rule about not accepting werewolves whose first kill is intentional but Owen's kill was an in-the-heat-of-the-moment decision. His father was abusive and he wanted to help his mother, he only saw one way out"
"He hadn't talked for months by the time we met him," Hope revealed, "His mom didn't want him to go, but I think we all knew that it was for the best for him to distance himself from them for a while. And he had family in Virginia, his sister and a cousin at Whitmore, so settling in wasn't a problem"
Hope fiddled with her rings, "It was the nightmares. It's always the nightmares. Even after you kill your demons, they're still there, thriving on your worst fears in the one place you should feel safe,"
Adrian sat in silence, watching the flames licking around the sides of the logs in the fireplace. He knew what was coming. Someone, either Owen or Penelope, had told the girlfriend about his nightmares keeping him awake even after he had promised her that they had stopped.
In her defense, Hope had tried to see it from his point of view, but even the most stubborn Mikaelson would know that it was a stupid plan, "Would you please take a moment to think about it?"
"I am. I have been thinking about it all night,"
Adrian didn't care about that. What he cared about was knowing that he got rid of his uncle for good like Owen had his father, so they couldn't hurt anyone else. So yeah, dying was the least of his worries.
"You can't change what happened"
"If you ever got the chance to go back in time and end The Hollow for good, would you?" Adrian asked, "And if you had the chance to bring back your parents, would you?"
Hope nodded, "Without a doubt. But I know I can't. It wouldn't be right" She held her boyfriend's hands in hers, letting him know in her own way that she was there for him even if her words would prove otherwise, "And killing your uncle will not bring yours back"
"Don't you think I know that?" The werewolf snapped.
Hope narrowed her eyes at him, "What are you going to do when you find him? Just start swinging? Shoot him?"
"What did you see when you sent us into Olivia's subconscious?"
Adrian watched her. He didn't want her to know. He didn't want to know if she had seen it, but the question had been gnawing at him all day.
Had she seen his parents die? And if she had, did it bring back memories of her parents' deaths? Did it undo all the work she had done to heal from her trauma?
He had only heard about it but he could imagine that they had experienced similar emotions when their parents died, itwas one of the things they had in common other than crazy murderous family members, the traumatic deaths of both parents, and a bright future that included a lot of anger management — they were a perfect match. Okay, not really, but they made it work.
Hope shook her head, "I didn't see anything"
"No reason,"
The tribrid pressed her lips together, "What are you going to do about her?"
The boy scratched his neck, searching his brain for a way to break it to his girlfriend. Hope looked at him in disbelief, "She tried to kill you"
"She's so high off her meds she won't even know she's with me until we're far enough from all the possible things she can use as a weapon," Adrian reassured the girl as if that would make her stop worrying, "But I won't be able to get her out with Saltzman breathing down my neck"
Hope sighed. The determination in his eyes was something she had seen in her own once, years ago, when she stood in front of a mirror back in New Orleans as she planned to avenge her mother.
"If you die on me, I will kill you," The boy opened his mouth to speak, but she beat him to it, "I'll bring you back, and then I'll kill you"
"Comforting"
"You know what? This might make me feel a lot better" Hope reached into her cardigan pocket and pulled out a ring with a black cord tied around it to make it a necklace.
"Give me your hand"
Adrian bit back a smile as his girlfriend took his hand in hers, "Hope—"
The girl rolled her eyes, "Please keep any dumb comments you have to yourself," Hope placed the ring in his palm, "It's a reverse kyanite ring that'll allow you to turn at will. . . The only catch is that you can't turn back, I'd have to be there to help you"
"But—"
The tribrid pressed a finger to his mouth, shushing him, "What's important is that it also lets me know if you need me. The moment you're in trouble, you tap that ring and I'll know where to find you"
"So a necklace with a magical GPS?" Adrian studied the ring in his hand, "Hope, this is a trackable collar"
Hope looked at him as if she was waiting for him to crack one last joke before she cracked his neck or at least broke an arm, "Maybe it'll be easier if I just kill you myself right now?"
The boy sighed heavily, "Will it make you happy if I put it on?"
"It would make me happier if you stayed" The look on her face said a thousand words, it was almost enough to convince him to let go of his anger and stay with her and their friends.
"Nice try,"
author's note ━━━━━
hi, welcome back :)
i just want to apologize
really quick for making you
guys wait like two years
for this.
technically this is
a filler chapter, but it's also
one of those 'the answer
to a lot of your questions
and suspicions' chapter.
i want to thank you for
supporting me and this book
and tell you that i am officially
back to writing this and 'bloodlines'.