CHAPTER TWO
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THE TYPICALLY-PERSUASIVE vampire had gotten absolutely no where with Alyssa Chang. After leaving Hope alone to perform an astral projection spell, an attempt to converse with the trapped family in the 2018 prison world, Mila decided to take her chances with the culprit. She wondered down to where they were keeping the cunning teenage witch prisoner, finding the girl sitting calmly behind the bars of a cell.
She had tried playing nice, attempting to even seem sympathetic, but to no avail, Alyssa kept her mouth shut on where she had hidden the ascendant. Throw in a few snarky comments and a defeated game of I Spy provoked out of boredom and ending with Mila muttering "I spy a manipulative little witch bitch", and that about summed up the eventful hour she had spent down here. It was clear that she wasn't going to be able crack Alyssa herself, but she refused to leave yet, clinging onto her stubbornness.
"No luck?"
Mila twisted around at the voice, blowing strands of her loosely curled hair out of her face. Her striking eyes finally get a clear sight of Joshua approaching her. "Nope. I think she's the most unbearable person I have ever met."
"I'm still here," Alyssa chimes in from behind her.
"Well aware," Mila responds, not bothering to hide her disinterest, and this provokes the mysterious acquaintance to smile the same way he looks at her: knowingly. He acts like he knows her. It's subtle, but it's there, taking ahold of her mind.
"Don't worry," he tells her, taking yet another step closer to her form, which leans against a nearby brick wall. "Everything will go as planned."
"It's Joshua, right? You said we met before. When was that?" She questions him, unable to contain her curiosity.
His bewitched grin widens at her persistence to understand him. His expression could have been classified as charmingly boyish if it wasn't for the devilish glints in eyes where the pupil nearly overtook the sparkling blue of his irises. He was a complete enigma to her. She wasn't sure what to make of the very little she was able to read from him. So, yes, she wanted answers. She wanted clarity.
The so-called expert of prison worlds closes the rest of the distance between them. Mila was shocked she wasn't uncomfortable with the lack of personal space; she knew she would have been with anyone else she had just met. If anything, she felt an inexplicable ease, one that urged her shoulders to relax and for her to exhale a quiet sigh of relief. The strains of her life disappeared in one simple move.
"You really want to know?" he murmurs; his head tilts down so they could properly maintain eye contact. Mila nods with an unfathomable certainty, not trusting herself to speak without getting her words jumbled.
She had no clue what was happening but wasn't moving to stop it. The attraction between the two was something in itself extraordinary. He distracted her the moment she laid eyes on him, and it appeared she had done the same to him, ending with them gravitating towards each other. It was remarkable just as much as it was confusing.
"Okay," he agrees, bringing a hand to her cheek and stroking it softly with his thumb; the action compliments the gentle tone of his voice. "Just remember you asked for it."
Before Mila could appropriately react to the second half of his response, she was shoved harshly into the wall, pinned down by his body. The unexpected and swift movement causes her to gasp. She immediately tries to push him off of her, but what the girl can only perceive as supernatural strength, more powerful than her own, keeps her in place.
"What are you doing?!"
"Shh. I have to focus. Stay still."
Without a proper explanation, Mila continues to struggle. She tries to leans away from his touch but hands succeeded with their mission of being splayed over her head, thumbs directly on her temples. His eyelids flutter close while her fingers attempt to pry his hands off of her, clasping tightly around his wrists. Her panic is replaced by pain, however, when an overwhelming ache erupts from her forehead and spreads throughout her entire body.
Mila cries out once more. An orange glow is sensed by her bulging eyes that radiates from where he touches her, one she is able to recognize throughout the torture. He was siphoning her. He was draining her of magic, something that was practically embedded in her supernatural bones, and she had no reason to believe he wouldn't stop until she was gray and veiny and unconscious on the dirty floor.
Just as her arms fell limp by her sides and her entire body weakened substantially, it happened. Something was unveiled. A wall she didn't know was barricading a part of her mind tumbled to cobble ruble, and the secrets hidden from herself were unleashed.
A plethora of memories flashed underneath her closed eyes, all of which involving her and him, the breakthroughs and downfalls on montage. From beginning to the end, she was shown their story: a human Mila falling forbiddingly in love with the Gemini Coven's dangerous, familial outcast, the very person standing before her.
"Kai," Mila says his name, and that's what makes him finally pull back, stepping away from her while she processes years full of memories resurfacing in a matter of seconds.
"Huh, it worked. I really am all powerful. Malivore is no match for me."
Her eyelids flicker open at the sound of his voice. Her breathing slowly stabilizes as her body recovers from the magical influence.
He is all too recognizable now. Mila is able to see through the sophisticated posture and ridiculous outfit that is just yet another act to get what he wants. That's all that matters to Kai in the end — his insatiable need for revenge — and nothing or no one could ever get in the way of that. She knew from experience.
"You evil bastard," Mila breathes out, using the wall as leverage to stand up properly.
"Aw, even after all this time, you never fail at warming my heart." Kai lifts a hand up and places his palm against his chest as a demonstration.
"Guess that's the difference between you and me. You're a failure and I'm not."
"Ouch. Way to quote my father."
"Really? Still milking the daddy issues?"
"You've gotten meaner. I love it."
"And you've gotten predictable," the dirty blonde grunts, deciding she has recovered enough from all the draining and takes the chance to speed out of the room.
He halts her before she reaches the door, appearing in front of her so quickly Mila even runs into him, and he mindlessly reaches out to steady her. She has no choice but to put her hands on him for more balance, and she can feel the warmth of his skin through his button-up, almost convincing her not to retract her touch. But she does, shrugging him off, before daring to look up to his unsurprised stare.
"You have, too."
"I'm not the one screwing with my family for the millionth time," Mila protests. She shook her head in disbelief that they shared anything in common anymore.
"No, you're not," Kai replies, shoving his hands into into pockets. For once, he looks completely serious. "You're the one running away."
"What the actual hell am I witnessing?"
Alyssa Chang's disturbed voice does nothing to put out the fire burning within her vibrant eyes, her glare of hatred relentless in its entirety.
"I'll be with you in a moment," Kai briefly acknowledges the teenager without taking his gaze off of the only girl he ever saw a future with. "Mila, I'm running short on time. I'm sorry, but we'll talk later, yeah?"
The heretic didn't give her the chance to think of what to say next. Instead, he abruptly reaches out for her again, so sudden that she couldn't dodge it. His hands grasp her chin and the back of her head. With one swift twist, a sickening crack echos around the dungeon, and Mila falls to the ground, unconscious and with a broken neck.
At the mercy of her haunting memories, she delves further into their awoken past.
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"DAMON, DESPITE WHAT YOU may think, I don't need a bodyguard."
"Oh, come on. I'm an alcoholic. Me being at the Grill wouldn't be out of the ordinary."
"Caroline will be here soon. She's just running late. I will be fine by myself for a few. Why don't you go and bother your girlfriend?"
"My girlfriend kind of only remembers every bad thing I've done and none of the good."
"Well, it's not my fault you were a major dick. Still are sometimes. But you've improved, I'll say that." Mila clarifies over the phone, sipping on a cherry coke the bartender served her moments ago, muffled conversations taking place all around her.
"Gee, thanks. Anyway, at least my walking amnesiac of a girlfriend can put up a fight. You're human. And there's one major psycho out on the loose. Who likes to murder family members for fun. And eat an entire pantry. And, oh yeah, is the most annoying person to ever exist." Damon rambles on, clearly tired of dealing with the new enemy that apparently was able to suck up the boundary spell surrounding Mystic Falls, allowing the supernatural back into town.
"Yeah, yeah. I'll be on the look out for your prison world runaway. Can I hang up the phone now?"
"Fine. Just... be safe. Don't die on me. Elena already thinks I'm unstable. She'll blame me for your death." He caves, and, in his own way, tells her he cares.
"I'm pretty sure she's still upset about you killing Jeremy that one time, but okay. Worry about my potential death when you literally killed her brother."
"He came back to life! And you're not helping."
"Bye, Damon." She dismisses knowingly, a smile on her face from their banter.
"Bye, shortstack."
Mila sets her phone on the bar, her already-good mood improving from the call, which kept her from noticing someone had slid in beside her. "Shortstack? That's cute."
She turns to find a guy that couldn't be much older than her, circling the edge of his glass with his pointer finger. The dark jacket he wears compliments his broad shoulders while he leans onto the bar, not even turning to face her. At first, he looked like he was minding his business and hadn't opened his mouth to comment, but then he finally looked up, revealing his boyish yet defined face.
"You should hear my nickname for him," Mila responds, deciding to engage in a harmless conversation with what she perceived to be a handsome stranger.
"Oh I did," he shifts his body a bit more towards her, the playful spark to his eyes reflected in her own. "It's 'dick', right?"
She shrugged. "It might as well be, honestly."
"Is he your boyfriend?" He's smiling now, his palm pressed to check as he rested his elbow on the counter.
"Oh, no. My self esteem isn't that low."
Her response provokes laughter from him, the kind that invites you to join in on, and something unknowingly shifts in the air between them. The other customers in the restaurant fade into the background, leaving only the two of them with their effortless exchange. There was no expectations, no nervousness, no exposed baggage — just a witty girl and a cheeky boy at a bar, one of which completely unaware just how much their lives intertwined.
"Good."
"Good?" The blonde repeats, eyebrows raised.
"Yeah. Good. You seem like you deserve better."
"And let me guess," she drawls, swirling the straw around in her drink, "that's you?"
"Nah. You shouldn't be with someone like me. Kinda coo-coo — and not for Coco Puffs." He brings his other hand up to imitate the motion, rotating a finger around his head. This, along with his other quirky behavior, encourages a grin to break out on her face.
"At least you're up front about it," Mila offers, enjoying his company.
"Already defending me and you don't even know me. I really must be that irresistible."
"First of all, you're not. Second, what's your name then?"
He pauses, thinking what she had said over, before allowing his oceanic eyes to flicker back up her awaiting face. "What's yours?"
"Mila."
"Also cute."
She looks at him expectedly. "Well, aren't you going to tell me yours?"
"Nope. I... don't think so." He appears surprised with his answer himself, knitting his eyebrows together and tilting his head.
"That's not fair. Why not?"
"Because for once in my life, I don't want to ruin something. I want to enjoy this while it lasts."
"What do you mean?"
"Being in the company of someone who doesn't know the worst of me."
Not expecting that kind of confession, Mila takes time to process his words. He's gazing down at his drink now, not meeting her concerned stare, and the playful dynamic between them turns serious. She doesn't hate that it does though, because the honesty coming from him inspires her to be truthful herself.
"I get it," she begins speaking from the deepest parts of her. "Sometimes you just... want to belong. Even if you're pretending to be someone you're not. Even if it's just for a moment. Because it's a relief when you believe you do."
The mystery man beside her glances back up at her, finding her staring forward, lost within her thoughts. He doesn't know why, but he finds her even more beautiful than he did before; he was captivated by her, inside and out.
"Yeah." He faintly murmurs, just enough for her to hear it.
"Mila!" A voice from the other direction calls, immediately gaining the girl's attention, and she sees Caroline approaching her.
"Care. Hey." She greets, noticing quickly after from the expression on Caroline's face that something wasn't right.
"Are you okay?!" The blonde vampire impulsively asks in a raised voice, leading to her cringing at the mistake right after.
"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?"
"Do you know who was sitting beside you?" Caroline whispers lowly, trying not to draw anymore notice from anyone else around her.
At the mention of Caroline referring to the stranger in past tense, Mila looks behind her, finding his seat empty. She traces the room in time to catch the back of him as he went through another exit. "No..."
"That was Kai Parker."