Chapter Eighteen
I slipped on one large earring after the other while Kai and Bonnie were getting ready to do the spell. It was time to head to winter 1903. And we were all dressed for the weather. Snow, the cold, and of course the northern lights.
"Damn. Crocodile Dundee called. He wants his knife back," Kai scoffed. I glanced away from my reflection in the mirror to see Bonnie was slicing her palm. I cringed. It was a huge knife.
"Yeah. You know, he's no longer a thing, and neither is that joke," Bonnie retorted and I chuckled.
"Ouch," Kai mumbled.
"Malibu Barbie, you ready?" Damon's sarcastic voice came. I moved away from the mirror, smirking at my brother-in-law who doesn't know he's my brother-in-law yet.
"The cuter I dress, the cuter I feel, the better my mood, and exactly what I need to have the confidence that this isn't one huge mistake," I quipped, adjusting my bright red and pink winter jacket on my shoulders. It was big and warm. And under it I wore a red sweater drips that had fashion rips at the collar and hem. Under that I wore black tights followed by black snow boots. Cute but prepared was the goals.
"Wet hair was a mistake," he retorted and I scowled. I had just taken another shower. Needed to kill time and clear my head. It seemed like a good idea at the time.
"Is this presentable attire by 1903 standards?" Elena joined us now, pulling on a long winter coat with a fur hood.
"Whoa. Who said you're coming?" Damon frowned.
"If Kenzie can go, I can go," she scoffed.
"Kenzie is going because someone rational and unbiased needs to decide if Lily is good enough to bring back," I told her pointedly.
"And because Lily is supposed to help bring back her boy toy," Damon said.
"Yeah. Cause powerful as I am, there's a limit to how many people one witch can transport with this spell. And I just... like Kenzie more than you," Kai added his own commentary. In return he got dirty and disgusted looks.
"Right, which is why there's two of us. We can all go. Now... Shall we?" Bonnie smiled bitterly at Kol, grabbing his hands in hers.
"Fine. Let's go get Mama," Damon sighed. Elena and I flanked Bonnie's side, placing a hand on each of her shoulders. Damon holding onto Elena so we were all joined together.
Kai began speaking Latin gibberish and a bright light started to take over. I closed my eyes, blinded. And then in a flash it was gone. And I was freezing cold.
"Well, isn't this a picturesque slice of hell?" Damon grumbled as we all opened our eyes, looking around.
"So this is Mystic Falls 1903," I mused. "Looks as boring as it does now."
Damon smirked at me. I sent him a playful wink back before taking in my snowy surroundings. The ground was cold and wet. Slushy, ice, sleet like of a mess. And it was dark. The sky was that dark midnight blue. But there were so many stars out. That was different that present day Mystic Falls.
"You guys go ahead. Kai and I will start the locator spell on the Ascendant," Bonnie said.
"But Kai just had the Ascendant. Why do we have to find another one?" Elena asked confused.
"The Ascendant can't travel between worlds, which means we gotta find its mirror image here in 1903," Kai explained.
"Page 10 on the world-jumping rule-book," Damon said sarcastically and uninterested. "Shall we?"
Then without waiting for a response he started walking off towards the only building in sight. Elena called after him, running to catch up.
I stayed where I was, glancing between Kai and Bonnie. Then I gave the evil one a mean glare. "I don't want to leave you alone with him," I stated, directed at Bonnie but watching Kai for any sudden movements. I didn't trust him.
"I'll be fine," Bonnie said. I rolled my eyes as Kai tilted his head to the sky, sticking out his tongue to catch snowflakes. Maybe I was worried for no reason. He's less diabolical, more stupid. But I knew what he was capable of. So I'd always have my doubts about him. "He's good now, remember? New leaf," Bonnie added while giving me a reassuring smile. I narrowed my eyes on her. "Go."
"But—" I went to argue.
"It's Stefan's mom. She's supposed to get him to turn his humanity back on so he can come running back to you. You need to meet her. So go," Bonnie said, easily persuading me.
She was right. That's what we were here for. Stefan. This was all for Stefan. And nothing besides my blood related family came before him. "Be careful," I warned her.
"I'll behave, honey," Kai smirked at me. I ignored him, walking off finally. I followed Damon and Elena's footprints up to the one story, ranch size of a house. This is Salvatore Estate? Wow.
"Can we just take a second to acknowledge how insane it is that we're standing in the house that you grew up in?" I heard my twin's cheery voice as I entered the house.
I followed the sound of her voice to the family room. She was standing by the unlit fireplace. "Awww, Damon!" She squealed, grabbing something off the mantle and turning to show him. It was a picture frame. "You were so adorable!" She grinned.
Damon walked over to her, "Aww, thanks! Except that's Stefan."
I laughed then, making my presence known. Elena held out the picture frame to me. I walked over, taking it from her. This was the second young, Stefan picture I've seen. Damon had given me a picture of 11 year old Stefan for my 18th birthday. This was different. This was more of a baby picture. And oh, was my baby handsome. How old is he? Four? Older? Seven?" I asked out loud and Elena shrugged.
"This is me," Damon said. We both turned to see he grabbed another picture frame off the mantle. He stared at it for a moment before handing it over to Elena. I peered over her shoulder to see it was him and his mom. He looked around 10. Hmmm.
I glanced back down at the picture I held of Stefan. He was so cute. Long hair framing his face. Little bangs too. His head and face shape the same. Except baby Stefan was chubby. He had a little double chin and round cheeks. Way different than the chiseled jaw and slight hallowed cheek bones.
"We're not here to socialize. We get the Ascendant, we find my mother, and after she flips Stefan's switch, we figure out what the hell we're going to do with her," Damon reminded us.
"Or you can give her another chance," Elena suggested.
"A chance to what?" Damon and I both questioned, disgruntled. "Disarray another literal boatload of people?" Damon scoffed, rummaging through drawers at the small table in the room.
"Stefan was a Ripper. You never gave up on him," Elena pointed out and I glared at the side of her face while shoving my baby picture of Stefan in my coat pocket.
"And where was Lily from 1858 to 1903? She was blood-binge-ing through Europe while Stefan and I carried the loss."
"Not exactly maternal, Elena," I added.
"Far as I'm concerned, my mother died when we buried her empty coffin. What we're looking for is just a tool to get my brother back," Damon was saying.
Before Elena or I could reply, I noticed something behind him. "Damon?" A new soft, feminine voice rang out from the adjacent room.
Damon turned to face the entrance. I moved to see over his shoulders, in the doorway stood a shocked woman. She was tall and tiny. She was holding firewood that looked heavier than it probably was. And she was in a red trench coat with black fur along the edges. She also wore a terrible hat. While a white, layered lace dress clearly from the 1900s peeked out of her jacket and flared onto the floor, hiding her feet.
"Hello, mother," Damon finally broke the silence. His tone was one that held slight reluctance for obvious reasons. But he also sounded less like himself. And that worried me.
"Um, hi," I spoke up. "I'm Kenzie. That's my twin, Elena. We came with Damon to meet and see you. We wanted to chat.
She slowly nodded. "Nice to meet you both," she said in the softest voice I've ever heard. It was a slightly soothing. She was motherly and frail looking. It made it hard for me to hate her. "Please, take a seat. I'll... I'll make tea after I get the fire started."
Seeing as the three of us were speechless we did as she said. We plopped down on a small, vintage couch. Damon between my sister and I. And the three of us watched her. She dropped the firewood logs into the fireplace, got the fire started, ditches the jacket and hat, boiled water, and set up four tea cups on little fine China plates.
"There was a time I marked days on a calendar. I gave up after a few years, but, judging by your bizarre attire," she sighed softly, finally pouring the water into our teacups where the teabags sat patiently compared to my restless ass.
"You've been in here for over a century," Elena spoke up, explaining our 'bizarre attire.'
Damon snorted. Here comes the sarcasm. "Yeah, I would have come by sooner, but I thought you were safe and sound in the family crypt," he said, giving his bitter fake smile. "My bad."
His mom smiled back weakly, uncomfortable or guilty. I wasn't sure which. "Technically, I did die in 1858, after a nurse in the TB ward fed me vampire blood," Lily replied.
"And you never thought to stop by and clear things up?" Damon asked, voice hard but back to the Damon I knew. Shock was wearing off. But I was worried about how angry he could and would get.
Lily did that same cringe worthy smile before walking away to put the kettle back by the fire. "How did you end up here, Mrs. Salvatore?" Elena questioned, breaking the awkward silence.
Damon and I bother gave her looks disbelief. Like what the actual fuck. She's here cause she's a psychopath. "Mrs. Salvatore?" Damon hissed quietly. I cringed, nearly gagged.
"I don't know what to call her," Elena whispered back and I sent her a sharp look.
"Not that," I growled out. That is my name. I would not share it with this abandoning mother.
A soft, warm, melodic laugh filled my ears then. It was mother dearest. "Please, call me Lily," she told us. Because she could hear us. No one spoke then.
The three of us watched Lily, take a seat in the large red throne of a seat on the end of the table. Directly on the other side of me. "It was October 31st, 1903. I had just arrived in New York Harbor. The night sky was alive with this beautiful shimmering light. And, out of nowhere, a coven of witches attacked. When I woke, they were gone. Everyone was gone," she was telling us. Then she chuckled. But it was more nervous and uncomfortable than the one from before. "That night, the sky danced with colors again, and it's done so every night since."
"It's called "prison." You must have pissed off a lot of people," Damon responded. I held back a snicker while Elena gave him a scolding look. I forget how funny he can be sometimes. Usually at the wrong times, but that made it all the more better
"That life seems like forever ago," Lily said in the same light airy tone, giving us that same proper smile. Completely fake.
Damon moves suddenly, reaching for a small empty but bloodstained liquid dropper that rested on the edge of the table with a medium sized mason jar that was only 25% full of blood. It wasn't a lot. "You on a diet?" He asked.
"I depleted every slaughterhouse within walking distance, and every butcher's shop along the hellish trek from New York to Mystic Falls," she said, picking up the jar of blood. "This is the last of the blood here... Two drops a week, just to stay awake."
"That sounds miserable," Elena, Chatty Cathy, stated the obvious. I would die of starvation. Two drops was nothing. And I was always hungry. Hell, I had breakfast a couple hours ago and I was starving already now. I couldn't wait to go home.
"I manage," Lily said with her polite smile. Ugh. It was bothering me. She was bothering me. I was ready to cut to the chase. I'm sure this type of awkward, polite exchange with Stefan would be enough to win Stefan over and make him turn his humanity on. If I'm lucky she'll say something real, that matters. Some type of heartwarming apology for her abandonment, so bringing her back was worth it even after Stefan has humanity. Because her presence might be enough to get him to flip the switch, but god only knows how my sweet, sensitive husband would then digest the news his she was a vampire, a ripper who left her two young sons when they needed and loved her the most.
And Damon obviously needs some closure on the reality of this unveiled secret. He was full of rage but that was stemmed from pain. He was hurting, he was upset. He was confused and blindsided. He barely had any time to come with terms of her being alive, nonetheless her choosing to run off.
"I heard you and your brother turned during the war," Lily said, breaking me away from my thoughts.
"Mmhmm," Damon hummed with a displeased look on his face. Yeah, that meant you knew they turned and still didn't come back for them. The time between them turning and her imprisonment is like 40 years apart.
"Your father must have been horrified," Lily continued on, sipping her tea. Completely ignoring the tension in the room.
"He was," Damon said more enthusiastically. "And then, Stefan ripped his throat out."
Lily unexpectedly giggled, resulting in her spitting out her tea in her cup. I snorted then. I didn't blame her. It was funny. In a sort of morbid way. Mainly cause of how blunt Damon was, purposely to make people uncomfortable. I found other people getting squeamish because of him hilarious. I'm sure her giggling was more because of personal reasons.
"I apologize," Lily said, embarrassment all over her face. "That's cruel to laugh." She cleaned up herself, putting her tea down. "But... good for Stefan. I truly hated that man," she added.
"Oh, I know you did. So much so that you left your kids with him, faked your own death, and then went out to join the Ripper Coalition," Damon replied.
And there it was. The terrible awkward pause. The elephant in the room finally acknowledged. His anger and resentment, along with the facts that Lily was a shitty woman. That's why I was scared to have children. I didn't want to be a mom like her. Or even like my mom—having favorites, being subservient to her husband, and being so absorbed in her own work she never bonded personally with all her kids.
"Well, it's nice to see that you've grown into yourself, Damon," Lily said with a smile. I could see it was strained now. And her eyes narrowed slightly. But Damon gave his own fake charming, close mouthed grin. After a couple seconds of their silent stare off, her smile dropped "How's your brother?" She asked, changing the subject thankfully.
Damon opened his mouth to respond then he closed it. He turned his head to face me, his eyes held a whole tsunami of conflicting emotions. He was searching my face for any indication of whether I approved or disapproved of her and this idea. Yet at the same time he was pleading with me to just answer her instead because he couldn't read me. He couldn't bare to make this decision when it both caused him pain and benefitted us at the same time.
So I cleared my throat, making the choice for him and Stefan. "Your other son isn't doing well at the moment. He's usually a kindhearted, rational, caring gentleman. But due to some unfortunate... circumstances he's not like himself. You see, he flipped the switch. He turned off his humanity. And we are desperate to find a way to make him feel, care about something enough to turn it back on," I explained as simply as I could. "That's why we're here. We wanted your help. Stefan is the love of my life. And I don't have the time to try to make him remember he loves me. That could take days or weeks we don't have. You see, we need normal, humanity having Stefan to help us save another no-humanity friend who is acting out because her mother died—"
"Stay on subject," Damon chuckled, nudging my shoulder and I blushed. Oops. I did tend to do that.
"So, you believe I can reconnect Stefan with his humanity?" Lily questioned bewildered.
"Yes," Elena answered.
"The last memory Stefan has of you is a vision of an angel telling him "Everything is going to be okay." Stefan, loves you. And he hasn't seen you in so long. You will most definitely trigger something in him, faster than we can," I told Lily.
"So, you're gonna be an angel again. He doesn't need to how how screwed-up you really are," Damon added and I elbowed him. We were trying to convince her to help us. That wasn't helping.
Lily frowned at his words. Then she looked at me, studying my face. "Of course I'll help! I'd love nothing more than to see him again," she grinned.
I raised a brow, not sure I believed her. But before I could play the kind part and ask if she was sure, Damon slammed his hands on the table, standing up. "Pack your bags," he said.
Lily stands up quickly, "Wonderful!" She grinned, laughing softly. She looked excited. Finally some real emotion. "I'll alert the others, hmm?" She asked.
I froze midway of standing up. "You'll alert who, now?" Damon questioned.
"You knew so much about me, I assumed you'd heard of my traveling companions," Lily replied as I stood up fully and Elena got up now too.
"What traveling companions?"
"I'll show you," she grinned. She then took off, leaving us to follow. She fetched a small dainty lamp before leading us up into the attic. It was dark, colder for some reason, and dusty as one would expect from an attic.
I clutched onto Damon's arm as we came to a stop. A bunch of desiccated vampires sat straight up in chairs around a long table. I held back a gag, looking away. Flashbacks of years ago, going in the tomb when Damon was trying to find Katherine came to mind. I was scared then too, even before I was fed into one of the zombie looking things.
"Everyone, meet my son Damon. He's here to take us home," Lily said.
I shivered in disgust. There was 6 of them. They were strangers. We couldn't take vampires back to present day Mystic Falls. That would be a complete and total disaster. I jumped in fright as music began playing. I glanced over at Lily to see her standing over an old record player.
"These vampires have been trapped here with you? The whole time?" Elena questioned incredulously.
"We went everywhere together. They happened to be on the boat that night, poor souls," Lily sighed.
Damon's eyebrows raised, "These... poor souls..." he repeated slowly. "Don't happen to have the same affinity for rolling heads, do they?" He asked.
"On the contrary, these people saved me from that part of myself," Lily answered, moving to stand behind the lot of them. Ew, ew, ew. "I was banished here because I was a monster. I drank with no remorse from whatever human I could sink my teeth into. But, locked in this cage, I was forced to confront the animal I had become." She pauses to adjust the handkerchief in one of the desiccated men's suit pocket. Gross! Ugh! "And, as we ran out of resources, my friends sacrificed their rations for me. And, I knew if I drank everything, as every bone in my body demanded, there wouldn't be enough to wake them. So, I learned to control my bloodlust, for them. These people made me feel human again."
"Can we please go?" I whispered to Damon, slipping my hand in his and giving it a squeeze. He moved his skeptical gaze from her to me. "Now."
He nodded in reply. Lily walked around the table then, towards us. "I'll fetch the rest of the blood so we can revive them," she said and then left before we could stop her.
I gaped at her retreating figure. "We are not taking them," I said as quietly as possible, looking over at Damon and Elena. My twin had wandered more into the room, towards the starving vamps. She stopped in front of a guy on the end. His eyes open and bloodshot. Ew! Elena held up a finger in front of his face and moved it side to side. His eyes followed. I gagged then. "Stop!" I hissed.
"Not only is she a Ripper," Damon was saying before I squeezed his hand. He took the hint, finishing his sentence in a whisper, "She's an insane Ripper!"
"Or maybe she feels responsible for them," Elena shrugged.
"What?" I scoffed.
"Are you kidding me? She has a vampire dollhouse," Damon whispered back.
Elena ignored him, walking around some more. Then she stopped at a table, picking up a small wooden box. "Damon?" She called one confusion, looking back in our direction at him. "Isn't this the Ascendant?"
Damon cleared his throat, nodding, "yeah."
"Why isn't Bonnie here?" Elena frowned, opening the magical piece
Damon sighed. I dropped his hand, crossing my arms. This oughta be good. "Because Bonnie isn't looking for the Ascendant, Elena."
"What is she doing?" Elena and I both asked.
"Handling our Kai problem."
"What?" I hissed. "She could be in danger!"
"She's not. She can take him," Damon argued. "She needs to do this. It'll help with her fears and anxiety. Plus he deserves it. So let her get her revenge."
"What is she going to do? Leave him here?" I scoffed.
"Or kill him," Damon smirked.
"Bonnie isn't a killer," Elena said, giving him a scolding look. Damon merely shrugged.
"Whatever. We have it. Let's just get out of here and go find her, please," I said, exasperated. I didn't want to spend another second in this candlelit room with these rotting people.
"Yeah, let's go," Damon replied. Then he left and Elena and I scurried after him back to the main part of the house. The two of them stopped by the door to pull on their coats they had taken off I guess when they got here before me. "Your vampire-menagerie is going to have to take the next train out. We're down a witch," Damon stated.
I looked to see Lily was in the doorway to the family room. Her coat on again and her depleted jar of blood in her hands. But the best part was how appalled she looked at her son's words. "You want to leave them behind? No, Damon, you can't save me without saving them," she frowned.
"We'll come back for them. Promise. Let's go."
Elena opened the front door then. And we both gasped. "Damon, look outside! Is that the Aurora Borealis?" Elena grinned in amazement.
"Bonnie!" I shouted, pointing as our best friend came in view, running towards us.
"That's our ticket out of here," Bonnie said. I opened my arms and she collapsed in them, taking a moment to catch her breath.
"You okay?" I asked.
"Yeah," she panted, pulling away. "You got it?" She asked, looking between the three of us.
"Oh, yeah!" Elena gasped, pulling it out of her coat pocket and handing it over.
"Okay," Bonnie smiled.
"Let's go," I said, turning to look at Damon. He nodded but I pointed behind him. Lily was no longer standing there.
"You gotta be kidding me!" He growled, looking over his shoulder at the empty room. "Go. Start the damn spell. I'll go get her," he instructed. Then in a flash he had vanished.
"You heard him, let's get out of here," Bonnie said.
"You guys go," I said. "I'm going to make sure he gets her. And she doesn't get her friends."
"Friends?" Bonnie frowned.
"I'll explain," Elena mumbled, shaking her head. Then I ran off in a flash before they could stop me or waste any more time.
"You don't understand, Damon. I will not leave them!" I heard Lily yell as I got to the attic.
"Too bad," Damon growled.
"They are my family!" She screamed as I stopped in the doorway. Damon looking directly at me, his hand on her wrist trying to pull her to leave. But she yanked herself away. "These people are my family."
I swear my heart cracked a little bit as I saw all the waves of hurt crash in eyes. Flooding the shore. And quickly darkening, as if it didn't care if drowned anyone. I stepped inside the room, going to grab him when he spun around.
"These freaks may be your family, but Stefan Salvatore is mine, and if you don't want to help him, I will leave you here to rot!" He growled, "Do you understand me?"
Lily looked conflicted. But in the end, her shoulders sagged in defeat. She knew it was either her and the possibility of her 'family' later or never for any of them. With a small nod she agreed. A second later, Damon had stormed off alone and I gave Lily a pointed glare. I ushered for her to go so she couldn't try anything. Not sure what she could do now, seeing as her blood jar was smashed onto the floor. The small drops of blood wasted. There was no saving her friends. And I thank god for that. I didn't trust her. Why would I trust her taste in friends or so called family?
I followed the two Salvatores out the house, through a little bit of snow, and up a small hill to reach Elena and Bonnie. We quickly joined hands with the other two while Bonnie began chanting.
"Bonnie!" I heard a faint scream. My eyes widened and I looked around. Kai was stumbling up hill. He looked hurt and desperate. We were leaving him. I started to smirk as the realization set in. He deserves this. Maybe now my nightmares would stop.
A bright flash went off. I groaned, wincing and shutting my eyes. That was super annoying. After a few seconds when I could no longer see the light shining behind my eyelids, I opened them. Back in the boarding house.
"Home sweet home," Damon mumbled.
"Well, I should get out of here just in case Stefan shows up to spend the night. The last thing I want is to argue with him," I commented and he chuckled.
"Later, kitten," he said.
"Show your mom to a guest room," I instructed. Then I hugged Elena and Bonnie goodbye. The latter saying she'd be on her way to Whitmore soon too. I gave Lily a wave before I rushed out the door.
***
An hour later I was on campus, showered, and now knocking on Tyler's door. "Waking me up, two nights in a row?" Ty smirked sleepily after he opened the door to see me standing there.
"I had a long day," I said.
"Want to talk about it?"
"Please?" I smiled relieved. He cut on the lights and let me into the room. We moved to sit on his bed where we started talking. I told him about Lily being alive, being a vampire, being a ripper, being in the present day, and how she was supposed to be the key to turning Stefan's humanity back on.
"And then will Stenzie be back together?" He asked and I chuckled.
"Hopefully," I admitted. "I don't know. I'm really bothered that he turned off his humanity for her."
"For her?" He frowned. "Why?"
"Well, for his niece."
"Stefan has a niece?"
"Yeah. It's a secret. She's normal, adopted, no idea about her family or vampires. He apparently told Caroline about her for some reason after I had to beg him to tell me what he was hiding," I complained.
"Wow. But what does she have to do with his humanity switch?"
"Oh, yeah. Um... Caroline decided to get Elena's compelled to forget about them ex, to perform surgery on Stefan's niece, Sarah. Caroline told Stefan to turn his humanity off so he wouldn't make her turn hers on, or let Sarah die because we couldn't find her," I gave him the full story.
"Shit!" He gasped. "I mean, do you blame him?"
"But I had found her!" I cried. "I found her and saved her. But it was too late. He already did it."
"He did it for his niece."
"Doesn't even matter. The damage is done," I sighed, sitting up now. At some point in all my talking I ended up with my head in his lap, laying vertical on his bed and staring up at the ceiling.
"What damage?" Tyler chuckled.
"His psycho mom is back, for starters," I grumbled. I really hoped that wasn't a mistake. And more importantly, I hoped it worked. I wasn't so sure about her connection to her boys. It didn't go well with Damon. She didn't say any of the right things. No apology, no joy of seeing him. Nothing. And then she called those desiccated zombies her family.
"And us?" Tyler smirked, his large hand cupping my jaw and turning my head so I faced him.
"Well, yes," I mumbled, blushing.
"Do you regret it?" He asked, eyes drifting down to my lips.
"Tyler," I said warningly.
"What?" He laughed, leaning his face closer. "We had such a good time. Didn't we?"
"Yes, but... Stefan—"
"We already did it. What's another time going to bother Stefan? I mean, the asshole doesn't even deserve you after all the shit he's put you through all year."
"But I love him," I stated.
"You're used to him," he retorted. "All that time he pretended he was dead. Would he have ever came back to you? And since he's come back, he's made no effort in making things up to you. He's been with Caroline. Nonstop. He's probably with her right now... you know they've already kissed once—"
"Shut up," I spat, giving him a hard shove. His hold on my face dropped.
"Did he even apologize for that? Say it was a mistake? Hmm? Or did he like it? As much as I liked kissing you... I'm not trying to hurt you Kenzie. I'm just saying, you and Stefan weren't really together before he turned his humanity off. You're not together tonight. Who knows if you will be tomorrow or whenever he turns it back on."
"We were making up the other night," I argued.
"Because he apologized? Because he made up for all he did? Or because he said he loved you and you decided you missed him too much—?"
"I love him!" I repeated. "And I know that sounds pathetic, Tyler. He has put me through hell. And he probably doesn't deserve my easy forgiveness. But I miss him like crazy. And I'm so tired of this back and forward bullshit. He wants me, I want him. I'm done fighting him or wasting any more time. I just want to be happy again."
"Okay," he said, taking my hand. "I'm sorry."
I stared at him for a long moment. I meant what I said. I was head over heels in love with Stefan. But I was hurting. And I was ready to be loved, taken care of, back to normal. All of it. I wanted this pain to go away. I wanted to smile and laugh with my husband, plan our friggin REAL wedding finally.
But here I was. In Tyler's room. On his bed. He was offering to make me feel good tonight. And Stefan was probably somewhere with Caroline fucking up shit. I was the last thing on his mind tonight.
Tyler was right. I had no idea what would happen when Stefan got his humanity back on. We'd have his mom to deal with. Caroline to take care of. And we definitely needed to do more talking. The night at the rave... I was desperate to make up. I fell for hearing what I wanted to hear: Stefan picking me over Caroline. But that didn't mean when he was back to normal and we saw each other next, we were fixed. That we were happy husband and wife. I mean, I already had to tell him about the other night with Tyler. Fuck.
I was growing frustrated with all the roadblocks still between Stefan and I. All the drama that seemed to always surround us. Right now we got his mom, his niece, his complicated friendship with Caroline... and now me hooking up with Tyler?
"What the hell, another night isn't going to do any more damage than what's already been done," I said, leaning towards Tyler. "I'm overwhelmed and stressed. But tonight I'm yours. Make me forget how shitty my life is. Please."
He barely nodded before I was kissing him, hungrily. I was devouring him, desperate to stop thinking about Stefan. Because that's all I ever did. And the reality is there was a chance of Stefan and I being over once and for all. Despite how badly I didn't want that to be true. How badly I wanted him.
If any more time passed in the same tragic way these last 8 months have been, I was afraid there would be nothing left but exasperation, longing, and heartbreak. That's not what any married couple should feel.
"Make me forget," I said more angrily, tugging Tyler by his hair. I couldn't stop thinking. Even as he pulled my shirt over my head, I got angry. His hands, his arms, his lips... It wasn't Stefan and that's who my body craved.
So I rushed Ty. Because the more pleasure I felt, the more it consumed me and the less I could think. I needed my brain to shut off. I needed to be overtaken by pleasure and lust. Tyler gave me exactly what I desired. Quick and hard, brain shattering sex. Where his name was the only one on my lips and he and his body were the only ones on my mind.
The rest of the world could go back to kicking my ass tomorrow. And I knew it would. But for right now, I was being fucked in the only way I wanted.
"Yes!" I screamed as loud as I could, legs tightening around Tyler's waist. "I'm so close."
"Me too," he grunted, leaning down to swallow my moans with a deep kiss. And just like that I was over the edge with an orgasm by a friend, just to fill in a void of someone else.
He rolled over beside me, wrapping an arm around my waist when we were done. "Fuck, that was amazing," he said, kissing my shoulder.
"Uh-Huh," I uttered out of breath. Tyler chuckled, his hand sliding up to my breast, groping it in his rough hand. "Mmm." He kisses along my neck while his fingers twisted my nipple until it was a hard bead. "What are you doing?"
"Seeing if you want a round two," he said huskily.
"No," I laughed, turning my head to face him.
"Sure you're satisfied?" He asked, licking his lips.
"Yes," I answered honestly. "I just... can we cuddle?"
He snorted, "yeah, Kenzie. Let me just... clean myself off and I'll be right back."
"I need the bathroom too, actually."
He and I both rolled out of bed. We headed into his small ensuite. I went pee while he decided to hop in the shower. "I'll be out in a minute to cuddle, don't fall asleep on me!" He shouted as I was exiting.
"I won't," I laughed, walking back into his room. I plopped down on his bed with a smile. I was so glad things weren't weird between us. Maybe we had complicated things as friends. But... I knew whatever happened, we could forget this. Or it could continue.
Depends on how everything with my husband goes over the next couple of days. All I knew was Tyler was here. He's been here for me this whole time.
Ty didn't take long in the shower. And when he came into the room he offered me clothes to sleep in. I pulled them on while he pulled on boxers. Then he was in bed, spooning me tightly. I felt safe in a tight cocoon. This made any doubt go away. I didn't regret being with him. The last two nights were worth it to me. Last night was about revenge and sexual frustration. Tonight was about so much more. And he gave me what I've been needing for so long now.
Tyler filled the role of wanting me, giving me affection, and making me lose myself in our intimate steamy moments.
"Breakfast, tomorrow?" He suggested, mumbling against my shoulder. I giggled. Oh and he knew me so well. Food was always a good idea.
"Yes," I agreed with no hesitation. "A big breakfast."
~Picture: Kenzie dressed for winter 1903
So how messy are things? Tyler and Kenzie are friends with benefits now. Stefan and Caroline have no humanity and are together doing who knows what. Lily is here and wants her friends to join the fun. Damon is pretending he's not hurt by her lack of affection for her own children. Bonnie ditches Kai in 1903 to get her own revenge.
Next chapter we have all of that to deal with plus a little Jo and Ric, some Enzo who has been MIA for awhile, and even Matt who Kenzie doesn't see very often.
But before you read the sneak peek, tell me who you're shipping Kenzie with. Stefan, Tyler, Enzo... Damon???? 😏👀
I'm just saying. Anything could happen.
SNEAK PEEK:
"Kenzie, thank god," Matt breathed.
"Get over it, he doesn't want you," Caroline scoffed, glaring at me now. Stefan got up from his seat, approaching us all slowly with his eyes on me. He was being cautious, trying to figure out what I was up to. But I had no plan. I was here to save Ty and Matt.
"No, he doesn't want you," I corrected, coming up to Tyler's side. "And Tyler doesn't want you. No one wants poor slutty Caroline. Cause they want me."
"You want my sloppy seconds?" She retorted.
"I've had them, they weren't sloppy at all," I smirked, raising a brow at her while placing my arm on Tyler's large flexed bicep.
"You what?" Caroline gasped.