Author's Note: Right, so I know the whole 'Elena had a twin sister' thing has been done a million times over, but I've given a lot of thought to Jessica's character. For the first few episodes, she's going to be a total nightmare. She's not at all perfect. She's insecure and she makes a lot of mistakes, and a lot of them end up hurting others. I actually hate my OC right now. Is it normal to actually hate your own original character? But she develops in a very Caroline way, though I won't be completely stealing that plot.

Sorry about the really long author's note! Enjoy the story!

Pilot

Dear diary,

Today, I am going to get out of this funk. No more depressed Jessica. Not that I want to retreat back into my old self who made the worst mistakes... Ugh, looks like I have to face one of them today.

I feel horrible for what I did to Matt. He looks so broken when I see him... I really hurt him bad. I can't blame him, I did a pretty shitty thing. Elena still gives me crap about it, crap that I seriously deserve. Maybe, we can talk today and sort things out. Maybe he'll forgive me.

Yeah, when hell freezes over.

Hopefully, I can ignore the both pitiful and slut-shaming stares people are going to give me.

Yours sincerely,
Jessica

A brown haired girl sighed and threw back her head, groaning. She stood up, dressed in a purple tank top and denim jeans. Her hair was tied up neatly in a french plait. She rarely wore make-up, and if she did, it was only a tint of mascara.

She spent the whole summer hating herself. Grieving for the loss of her parents. She was going to be happy. No one could stop that.

She smiled reassuringly at her reflection, but it looked forced. She wasn't happy, she was breaking. Slowly, but surely. The brunette was one break down away from giving up, which she had been thinking of doing all summer. But if she died, Elena and Jeremy would be even more broken. She couldn't stand the thought of doing that to them.

And yes, surprisingly, Jessica Gilbert wasn't a complete selfish bitch.

Sighing, she threw her brown bag over her shoulder and went down to the kitchen. "Hey, Jess," Jenna said, smiling.

Jenna was the fun aunt. She was the only person who would take them in and now, she was strangely motherly to them, even though she was still struggling with her role.

"Morning, Jenna," Jessica replied.

"You want something?" she asked, bustling around the kitchen. "Oh! Elena fixed the toaster?"

Jessica nodded. "But I'm fine. I'll just get something at lunch."

Jenna pointed a rather parental finger at Jessica. "You need to be eating more often. Last night, you barely touched your dinner. And it was pizza. Pizza! You love pizza!"

She shrugged nonchalantly. "I wasn't hungry. Jenna, stop worrying about me."

Jenna let out a loud sigh. "I always worry about you." Getting out of her downer mood, she piped up suddenly. "How about toast? I can make toast."

"It's all about the coffee, Aunt Jenna," Elena said, smiling as she entered the kitchen.

Jeremy joined them, already stoned from what Jessica could see. "Is there coffee?" He took Elena's mug. Said brunette glared at him, while the other simply laughed.

Jenna rooted in her purse. "Your first day of school and I'm totally unprepared. Lunch money?" She pulled out three five dollars.

"I'm good," Elena assured her.

"Eh, me too," Jessica added.

Jenna shot the girl a look, but before she could disagree, Jeremy snatched the three fives from her hand. "Anything else? A number two pencil? What am I missing?"

"Isn't that big presentation today?" Jessica said.

"I'm meeting with my thesis advisor at..." She checked the watch on her wrist. "...now. Crap!"

Elena gave her a smile. "Then go. We'll be fine." Jenna nodded gratefully to her and stormed out. "You guys okay?"

Jeremy didn't have time for meaningful chats, apparently. "Don't start."

As Jeremy left, Elena turned to her younger, identical twin sister. "Jess?"

She shrugged her shoulders. "Meh."

"So Grams is telling me I'm psychic," Bonnie, their best friend, rambled as she drove them all to school. "Our ancestors were from Salem, witches and all that, I know, crazy, but she's going on and on about it, and I'm like, put this woman in a home already!"

"Oh, Bonnie, we're all thinking that," Jessica said.

Bonnie shot her a look. Despite her constant complaining about her grams, she loved the woman dearly. She didn't like it when anyone but her complained about the occult professor. "Anyway... But then I started thinking, I predicted Obama and I predicted Heath Ledger, and I still think Florida will break off and turn into little resort islands... Elena! Back in the car."

Jessica turned back her head to look at Elena, who had a dazed expression on her face as she stared out the window. "I did it again, didn't I? I-I'm sorry, Bonnie. You were telling me that..."

"She's psychic now," Jessica told her.

"Right," Elena started. "Okay, then predict something. About me."

Bonnie smiled slightly. "I see..."

Suddenly, a dark object, like a crow, hit Bonnie's front window. The three girls flinched back in their seats. Jessica gripped the sides of her seat tightly and looked away from the bird.

"What was that?" Bonnie practically roared. "Oh, my god! Elena, Jess, you guys okay?"

"It's okay. I'm fine," Elena assured the worrying Bennett.

"Jessica?" she inquired.

"Perfectly fine," Jessica snapped. Her features softened when she noticed Bonnie was hurt. "Sorry, I-I shouldn't have snapped like that. I'm working on those... uh... issues."

Bonnie nodded and smiled kindly. "It's okay."

"But seriously," Jessica started with a small smile. "We can't be freaked out by cars our entire lives."

"I predict this year is going to be kick ass," Bonnie said, smiling. "And I predict all the sad and dark times are over and you guys are going to be beyond happy."

"Major lack of male real estate," Bonnie commented as the three of them went into the school. "Look at the shower curtain on Kelly Beech. She looks like a hot... can I still say 'tranny mess'?"

"No, that's over," Jessica replied.

She smiled. "Ah, find a man, coin a phrase. It's a busy year."

Jessica laughed, but her attention was on a certain blonde quarterback who was walking through the hall. She gave him a wave, but he scowled and ignored her. "He hates me."

"Well, you did sleep with his best friend," Bonnie said, making the tanned brunette wince. "That's gotta hurt."

"I made a mistake, a huge, huge mistake that I'll regret for the rest of my life, but that doesn't mean I like to be reminded of it every ten seconds," Jessica said as calmly as she could muster.

Bonnie held up her hands in defense, not wanting to anger her. "Not judging."

A boy - Jacob Browne - gave her a flirty wink. Jessica groaned. "Everyone's acting like I'm some slut who's just gonna jump into bed with them on a whim. I'm not Vicki Donovan!"

Elena rolled her brown eyes as a blonde overachiever approached them. "Elena, Jessie. Oh, my god." She wrapped her arms around the twins, holding them tightly to her chest. "How are you? Oh, it's so good to see you guys. How are they? Are they good?"

"Uh, hi, we're over here," Jessica said shortly, giving a small wave.

Elena gave her sister a pointed look. "We're fine. Thank you."

Caroline smiled sympathetically at them. "Really?"

"Yeah, peachy," Jessica assured, rolling her eyes a little. Oh, yeah, our parents died. But we're totally fine. In the brunette's view, it was stupid of people to ask. Of course they weren't fine. Fine was when your hamster died, who knew how long it would be until they were properly fine?

"Oh, you poor things!" Caroline exclaimed, before engulfing them in another bone-crushing hug.

"Okay, Caroline..." Elena said pleadingly.

She pulled away. "Oh! Okay, see you guys later?"

"Okay!" Bonnie called as Caroline spun around. "Bye!"

"No comment," Elena said, shaking her head and staring after her, somewhat traumatised.

"I'm not going to say anything," their best friend added.

Jessica was glaring at Caroline's retreating back. Insensitive much? "Ugh."

The girls continued to walk down the hall, Bonnie chattering about the latest fads with Elena and Jessica popping in a comment here and there.

Suddenly, Bonnie's rant came to a halt as she stopped by the school office. "Hold up. Who's this?"

"All I see is back," Elena said.

"One sexy, hot back," Jessica said, grinning.

"Hey," the other Gilbert sister scolded, causing her twin to look at her in confusion. "It wouldn't be very polite to get in a relationship so soon after... Matt."

Jessica scoffed. "All I said is that he has a nice back. Doesn't mean I want to date the guy. Besides, who cares what everyone else thinks?"

"Not so much what everyone else thinks," she began, her tone deadly serious. "More what Matt will think."

Jessica clenched her fists and bit her tongue, but it came out anyway. "Oh, why don't you and Matt hook up already? We all know he's been pining over you for years."

"Are we really gonna talk about this again?" Elena asked, scoffing. "Matt was never into me. It was always you he was interested in."

She knew it was a lie. Jessica saw how Matt used to look at Elena, who had been dating Jordan Davis before the accident. Maybe she was being paranoid, but she was so used to being looked over that everyone chose her sister over her, that she just resigned herself to the fact that everyone would.

"Besides," Elena continued, "It's not like you have the right to be jealous. You're the reason that relationship failed."

Bonnie watched her friends worriedly, especially Jessica, who was glaring at her twin venomously. She tried to lighten the conversation. "I'm sensing Seattle, and he plays the guitar."

Elena laughed uneasily and Jessica tried her best to drop the previous animosity. "You're really going to run this whole psychic thing into the ground, huh?"

She nodded. "Pretty much."

"Jeremy! Good batch, man!"

Elena rolled her eyes. "I'll be right back."

She rushed off. "Shouldn't you go with her?" Bonnie asked.

Jessica shrugged. "Eh. No need for both of us."

Bonnie nodded, gawking once again at the dude's back. "Please be hot."

Jessica doodled on a piece of paper as Tanner went on and on and on... "Once our home state of Virginia joined confederacy in 1861, it created a tremendous amount of tension within the state. People in Virginia's northwest region had different ideals than those from the traditional deep south. Then Virginia divided in 1863 with the northwest region joining the union."

As Tanner rambled, Elena was exchanging eye-sex with the new guy. Figures she get the hot dude. Everyone always chose Elena.

It'll always be Elena.

Elena took out her phone as it vibrated. She recieved a text from Bonnie.

Bonnie: HAWT-E. STARING U.

She turned to Stefan, who was, as Bonnie wrote, staring at her. A small smile graced her lips before she went back to 'listening' to her history teacher.

Later that day, Jessica was walking into the Grill with Bonnie. They were meeting Elena and Caroline there. "His name is Stefan Salvatore," Jessica informed Bonnie. "He lives with his uncle up at the old Salvatore boarding house. He hasn't lived here since he was a kid. Military family, so they never settled in one place for too long. He's a gemini and his favourite colour is blue."

Bonnie was a little awed at her friend. "You got all of that in one day?"

Jessica grinned. "Oh, puh-lease, I got all that between third and fourth period. What do you think of a June wedding?"

"Uh, nice..." she said. She saw Matt by the pool table with Tyler as the two of them slid into a booth. Bonnie felt pity for the sweet, kind boy. "Maybe you should hold off a bit. Elena's right, it's basically a punch in the face for Matt."

Jessica scoffed. "But don't I deserve to be happy?"

Bonnie sighed heavily. She really didn't want to anger her. "Yes, you do, but so does Matt."

"It's been four months, why isn't he over it?" Jessica pressed, leaning back into her seat. "I mean, he's back friends with Tyler and they're still best buds, why is he still so upset with me?"

Bonnie shrugged. "They've been best friends since they were kids. Boy rule, I guess."

The Gilbert girl crossed her arms and huffed. "It's sexist, that's what it is. The girl gets all the blame and the boy comes out without a scratch."

"Well, not 'without a scratch,'" Bonnie said. "Matt punched him pretty hard after he found out."

"Vicki told him," Jessica said, sending a glare the waitress' way. "Like she was in the position to judge someone for opening their legs when she does it more often than she smokes weed. And that's saying something."

"It was her brother," Bonnie pointed out. "You were cheating on her brother with his best friend..."

"...who she's currently doing, might I add."

Bonnie shot her a look and she shrugged indifferently, not caring at all for Vicki Donovan. "She had every right to tell him. If Jeremy's girlfriend was cheating on him, you'd tell him, right?" Jessica pursed her lips, not answering her question. "Exactly."

"I learned my lesson, Bonnie," Jessica told her. "I just... I saw the way he looked at Elena and-"

"Wait," Bonnie interrupted, holding her hand up and gesturing for her to stop. "You slept with Tyler the night of the party because you were jealous of Elena?"

Jessica's face scrunched up, not at all believing what was coming out of Bonnie's mouth. "No. No way. I slept with Tyler because I was drunk. End of."

Bonnie shook her head. "No. Jessica, you don't have to lie to me. I won't tell anyone."

As Jessica opened her mouth to snap at her, they were joined by a bubbly blonde. "Hi, guys!" Caroline boomed, sitting down next to Bonnie.

Thank God for Caroline, Jessica thought for the first time that year. Before her parents died, she was really close with Caroline, but she wasn't exactly the go-to when she was feeling sad or grieving her parents.

Jessica and Bonnie shared a look, Bonnie giving her a 'we are so talking about this later' look as Jessica shot her a cheeky smile. Caroline glanced between them. "Am I missing something?"

"No," Jessica said immediately, directing a warning look at Caroline. "So, Care. How's your love life going?"

Caroline perked up at the topic of romance. "Well, Jacob Browne was flirting with me today-"

"Douche bag," she commented. Caroline's face fell. "Go on."

As Caroline rambled on about her love life and Sam Walters (a very handsome jock), Jessica excused herself and went to the bathroom.

"What's up with her?" Caroline asked, watching Jessica run to the bathroom.

"She's just... complicated," Bonnie said.

"Wow. And I thought she was complicated before." Bonnie shot her a look. "What?"

Matt was walking over to them. He took a seat on one of the chairs. "Hey."

"Hi, Matt," Caroline chirped.

"Uh, how's Jessica doing?" Bonnie noticed how awkward the topic was for him.

"Her mom and dad died," Bonnie replied, trying not to bring up the whole cheating situation. "She's putting on a good face, but it's only been four months."

Matt nodded understandingly. "I feel a little bad, you know. Avoiding her after the accident. She needed me."

"She slept with Tyler." Matt flinched at the blonde's statement, it wasn't exactly an easy thing for him to hear. He tried to put it at the back of his mind so he could get on with his life. "You're right to be mad at her. It's gotta suck for you."

He smiled a little at Caroline. She may have been insensitive, but she had her heart in the right place. "Has she said anything about me?"

Bonnie shook her head and gave Caroline one of her scolding looks as she opened her mouth to respond. "Oh, no. So not getting in the middle. You pick up the phone and call her."

"I'd feel weird calling her," Matt stated. "She slept with my best friend and then I broke up her."

"No one's asking you to," Caroline assured him. Her expression became judgmental all of a sudden. "Wait, do want to get back together with her?"

Matt was taken aback. "Um..."

"Oh my God!" Caroline exclaimed, covering her mouth with her hands. Bonnie thought she was over-exaggerating. "You do!"

Matt looked away from her, a little ashamed. "Give it more time, Matt," Bonnie said to him.

He nodded to her, but at the real wrong time, the new guy, Stefan, entered the Grill with Elena and Jessica.

Jessica always did have 'great' timing, Bonnie mused.

"More time, huh?" Matt said angrily, getting up and striding over to the three of them.

"Ooh," Caroline said worried. She was beginning to get annoyed when Bonnie shot her yet another one of her looks. "What?"

Matt offered his hand to Stefan. "Hey, I'm Matt, nice to meet you."

Stefan shook it firmly. "Hi. Stefan."

Elena nodded to him. Jessica was shifting uncomfortably, it was the first time they were within a feet of each other in months. "Hey," she said, smiling slightly.

His face showed no sign of happiness, it was stony. "Hey," he deadpanned, making Jessica flinch.

"So, you were born in Mystic Falls?" Caroline asked Stefan, who was currently under interrogation.

He nodded. "Mhm. And I moved when I still young."

"Parents?" Bonnie inquired.

"My parents passed away."

"Oh, I'm sorry. Any siblings?" Jessica questioned, sending an obvious glare to Elena, who returned it with a mock glare. They both withheld their laughter.

"None that I talk to," Stefan said. "I live with my uncle."

"So, Stefan, if you're new, then you don't know about the party tomorrow," Caroline said, she had also been taken with Stefan's charm and hot back.

"It's a back to school thing at the falls," Bonnie informed him.

He looked to Elena. "Are you going?"

Jessica scowled. Of course it was Elena. Everyone loves Elena.

"Of course she is," Bonnie but in.

Elena smiled softly, smitten with the boy in front of her.

"The Battle of Willow Creek took place right at the end of the war in our very own Mystic Falls. How many casualties resulted in this battle? Ms. Bennett?"

Bonnie straightened up as Tanner's unhelpful gaze landed on her. "Um... a lot? I'm not sure. Like a whole lot."

The class laughed, but Tanner wasn't amused. "Cute becomes dumb in an instant, Ms. Bennett. Mr. Donovan? Would you like to take this opportunity to overcome your embedded jock stereotype?"

Matt smiled goofily. Jessica felt old feelings rush back. Everything shattered because of that one mistake. "It's okay, Mr. Tanner, I'm cool with it."

"Hm. Miss Gilbert?" The two of them looked up. "Jessica?"

"Eh..." She peeked into her history book, only turning over the corners.

"No cheating," he said stonily.

She plopped back into her chair, making it bounce back. The class laughed once again. "I'm... unaware of that particular question."

Great, now my English is failing, she snapped at herself.

He sighed. "Elena? Surely you can enlighten us about one of the town's most significantly historical events?"

Elena was just as oblivious as the rest of us. "I'm sorry, I-I don't know."

"I was willing to be lenient last year for obvious reasons, girls. But the personal excuses ended with summer break."

In Jessica's view, that wasn't fair at all. It was like putting a timer on their grieving period.

The teen heartthrob that was Stefan Salvatore apparently had a brain inside that pretty head of his. "There were three hundred and fourty-six casualties. Unless you're counting local civilians."

Tanner was impressed by what Jessica could see. "That's correct. Mister..."

"Salvatore."

"Salvatore. Any relation to the original settlers here at Mystic Falls?"

"Distant."

"Well, very good. Except..." A smirk crept up on his face. "...of course, there were no civilian casualties in this battle."

"Actually, there were twenty-six, sir. Confederate soldiers, they fired on the church, believing it to be housing weapons. They were wrong. It was a night of great loss. The founder's archives are, uh, stored in civil hall if you'd like to brush up on your facts. Mr. Tanner."

The class 'oohed' and laugh as Mr. Tanner glared at him. "Hm..."

At the party later that night, Jessica was chatting with one of the girls she knew from French. She saw Stefan arrive. "Uh, excuse me."

She followed after him. He noticed her and shot her a smile. It was odd... how he looked at her. It was like he saw her before. Like he knew her for years. Jessica brushed it off. "Hey! You made it!"

Stefan nodded. "I did."

"Well, how about we get you drink?" she offered.

"Well, I'm-"

"Come on," she urged.

He was looking past her. Jessica followed his stare, which led to Elena and Bonnie. Elena. "I... I'll talk to you later," he said, marching past her.

Her fake, cheery smile fell as soon as he was out of view. "Right."

Caroline walked up to her and handed her a drink. "Elena?"

Jessica nodded slowly. She was tired of being passed over for Elena. Before Matt, every other guy she was interested in preferred Elena. And she had an inkling that Matt had too.

She scoffed angrily. "It's always Elena."

Caroline downed her drink quickly as Jessica gulped down hers. "Tell me about it."

Once she finished her drink, she placed it on the table beside her. "It's always her. Always. Maybe I should just give up even trying!"

Caroline was very sympathetic, having been placed second to Elena many times before. "Believe me, I get it, uh..." She pointed behind her.

Jessica furrowed her eyebrows and turned around. "Tyler?"

Caroline clicked her tongue, not liking being put in such an awkward position. "I'll leave you guys to it."

Grabbing her drink, Caroline took off, leaving the two of them alone. "We haven't really talked since... that night."

Jessica rubbed the nape of her neck. "Yeah, uh. This is awkward."

He let out a laugh. "Yeah, it really is. I just want to tell you that it was good and maybe it could happen again?"

Tyler was smirking. She so badly wanted to smack him, but thought against it. They were in public. "No. Not happening. How could you even do that to Matt?"

He shrugged. "He doesn't own me."

Jessica stared at him like he was a three-headed dog. "He's your friend and you're with Vicki."

"That's nothing," Tyler assured her. "She's just a friend... with benefits sort of thing."

"You mean more to her than that and you know it," Jessica spat, glaring at him. "You're even worse than I am!"

Tyler looked around them nervously. "Can we continue this somewhere a little more private? Like in the woods?"

Jessica crossed her arms over her chest, not dropping her glare. "Fine."

"You know, you're kind of the talk of the town," Elena said to Stefan as they walked side-by-side through the party.

Stefan quirked an eyebrow. "Am I?"

Elena nodded. "Mhm. Mysterious new guy, oh, yeah."

"Well, you have the mysterious thing going, too. Twinged in sadness," Stefan commented.

Elena's head snapped over to him. "What makes you think that I'm sad?"

"Well, we did meet in a graveyard," he pointed out.

"Right." Good point... she hadn't thought of that. "Well, no, technically we met in the men's room. You don't want to know, it's... it's not exactly party 'chit-chat'."

He smiled kindly. "Well, I've never really been very good at, uh, 'chit-chat'."

Elena took a deep breath as she told him the tragic happenings of four months ago. "Last spring... my parents' car drove off of a bridge into the lake. And I was in the backseat and I survived, but... they didn't. So that's my story."

They stopped, getting lost in each other's eyes. "You won't be sad forever, Elena."

"You are the most self-centered brat I have ever met!" Jessica roared at Tyler after he tried to kiss her.

"What does that make you, then, huh?" Tyler bit back, seething. "You're the whore who slept with your boyfriend's best friend!"

She took a deep breath. Who the hell did he think he is? "Well, you're a dick who slept with his best friend's girlfriend!"

"You consented, so don't you dare act like you're all innocent," Tyler spat.

She threw her arms in the air. "I'm not! I never said I was! But I'm not the one who would rub it in Matt's face that we're in a relationship."

Tyler stepped closer to her. They were so close that they were only inches apart. She could feel his breath on her lips. "You know you're hot, right?"

Jessica gaped. How was she supposed to answer that? Tyler brushed a loose curl from her face. That was the only difference between the twins; Elena had dead straight hair while Jessica's hair was curly.

He kissed her neck and, despite herself, she moaned. It was wrong... they'd hurt Matt. She didn't want to hurt Matt. Not after everything she put him through.

"No, stop it," Jessica said firmly. Tyler pushed her into tree, pressing her against it. "Tyler, for heaven's sake, get the hell away from me!"

"Come on. Sex against a tree? That's hot," he said, smirking and continuing to kiss my neck.

He landed one right on her lips. Jessica squirmed beneath him, trying her best to get away. She brought her knee up and kneed him in the groin. He stepped back and grabbed his crotch. Jessica used the distraction to run as fast as she could away from him. She wasn't good at track, she was a cheerleader.

Arriving back at the party, she gasped for breath. Matt approached her. "Seriously, Jessica? That was low, sneaking off into the woods with Tyler. Do you know humiliating this is for me? My girlfriend went for my best friend. Again."

"I know, Matt, I-"

"No, I'm finished," he stated. "You don't think about anyone but yourself."

"Matt, we didn't do anything, I swear," she replied in a pleading tone. "I wouldn't."

He scoffed. "Quit lying, Jessica. You owe me that much. You're clothes are ripped, you're hair's a mess and you've just come out of the woods. What else am I to think?"

"I swear, Matt. He... I'm not even gonna go into it. We didn't do anything. Please believe me." She was beginning to sound pathetic, she was reducing herself to begging.

"I want to, Jessica. I really do, but I can't."

Like everyone else, he walked away. When she opened her eyes again, Bonnie was approaching her. "You don't think I'm crazy, do you?"

She placed a hand on her shoulder, mostly to stop herself from fainting. "No, Bon. I think you're perfectly sane."

"Are you okay?" she asked. "I just saw you go into the woods with Tyler..." She trailed off, taking in the brunette's ripped skirt. "You didn't..."

"Oh, he tried," Jessica said. Tears filled her eyes as she backed up against a tree. "And he... he was going to..."

Bonnie wrapped her arms around her friend. "You're okay, you're okay. Next time he comes near you, I'll kick his ass."

Jessica laughed. "Kick whose ass?"

They broke apart when they heard Jeremy's voice. "Nobody's. Just go back to the party," Bonnie said, since Jessica was too upset to say anything.

"No, I heard you guys mention Tyler. Like Tyler Lockwood." He scanned Jessica, similiar to what Bonnie had done only moments ago. His eyes widened, as if he just realised something. "I'm gonna kill that dick."

He was about to storm off, when Jessica grabbed his arm and pulled him back. "Don't. Jeremy, please. I'm fine, he didn't... he tried, but he didn't."

Jeremy ripped his arm from his sister's grasp. "I'm still gonna kill him."

He rushed away. Jessica made to follow him, but Bonnie pulled her back. "Come on. You need a drink."

Bonnie allowed for Jessica to get drunk, hell, she needed it. But when it came to her seventh glass, she started to worry. "Maybe you wanna back down on the tequila."

Jessica waved her hand. "Pfft. No way, I'm totally..." She stumbled over, catching herself by gripping the railings. "See? Perfectly in control! Ooh, there's Stefan!"

She went over to where Stefan was, ignoring Bonnie's 'get the hell over here!' at least twice. She was too drunk to hear. "Hey!" He whipped around to face her. "There you are. Have you been down to the falls yet? Because they're really cool at night. And I can show you... if you want."

"I think you've had too much to drink," Stefan commented.

Jessica shrugged. "Of course I have. So-"

"Jessica," he started the speech that she really dreaded. "You and me, it's not gonna happen. Sorry."

Saying she was 'hurt' was most definitely an understatement. Not even the alcohol could get rid of the lump in her chest. In one night, she had almost been forced to have sex against a tree, called a slut, her ex-boyfriend accused her of sleeping with his best friend (Jessica understood why, he had every right to be suspicious) and turned down in favour for her perfect sister.

You'd think I'd get used to this by now, she thought sadly before going to drown herself in more alcohol.

Bonnie wrapped an arm around an extremely drunk Jessica. "There, there."

"Alcohol is so amazing," Jessica said happily, almost skipping. "It can make everything bad just go away! Like fairy dust!" She giggled. "Alcohol is like fairy dust!"

She patted her back. "Yeah, alcohol is fairy dust."

A drunk Jessica was the least of her problems when Elena and Jeremy rushed into the party from the woods, Vicki was limp in their arms. "Somebody help!" Elena roared.

"Vicki? Vicki, what the hell?" Matt exclaimed, rushing over to his sister who had a bite mark on her neck.

"What happened to her?" Tyler inquired.

Matt ignored him and yelled, "Somebody, call an ambulance!"

"Everybody back up, give her some space!" Tyler said.

"It's her neck," Elena said. "Something bit her. She's losing a lot of blood."

A boy handed Matt a bandage. "Put this on her neck."

"Vicki, Vicki, come on, open your eyes, look at me," Matt begged.

"What's going on?" Uncle Zach asked as his 'nephew' rushed into the house.

"Someone else was attacked tonight, Zach, and it wasn't me," Stefan said. He slammed his bedroom door. There was a crow... in his bedroom. Only one person used effects like that. "Damon."

Damon was standing out on the balcony. He smirked. "Hello, brother."

"Crow's a bit much, don't you think?" Stefan asked.

"Wait til you see what I can do with the fog," he boasted.

"When'd you get here?" Stefan inquired.

"Well, I couldn't miss your first day at school." Stefan rolled his eyes at his brother's difficult. "Your hair's different. I like it."

"It's been fifteen years, Damon," he stated, almost nostalgic.

"Thank God. I couldn't take another day of the nineties. That horrible grunge look did not suit you. Remember, Stefan, it's important to stay away from fads." Stefan knew Damon never answered questions seriously.

"Why are you here?" he pressed.

Damon put on a fake pout. "I missed my little brother."

"You hate small towns," Stefan said. "It's boring. There's nothing for you to do."

His signature smirk appeared on his face. "I've managed to keep myself busy."

"You know, you left that girl alive tonight. That's very clumsy of you."

"Ah. That can be a problem... for you."

Stefan narrowed his eyes at him. "Why are you here now?"

"I could ask you the same question. However, I'm fairly certain your answer can be summed up all into two little words... Jessica and Elena."

Matt jumped into the ambulance, going to the hospital with his sister. "Hey," Bonnie said. "We're gonna go to Mainline Coffee, wait for news."

Elena nodded. "I gotta take Jeremy home. And by the looks of it, Jessica too."

"No way." Elena raised an eyebrow at her sister. "If Jenna sees me like this, I'm screwed."

"Probably best," she agreed.

"Elena, there's no way I'm psychic," Bonnie said suddenly. "I know that. But whatever I saw, or I think I saw, I have this feeling..."

"Bonnie, what?" Elena questioned, pressing for her to continue.

Then Bonnie said the creepiest line Jessica could have imagined. "That it's just the beginning."

"They took my breath away, the twins. They're dead ringers for Katherine. I've noticed your preference for one of them, Elena. Well, that's not too bad, I suppose. I'll just have the other one." His features darkened as he stepped towards his brother. "Is it working, Stefan? Being around her, being in her world? Does it make you feel alive?"

"She's not Katherine," Stefan said. "And Jessica isn't either."

"Well, let's hope not," Damon replied."We both know how that ended. Tell me something, when's the last time you had something stronger than a squirrel?"

"I know what you're doing, Damon. It's not gonna work," Stefan snapped. For a hundred years, Damon had tried every so often to get him to break his diet, usually, it didn't work. Unless he brought fresh human blood into the picture.

"Yeah? Come on. Don't you crave a little?" He preceded to hit Stefan.

"Stop it," Stefan growled.

"Let's do it," Damon said. "Together. I saw a couple girls out there. Or let's just cut to the chase and go for Elena and Jessica."

"Stop it!" Stefan began to yell.

Damon continued to taunt him. "Imagine what their blood tastes like!" Black veins crept up to Stefan's green eyes, which had now transformed into a much darker shade. "I can."

"I said stop!"

He vamped up to Damon and threw him out the window, shattering glass in the process. He landed on the ground, but he couldn't find Damon.

"I'm impressed." His brother was standing, not a scratch on him. "I give it a six. Missing style, but I was pleasantly surprised. Very good with the whole face thing. It was good."

"You know, it's all fun and games, Damon, huh? But wherever you go, people die."

Damon shrugged, like it didn't matter to him. "That's a given."

"Not here. I won't allow it."

Damon looked very happy, which irritated his brother to no ends. "I take that as an invitation."

"Damon, please. After all these years, can't we just give it a rest?" Stefan begged.

"I promised you an eternity of misery, so I'm just keeping my word," he snarled.

"Just stay away from Elena," Stefan warned. "And Jessica," he added as an afterthought.

"Where's your ring?" Damon smirked once again. "Oh, yeah, sun's coming up in a couple of hours, and, poof, ashes to ashes. Relax. It's right here." He gripped Stefan's throat and threw him against the garage door. "You should know better than to think you're stronger than me. You lost that fight when you stopped feeding on people. I wouldn't try it again. I think we woke Zach up."

"Are you sober yet?" Bonnie asked.

Jessica continued to drink her coffee. "No."

"Keep drinking. I gotta get you home. I gotta get me home," she told the drunk girl.

The brunette set her mug on the table and sighed. "Why didn't he go for me? You know, how come the guys that I want never want me?"

"I'm not touching that," Bonnie said, shaking her head.

"I'm impulsive," Jessica started. "I do bad things that I regret and then I end up hurting people I care about. And, I say the wrong thing. Elena..." She scoffed, something about Elena made her upset immediately. "She doesn't even have to try! He just picks her and it's not fair. She's always the one that everyone picks for everything! And I try so, so hard, but I'm... I'm never the one."

"It's not a competition, Jessica," she said, sighing.

You don't have to live with her, Jessica wanted to reply, but she held her tongue. "Yeah, it is." Bonnie opened her mouth to respond, but she couldn't think of anything to say. "You just... go home. I'll call Jenna. I'll be okay."

"You sure?"

She nodded. "I'm fine. Perfectly fine."

There wasn't a word to describe how much she detested the word 'fine.'

Bonnie nodded and stood up, giving her small smile before leaving. Jessica just wanted to be alone to wallow in her sorrows. Matt would have chosen Elena over her. She was driving herself mad thinking about it.

A few minutes later, she lifted her head up and saw a handsome stranger at the table in front of her. He smiled kindly at her. And she smiled back.

Maybe he was what she needed to get herself out of this funk.

Jenna scolded her in a very parental way (she gave her kudos for the new parental figure approach) and sent her to her room. She didn't mind. She planned to write in her diary anyway when she got home.

Dear diary,

Today, I met a stranger. Well, not really 'met him,' more like smiled at him. And he smiled back! Maybe I'll see him again. Next time, I'll muster the courage to talk to him. I want to be happy again. I want someone to make me feel loved without questioning their intentions.

I've had a bad day. One of the worst days of my life, second only to the night my parents died which also happened to be the night I slept with Tyler Lockwood. I don't want to be alone anymore. I want love, like what I had with Matt. But he pretty much hates me... and I honestly can't blame him.

Next time I write in here, maybe I'll tell you all about mystery man.

Yours sincerely,
Jessica

A/N: Should I continue? Or is this a pile of crap? Please follow, favourite and review!