A/N: If you think something sounds familiar, I take no credit for it :)
I was weaving my way through the students in the hall as I made for the exit doors to the side lawn of the high school. It was nice to have some structure to my day after being out for about a week, but I was pleased to be leaving the confines of the building. Most of my classmates had seemed unaware of my absence; the most attention I'd gotten in relation to my sudden "illness" had been from the guidance counselor, who thought it was a shame I'd missed the career fair, and wanted me to know she could provide resources to help me navigate the next step after graduation. I'd smiled and vaguely said I was taking a gap year, and had some ties abroad that would come in handy, but thanked her for the concern regardless. I supposed that was true, I had been suddenly dropped into what would be my final year of school, and I had no clue what would be my path going forward. I hadn't really thought about my future… what did I want to do with the rest of my life? I had hoped that the Doctor would change his mind, that I could be swept back into my old life… but as the time continued to pass I had less and less hope that that would occur.
The sun was warm on my face as I wandered outside, still lost in thought when I heard someone calling my name. "Bonnie!" I smiled as my friend approached.
"Long time, no see." Bonnie replied as she caught up with me.
"Yeah… I just needed to not be around people for a bit, after everything." I glanced sheepishly at Bonnie before continuing. "Which seems like a really dumb thing to say to you… considering."
"It's fine." Bonnie shook her head as she replied. "It's been a lot for all of us, and we're all dealing with it differently."
"How are you doing?" I asked quietly.
"I'm okay. That whole night really freaked me out, and I've been processing everything Elena told me, but I'm okay. In some ways it's better to not be in the dark…" Bonnie paused. "In some ways it's not."
"I hear ya. " I sighed and there was a beat of silence between us.
"So, what were you up to the last few days?" Bonnie inquired.
"Mostly, I did a lot of reading. Books are a great way to escape." My response was received with a chuckle from my friend.
"So you ditched school to sit at home and read?" Bonnie said with a smirk.
"Yes." I answered simply and joined in her giggling; however, our moment was interrupted by Stefan.
"Bonnie… Sophia." He nodded to each of us as he approached.
"Stefan…" Bonnie replied, sounding a little wary.
"Hey." Stefan tried to smile, even though he obviously sensed the awkwardness between him and Bonnie.
"Hi." Bonnie responded, and I simply nodded in acknowledgement.
Stefan caught Bonnie's eye and asked: "How are you doing with everything? I haven't seen you for a while."
"Fine. Everything is fine." Bonnie answered briefly.
"Good." Stefan shifted his weight from one foot to the other and then met my eyes.
"I'm alright." I answered his unasked question.
"So are you back at school?" Bonnie asked Stefan.
"No… I actually just came to find you, Bonnie. I was hoping you might be able to help me with a spell." Stefan admitted.
"Look Stefan, I know Elena is okay with all of this, and I really appreciate what you did to help me… But I am just not ready to dive into it with you yet." Bonnie replied apologetically.
"I understand that. But I need your help. It's Elena… She's with Damon." Stefan took a deep breath before pulling something from his pocket. "I have her necklace. I was hoping you could use it to make some sort of connection with Elena. I just need to know she's okay." Stefan handed the necklace to Bonnie.
"Why is Elena with Damon?" I interrupted.
"I don't know. She disappeared last night; I kept calling and got no answer until this morning when Damon answered her phone." Stefan's response was measured as he looked between me and Bonnie, I had a feeling there was something missing from his story. "Damon said she was fine, but I need to be sure."
Bonnie chewed on her bottom lip for a moment before nodding. "Okay… I'll try." The three of us relocated to a nearby picnic table, I sat opposite Bonnie and Stefan and watched as my friend held Elena's necklace in her hand before glancing at Stefan nervously. "How do you know I can do this?"
"Because I've met a few witches over the years. I've seen what they can do." Stefan answered encouragingly.
"I'm still pretty new at it." Bonnie said hesitantly.
"That's fine. Just give it a shot." Stefan smiled.
"Alright." Bonnie cradled the necklace between her hands, her eyes closed in concentration. After a moment she opened her eyes and shook her head. "There's nothing… usually there's an image or something." She glanced around us. "Tell me if somebody is looking."
"Okay." I nodded and watched as Bonnie picked up a leaf from the ground and put it on the table in front of her. She held her hand about six inches above the leaf and took a deep breath, she shook out her hand after a moment and then held it above the leaf again, her eyebrows knitting together in concentration.
"What is it?" Stefan asked as he inspected Bonnie's worried features.
"There's something wrong." Bonnie answered as she dropped her hand dejectedly.
"With Elena?" Stefan leaned closer to Bonnie.
"No. With me. There's something wrong with me." Bonnie grabbed her bag and stood from the table. "I have to go. I'm sorry, Stefan, but I can't help you." Bonnie turned from us and started to make her way to the parking lot, leaving Stefan and I to stare after her.
"Stefan." I reached out and placed my hand on his forearm so he'd look my way. "What is going on? You were leaving something out about Elena earlier."
"We were together last night and I think she found something that upset her… a picture of Katherine." Stefan replied, and I felt he was still being a little evasive in his answer.
"What is so upsetting about that?" I pressed for more information. Stefan's dark eyes were focused on his hands as he answered.
"Because Elena looks like her." Stefan's eyes flicked back to mine.
"What?" I was puzzled. "You mean Elena looks like the woman you were in love with, but also your brother was in love with, who turned you both into vampires…" I processed out loud.
"But I love Elena for who she is, not who she looks like… she's nothing like Katherine." Stefan stumbled over his words. "Sure, their resemblance is what made me want to learn about Elena, but there is no connection to Katherine beyond that."
I carefully analyzed Stefan's face, searching for any lie in his eyes. He seemed to be genuine. "But you kept it a secret from her, and so naturally she felt betrayed." I posited after a moment, Stefan nodded.
"She left the house and I didn't even have a chance to explain… and somehow between then and now she ended up with Damon, and I have no idea where she is." Stefan sighed.
"You don't think Damon would harm her…" I asked tentatively.
"I'm not certain of anything when it comes to my brother." Stefan said darkly.
"But he loved Katherine too… and he just lost his way to get her back, so don't you think that whatever the connection Elena may have to Katherine counts as something to him?" I voiced my theory quietly.
"Maybe…" Stefan ran a hand through his hair. "But that also makes me worried."
"I think she will be fine." I smiled weakly. "If you think that Bonnie can still help, I'm guessing she went to her grams' house."
"Thanks, Sophia." Stefan returned my smile.
"I'm gonna go home. Let me know if you figure out where she is." I said as I got up from the table.
"I will." Stefan affirmed before I took my leave.
I dropped my book bag by the front door as I got in the house, and then pulled out my phone to call Elena.
"Hello?" Elena's voice came through the speaker.
"Hey, how are you?" I asked.
"Fine. What's up?" Elena replied and I heard cheering in the background.
"I just wanted to make sure you were alright… I ran into Stefan."
"Did he tell you to call me?" Elena's voice was raised a bit.
"No! No, I am calling for my own sanity." I said quickly. "I heard you were with Damon, and that you had a shocking revelation last night… I just wanted to be sure you were okay."
"Oh…" Elena's voice softened. "It's been a crazy time, but I'm okay. I kinda rushed off last night because I was upset, and then crashed my car…"
"What?!" I interjected
"I'm fine, Sophia, promise." Elena reassured me. "The next thing I'm going to tell you will probably freak you out but just bear with me… I think I ran into another vampire. BUT it ran off after the crash. Then Damon was there and he pulled me out of the car. I'm fine, no major injuries."
"Okay…" I said slowly. "So where are you now?"
"Well, I sort of passed out after the crash and Damon drove us to Georgia. He said I needed a time out, and I think I agree." Elena answered.
"Do you think you're safe with him?" I asked after a moment of thought.
"Yes." Elena responded, the hesitancy in her voice nearly imperceptible.
"Okay. Well, be careful, and let me know when you get home." I said firmly.
"I will… and Sophia, please don't tell Stefan where I am, I don't really want to talk to him right now." Elena responded, her voice laced with hurt.
"Sure, no problem." I said quietly. "See you soon."
"Thanks. Bye, Sophia." Elena said before hanging up the phone.
I put the phone in the pocket of my jeans and went upstairs, I'd worry about homework later. I flopped down on my bed and was staring at a small crack in the paint on the ceiling, my mind unable to focus on one thing. I was worried about Elena, but she seemed to be okay. I wondered what was going on with Bonnie, why were her powers suddenly not working… did it have anything to do with Damon attacking her? Why hadn't Stefan said anything before about Elena looking like Katherine… why hadn't Damon said anything either? Then there were the questions I was left with after returning to school… what do I want to do with my life? Do I want to go to college, what do I want to be when I "grow up"? Where was the Doctor?
I sat up in bed and pulled my scrapbook from the night stand. "I hope this isn't the only way I can see you from now on…" I whispered as I ran my hand across the cover. I started flipping through the pages and stopped on a page where I had placed a small drawing. It was the pocket watch the Doctor had used in the Chameleon arch to lock away his memories of being a time lord, to keep them safe while he took on the human nature of John Smith, so that we could hide from the Family of Blood. If his time lord DNA was hidden by human DNA they couldn't find us. He told us it wouldn't be long, the aliens that were hunting us were incorporeal beings who had short life spans without a host, we just had to wait them out… like mayflies. Those were a difficult few months for Martha and I, but for different reasons. Even though the Doctor had no memory of us, it wasn't hard to have him accept that I was to be his charge after a long lost relative had passed away… unfortunately, Martha had to play the role of friendly servant at the all boy's school, and wasn't able to experience the same level of companionship during that time. Even though his role was the same, John Smith really was a different person from the Doctor; as I reflected on that time I couldn't sure if his absence now, or his absence then, was worse.
Flashback
I made my way up the stairs to the Doctor's room at the Farringham School for Boys, I reached his door and knocked lightly. "Come in." Came his voice from the other side of the door.
"Good morning, Dr. Smith." I said with a smile.
"Good morning, Sophia." He smiled back at me from his desk. "I know we're still getting acquainted, but you could call me Uncle John."
"Oh, but I feel that Doctor suits you much better…" I replied.
"Whatever makes you most comfortable. I know this all is a terrible adjustment for you, but I hope with time we will be like a true family. I don't imagine for a second that I can replace your parents, but I hope to do my best as I try to be like a father to you in whatever way I can." His sentiment was sincere, and tears prickled in my eyes.
"Thank you." My voice faltered a bit. I fiddled with my skirt as I composed myself. "You had mentioned walking into town this morning." I changed the topic abruptly.
"Yes! Yes, I did." John Smith turned quickly and rifled through the papers in front of him before looking back at me. "I hadn't forgotten, I just want to get this marking done."
"That's alright. I'm in no rush." I stifled a giggle.
"Good, good. It won't take me much longer to finish these. You're welcome to read anything you like." He waved to a bookshelf close to the door. I wandered over to it and randomly selected a book of poetry. I sat on the settee in front of the fireplace and opened the book, holding it in my lap. John Smith returned to his task, his focus completely on the papers in front of him, so I took a moment to glance about the suite that the school provided him. My eyes fell on the pocket watch sitting on the mantelpiece, the seemingly ordinary object that held within it everything that made the Doctor, the Doctor.
End Flashback
My fingers traced the lines of the drawing, the thick cotton paper textured but soft. "I'd almost prefer to be back there in 1913 over this…" I said to the room. I sighed deeply and shut the book, laying it on my bedspread before getting up to go get started on my homework.
Elena returned to Mystic Falls safely, though her trip ended up being anything but relaxing. Lexi's boyfriend Lee happened to be a vampire, and he had tried to avenge her death by killing Damon; Elena had managed to appeal to his humanity and save Damon's life. When she got home and finally heard Stefan out, she learned that the reason that she looks like Katherine is likely because she isn't really a Gilbert, her parents had kept secret from her that she was adopted. Stefan hadn't done any more digging beyond that, which had left Elena with more questions than answers. The following days were a bit less exciting. We were back in the rhythm of going to school, and being normal teenagers for the most part. There was however still the issue of the mystery vampire that had caused Elena's car crash, but of course it wasn't long before that reared its ugly head. Elena had called me last night to tell me that the vampire had called her, and was taunting her; I offered for her to come stay with me, but she was already on her way to see Stefan.
I was currently unlocking my bike from the rack outside school, my head mulling over the strange occurrences in my friends' lives, when I was pulled back to reality by Caroline's voice.
"Sophia!" Her voice rang clear from across the parking lot. I walked my bike over to her and observed as she and a small army of students were painting banners.
"What's up, Caroline?" I asked as I reached her painting station.
"I just wanted to make sure that you were coming to the decade dance tonight." She replied cheerfully.
"Umm… but I don't have a date." I responded as I fiddled with the chinstrap of my bike helmet.
"That doesn't matter! Bonnie doesn't have a date either, you can hang out with us." Caroline beamed.
"Well, I hadn't really planned on going so I don't know what to wear…" I started to say before Caroline interrupted.
"Wear that purple dress you got when we went shopping, if you do your hair right it would totally be theme appropriate. You'll look great!" Caroline waggled her eye brows before adding. "And who knows, you might pick up a date while you're there."
"I'll think about it." I replied as I readied to mount my bike.
"C'mon, Sophia!" Caroline placed a hand on her hip. "You're not really diving into the high school experience if you don't go to any dances!"
"Caroline, I will decide when I get home." I smiled at my frustrated friend. "I promise to think it over on my ride."
"Fine, but if you opt out and regret this years later, just remember, I tried to get you to live life to the fullest." Caroline tried to remain firm, but laughter sparkled in her eyes.
"I will definitely remember your wisdom many years from now." I chuckled. At that moment Matt came over to Caroline's banner with fresh paint.
"Hey, Sophia." He smiled at me, before turning his attention to Caroline, who was quite pleased to see him.
"Hey Matt." I suppressed my grin as I watched the pair admire each other. "I'm off, but see you around."
"Yeah, see ya." Matt answered before shifting his gaze back to Caroline.
"It's a maybe, Caroline." I said over my shoulder as I started pedaling away.
"Okay…" Caroline called after me, not really engaged as her attention was now on Matt. The pair of them were cute together, and I was definitely pleased that Caroline had settled on a nice boy after the whole Damon fiasco.
The ride home was nice, my thoughts were strictly on the road ahead and not swirling with all the vampire drama around me. I walked the bike up the front steps and left it outside the door when I got home, hanging my helmet on one of the handle bars before going inside. I skipped up the steps to get to my bedroom and opened up the closet, rifling through its contents until I found the dress Caroline had suggested. I laid the dress out on the bed and smoothed out the skirt. It was a purple short sleeved dress with a sweetheart neckline, the skirt had added volume from a built in petticoat and fell to about mid-calf.
"Alright, Caroline. I guess I'll go to the dance." I smiled as I made the decision. This would be a good thing, a normal high school activity. Sure, I didn't have a date, but I suppose I shouldn't wait on my first high school dance until someone asks me out.
A couple hours later I sat at my vanity, touching up my makeup. I smiled as I looked in the mirror. I had styled my hair by pinning up two sections in the front in victory rolls, and then curled the remaining locks before brushing it out to give it some wavy volume. I wore simple pearl stud earrings and had opted to not wear a necklace. A little mascara and red lipstick finished out the look. I stood up and did a twirl to fan out my skirt; the strappy, black peep toe pumps I'd picked were thankfully easy to move around in. I was actually quite excited to be going as I made my way out the door. I glanced at my bike and decided it was probably not the best mode of transport for this occasion and instead opted to head two doors down to see if Elena would be going to the dance too. I was just about to knock on the door when it swung open.
"Sophia!" Jenna smiled in surprise as she opened the door. She was wearing a pink pencil skirt and a pink plaid blouse, with her hair pulled up in an elegant ponytail. "You look great! Are you going to the dance with Elena?"
"Well, I kind of decided to go last minute and was coming to see if she might be headed that way." I answered with a small smile.
"Yeah, she's just waiting for Stefan to come pick her up. I'm sure they'd have room for you." Jenna replied. "But I'm headed that way now to help chaperone if you want to come with me."
"Sure, thanks Jenna… I don't want to start the night off third wheeling." I laughed.
As I stood on the edge of the crowd I realized that coming with Jenna may not have been the best move. I had beaten Caroline and Bonnie as far as I could tell, and the only semi-familiar face I'd found was Jeremy Gilbert as he worked the punch table. I was scanning the faces in the room again when someone came and stood beside me.
"You don't look like you're having fun, Sophia." The man's voice caught my attention.
"Oh… hi, Mr. Saltzman." I smiled as I turned to him. He was wearing pretty much his normal shirt/slacks combo, but the addition of a red letter jacket helped him blend in. "I seem to have gotten here before my friends… I'm not a fan of crowds when running solo."
"Ah, yes… I don't miss my days of standing awkwardly on the edge of the dance floor." He chuckled self-consciously, it was kind of endearing. "Anyway, what I wanted to tell you is I thought your essay last week was very good. Your writing is very engaging, I felt like I was living it."
"Thank you." I beamed, laughing in my head because I had actually met the historical figure that was my subject, which is what likely imparted that realistic quality to my essay.
"Have you thought about going into history? We need more people to make the past sound exciting." He asked.
"No, I haven't. But I could definitely consider it." I replied. As I was speaking I caught a glance of Caroline from across the room. "I think I just spotted my friend."
"Right, go on." Mr. Saltzman shooed me off. "Have fun."
I made my way over to Caroline, she was wearing a yellow cardigan with flowers across the front and a puffy floral skirt; her blonde hair was curled and pinned in an up do. As I got closer I noticed Bonnie with her, she was in a cute white dress with a blue and black flower print similar in style to mine but with spaghetti straps.
"Wow… Sophia, you look great." Bonnie said as she noticed me first.
"I told her she would." Caroline commented. "I'm glad you came." She beamed.
"Once I decided, I was actually really excited." I replied. "Is Matt coming?" I asked as I noticed his absence from her side.
"No, he had to work." Caroline said dejectedly.
"Oh." I said quietly.
"Unbelievable." Bonnie said unexpectedly. I followed her gaze to see Elena had arrived, with both Stefan and Damon in toe. Damon peeled off from the pair and disappeared into the crowd, while Elena and Stefan stood for a moment observing the crowed. Elena saw the three of us and started weaving through dancing students to get to our table.
"Having fun?" Elena asked as she approached.
"No." Caroline deadpanned. "But this took two hours, so I'll stay for at least half of that." She said as she waved a hand down her silhouette, drawing attention to her outfit, which earned a giggle from Elena and I.
"What is Damon doing here?" Bonnie asked, not paying attention to us, but searching the crowd for Damon.
"He wanted to come. He'll behave, I promise." Elena answered.
"So what is this, like, a threesome now, you and the Salvatore brothers?" Caroline quipped.
"No. But if I'm going to be with Stefan, then that means I'm going to have to learn to live with Damon. It's not like I can kill him." Elena scoffed.
"There's a thought." Bonnie mused darkly.
"Mmm hmm. I'll help." Caroline added and the pair clinked their punch glasses together. Elena actively suppressed a smile at the comment.
"Uh, Elena… do you want to go grab a drink?" I asked, jerking my head to the punch table.
"Sure." She nodded, and we made our way across the room.
"So, why is Damon here?" I asked in a hushed tone once out of earshot of Caroline and Bonnie.
"The vampire that's been stalking me… he was invited in to my house, he posed as a pizza delivery guy the other night. He broke in this evening and Stefan got there just in time, but he got away." Elena whispered her answer. "If we want to catch him, I have to act as bait."
"Oh, great plan." I said sarcastically as we picked up punch from the table.
"It's the only one we've got." Elena shrugged. "In the meantime, the plan is to just enjoy the dance."
"I can get on board with that." I smiled and drained the rest of my punch. The two of us started to make our way back to Caroline and Bonnie's table. We were almost there when we saw the pair storm off, leaving Damon behind.
"Where did they go?" Elena asked as we approached.
"No idea." Damon answered.
"What did you say to them?" Stefan asked as he too met up with us.
"I was perfectly polite." Damon said throwing his hands in the air. His eyes glanced over to me and I could feel them as they evaluated my outfit. "Sophia, you look absolutely stunning."
"Thanks." I exhaled heavily. "I probably could have crashed Queen Elizabeth's coronation with this look." I laughed awkwardly and self-consciously started fiddling with my collar bone.
"I bet you could have." Stefan chuckled. He turned to Elena and offered her his hand. "Would you care to dance?"
"I would love to." Elena grinned from ear to ear as she took his hand and they disappeared into the dance floor.
"How about you, Sophia; would you like to dance?" Damon asked as a half grin settled across his face.
"I don't know." I answered, shrugging one shoulder.
"C'mon. I won't bite… promise." He said with a wink.
"Fine." I rolled my eyes, taking the hand he offered and we headed out to the dance floor. I actually really enjoyed dancing with Damon, the 50's music was well suited for swing dancing. He didn't throw in too many lifts, but when he did I was able to go with it because I knew he wouldn't drop me.
"Where did you learn to dance?" Damon asked as he led me out of an underarm turn.
"The swing and lindy stuff, mostly Jack." I answered as he pulled me back into hold.
"Sounds about right, he looked like he'd walked out of World War II in that coat." Damon scoffed.
"Jack is a bit of an old soul." I laughed as Damon spun me again. After four consecutive high energy songs, the play list switched to a slower track. My chest was quickly rising and falling as Damon pulled me from a dip. I decided to take this opportunity to take a break and turned to leave the dance floor, but I felt Damon catch my wrist.
"Nuh-uh, you are not going to be one of those people who avoids the slow songs." Damon said playfully, gently pulling me back before releasing my wrist. "If you can swing dance, you can slow dance."
I glanced nervously around, observing the other couples around me. I rubbed my fingers together and caught my bottom lip between my teeth anxiously before stepping forward and putting my arms around Damon's neck, keeping a little space between us. He wrapped his arms around me, netting his fingers together at the small of my back, and we started to sway. "See, not so hard." He smirked.
"Guess not." I said quietly, avoiding his eyes; I opted for observing the crowd around us instead.
"You know, I'm surprised you're here without a date." Damon said, interrupting my people watching.
"Really?" I replied, finally meeting his eyes.
"Yes, really. Aside from being beautiful, you're intriguing… I'd expect you had a line out the door wanting to take you to the dance." Damon smirked.
"Well, no one asked me…" I said quietly.
"High school boys are idiots." Damon stated plainly. "Wait until you get to college… I can see you having a lot of fun." He added as his eyebrows darted up toward his hairline.
"If I go to college." I said absentmindedly.
"Is that not the plan?" Damon asked, genuinely interested.
"I don't really have a plan. I never really thought about what I wanted to do with my life… I just sorta thought things would stay the same forever." I answered honestly. "I hadn't even planned on going to a high school dance." I chuckled, pulling out of my wistfulness.
"Wait, so this is your first high school dance?" Damon said with mock incredulousness. I simply nodded. "That explains your apprehension about the slow dancing."
"Yup." I replied, popping the 'p'.
"I guess that makes me your first." Damon said with a wink. The innuendo lacing his tone earned him a dramatic eye roll.
"You are ridiculous." I said, shaking my head. The conversation hit a lull after that, but the silence wasn't uncomfortable. In the dim light I risked maintaining eye contact with Damon; as the song continued I almost felt hypnotized between the way we gently swayed together and the way his eyes held mine. I could feel my pulse slowly increasing the longer I held his gaze, so I tore my eyes away, looking upward. "They could have used more streamers, I can still see the ceiling." I said abruptly, eliciting a laugh from Damon.
The song came to an end and they transitioned to a jive. I moved my hands from around Damon's neck, placing them on his shoulders and gently pushed back, signaling I wanted to end the embrace. Damon wordlessly obliged. I pulled my hands from his shoulders, letting them fall to my sides, before taking a step back. "I think the swing dancing is finally catching up with me. I need to sit down." I said, vaguely pointing to the gym bleachers.
"I suppose I can find another dance partner." Damon said melodramatically while shrugging one shoulder, a half smile ghosting his lips.
"I suppose you can." I said as I backed up two more steps before turning around and leaving him there on the dance floor. I weaved between dancing couples, finding an open spot on the bleachers I took a seat and started people watching again. I couldn't find Caroline or Bonnie in the crowd, so I assumed they must have left by now. My eyes did land on Jenna and Mr. Saltzman talking, a smile forming on my lips as I realized why Jenna had decided to chaperone the school dance. I had sat there observing the crowd for fifteen minutes or so when I noticed Elena on the phone, her face appeared worried as she started to speed walk to the exit into the hallway, she shoved the phone in her pocket and then sprinted into the hall. I stood up and glanced around the room, unable to spot Damon or Stefan I decided to follow her.
I dashed into the hall and spotted Elena whip around a corner. I followed quickly, but kept my footsteps light. After a second turn I lost her; the first set of doors I tried were locked, so I turned to head the other direction. The dark hallways were eerily quiet as I continued my search. I came upon the open double doors to the cafeteria and slowed my pace, entering the room cautiously. Elena was in the middle of the room, looking around wildly. "Elena…" I called just above a whisper. She turned to look at me, her eyes widening in panic.
"Sophia!" She yelled, running toward me. The next thing I knew I felt an arm around my waist, chaining me like an iron band against the firm body of someone behind me; their other hand sweeping my hair on the right side away before tearing into my flesh at the crook of my neck. The pain was a searing heat as sharp teeth ripped into my skin, I could feel my blood being efficiently drained from my body; it all happened in less than a second, but it felt like an eternity. Suddenly I was dropped to the floor, my head spinning, black spots floating in front of my eyes. I tried to get up, but fell immediately and remained slumped against a wall. It was hard to focus my eyes, and my eyelids felt so heavy. I placed my hand on the right side of my neck, feeling a warm, sticky wetness beneath my fingers. As I blinked slowly, I watched as Elena was skittering across a cafeteria table, papers flying into the air. I blinked again and saw her stabbing an unfamiliar man through the hand with a pencil, he slowly pulled the wood sliver from his palm. I blinked once more and saw Elena breaking a mop handle over her knee, but the man dressed in black plucked it from her hands. With each blink the scene changed. Stefan and Damon appeared, Stefan ran the mop handle through the vampire's abdomen, and then Stefan ran the handle through his heart. A moment later I felt someone grabbing my chin.
"None of that." Damon's voice pulled me into focus. His blue eyes piercing into me as he bit his wrist and pressed in against my mouth. I felt a trickle of warm liquid pooling over my tongue, its coppery tang triggering my weak body to try to push away. "You have to drink, Sophia." Damon said firmly as his other hand tangled itself in my hair and held my head steady. I forced myself to swallow his blood and I could start to feel the wound beneath my hand pulling itself back together, until my flesh had returned once more to a smooth, uninterrupted plane. Damon pulled his wrist from my mouth and removed his hand from my hair, allowing it to rest on my left shoulder.
"You healed me." I said mutely as I dropped my hand from my neck.
"I'm glad my blood worked… I wasn't sure it would on you." Damon said as he reached forward, dragging his thumb along my lower lip to wipe away the blood. Immediately, Elena crashed into my side.
"Are you okay?" Elena asked frantically. Damon stood up as I turned to face Elena, I watched out of the corner of my eye as Stefan muttered something to him and he was out of the room in a flash.
"Good as new." I smiled weakly at my friend.
"Let's get you up." Stefan said as he approached, offering me his hand; I took it and he pulled me upright in a smooth motion. I stumbled forward a step, but Stefan caught me in a firm embrace. Once I had steadied myself, Elena was at my side and took over the task of supporting my wobbly form. "Elena, you should help Sophia get cleaned up and out to the car… I'll take care of this." He gestured towards the vampire laying on the cafeteria floor. I appraised his unassuming face, his short brunette hair, and his greyed skin with the black spidering veins which marked a dead vampire. It's strange, he didn't really look like a monster.
"Let's get the blood off you." Elena whispered as she turned me away from the vampire's corpse and walked us to the nearest ladies' room. I braced myself against the counter and stared into the mirror while Elena tried saturating the flimsy paper towels the best she could before wiping away the blood from my skin. When she was done you couldn't even tell I had literally had my neck ripped open, the fluorescent light in the bathroom making my pale skin glow; there wasn't even a scar on the right side of my neck. There were a couple drops of blood staining the neckline of my dress, but I could clean that later… or just throw it out. We walked wordlessly to the car, sitting in the back seat, and waited for the Salvatore brothers to return.
Stefan pulled the car into Elena's driveway and a millisecond later Damon was opening my door and helped me out of the car. "I'll get her home." Damon said to Stefan and Elena.
"I can take her home." Elena offered, taking a step toward me.
"I'll be fine." I smiled weakly at her. Stefan met my eyes, almost willing me to change my mind, then gave his brother a wary look before taking Elena's hand and gently leading her to her front door. Damon put an arm around my waist to support me as we took the short walk to my house. "Why am I so tired?" I asked, glancing up at Damon's face.
"My blood healed you, but it doesn't magically replace your blood volume." Damon answered as we walked up my porch steps.
"Right… so, still exsanguinated." I giggled as we entered the house.
"Pretty much." Damon replied as he locked the door behind us. I looked up at the many steps I had to climb to get to my room and groaned inwardly. "Don't worry, I've got you." Damon said as he lifted me up into his arms like I was nothing more than a feather.
"Hey… I could manage." I protested as he started to carry me up the stairs.
"No, you're pretty close to fainting between the blood loss and the adrenaline wearing off." He replied.
"Wouldn't be the first time." I mumbled as I let my head fall against his chest. My cheek was pressed against his leather jacket, which was cool against my skin, and I breathed in his scent. He smelled like sandalwood and vanilla. "You smell warm." I said, not realizing the thought wasn't in my head until I felt the laugh roll through Damon's chest.
"Maybe you should lose half your blood volume more often, you say some interesting things." Damon said as he gently sat me on my bed. I stuck my tongue out at him, which just earned me another round of laughter. I leaned forward and tried to undo the straps of my shoes, but my fingers felt numb and I was finding the task difficult. Damon took my foot gingerly and started removing the shoe for me.
"Thank you." I said simply. Once my feet were free of my shoes I pulled my legs up onto the bed, and scooted back to lean against the headboard.
"You should change." Damon said after I made no further movements.
"I'm too tired." I groaned.
"I could help." Damon offered, a dangerous sparkle in his eye.
"Under no circumstances are you helping me undress, Damon." I shot back.
"Alright, suit yourself. Sleep in your blood stained party clothes if you want." Damon smirked.
"I do." I said stubbornly as I started to pull the bobby pins from my hair. As I pulled the last pin out of my hair, a large section fell over half my face, I didn't bother moving it as I reached over and dropped the bobby pins on my night stand. I felt my mattress sink as Damon sat on the edge of my bed. He carefully brushed the hair from my face and tucked it behind my ear, clearing the way for his ice blue eyes to lock me in his gaze.
"You do know it was kinda stupid for you to follow Elena into a deserted room when there was a rogue vampire stalking her." Damon said sternly.
"We're all a little stupid sometimes." I replied.
"Well, could you try not to do anything else reckless until my blood is out of your system?" Damon pressed.
"Yes, sir." I gave him a small salute. "I really am fine." I added as I started to sink down so my head could rest on the pillow.
"Sure." Damon shook his head as he stood up from the bed.
"You can go now, I'll be okay." I said as I curled up, laying on my side, not even bothering to get under the covers.
"If you say so." Damon said quietly and turned out my light. I closed my eyes, thinking that he was leaving, but a moment later I felt myself being covered up by a heavy knit blanket. It was the throw from the living room.
"You're very sweet." I murmured, not opening my eyes.
"Goodnight, Sophia." Damon said softly as my mind finally drifted to sleep.
A/N: as always, thanks for reading and reviewing!