(CHAPTER TWENTY TWO :
DEATH IS AT YOUR DOOR)

✧࿐ ཾ✧

THE NEXT FLIGHT OUT to New Orleans wasn't for another two hours. In the back of my mind, I knew I could have fast tracked the process with a little compulsion, but I wanted to use my two hours to talk to my friends. Not as a goodbye, but as a 'just in case.' From what Kol had said, the black magic had reached my blood and I didn't know if that meant I had hours or days left. If I died before I met Davina Claire, I didn't want anything to be left unsaid between my friends and I back in Mystic Falls. I decided to start with Elena and Jeremy Gilbert because I knew that our encounter could be prompt. I reserved Damon for last, knowing I had the most to say and explain to him, given he didn't know about the curse.

Inhale, exhale. I coached myself on how to breathe and worked up the courage to knock on the door — twice, out of habit. Standing outside, I felt vulnerable, each second in the cold equating to a lifetime. After being a given second chance at life, I had hopelessly failed at being the strong, fearless woman I aspired to be when I was a little girl with milkmaid braids. All I had accomplished was running from both who I wanted to be and who I used to be. And — in those excruciating minutes whilst I waited for someone to answer the door — I wanted to right my wrongs with a countdown timer above my head. To be blunt, I wanted to lay everything out in front of my friends to ensure they got the most out of their life because I wasn't happy in my current state of mind. If — when — I survived, I'd work harder to find more self-love.

"Elena, hey." I greeted, the door opening after what I imagined to have been an eternity. "I'm sorry for arriving unannounced like this but my phone died on the way over here. I was hoping we could talk, maybe over coffee?" I proposed with my best fake smile, not wanting to sound too excited. "Scratch that, we'll definitely need wine for the conversation I want to have." I changed my mind, a forced laugh escaping the bottom of my throat.

She matched my fake smile, the grin not reaching her caramel eyes. "Now's not really a good time." Elena glanced over her shoulder nervously and my supernatural hearing detected someone entering through the back door, which was unusual in itself. "You should, um, go home, charge your phone and come back tomorrow. Definitely charge your phone, I left a message because Kol comp— — You missed a lot." The brunette cut herself off, causing me to frown. What could he have done in the time I had been gone?

I resisted. "No, I've got a flight to catch in a few hours, I won't be here tomorrow." I filled her in on my situation.

"Now is really not a good time." She emphasised, shooting me a sincere, apologetic look. "We can talk on the phone if it's that important, I promise." My friend amended, then proceeded to slam the door shut in my face.

Suspicious of her exaggerated and rude reaction, I didn't move. "You're hiding something." I shouted, hitting my hands against the door in hopes she would open it again. "What don't you want me to see? There's nothing you could do that will make more mad than not allowing me to say . . . Goodbye." I succumbed to the truth, my voice splintering like thin ice. No matter how much I wanted to gloss over it, the reality was that maybe I was making my goodbye rounds. Deep down, I had this sensation — a gut feeling — that told me someone was meant to die tonight. And it only made sense for it to be me, nobody else was cursed.

On that line, the door inched open. "We're friends. I'd never hide anything from you unless I thought it would protect you." Dark strands of hair fell into view between the crack of the door as she relayed the foundation of our relationship.

"Your dangerous fault has and always will be your need to protect people." I declared. "Tell me what I need to be 'protected' f — —" As I put elaborate air quotations around the word 'protected,' the girl jumped in.

"That doesn't matter." Elena hastily claimed in an effort to distract me. "Why do you need to say goodbye?" She implored. 

I hesitated. "I'm dying." I announced boldly, unable to string together a beautiful arrangement of sentences that could soften the blow. "Surprise!" I exclaimed with mock enthusiasm as hot tears streamed down my face.

✧࿐ ཾ✧

Impatiently, my leg bounced up and down as I took a sip from my coffee. Although Elena did offer me a glass of wine, I thought better of it in the end — alcohol would have made it feel too much like a funeral. However, the coffee further stimulated my nerves to the point I couldn't sit still as I recounted the events she had missed. From start to finish, Elena was perched on the edge of her couch — her face like a pufferfish after a paroxysm of crying — as she listened intently to all I had to say. As well as detailing the veins of my arms, I made sure to tell her how she should pursue her dream of becoming a doctor and marriage, regardless of her undead status.

"What if Kol is lying?" Jeremy propounded, his gun locked in his arms. He had been the person that lacked any stealth when entering through the back door earlier.

"He wouldn't — he isn't. You should have seen him, he was . . . I've never seen him wearing his heart on sleeve before, I think he was hyperemotional but genuinely scared too." I informed the pair, reflecting on how angry the man was that he thought I'd die without a fight, without letting him know. "And I expected this for a while now. We found a Claire witch though, if she agrees to do the spell, there's a chance I'll survive. But, I don't know what the veins means. Bonnie said I'll grow hungry to the point I'm uncontrollable and unstable before I die. If you don't trust Kol, at least trust her. What's happening to me will kill me unless I can get on this flight to New Orleans in two hours and find what sounds like a needle in a haystack." I rubbed my temples, the thought of trying to find Davina Claire — in a huge city that was known notoriously for witches — leaving me anxious.

"How can you have so much faith in him? How can your eyes light up when you talk about the man that caused all of this?" Jeremy rambled, his hands flying into the air in disbelief.

I placed my mug down against the coffee table, the harsh sound echoing in the quiet room. "I didn't come here to point fingers or ask to be requited." I clarified, concerned he was hung up on the details. Kol's blood may have ignited the curse, but it was still my fault. "I came here to tell you both I love you and I'm grateful for your friendship over the years. Perhaps I'll live to see the next century, but if I don't, I wouldn't have wanted to go on the plane to my death without leaving some kind of mark on this crappy little town." I laughed through the pain, my ex-fiancé always was an advocate for it being the best medicine. "And Jeremy, for the love of God, find a nice, wholesome human next time you date." I quipped to prevent the moment turning too sentimental. I never had people in my life that made saying goodbye so hard.

Elena blinked, her eyes fluttering rapidly as if it was all a nightmare. "I don't want to lose anybody else." She muttered, drawing me into a warm embrace, the doorbell ruining the moment between us.

"That's Bonnie. She was right behind me." Jeremy explained when his sister stood up to answer the door. I followed behind her, wanting to speak to Bonnie myself about the curse.

Certainly, my eyes almost popped out of their sockets upon seeing Kol Mikaelson in the doorway rather than Bonnie Bennett. Afraid of how he'd react if he knew I made a pit stop on my way to the airport, I dipped around the corner, out of sight. "I've considered your request for a truce." Kol voiced, I listened with a raging curiosity. "Request denied." He stated.

Elena's body trembled in fear, her first instinct being to bang the door shut in Kol's face, likely making him angrier than he was to begin with. Visibly panicked, she mouthed a few words to me and pointed in the direction of upstairs. Despite my confusion in regards to a truce and why an Original vampire was knocking on her door, I complied.

"I'm sorry. I've already been invited in!" The vampire screeched from outside, kicking the door open. "Hide and seek? Fine by me." He chuckled, my undead heart practically beating out my chest as the three of us ran upstairs.

✧࿐ ཾ✧

NEW YORK, NEW YORK [1912]

"Love." Damon grumbled, signalling for the bartender to bring him another round of bourbon. "Do we really need it? I had it, you had and look at us now, we're alone in a bar on Valentine's Day." He had never been the type to care about such holidays, but the slow and steady commercialisation of the romantic event meant he was starting to feel lonely without Katherine. His stream of flings were rather boring after a while.

"Ugh, I'd rather catch an STI than catch feelings again." I complained, stealing a sip of his drink.

He snorted. "I know you're an emotionally unavailable humanity-less vampire, but talk to me here." Shaking his hands like a beggar, the man mockingly pleaded for me to open up to him. "You can't tell me you're content with bloody hearts when you could have those little chocolates ones in red foil instead?" Genuinely curious, the half-drunk vampire rested his chin on his hand.

"You," I pointed a finger at him, "are the type of lovestruck fool that the businesses feed on." I giggled. "Seriously, you're alone on Valentine's Day and it shouldn't matter because there's a girl in a tomb, waiting for you. God, the only action she would have in the past century would have been from dust bunnies, she'll be extremely horny and you'll be extremely happy soon enough — forget about this one dumb day." I lectured, popping all the letters as I swung my legs and hopped down from the bar stool. I was feeling a little peckish and humans would be oh so desperate today on all days, maybe Cupid's holiday had some positives.

"Wait, where are you going?" Damon chased after me when he noticed I was exiting the bar.

I rolled my eyes at him. "To feed." I deadpanned. "Not sure that those little chocolates hearts in red foil will be enough for a growing vamp like me." I poked fun at his earlier comment, vampires with emotions were so funny — they cared about the strangest things.

"No, you're not." Damon put his hand on my chest to stop me. "First, I don't trust you to not go all ripper on them and I'm too boozy to bury a body." He held up one finger. "And second, I've already compelled another round and I'm not the type of man to let good alcohol go to waste, so we might as well go inside and you can cry on my shoulder about your own failed romances, starting with Kol." He prodded and I hated when he prodded. Since I met Damon, I had figured he was a chronic over-sharer and whilst he knew some things about my relationship with Kol, I didn't like to rehash the past like he did with Katherine.

"If you say his name again, your next relationship will be with a wooden stake." I spat, turning on my heels and storming back into the bar against my better judgement.

✧࿐ ཾ✧

Huddled together, the three of us took refuge in Elena's bedroom. Elena and I eavesdropped on Kol's phone conversation, alternating in giving the hunter without vampire hearing, regular updates. "He's going to kill Elena and rip off your arms, Jeremy." I condensed the long winded rant that Kol was going on. "He's not even angry, he's vengeful." In apprehension, my voice dipped. Only on one occasion had I ever saw him on a comparable scale of rage — when Thomas tried to pay him off of further romantic pursuits with me.

"What about you?" Jeremy quizzed, eager to flaunt his newfound strength in a bid to protect me.

"I'm innocent in this." I fired back. "But, I have a feeling he won't let me waltz out the door now he knows I'm here." I continued, the man having no doubt heard my voice already. "I have no clue what you two idiots have planned, but forget it. Call it my dying wish, I want the plan to be shut down before one of you two end up dead." I guilted the siblings into agreeing, believing them to have no chance against an Original that had lasted over a thousand years on Earth.

In the acting department, Elena failed greatly. "We aren't planning anything, we would have told you." She was the stock image of perplexed, but I was not born yesterday.

"Unless you thought it would protect me." I countered, throwing her own words back at her. "I'm not speaking as someone with unresolved feeling for the homicidal maniac that is trying to kill both of you, I'm speaking as a concerned friend — fighting against him will awaken a far bigger evil." I warned, low and earnest.

"We haven't done anything wrong." Elena rephrased.

"And if the bigger evil saved you?" Jeremy posed the theory. "I—I've been thinking about it for a while, since the night we met in the town square actually and if you were human, the curse should be cancelled out. If we can get the cure, you couldn't be dependent on his blood and it would revert you back to your mortal self, right?" He brainstormed, the amount of thought he put into it evident.

I helped Elena barricade the door. "I can't risk Hell on Earth for an 'if,' Jer." I simpered, a part of me tempted lay my cards out and risk it all. Surely the cure would be a quicker fix than a Claire witch. "And don't take me for a fool, Elena. Last I was aware, Kol was not invited into your house. I don't want to shout or scream, instead I'm asking you to raise the white flag if you value your life." I advised wisely. This was not how I pictured the last two hours before my flight being spent and I was worried I wouldn't have enough time to talk to Damon if the fight continued at the Gilberts' place.

There was a series of push and pull when Kol finally burst through the bedroom door, his added years meaning he could overpower Elena and I. "Well, I'm glad you had no part in this, but I expected you to be in New Orleans already." As he glared at me, my stomach regretfully twisted. "Oh well, as you wish. I hope you aren't as intent on holding onto these bastard friends as you are dying 'cause you'll be watching when I gut them." The Original taunted, the absence of playfulness in his tone startling me. I wasn't accustomed to him being brutal or callous in such a manner with me. 

He rendered me speechless, my mouth too dry for a sarcastic remark. Unable to talk, I shook my head in disappointment at the man I had intended to give a second chance on and followed a stumbling Elena into Jeremy's room. Refusing to participate, I hugged my knees and witnessed as Kol caught every stake that flew his way. Inside my mind, there was a mental tug of war because I had chosen Kol and had complete confidence he would win . . . But, did choosing Kol mean I had to let my friends die?

✧࿐ ཾ✧

A.N: We're finally on that episode. I know, I know. Lottie is obviously a little preoccupied at the Gilbert house and not on a plane to New Orleans because she had a bad feeling someone was going to die and thinks it's going to be her. She also thinks Elena and Jeremy has no chance against Kol, suppose she's not the brightest bulb or Julie Plec had really lazy writing that episode because I still don't know how the Gilbert managed to defeat an Original as ruthless and careless as Kol. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter because I had fun writing it and the lighter flashback with Damon & Lottie.

Also, I just discovered there's a stat page on the web version of Wattpad and wow, this made me so happy! Thank you everybody who reads this — every age, gender, country etc.

What was one thing you disliked about The Vampire Diaries? Whether it be a plot hole, character, bad storyline, ending etc.