CHAPTER NINETEEN / ACT ONE

Mistakes

Caroline handed Angelina a bunch of yellow and blue streamers for the founders day parade float. Angelina figured it'd be good to distract herself from yesterday's drama by doing normal stuff and helping out with Founders Day prep happening tomorrow.

Despite ditching halfway through, she still had to stand on the float as a Miss Mystic contestant. If she was gonna be on a big moving car in front of a crowd, might as well make it look decent.

"Hey, Caroline, I'm gonna get some more glue!" She called out to her friend who sat on top of the float instructing everyone what to do.

"Alright, be back quick!" The blonde shouted, and Angelina nodded before darting off to a table on the other side of the parking lot. As she weaved through the crowd of teens chatting, she suddenly crashed into a tall figure, completely oblivious to her surroundings.

Panicking, she quickly composed herself and realized she had collided with none other than Stefan. "Oh, hey Stefan.." She greeted, though it was barely loud enough for him to hear.

"Angelina, hey." He greeted back. The two stood in front of each other awkwardly avoiding eye contact with one another, desperately trying to come up with at least something to say.

"I- um, didn't think you'd come to this kind of thing." Stefan finally spoke up to break the ice.

"Oh, I wasn't going to but Caroline's relentless." She awkwardly laughed, rubbing the back of her neck and wishing she was anywhere else but here.

"Oh," He laughed back and once again another awkward silence came over them. "...We should really talk about the other da-"

"Um, have you heard anything about Isobel?" Angelina abruptly shifted the conversation.

Caught off guard, Stefan sighed and shook his head. "No, no I haven't. I'm sure she'll show up soon though."

"Yeah." She whispered in response, staring down at the floor. "Anyway.. I should probably go. Caroline needs more glue." She quickt ended the conversation before walking to the table with all of the supplies.

It had been two whole days since they last talked. Angelina knew she couldn't dodge Stefan forever. Eventually, she'd have to face him. But not today.

Truth was, she was avoiding him because she feared rejection. She didn't need Stefan to spell it out; she already knew he didn't love her anymore. At first, she fooled herself into thinking he cared, but deep down, she knew the truth.

Stefan's heart belonged to Elena, and Elena alone. Maybe he felt a bit more for her now than when she first arrived, but it wasn't love.

As she headed towards the supply table, she felt a tug on her sleeve. Praying it wasn't Stefan, she turned to find Elena standing there. "Um, hey, Elena?" She edged away slightly.

"Hey, can we talk? It's about that invention." She told her, and by the look on her face, it was urgent.

"Sure, what is it?" The brunette picked up the bottle of glue and the two began to walk back towards the parade float while Elena informed her of the important information.

"Earlier, I was with Bonnie and she said she found out something about it." She began, which piqued the doppelgängers curiosity. "She said it's a weapon, used against vampires."

"What?" The brunettes eyebrows furrowed and she stopped in her tracks, Elena repeated her movements. "Why would Isobel want that?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out." The Gilbert shrugged her shoulders. "But Damon's obviously not going to give it to us if it can be used against him."

"So, don't ask for it." Angelina sighed and set the glue on a table next to the float for someone else to use. "If Isobel want's the invention, then she can get it herself."

"But, she's threatened to go on a killing spree-"

"Then let her." She shrugged. "It's not my problem how many people she kills. If she wants it, she can come get it."

"And who is this 'she' we're talking about?" A familiar, aggravating, high pitched voice entered their minds and they both turned around to see Isobel standing there with a grin all over.

"Speak of the devil." Angelina cocked her head to the side and smiled sarcastically.

"Isobel.." Elena sighed. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm your mother Elena," The vampire faked a smile. "I want to be more involved in your life."

"I don't want you in my life."

"I understand that. You already have a lot of people that you care about, but I've been studying!" She turned away from them to face the crowd of people, fixing her gaze to a certain Bennett witch who walked through the school of students. "There's the witchy best friend, Bonnie. Gonna stay away from that one."

Then she turned back to them to face Jeremy who stood on the other side of the parking lot speaking with someone on the phone. "Oh, sad little brother Jeremy." And then she turned to the parade float where both Caroline and Matt helped with decorating the float.

"And there's Caroline. Obnoxious Caroline. I got all of my info from her by the way; she had no idea who I was, and she wouldn't stop yapping." She taunted. "There's Matt. Friend, ex, yappy's future ex. Lot's of connections there."

"Matt's not involved with us." Elena attempted to reassure her mother.

"He's involved with you, isn't he?"

"What's your point, Isobel?" Angelina groaned and rolled her eyes. "Because if not, you can go home."

"No," Isobel replied with a monotone voice. "I have some friends here too, look." She then pointed to a man standing next to the float, right by Matt. "See that man over there standing next to Matt by the float? His name's Frank, he's very handsome."

"And he's also quite handy, and noticed that the axle was kind of rusted, which is very dangerous. So all you have to do, is apply a little bit of pressure, and-"

Out of nowhere, Frank leaped onto the float, accidentally crushing Matt's hand. Matt's screams echoed across the lot, mingling with shouts from others nearby. Stefan, Caroline, Tyler Lockwood, and a bunch of others rushed over to lift the plank off Matt's hand.

"Why are you doing this?!" Elena exclaimed whilst Isobel held onto her forearm to stop her from running to help her friend.

"I'm showing you how easy it is to hurt the people that you care about."

"Because of some stupid old invention from 100 years ago?!" The Petrova scoffed.

"Hand it over, and the fun will stop."

"Damon's not gonna give it to me!" Elena yanked her arm out of Isobel's grasp and backed away from her slowly.

"And I think you underestimate how much Damon cares about you."

"He'll kill you before he gives it up."

"Is that before or after I kill your brother Jeremy?" Isobel grinned and the doppelgängers shifting their gaze to the exact place Jeremy had been standing a few moments prior, but he had vanished into thin air.

"Jeremy?!" Elena called out for her little brother. "Jeremy!"

Angelina looked back at Isobel, but she had disappeared just as Jeremy had. "We have to give her the invention!" Elena panicked and the doppelgänger rolled her eyes.

"Why? So she can turn around and kill us all?!" She crossed her arms and titled her head to the side with a look of annoyance all over.

"I-" The Gilbert stammered over her words.

"Look, I'll help you find Jeremy, but there's no way in hell you're getting that invention." Angelina sighed and turned away, looking for Elena's younger brother. She was well aware that her acts were selfish, but she wanted the survival of herself and her friends. Why would she risk it with a weapon that has the power to kill them all?

Eventually, they'd find a way to save him without giving Isobel or John the invention. Jeremy's death was something she didn't want to happen. But if that's the end result, so be it.

Angelina barged into the boarding house, desperate to find Damon and get his help in locating Jeremy. It had been two long hours since he vanished, and she was running out of hope. She had no clue where Isobel had vanished to or where she might be holed up, and she knew deep down that John wasn't behind Jeremy's disappearance.

As she ventured deeper into the Salvatore's home, voices drifted from the library. Intrigued, Angelina sauntered out of the living room and into the library, where she found Elena, Stefan, Damon, and surprisingly Bonnie, all gathered together.

"Did you guys find him?" She furrowed her eyebrows and stood next to Damon, who stood across from the three of them.

"No.. but we have a plan." Elena spoke, a hopeful smile appearing on her face.

"Yeah, a terrible plan." Damon retorted.

"Just hear me out.." She continued on, ignoring his remarks. "Bonnie can use her magic take the power from the invention, then we can give it to Isobel who'll hand over Jeremy."

"That's a terrible plan." Angelina scoffed, almost in shock at their newfound idea.

"See?" Damon agreed.

"But it'll be useless!" The Gilbert continued in her attempt to convince them. "It won't work if she tries to use it."

"Yeah, and what do you think she'll do when she realizes it doesn't work?"

"Do you have a better plan?"

"As I said the other day, we kill her!"

"Really? How are you gonna do that, hmm?" Stefan questioned her. "Because Isobel is a vampire, and Jeremy could be dead the second you walk in the door."

"You of all people shouldn't be questioning me on whether or not I have the capability to do something right." She retorted and rolled her eyes. "I'm not the one who gets high off of a single drop of blood."

"Are you even up for this?" Damon focused his attention on Bonnie, interrupting their quarrel to prevent them from going on any further. "I mean, no offense. You're no Emily Bennett. Emily knew what she was doing."

"I've been practicing." Bonnie replied, annoyed by the vampires speculation.

"It's not piano lessons, honey."

"The issue isn't whether or not Bonnie can do it. She's a powerful Bennett witch, of course she can." The Petrova sighed, shaking off her and Stefan's brief argument. "It's whether or not she will do it."

"Exactly," He nodded his head. "She hates vampires, why would she help three of them?"

"Because Elena's my friend," Bonnie stepped closer to group. "I'm doing it for her, not you guys."

Angelina pinched her brows and locked her gaze on the witch. She wished she could believe her, but witches were notorious for holding grudges. Despite the fact that she had a valid reason, she was nonetheless a liability to her. Even if she continued to object, they were going to go ahead and do it with or without her help.

"We're doing this, guys." Elena said in a harsh tone. "And we're doing it my way; now give me the device. We're wasting time!"

"I still don't trust you." Damon remarked, shifting towards Bonnie once again.

"Hmm, you're right. You can't trust me."

"But you can trust me." The Gilbert girl edged closer to him, her eyes pleading for him to hand over the invention. Damon met her gaze, and for a moment, they were lost in each other's eyes.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out the invention, placing it in Elena's hand. "Thank you," she whispered before heading to the desk, where everyone was waiting for Bonnie to cast the spell.

Bonnie set the gadget on the desk, opening her grimoire and chanting "Phesmatos Incendia." Three candles flickered to life in front of her as she began to work her magic, holding her hands out over the device.

Suddenly, the gadget lifted into the air beneath her palms, lights flashing. The flames in the fireplace and candles grew brighter, causing everyone to take a step back.

Then, just as suddenly, the gadget dropped back onto the desk, and the flames returned to normal. "Done," Bonnie announced, handing it to Elena amidst the magical ambiance.

"Great, now what?" Damon retorted.

"Now we give it to Isobel." Elena replied. They all nodded and began to leave the boarding house at once. Angelina shifted her gaze to Bonnie and softly murmured, "Thank you." Bonnie remained silent and continued to stare at her with a blank face, thought the doppelgänger brushed aside the witch's lack of response and followed behind the group in search of Isobel.

Waiting for Isobel, Angelina and Elena strolled through the town square's dim pathway. Night had fallen, casting shadows all around. The only glimmers of light came from tiny fireflies and the glow of street lamps. A shiver crept down their spines as a chill wind swept through, making them feel like they were being watched.

Suddenly, a gust of wind rushed past them. They spun around and found themselves face to face with the person they were searching for: Isobel.

Isobel.

"Where's the device?" She inquired straightforwardly.

"Where's Jeremy?" Angelina titled her head to the side, staring the vampire down.

"This isn't a negotiation. Where's the invention?"

Angelina took the invention from her jacket pockets and held it in her hands, Isobel smiling as she caught a glimpse of it in her palms. "Tell us where Jeremy is, or I'll crush this into tiny little pieces."

"Do you really think that I came alone?" Isobel grinned and then a woman and a man appeared from behind them, supposedly her "backup".

"Do you really think we came alone?" Elena replied. Both of the Salvatore brothers then appeared from behind her. Her mother glanced back at them and smirked before turning around to face them.

"For god sakes, call home." She groaned.

"What?"

"Call home, ask to speak to your brother Jeremy." Hesitantly, Elena pulled out her phone and dialed Jeremy's number and held it up to her hear, hoping to hear his voice from the other side.

"Hello?" His voice could then be heard, and a smile appeared on her face.

"Jeremy? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Uncle John hit his head." He replied. "It was an accident."

"And we're all laughing!" Jenna's voice emitted from the background, along a laugh from him.

"Yeah, but um.. I'm okay." He reassures her once again.

"We'll be home soon, alright?"

"Yeah." He exhaled before hanging up the phone and Elena turned back to face Isobel.

"You were never gonna hurt him." She assumed which made Isobel smile.

"No, I was going to kill him." She corrected her with a mocking tone in her voice. "Don't look for any redeeming qualities in me. I don't have any."

"But you took a risk with Damon," The Gilbert continued to look for anything good lingering around inside of her mother. "How did you know he was going to give it to me?"

"Because he's in love with you." She answered bluntly, an awkward tension surrounding them. "Just like Angelina's in love with your boyfriend. Seems you're all dating the wrong people."

Elena gave Angelina a sidelong glance, but the Petrova remained silent and glared at Isobel. The vampire extended her hand for the device, while Angelina stared it down before taking a step forward and taking it in her palms.

"Drop dead, Isobel." She seethed and stuff her hands in her hands in her pockets before storming away from them. As she left the town square, Stefan ran after her,

and left Damon and Elena alone together.

"Angelina!" He called out for her but she ignored him and continued on walking. "You can't ignore me forever!"

Angelina stopped in her tracks and turned back around to face him and her gaze locked on his. "Then what else am I supposed to do, Stefan? Look, trust me, I'm glad that I was able to help you with your blood cravings because despite everything that's happened between us, I still care! But I just can't face you anymore. It was already hard enough with you not knowing."

"I just want to talk about it, please."

"No, Stef." She shook her head. "You're happy with her, and I don't want to take that away from you."

"So, just forget what happened and go back to Elena. I'm sure she's waiting for you." She exhaled and looked down at the ground before speeding away before he could utter another word.

Angelina opened the door to Elena's house and found it quiet. She slid her jacket off her shoulders and hung it on the coat rack next to the door before starting up the stairs.

She wanted to either go to bed or raid Jenna's not-so-secret stash of alcohol after tonight. But she was utterly out of it. She needed to forget about everything for a few hours, so sleep was the best option.

With each stride up the stairs, a faint noise could be heard from down the hallway to her right. Her brows creased as she stood at the top of the stairs, next to the hallway, listening intently for the sound.

Elena's bedroom was the source of the noise, so she stepped closer to her door and peered through the crack in the door out of curiosity. Elena sat at the edge of the bed, her head buried in her hands, hearing her doppelgänger's sobs from inside.

"Elena?" She opened the door and the Gilbert lifted her hands from her palms. "Um- are you alright?" Angelina began to walk closer to her and stood before her.

Elena shot her a glance, almost like she was annoyed to see her. "It's nothing. Either way, I'm sure you don't care."

True enough, she didn't give a damn. But as she turned to leave, a flicker of compassion nudged her. Swallowing her pride, she leaned against the doorframe, releasing a heavy sigh. "What's going on?"

Tears streamed down Elena's face, her lips quivering, cheeks flushed, and nose reddened. She wiped her eyes, meeting hers with a gaze full of anguish. "It's Damon."

With a reluctant groan, she shuffled into her bedroom. "Figures," she muttered under her breath. "What's he done now?"

Elena rose from the bed, her fingers raking through her hair in agitation. She paused, grappling with her thoughts. "I think.. I may have feelings for him. And I know he has feelings for me."

"Shocker?"

Elena shot her a glare before continuing. "Something happened a few days ago, during Miss Mystic Falls, after you skipped the pageant and went looking for.. Stefan."

Angelina leaned in, her expression serious. "What happened, Elena?"

"He kissed me."

Angelina stood there, stunned by Elena's revelation, searching for the right words. "And what did you do? Push him away? Freeze? Or did you kiss him back?"

The heavy silence in the room spoke volumes. Taking a deep breath, she closed the gap between them until they were eye to eye. "You kissed him back," she stated firmly.

"I told him I love Stefan. He knows Stefan means everything to me. I'd never leave him for Damon."

"So what's your plan? Pretend it never happened?" Angelina scoffed, incredulity lacing her voice. "This is a mess."

"I know, I'm sorry, I just-"

"Elena, Stefan has to know about this," she cut in.

"No, you can't tell him," Elena pleaded. "I'll talk to him myself, please."

"You really expect me to buy that?" Angelina rolled her eyes, moving to leave, but a hand on her arm stopped her.

"Angelina, I want to fix this myself!" She explained. "This isn't your mess to fix."

"Stefan is my friend! He's needs to know the truth."

"You're one to talk about truth."

She paused, shooting a glare at Elena for her harsh words, before turning to walk away once more. "Screw you."

"Ang, please." she lowered her tone. "I'm sorry. I just need time. I will tell him this myself."

The vampire let out a heavy breath, brushing a strand of hair away as she weighed her words. It was true, telling him then would've done more damage. But it was over now. He deserved to know.

"Fine, Elena." She replied. "I'll give you by the end of tomorrow. But if you don't, I'm telling him myself."

The ultimatum caught her off guard, though she quickly collected herself and nodded. "I will. I promise."

Despite the fact that Angelina didn't trust her, time would tell. Without another word she stormed out of her bedroom, leaving her doppelgänger to think about her actions and where she'd go from there.

AUTHORS NOTE
i literally said "lemme just drop this giant bombshell on y'all, with no warning or preparation".
but dont be surprised when you catch me rewriting this cause ik i can do better than this.

elena and stefan are over and y'all know god damn well whats abt to happen next.

ALSO HOLY SHIT THANK YOU FOR 10K READS LIKE IM SCREAMING RN