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THE GRAPEVINE

FINDING THE LOCKWOOD BOY WAS A RATHER EASY FEAT.

Out of all the hiding spots she knew he liked within the grand home, Charlotte found Tyler huddled away in his father's study alongside an older man who she would recognize anywhere.

The two of them were passing around a silver flask, undoubtably carrying some sort of strong liquid, as she rapped her knuckles on the doorframe. "Is this where the real party is at?" she asked, garnering the attention of both individuals in the study.

Tyler's eyes met hers, and he huffed out a sound of relief. Instantly, he approached her by the door and wrapped her in a familial hug. "How are you, Charlie?" he questioned, pulled out of the embrace but keeping his hands on her shoulder blades.

"I should be the one asking you that," she scolded him, eyebrows furrowing at the guarded look in his eye.

"I meant how are you feeling," he stressed, evidently not wanting to talk about his father's passing. It was a tricky subject, Richard never won father of the year, anyways, and Charlotte would never push him— she knew he would come to her eventually.

The shorter girl shrugged. "I'm the poster child of perfect health, Ty," she joked, shrugging his arms off of her before she turned to the other man who only watched their exchange. "Nice to see you, Mason."

Mason Lockwood was the mayor's younger brother who decidedly skipped town right after high school. Carol had told her once that he was a great surfer, though she could see the disdain in her eyes when she talked about his lack of real post secondary experiences.

The man strolled forward with a type of swagger that could only be achieved if you lived down south. "Little Charlie Henry," he greeted, nostalgia in his tone as he pulled the girl into a short hug. "How have you not grown since I last saw you?"

She threw a solid punch to his upper chest, unaware of the strength she used that Mason definitely felt. "If that was your attempt at a short joke, I'm not impressed," she muttered, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm five foot five, above average height in over thirteen states."

"Now, how the hell do you know that?" Tyler questioned incredulously.

Charlotte smiled at him, wiggling her eyebrows. "Wikipedia."

Mason rolled his eyes, mentally taking note of the hard-hit she landed on him. "What's Nate up to these days?" he asked the younger girl, trying to segway away from discussing her height. They'd be there all afternoon if they let her ramble– let her claim she wasn't short.

Back in their high school days, her older brother and Mason were friends, despite Mason being in the eleventh grade while Nathaniel was in the ninth. Sure, they hadn't kept in contact once Mason graduated, but the eldest Henry was never one for keeping personal relationships; it was a miracle Charlotte even got a weekly phone call from him at all.

"He's doing whatever Nate does best," she told him. "He started his third year of grad school this past fall, out in Boston."

"Boston, huh?" Mason repeated, nodding to himself. "He still trying to be a big shot businessman?"

Tyler hummed from beside her. "Who do you think is gonna replace her dad at the development firm?" he asked rhetorically. Everyone knew that Daniel Henry had started preparing his son to take over their family's development company since he was twelve years old. When Nathaniel was only fourteen, their father started taking him to the commercial and retail sites that their family managed, giving him a glimpse at his prosperous future.

"He's dad's carbon copy," she added, albeit with a barely noticeable grimace, and Tyler laughed in agreeance.

A throat clearing behind Charlotte and Tyler made them turn around, the sight of Carol standing there with a tight smile directed at her son. "Tyler, won't you come say hello to the Jamesons?" she asked, but everyone knew she was telling him to come with her.

Sparing his friend a fleeting smile, Tyler followed his mother out of the study, leaving Charlotte behind with the black sheep of the Lockwood family.

Turning back to Mason, she found his eyes were already aimed right at her sympathetically. "Tyler told me about the crash," he started off, going to lean against the mayor's desk as he spoke to her. She didn't know he was trying to pry, trying to obtain information out of her. "It sounds like you both had a rough night."

Charlotte scoffed out a laugh. "Rough doesn't even begin to explain it," she replied. Using her pointer finger, she gestured to her temple, "I was convinced that I'd have a headache till I turned seventy... it was brutal."

At that, the Henry girl also took her leave, giving the man a large smile before exiting through the same door Tyler had gone out of.

She was none the wiser to Mason Lockwood's questioning gaze, nor the flash of recognition that appeared in his eyes as he watched her go.

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Weaving through the guests within the home, Charlotte found herself in the dining room where a bunch of fruit and other ginger foods were laid out. Charlotte was a firm believer in never eating the food at someone's funeral ("it's bad juju, trust me Bonnie"), but since this was solely a wake, she plucked a couple of grapes from a bowl.

Munching on them silently, she hadn't noticed a presence sneak up behind her.

"A little birdy told me you got into quite the collision the other night."

Snapping her attention to the person behind her, she tensed at the sight of Damon Salvatore. The grin on his face oozed mischief, and although she never had the pleasure of having many first-hand interactions with the older Salvatore brother, she didn't plan on starting up more conversation with him than necessary.

"Damon," she nodded in greeting, immediately trying to walk past him with the few grapes still in her palm. He intercepted her swiftly, his hand wrapping around her bicep to stop her movements. "Let me go."

"What kind of noise did you hear the other night?" he asked casually, and her efforts to escape his hold ceased.

Her eyes darted between his uneasily, but masked her discomfort with a solid frown. "How do you know about that?"

Damon shrugged, blue eyes piercing into her. "Heard it through the grapevine," he replied with a shrug, smugness in his tone before his face seemed to sober up seriously. "Was like a dog whistle, only worse... am I right?"

Her gaze faltered, finally pushing herself out of Damon's hold with the same amount of strength she used to punch Mason playfully. She didn't know what he was implying; but she was sure that he was accusing her of something... she just didn't know what.

Damon had staggered back, covering up the surprised look on his face at her peculiar strength as she pointed an accusatory finger in his direction. "I don't know who you think you are, but you need to back off," she snapped, tone kept low as people began flooding into the dining room. She could practically feel the simmering anger prodding at her the longer Damon looked at her with those judgy, curious eyes of his. "It's none of your business."

Her chest seemed to rise and fall more rapidly than before the longer she looked at the man, only snapping out of it once a soft hand touched her arm. "Everything alright, Charlotte?"

Looking to her left, she saw Bonnie Bennett's gentle face. The Bennett girl was probably the kindest soul Charlotte had ever met, and even just looking at her concerned face had her frustration retreating into the corners of her mind.

With a sigh, she rolled her shoulders back. "Yeah— yeah I'm good," she told her friend before her gaze settled back on Damon. "Was just a misunderstanding, right Damon?"

Without blinking, the man gave his response. "Couldn't have said it better myself.

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[ wyn's note ]

damon is such a shit-disturber, BUT with the underlying katherine issue going on, finding out why the lockwoods and charlotte were affected by the gilbert device is his new hyperfixation.

lmk ur thoughts so far!