CHARLIE WAS WALKING THROUGH THE GYM WHICH WAS being decorated for the '20s Decade Dance. Caroline was really upset since it was supposed to be the '70s, but Rebekah changed it and did not even show up to decorate. The blonde girl questioned, "So, Alaric is trying to pull himself together, why is that a bad thing?"

"I just...I wish there was something I could do. Where do you want me to hang this thing?" The Gilbert girl had just picked up a chandelier, causing the other two girls to stare at it in confusion. It was a very oddly shaped chandelier, and it was just adding confusion as to why the theme was 20s. Charlie happened to like the 70s. She was really excited about her outfit and the music and the disco balls.

"You know what, if Rebekah wanted to hang this monstrosity she should have shown up to do it herself. Just no!" the Forbes girl told her as she handed the chandelier to a passing student. Then, she saw Matt and Jeremy hanging up stars in the ceiling. She stormed over to them, clipboard in hand. "What are you doing? You can't just hang them! They're supposed to trickle down."

Matt turned to the Gilbert boy with a look. "Trickle, duh!"

"Look at them all bromancy," Charlie commented as the girls continued to walk. The two seemed to be getting really close.

"Yeah I asked Matt to help Jeremy readjust," Elena responded as she glanced back to see her brother laughing and happy. "He got him his old job back at the Grill."

Caroline smiled as she checked some things off on her clipboard when she saw that they were done. She was also making notes of what to fix on her own once everyone else left. "That was nice of him."

"Jeremy has got a lot on his mind. The whole thing with Alaric has got him really stressed out," she sighed. Also, apparently, Elena had brought the Saltzman man a gift basket where Damon had snuck a copy of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. He had a cruel sense of humor.

The blonde girl raised her eyebrows suspiciously as she casually asked, "You sure it has nothing to do with witnessing you and Damon getting hot and heavy in a skeevy motel?"

"That was traumatizing," the Lockwood confirmed because it was true for her and Jeremy. She had nightmares about it. The only good thing was that she made twenty dollars from it.

Elena glared at her and Caroline before rolling her eyes. "I didn't tell you that so you could torture me with it."

"Aww, what are friends for?" the blonde chuckled out, and Elena wrapped one of the feather boas around her neck. "So who are you guys bringing to the dance?"

"What do you mean? I thought you, Bonnie, Charlie, and I were going as girl dates," the older brunette asked since that was what they had agreed on so no one would feel sad and lonely.

Charlie shook her head, recalling her phone call with Caroline and Bonnie where the girl had informed them that she was bringing someone. "Bonnie has a date. Jamie called and wanted to see her so she asked him."

"So here's a thought, why don't you ask Stefan?" the Forbes girl questioned. She was clearly on team Stefan, especially since Damon kind of tortured her psychologically for a period of time the previous year.

Elena shook her head immediately. She felt guilty about the kiss, and she could not go to a dance with Stefan after it. "I can't ask him on a date. I just made out with his brother."

"All the more reason!" the vampire girl exclaimed before exhaling. "Look you're supposed to be figuring out what you want. That's what Stefan wanted you to do, right?"

"Yeah, but—"

Caroline cut her off as soon as she started saying something, desperate for Stefan and Elena to happen. "But nothing! I've watched The Bachelor, okay? Fair is fair. It is Stefan's turn."

"Yeah, and you're not biased or anything," the human girl scoffed as they took another lap around the gym. They were not really paying attention to the decorating anymore. They were just walking.

"I'm sorry, but Stefan is your epic love. And I'm not going down without a fight," the blonde girl insisted before turning to her younger brunette friend. "Now, Charlie, are you bringing Jeremy or Kol?"

Charlie looked at her in shock, not quite sure how to respond to that since she was caught so off guard. "What?"

"I suggest Jeremy since he's not a murdering Original vampire, and Bonnie said she's fine with it because she's with Jamie," Caroline explained, and the Lockwood was looking at her in shock, not aware that this was a conversation topic.

"What the hell? You talked to Bonnie about me and Jeremy?" the hybrid questioned, her jaw dropping as she insisted, "There is no me and Jeremy!"

Elena scoffed, rolling her eyes as she waved her off. "Oh, please. You and him shared a bed in Denver."

"What?" Caroline asked since she had clearly not heard about that part. The brunette just did not think that it was that important of a detail since nothing happened.

Charlie was in shock since she had no choice but to get in bed with Jeremy because Damon and Elena were about to start making out right next to her. She did not want to have to deal with that. "Only because you and Damon were sleeping in the other one!"

"Whatever you say."

☾❄☽

CHARLIE WAS SIPPING PUNCH AT THE DANCE ALL ALONE. She had decided not to ask anyone, so she just decided that she would find someone to hang out with when she got there. However, her plan kind of backfired because Bonnie was with Jamie, Caroline was with Tyler, and Elena was off doing God knows what with a Salvatore brother. That was why she was so relieved when she heard a familiar voice.

"Can I have this dance?" it asked, and she turned to see Jeremy's smiling face as he held a hand out for her to take.

She grinned and placed her hand in his as he pulled her onto the dance floor. "Of course."

"You look gorgeous," he complimented as he placed his hands on her waist. She wrapped her arms around his neck as a slow jazz song came on.

Luckily, it was dark, so she was able to hide her blush as she looked down at her feet with a sheepish smile. She looked back up at him and responded, "Thank you. You look great too."

"So, what's going on between you and Kol?" he asked rather abruptly, and she was taken aback a little from how suddenly he had said that. "You two seemed a little too friendly in Denver."

"Nothing's going on. We danced at his ball, and then we got a couple of drinks together," she answered, shaking her head. She left out the part where he said that she looked hot bent over a pool table because she figured that Jeremy did not want to hear about that. Plus, it was not really relevant to the story.

He furrowed his eyebrows since that was more than she had done with a lot of people. "That doesn't seem like nothing, especially considering he's an Original vampire."

"Well, even if there was anything, it's over now," she assured him, and she was pretty sure that it was true. He was going to kill the Gilbert boy if Klaus told him to. How could she ever have anything with him after that? Plus, it was not even anything. They just hung out a couple of times.

He sighed, "Well, he's watching us right now."

"He is? I didn't even know he was here," she muttered, and he nodded his head toward something. She turned to see none other than Kol Mikaelson standing there with a drink in his hand, leaning against a table and staring at them. She turned back to see a bitter expression on Jeremy's face. She joked, "Are you jealous, Gilbert?"

"Why would I be jealous?" he asked quickly and kind of defensively.

He clearly did not get that it was a joke, but she continued anyway, "I don't know. You just seem awfully interested in my relationships with other guys."

"I just don't want you to get hurt," he informed her, offering a kind smile and a shrug as he ignored how hot his face had just gotten. "You're my friend."

"Well, thanks," she replied.

All of a sudden, the boy tensed up, and she furrowed her eyebrows in confusion as his eyes left hers and landed on something of her shoulder. "He's coming over."

"What?"

"Hello, Charlotte," the British voice greeted, and she winced when she realized who he had been talking about. She shot Kol a polite glance, and he turned to the Gilbert boy. "Jeremy, could I steal her from you, bud?"

The human boy kept one hand on Charlie's waist as her turned toward Kol with a defensive look. "I thought we weren't buds."

"Jeremy..." she warned, knowing that a fight between the two males would not end well for anyone. As much as she believed in Jeremy, he would definitely get his ass handed to him by an Original vampire.

He sighed and stepped away but not before shooting a glare at Kol since this was now the second time that a Mikaelson man had stolen a dance with Charlie from him. "I'll see you later."

"Thanks mate. You look absolutely radiant, darling," the man complimented her, quickly replacing Jeremy in the dancing position. "I wasn't awake during the '20s, but from what I've seen, you've matched the theme perfectly."

"Thank you, Kol. You too," she responded with a polite nod as they swayed to the slow beat of the music. The distinct sounds of a saxophone echoed throughout the gym while his hands slid across her waist.

He raised his eyebrows at her after a moment before gesturing in the direction that the Gilbert boy had gone when he left. "So, Jeremy? Are you two together, or something?"

"What? No. We're just friends," she exclaimed, shaking her head. Despite what everyone had insinuated, there was nothing going on with her and Jeremy. There couldn't be, not so soon after JJ died. "What made you think that?"

"Well, first, he would not shut up about you when I was with him in Denver," he informed her, and he sounded a little annoyed by the fact, probably since he could not tell the boy that he knew her and that he had danced with her.

She was shocked by that because he had left her without a goodbye, so she doubted that he cared enough to talk about her to his friends in Denver. "Really?"

"Really. I was about to blow my cover by punching him to get him to shut up," he chuckled out before his gaze shifted from her to a spot by the punch bowl. "Second, he is staring at me like he wants to cut my head off."

She turned and looked to see Jeremy standing there in the corner with a sneer on his face. If looks could kill, Kol would be all cold and gray. "He's just looking out for me."

"Whatever you say," he responded with a shrug. Then, he leaned in so close that his lips brushed against her ear. She tensed up as his fingers ran along her spine. "But just so you know, I'm prepared to fight for you."

And then he left, leaving her alone on the dance floor.

☾❄☽

"WHAT'S HAPPENING?" CHARLIE QUESTIONED LATER WHEN STEFAN CAME up to her in the hallway in a panic. He had just explained to her really quickly that Esther had trapped all of the supernatural creatures inside the school with a boundary spell. "Why is it such a huge deal that we leave right now? Why would she do that?"

He sighed, clearly annoyed that she was behind, but she could not be with everyone if no one ever told her anything. "Esther has Elena and Alaric at the cemetery, and she's gonna do this spell thing that's gonna kill him. I'm a little fuzzy on the details, but I know it's bad. Now, Jeremy and Matt left to go stop her."

"What?" she exclaimed angrily, and she leaned forward and hit him in the chest. "How the hell could you let them go and fight the Original freaking witch with no freaking help and no freaking powers?"

"Did you just hit me?" he asked, still in shock that he would hit her. He must have forgotten that she was not just a little freshman werewolf anymore. She was a big bad hybrid now that could kick his ass.

She rolled her eyes at him. "That is not the point right now. The point is that they're out there, and we're stuck in here."

"I know. That's the problem," the Salvatore groaned, and then he started walking back toward the gym where people were filing out because the dance had just ended. "I'm gonna go update Caroline and Tyler. Come on."

Once everyone was done exiting the gym, the two entered and saw the the only people left were Caroline and Tyler. Stefan informed them, "They're at the old cemetery. Jeremy and Matt are headed there right now."

"You let them go?" the blonde girl exclaimed, having the exact same reaction as the Lockwood girl when she found out. "They're gonna get themselves killed!"

"I didn't have a choice, Caroline. We're useless right now stuck in here," the vampire man sighed, and it was clear that this was bothering him a lot more than they thought it was. He was as worried about Elena as Charlie was about Jeremy.

Caroline shot him a look of pity before assuring her, "Hey, she'll be fine. Elena always manages to find her way through this stuff."

"Yeah, well I'm just as worried about what Esther is up to. She led Klaus here for a reason. If she succeeds in whatever she's doing—" the Salvatore man started when Tyler cut him off.

"Klaus could get killed," he finished before looking over to his sister with a solemn expression. She nodded, knowing what he was about to say. "And we die along with him."

Stefan placed his hand on the brunette girl's shoulder in an attempt to comfort her. "No one is gonna die, okay? Bonnie is still looking for a way around the boundary spell. It's not too late."

They finally got the spell broken with Bonnie's help and Klaus' threats, and they rushed to the cemetery. As Charlie sprinted through the woods and toward the crypt, she ran into Jeremy. Her eyes widened when she saw him, and he grabbed her elbows as he held onto her arms. She noticed tears in his eyes and she furrowed her eyebrows, knowing that that could not be good. "What happened?"

"Alaric's gone," he choked out, and that was all he had to say for her to throw her arms around him and pull him toward her in a hug. He buried his face into her shoulder, getting her shirt wet with tears, but she did not care. And she stood there and held him for as long as he needed her to.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

If it weren't for the fact that he tried to kill Jeremy, I would be team Kol at the moment. I was thinking of making a Kol fic, but I have so many fics lined up that it would be a minute before I got to write it.

Also, just a reminder that this is a SLOW BURN. I feel like it sometimes gets boring when couples get together too early and are just couples for the rest of the time. I'm not going to lie, I'm writing season five rn, and i think y'all will be very happy

anyway, enough of my yapping