𝐵𝑒𝑎𝑢𝑡𝑦 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵𝑜𝑢𝑟𝑏𝑜𝑛

No Ice, All Bourbon

Trees. That's all there was for miles as the twins drove through the mountains and the valleys of Virginia. They decided to stop at a bar in a small town called Mystic Falls, so they could feed and soon be on their way. They parked the car in the parking lot behind the building and walked in through the back door.

The sound of music was loud, and the smell of freshly cooked meat and potato fries filled their senses. But mostly blood. Fresh human blood pumping through everyone's beating hearts and into their bodies. The smell overwhelmed them. They were on the brink of losing control when Steven felt a surge of power shoot through him as he made eye contact with a man who was sitting in the corner of the bar with a group of adults who seemed to be in their thirties. The two males held eye contact for a good minute until Maya placed a concerned hand on her brother's shoulder, silently asking if he was alright.

He gave a gentle nod and a kind smile as he pointed to a couple of empty seats that were available for them to sit.

The two heretics took their seats at the two vacant stools at the bar. The bartender turned to them with a suspicious look on his face, but they didn't take much mind to it. They looked seventeen, and not a day older.

"What can I get you?" The bartender asked in a tired voice.

"Bourbon. No ice, just bourbon." Maya said, looking at Steven who gave her a nod, implying that he wanted the same thing.

"I'm gonna have to see some Identification before I serve you." The bartender said, only to be cut off by a male. Not just any male. It was the man Steven had noticed, not just five minutes ago.

"They're with me, Ethan." He said, taking a seat next to the pair of them.

The man looked like he was in his late thirties, seeing as the grey hairs on his head were pretty noticeable. He held a calm and kind demeanor, His eyes were a shade of forest green, but gave a sense of comfort. He looked like a nice person. But you never know these days. Everyone seems nice until they turn out to be a traitorous liar.

"Of course, Mr. Salvatore. Coming right up." The bartender chuckled awkwardly and scurried off to collect their drinks.

"So no ice, huh?" He asked, turning to the twins with a glint of curiosity in his eyes.

"It's stronger that way. What's the point of drinking alcohol when you can't drink it in its finest nature?" Maya replied with a small shrug.

"I suppose your right. I'm Stefan by the way. Stefan Salvatore." He said extending his hand out to the both of them.

Suddenly, Steven's heart dropped, and his stomach twisted.

"Salvatore? That name sounds familiar. Doesn't it, brother?" Maya asked, looking at her brother.

"Indeed, sister. I'm deeply sorry sir, but this conversation must be cut short. We have places to be. Thank you for the drink. I hope one day we can return the favor." Steven said, taking the last swig of his drink, grabbing Maya by the wrist, and pulling her out to the car.

"Steven! What is it?" Maya said as her brother pulled out of the parking lot.

"We have to leave right now Maya." He said, checking the review mirror.

"What in gods name happened in there?! Was it the man? Did he make you feel uncomfortable?" Maya said, attempting to get her brother's attention.

"Do you know who that man is Maya?" He asked, panicked. Maya shook her head 'no', causing Steven to grow only more frustrated. "Think Maya. Salvatore. Where have you heard it from?" Steven said reaching into his pocket.

"I don't know Steven, you're scaring me," Maya said, trying to think, but her mind was moving too fast. She knew that she had heard that name before but she couldn't remember from where.

Steven then handed her a piece of paper that was slightly wrinkled. It was one of her mother's letters to her father. Her eyes drifted to whom the letter was addressed, and sure enough, there was the name that rested on the slightly brown, wrinkled parchment. Stefan Salvatore. The letter had also contained a picture of her mother and a boy. Her father. The man from the bar.

"We have to turn around!" Maya insisted.

"We can't, and I won't. Maya, do you understand what this means?! He can't know about us! You'll be defying mothers wishes, and to be quite honest I don't want to have a conversation with the man who left us." Steven reasoned.

The car was now moving faster than before. trees and bushes were practically flying by. The wet roads splashed as the car went faster.

"I don't give a damn if we're disobeying mother. She vanished, remember?! And perhaps there was a reason why he didn't come back! Perhaps he never knew! We don't actually know what really happened, Steven. There is finally a way that we can find out why he didn't come back, and you just want to throw this opportunity away?!" Maya exclaimed, trying to reason with her brother.

"No, because he broke our mother's heart!"

"And she broke ours!"

Steven's foot slammed onto the break, causing Maya and himself to jerk, almost flying out of their seats. He looked over at Maya, with a frustrated expression.

"Please Steven. I promise, if you want to leave after we get answers, then we can and I won't utter another word about it. I promise."

after much consideration, luckily Steven obliged and turned the car around.

They drove back to the grill and saw Stefan getting into his car.

"Mr. Salvatore!" Steven shouted, getting out of the car.

Stefan stopped and looked at the twins that were walking toward him. He watched them with a curious expression but nonetheless waited for them to get closer.

"Yes?" He said, closing his car door.

"I'm Maya, and this is my twin brother, Steven. We met earlier this evening." Maya introduced, only for Stefan to give them both a handshake and a kind smile.

"We were hoping to talk to you about some things that could help us get some information on our mother's whereabouts. "

"I'm sorry kids, but it's already late and I should get back home to my wife. Perhaps another time." Stefan said, politely and opened his car door.

"Our mother's name is Valerie Tulle. Perhaps you know her?"

Stefan stopped cold in his tracks. Did he hear that name correctly? Valerie Tulle. His first love. He slowly turned around, looking at the twins with wide eyes.

"I thought there was only one of you..." He stuttered with confusion.

"Maybe we should take this conversation to somewhere more...private?" Steven implied.

Stefan nodded and told them to get into the car.

And they did.

{Edited on April 16, 2022}

{Word count: 1148 words}