Whatever It Takes {Two | Alaric Saltzman}

Somebody That I Used to Know

Abigail, with her purse over one shoulder, empty shopping bags over the other, and a tumbler full of coffee in her left hand, pulled open the front door in a haste. There was someone standing on the porch. She didn't even know they were there, but it was clear that they had been waiting.

Stefan smiled softly at her. "Hi."

She lifted her right hand, using it to keep the door from opening all the way. "I really can't do another escapade today."

"No. No escapades, no scar, no running from Rayna." He shifted on his feet. "And thank you for your help with that, by the way."

With a nod, she said, "You're welcome."

"So, anyway, I was actually hoping to, uh, speak to Caroline, but-"

"She lives above the garage, so this isn't the door you should be knocking on."

"I know, I, uh, she wasn't there." He shook his head. "I saw your car-"

"If she's not here then she's at work. Which is where I'm supposed to be." At the look on his face, she sighed. "Look, Alaric had a meeting before his eight o'clock lecture, so he left before Lizzie and Josie even woke up. I was expecting it when they didn't want to brush their teeth after breakfast or when they didn't want to get up from where we were cuddling on the couch to get dressed, but what I wasn't expecting was the totally adorable yet heartbreaking way they asked if Daddy could pick them up from school even though I'm the one who usually does it. So, by the time we even made it out of the door, I realized I was still wearing my pajamas.

"I dropped them off in a puddle of tears, sped home, got pulled over and couldn't compel my way out of a ticket, which Alaric is going to be pissed about, only to make it back here where I threw together an outfit, barely put any makeup on, and managed to make my hair look like I've brushed it all the while ignoring every call I received from my boss. And now you're here."

He stepped backwards. "I can just come back."

"I just told you all of that so you would know how much of a bigger deal it was going to be when I invited you in." She opened the door all of the way. "Come on in."

Stefan stepped over the threshold and into the house. "Thanks."

Abigail led Stefan into the kitchen where she put her bags in a dining room chair and her coffee and keys down on the kitchen island. She followed his eyes around the open space, noticing just how long they lingered on the smallest of details. Details that she'd been so used to she didn't know they would hold the attention of someone else.

"I'd apologize about the mess but I wouldn't mean it." She smiled but not for him. "This is our normal."

"No, no, it's, uh..." His eyes met hers. "It's nice."

"Yeah, thanks." The wooden cutting board in the shape of Virginia on the opposite counter stole her attention for only a moment because Dallas was home, but Mystic Falls was something more than that. "Really, you'd be surprised what you can accomplish when your best friend can compel an entire homeowner's association."

"Thought you were, uh, out of the game?" He asked.

"We are."

"But a vampire lives feet from where your family sleeps-"

"Caroline lives feet from where my family sleeps," she amended. "Besides, have you ever dealt with a homeowner's association? It helps to have someone around who can compel them off your back when it comes to their ridiculous rules."

He chuckled. "Yeah, I've dealt with a homeowner's association or two in my time."

"I'd offer you something, but this coffee isn't that good and I haven't been to the store in a while." Her smile had faded completely which would have left room for another one to grow if she could have found it. "So, unless you want a juice box or some string cheese, I suggest we go somewhere else."