Just A Girl (TVD)

Goodbyes (Epilogue)

3rd Person

Elena gasped as three people came from the burning building. You could see smoke coming from some of the windows now. She smiled as Stefan helped them both to safety. It was fine. Everything was fine.

Her smile dropped when she saw that the third person was not Nora. In fact, it was Bonnie. Bonnie, with tears running down her cheeks and a distraught look on her face. Stefan, despite the fact that he was helping carry two people to safety, looked like he felt completely and utterly powerless. Damon tried to keep an emotionless look on his face.

Damon, semi-friend to 14 year old smart-asses and history teachers. Damon who wouldn't necessarily be called a friend, but who wasn't as horrible a person as usual in the past few days. Damon who was just beginning to see her as the little sister he never wanted. Yes, this Damon looked completely stoic leaving the building.

Elena shook her head as the trio grew closer. "No... no, not Nora... P-please say she didn't-" She choked on her own words, putting a hand over her mouth.

"She saved us." Stefan said. "But... she's gone."

Charlie couldn't believe what he was hearing. Nora Gilbert was dead. She wouldn't come back like a vampire would after getting their neck snapped. She didn't have the fancy resurrection ring or healing powers. She couldn't do protection spells. She was just... gone. And that was it. He began to slowly walk towards the burning building, a look of determination - and maybe even anger - on his face.

"You don't wanna go in there, trust me." Damon said, putting a hand on the young teen's shoulder.

"Why should anyone trust you?" He spat, turning away instead and heading toward the woods.

For a moment, Damon thought he saw a hint of darkness in the boy's eyes but chose to forget about it. There were more pressing matters at hand.

"Oh my god... what am I gonna tell Jenna? And Jeremy?"

"The truth." Damon said grimly. "That she died in a fire."

The next few weeks were the hardest for everyone. The funeral came and went. It wasn't a very big service, just like she would have wanted. Closed casket, just like she would have wanted. Elena, Jenna, and Alaric spoke about the usual things you say about dead people, like how they had a heart of gold, etc. Jeremy's speech was a bit different though.

"When I was seven and she was six, we would race down the stairs at dinner time. I was going through a growth spurt and had longer legs, so I usually won. We'd line at the top of the stairs and count down from three and everything. This one time, as soon as we said go, she slid down the railing of the staircase, but then fell off at the end and broke her left arm. She told me it was worth it cause that was the first time she won the race. It was also the last time cause mom shut that game down pretty quickly. But I guess what I'm trying to say is that she was stubborn and determined and if you think she ever asked you permission to do something, you are sorely mistaken. She was really just trying to figure out how mad you would be when she went and did it anyway, you know? You say "you can't do that" she'll respond "is that a challenge?" You ask "why?" she'll say "why not?" Send her a dirty look, you'll get a punch in the face. Send her a frown, you'll get a gift basket on your doorstep. Send her a smile... She'll smile twice as wide right back at you." Jeremy found himself with a ghost of a smile for the first time since he heard the news. He had already just Anna, and now Nora too?

After the incident the school put Nora's name on a plaque and stuck it on one of the chairs in the library. Charlie found himself thinking- no, knowing that Nora would hate that. The story that everyone believed to be true was that Nora put out the fire on the stairs but got trapped trying to help a couple of random survivors out. Of course, it was a cover up for what really happened, but it was close enough. A few months later, Charlie stopped at her grave. He set down flowers and a small piece of paper with a big 15 on it. "Happy fifteenth birthday, Nora."

The daisies that he had picked in the woods surrounding the shed were slightly wilted but still brought the barren grave a little bit of life. "You know, sophomore year is gonna be hell without you. But hey... at least I passed geometry." He sighed. "I'm sorry you didn't get to finish eleventh grade history. I'm sorry about a lot of things. Especially about what I didn't get to tell you. First of all, I love you. And second of all... when I... killed that other guy in the woods, it triggered something. I- I think I'm a-"

Charlie was cut off by the ringing of his cellphone. "Shit..." He took it out and answered it. "Yeah... What?... Okay, I'll be there in twenty minutes."

-

First Person

-

It was so dark. It was dark for about one minute before I realized that I was laying on a cold but soft surface. It was dark for about two minutes before I realized that I was breathing. And it was dark for maybe five more minutes before I worked up the courage and strength to open my eyes. And then it was still dark. I tried to move but my muscles felt a stiff as a board and when I could move my arms and legs another fifteen minutes had passed. I felt around, realizing that there was something covering the top of whatever I was sleeping on... No. No way... I was in a coffin.

Suddenly, it got hard to breathe and I felt like I might have died again. Wait... I couldn't remember much from the night I died. Just fire and Damon and Stefan and Bonnie and that was it. I started to pound on the coffin, hoping that somebody would find me. Soon enough - I'm not sure how much later - I started screaming. "I'M NOT DEAD!" My vocal chords strained from going who knows how long without being used. "SOMEBODY GET ME OUT OF HERE!"

The air was getting thin when I started to kick the coffin door until I heard a crack. I reached next to me and ripped some of the fabric off of the lining of the coffin and wrapped my fists with it. Then I began punching and kicking straight above me at the wood. Loose soil started spilling into the coffin. Good, there probably wasn't any grass for me to break through at the top yet. I used all of the strength I had to push myself up to the top and dig upwards. As soon as I felt the warm sunlight hit my face, I wiped the dirt off of my eyes and opened them, struggling to get accustomed to the light. Then I stood up and brushed the dirt off of my clothes. I smiled. I was wearing the green dress that I wore when I went to the Founder's Party with Charlie.

I looked at the ground and in the pile of dirt I found a card. Well, I guess I'm fifteen now. Thanks Charlie.

Finally, I took a deep breath of the fresh summer air. I was back. But how?

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(A/N - And that concludes the first book! Stay on the lookout for an book two announcement this weekend!!! I love you and thank you to everyone who read this all the way through <3)