𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗲𝘀𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁 // 𝘀.𝘀 & 𝗻.𝗺

𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆

"Elena, I promise you that there is nothing to be worried about it," Stefan assures as he sits on the end of her bed. "Audrey and I are in the past."

Elena sighs, "I don't know, Stefan. You can't expect me to not be worried especially since I've never met her."

"Something tells me that won't last too long."

She furrows her brows at him, "what do you mean?"

"I think that Audrey will probably pay you a visit soon."

"Like Katherine?"

He nods, "like Katherine. Except she's not really like Katherine."

"What do you mean?" Elena asks as she cocks her head, "they're twins, they both shared and compelled you and Damon. They're evil, Stefan. Audrey is evil, just like Katherine."

Stefan stands up from her bed and stares at Elena in disgust, "stop it, Elena. I'm not gonna let you talk about her like this."

Elena stands up from the bed as well and scoffs, "what are you talking about? It's true."

"What's true, Elena, is that she is a good person. Yes, I am worried about what she may do when around her sister, but individually, she is good."

Elena shrugs and crosses her arms, "I won't believe it until I see it."

Stefan sighs and begins walking to her door, "fine."

"Where are we going?"

"To her mansion, come on."

~

Audrina sits at her luxurious pool, a bowl of cherries and a glass of wine at her side. She lets out a sigh as she relaxes, closing her eyes and taking in the sun.

She smiles to herself, popping another cherry into her mouth and spitting out the seed.

Suddenly, her relaxation is interrupted when someone rushes outside and over to her.

"Uh, Ms Pierce?"

Audrina rolls her eyes and pushes her sunglasses up to her head "what is it, William?"

"There is a man and a woman at the door for you," he tells her.

She cocks a brow, "a man and a woman?"

"The man from before and a woman who resembles you, it could be your sister," he explains.

"Man from before can mean Stefan or Klaus and I'm hoping the former. But if it's Klaus the woman with him is most likely Katerina but if it's Stefan then the woman with him is probably Elena," she sits up from her lounge chair, "oh, refill my wine and cherries, please."

"Of course," William nods and hurries off to do so.

Still in her blue bikini, Audrina walks back into her mansion and enters the foyer where Stefan and Elena await her.

Elena intakes a small breath of shock when she sees Audrina, "wow. There are two women who look exactly like me."

Audrina smiles, "oh, Stefan. You brought your little girlfriend to meet me?"

Stefan licks his lips, "can I talk to you?"

"Of course you can."

He looks between her and Elena before walking up to Audrina and grabbing her by her arm and pulling her to the side. "Elena is worried that you might have something planned."

Audrina narrows her eyes at him, "well she can stop. I'm not my sister, I won't hurt her if she doesn't hurt me."

"I know. I tried explaining that to her but she doesn't get it," Stefan tells her, "she seems to think you're evil."

Audrina giggles, "trust me Stefan, I have nothing against Elena or any reason to want to cause harm to her. As long as you're happy with her, I'm happy."

Stefan nods happily before looking her up and down, noticing her attire. "Uh," he clears his throat, "were you swimming?"

"Sunbathing," she says, "but now that you mention it, I can go for a swim and I would love a partner."

"Audrey..."

She rolls her eyes, "I know, I know. But can't we be friends?"

"Sure, but not the kind that go on swims alone together," he says as the two of them walk back to where Elena waits for them.

Audrey shrugs and walks over to Elena, "Elena Gilbert, I'm Audrina Petrova, but you can call me Audrey. I'll be honest, you'll probably die in Klaus' sacrifice in a few days so I'm not gonna waste my time getting to know you."

At first, Elena stares at the girl in shock and at a loss for words.

"Speaking of," Stefan speaks up, causing both girls to look over at him, "is there anything you can do to help us?"

"Help?" Audrina laughs. "No, you're fucked. The only reason Katerina and I escaped with our lives was because he was in love with me and she turned us into vampires. So unless Klaus falls for you, which no offense is unlikely, or you're willing to die with vampire blood in your system.... you're fucked."

Elena furrows her eyebrows, "wait a second, Klaus was in love with you?"

"Yup," she nods, "well...is. He's actively trying to pursue me."

Stefan seems to tense at this and Elena and Audrina both take notice of this, "is it working?" he asks.

Audrina cocks a brow and shifts her weight to one leg, popping out her hip. "I don't know Stefan, you tell me."

"So you never loved him back?" Elena asks, trying to change the subject.

"It was 500 years ago and during that time I was brainwashed into fearing him by my sister. So, I don't know."

Elena nods and shoots her an understanding look, "thank you for giving your input and not being...evil."

"No problem, Elena," she walks over to the front door, Elena and Stefan following, "good luck."

Elena nods and gives a small smile before leaving. Stefan stops at the entry and looks at Audrina who stands there, "I did miss you... if that means anything."

Audrina smiles softly, "it does. Thank you, Stefan, I missed you too."

He nods once and it's awkward for a moment before he speaks again, "I'm sorry about before. It was cruel of me to say all of that to you and I didn't even mean it. I understand you and why you left and I forgive you for it. Thank you for coming back and explaining yourself," he sighs, "before it felt like an empty wound and now... now it feels like I can finally move on from that part of my life," he leans forward and places a hand on each of her cheeks before placing a sweet kiss on her forehead. And with that, he leaves, closing the door behind him.

Tears cloud her vision as she leans against the door. Nothing but Stefan is on her mind.

~

word count: 1091