𝐄𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐚 : 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐕𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬

𝟎𝟏𝟏 ════ 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐀𝐦

ESTELLA DELACOUR seemed to always be worrying. It was like the universe wanted her to do nothing but tear her hair out in worry. Worrying had become her shadow, always present and always following her wherever she went.

For now, her doe brown eyes stared at her phone in hand, repeating Elena's voice message. "We look like them, Ellie...Exactly alike..." She said heavily, as Estella heard sounds of muffled crying. "I don't know how...." She trailed before she was cut off, and there were loud sounds and crashing from the other side. Estella hoped the sounds were not the car crashing and then the line went dead.

And Elena was nowhere to be seen, she wasn't at school that day which only made Estella worry more.

She made Stefan listen to the voicemail after school, at the Salvatore home and he sported a grim expression on his face as if he knew exactly what Elena was talking about.

"What are you not telling me?" demanded Estella seeing the look on Stefan's face. He sighed heavily which made Estella's frown deepen and she hugged herself in uncertainty. What was so bad that Stefan couldn't even tell her?

"It'll be easier if I just show you." He said leading her up the staircase to his room. Estella trailed behind him, hesitantly as her brown eyes surveyed her surroundings.

The walls were painted a light cream colour and his bed was neatly made. There was a wooden table pushed to a wall, with all of Stefan's journals that laid messily on it with a few unlit candles. Estella curiously turned to Stefan, her lower lip jutting out as she furrowed her eyebrows a little. Stefan gulped uncomfortably and moved to the wooden table, trying not to look into Estella's chocolate-brown eyes.

"The reason Elena was mad at me was because of this," said Stefan not looking at Estella's face as he held up a photo. Estella's eyes were as wide as saucers, confusion, bewilderment and awe dancing in her eyes, as she traped her bottom lip between her teeth.

The photo was a light shade of yellow, with a few creases here and there due to it being old. Katherine 1864 was written on it in elegant handwriting, the once blank ink faded into a dark grey. But that wasn't the part that shocked her to her very core. The picture staring back at her was Elena's face with a soft smile on her face that seemed to be hiding many secrets. The girl's hair was curled in tight tendrils falling neatly around her face and she was dressed in a corset. Estella's mouth suddenly turned dry, as she stared at dark eyes that held a seductive yet angelic look.

Estella turned to Stefan, her mind drowning in thoughts. The hurt spread across her chest like she was stabbed. How was it possible that Katherine and Elena looked exactly alike? Was this why Stefan was dating Elena? To be some replacement for Katherine? Was Stefan pretending Elena's doe brown eyes were Katherine's whenever he interacted with her?

"How. . .why. . ." stammered Estella feeling lightheaded, all of her surroundings turning into a daze, she clenched her fists tightly, making red half-crescent shapes. This couldn't be happening. .  . Estella almost wished she could sit down.