Salvation of a Salvatore Sister

A Nice Kidnapping

       "Whatever you're planning to do, Lily, don't." Nate follows me out the door and into the night. "Don't be rash."

I pause, turning and facing him. "I'm sick of playing housewife, Nate. I'm sick of pretending to be something I'm not."

"I get it, Lils. I do!" Nate steps in front of me. "But that doesn't mean that you need to self-destruct. There are other ways through this then-" He hesitates, but it doesn't matter, I pick up on what he won't say out loud.

"Then, turning it off?" I scoff, "Is that what you think I'm planning to do?"

"With the way that you've been talking, and with what happened last time..." he trails off, causing me to roll my eyes.

"I may repeat the same bad, habitual patterns again and again by walking away from situations and relationships, but trust me, I'm smarter than you're giving me credit for. This isn't like last time."

"Isn't it, though? Isn't it more severe than last time? You're leaving him, Lily." The worry in Nate's eyes annoys me. I get it, I have a pattern. But this, this isn't one. The last time I turned my humanity off, I was in a different place. I wasn't as wise then.

"I never said it was permanent. I just need space. And again, this is different from last time." I stare Nate down, my gaze intense as I convey my message to him to back off. I love him and how much he cares, but right now, other people's worries and concern are the last thing I feel like dealing with.

"Maybe, Lily. But can you blame me for being worried? Last time...last time was bad. If it wasn't for Cece...we may have never gotten you back."

At the mention of Ma, a strike of grief shoots through my chest. "Don't say her name!" Nate is startled by my reaction, but I've had enough of this. I'm sick of being told what I can and can't do. "And you don't get to speak about last time. Jess may have passed along some updates, but you weren't there. She wasn't there. You have no idea what I went through, what it was like." They have no idea how good it felt, or rather didn't feel, nor what it took for Ma to bring me back. "Look, I know you care, Nate, and I appreciate that you still do after all I've done to you. But, I'm a grown adult. I can make my own decisions. And now, I'm deciding it's time for me to leave."

"Lily-" But the shake of my head stops him. His words die in his throat.

"Take care, Handsome." I lean in and press a kiss to his cheek. When I pull back, I find acceptance in his eyes. He knows he won't be able to stop me, that nothing he says will change my mind. I smile slightly. Like I said, Nate's always gotten me in ways others didn't. He knows when to push me and when to leave it be.

Nate echoes my small smile, his concern clouding it. "Take care, Beautiful. Stay safe."

I snort at this, amusement breaching my smile. "I'll try." Nate shakes his head. "Thank you for your help. I hope this small town thing works out better for you than it has for me." He chuckles. I shoot him one last smile before turning and heading for my car. As I walk away, I can feel the words lingering on Nate's tongue. He knows me, and I know him. I know that he's holding back all the words he wants to say. He's trying to be respectful of my feelings. Sometimes I wish he wasn't as good of a guy. It makes me feel guiltier for doing things like this, leaning on him, confessing my secrets, when I know he still loves me, when he told me himself that he could never just be my friend. Like I said, I'm a shit person. At least that hasn't changed about me.

...

The sun shines bright overhead as I walk up the wooded path toward the house in the distance. If you didn't know where to look, where to find the small dirt path tucked amongst the trees and forest bush, it would be easy to miss. I've only walked this path once before, but I've never forgotten it.