The Bourbon Diaries ✢ The Vampire Diaries FanFiction ✢ TVD FanFic ✢ TVDU FanFic

Chapter Fifty-Three - Ava Drake

Present day

Wickery Bridge, VA

"She won't do it!" Winifred cried into the phone despairingly.

She was pulling off the highway, minutes away from Wickery Bridge, glancing between the road and her daughter, who sat cross-armed in the passenger seat with a scowl that suggested Gabe's calls had just ruined an otherwise good day. This time was meant to be spent restoring their close relationship and instead it had been cut short, which Ava clearly didn't appreciate. But what choice did Winifred have? They were the closest to Mystic Falls. They would be the first to get to Wickery Bridge. But with every call she took, every mile she drove, everything Winifred had rebuilt with her daughter was being left scattered along the road behind them.

Ava turned her head and looked out the window. For her, it wasn't that shopping in Lynchburg had been anything different from what they'd done in the past. They talked, they ate, they had coffee, they spent more money than they should have; all that was pretty typical. It was what Ava had planned afterwards that had pissed her off. She had tickets for a play. Initially, she only had the one ticket, but after a quick call she'd managed to get two. But it wasn't the play she cared about missing; it was who was starring in the play.

When Ava was fifteen, she'd taken dance lessons after school. Dimitri wasn't happy about it---complaining about where that was going to get her in life---but her mother was supportive. Winifred had no idea why Ava was so keen on having the lessons until she met the instructor. Or, more specifically, the instructor's son. Chase Carter was seventeen, golden white skin, thick brown hair in a fade cut, green eyes, and lived up to his name since every teenage girl was chasing him for his number. Lessons took place in her high school's dance studio after hours and, for a while, Chase's presence faded Ava's crush on Cristian into near non-existence.

Despite the extra attention he'd lavished upon Ava throughout her lessons, choosing her as his dance partner each and every time, Chase remained professional and nothing ever happened between them. She realized where she stood with him when he once said he wished she was a couple of years older. Two years seemed like such a huge age gap back then, particularly after he turned eighteen. Still, she had been the only girl he'd kept in touch with after he left for college. It had pained her when he started dating someone else in his second semester, but they'd remained distant friends nonetheless. And today she had missed her first chance of seeing him in years. Missed his first starring role. Like every other bad thing that had been happening to her recently, it was all Gabe's fault. Of course she was the only one who could help with his silly predicament, but it didn't mean she was going to.

Continuing to speed down the road, Winifred nudged her daughter, offering her the phone. "Gabe wants to speak to you."

Ava reluctantly took it, holding it to her ear. She'd listen to what he had to say, but it wouldn't change her mind. "What?"

"I'm going to tell you something, but you can't tell your mother," Gabe said to her.

Ava's head twitched curiously, her ear pressing into the phone. "Ok-ay," she dragged out in agreement.

"I know you want me out of your mother's life, and if you help me with this, you might just get what you want," he said. "I'm the vampire who turned Stefanie, and you know Cristian wants my section of the talisman. I'm going to give it to him."

Straightening in her seat, Gabe now had Ava's full attention. "But if you do that then---"

"Don't say another word," he quickly interrupted, silencing her. "Your mother can't find out about this. I know it's going to kill me, but I caused all of this and it's my job to end it. Cristian only wants Raid out of the picture because he and Stefanie are together now. Lorraine would have told him that. Don't let two innocent men die because of your stepbrother. I'm almost there. Please help them."