BLONDIE • the mikaelsons

chapter twenty

CHAPTER TWENTY

I spent the whole summer dancing.

After graduating from the Academy, I had been selected by a private company to be the lead dancer in a production of Swan Lake. The hours were tedious and the shows relentless but I loved every minute of it. My body was in blissful pain from constantly dancing.

The final performance was tonight and I knew that it would be bittersweet. Whilst I was sad that it was coming to an end, I was excited to see what opportunities came my way next.

It was an hour until I was due to be in the dressing room and I was currently engaging in my pre-show ritual: going for a walk. Until the accident, I had never appreciated the simple act of walking. Since arriving, I had made a habit of going on long walks in the streets of Chicago.

I was currently walking down an avenue near the theater. There were quaint houses either side of me with large front gardens that were filled with various plants of all shapes and sizes.

"Emilia!"

I frowned when I heard my name and I turned around, expecting to see one of my co-stars or perhaps an old classmate from the Academy. What I saw instead was an older woman wearing gardening gloves. She was kneeling on the ground, a small spade in her hand. I recognised her but I couldn't place where I knew her from.

"Hi," I answered uncertainly, "Sorry, do I know you?"

"It's Melissa! I broke the curse on your foot." She said with a small smile, her eyes darting to my midriff.

"Of course! Sorry, I'm not very good with faces!" I said with an awkward chuckle, "What are you doing in Chicago? I thought you lived in Virginia."

"Chicago is where I grew up." She smiled fondly, "I visit my aunt every summer."

"Oh! Well, I live here now so I might see you around!" I said conversationally, noticing when her eyes drifted downwards once more. This woman was seriously starting to freak me out, "Why do you keep doing that?"

"Doing what, Emilia?"

"You keep staring at my stomach." I said accusationally, feeling rather unsettled, "You said last time we met that I would be pregnant but I'm still not, okay?"

"No, you're not pregnant yet." Melissa said thoughtfully, a disappointed pout forming on her lips, "But in time you will be."

"How could you possibly know that?"

"It is a gift, passed down from generation to generation in my family." She explained, "I have the ability to know if and when a woman will be with child. It has never failed me until you. I can't seem to place when you will fall pregnant, only that you one day will."

"Well, that day is in the very distant future." I smiled awkwardly, shifting on my feet, "Children don't exactly fit into my plans at the moment."

Melissa hummed thoughtfully, her lips tilting upwards as she once again looked at my stomach. "Sometimes the best gifts are surprises."

Eager to find a way to escape the topic, my eyes darted to the plant that Melissa was currently tending to. They were magnificent pink flowers that stood taller than all the other flowers in the garden. "Those are beautiful flowers!"

"Thank you! They are my family's pride and joy." Melissa beamed as she cradled one of the flowers in her palm, "The women in my family have been growing them for generations."

"Well, they are absolutely stunning!" I praised, "What are they called?"

"Dahlias." She responded, picking one of them at the stem, "They are called Dahlias."

She handed me the flower and I smiled gratefully as I took it, "Thank you! I should probably go now."

"You will conceive an extraordinary child, Emilia." Melissa said and a cold shiver ran through me as I walked away.

***

I grinned as the curtains fell for the last time. Excited adrenaline filled me as I exchanged hugs with co-stars and various members of the crew.

"Wow, I can't believe how quickly time has passed!" Angelina threw her arm around my shoulder as we walked towards our dressing rooms.

I sighed wistfully, "I know, I didn't expect it to be over this soon."

"I can't believe that you still haven't taken me and Sarah up on our offer." She huffed playfully, "Does it have something to do with the gentleman I saw in your dorm room all those months ago?"

"No!" I flushed, "It's just that I'm starting to think that sex gets me into trouble."

"Isn't that the point?" She raised an eyebrow and I chuckled.

"Not the good kind of trouble, unfortunately."

"Well, that's a shame." Angelina pouted, "Sarah will be disappointed."

I laughed, "I'm your roommate, we share a wall. I know for a fact that Sarah is definitely not disappointed."

We stopped in front of my dressing room and Angelina sighed as she asked over to the one next door. "I'll see you back at the apartment. Sarah's taking me out to celebrate the last show."

"See you!" I called as she disappeared behind the door.

I began taking the pins out of my hair as I entered my own dressing room, my heart still beating erratically. My blonde curls fell from the bun as I closed the door. I looked up and let out a startled cry at the sight of a blonde woman.

"What on earth are you doing in my dressing room?" I asked the stranger, who tilted her head as she watched me.

"So, you must be the most recent doppelgänger." She said with a sultry British accent, "I was expecting... more."

I raised an eyebrow at the blonde, my thoughts clicking into place, "You must be Rebekah."

She gave me a sickly sweet smile as she grabbed a strand of my hair and examined it. "You have managed to drive quite the wedge between my brother's but I can't really see what all the fuss is about. It's like Tatia all over again."

"You a ray of sunshine, aren't you?" I murmured sarcastically and her false smile dropped and she let go of my hair.

"The fake blonde hair makes you look trashy." She informed me.

"And yet, it looks better than your real blonde hair." I retorted and a look of annoyance flashed across her face.

"It was lovely to meet you, Emilia." She said, her words dripping with disdain, "Niklaus is waiting for you downstairs. He's taking you back to Mystic Falls for your wedding."

"I'll be sure to make you a bridesmaid." I smiled sweetly as she left the room, slamming the door behind her.

My heart beat fast as I rushed over to my bag and began to rifle through it, looking for my phone. If Klaus was returning to Mystic Falls then I had to warn Elena. When my search came out empty, I groaned in realisation.

"That bitch took my phone!" I muttered in disbelief.

I didn't like Rebekah Mikaelson and the feeling was very clearly mutual. On the plus side, it was nice to know that there was at least one Mikaelson who I wouldn't be falling into bed with.

A/N: Thank you! Thank you! Thank you to all of my readers! You have no idea how much joy your votes and comments bring to my life. As someone with severe anxiety and depression, joy is difficult to come by but my readers manage to give it to me in spades. I am so incredibly grateful to every single one of you!

Originally published: July 20th 2024