FRANCESCA. ( the vampire diaries)

Chapter Fourteen

"Oh, my God. Vicki!"

Matt spotted us in the square and quickly made his way over. He grabbed his sister from my hold and glanced between her and I.

"Where was she?" Matt asked, his voice filled with concern.

"Wandering around," I answered as casually as I could. Vicki gave a small chuckle, clearly not taking the situation too seriously. Matt shot her a disapproving look before turning back to me.

"Thank you," he said.

"No problem," I replied, nodding towards Vicki's bloodied neck. "She needs a new bandage."

Matt's eyes widened slightly as he noticed the extent of her injury. "Right. I have some at the Grill. Can you come with us?"

I looked around for Stefan, hoping he'd appear so we could head home, but he was still nowhere in sight. "Sure, I'll come."

I followed them inside the Grill and watched as Matt lowered Vicki on a chair before going to grab a brand new bandage for her. I sat down beside her and sighed.

"Thanks for sticking around," Vicki said softly, giving me a grateful smile. She seemed like a nice girl and Damon, once again, ruined it.

"Of course," I replied.

Matt returned with a fresh bandage and began to tend to Vicki's neck. After a moment, Vicki turned to Matt. "You should offer Francesca a drink. It's on the house for helping me out."

Matt looked up, a bit surprised but quickly catching on. He also seemed like a real nice guy. "Yeah, good idea. Can I get you something to drink?"

I shook my head and chuckled. "No, it's okay. I'm good."

Matt insisted. "It's the least I can do. What would you like?"

I sighed, appreciating the gesture but feeling ready to head home. "Just a water would be great."

Matt nodded and went to get the drink. As he walked away, I turned to Vicki. "I'm glad you're alright."

"Thanks for looking out for me." Vicki replied with a tired smile.

"No problem," I said. I never liked when people thanked me a hundred times for something I did, big or small. I never expected a thank you in return. Saving someone from a raging psychopathic vampire is natural.

Matt soon returned with a glass of water for me and set it down on the table beside my chair. I thanked him with a nod and took a sip.

As Matt continued tending to his sister, Vicki turned to me with a more relaxed demeanor. "So, what's your story? I mean, other than being a night owl and saving my ass from getting lost."

I smiled. "Not much to tell. Just trying to get through the night like everyone else."

"Well, I owe you one."

I waved it off with a half-smile. "Seriously, it's no big deal. Stop thanking me."

Matt turned to me and pointed at the table behind us. "There's Caroline and Bonnie. They were looking for you earlier."

I glanced over and saw Caroline and Bonnie sitting together, looking at us in curiosity and leaning their heads on their hands. I realized I had left them standing on the town square without saying anything.

"Great, I'll join them."

Matt gave me a friendly nod. "I'll catch up with you later. Thanks again for helping out."

I rolled my eyes slightly in amusement. "Yeah, yeah." I gave him a final nod and headed over to Caroline and Bonnie.

I made my way over to the girls' table and Caroline's face brightened when she saw me. "There you are! We were just talking about how you disappeared."