FRANCESCA. ( the vampire diaries)

Chapter Sixteen

"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight!"

What the hell is this? I tried to move quickly, following into the other girl's steps. I was placed at the back so I wouldn't bother anyone with my lame ass skills--who could blame me? I just joined the team. As I watched the girls carefully, I noticed Elena who was at front, also looked lost. Too lost it looked embarrassing. On the other hand, so was I.

"Elena, sweetie, why don't you just observe today? Okay?" Caroline stopped her with a big smile, which looked pitiful to me. Elena stopped what she was doing and looked at Caroline in confusion, but she reluctantly did what she was told and walked towards the back and next to where I was standing. We both shared a look and shook our heads.

"Let's do it again from the top!" Caroline told us. "And five, six, seven, eight."

I started doing the same thing over and over again, and I noticed Elena wasn't even paying attention. She was looking at our right towards the football field, and I turned to see. I almost laughed at the sight. Stefan was wearing a football uniform and was running across the field.

"Since when is he on the team?" I asked Elena with a laugh. She chuckled.

"I asked him to join this morning, I didn't think he would really do it."

Right. Of course he'd do it if Elena asked. On the other hand I was glad he did, at least he was trying to act normal like he said he'd do. Elena was still watching him and a smile grew on her face. I nudged her and gestured towards the field.

"You can go and watch, I don't think Caroline will say anything."

Elena grinned at me and left immediately, and Caroline didn't even notice her.

The routine ended, and I was out of breath. Caroline didn't seem to care, though, so with a hand on her hip she pointed a finger. "From the top! And five, six, seven--"

"Oh, my God." I mumbled to myself and leaned forward on my knees, trying to catch my breath. Even though I was a vampire, I usually did stuff quickly so I wouldn't be tired too much. I couldn't do that on the cheerleading team.

--

"Ugh." I groaned and fell on the couch, not caring to even change my clothes. I had just gotten home and I knew for a fact that I wouldn't step outside for the rest of the day. Stefan had gotten home at the same time as me, and he seemed to be in a better form than I was, since he ran upstairs to shower.

After a few minutes of laying on the couch, I heard footsteps coming down the stairs, and I assumed it was Stefan. I didn't even bother looking up. "How are you not tired from running around a field for an entire afternoon?"

The footsteps halted, and a familiar voice cut through the air with a mocking tone. "Oh, I'm just built different."

I groaned, recognizing Damon's voice before even looking up. He sauntered into the room, wearing an outfit that somehow managed to look effortlessly stylish. "Did you come here just to taunt me?" I muttered, still not lifting my head from the couch.

"Of course not," Damon said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "I'm here to offer you a sympathetic ear. Or, more likely, to revel in your misery." He plopped down on the couch beside me, clearly making himself comfortable. "So, how's the lonely, frustrated vampire life treating you, sis?"

I shot him a sideways glance. "You're a real gem, you know that?"

"Just spreading the love," he said with a smirk. "Anyway, how was cheer practice? Caroline seemed pretty excited about it."

I sighed heavily and sat up, giving Damon a pointed look. "It was great. By the way, what's up with Caroline's scarf? It was sweltering out there, and she was wearing that thing like it was winter."