The Imperfect Girl

Chp. 25- Zombies, Screams, and Sibling Chaos

(Author's POV)

Damon jolted awake, blinking groggily and trying to get his bearings. His body ached from being twisted in Adeline's bed for who knows how long.

What is that?

Hovering beside him was a figure—eyes ringed with dark circles, and an expression that could only be described as dead inside.

Zombie- A working Zombie? Planning for an apocalypse? WTH

Damon's heart nearly leapt out of his chest, and he gasped, sitting up and nearly screaming before he caught himself. 

But it didn't matter because his body flailed in pure panic, and he tumbled off her bed with a solid thud.

"AHHHHH!" he finally screamed, smacking the floor with enough force to jolt his spine into a whole new dimension.

Adeline, however, was completely unfazed and used to his abrupt actions. 

She sat, hunched over her laptop, typing away as if nothing had happened. 

She didn't even look up.

Damon struggled to get up, rubbing the back of his head. "What the hell?!"

"Are you done?" she asked, eyes still locked on her screen. Her voice was deadpan, but Damon swore he saw her lips twitch slightly, like she was holding back laughter.

"You look like death. Seriously, are you... okay?" Damon asked, cautiously sitting up and pulling himself back onto the bed.

Adeline simply shrugged, her fingers still flying over the keyboard. "Been working. Unlike you, who decided to take a nap." She shot him a sideways glance. "Thanks for all the help, by the way."

Before Damon could offer some witty comeback, the door burst open, slamming into the wall with enough force to make Damon jump.

"What on earth is all this noise?!" Blair's voice cut through the room like a shrill alarm. She stormed in, hands on her hips, eyes flashing with the usual mix of annoyance and superiority. "Some of us are trying to have a peaceful beauty sle—" Her sentence trailed off the moment she laid eyes on Damon.

Damon, rubbing his head, blinked up at Adeline and followed her gaze to Blair.

"—ep.." Blair finished.

Blair froze. 

Her entire demeanor shifted as if she'd suddenly remembered she was standing in front of someone important.

"Oh." Her voice turned unnaturally soft, her hand lifting to twirl a strand of hair around her finger. "I didn't realize we had... guests." She gave Damon a look that was trying far too hard to be sultry.

Adeline let out the biggest eye roll in human history. "Blair, shut your trap and go get your beauty sleep for the love of God."

Blair didn't even acknowledge her, too focused on the guy sprawled out on the floor like a ragdoll. 

She let out this awkward giggle and low-key tried to make herself look more "presentable."

Adeline could practically see her sister holding her breath and sucking in her stomach- that made her want to throw something.

Damon, clueless as always, scratched the back of his neck, offering a polite smile. "Yeah, sorry for the, uh... chaos."

Blair's eyes lit up, like she'd just scored a goal. "Oh, it's no problem at all. I mean, I could've made things more comfortable for you if I knew we were having company..." Her voice went from sharp to sugar-coated in less time than she took to switch from 'annoying sis-mode' to an 'awkward-girl in-front of her crush.'

Adeline, meanwhile, looked like she wanted to melt into the floor. Could this get any worse?

Blair tossed her hair dramatically, giving Adeline one of those 'I'm cooler than you and we both know it' look. "Anyway, if you're ever tired of working with plain, simple Adeline," she said, stressing her sister's name as if it were some kind of disease, "you can always come hang out in my room."

She batted her eyelashes, doing her best imitation of someone on a cheap reality show. (sussy baka)

Adeline buried her face in her hands. "Blair, please. Just... leave."

Blair huffed dramatically but not before giving Damon one last, long look. "You know where to find me."

She finally strutted out, her hair flipping behind her like a cape.

The door closed, and silence settled in the room again. Damon blinked at the door, then at Adeline. "What... just happened?"

Adeline groaned. "Don't ask."

Damon raised an eyebrow, sitting back up on the bed. "Is she always like that?"

"Only when she's breathing," Adeline muttered, glaring at her screen.

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