MONSTER, stefan salvatore [2]

For Whom The Bell Tolls

CHAPTER 13: FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS

Whitmore College

Unlike Elena, Natalie had decided to trust Stefan in the hands of Damon (even if she was worrying so much she just couldn't think about anything else) so she went back to college, used so much of her freetime studying with Caroline that she had read a most of her school books at least twice. Yeah, she was proud. But when she chose to study with someone who actually was in the Applied Microbiology class, she knew just the guy.

But when she was talking with Elena, she was expressing the same worry that had taken over her and caused her to mostly bury herself in studies. "But you never know what they might be doing. I mean, it's not uncommon for patients with retrograde amnesia or other traumatic brain injuries to turn volatile."

She could basically feel Elena's disbelief at her expressing her knowledge on the subject. "Okay, Dr. Saltzman. Since when do you know so much about amnesia?"

Natalie shook her head and sighed with a small smile as she walked closer to where she had intended to go. "After I studied up on my chem, biochem, applied microbio, molecular bio, and I had a Grey's Anatomy marathon with Caroline."

"You did all that for Stefan?" Elena asked in complete shock from the other line.

"No, I did all that to impress Dr. Maxfield. That it can help with Stefan is only a happy accident that I'm glad happened. If I'd known what was going to happen to Stefan, I'd have looked at a long time ago. But I'm mostly trying to get into Dr. Maxfield's class so I can find out why he covered up the death of our roommate. And after Caroline got sick of me, I got a study buddy," Natalie entered Maxfield's lab, where Jesse was standing with the blonde professor. "Hi, Dr. Maxfield. Jesse, you ready to go?"

Elena let out a sharp breath in surprise, having only noticed Natalie rejecting him, but was pleasantly surprised. "Jesse? Dr. Maxfield's incredibly hot, funny, and miraculously single lab assistant?"

Natalie sighed at how happy Elena sounded with the two hanging out together even if it wasn't that big of a deal. "That's the one. I'm taking him to the weirdest Mystic Falls event yet. The graveyard bell-ringing thingy."

"As in creepy first date?" the older twin asked suggestively.

The reincarnated brunette rolled her eyes as she watched Jesse say goodbye to Dr. Maxfield. "As in creepy study date. You could come, and bring Stefan maybe. Since it happens to be called Remembrance Day and he could use some of that."

Elena didn't even bother on commenting on Natalie changing the subject because she was getting tired of Elena constantly trying to tell her to be with Jesse or whatever. "I hope so, I really do. It just depends on how Stefan's handling the whole download of his dark and stormy past."

Jesse then walked over to Natalie with a smile in greeting and she sent him a small smile back. "Hi," she whispered to him before talking to Elena once again. "Gotta go. Love you."

"Love you too."

▹▹▹

Mystic Falls Cemetery

Natalie and Jesse tried to ignore everyone around them as Natalie sat on a picnic blanket, facing Jesse who was sitting on a chair with a textbook on his lap as he kept asking her questions, waiting for her to answer so he could see if she had actually studied as much as she said she did.

"Togavirus. Go." he gave her the first term he was waiting for her to explain the best she could, because that was so much harder than simple questions that could be answered.