Caught in the Middle

Chapter 2

I grabbed my phone and the spare set of keys Matt had given me and walked out of the house.

I'll unpack later; right now I just want to explore the town. 'Mystic Falls'. Sounds quite mysterious. I'm always one for adventure.

The sun was warming my back as I walked along the street. I whipped out my sunglasses and put them on, the warm weather affecting my mood- making me feel quite positive about my new start which is a feeling I haven't had in a while.

As I reached the town centre, I took a minute to find my bearings.

I could see the mystic grill where Matt said he worked and next to it I saw a few little boutiques and shops, all of which were over towered by a huge tower with a clock on the side. Opposite was a fountain, surrounded by greenery and benches.

My stomach rumbled. I decided to walk over to the mystic grill considering that's the only place I knew where to go and smiled as I saw Matt serving a family through the window. I made my way inside.

A pool corner was placed on the far right hand corner of the grill and a bar on the opposite side with stools for people to sit. There were table booths filling up the rest of the space, the lighting quite dim, yet welcoming. Matt saw me and sat me down at a booth in the centre of the room. I took up the last seat, it was very busy.

"What can I get you, madam?" He joked, putting on his best British accent that he could muster. I laughed and shook my head.

"That was awful." I said and he smiled.

"I tried." He chuckled.

I picked up the menu and glanced at what they had.

"Hmmm, I think I'll have the chicken caesar salad if that's alright?" I asked. He nodded and left to give in my order.

I heard another group of people come into the bar and looked up.

There were 3 of them. A boy, with brown quiffed hair and dark brown eyes, a girl also with dark brown hair and brown eyes, and a girl with blonde hair and blue eyes.
Matt walked over and greeted them, laughing and smiling. It looked as if they were good friends.

I was snapped out of my thoughts by the group making their way over to my table, guided by Matt.

"Camila, you don't mind if my friends join you, do you?"

Three faces were smiling down at me.

"No that's fine." I smiled back.

The boy and the girl with brown hair slid into the booth to face me on the opposite side and the blonde girl sat next to me.

"Hey I'm Elena." The girl opposite spoke sweetly.

"I'm Camila." I smiled back. I haven't screwed up the conversation so far. That's a first. Let's just say the circumstances I was in when living in New Orleans hasn't made me the most sociable person ever.

"We know," the boy started, "Matt was so excited about you coming down, he wouldn't stop talking about it."

I laughed.

"Oh sorry, I'm Stefan by the way." He grinned.

"And I'm Caroline." The girl smiled next to me.

"So what made you come stay with Matt?" Stefan asked inquisitively. My smile kind of turned into a frown as I was reminded about my past. It was obviously quite noticeable as it wasn't long before Caroline reassured me:

"You don't have to tell us if you don't want to." She said kindly.

"Sorry I didn't mean to put you in an uncomfortable position." Stefan apologised.

"No it's fine honestly. Just some family issues- long story." I kind of let out a dry, sarcastic laugh trying to lighten the mood.

"Anyway," Elena spoke quickly, changing the subject, obviously seeing my discomfort.

"We're throwing a surprise party for Tyler..." Elena started.

"That's my boyfriend." Caroline interrupted to keep me updated.

"If you'd like to come?" Elena finished.

I guess it would do me good to go to a party. I'm starting on a clean slate after all.

I nodded.

"Sure that would be great." I smiled.

"Awesome." Stefan said -Caroline next to me clapping her hands in excitement and Elena laughing at Caroline.

"Matt's going as well so you can go together." Stefan added.

I have a good feeling about this.

Matt came with my food and I grinned, making Elena laugh at my eagerness.

"Thank you." I said to Matt and he walked back.

As I dug into my food, I saw Stefan look over at Matt, Matt gesturing for him to go over.

"Excuse me for a minute?" He said politely.

We all nodded and carried on talking. I noticed Elena's necklace and how pretty it was.

"Wow, that necklace is lovely." I stated. She reached up to hold it and looked down smiling at it.

"Thank you!" She spoke.

As Elena and I talked and laughed, I could tell caroline was concentrating on something and was out of the conversation. She had tucked her hair behind her ear and was glancing from the table to around the room quietly.

She suddenly stopped and looked at Elena. It was as if she was telling her something, only using her eyes - which was kind of cool, but made me really curious.

Stefan came back holding a necklace in his hand.

"Hey Camila, put this on." He handed me the necklace and smiled.

It was beautiful and little silver chain with a silver locket with a blue gem. It was very similar to Elena's.

A smile broke out on my face.

"What's this for?" I asked.

"Let's say, it's a welcome to Mystic Falls present." He replied, glancing at Elena and Caroline. They gave him back the look Caroline had given to Elena. It was silent for a moment. Am I missing something?

I smiled and thanked him.

"I've got to go but it was good meeting you guys. I'll see you tonight." I spoke, getting up and putting my jacket on. They all wished me goodbye and I left the grill.

What do I wear for this party? I don't own a lot of clothes let alone any nice dresses. I'll have to put something together I guess.