Imagination is the key (stefan, Damon love triangle)

Chapter Seventy-Six

I stretched in the large, plump bed. My entire body was surrounded in covers; it seemed to be bury me beneath them, comfortably. My hands rested behind my head and I stared up at the ceiling, silently, listening.
"Elena's called a meeting," Stefan said and I heard the clanking of glasses.
"About what?" Damon asked. More clanking.
"Alaric was attacked last night; he died."
I bit my lip as I listened in carefully to the brother's conversation. I couldn't shake the fact that after I had left home last night Alaric had actually died. Elena and Matt weren't able to save him. God this was all fucked up as hell. That could have been Jeremy, or Elena herself. I felt responsible for what happened to Alaric last night, I could have done something, I could have saved him. I didn't hear anyone else in the house and I was listening out for them. I didn't see anyone coming or going; I would have seen them. It doesn't make any sense; what good is it being a Vampire if I can't even hear intruders. I'm no help to anyone.
"I take it he's not dead dead though," Damon commented. "I'm sure you'd be a hell of a lot more panicked had he been. Supernatural then?"
"They don't know."
"But he came back to life. . ."
"Because Elena killed him before he could die. They weren't going to risk it and she's supernatural. Alaric didn't see who attacked him, although Elena's got a suspicion."
"Who?"
The room was silent for a moment; it was dead still. "She thinks Lillie did it."
My breath hitched and my hands fisted the covers.
Damon scoffed. "What gave her that idea?" There was something about the way Damon was answering Stefan, something that led me to believe he knew more than he was saying.
"She saw her last night with Alaric."
"You're really holding back on the information this morning, aren't you brother. Feeding me in bits."
"I'm just unsure how you're going to take certain things."
"Are you caring?"
"No."
"I don't know what you'd call this then."
A loud clash sounded from below me and I flinched at the noise. "We need to get going."
"No, you go ahead, Stefan. I'll meet you there. I've got something to do first."
"Not happening," Stefan snapped back. "At the moment, we don't trust each other, obviously with good reason, but as it would seem, we're working toward the same thing at least for a while. We leave now and then you can do whatever was so important. You're not the only one with better things to be doing."
"Fine," Damon said. "Whatever you say, Saint Stefan. You're in charge."

I don't know why I felt like the Salvatore's place was the safest for me to run too after the incident last night but that's where I had found myself; sneaking in through one of their spare bedroom windows, trying my damnedest to be quiet. Looking back, it was a stupid idea. I mean, I've just broken into the house of two Vampire's that are probably looking for me. . . Are they looking for me? I've only been gone a couple of days but surely that's enough for them to worry. Unless I really did push them too far.
"Let me just grab my coat. You can wait a few more moments, right?" Damon's footsteps creaked on the stairs. He wasn't moving very fast, surely pisses Stefan off all the more. I hated when they argued when I was around before, but it was refreshing and nice to hear the familiar brotherly squabbling now.

They left the house arguing, literally about nothing. Emotionless Stefan really did enjoy stepping on everyone's last nerves. It's strange to see the affect that he has on everyone when I'm not exactly like him, that's got to be how we were able to cope with each other; because we were so similar. There's no other explanation, because there is no doubt that I wouldn't like to be around him as much now.
When the house was left in silence, I finally found it safe to leave the bed and to freely move around without fear of being discovered. I tightened my jacket around me and tucked in my shirt to my jeans. I rolled my shoulders back and stuck my hair up in a messy ponytail, anything to get it out of my face. I looked down at myself and I was still covered in Alaric's blood. I had clothes here, but when I arrived I couldn't walk into Damon's room and demand clothing nor could I go and take any of it now without him knowing I've been here. I was stuck wearing bloody clothing. I shook my head and zipped my jacket up, hiding it best I could with what I've got. And then made my way down to the kitchen. I'm starving.

Unlike I would have usually, I tidied up after myself in the kitchen when I was finished and tried to make it look like there was no evidence that I had been there for the night anywhere before I left. I didn't exactly feel like going back home, I know that Elena was going to be on a higher alert than before. She knows that I had been there, there's no hiding that. She's also gotta know that I'll come back.
It was a surprisingly nice day, blue sky and nearly no clouds, the wind had a slightly crisp feel to it but it was nothing that was overly chilly. It was nice. It helped to clear my head as I walked down the sidewalk, heading home. Jeremy was right, hiding was only going to cause more problem for me. What good was this really doing? Apart from actually creating problems; Elena thinks I was trying to kill Alaric just because I was there and it's now something that I would apparently do.