HIGH HOPES | S. SALVATORE

two

The crisp envelopes were pushed through the mail slot, landing on the floor with a soft thud, but it could be heard throughout the silent house.

"Hey, Matt, could you get the mail?" Hope called out from the shower.

The Donovan boy sighed and threw the duvet off of him, slipping on a pair of sweatpants as he made his way to the door. He picked up the various envelopes, shuffling through them.

Hope stepped out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her body, showing off her thin legs.

"Anything interesting?" she asked, brushing the knots out of her wet hair with her hand.

"One from Stefan. Again," he held up the letter with Hope's name written carefully on the front.

At the mention of her best friend's name her eyes snapped to the boy in front of her.

"Can you just put it on the dresser?" Hope kept an emotionless face as she pulled some clothes from her closet and slipped them on.

Hope heard the front door open and close loudly and she knew her mother had returned from last nights adventure. She knew that she had to get Matt out of there before her mother saw and invited him for breakfast.

"You should go," she said. "That sounded rude. I didn't mean it like that."

"Hope," he cut off her rambling with a chuckle. "It's okay. I know what you meant."

Matt slipped his shirt over his head and walked towards the bedroom door but she blocked his path.

"My mom is out there," she warned him.

"I'll use the window then," Matt laughed, opening her window and climbing onto the roof.

"Hey," she called to him before he could jump to the ground. "I had fun last night."

Matt grinned and pressed his lips against hers quickly.

"We should do it again sometime," he give her a wink before jumping to the ground and running to his car that was parked a block away.

Hope shut her window and made her way downstairs where her mother sat at the kitchen counter with her head in her hands.

"Somebody had a rough night," the blonde teased, opening up the large fridge.

"My head is pounding," the woman groaned. Hope rolled her eyes and placed a glass of water and two pills in front of her. "Thanks."

"Sometimes I forget who the adult is in this house," Hope sighed before walking back to her room.

She picked up the envelope and turned it over, looking for a return address, but like usual there wasn't one. She opened it up and and took out the paper that had been carefully folded in three.

Her green eyes scanned over the words on the page, wondering what the ones that had been scribbled over said.

His confession of liking her made her heart fill up with joy, but that joy soon vanished when she realised how crushed Elena would be if she found out. The two had been friends since the second grade when Hope had moved to Mystic Falls. The blonde couldn't bare the thought of hurting the brunette.

Hope had always put everyone else's happiness before her own. Thats why she never looked for her dad, because she assumed he was happier without her. It's why she never tried to stop her mother when she went out each night and didn't return until the next morning. It's why she tried to hide her feelings for Stefan, so that he and Elena could be happy. And it's why she was sleeping with Matt, so that Elena didn't have to worry about Hope messing up her relationship.

But this was different. Stefan had admitted to liking her back. She wondered if maybe this time she should be selfish.

Hope knew Elena would be crushed if she found out.

To hell with Elena, she'll just jump to the next guy like she always does.