HIGH HOPES | S. SALVATORE

seven

Klaus walked into the bar, an eerily calm expression on his face. One that made Stefan worry that he had found out about Elena being alive.

"You failed to mention that your friend was in town." Stefan let out a sigh of relief as Klaus sat down next to him. "She didn't tell me that she saw you but I could tell."

"I didn't realise it was such a big deal."

The Hybrid reached over the bar and poured himself a drink.

"What did you tell her to make her so angry?" Klaus questioned, his fingers wrapped around a glass.

"I told her that even though she was dead, I still loved Elena."

"Bad move," the Hybrid teased.

"What else was I supposed to do? Humans that get involved with vampires end up dead," Stefan downed the rest of his drink and angrily stood up.

He walked out of the bar leaving Klaus smirking because he knew.

-

Stefan's fingers lightly grazed the varnished wood of one of the 4 coffins, but quickly snatched it away when he heard footsteps approaching him.

"You're back. Finally. Nik went to check on the witch." Rebekah cast her eyes to where Stefan was looking at the coffins. "Dreary, isn't it? The family cargo."

He hummed in response, "why don't you undagger them?"

"Because he would hunt me down and kill me. He's a vindictive little bastard, my brother."

"But you still care about him. Why?"

"Well, I hated him for a long time. It was exhausting," she shrugged, taking a seat on a coffin.

Stefan took a seat next to her, "you know, when I met you two, you were both on the run."

"Also exhausting," the blonde let out a light laugh.

"Who were you running from?"

"What do you mean?"

"The last night I saw you, there was a man looking for you. You both seemed afraid." Stefan shrugged. "I just – I wouldn't think Klaus would be afraid of anybody."

"No one in this world is truly fearless, Stefan. Not even Niklaus," she spoke sadly.

"Who was that man?"

"I can't. Please." Rebekah stood up. "If Nik knew we were talking about this, he would – "

"No, no, no, I'm sorry," he cut her off, standing up beside her. "Just forget I asked. Okay?"

"He told me about the girl you loved. The one that died," the blonde changed subject quickly. "And about the girl you write to every day. He also told me that you're only with him because he saved your brother."

"It's true," Stefan nodded.

"I think he secretly admires that about you. You'd sacrifice anything for family." A ghost of a smile appeared on her lips. "Don't tell him I told you that."

"Your secret is safe with me." The younger vampire began to turn around but the Original grabbed him, pulling him closer to her before placing her lips against his.

"Do you think you'll ever love anyone like you loved that girl?" Rebekah asked after pulling away.

"One day, maybe."

"I can always tell when you're lying, Stefan." She took a step away from him.

"What? I'm not – " he tried to defend himself but she cut him off.

"Don't bother. Your kiss already gave you away."

"Gloria's gone," Klaus announced, storming into the warehouse. "She's cleared out. We need to find a new witch immediately."

Klaus stopped walking, looking at his sister and comrade expectantly. "What's going on?"

"Something's wrong," she turned to her brother. "He was asking about Mikael. He's not with us, Nik. I can sense it."

"She's wrong," Stefan denied, holding his hands up defensively. "Klaus..."

The Hybrid rushed in front of him, not even bothering to look at him before snapping the younger vampire's neck.

-

Stefan woke with a jolt in the back of a truck filled with coffins – presumably the family members Klaus kept daggered.

"Just give me a chance to explain myself, okay?" The younger vampire met, his forest green eyes meeting those of the Hybrid.

"No need. I'm not mad, I'm just curious. Rebekah seems to think you're holding onto something. A piece of your old life. The thing is, she's got flawless instincts, borderline supernatural. So I thought I would check it out. See for myself what it is you've been hiding." Klaus opened the back of the truck revealing Stefan's home town. "Welcome back to Mystic Falls, Stefan."