Vervain - Damon Salvatore

10 §- The Sacrifice -§

Gilbert Residence - 3rd Person POV

Elena awakens from her slumber when she hears a noise coming from inside the house. Her bedroom door is slightly ajar. Elena lays back down, turns over in her bed, and shuts her eyes. In the bathroom, a towel is rustled by movement.

Jonas appears in the doorway, looking at Elena. Elena is jolted out of bed, once again, when she hears a door slamming loudly. She sits up in her bed. Jonas has disappeared from the bathroom. Elena gets out of bed and slowly walks across her room. She quietly opens her ajar door and walks out onto the landing. Elena looks around the landing for anything suspicious and quietly approaches Jeremy's room, looking in through his ajar door.

Suddenly, Elena hears a noise from behind her. She gasps and spins around. Alaric, shirtless and in his boxers, has also been startled by Elena's unexpected appearance on the landing. Elena and Alaric both try to catch their breath after the scare.

"Elena. Ahem." Alaric coughs awkwardly as he lowers the ice cream bowl he's carrying towards his nether region.

Elena, blushing, tries to explain her reasons for being in her own landing, "I heard something."

Alaric chuckles nervously. Elena avoids his gaze, embarrassed. Jenna walks up the stairs, wearing Alaric's shirt. She runs her hand through her hair, embarrassed as well.

"That was us. I'm sorry."

In Carolynn's bedroom, which is still untouched since her 'death', Jonas pulls out a handkerchief and collects some of Carolynn's hair from her brush.

Alaric tries to diffuse the situation, "We didn't think anyone else was up." He admits, his cheeks tinged pink from sheer embarrassment.

"But here you are." Jenna adds on, unsuccessfully trying to make the situation casual.

"We were just-"

Back on the landing, Jenna and Alaric try to explain the situation to Elena, but are failing in their attempt. Alaric sighs and holds out the ice cream bowl to Elena, "Chunky Monkey?"

Back in Carolynn's bedroom, Jonas also grabs some of her jewelry and places it in the handkerchief. He folds the handkerchief and places it in his coat pocket.

"Well..." Alaric chuckles, "I'm naked. So I'm gonna go."  Alaric walks past Elena and into Jenna's bedroom, shutting the door behind him. Elena starts to walk back towards her room. Jenna, embarrassed, walks up the remainder of the stairs.

"I'm really really sorry."

Elena turns around when she reaches her doorway, "It's okay, Jenna, don't worry about it." The teen brushes off.

Jenna ignores her niece and continues to explain herself, "I know he's been staying over a lot. Are you --- are you sure it's okay?"

"Seems like things are good." Was Elena's only response.

Jenna smiles, "They're extremely good."

"Then I'm extremely okay with it."

Jonas, still in Carolynn's bedroom, grabs a picture of her in her cheerleading uniform, places it inside his jacket, and leaves the room quickly.

Jenna and Elena smile at each other and go back to their respective rooms. Elena gets into her bed. Jonas quietly hides in the bathroom, waiting for Elena to shut her eyes. Elena curls up in her blankets and drifts off to sleep. Jonas heads out of the bathroom, stopping to take a hand mirror, before he exits, placing the mirror in the waistband of his pants. He exits the bathroom, walks onto the landing, descends the stairs, and exits the house without a soul knowing he was there.