On My Own (TVD Series)

The Lonely

"What do you think?" I whispered, tilting my head to the side as I looked at my painted canvas. 

Long strips of black and gray acrylic paint lined the back corners, while the white and grayish-blue textures manipulated patches of grass and stones embedded in the snow.

"A little plain...don't you think?" Sebastian added, looking up from laying on the floor.

"It's for the winter wonderland charity."

Stepping back, I looked behind me and over at Sebastian's computer.

"What are you doing?" I asked, sitting beside him.

"Nothing."

Closing the laptop shut, he quickly scrambled to collect his things, throwing papers and pencils in his bag before tripping over the fan's cord.

"Careful."

"Sorry." He blurted out, running out of the attic.

Confused, I gave up trying to dig into his behavior and returned to my painting when I smell the scent of eucalyptus. 

"You could use the front door, you know?" I said to Elijah, who stood in the dark corner near the window.

"That would defeat the purpose..." He chuckled.

Putting up my brushes and dirty water into the sink, Elijah quietly helped with the fan, hiding it back in the storage closet.

"So, are you back in business?" He questioned, referring to my painting.

"No, Mrs. Lockwood likes to keep me all to herself...I just figured I could do something selfish for once."

Noticing my dirty hands and stained t-shirt, Elijah's hand gently tugged on my sleeve before I noticed.

"Are you going to ditch the stains at least?" 

"Why? You don't like me like this?" I mumbled.

"If that's what you're going for, all power to you, but-"

"I'm joking...plus charity events were Guissepe's thing, not mine."

"I think people would love to meet the genius behind the painting, don't you think?" He smirked.

"Yeah, if the genius wasn't 150 years old."

"You could just say that you're a reincarnation...people do that these days, don't they?"

Rolling my eyes at him, I cleaned everything in the sink, including my hands before spraying my painting for a seal and packaging it up for delivery.

"So is that a yes or yes?" 

"That's an 'If I have a dress then I'll go'."

"Lucky for you-"

Hearing the slightly scoff he rolled out of his breath, I let my shoulders drop in disbelief.

"You didn't." I sighed heavily.

"...I'll see you at the charity event." He smiled, leaving from inside the house this time as I watching him from the sink.

Sluggishly walking down the stairs and to my room, I find Elijah's gift laying on my bed. Taking the dusty red dress out from the box, I quickly give it a pass under the iron, carefully going around the white embroidery. I noticed the open back once I flipped the dress, following the embroidery.

"That's a new dress...when did you get it?" James asked.

"It was a gift."

"Since when are you accepting gifts from Elijah Michaelson?"