Complicated ↠ Damon Salvatore [1]

03

𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐎 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐈𝐅𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐆𝐈𝐋𝐁𝐄𝐑𝐓𝐒
we stick together, always and forever

AFTER the night Vicki was attacked and almost drained of her blood, Echo immediately thought it was a vampire. And she knew Stefan had to do something with it especially after seeing him disappear after the incident as if he was guilty.

So, she spent that same night researching the Salvatore family up. She found this old clip of some accident that had happened at the Salvatore Boarding House, and she saw someone that looked like Stefan in it, but it was too blurry to see exactly who it was. And she didn't have the right tech to get a closer look at it. So, until she finds a better system, she will have to put her researching on hold.

"HE'S on the rebound and has raging family issues." Echo heard Elena say as she walked into the kitchen. And she immediately knew she was talking about Stefan.

"Wait till you date a guy with mommy issues or cheating issues," Jenna said before pausing. "Or Amphetamine issues."

Echo raised an eyebrow at that and went straight for the coffee machine. She made a mug and sipped it, watching in amusement as Jeremy walked in.

Jenna immediately walked forward, a stern expression on her face. "Jeremy!" He immediately headed towards the stairs. "Jeremy, where were you?"

Elena and Echo walked over to the doorway and watched as Jenna looked up at Jeremy who looked down at them, more specifically Jenna. "More stoner stories? Look, Jenna, I get it, you were cool. And so that's - that's cool."

Echo snorted as Jenna narrowed her eyes and launched the Apple she was holding, at his head. He let out a loud yelp and turned around to look at them, exclaiming, "Ow! Why? Why-why did you do that?"

"Listen up!" Jenna snapped, her voice loud and firm. "Quit ditching class or you're grounded. No discussion."

"Parental authority," Jeremy said with a grin. "I like it." He gave them a thumbs up with a stoned smile. "Sleep tight." He then headed up the stairs.

"Damn..." Echo whistled and then froze at the looks the females were sending her. "What?"

"Are you doing drugs, too?" Jenna asked, approaching the girl, anazlyzing her.

Echo scoffed and took a step back. "Excuse me!" She snapped, narrowing her eyes. "And no, I'm not high."

Jenna scoffed and shook her head. "Tell me the truth!"

Echo pursed her lips and stood taller. What she hated just as much as disloyal and dishonest people were those who thought they were know-it-alls. "I am telling the truth!"

Elena took a small step towards her sister, the girl who stood by her for everything, her rock, her anchor. "We're just worried. You changed so much in such a short amount of ti--"

"People change!" Echo exclaimed, not liking the looks that the girls were giving her.

"Not in a day!" Jenna exclaimed, throwing her hands up.

"Maybe this is just who I am!" Echo exclaimed, and suddenly, she was hit by many memories that weren't her own. No, they belonged to the old Echo. "Maybe I don't want to be that girl anymore! Mom and Dad are dead, okay! Do you expect me to just move on like they were nothing?! Do you really expect me to be the same innocent girl who drowned just to save her sister?!"

Everything went silent and Echo barely had the opportunity to comprehend what she had just said before she stormed up the stairs, and locked herself in her room.

She stopped at her long mirror and really looked at herself. She could visibly see no scars, but she knew they were there from her past life, and she couldn't help but get so many flashbacks that crippled herself.

Memories from both lives slapped her straight in the face which sent her tumbling to the ground.

She couldn't breathe. Everything was spinning and it felt as if the ground was melting under her feet. She was on her handa and knees, my breathing shallow and quick.

She recalled every spelling bee, every laugh, jokes, people she made friends with over the years. She recalled every heartbreak, every fight she had with Jeremy and Elena over stupid things. She recalled all the family nights that made her feel whole. She recalled everything from thd beginning of her first memory all the way to the crash.

Echo was in the car with them because she wanted to be there for her twin, to make sure she was okay. And when they went over the bridge, she could feel the pressure when they hit the water, and the way the water forced itself down her throat. She was drowning but she didn't care because Elena waa unconscious and dying. She put all her effort into trying to free her twin, but nothing happened, and everything went black.

Echo recalled the moment she woke up om the side of the bank, dripping wet, gasping for air. She remembers the relief she felt seeing Elena there beside her. She recalled being told that she stopped breathing for four minutes. A minute later, she wouldn't be there right now.

Echo gasped as she came back to reality -- her eyes wide and pupils dilated. Her chest was moving up and down widely, and all she could hear was the sound of hee heart thumping, and the feel of the water rushing in.

She clawed at her throat, gasping, and heaving, choking on nothing, but inside her own mind, she was reliving the feeling of drowning.

It wasn't the first time she has drowned -- no. She recalls being pushed into a pool when she was young and didn't know how to swim. She recalls kicking harshly and screaming for help. She recalls the laughter of the the little boy who watched her as she drowned. And she recalls waking up on the side of the pool, crying and gasping for air. That was all old Echo's memories, but it wasn't any difference to the new Echo who was suffering because of those exact memories.

And just like all those tines before, Elena saved her.

Elena bursted into the room, grabbing her twin by the shoulders, and pulled Echo into her arms. She began singing the song their mother would always sing to them to get them to go to sleep.

And just like that, for the first time in forever, Echo felt like she was safe. That she was where she belonged, because no matter how much her father loved her, he never comforted her like this. And neither did uncle Sam because he could never find the right words to calm her down. The only person who was able to slightly calm her down was Bobby, but he died, leaving her all alone.

But, here, in Elena's arms, she felt like she had a place that felt like home.