Hopeless

Close Call

Hope's POV

I wake up to see Rebekah lying on her back next to me, staring at the ceiling. I would have jumped, but at this point I've learned to expect the unexpected. "You're still here," I state.

"I told you we were going to try again today. England can wait. My favorite niece needs relationship help," she tells me as she turns to face me.

"I'm your only niece," I deadpan.

"Which is why you're my favorite."

I laugh as I get up, then check the time. I have already missed two classes today, so I just decide to skip them all; after all, I have a good excuse, right? Family is visiting.

"It's almost lunch," I tell Rebekah. "Let me just shower and we can go get some food."

When we get to the cafeteria, I lock eyes with Josie almost immediately. Also staring at me, though, is Lizzie. Weird...

"Hey, Hope," the table - including Lizzie - echoes as Rebekah and I approach them, me carrying a tray of food.

"Hey," I shoot back as I sit down. "This is my aunt, Rebekah."

"Rebekah Mikaelson," the blonde introduces herself, offering up a small wave.

"Oh, great. Another Mikaelson," the blonde siphoner says sarcastically, and I sense more than see my aunt glare at her as both mine and Josie's cheeks heat up.

"Lizzie!" Josie snaps, her voice barely above a whisper. "You promised you would play nice."

"Yeah, with Hope," her sister responds. "I said nothing about her family."

"And why are we playing nice with Hope?" Rebekah asks, her eyebrow raised in the same fashion that I always raise mine in.

"Because of Jo-"

Lizzie is cut off abruptly, but I can't tell why. She just stops talking, her face twisting in pain, then doesn't resume her explanation. I shrug it off, not really caring enough to investigate, then start to eat my sandwich. I'm starving since I missed breakfast.

After I wolf down my lunch - no pun intended - I feel Josie's gaze on me. When I meet her eyes, a playful smirk is dancing across her lips, and I raise my eyebrow just like Rebekah did to her sister earlier. "What?" I ask, causing the mischievous twinkle in her eye to get brighter as I lean forward, resting my elbows on the table.

"Hungry?" she asks, her voice teasing.

"If you hadn't noticed, I missed breakfast," I tell her, grinning.

"I hadn't noticed, actually," she says.

"Oh?"

"Yeah," she shrugs, trying hard to keep the smile off of her face. "I just have so many other friends that I can't just focus on you, you know? Like, I have to pay attention to everyone."

"Uh-huh," I nod along, holding back a laugh. Then I cut off her ramblings. "Shut up," I chuckle, shaking my head at the brunette, and she starts to laugh along with me.

Our eyes stay trained on each other long after we finish laughing. The rest of the world fades away, leaving only us, and I never want this moment to end. But, like every good thing, it does. "Hey, Hope, I was wondering if you were planning on going to the party this weekend," Rafael speaks up, causing my gaze to avert to him.

"I was thinking about it," I shrug noncommittally. "Why?"

Before Raf can answer, though, Rebekah cuts in. "I think I'm going to head out now," she says, her words directed at me.

I frown. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah," she nods. "I have some things to... clear up... in England, as you know."

"I know," I respond with a roll of my eyes. "You told me last night. Something about an old lover who ended up escaping death...?"

"He was not my lover," Rebekah tells me. It's now her turn to roll her eyes. "But, yes, I want him dead. And I intend for that to be the case when I return to New Orleans, unless I die instead."

"Highly unlikely," I say.

"Exactly."

Rebekah winks at me and I chuckle, rolling my eyes yet again. Then I stand up and grab my tray, wave to my friends, and lead her out of the cafeteria. "He likes you," Rebekah tells me once we've left the room.

"What?"

"The werewolf. He likes you," she explains.

"No, he doesn't," I laugh. "Raf is just a friend."

"Well, 'Raf' doesn't seem to know that," she retorts, using air quotes around his name. "He was just about to ask you to go to that party with him when I cut him off."

"That's why you're leaving so soon?" I question, piecing it together.

Rebekah just nods as she pulls me in for a hug. "I had to stop him from asking," she tells me when she pulls back. "You would have said yes thinking it was just as friends, then been suckered into a relationship with someone who could kill your family."

"Josie could kill my family, too," I point out, but her reasoning for keeping me from saying no makes sense; she did it so I would still be available for Josie, not so I wouldn't be dating a werewolf.

"True, but I like Josie. And she likes you," Rebekah says. "In a different way, of course," she adds with a wink.

I send a longing look back at the cafeteria doors, then turn my attention back to my aunt. "You're really leaving?"

"I have to now that I said I was," she reasons, and I shrug, seeing her point. "But here's some advice, Hopey: ask Josie out. Ask her to go to the party with you."

I hesitate, but ultimately end up nodding. "Okay."

"When I get back, I want you two to be dating," she tells me as she points a finger at me.

I laugh, then repeat, "Okay."

My aunt pulls me in for another hug, then she's gone, leaving me alone in the hallway with nothing to do except plan for my next conversation with Josie.

Josie's POV

Rafael almost asked Hope out. Rafael almost asked Hope out, and if her aunt wasn't there, she might've said yes. I'm suddenly extremely grateful for the blonde vampire, but, just like Lizzie points out later, I have to make my move on Hope sooner rather than later.

At dinner, Hope is Rebekah-free, making me kind of upset seeing as she saved my chances with Hope earlier, but she did say she was leaving, so...

"So about that party," Rafael says as soon as the tribrid sits down.

"What about it?" she asks cluelessly, but I can tell that she knows more than she's letting on.

"I was wondering if you wanted to go with me?" Raf asks, and my heart sinks.

I watch Hope as she thinks about his offer, my agitation growing with every second that ticks by. "Or," I say, my mouth not checking with my brain before speaking. "We could go as a group."

"Yeah," Hope immediately agrees. "That'd be fun. You're always saying how the three of us should hang out, Raf."

His face falls, but he can't object. "Yeah," he sighs defeatedly. "Let's all go together. The more the merrier, right?"

"Right," I nod, but I can't stop the victorious smile from spreading across my face as Hope's eyes meet mine.

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Used that pic bc Hope is right in the middle of Rafael and Josie just like this chapter kinda,, heh. But can we just talk about how they put Hope next to Josie in the promo pics instead of Landon?? If Hosie isn't real then explain thattttt. Julie Plec better come thru with this #hosieseason2 amirite