Midnight Rising

Birthday Girl

Elena stands in front of the mirror in Stefan's room. She twists, smoothing the skirt of the white cotton dress she's wearing. My brother's girlfriend frowns, tugging at pieces of her hair as she stares herself down. Leaning against the doorframe, I clear my throat. Elena glances over, forcing a smile. I'm worried about her. Elena is refusing to give up hope for Stefan. I've done my best to suppress her hopes; squashing every lead she gives me with glib pessimism. Elena is a smart girl. She's eventually going to see through me.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to lose it," Elena turns to me, reading the fears in my eyes, "At least not before the cake."

Shrugging, I take a few steps into the room, "It's your party, you can cry if you want to." Glancing around the room I see that Elena has moved Stefan's large collection of books to the edge of the bed. A few of my brother's t-shirts litter the sheets and floor. Elena's clinging to his memory in the only way she knows how. "Ah, Stefan, such a packrat." Picking up a picture of my brother, I examine it. Fear grows in Elena's eyes; as if she's terrified my touch will destroy the image. Quickly, she snatches it away from me, tucking it under the pillows she's moved to the middle of the bed. "I got you something. I know I promised not to buy you anything, so don't worry. I didn't pay for it."

"You stole it?" Elena spins around, raising an eyebrow at me.

Rolling my eyes, I pull a little black box from my back pocket, "No. I found it."

Elena gasps as I open the box, revealing the necklace Stefan gave her. In the confusion on the hours leading up to the ritual, Elena was certain she'd lost it. I figure the token may give her enough comfort to give up the leads on Stefan for a little. "My necklace. I thought I'd never see it again."

"Alaric found it in his loft. I figured you'd be happy to get it back."

My brother's girlfriend smiles, rubbing her finger over the silver ball hanging from the chain. "I am happy." I force a return smile. It's Elena's birthday, she deserves one day without worrying about the future. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

"Can you...." Elena holds the necklace out to me, gathering her hair in front of her.

Placing the box down on Stefan's desk, I take the jewelry from Elena. Dropping it down in front of her, I close the clasp around Elena's neck. She tosses her hair back over her shoulder, giving herself one last look over in the mirror. She smiles weakly, turning to me. Elena takes the arm I offer her. "Shall we?"

From the top of the steps, I can already see the living room swarming with people. Caroline must have invited her entire class. Red solo cups make their way through the crowd, some people holding full bottles of alcohol. Elena takes in a breath, letting it out slowly before urging me forward. She may be able to cry if she wants to but this is Elena's party, she knows she can't hide upstairs all night.

As we pass into the living room, a skinny redhead passes us by. She carries a bottle of bourbon in her hand, the gold writing glinting in the low lighting. Letting go of Elena, I catch the girl by the elbow. Spinning her back to me, I curl my fingers around the neck of the bottle. "Give this to me and go drink the cheap stuff."

The girl's grip loosens, "I'll go drink the cheap stuff."

Returning to Elena, I tuck the bottle under my arm, "Was that hers?"

"Ours."

As Elena goes to answer, Caroline bounces over. She smiles widely, gesturing to the people gathered in the house, "You like?" The blonde pauses for a second before shaking her head. "Don't answer that."

"This is keeping it small?" Elena questions, receiving a wide smile from her best friend. My brother's girlfriend rolls her eyes, linking arms with Caroline. "What're we drinking?" She's doing her best to make the most of the situation we've been given. Elena deserves a night of fun. I have full faith in Caroline to give her that.