𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 | 𝐭𝐯𝐝

29

It felt like forever until morning. After last night, I didn't want to face Damon for the sole purpose it scared me to know he doesn't feel the same way. Am I getting attached for nothing? I placed my journal down on my bed and walked downstairs. Stefan was getting his stuff ready for school. "You're still here?" He asked. "I'll leave soon. I promise." I chuckled. "No, it's nice having you here. You're welcome to stay. Uh, you coming to school?" Stefan looked at me. I wore black sweatpants and a black form-fitting shirt, along with white sneakers. A lazy look, but cute. "Yeah." I grabbed my backpack off the couch and swung it over my shoulder. "In sweatpants?" He laughed. "Even a dead person has to be comfortable. Don't disturb the dead." I mocked. That just made him laugh more.

I nudged his shoulder and went to the kitchen. I grabbed a water bottle and walked back to him. I then grabbed my car keys. "Race you?" I laughed. He sped to the car. "I didn't say go!" I pouted. I ran to the car and got in. "You're so slow," Stefan complained.

We were now standing by our lockers. I closed mine and looked at Stefan. He closed his and my brother approached us. "Hey, Jer," I said. "Hey." He pulled me into a hug and looked at Stefan. "Look, Elena's got to let me know if I'm supposed to cover for her. Jenna's cool with the two of you but you guys are pushing it." He said. "What..What are you talking about?" Stefan asked. "You and Elena. Look, I'm glad you guys are back together but if she's gonna sleep over..." Jeremy sighed. "Elena wasn't over last night, Jeremy." I looked at Stefan. "I saw her at the party but that was it. She didn't sleep over." He looked at Jeremy. "'Cause her bed hadn't been slept in and Mrs. Lockwood said that her car was still in the driveway. Where is she then?" Jeremy looked at us.

Stefan called Damon and we quickly walked outside. Stefan began pacing. Damon arrived as soon as possible. "This has Katherine written all over it," Stefan said. "Katherine's in the tomb. Trust me; I'm the one who shut her in." Damon leaned against a tree. "Did you?" I questioned. "Did I what, Sundance?" He looked at me. "Well, we know the hold that Katherine has on you," Stefan answered for me. "She's in the tomb, period. End of story but she did say something to me right before I shut her in. I thought she was lying." Damon sighed. "Well, what did she say?" I looked at him. "Elena's in danger." The Salvatore quoted. "And you didn't ask her to elaborate?!" I looked at him. "Everything she says is a lie. How am I supposed to know if she's gonna start spouting out the truth?" Damon shrugged. "We have to go talk to her," Stefan said. I grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back. "No, no. Let me tell you how that's gonna go: We're gonna go ask her for help, she's gonna negotiate her release which we're gonna be dumb enough to give her and she's gonna get out and kill us! This is exactly what she wants! It's a bad idea, Stefan." Damon said. "He's right...but this is Elena we are talking about. We have to get her back." I looked at the boys. They looked at me and nodded.

I went to get supplies from Alaric while Stefan went to Bonnie. We met in Ric's classroom. Bonnie had a map and candles laid out. "How does this is work?" I asked. "I'll use Jeremy's blood to draw energy for the tracking spell. You're blood-related; it'll make the connection stronger." Bonnie said. Stefan walked inside. His forehead was wrinkled. He was stressed. "Alright, Alaric said we've got to clear out of here within ten minutes. I've got weapons, he stocked me up." I said. He nodded and walked next to me. "Are you ready?" Bonnie asked Jeremy.

She cut Jeremy's hand. Stefan and I exchanged glances. His blood fell on the map and Bonnie concentrated herself to cast the spell. The blood dripped and merge into one and went toward Elena's location. "That's..."

"300 miles from here." Jeremy continued. "Okay. We can do an aerial view. It will show us what's around there, help us narrow down the area. Jeremy, stay with Bonnie and try to get a precise location. Call us with whatever you find." I grabbed the duffle bag of equipment. The door opened. It was Damon. "You're coming?" Stefan asked. "It's Elena," Damon responded.