After life in Mystic Falls becomes too dangerous for her younger siblings, Elena decides that it's best if they move to Washington to live with some old family friends. The hope is that they'll be able to live normal lives, away from all of the supe...
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There isn't much left of the home that Jay knew. Sure, the house is still standing — mostly. The foundation is intact; they may even be able to rebuild it. But it's not the same. Everything is burned, charred black. Walking through the house, the rooms are almost unrecognizable. But then again, so is her life. Now the house looks on the outside how she feels on the inside.
Paul walks up beside Jay in what remains of her family's kitchen. She's staring into the living room directly attached, trying to imagine Jeremy playing video games on the couch. She remembers one time when Damon came over for dinner and was playing with him. She didn't know what he was then, but it still didn't seem likely that he played video games often. So she thought it was funny watching him beat her brother, who she could never win against.
The little brunette feels the warmth of Paul's skin as his arm brushes against hers, and she subconsciously leans into it. He looks down at her, and he can see pain on her face.
"The house was trashed before it was set on fire." She tells him. "Kol tried to kill Elena and cut off Jeremy's arm, so they killed him instead. They destroyed the door upstairs trying to give themselves time to come up with a better plan. He stabbed Elena, and she was stuck to the wall, and someone went through the banister. Kol died here." She points in front of them, and Paul looks down at the floor.
There's a spot that looks more charred than the rest. There was a fire, it was put out, and then the house went up in flames later.
"They had Klaus locked in that room for a couple of days." She motions to the room she was staring into before. "Where we used to watch tv, play video games, have dinner. We used to watch the news and make fun of my mom for her crappy taste in men — she dated the news anchor. To my knowledge, the only decent guy she ever dated was Ric."
"This is just a house, Jay." Paul says as he moves to stand in front of her. "The memories of your family aren't ruined by what those original jackasses did here, and your memories don't live in this house. This is just a building with walls and a roof; the memories live with you."
"And only me." She finally meets his gaze. "My family is dead."
"Not your entire family." He shakes his head. "I may not fully understand it, but those vampires are your family too. And so is Bella and Kim. I am your family, Jay, and you are never gonna be alone." He tells her, and she smiles as she remembers how Marie had said basically the same thing to her when Mystic Falls was flooded with ghosts.
"I think it's time to go." The little brunette says. "I don't know what I was hoping to gain exactly, but I don't think it worked."
"I think you were looking for closure, and it's gonna take some time." He motions for her to go ahead of him out of the house, and she leads the way.
