Haunted History | TVD

23

"Well, don't you look era-appropriate?"

Audraya rolled her eyes as she turned around. Stefan smirked and looked her over. His eyes roamed over her sparkly dress and mysterious makeup. It was the perfect attire for the Decade Dance that the Mystic Falls student council was throwing.

"The twenties were one of my more fashionable periods," she shrugged, "Although you were a lot more handsome back then."

"So you knew me back then?" he questioned, "You were with Klaus and Rebekah at the time?"

"I knew the ripper back then," she corrected, pulling him closer by the tie. She barely allowed her lips to graze his ear, lowering her voice to a whisper, "And he was a lot more fun."

Stefan scoffed as Audraya let go and shoved past him. She set her eyes on Damon's distant figure, watching as the Salvatore pulled Elena out of the gym.

She went to follow them, pushing past the couples on the dance floor. But before she could get any further, a hand wrapped around her waist and pulled her in the opposite direction.

She let out a quiet sound of surprise as her body collided with another. She glanced up and caught Jeremy Gilbert's eyes staring down at her.

He grasped her hand and brought it to the side. He swayed them to the slow sound of the music, trapping her with his elegant moves.

"Do you need something?" she asked in annoyance.

He shrugged, "I just saw that you had this murderous look in your eyes and figured I should stop you."

"Darling, if I wanted to murder someone then they'd already be dead."

"Either way, it's probably best if you just took a minute to cool off," he advised, "Have a little dance break."

She narrowed her eyes. Her grip on Jeremy's hand tightened as her anger rose. He winced slightly but kept himself composed.

"My brother died," she said fiercely, "I have every right to be angry and on edge."

"You're right," he conceded, "I just thought you could use a break from the grief. I know a little bit about the process."

She scoffed, "I've lost plenty of people in my life. I know how to cope."

She looked away from his face in frustration. He shrugged and kept dancing. He released her hand and twirled her out, quickly pulling her back in. She smoothly followed his lead and fell back into his arms again.

"I think Kol copes with anger," he stated, pushing aside the quizzical look on her face, "He was pissed back in Denver."

"He has a short temper."

"But I noticed that whenever he got angry, he would start talking about you."

She glanced back up at him. Her eyes softened in curiosity and he smiled.

"Yeah, he would start telling stories about how his older sister taught him most of what he knows. And he'd randomly start naming constellations on late nights," he remembered, "He really looks up to you."

He smiled in victory, watching as her face melted into a soft nostalgic expression. But when she caught him, she grit her teeth and looked away. Jeremy chuckled and swayed them again but Audraya pulled out of his grasp.

"Thank you for the dance," she mumbled, "But I need some air."

He released her hand and waist. She left in a hurry, weaving through the pairs of people still dancing. She made her way to the emergency exit, pushing the door open hurriedly.