Return To Mystic Falls

Hurt

Diana

"So you're sure he's a werewolf?" Jeremy questions from his spot on the bed. He's got the blanket pulled over his shoulders, bare feet resting on the edge of the wooden bed frame. His sketchpad is tossed on the side table, a picture of a snarling wolf face sketched in pencil.

I nod, letting out a sigh, "Yeah. Damon went to go take care of him. Have you and Elena worked through your issues?"

"Not really. She doesn't want me involved." Jeremy answers back with a shrug.

"That makes two of us."

Elena's younger brother smirks, shaking his head, "If you didn't want me involved you wouldn't be here."

"Hey," I answer back, lifting my paper coffee cup as if this defends my presence in the youngest Gilbert's bedroom. "I still owed you coffee. I don't like having unpaid debts."

"And you wanted to tell me that Mason Lockwood is definitely a werewolf," Jeremy responds with a smile before lifting his coffee to his lips, blowing a few times before taking a small sip.

I roll my eyes. He's not going to let this one go. "I felt like you should at least have some closure. But from now on, we are just normal friends. Nothing supernatural here."

"Besides the thousand-year-old vampire sitting on the floor," Jeremy jests.

"I'm six hundred, thank you very much," I respond with a smile, letting Jeremy know my correction is all lighthearted fun. "Are you going to the community picnic tomorrow?"

Jeremy shrugs, scrunching up his nose as he takes another drink of coffee. "Not my scene."

"I'm surprised Elena didn't voluntell you," I respond, raising an eyebrow.

Little Gilbert shakes his head; "I think Elena wants to keep me away from everyone. The less time I spend around Stefan and Damon the less involved in the supernatural I am."

I nod my understanding. Lifting my coffee cup to my lips I let it sit there as I observe Jeremy. How did he get so wrapped up in this? Someone with so much potential brought down to his lowest, only to find solace in vampires. I think back to where I was when I first turned. My life was in shambles, all my family dead, floating from one street to the next. The vampires saved me, just like they're saving Jeremy now. I wonder if things would be different if I compelled Jeremy to forget everything.

"I know we're not supposed to talk about the supernatural –" Jeremy's voice pulls me back to the bedroom "– but in those six hundred years, have you ever thought about just not existing anymore?"

I take a few seconds, weighing the pros and cons of telling him the truth. In the end, lying just seems like a copout. "Yeah. Believe me, living forever isn't always what it's cracked up to be. Putting aside the fact that staking yourself is hard, I found reasons to keep going."

"Damon?" Jeremy questions, pulling his knees up to his chin as I stand. Damon should be home by now and I'd like a follow up on how things with Mason went tonight.

"Among other things," I step forward, placing my hand on Jeremy's knee. "No one your age deserves to see as much death as you have."

"Will I see you again?" Jeremy questions as I move towards the window.

I give him a smile and a quick nod before sliding into the darkness.

"What the hell do you mean he's not dead!?" I demand of Damon, slamming the refrigerator door shut, tearing open the blood bag in my hand with my teeth. "It was a simple task! I didn't think I needed to babysit you for it. Apparently, if I want them done correctly, I need to handle all the important missions. Do you know what kind of a target this puts on our back, Damon?"