Never Means Forever

Every morning consisted of the same routine at Mystic Falls. Get up, write some, and sluggishly get ready for school. This morning wasn’t different. I sighed, flipping the covers away from my body, rolling out of bed, my feet hitting the wooden floor, lightly. Grabbing my notebook, I settled into my favorite chair, crossing my legs under me, my pen poised towards the lined paper.

No words came to me. I threw my pen in frustration, tossing the bound paper into my messenger bag, proceeding to dress for school. For the past year, I hadn’t been able to write, all sources of inspiration had escaped me. Splashing cold water over my face, I stared at me reflection before tugging on a tank top over my thin frame. I glanced at the clock. “Crap!” I slipped on my shoes, closing the door behind me.

I pulled into a parking space at school, slinging my bag onto my shoulder, my Sidekick in my front pocket, the edge sticking out. I gently slammed the door shut to my black Mustang, running into the main building, stopping at my locker to put away some of my belongings. As I made my way to my first class, I stopped short, catching sight of a familiar face. “Stefan?” the name left my lips as a question. He turned towards me, obviously hearing me. I backed up slightly, not believing my eyes. There he was, one of my closest friends, in the flesh. Stefan Salvatore

“Aria!” he smiled, walking over to me. He wrapped his muscular arms around my waist, lifting me up, slightly. “How have you been?” He asked, as soon as my feet touched the ground.

“Stefan…you probably know exactly how it has been,” I said, a slight grin coming to my lips. “But what in the world are you doing here?” I asked, excitedly. And then, I remembered. “She’s not Katherine, Stefan.” I crossed my arms over my chest, staring at Stefan, disappointed. Stefan glanced at me, his gaze locked behind me. “Stefan!”

“I know, Aria. I just need to know her. Plus, I need a normal life.” I frowned, hoping that the reason Stefan was back in Mystic Falls wasn’t because Elena Gilbert was a splitting image of his past love, Katherine Pierce. “I have to get to-“he scrunched his eyebrows. “Mr. Tanner’s class.” I groaned.

“Have fun,” I said, turning away from him to get to my class. “Oh, and Stefan, I missed you,” I said, softly, knowing he’d hear me. Him and his stupid vampire hearing. Sitting in my seat in English, I opened my notebook, doodling in the margins, reminiscing on my past.

I had lived in Mystic Falls all of my life, except for the year before the last. My mother decided it’d be good for her, my brother, Alex, and me to move to San Francisco for a while. After throwing endless fits, I moved out meeting Stefan and Damon. One thing led to another and I ended up moving back to Mystic Falls, leaving my family and the Salvatore brothers behind.

After I moved back, I lived on my own, in a tiny apartment, about ten minutes away from my high school, working at the Mystic Grill.

“Miss Jennings. The bell rang over five minutes ago,” my English teacher interrupted my thought process, still looking down at his desk. I jumped.

“Oh..okay.” I stood up, grabbing my things, blindly leaving the classroom.

“Aria…Aria…ARIA!” I blinked at Stefan who was staring at me pointedly. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Is Damon here too?” I asked, wondering where the taller, blue eyed Salvatore brother was. Stefan shook his head, slinging his arm around my shoulder casually.

“Look, you need to forget about Damon. He’s not going to come here…I hope.”

“Stefan, look I know you guys hate each other, but he was still my friend. Nothing you or Damon have done will change that.” I shrugged Stefan’s arm off my shoulder, pushing my way past cliques of students to get to my next class. I felt someone grab my upper arm, and pull me to the side. “Stefan, let go!” I looked up, seeing it wasn’t Stefan; it was Matt.

“Hey, where have you been? You missed almost all of the first week of school.” Matt and I had become close ever since the year before after Elena’s parents died. We had always talked before, but when he really needed someone help him pull himself together after Elena broke up with him, I was the only one he had. Everyone else was so involved in making sure Elena was okay, they didn’t see that other people were hurt through the incident as well.

I understood that she lost her parents, but I’m pretty sure she became sick of all that ‘how are you doing?’s and ‘is everything okay?’s. After her parents died, I became closer with Jeremy, her little brother, too, not that we weren’t already close since before I moved.

“I was sick, Matt, but I’m fine now. Don’t worry,” I said, smiling as I put my books in my locker. Something clicked in Matt’s head because he said,

“Was that Stefan guy bothering you?” he asked. Matt and his over-protectiveness.

“No. I met him when I was in San Francisco. He’s cool.” I shut my locker with a slight push of my palm. “I have to get to math. I’ll see you later, okay?” I kissed him on the cheek, and rushed to get to class before the tardy bell rang. I sat in a random seat, burying my head into my arms.

The rest of the day went by uneventfully. I managed to get through school, without having any drama occur. After dropping my things off at my apartment, I grabbed my leather jacket, and made my way to Mystic Grill to hang out with Matt before my shift.

Instead of driving, I walked, taking the long way near the cemetery. An eerie chill surrounded the area, and I pulled my jacket closer, speeding past the gates. I felt someone grab me around the waist, pulling me towards them.