To Better The Shattered; Scott McCall [2] ✔

0.30 In Which She Puts The FUN In FUNERAL

Ellie wasn't emotionally stable enough to go to school without a little bit of complaining to her uncle. After the search the night before turned sour (the trail ended at the Hale house - the house that was totally empty), she'd crept back into her bedroom. Allison's light was still on behind the door when Ellie went passed it (she needed to get washed up in bathroom - there was literally dirt everywhere), but she didn't go inside to check on her cousin.

When she woke the next day, it was to the foreboding realisation that school resumed at exactly 8 am, meaning she needed to get dressed right away. It was still strange for her not to hear the usual tone-deaf singing through the twelve inches of dry wall that separated her and Allison's rooms; the other brunette hadn't graced her ears with the horror that is Justin Bieber in almost three weeks.

The drive there was more than slightly awkward. Since she'd been put on probation with her relative, Ellie wasn't allowed to drive herself anywhere. Chris gave her a ride in his monster SUV (Victoria was smiling smugly in the background like the usual self-absorbed bitch she revelled in being) and her cousin drove in the Mazda all by herself. It didn't strike Ellie until she was stuffing the plastic-covered dress in her locker that it was Kate's funeral later that day.

Her other aunt was still a tough subject for her. The woman had been her role model - everything she aspired to be: confident, beautiful, and reasonably kind with a sprinkle of hostility. Kate was the epitome of adult superiority, and one of her best friend's growing up. It was different now, though. She was a convicted murderer. A dead, convicted murderer. Someone she'd looked up to had ended up being a cold-blooded killer who went against every Argent rule in the book. We hunt those who hunt us - not werewolves who had never hurt a human further then tackling them in an aggressive football game.

Hours passed by like minutes. Ellie didn't talk to Allison, or Scott (even though it was hard, she couldn't bring herself to want to speak to him on such a sad day), and she tried her best to ignore the whispers that seemed to follow her.

Yeah, her aunt was a supposed 'serial killer', but that didn't mean she had anything to do with it. Honestly, it was a little insulting - especially then. Her mind was reeling from the knowledge that she was about to bury one of the last family member she had left. It would be her second funeral in less than a year, and the idea of being reminded of the last one she went to made her stomach churn. Ellie had lost so much family lately that she was starting to feel like Elena freaking Gilbert and, as pretty as Nina Dobrev is (seriously, she wasn't into girls but if she would definitely screw Nina Dobrev), the comparison was unappreciated, even from her own head.

When the end of the day rolled around, she went back to her locker to collect her dress. It was pretty, with a loose flowing skirt and two thin straps. Her shoes were modest, her cardigan cropped at the waist as to not go further than the loose belt tied beneath her bust. She'd tried it on the night before, and it was nice. It would've been nicer if it hadn't been for that sort of occasion, though.

Ellie had just draped the garment over her arm when an unfamiliar piece of paper caught her attention. It was yellow, with blue lines, and, unfolded, it read "Because I love you".

Her mind rushed back to the night of the winter formal, when Scott had stared at her with doe brown eyes and said the exact same words. The memory was welcomed - one of her best - and it made a brilliant smile tug at her lips.

Even with everything going on, she knew that she could always rely on Scott: Her perfect boyfriend who loved her enough to overlook the fact that her family wanted him dead.

Shaking her head, she slammed her locker shut, turning the blinding grin to the boy next to her. She recognised him to be Matt something-or-other, a boy from her history (or math - she didn't know the specific lesson) class.