Beauty and Blood

The Kids Aren't Alright

November 7th, 2009

Waking up that morning, no amount of sleep deprivation could have kept Andy in bed. Despite having just barely opened her eyes after yet another uneasy sleep, it was a matter of seconds before she was tumbling out of bed, sheets flung onto the floor as she uneasily stood in her haste. Finally, after days of expectant anticipation, Saturday was upon them. Not in the usual teenage way of waiting for the weekend so she could go out, this was more in an anxious, 24/7 leg bouncing kind of way.

For the entire week she had been driving her friends and family up the wall with her jitteriness, rushing about to and fro in an attempt to pass the time, even her teachers had started to be bothered by her constant restlessness in class. But she had bigger fish to fry than social impropriety. Getting dressed, she neglected putting on any necklace, too much in a hurry to bother with emotional and moral conflict that early in the morning without caffeine.

After saying goodbye to her family, barely remembering to put her shoes on before rushing out of the house with her rucksack over her shoulder, she slammed the door of her Jeep behind her and peeled out of the driveway. Flying through town as responsibly as she could, it was a handful of minutes later she pulled up in front of the Cosy Cover, rushing into the café and waving to whoever was working as she ran up the stairs to her (thankfully empty) usual table. Panting, she threw her journal onto the table to skim through what she had written so far. Her head eagerly shot up when she heard someone approach the table, only to be disappointed when it was a waiter she wasn't familiar with.

"Hi, what can I get you?"

"I would kill for a cup of coffee, please." she sighed, sleep having become harder and harder to come by recently, busting out her make-up bag more and more often to try and cover the purple bruise-like shadows under her eyes. "And keep 'em coming, I'm waiting for others." The waiter nodded with a polite smile, quickly leaving to check on other patrons, leaving her to stare out of the window at the sleepy town.

A few minutes later when she was halfway through her second coffee, two familiar figures sat opposite her, one of them dragging a second chair over. "So why am I at work on my day off again, Mlady?" Jay smirked at her, wearing a loose floral blouse and skinny jeans with heeled ankle boots, leaning back casually as they waved at passing staff they recognised. Next to them was a juxtaposing Sheila Bennett sat upright with her arms sternly crossed, looking at the girl expectantly.

"I'll explain, once the last member of our meeting arrives." she smiled at the two of them, pulling her phone out to send a quick message to said person with threats of violence if they didn't. "Alright Cassandra, if you say so." Sheila sighed, looking curiously at the open journal that was subtly hidden from prying eyes. It was another while longer where the three of them idly chatted and drank their beverages, Sheila having chamomile tea and Jay a Horchata de ajonjolí, until another seat was pilfered from a different table to be pulled up besides Andy. "Stefan, hey you made it." she grinned at him. "Hi." he awkwardly smiled at Sheila and gave a friendly nod at Jay. "Nice to see you again, Sweet cheeks." Jay greeted whilst Sheila simply raised an eyebrow at the brunette teen.

"Why are we all here?" she bluntly asked once Stefan had ordered and received his Bicerin, certain that they wouldn't be overheard by other patrons or waiters. Andy nervously smiled at the three inquisitive looks she was sent, clearing her throat as she shifted through her notes. "Okay, let's just get the basics out of the way first. The Bennett's and Jay are witches, Stefan and Damon are vampires, as far as I'm aware everyone else is human."

Stefan baulked at her for spilling all of that so openly in public, whilst Sheila looked like she needed something stronger than tea already, Jay simply staring at her confused. "We already knew this?" they asked, earning a fierce glare from Sheila. "You knew who the vampires were and didn't tell me?" she dryly demanded.