His Eyes Above Mine

the beginning

The alarm clock blared through my room loudly. The three girls beside me groaned in unison.
"Ava!"
"Got it." I extended my arm too far trying to reach for it, and fell trying to shut it off. We all laughed at the sound of me hitting the ground. Elena, Bonnie, Caroline, and I crammed getting ready in my bathroom. Elena was at the mirror using my straightener, Bonnie was applying light makeup, Caroline was on the toilet, and I was in the shower.

For a moment, I forgot I was there. I stared off thinking, just thinking. The droplet of water that refused to fall from the shower head to the floor hypnotized me. I was caught thinking about my brother. I missed him every second no matter what I did.
"Ava?" My focus was unmoved. I just barely registered the sound of Caroline calling my name. I was hit hard. You know I was told grief is random, and it hits you like a truck most days and feels like a dull pulse others. Today I felt like a truck.

I felt the water cease to run. A warm cloth was placed around my body. I wrapped my arms around it robotically.
"Come on, Ava." My eyes snapped up to Bonnie's face.
"Sorry," I said quietly.
"I-, I'm-"
"It's okay," she cut me off, "you've been through a lot." I couldn't meet Caroline and Elena's face. Suddenly, I didn't want to meet anyone. I just wanted to crawl back into bed.

"Have you heard from Matt?" Elena asked Caroline. I appreciated the diversion.
"Matt?" I played along, "When did this happen?" I asked.
"It's a long story," Caroline sighed.
"You totally forgot to tell me this last night," I laughed. But it sounded foreign to me.
"We still have a lot to fill you in on," Bonnie interjected.
"You have no idea," Elena exhaled.
"We'll meet at the grill after school," Bonnie suggested.
"Sure," I accepted. I got out of the shower and finished getting ready with my girls. We headed downstairs afterward.

My mom was at the kitchen counter.
"Hi, mom," I greeted.
"Hi, honey." She brought me into a hug and kissed my forehead.
"Be safe, okay?"
"I will," I assured her.
"Hi, Mrs. Summers," Caroline cheered. My mom waved at my friends.
"I will see you after school," my mom said. I waved bye and headed out with my friends. We packed into my car, and then we were off to school.

I walked through the halls of Mystic High feeling anxious. I hadn't been here in a while, and it was making me feel out of place.
"It's still the same," Bonnie assured me, "we have like one new teacher and that's it." I nodded my head with a weak smile.
"We'll catch up later," Elena said.
"Bye." Her and Caroline walked to their first class. Bonnie and I went to the office to pick up my schedule.

"Ava Summers?!" I heard someone exclaim. I turned around to see Tyler Lockwood with a goofy smile on his face.
"Hi!" He pulled me into a bear hug.
"I can't believe you're back!" he expressed.
"Me either," I said, adjusting my bag's strap.
"I'm sorry about Carter," he said solemnly, placing his hand on my shoulder, "he was my best friend."
"Thank you." He lost him too.
"Gotta get my schedule," I said, trying to get away from this.
"Oh yeah, see you later, okay?" I nodded my head with a meek 'mhm.'

"Brings back a lot, huh?" Bonnie asked, noticing my mood.
"Yeah," I sighed. I told the lady at the desk my name and she handed me a thin piece of paper.
"You're not a first timer, I trust you know where everything is," she told me sweetly.
"I do, thank you."
"Oh hey, history with Alaric!" Bonnie pointed at the paper excitedly.
"Alaric?" I asked skeptically. First name basis with the teacher?
"He's dating Jenna," she explained shortly.
"Oh."

Bonnie led us into the classroom. There was Elena, with two open seats beside her. Elena gave me a smile and a look that said, "I know what you're feeling." She lost her parents. Remembering that made me feel bad about my grief. She pulled out a flyer, waving it around with a smile. It said, "60s Decade Dance TONIGHT." A meeting at the grill and then a dance party after? I welcomed the distractions without reluctance. A nod from me signaled my agreement to go.

"Hello, class." Alaric walked in. He looked disheveled and not at all Jenna's type. He flipped through his book quizzically.
"With the decade dance tonight, we've been covering the 60s all week," a girl at the front of the class piped up.
"Right," the teacher grinned. He looked up and made eye contact with me. We held it for a second. He then looked beside me at Elena, and smirked. He turned around to face the board and get on with the lesson.

~

The last bell rang, and it was the end of the school day. Most everyone was staying after to help with the preparations for the dance, and knowing Caroline I assumed she would too. I was right.

A tall boy with dark hair and green eyes approached Elena from behind, giving her a peck on the lips.
"Hey, Stefan," she said.
"We were just gonna go to the grill, wanna come?" He shook his head.
"No, I'll be at the house with Damon." Elena nodded understanding. He walked away, and I watched his back with a head tilt.

"When'd you bag that hottie?" I asked. She shook her head and laughed at me. I asked a genuine question. We left Caroline at the school, knowing arguing with her would be pointless. We piled in my car and drove toward the grill. We were in silence for a while, which I decided was dangerous and asked a leading question.
"Any other new relationships I should know about?" I asked Bonnie and Elena.

Elena looked at Bonnie with a pointed look. I gasped, hitting Bonnie on her arm.
"Tell me!" I exclaimed.
"It's Jeremy," she grumbled.
"Elena's brother?"
"Yes!" she said defensively.

"Hey, no shame," I expressed, "I'm just surprised." I focused back on the road. I pulled up to the Mystic Grill, parking smoothly.
"Let me see if I remember correctly," I said, getting out of the car and walking up to the building with the two girls.
"A burger with no pickles and a vanilla milkshake," I said pointing at Elena. She nodded, smiling as I got it right.
"And everything nachos with lemonade," I looked at Bonnie. She nodded in approval. We walked into the grill.

Elena and Bonnie chatted with me animatedly. A mix of emotions hung around the table as they told me different things. The only thing I still didn't know was who exactly Stefan was, and what Jenna was doing with a history teacher. We left after finishing eating. I dropped Elena and Bonnie off, and continued down the road to home.