Bring Me To Life | The Originals (1)

Difficult Roads Lead to Beautiful Destinations (Hypothetically)

A/N: All sections written in italics are voiceover.

They say the passage of time will heal all wounds. But, the greater the loss, the deeper the cut, and the more difficult the process to become whole again.

Over the course of her young life, Imogen Claire had awoken in many different situations; Davina rushing into her bedroom early in the morning, bouncing on the bed while laughing until the older brunette pushed her over the edge; she had woken up with a mouthful of Davina's brunette hair, surprised to find that her sister had snuck into her bed in the middle of the night; during college she had woken up in unfamiliar apartments with unfamiliar people with only vague ideas of how she had come to be there the night before; once when she was travelling South America with Sophie, she woke up on the beach in only a novelty t-shirt that read 'Kiss Me, I'm Irish' on the front.

Imogen felt something heavy draped around her waist as she awoke from her slumber, the weight pinning her firmly to the mattress and it was when she shifted restlessly that she noticed the warmth behind her was coming from another person. She slowly blinked her eyes open as a small frown pulled at the corners of her lips, confused about who could possibly be in bed with her when she actively hadn't been going out to hook up with strangers since the night Elijah confronted her about her excessive drinking when Davina died. She turned her head slightly to look over her shoulder, careful not to move and wake up the person behind her before she could determine whether or not she wanted to confront them.

A small smile spread across her lips when she was meet with the pleasant sight of Elijah Mikaelson sleeping peacefully, a content expression on his features and her stiff muscles relaxed as she turned back around to get comfortable enough to fall back asleep.

The witch's gaze instinctively dropped down to the hand that was resting on her stomach and she slowly lowered her hand over the top of his, intertwining their fingers as she bit down gently on her lower lip to stop from grinning uncontrollably.

Over the course of the month since Rebekah's departure there had been numerous nights that Elijah had showed up at her doorstep uninvited with a bag of takeout food or an offer to cook her a homemade meal using the culinary skills had mastered over the centuries. After eating dinner together they would often find themselves sprawled on Imogen's couch together, watching classic movies or old television shows while sipping on wine. Most night Imogen would fell asleep curled up against Elijah's side, a blanket draped over her body or with her head resting on his lap as he gently stroked her hair and he would carry her bridal style into her bedroom before leaving for the night. Elijah staying over the night was only a new occurrence for them, one that had begun one evening when he was setting her on the bed and she grasped his hand tightly in her own as her eyelids fluttered open to look at him drowsily, her voice hoarse as she asked him to 'stay' in a quiet voice.

It was strange to wake up in bed with a man still wearing clothing, knowing that nothing sexual had conspired the night before but just like everything that happened with Elijah, there was an underlining rush of excitement that came with the unknown. It had mutual decision to take their 'relationship' slowly, to hold back on the sexual aspect and get to know each other on a deeper level before they took that step.

They were both emotionally damaged from their families and past relationships, they had been left with wounds that might not ever entirely heal and emotional scars that they would forever have to bear but they were attempting to move on with their lives.

Imogen let out a small hum of contentment as she snuggled deeper into her pillow, tightened her grip on the hand she was holding and she lifted her gaze instinctively to the framed photograph sitting on the bedside table. Her throat suddenly felt dry at the sight in front of her as she struggled not to cry and a forlorn expression fell across her features as she studied the photo intently with a frown, unable to help the longing sigh that escaped her lips.