Here And Now (S.S)

2.86 "We Are Together"

MYSTIC FALLS WOODS, 1863

Night had fallen, and Valerie was leading a nervous-looking Stefan into the woods.

Stefan " Julian is going to kill me."

Valerie smiled " Just compliment the whiteness of his teeth. He'll forget all about it."

They found an abandoned cart with a lit lantern on it, and Valerie sat on it, smiling at Stefan flirtatiously. Stefan smiled back at her before kissing her gently, and the two make out for a long moment until Stefan broke away, looking mildly embarrassed. Valerie looked at him with concern.

Valerie" Is something wrong?"

Stefan "No, no. It's just that I've never..."

He trailed off, and Valerie realizes that he's a virgin. She smiled sweetly at him, and Stefan hesitated for a moment before gesturing to the front of her dress.

Stefan " Do you mind if I...?"

Valerie nodded, and he started to unbutton the bodice of her dress before the two began to make out more passionately this time. Valerie shrugged off her jacket before turning away from him so Stefan could unlace her corset. Once he's finished, he moved closer behind her and kissed her neck, and Valerie held tightly to the cart to support herself as they slowly make love.

Flashback end.

I looked at my hands. I knew Stefan was definitely not a virgin when i met him but i thought his first was dead by now. 

Valerie" It was his first time. I'm sure you've been someone's first, so you know what it's like to have a completely unforgettable place in someone else's mind."

I thought about it for a second.

Me "sure"

My sadness seemed to satisfy Valerie. 

Valerie " That's what I thought."

Flashback.

Stefan and Valerie kissed each other and smiled after their tryst in the cart. Once they're redressed, Stefan lead her farther into the woods.

Stefan "Come with me. I want to show you something."

He took her hand, and they continued walking until they reached a grave in the cemetery.

Valerie "Heh, this is romantic."

Stefan "This is my mother's grave."

Valerie freezed when she realized what Stefan was doing, and a flash of guilt crossed her face as Stefan kneeled in front of the grave.

Stefan " I come here every day to replace the flowers. She's been dead for six years, but I'm still trying to make up for my failure."

Valerie asked concerned "What do you mean by that?"

Stefan sighed "She had consumption. One day, her coughing would not stop. My father sent me to go buy some flowers to make an herbal tonic. I ran to town as fast as I could, but by the time I got home with the flowers, she had been taken to the sanatorium."

Valerie "You never got to say goodbye..."

Stefan nodded "She died in the TB ward shortly after."

Valerie, looking sad, walked over and kneeled beside him as Stefan continues in a shaky voice.

Stefan "I always wonder what would have happened if I had just been able to run a little faster. The tonic would have helped her. She could have lived."