Ace of Hearts

27

The dinner table was deathly silent that night. Only the clinking of silverware broke the quiet tension of unasked questions and raging thoughts. No one wanted to start the conversation, but they simultaneously wanted to have their say.

I can feel the weight of their gazes, and I know they're waiting for me to fill them in on the day's events and answer questions. They don't have to ask. I know Jade is curious about my birth parents, while Bex and Lijah want to know more about my trip to the other side. Still, I can't turn my focus away from my conversation with Kol and the guilt that's burrowing in my chest. Neither of them know about Henrik, and even Jade is clueless about my conversation with Kol.

Honestly, I want to scream to break the monotonous silence and the pressure of my own guilty thoughts. It feels like the walls are slowly closing in to suffocate me. I have to consciously remind myself to breathe until they stay put.

"You can go ahead and ask, you know. I'll do my best to answer." My voice is quiet but clearly audible in the otherwise silent room.
Elijah waits a moment, adjusts his suit, and start the 'interrogation,' while Rebekah and Jade deftly slip in their questions where they can. I keep back the information about the doppleganger and make slight hints to Henrik with the hopes they'll catch on. They seem troubled enough by the information I've given them already, but it feels wrong to keep such a large secret from them. I vow to tell them by the time Nik gets back.

As if the mere thought of him is enough to summon him, the front door opens, and the hybrid strolls in merely. "I suppose you had a successful trip, Niklaus?" Elijah questions as he finally turns his attention away from me.

"Quite. I found exactly what I was looking for." Klaus smiles as he leans against the door frame to the dining room. "It shouldn't be long before we can decipher that map."

My skin bristles. Kol spent every moment he had warning them about the danger of what they're doing, yet even after he died to stop them, no one will bother to listen. The pure thickheadedness of the Mikaelsons can be truly baffling to me most days. "If you'll excuse me, I just lost my appetite." I tell them as I push away my chair and glare at Klaus while I leave. "Nice to have you back, Klaus."

"If I didn't know better, I would think you weren't happy to see me." He jokes, clearly sensing the sarcasm dripping from my voice. Under most circumstances, I would be thrilled to have Klaus back, but not when he went on a trip to chase after the one thing his brother and I have fought against. Especially when he has the guts to brag about it in my presence.

"Now what ever gave you that idea?" I snap in reply with clenched fists. All I can think to do is give into the bitterness that courses through my veins. He was one of the few people that was there when I was grieving, but when I showed the slightest sign of improvement and a development in his search happened, he jetted off without the slightest hesitation. It's a wound that cuts deep into my already torn heart.

The silence and peace the library normally brings me comfort, but tonight it only grated on my ever nerve. My focus keeps drifting from the book in my lap, and I find myself reading the same sentence over and over again. I have to consciously remind myself not to slam the book in frustration.

Instead, I set it aside, grab my sketchbook, and resort to pacing the garden in an attempt to sort myself out. The problem is, I know so much but have no way to explain it. Not to mention, Klaus's pride and stubborn attitude.
How am I supposed to explain it? The nightmares that Kol would chase away finally started coming into startling clarity after his death. It's party true to call them nightmares, but the truth is they're more visions of what may be. Clips of a possible future if we continue down this road.

Then there's the added trouble of seeing Henrik and hallucinating my dead boyfriend. Yeah, everything is totally normal. It's just another day in my life, I suppose.