to be or not to be » stefan salvatore

chapter twenty five: i still tasted of heartache and war.

Skye's eyes were trained on a crisp white wall, her heavy eyelids a fraction too slow to blink, her irises too stationary.

It was as if her brain was suffering a massive short-circuit and was struggling to compute. Her actions were almost robotic while delicate features were composed into an emotionless mask.

The insistent ticking of a clock somewhere far in the background the only sound infiltrating her ears as she counted every beat.

Chapped lips parted slightly, the crimson liquid still staining the soft flesh, she barely noticed another person entering the room.

Soft voices become audible, but they were muffled, like cotton candy was blocking off the sound. She didn't pay attention to it.

Another beat and she flexed her fingers. Another beat and she heared footsteps. Another beat and her vision was wobscured by pristine and handsome features.

She closed her eyes.

'Skye?' The sound of her name rolling of a tongue made her breath out, before she breathed in again and resumes her blank posture.

She didn't respond. Didn't move. Gentle fingers stroked over the flesh of her cheek. Hot air mingled with her own, brushed against her skin.

Her name was repeated.

Eyelids fluttered open.

Cobalt blue and forest green clashed together. Skye didn't blink, her face still as emotionless as before, but she tilted her head slightly to the side and closed her mouth.

The boy in front of her took this as an indication to take her head into his hands and lowered his forehead to hers, 'I'm so sorry.'

Skye stayed still as she looked into the eyes of the boy she loved. She almost wanted to flinch at the hurt she saw but covered her emotions with a steady brick wall.

She had cried enough. Had broken down too many times.

Feelings hurt and she had experienced enough hurt to last a lifetime. She was done with it.

As he didn't receive a response, a grimace pulled at the corners of his lips and he looked backward.

Her brother stared back at him solemnly, hands behind his back and blood splatters staining his shirt.

'I told you she was in shock.'

She swallowed hard before speaking up, composing syllables for the first time in hours, 'I'm not in shock.'

Her voice was void of emotion as she pulled away from Stefan's hands and looked behind him to her brother.

'I'm fine,' she repeated at the raise of his eyebrows.

'Skye,' voice trailing off, Stefan gazed at her in sorrow and tried to take a hold of her hand.

Instead, she pulled her hands away and got up from the couch, taking a step back.

'I said I'm fine.'

There is an edge to her words, threatening them to back off subtly.

Stefan stood up from his crouched position on the floor and raised his hands slightly in the air in a show of surrender.

'We're just trying to help you.'

In an instant her face contorted into a cutting glare as she gritted her teeth together, 'I don't need help. Nothing is wrong and I am fine.'

Before Niklaus could speak up, his lips forming words alerting her to his attempt to make a remark, she cut him off.

'Kol is dead. Another family member perished. Jeremy is dead too. A boy who has turned into one of my greatest friends suffering a broken neck caused by a flick of a wrist.'