Until This Lie Do Us Part

Chapter 7

Elena studied her reflection in the mirror. She turned to the side. Then the other. Then she sighed. This wasn't her. But Caroline thought otherwise. "You. Look. BEAUTIFUL!" she screeched, running across the room towards her. "It fits you perfectly" she nodded, turning Elena around a few times to properly assess the dress. "One more thing" she said, reaching for the veil resting on the nearby chair. Caroline stood behind Elena and fastened it in Elena's hair. "There. Now you look like a bride" she smiled.

"I don't know" Elena said hesitantly. "This is like a 4000 dollar dress. I really don't think I need a dress this expensive" Elena explained.

"Of course you do" Caroline disagreed. "This dress was made for you. If you walk out of the store without it, it will haunt you for the rest of your life" she said seriously. "Besides, Stefan would want you to be happy on your big day" she added.

"I doubt that" Elena mumbled, examining herself one last time. She and Stefan hadn't spoken since the night before when she tried to essentially blackmail him into telling her about Katherine. He had left her a note saying that Caroline was coming over to take her dress shopping and that he was going to be out late. "I can't believe I'm getting married in two days" Elena said, more to herself than to Caroline.

But Caroline was quick to reply. "You two love each other. There's no reason to wait" she smiled, smoothing out Elena's dress. Caroline stopped and looked at her. "Cold feet?" she asked.

Elena turned to look at Caroline. "Would that make me a terrible person?" she asked. Caroline smiled softly and shook her head no. "I love Stefan. But his family status is a lot different than mine was growing up" she admitted. The part about Stefan was a lie. The second part, not really. Her family had money and they were well known in the community, but they were by no means millionaires who made the newspapers in the big cities. It felt uncomfortable to be submersed into a family system with such financial power.

"You'll get used to it" Caroline said. "And besides, you'll be out in the middle of nowhere in that big house. Not in the big city of New York" she explained. Elena still looked unconvinced. "You should talk to Stefan about this. He's a good listener."

Elena fought hard not to scoff. Stefan had to be the worst listener ever. But she held it together. "Yeah, you're probably right" Elena replied.

"So, ummm ... are you inviting anyone to the wedding?" Caroline asked. It was her feeble attempt to figure out if Elena had a maid of honor yet.

Elena shook her head. "My brother and best friend can't make it on such short notice. Not with school" she said. It was a lie. Elena had not even called to tell them about this for fear that they would fly out there and drag her back to California with them.

"Oh" Caroline said. "So, do you like, need a maid of honor or something?" she asked, fixing the bottom of Elena's dress.

Elena thought for a moment. "Yeah, I guess I do" she said, a small smile forming. She really liked Caroline, despite how naïve she was about the whole situation.

"Really?" Caroline squealed. "Oh my gosh! I won't let you down" she promised. Though, she had planned the whole wedding anyway and was already responsible for making sure Elena had everything she needed, but she was still excited to have the official title. Caroline threw her arms around Elena, nearly hugging her to death. "I'm going to go and find shoes!" she announced excitedly as she scurried off to another part of the store. Elena simply smiled as she sat down, ready to take the dress off and get out of there.

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It was Friday morning, her last day as a free woman. She carefully navigated the stairs with her purse and jacket in hand. She found Stefan in the kitchen, sitting at the counter reading the newspaper and eating a bowl of cereal. Elena stopped in the doorway. "Yes?" he asked in an almost irritated tone. Clearly he was still mad at her for the other night. The guy held grudges like crazy.