6

I walked over to Caroline who finally seemed calm. She was standing with Bonnie at a table and I saw Elena as well.

I walked over with a smile. "Hey." I stated to Elena who smiled lightly. I saw my dad talking up a storm with Jenna as they smiled and laughed with each other.

"Turns out the party is kind of lame." Bonnie explained with a sigh.

"We spent to much time getting dolled up to not enjoy it a little bit." I commented leaning on the table. "We should at least go somewhere where I'm not in direct view of watching my dad flirt." I added raising my eyebrow to him. It wasn't that I was against him being with people it was just awkward for some reason.

"Wait who's your dad?" Bonnie asked confused.

"Mr. Saltzman." I replied realizing she didn't know that yet. "The last name is different because he's my stepdad." I explained.

She nodded. "How did I not know that?" Caroline asked almost in shock.

"You never asked." I smiled to her. Elena went over to Stefan after some more talking. That's when I noticed blue eyed guy, Damon. The guy who killed my mother.

I noticed him walk over as I sighed and looked down my heart raced lightly but I was able to calm it pretty quickly. "Hi Bonnie." He said with a smile. "Wanna dance?" He asked as Bonnie scoffed.

"I'm outta here." Bonnie replied agitated.

"Please give me another chance." Damon said stepping on front of her. She pushed him with her shoulder and backed away.

"Back off Damon." Caroline spat before walking away too. I started to go when he grabbed my arm.

"Wait." He said as I pulled my arm from his grip and looked up to him. "I didn't know your dad was the sketchy History teacher." He stated looking to me his head tilted slightly.

"Sketchy?" I retorted crossing my arms. "Takes one to know one. Why do you care?" I asked looking at him angrily.

"Just starting up conversation." He shrugged.

"No that's not it." I shook my head. "You care for some unknown reason but I just can't understand why." I looked at him still mad. It was true that he was always coming up to me. I thought maybe he'd want me as his next meal which would be a bad decision on his part, but I felt like there was something else.

He smirked. "You think you know everything don't you?" He asked pointing his finger at me.

I looked at his finger and back to him. "I know more then you think." I replied with a shrug. God how I wanted to stake him right now but there were too many people.

He furrowed his brows. "And what exactly does that mean?" He questioned calmly.

"I'll tell you as soon as you tell me why you care so much." I replied as he looked at me with no response. "That's what I thought." I added before I walked away toward Caroline and Bonnie.

"What did you do?" Caroline asked with a smile. "He was totally speechless."

"More importantly what happened between you two?" Bonnie question seeming just as impressed.

"I gave him a taste of his own medicine. He just shows up out of nowhere and wants to talk. It's very stalkery. He's also very aggravating." I sighed.

"Well I feel uplifted by that gesture." Caroline smiled.

"Just be careful around him, Emma. He's bad news." Bonnie added with worry. Did she know? I nodded lightly.

"I was thinking we should all go to the grill." Caroline suggested as I smiled.

"I'd love to but I think I'm gonna stay here per my dads request. I'll meet you guys later though okay?" I asked as she nodded. They walked off and I got some punch.

"Look at you." I heard as I turned to see Tyler in a very fifties getup.

"Nice." I chuckled lightly. "You put a lot of effort into this didn't you?" I asked with a smile.

"Not as much as you." He replied as he looked at my dress. "You look great."

"Thanks." I smiled. "Where's all your friends?" I asked curiously.

"Out with their dates. I came alone." He replied as we leaned against the wall.

"I came with Caroline and Bonnie but they decided to bail." I nodded lightly. "You don't happen to know any of these dances do you?" I asked curiously.

"I might know a few." He shrugged lightly.

"Then let's go dance." I smiled as I stood up and went to the dance floor. I held out my hand and he took it. He tried dancing but it was really bad and I was probably doing just as bad, but I was having a good time.

We danced for a while before I was almost out of breath. It was actually really fun. Somewhere in the middle I saw dad talking to Damon. Dad smiled to me giving me a reassuring nod but it just angered me. I wanted to be the one. Was that too much to ask?

After a while we got tired of dancing. "You had some moves." Tyler thought as he handed me some punch.

"Yeah well you didn't." I breathed in before chuckling. "That didn't make it any less fun though." I added holding up my cup. He tapped it to mine and we took a sip.

"So what's your story new girl?" He asked with a smile.

"Nothing interesting. I don't stay in one place too long so I don't have any good friends from anywhere else. I live with my dad. It's pretty normal." I shrug lightly.

"Why all the moving?" He asked curiously.

"My dad teaches so we move wherever there is a better opportunity." I shrugged lightly. It was an easy lie I picked up on. "And you? I've just recently learned the mayor has the same last name as you." I smiled lightly.

"Yeah that's my dad. He's not a very good one though." He replied with a nod.

"Life's a bitch sometimes isn't it? Can't always have good things." I smiled lightly looking down.

He chuckled lightly. "Nope." It was quiet for a second. "Well I think it's about time for me to head out." He sighed lightly.

"It was fun hanging out with you Tyler." I smiled. "I'll see you Monday." He nodded and walked away. He wasn't all that bad. I mean he was sort of an arrogant piece of shit but he needed a friend so I was happy to be there.

I saw Elena nervous and I walked over to her. "Everything okay?" I asked as she looked at her phone as it buzzed.

She turned around and I saw her looking at a guy. "Don't touch him." She warned as I saw Jeremy. The guys eyes widened as he looked at me. He said something and Elena looked to me.

"What?" I asked looking at her confused. She seemed almost scared.

"If we don't both go right now he'll hurt Jeremy." Elena said as she hung up her phone.

"Who is he?" I asked confused. "What does he want?"

"He wants to kill me." She replied as we walked out of the door. "We have to run." She said as we ran.

"Elena what the hell is going on?" I asked as we ran towards a door but it was locked.

"He's- he's a vampire." She replied looking at me as I guided her into the cafeteria. She closed the door and we backed against a wall.

My heart started racing and I pulled out the stake. It was better if she knew rather than us both being dead. She pushed on another door but it was locked. I stood my ground as it came in. I tried to hide the stake from his view.

"What-" she started as the guy pushed both of us onto the ground. He went towards Elena and pushed her against a wall. She was yelling and then I heard skin squelching but I couldn't tell what it was.

I got up and put the stake through the vampires back. He fell down sideways and he was still alive. I looked to the stake and realized I didn't hit the right spot. Damn.

He wasn't able to get up still though. I sat on top of him pushing lightly on the stake.

"What do you want with us?" I asked him as he grunted but didn't say anything. "What do you want with us?!" I repeated as I pushed the stake in more. His face was smushed on the floor.

All the sudden I was pushed against a wall and I felt my glasses fall off. I saw Damon. I seriously regretted not bringing another stake. "Don't move." He said as I listened. Not because the compelling worked, but because I noticed Stefan holding the guy ready to kill him. He took the stake out and put it near his heart, close enough to kill him but not quite there yet.

"What do you want with them?" Stefan asked.

"Screw you." The guy said as Stefan pushed it in with ease. I was 90% sure that he was also a vampire.

"Why are you doing this?" Stefan asked as the random vamp grunted.

"Because it's fun." He added.

Stefan held his shoulder and pushed the stake up towards his heart. I wondered why they wanted him alive. "What do you want with Elena?"

"She looks like Katherine." He breathed. Oh great, another person we looked like. I wondered what the differences were.

"You knew Katherine?" Damon asked confused as I stood away by the wall.

"Oh. You thought you were the only ones." He let out a grunted laugh. "You don't even remember me."

"Tell me how to get in the tomb." Damon asked bending down but the guy refused. Stefan shoved the stake in more and he let out breath. He wasn't taking much breath in either.

"The grimoire." He grunted.

"Where is it?" Damon questioned agitated. I had no idea why they needed this book or to open this tomb but I had one thought in mind. They wanted to get more vampires and I wasn't going to let that happen even if I temporarily had to play pretend.

"Check the journal. The journal. Jonathan's journal. Johnathan Gilberts." He grunted as if he was about to throw up.

"Who else is there?" Damon asked.

"You're gonna have to kill me." He replied. Damon pulled out my stake and pushed it into his heart. His face turned gray as it was covered in veins.

Elena started hyperventilating. "What- how are you gonna find the others now?" Elena asked worried.

"He had to die." Damon shrugged.

"Elena he's been invited in." Stefan answered. He restated his sentence and she sighed. He deserved what came for him. He was a vampire and he deserved to die, and I kind of wished that I was the one to do it.

They looked to the door and I saw my dad. I looked to him worried. "Is he like you? Is he a hunter?" Damon asked coming over to me.

"No." I shook my head. "He doesn't know." I said as if it was instinct. I couldn't let him be found out. If I kept it secret we had leverage.

"Are you sure?" He asked looking at my eyes.

"Yes." I replied looking at his eyes as they dialated weirdly.

"You can move now." He said before he zoomed towards the door and walked out.

"Is he going to hurt him? Please don't-" I started looking to Stefan.

"He won't hurt him." Stefan nodded once as I went over to the vampire. I looked at it and at the stake. "If I pull it out will he come back?" I asked looking at the stake.

"No but you don't get to get it back." He replied as he stood in front of me and the dead one. "Who are you?" He asked looking at me, but not compelling me I don't think.

"I am who I said. I'm Emma." I replied.

"And you're a hunter?" He asked his eyebrows furrowed.

"If I say I am will you kill me?" I asked with a quick breath. "I've done my share of defending myself for the night. Besides you seem to be the nice one." I was full ready to die now because of what Stefan was. He just looked at me and I turned to Elena. "Are you a vampire too?" I asked as she shook her head.

"I just got caught up in it all." She nodded. "How did you find out about vampires?" She asked me curiously.

"My mom was killed by one." I replied taking a gulp. "He said something about a Katherine?" I asked.

"When you thought there was something I couldn't tell you the other day you were right. Katherine knew Stefan and Damon in 1864. She looks just like me." She explained as Stefan stood protectively. I wasn't going to hurt Elena. I believed her when she said she wasn't a vampire and she looked too much like me. It'd be weird.

"She's in a tomb?" I asked curiously not really sure what I would do with the information.

"You don't need to know anything right now." He replied looking at me. "When Damon comes back he will compel you to forget everything that happened tonight."

"Why?" I asked furrowing my eyebrows.

"Because the less you know about us the better." He replied as I sighed lightly.

"I want to make a deal." I said looking at Stefan worried. He nodded ready to listen. "I want to kill the vampire who killed my mom. If you promise to help, I won't hurt anyone else. I just want to avenge her." I explained looking up at him.

"And why should I take the deal?" He asked tilting his head lightly.

"Because if you don't then I'll end up maybe killing more, but if I get one then I'll stop." I explained looking at him. It was a fair deal and it was my plan all along. I only wanted Damon dead.

"And do you know who killed her?" He asked as I nodded.

"I don't know where they are right now but they are in town." I responded looking to him. "Is it a deal?" He squinted lightly.

"No." Damon said as he walked in. He looked at me and held my shoulders. "You're gonna forget seeing any vampires tonight. You'll remember the dance and what a great time you had. And we danced a few times. You had fun." He said looking at me.

"I danced with you. I had fun." I replied looking at his eyes still.

"You're gonna go to the grill to see your friends, then you'll go home and go straight to bed." He added as I nodded and walked out. I headed towards the front of the school and I looked to my phone. My dad texted so many times.

I'm fine. Just caught up in the dance. I'm headed to the grill to eat.

I lied. It was too much to take in for him right now and I had to go to the grill to convince Damon I was on vervain. I went to the grill and saw Caroline walking out and Matt seemed upset.

"What happened?" I asked as I walked over to Matt.

"Caroline doesn't want to talk anymore. I messed up with her." He sighed as he wiped a table. "She was my only friend and I screwed up."

"Hey if you're so worried about friends, I'm here." I shrugged lightly but it wasn't really a joking time. "Listen you're obviously worried about her and you definitely seem to care about her." I said as he looked to me confused.

"How do you know about all of this?" He asked confused.

"Caroline's been a good friend to me lately too. There's just one difference." I smiled to him. "I'm not the one she wants to be with." He chuckled lightly. "Go to her right now." I demanded with a smile.

"What I- no. I have-" He started.

"No excuses. Take some chances Matt. You only live once." I smiled lightly.

He looked at his rag and nodded. "Thanks Emma." He smiled lightly.

"Anytime." I crossed my arms as he quickly finished up. "Good luck!" I said before he left.

I got a sandwich to go and I headed out. I saw Damon outside the door. "I found these on the floor." He said as he handed me my glasses.

"Thanks." I thanked as I grabbed them and held them. I hated pretending.

"I had fun tonight." He smiled lightly down to me.

"Yeah me too." I nodded. "I don't even know why I would agree to dance with you but it was fun." I said restating what he told me to remember. "I have to get home." I said as I started walking away.

"Have a goodnight Emma." I heard from behind me. I looked back at him and smiled lightly before turning back around and walking. My smile faded and I took a deep breath. Vampires sucked and not just literally.