warnings: gory. there’s teen drinking. swearing. and death. slasher vibes.
summary: lizzie saltzman is sick of being ignored by her friends and family, so she decides to party with the muggles. . . only for it to end in darkness with little to no light.
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Never in her seventeen years of living did she expect to go out like this.
Maybe that’s just because no one seemed to care for the blonde anymore. Everyone seemed to be in their own little world. Whether it’s the triplets attempting to save the world, her sister being so invested in her girlfriend. Her father traveling the world to find an artifact to save the town. Caroline attempting to find some kind of loophole for the merge.
No one ever really had time for her anymore. Butting into business would only get people to hate her anyway, so she’s been doing her own thing in the meantime. Getting along with the townies. Yep, a rare sight, but she did it.
Though, as anyone would expect. No one truly loves the crazy.. Unless you were crazy about them.
The night was warm. Their star had just taken it’s night and Lizzie Saltzman found herself at a local high school party. No, the Salvatore School wasn’t the one throwing it.
“Lizzie!” Sweet, innocent, that familiar voice would lead her towards the origin, spinning around. Once she caught the sight of one of the timberwolves she’d call a friend, an arm would lift, waving in her direction.
“𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘴, 𝘩𝘦𝘺!” You’d think she’d hate the townies forever, but.. Unfortunately the blonde craved attention. She had a habit of seeking for it when it wasn’t given. Blamed her insecurities for it since her younger days. In truth, maybe if her sister paid more attention to her, she wouldn’t be out looking for love from a bunch of people she barely knows.
Jogging over, arms would wrap her petite frame. Instinctively brushing a bit of confetti off her shoulder as a look of confusion washed over pale porcelain features. “𝘞𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦’𝘴 𝘣𝘪𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨?” Lizzie had to speak over the music and side conversations.
“Yea! Toddy’s, he’s out in the backyard taking on the keg!”
Oceanic glazed hues widened, dipping her head into a slow nod. Impressed that someone as scrawny as Toddy Lopez was attempting to drink his night away. Then again, it was his birthday. Birthday parties are a valid reason for blacking out. At least it was in her book.
“You wanna get a couple of drinks?” Jess spoke up, her finger pointing towards the kitchen.
“𝘏𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘺𝘦𝘴, 𝘐 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘵.” Following her into the kitchen, Lizzie’s gaze immediately trailed to the assortment of liquor displayed. “𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘺𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘵. . . 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩 𝘴𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘭 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘺 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦.”
Glancing in Jess’s direction, the blonde would shake her head, looking back over to the bottles. “𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘐’𝘮 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵. 𝘛𝘳𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵.”
She’d laugh, her hand gently placing over the siphons back, assuring her that she’d got it covered. “I got you, Liz. You’re an honorary Timberwolf now.”
“ . . . . “ She shouldn’t have been as touched as she was, but. Here the blonde went tearing up for a moment. Her eyes would begin to water, but she was strong enough to swallow her emotions down. Dipping her head into a slow nod. “𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴, 𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘴. .”
“Whoa, hang on now. THE Lizzie Saltzman is crying on me? Dang . . what did they do to you at that school?” A breath of laughter would expel before she slipped from her side to round the counter. Grabbing a few bottles and the fruit punch from the fridge, the brunette began making her cocktail. Whatever it was, Lizzie was just excited to have someone take care of her again.
“𝘜𝘩𝘮𝘮𝘮𝘮. . 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘢 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺.” Brows hiked, shaking her cranium as features scrunched. Brushing everyone she ever knew off. “𝘖𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘺 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦.” Well, that wasn’t necessarily true. Everyone at the Salvatore School meant the world to her, they just didn’t feel the same way.
Peering over the counter to look inside, she’d caught a whiff of the scent. “𝘖𝘩 𝘋𝘜𝘋𝘌, 𝘺𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘢 𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵! 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘪𝘵?”
Another fresh breath of laughter was given to the blonde and yes. . she was still making the drink. “You know what, let me make you another one cause.. You’re right, I this one’s gonna kill you.”
“𝘖-𝘖𝘏.” A smile came to wash over her features, masking the fear that she felt. Playfully, Lizzie would walk around the counter to watch.
“Okay, this time. I’ll just whip you aaaaa.” She’d reach over to grab the fireball at the edge of the counter, pouring the contents into the red cup before grabbing the root beer that was in the fridge. “Watch this be your new favorite drink and then you’ll have to owe me a favor.”
“𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘐’𝘮 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘗𝘖𝘚𝘚𝘐𝘉𝘓𝘠 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵. 𝘐𝘵 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘴.”
“Oh? And what if it tastes bomb? What then, Saltzman?” Jess challenged, arching a brow.
Was she to accept? . . hm. Y e s. “𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘨𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘐’𝘭𝘭 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘸𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘧𝘢𝘷𝘰𝘳.”
At an instant, her hand would extend out towards the blonde, a firm shake was what Jess wanted. She seemed dead serious, though her expression seemed to be somewhat cynical. “Let’s shake on it.”
Azure glazed hues fell to the hand that was presented, contemplating, lost in thought. Should she take it?
One after the other, leaves would brush up against features, some swatting, leaving marks, cuts, and tears left falling from her hues. Glassy, full of sorrow, yet they were still devine. Limbs would guide her, rushing through a forest, she didn’t recognize a town over from Mystic Falls. Far from her home. “𝘚𝘩𝘪𝘵.” Wincing. Palms kept a tight press over her hip, though, with the amount of blood she was losing.. It didn’t seem like she was gonna last.
Frantically looking down at the cellphone in her hand, hoping she’d run into some kind of service so she could call someone, anyone. Then again it was last, who would actually answer. “𝘧𝘪𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘍𝘶𝘤𝘬.”
“𝐎𝐇, 𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐙𝐀𝐁𝐄𝐓𝐇. 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐂𝐀𝐍’𝐓 𝐑𝐔𝐍 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐔𝐒 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑!”
“𝐈 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐊 𝐒𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐖𝐀𝐘.”
Rolling her hues playfully, Lizzie would take her hand to give it a firm shake, letting her cranium tilt. Smug. “𝘍𝘪𝘯𝘦.” Letting her hand slip from her side, she’d outstretch a hand, wiggling digits. “𝘎𝘪𝘷𝘦.”
Handing the drink over, Jess would cross her arms over her torso, awaiting her victory.
Hesitant, but Lizzie would take it. Sniffing it, staring at the liquor and fizz. . mentally preparing herself. One swirl of her cup and she’d bring it to her lips, taking a sip and . . boy did she lose badly. Stunned, the blonde would pull away from the cup, her cranium spazzing for a moment out of pure shock. “Y𝘰𝘶’𝘷𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘬𝘪𝘥𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦.”
“𝘜𝘏𝘔, 𝘺 𝘦 𝘢. 𝘚𝘩𝘰𝘤𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘺.” And in comes the second sip, possibly a gulp following after. “𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘵.”
“So you know what this means right?” UH OH, Jess looked a little too mischievous. It only made Lizzie nervous.
“. . 𝘮𝘩𝘮, 𝘶𝘯𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘺.” Clicking her tongue, she’d shift her weight to a single leg, jutting out her hip. “𝘚𝘰, 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘷𝘰𝘳?”
“Couple of the guys and I are going out to this well a town over. It’s in the woods, there’s also a campfire and I didn’t want to be the only girl there, soooooo.”
G r e a t. Mentally slapping herself in the face she’d sigh, dipping her head into a nod. “𝘍𝘪𝘯𝘦. 𝘐’𝘭𝘭 𝘨𝘰.”
“YES!” Jess practically jumped into her arms, causing the blonde to jolt and drop her cup to the floor. Both gazes fell to the liquor that stained carpet. Both trying their best to hold back their laughter. Dropping back down, she’d make eye contact, a beat following. “I’ll go make you another drink.”
Cranium dipped into a couple of nods, quickly responding. “𝘠𝘦𝘢, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘨𝘰 𝘥𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵.”
The party was just what the blonde needed. A getaway from all things supernatural. Anything that even remotely had to do with her school. Her and Jess spent about three hours at Toddy’s house. Having the time of their lives, singing to the songs the DJ played. It seemed like tonight was just gonna be as chill as it gets and sure. She can get used to this kind of vibe.
Lizzie may or may not have still been intoxicated when she was led into a Jeep by one of Jess’s friends. The curfew she kept at the back of her head, was . . nonexistent at the moment. Right now she was too busy resting her head against the brunette the entire ride to wherever they were off to. Some, wishing well? Hues began to flutter shut, a bumpy road ahead meant for a little nap.
“Liz, Lizzie wake up. We’re here.” A familiar whisper would pull her from her dreams, causing her hues to flutter back open only to come across the woods. Somewhere she didn’t recognize.
“𝘎𝘰𝘥, 𝘮𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘴. 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘦?” Squeezing her eyes shut, she’d attempt to regain a clear state of mind. Though the alcohol would still linger.
“The wishing well? I guess? The guys said they were gonna go look for it and then come back. They didn’t want to wake you.” Jess unbuckled her own seatbelt, shifting to sit across from the blonde.
“𝘚𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘧𝘵 𝘶𝘴? 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘭. 𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯’𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘶𝘱?” Groaning, a stretch would occur. Arms lifted above her head, stretching out her back as well before expelling a soft sigh of satisfaction. “𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯?”
“Uhm, you looked so peaceful. I didn’t want to wake you.” Pulling out her cell, she looked over her phone. “Fifteen minutes.”
“. . . 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦’𝘴 𝘯𝘰 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘪𝘵’𝘥 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨. 𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨.” Concerned a brow would arch, rubbing hues.
“. . . 𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦, 𝘪𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘪𝘵.”
Jess seemed guilty, she didn’t mean to drag the blonde into this, she was just lonely. And if Lizzie was in her position, she'd probably do the same.
“𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘸𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯, 𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘴. 𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘪𝘵’𝘥 𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘱 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘣𝘢𝘥 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘢 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘴. 𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘣𝘢𝘥 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘢.” S c o l d i n g was her specialty, but she was less of a bossy pants when it came to the brunette. Lizzie had grown a soft spot for her.
Jess would fall silent, fiddling with the corner of her cell, nipping her bottom lips. “For Johnny. . . “
Cue the facepalm. “𝘖𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦. . 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘢 𝘣𝘰𝘺.” Internally screaming, Lizzie would unbuckle her own seatbelt, running digits through her hair. A phone would be so handy right about now. “𝘈𝘭𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵, 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭. 𝘊𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳. 𝘔𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮. 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘯.”
“Wait, Liz. They said they’d be right back.”
Elizabeth didn’t listen, she was already slipping out of the Jeep. Stretching for a second time before making her way to the trunk, popping it open. “𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘧 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦. 𝘍𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘩𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨?” No way was she going to go looking in the dark.
Jess would slip out after, rushing to the blondes side. “No.. I think they took it all.”
And she was right. Slamming it shut. “𝘚𝘩𝘪𝘵. 𝘰𝘬𝘢𝘺. . . 𝘋𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘦𝘯𝘵?”
Gesturing to the left, Jess would cower for a moment, lowering her cranium to stare at her feet. Kicking the dirt.
Course Lizzie noticed, but she didn’t say anything about it. Instead, she’d give her friend a pat on the shoulder, offering her the hair tie that was around her wrist. “𝘏𝘦𝘳𝘦. 𝘐’𝘮 𝘨𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘢 𝘨𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘪𝘧 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘬𝘢𝘺? 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘺 𝘣𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘳, 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘨𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦.”
Giving Lizzie a firm nod, Jess would slip from her grasp to pull the back seat of the car open, crawling inside.
“𝘔𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦’𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘣𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘮𝘰𝘥𝘦, 𝘰𝘬𝘢𝘺? 𝘐’𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬.” Just like that, she’d slip into the darkness. Truth be told her vision was 20/20 and the amount of times she spent running through this particular biome.
Frustrated, pinching the bridge of her nose, Lizzie would sigh. Looking around her surroundings one last time before she’d entirely give up. No one was on their way back. There wasn’t any form of light and she was worried Jess might’ve run off to go and find them.
Fists collided with bark, expressing her anger before heading back to the vehicle and the girl she’d left behind.
Took her about five minutes before she’d made it back to the Jeep. Though, oddly it seemed a little too quiet. “𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘴, 𝘐 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘳, 𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵. .” The choice wasn’t a great one, but, it was near midnight. Least that’s what she was guessing. Palms latched onto the door handle, sighing. “. . 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘰 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦? 𝘞𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘢 𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩―”
If her heart didn’t drop right then and there. Lizzie would’ve screamed. Instead she stood there shell shocked, disgusted. Heart broken. Her stomach fell to the deepest part of her core and her throat started closing up. Here comes the water works.
Jessica was a complete and utter mess. Her blood stained the interior of the car, stomach cut open, her head decapitated, replacing the head rest of the back seat. Lizzie nearly hurled, but she kept it together. Truth be told she seemed much worse, but this didn’t look like the makings of any vampire. Not a werewolf. The cuts were too clean.
Just as she was about to close the door back up, the blonde had remembered she’d had a cellphone. Which could. . actually come in hand. Or lead to her inevitable death. Pinching the bridge of her nose, she leaned forward, swallowing her fear and disgust before reaching into the pocket of her jeans, pulling out the cellular device. “𝘎𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴.”
Wiping crimson off the phone against her shirt, digits pushed the home button hoping it was still working. Screen blared a bright light, blinding her for a moment before her eyes would start to adjust. 𝟏𝟐:𝟓𝟒 𝐚𝐦.
“𝗛𝗲𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲, 𝗟𝗶𝘇.” Masculine, a rasp to the words. Lizzie spun around, jolting as soon as she spotted a familiar face. Expelling a soft sigh of relief.
“𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘴, 𝘓𝘶𝘬𝘦. 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘵 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦.” A hand flew to her chest, trying to keep her breathing steady. Though.. It would only stain her top. Damn.
“𝗪𝗵𝗼𝗮, 𝗟𝗶𝘇. 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗮 𝗹𝗼𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗱.”
Well, SOMETHING about that sounded unsettling. Narrowing her gaze, she’d step aside, slowly. With one glance at her stature, you’d notice she had her guard up. “𝘐𝘵 𝘪𝘴.” Just before leaving the vehicle, she’d pull the door open, showcasing the butchered brunette. “𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘴’𝘴 𝘣𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘥.” Lizzie’s been through enough of trauma and evil boyfriends to know that whatever this was? It wasn’t a rescue mission..
“𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝘀𝗼 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁? 𝗪𝗲’𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲.”
“―𝘚𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 / 𝘸𝘦 /. 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦’𝘴 𝘑𝘰𝘩𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘈𝘭𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘵?” Clutching onto the phone, feet would lead her walking backward to the other side of the vehicle, only to walk right up against a broad frame.
“𝗥𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲.” Deep, cynical. “𝗛𝗲𝘆, 𝗟𝗶𝘇𝘇𝗶𝗲.” Sickeningly sweet.
She snapped back around, oceanic hues growing wide at the sudden appearance of the other two boys that had come with. “𝘑𝘰𝘩𝘯. . . 𝘈𝘭𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘵.” Her heart was racing a smile per minute, mentally preparing herself for the worse.
“𝗠𝘆, 𝗺𝘆! 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗶𝗻𝗷𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗱? 𝗖𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 / 𝘀𝗼 / 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝗯𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗱, 𝗟𝗶𝘇𝘇𝗶𝗲. 𝗞𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗮 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗺𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝗮 𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲. 𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂, 𝗝𝗼𝗵𝗻𝗻𝘆 𝗯𝗼𝘆?” Alberts cranium would tilt, resting an arm over John's shoulder, nudging his chest. “𝗢𝗵, 𝘆𝗲𝗮 𝗱𝘂𝗱𝗲. 𝗜𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀.”
Fear washed over her features upon their words. A desperate attempt at escape, wrist twisted clockwise. Hoping to dislocate one of their limbs, but when it didn’t work, the blonde realized she hadn’t siphoned any magic before leaving her household. Another mental scream was given before she exhaled a breathy sigh. Swallowing thickly. “𝘐𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘳𝘥 𝘰𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯?”
Luke would round the vehicle, settling on the other side of Johnny. All three carefully staring at the blonde in thought. “𝗛𝗺, 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸, 𝗝𝗼𝗵𝗻𝗻𝘆? 𝗔𝗻𝘆 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗮 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗿𝗱 𝗼𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻?”
“𝗡𝗼, 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴’𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱, 𝗟𝘂𝗸𝗲. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂, 𝗔? 𝗔𝗻𝘆 𝗰𝗿𝗮𝘇𝘆 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘀?”
Right then and there, his tiers outstretched from ear to ear. If looks can kill? Lizzie would’ve ended up just like Jessica by now. “𝗢𝗵~ , 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗜 𝗴𝗼𝘁 𝗮 𝗳𝗲𝘄 /𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴/ 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘀.” Allform of amusement would disappear from his features to stare the blonde down, stepping forward to brush a strand of hair away from her forehead, hooking it behind her ear. “𝗢𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝗶𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗘𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗮𝗯𝗲𝘁𝗵 𝗶𝘀 𝘂𝗽 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗶𝘁. 𝗪𝗲’𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 /𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁/ 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲.”
It felt like something crawled down her back, causing her to straighten her posture, jaw clenching. Lizzie didn’t really have much of a choice anyway. “𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤 𝘳 𝘢 𝘻 𝘺 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘢?”
There was a small glint in his eyes upon her question. Humming, Albert would lower his frame, brushing his tiers against her earlobe. Whispering. “𝗛𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗸. 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗶𝗱𝗲, 𝗿𝘂𝗻, 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿. 𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗲’𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗸.” Cranium tilting, hovering over her shoulder. “𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗲 𝗴𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗝𝗲𝘀𝘀.”
Shuddering, she’d turn away, avoid eye contact. “𝘚𝘰 𝘐 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘶𝘯 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘩𝘶𝘯𝘵 𝘮𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯? 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵. . . 𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘦??”
“𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘁𝘁𝘆 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵, 𝗱𝗼𝗹𝗹 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲.” Luke would pipe up.
“𝘞𝘩𝘺?? 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘐 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘰 𝘵𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶?”
“𝗢𝗛, 𝗘𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗮𝗯𝗲𝘁𝗵 / 𝗡𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 / 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴.” Albert leaned in to press a gentle kiss to her forehead, brushing the bad of his thumb over her lips. “ 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗶𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗱, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿'𝘀 𝗱𝗮𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗲𝗿, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗥𝗔𝗭𝗬 𝗕𝗟𝗢𝗡𝗗𝗘 𝗖𝗛𝗜𝗖𝗞 𝗙𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗗 𝗗𝗘𝗔𝗗. 𝗜𝗺𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀. 𝗦𝗢 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝗗𝗥𝗔𝗠𝗔. 𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗴𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗹. 𝗣𝗹𝘂𝘀𝘀, 𝗜’𝗺 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘁𝘁𝘆 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗵𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂, 𝘀𝗼. 𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮 𝘄𝗶𝗻 𝘄𝗶𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲.”
A kick to the gut, that’s what his words felt like. It shouldn't have taken much affect on her, but it did. Cowering, the blonde would walk back only to hit the Jeep. “𝘐’𝘮 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘤𝘳𝘢𝘻𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨.”
“―𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗯𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝘄𝗲’𝗹𝗹 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝘂𝗻𝘁.” Johnny spoke up, glaring her down.
“. . . 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵? 𝘈 𝘭𝘰𝘵. . “
His shoulders would lift into a soft shrug, brushing the comment off. “𝗟𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱.” It took everything in Lizzie not to lunge forward and attack, but even then she wouldn’t be able to win. She was weak. Magic-less. “𝗕𝗼𝘆𝘀.”
All but one, Albert and Luke would grab her by the arms, slamming her frame against the vehicle to keep her still. But the blonde wasn’t having any of it. Lizzie trashed, attempting to pry her arm off. Didn’t work at all, they were taller, stronger. She was left tearing up, sobbing, expelling cries in hope to get some kind of attention from the outer world, but nothing.
“𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗴𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗮 𝗵𝘂𝗿𝘁, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘀𝗹𝗶𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗮 𝗯𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵, 𝘀𝗼. 𝗧𝗼 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂.” John closed his distance, pulling a pocket knife from his back pocket. ―There was no hesitation, he’d pierce her left hip, digging the knife firmly into flesh. “𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗴𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗮 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗱.”
Tiers parted, palms formed into fists as she continued to cry out in pain, helpless and afraid. . so much for trying to make new friends right? Maybe she should have stayed miserable at school. Sucked it up and held herself together like she did for most of her life. But even then, her end would be inevitable. Her sadness, her insecurities would only end up eating her from the inside.
As the knife was pulled from her frame, Lizzie would whimper, biting her any smart remark. Cause she didn’t have any.
“ 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗹. 𝗪𝗲’𝗹𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗮 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝗵𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗱, 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝗮 𝗿𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁. “
Their grip loosened causing her to sip from their hold, falling to her knees. Her hands pushing against her freshly open wound, an attempt to keep it from bleeding anymore than it already was. She couldn’t even get herself to lift her head up.
That’s all she needed to hear before a grunt would fall past her tiers. She was on fight or flight. Right now it seemed like flight. No way she stood a chance unless she came across something to help a siphon witch. She needed a miracle. Though something tells her she ran out of all her luck ages ago.
Cackling, laughter echoed through darkness. Flashing of lights hovering over her head in search of the blonde. If only she had their luxury of light. Maybe then she’d have a better chance at finding the road, someone.
After what felt like forever, when in reality it's only been a couple of minutes, she finally found a signal. One bar, two, three. It’d keep increasing the faster she ran, the faster she ran to a town. “𝘖𝘩, 𝘫𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘴, 𝘧𝘶𝘤𝘬 𝘺𝘦𝘴!”
Unlocking it, she’d quickly dial the Salvatore School number, hoping someone would answer. “𝘗𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘶𝘱― 𝘨𝘰𝘥 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘰 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦??” She spoke a little too loudly.
“𝗨𝗛- 𝗢𝗛, 𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗪𝗔𝗦 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗧? 𝗥𝗨𝗡 𝗟𝗜𝗧𝗧𝗟𝗘 𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗭𝗔𝗕𝗘𝗧𝗛. 𝗥𝗨𝗡!!” Albert would whistle, signaling the others that he’d got a lead. Squeezing her eyes shut for a moment, pushing the phone against her ears she didn’t stop running,
“𝐻𝑒𝑙𝑙𝑜?” a small, delicate, sounding little boy had spoken up and she knew exactly who it was.
“𝐻𝑖 𝐿𝑖𝑧𝑧𝑖𝑒! 𝑊𝑎𝑖𝑡, 𝑦𝑜𝑢 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑎 𝑝ℎ𝑜𝑛𝑒?”
Shaking her cranium, she needed to stay on task, wincing when nearly tripping over a rock. Exhaling, panting, she’d clear her throat to quickly speak. “𝘓𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺, 𝘗𝘦𝘥𝘳𝘰. 𝘐 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘯 𝘮𝘦. 𝘖𝘬𝘢𝘺? 𝘊𝘢𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵?”
“𝘖𝘬𝘢𝘺, 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘑𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘦 𝘐 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦―”
A static. She knew exactly what that meant. Lowering the phone from her ear, her fear would only begin to grow. Any hope she had left was faint and she knew her chances at survival were low. Lizzie shouldn’t have stopped in her tracks, but she couldn’t help it. Her entire body felt like shutting down when the phone had died. It’s like she was accepting her fate.
𝐑𝐮𝐧 𝐋𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐄𝐥𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐡, 𝐑𝐔𝐍. That’s all she could hear echoing in her head. Though it wasn’t the sound of Alberts voice. It was more so her own. Motivating her to do so.
Jolting, snapping out of her momentary lapse. Her breathing was deep, chest heaved and she’d give one more long inhale before bolting forward. Straight is the only way she can think to go. It was a three again one hunt to kill. Lizzie had a better chance running than changing course. Adrenaline was now in the driver's seat, gripping the steering wheel. She didn’t even realize that her wound was only getting bigger by each shift. Each step she took, the more blood would drip.
A flash of light had nearly blinded her, causing her arm to lift. Shielding her eyes. Then it hit her. “𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘴?” . . . Were those headlights? She ran faster, as fast as her legs could possibly take her. “𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘨𝘰𝘥. Mumbling under her breath, but . . unfortunately like stated before.
She ran out of luck a long time ago.
“𝘏𝘦𝘺, 𝘏𝘌𝘠! 𝘩𝘌𝘓𝘗! 𝘰𝘝𝘌𝘙 𝘏𝘌―” One miss step, and the blonde was sent sliding down a steep hill until her leg hit a branch. Leaving her stumbling, rolling down into the depths of the woods. Bruised, cut, wounded. She laid there in dirt, in the dark, on her back. . staring up at the night sky. Bleeding to her death.
Turned out that light that she saw? Was just her imagination.
But hey, at least she tried. At least she had Jess to keep her company while she was crumbling. At least she’d go out with a killer view.
And sarcasm? Still crisp. Unmatched.
“𝘎𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳, 𝘓𝘪𝘻𝘻𝘪𝘦. 𝘎𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳. . . .”
Rustle of leaves, the crunch from footsteps. A dozen to be exact. Though, she couldn’t quite get a hearing on who or a look for that matter. Lizzie’s energy was nonexistent.
Her head was spinning and her body had completely given out. Everything she had going for her left when she let fate ultimately decide where she’d stand.
“𝗔𝘄𝗲, 𝘀𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘀 𝘀𝗼 𝗮𝗱𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘀𝗵𝗲’𝘀 𝘀𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗝𝗼𝗵𝗻𝗻𝘆. “
“𝗦𝗼 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁, 𝘄𝗲’𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗴𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗮 𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗵𝗲𝗿?”
“𝗢𝗵, 𝗻𝗼! 𝗟𝘂𝗸𝗲, 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲. 𝗤𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝘀 ``𝘄𝗵𝗼'𝘀 𝗴𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗮 𝗱𝗼 𝗶𝘁?” Albert would look from Luke to John before his gaze would fall to the Saltzman witch laid unconscious on the floor. He didn’t seem as excited as he was before, but . . something out his current expression seemed like he still had a plan.
Maybe he’ll leave her just like Jessica.
