Chapter 1 - Chance Encounter

2267 Words
I chugged down the drink, feeling the liquid burn my throat. "One more," I muttered, placing the glass back on the bar counter. "Right away." He gave me another shot, and I drank it as well. Alcohol and I weren't the best of friends. But I needed it that night. A lot of it. Why? I needed to feel happy again. Or something. Anything but sadness. I was tired of being so sad all the time. Six months, four days, and two hours had passed, yet the pain was still excruciating. The wound was still fresh. And deep down I knew it would always stay that way. A tear rolled down my cheek, and I wiped it away, sniffing. I shifted my gaze to the ceiling, blinking back more tears that wanted to escape. No, I couldn't cry. Not on my mother's birthday. So what if she was not here anymore? So what if I lost everyone I loved? This day was to be celebrated. Not spent in tears, not crying over someone who would never come back. I took a deep breath, and rose from the seat, making my way to the dance floor. Losing my worries to music? Sounded like a plan. Dancing always seemed to work for me. That was until, I bumped into him. The boy who was about to turn my life upside down, and make me feel emotions I never thought I would experience again. Be it happiness, fear, or anger. I was about to discover just how intensely one could feel. Of course I did not know it at the time. If I did, knowing myself, I would have run for the hills at the sight of him. Adventure always scared me. Thrill frightened me. And attention? Let's just say I wasn't used to being in the spotlight. But in that moment, he was nothing but a stranger to me. An incredibly good-looking, hot, and tall stranger. Who seemed to be the very thing I needed to forget my pain. "I'm so sorry," I said, giving him a timid, apologetic smile. "I didn't mean to bump into you. I guess I had a little too much to drink," I muttered, looking up at him. "No worries. s**t happens, baby-girl," he said nonchalantly, moving his body to the beat. I bit my lip, watching him dance. There was something exceptionally sexy about the way he moved his arms. Or I was just too horny, and drunk, to be left unsupervised with someone of the opposite gender. "You're quite... Tall," I said, starting to dance as well. I attempted to mimick his moves, but failed miserably. "Or you're just the size of a duck," he slurred, chuckling. A duck? That was pretty offensive. To a sober me, perhaps. To a drunk me? It was hilarious. I burst out laughing, continuing to dance my ass off. "That's the first time someone called me that," I giggled. "Creative." "That's the first time someone called me that," he replied, smiling down at me. "Most people just call me a jerk and move on." "Most people don't have a sense of humour," I replied. Or eyes, apparently. Who would insult a dude this hot? Not me. I could never. Or so I thought. "I like you, Duckling. What's your name?" He chuckled. "Elena," I lied. I had no idea why, but I did. "Stefan," he smirked, offering me his hand. "Original," I muttered, rolling my eyes as a smile crept onto my lips. I did take his hand, feeling my heart race due to an unknown reason. "Wow, your hands are soft," I said, frowning. "The Original was Klaus, not Stefan," he replied, before licking his lips. "And yeah, I apply a lot of lotion." I scrunched up my nose, instantly pulling my hand out of his grip. He laughed aloud at my reaction, amused. "Dirty mind, I see. I like it. But I'm kidding. Don't have to use lotion. I got a girlfriend for those purposes," he shrugged. "Nice," I replied, nodding. "So I should probably stop trying to flirt with you." Did I just admit that? "You were flirting?" He asked, smiling. "I didn't even realize." I felt my cheeks heat up, and I shifted my gaze away from him. "No, I just meant I-" "It was cute," he winked, cutting me off. I offered him a small smile, biting my lip. We danced in silence for a short moment, before he spoke again. "Elena, your hair. It's glowing," he said, staring at it with wide eyes. "It's the lights, dummy," I replied. "You have magic hair that glows when you dance," he frowned. "And your real name is Eugene," I rolled my eyes. "I'm serious. Look," he insisted, placing his index finger my chin, and tilting it up, as if it would help me see my hair better. I felt my heart skip a beat at his touch. Just like alcohol, I did not do too well with hot boys either. They were dangerous for my heart. And my soul. And my body. "You're really drunk, you know that?" I laughed, stepping away from him. "One's got to drink the night they lose parent, right?" He replied, a sad smile on his face. My mouth parted in shock, and I looked up at him with slightly wide eyes. "I'm... I'm so sorry," I said softly, understanding his pain. Who could understand it better than me? No one, probably. "I know how it feels." "You've lost a bet with your dad too?" He asked, looking amused. I frowned in confusion. "What?" "You said it. You know what feels like to lose to a parent," he replied. I bit my tongue. He was talking about losing a bet. Not an actual parent. The guy was really drunk. He did not even know half the things he was saying. "Nevermind. I think I should go. This isn't working," I muttered, more to myself. His words had reminded me of my own loss, defeating the entire purpose of going to that bar in the first place. I turned around and tried to walk away, when I felt hands on my waist, making me freeze. He pulled me back to his chest, placing his chin on my shoulder, as I let out a tiny gasp. "Don't go," he whispered, his warm breath tickling my ear. I felt goosebumps cover my skin, and took a deep breath. "Dude? You're kinda-" "Your hair smells good," he smiled, turning me around so I would be facing him. His eyes were only half-way open now, and he looked like he would faint any second. "I think you need to go home," I said, removing his hands from my waist. But he wrapped them around it again, tighter this time, pulling me to his chest once again. I felt heat creep up my cheeks, and a flushed smile found its way onto my lips. "You have a girlfriend, Stefan. Caroline wouldn't like this," I reminded, chuckling. "But I would," he replied, staring at me intently. "You're what I need tonight. Exactly what I need." His hand reached for my face, and his thumb started to caress my lower lip, making me part my mouth. He leaned in, closer and closer, while I completely froze in place. I wanted to stop him as he cupped my cheeks, but my voice seemed to vanish. No words came to me, as I tried to think of something wise that would stop him. His close proximity made my mind go numb, and I began to lose myself in his light brown eyes, instead of the music as I had originally planned. His breath fanned against my lips, and my eyes fluttered shut, as I felt his lips almost brush against mine. And just as I thought he was about to kiss me, he put all his weight onto me, passing out on my shoulder. I fell back, letting out a small scream, and we crashed onto the floor together. I had pushed his face away just in time to be saved from hitting the ground. It was too perfect to have a tiled floor ruin it. "Ow," I groaned, squirming under his crushing weight. Or attempting to squirm. I could hardly even breathe. He let out a chuckle, pushing himself off of me so he was laying beside me now. "You're pretty soft," he slurred, before passing out again. I sat up, rubbing my back, before shifting my attention to him. I slapped his cheeks, hoping he'd wake up. But there was no response at all. "s**t," I muttered, gulping. I ran my hand through my hair in frustration. "Babysitting a man-child was not part of my plan for tonight." Huffing in annoyance, I stood up, asking the people around me for help. One listened, and assisted me in taking him to a cab, while I contemplated getting him dropped off to a random hotel. But I knew he would not be able to check in in that state. It would be unethical to leave him alone like that. For some odd reason, my conscience started to yell at me. If that was a girl, would you also leave her alone? Is this you being a sexist, man-hating hypocrite, Ava? I clenched my jaw, before letting out an exasperated sigh. Fine. I decided to safely deliver him to a hotel room myself. It was not like I had anything better to do, anyway. And so I hopped in. He leaned his head on my shoulder, muttering something under his breath, before he shifted to my lap. I glanced down at him with wide eyes, blinking in surprise. The first time I have a boy lay in my lap, and he's passed out due to drinking. Great. Sighing, I told the cab driver to take us to Hotel Sherena. "You have a nice chin," Stefan muttered, suddenly, startling me. "You have a nice face. Whole of it," I replied. He would probably not remember any of this the next morning, nor did he know me. I was also never going to see him again. So it didn't matter what I said. "Thanks," he groaned, shifting his position slightly. "You k********g me, Elena?" "Yeah," I replied. "Planning to gift you to myself for Christmas." "Good idea," he smiled. "I'd like that." "You would?" I chuckled, but he had already dozed off again. I shook my head, glancing down at him. Boy, was he gorgeous. My hand travelled to his hair, and I gently ruffled it, a small smile stretching across my lips. So soft. "Ma'am, we have reached your destination," the driver said, making me jump and remove my hand from his hair. "Right, sorry," I muttered. I handed him his money, and stepped out of the cab, wondering how to take Stefan. Or whatever his name was. The dude was huge, standing at over six feet. Me, on the other hand? 'The size of a duck'. There was no way I could support him up until the hotel room. "You need any help, Ma'am?" The empathetic driver offered. He probably noticed the worry in my gaze, and the desperation on my face. "Please," I smiled sheepishly. Whilst the driver held onto Stefan for me, I used my card to check in at the hotel. I thus also had to give them my name, even though I would have preferred him never finding it out. Once the room was booked, we took him to it, and the driver placed him on the bed. I thanked him, and he left, after which I put a pillow under Stefan's head, removed his shoes, and covered him with a blanket. I noticed a black bracelet on his hand, the letters AA embossed into it. "Good night, Mystery Guy," I whispered, glancing at him one last time, before leaving. I slowly closed the door, walking down the hallway. I took the elevator back to the reception, and stopped at it. "Hey," I smiled at the receptionist. "What can I do for you, ma'am?" He asked, smiling back. "Could you please send a lemonade and some pain killers to my room in the morning? My friend is very drunk," I said. "Sure, ma'am. Anything else?" I bit my lip, glancing at the ceiling. Closing my eyes, I decided to go for it. "Actually, yeah," I nodded, sheepishly. "Could you do me a favour?" "Of course," he replied.  "The man in my room, um, if he asks my name, just tell him Elena," I stated. "Elena?" The receptionist frowned. "But according to your-" "Yeah, I know," I cut him off. "I still want you to say Elena. If he asks anything else, tell him it's confidential." "Alright, ma'am. As you say," he nodded in understanding. "Thank you," I smiled at him. "Have a good night, ma'am," he said, smiling back. "You too," I replied, before exiting the hotel. I took a cab and went back to my hotel, feeling oddly happy. A smile lingered on my lips, as I recalled the entire meeting. "A-A," I muttered, remembering his bracelet. "I wish I'd get to know the sober you some day, Mystery Guy." Little did I know, someone up there, was watching me, probably smiling, as He knew my wish was about to be answered. And you know what they all say. Be careful what you wish for. Destiny has a way of fulfilling them in the most annoyingly twisted way possible. And I was about to experience it. - - - - - 
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