THE FALLOUT

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IT WAS DARK OUTSIDE AND THE HOUR WAS LATE when almost seventeen-year-old Dinah Barnes crept back up to her house from the back, hopping over the back fence and running across the back lawn as quietly as she could manage. Before heading for the back porch, she peeked around the house to see the driveway, sighing when she noticed that her parents' car was in the driveway. They had gotten home earlier than she'd expected them to.

She'd said that she needed to leave earlier, but Stefan had insisted that she had more time. Shaking her head, she quickly climbed the steps of the back porch, rolling up the sleeves of her borrowed hoodie before stealthily climbing up onto the banister and using the column and its intricate patterns as footholds to help her on her way up to the roof that covered the porch. From there, she carefully moved across the roof to her bedroom window and eased it open just a bit, listening intently for any sounds that would signal she'd been caught.

Nothing but silence greeted her actions, telling her that her parents were already asleep. Dinah pushed the window the rest of the way open before slipping in and easing the window shut behind her. She took off her shoes and tucked them away in her closet, pulling off the hoodie she was wearing and dropping it on the end of her bed. Heading towards the bathroom, she kept her ears open for any sound, but the house remained silent, even when she stepped on the squeaky floorboard and froze, sure that she was going to be caught.

Check your parents' bedroom, a voice in the back of her mind told her. And even though Dinah had grown to trust that voice, she ignored it. That was only likely to get her caught.

After near-silently brushing her teeth and returning to her bedroom, Dinah changed into a pair of pyjamas and removed the pillows made to look like a body from under her covers and slipped inside herself, nestling into the warmth. Tomorrow was a big day, an exciting day. A smile spread across her face and within moments, she peacefully fell asleep in the silence of her home, completely unaware of the horror that was waiting for her with the rising sun.

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WHEN MORNING CAME, DINAH WOKE STILL WITH A SMILE on her face. Today was when her aunt, uncle and cousin were flying in from California to spend some time together for her seventeenth birthday.

As she came to fully waking up, she found herself surprised by how silent the house around her still was. With family coming in just a few hours, her mom would be normally be in a cleaning frenzy. Dinah chalked it up to her parents having gone out to get groceries and got up out of bed, pulling on the hoodie still on the end of her bed as she made her way down to the kitchen.

She poured herself a cup of coffee from the pot and before she got out the cereal, she went into the living room, walking up to the front window to see if the flag was up on the mailbox. Only, when she looked out the window, she noticed that the car was still in the driveway.

I told you to check their bedroom, that voice said. Dinah told it to shut up as she looked back into the living room, confused. If the car was still here, where were her parents?

"Mom?" she called out. "Dad?"

No one answered, causing Dinah's brow to furrow as she set her coffee down on the side table along with her phone and moved towards the stairs again, running up them.

"Mom? Are you home?"  she called out again.

Approaching her the door into her parents' bedroom, she knocked gingerly before pushing it open. Inside, the bed was made and the laundry her mom had been doing before Dinah had left the house the day prior was still sitting atop the dresser in the basket, unfolded. Her dad's work phone sat on his nightstand, abandoned.

Everything was starting to look like her parents had left the house last night and never returned home, even though the car was still in the driveway.

Beginning to get worried, Dinah raced back downstairs to where she'd left her phone. She picked it up and quickly texted her best friend, Elena Gilbert, asking her to come over as soon as possible. Just after she sent the text and before a reply even had a slim chance of coming through, there was a knock on the front door. Dinah put her phone down again and went to answer the door.

"Sheriff Forbes? What are you doing here?" she asked.

"Can I come in?" the Sheriff asked.

Dinah had known Sheriff Liz Forbes for almost her entire life. She was the mother of one of her best friends, Caroline Forbes. After everything that had happened in Mystic Falls with the return of vampires, Sheriff Forbes had become someone they trusted. It hadn't been easy, at first she was more afraid of vampires and tried to kill any she met. But after Caroline had been turned, they'd managed to change her mind and that was when they all grew to trust each other.

"Of course," Dinah said, stepping aside to let the older woman in. "What's going on? Is something wrong with Caroline?"

"No, no, Caroline's fine," Sheriff Forbes said. "Why don't you sit down?"

"Alright..." Dinah sat down on the couch in the living room and the Sheriff sat across from her. "You know, I was just about to call you. I think something happened to my parents, they aren't home but the car is still in the driveway. I'm worried that it might be a supernatural thing."

"Yeah, about that..."

"Do you know where they are?"

"I do," the Sheriff admitted. "And I'm sorry to tell you this, Dinah, but their bodies were found in the town square this morning."

"Bodies, what do you─" She stopped suddenly as it clicked in her brain and the lightbulb burst in a lamp on the side table. "You mean... Are my parents dead?"

"I'm afraid so."

"Oh my god."

Her entire body felt numb. It was like someone had doused her in icy water. The voice in the back of her head whispered plans of revenge that she ignored, hardly able to process the information she'd been told. Her parents couldn't be dead. That just didn't make sense. They were by no means young but they weren't old. And for something to kill them at the same time... What could they have been doing in the town square at night, anyways?

"Is there anyone I can call for you?" the Sheriff asked.

"No, I... I can do it. I have some family in California who are already supposed to be coming down for... for my birthday."

"I'm so sorry, Dinah," she said, placing a hand over the teenager's.

"Could... could you tell everyone for me?" she asked. "I don't think I could say it more than once."

"Of course. Do you want me to call anyone to come over right now?"

"No, I think I'd rather be alone right now."

"Alright. Call if you need anything."

"I will. Thank you, Sheriff."

Dinah barely registered her getting up and going to the front door. She barely heard the door close but as soon as it did, every emotion that she had been holding back let loose, causing all the remaining lights in the house to burst in a shower of sparks. The teenager started crying with abandon, sobbing into the silence of her empty house as an intense loneliness came over her, knowing that she would never see her parents again.

It took at least fifteen minutes of straight crying before Dinah was able to calm herself down enough that she could make the phone call she needed to make. Wiping her eyes with the sleeve of her hoodie, Dinah reached for her phone from where she'd left it next to her abandoned cup of coffee and scrolled through her contacts until she found her aunt's home phone number and called it. The phone rang a few times, letting Dinah ponder how exactly she was going to explain what had happened when she wasn't entirely sure of the truth herself.

"Barnes residence."

"Hey, Aunt Lucy," Dinah said.

"Oh, hey, darling! You just calling to check in on us before the flight?"

"I wish I was," she managed. "Uh, there's something that you should, um, know."

"Is everything alright, Dinah, you sound like you've been crying? Is everyone okay?"

Just like that, her tears were back and a sob wrenched its way out of her throat. She covered her mouth but it was no use, her aunt had heard it loud and clear.

"Dinah, honey, what's wrong?"

"It's— It's Mom and Dad," she said. "The Sheriff was just here and... and she told me they found... they found their bodies in the town square."

"Their-? Oh my god."

"I— I didn't want to tell you when you got here and I didn't have anyone else to call," Dinah cried, trying to get her breathing steady again.

"It's alright, Dinah. We'll be there as soon as we can, okay? You just hold tight and make sure you're not alone. We'll be there soon and help you with everything, okay?"

"O-okay," she agreed.

After a quick goodbye, Dinah hung up the phone and fell back down on the couch, clutching a pillow to her chest and crying all over again. Nothing was ever going to be the same again.

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an. heh... fun new story, right guys?