The man that stood across the room was the same man I had played around with in the Twenties. Without humanity, Stefan was reckless and unpredictable, penchant for petty cruelty towards humans. In a single day, he had managed to kill the director for the drama department and a girl from the field hockey team. I joined when he bit into the field hockey girl, pushing Caroline out of the way. As I drank her blood, I realised that Stefan wanted to undo the routine Caroline had made for herself, the small strip of humanity that she had left. It was revenge for her wanting him to turn it off. I waited patiently for mine, because patience was a perfect timing. 

   "You know what I find strange?" Stefan took a seat on the empty chair besides me, propping his feet up on another chair. "You're not stopping me from ruining Caroline."

   I grabbed the glass half-full of whiskey and took a sip, tasting the smokey and vanilla liquid as it tricked down my throat. It was cheap alcohol, obvious for a college bar. I looked up to him and smacked my tongue against the roof of my mouth, creating a sort-of sucking sound. "I don't care," I said.

   "She's your niece."

   "She may be my niece, but I don't care what happens to her."

   "Just like you didn't care what happened to Sarah," he noted, pointing at me. There was some form of amusement decorating his features, eyes crinkled a bit and lips spread into a smile. "It's funny how you say you don't care about Caroline but pushed her out of the way when I tempted her into losing control and feeding on that girl."

   I chuckled. "I'm selfish when it comes to blood, and hers just smelled delicious." I took another sip of the whiskey and laid the glass on the table. "Don't mistake hunger with an emotion."

   "No, that's not it." He pushed his index finger in my direction as he shook his head. "You're protecting her. I know that because I was in love with you, Clara." He crossed his arms and let out a soft laugh, obviously fake. "I know so much about you, like you're stuck in a life that never was, in which you're human and married to my brother; how you envy Elena for currently being with him; how you love me but are in love with him."

   "Is that jealousy I hear?" I teased as I arched a brow and let a small smirk rise on my lips. "Careful, Stefan, your humanity is showing."

   He chuckled and shook his head. "No, I'm being observant. I have been observant for a long time."

   I hummed and leaned back on my chair, crossing my legs and arms in front of me. "When we were human, I always wore those lacy gloves because they were considered classy. Damon and I made up signals with them. When I pulled on my right glove and left my thumb exposed, it meant that I wanted him to kiss me. When I folded them up, it meant that I wanted him to get rid of you so we could be alone. When I dropped both of the gloves, it was me saying I love you." A small chuckle escaped my lips. "You always picked them up and gave me a flirtatious smile, thinking the message was for you."

   Stefan clenched his jaw, lips pressed together and eyes hard. He stared at me, green and green colliding to see who would be dominant. His hands, hidden behind his forearms, open and closed.

   I stood and slowly ambled towards him, leaning low enough for my face to be inches away from his. "Don't look jealous, Stefan," I softly hummed, giving him a small smirk. "It doesn't look good on you. Give me that dark and brooding look, the one that makes you look so hot." I pecked his lips and pulled back, a small and triumphant smile on my lips. My feet moved first, towards the bar so I could get a refill for the whiskey I had drank. It was half a bottle, mostly serving myself since the bartender was compelled to look at Caroline performing to whatever song she wanted. 

   Half of the bar had been compelled to watch her, the other half were students trying to get the homework given on their break done. The only reason Caroline was doing karaoke was because she and Stefan were on a bet. During the early morning, he had bet her that he would do whatever she wanted if she was able to scare the bartender to death. She compelled him to have a heart attack and that he couldn't breathe, which in a way made her win. 

   As I served myself another glass, I realised that being without humanity was a lonely thing. It was just me, no feelings and nothing for me to care about. It was nothing and everything at the same time, a rush of adrenaline and fatigue. I knew that when they forced my humanity back, I would feel a great rush of grief and regret. I knew that. But even though I did, I continued to fill the empty void in me with blood and murder. It was always pure adrenaline, the fun side of having no humanity and caring about nothing. The regret came later, forced down my throat, and it would eat me raw.

   Two terrible things, perfectly combined into a mind-numbing one.

   "What do you want?" I asked as I closed the bottle of whiskey. I laid my arms on the counter and let my eyes slowly avert to the man in front of me.

   "You," he answered, a smirk forming on his lips. 

   I half-rolled my eyes until they landed on him again, an amused smile spreading on my lips. "No," I said as I walked around the bar and towards one of the compelled students. "Who knows what would happen." I showed him a grin as I ran my fingers through the student's hair, slightly gripping it and pulling it to the side. He was a handsome boy in his early twenties, an Earth Science major from the open books in front of him. 

   I let my fingers dance on his jugular vein, the one that showed so perfectly on his neck. It was the vein that collected the blood from the brain. Once I bit into it, it would be minuted until he died. With a small intake of breath, I dug my fangs into it and began to drink the blood. It came quick, each drop that soaked in my mouth made me feel like I was glowing. I opened my eyes and glanced forward, seeing Stefan biting into the guy's wrist.

   He looked up at me, mischief dancing in the green of his eyes. Blood pooled around his lips, flowing down the guy's wrist and landing on his jeans. When he pulled away, he licked his lips and gave me a small crooked smirk, the veins under his eyes still dark and the fangs still there. He bit the guy's arm, once again drinking the blood. 

   I recalled that summer in Chicago, when he was feeding on that girl and it was incredibly hot to see the blood around his lips. It was a perfect image, replaying in my mind. I pulled away from the guys neck and took a well-needed breath, blood spilling down the sides of my mouth. My eyes stayed on him, on Stefan staring at me while he fed.

   He pulled away and licked the corner of his lip. "What do you want?" he teased, the same crooked smirk decorating his blood-stained lips. 

   I stood and let the guy fall to the side, his body falling right next to my feet. "To have some fun," I breathed.

   Stefan sped towards me, his lips crashing on to mine and moulding together in some wicked dance. The tension in the room had significantly risen in a matter of minutes, the sound of Caroline's singing drowning out the sound of needy lip smacking. Somehow, while kissing we ended up in the restroom of the bar, my back against the door. His cold fingers roamed on my waist, moving underneath my shirt and digging into my skin. It was a pleasurable pain, but it did not stop me from kissing him.

   I pushed the leather jacket off his shoulders, hearing it hit the floor. Then, my hand crunched up the bottom of his shirt and I pulled it off, only separating our lips momentarily. His fingers danced up to my shoulder, where I heard fabric rip behind me. I pulled away and glared at him, all around his mouth decorated in red. "Did you just break my jacket and my shirt?" I asked, slightly breathless. "I've had it since 1983."

   His hand went beneath my thigh, pulling it up and pressing himself against me. A crooked smile tainted red formed on his lips. "You can get the same jacket at an antique store," he said as he leaned closer. "As for your shirt, well..." His lips landed on my neck, where he kissed tentatively and slowly. I bit my lip from the sounds that wanted to escape my mouth, the shivering that occurred when his fingers danced on the skin beneath my jeans. 

   "Stefan," I gasped, digging my nails into his shoulders. I felt him smile or smirk on my neck, his fingers pressing in harder. 

   "Clara," he softly said as his lips trailed up to my jaw. He nipped the space where my head met my neck, drawing only a bit of blood. His tongue stopped there, licking up my blood, then slowly moved up to lick the blood around my mouth. When he was close to my mouth, I moved so I could kiss him.

   It was raw and rough, fingers digging into skin and blood spilling all around. My body had been tainted, bites and the shape of his lips trailing up and down, leaving behind the trace of blood and warmth. It was euphoric, the way his fingers and him moved against me. It was bruises appearing on my neck, on my waist, wherever his hands pressed hard enough to leave a mark. It was combined moans and whimpers, nails dragging down his backs and arms. I had dragged my nails down the door as well, leaving behind what seemed to be claw marks against the smooth wooden surface.

   It was the only thing with a bit of humanity that had happened between us. I couldn't help but chuckle as I stared at myself in the mirror and tried to fix my hair, how it stood in the back of my head. It was where my head had moved against the door, untangled by my fingers. My neck had a bit of dried blood, the one I had been too lazy to actually clean. 

   "You owe me a new jacket, Stefan," I said as I turned, leaning against the sink and crossing my arms, "and a shirt."

   He threw me his jacket and then continued to buckle his belt. "Grab one of Caroline's shirts," he said, that crooked smirk decorating his lips.

   "Wouldn't she get jealous?" I teased as I pulled on his jacket. It was big for me, but it was the only other clothing that I had on my upper body, other than my bra. "Doesn't she have, like, feelings for you or something?"

   He shrugged his shoulders. "I think she does," he said, "but she has no humanity, so this shouldn't bother her."

   I chuckled and walked out of the restroom, hearing Caroline singing to Pat Benetar. "Come on, Taylor Swift!" I called out. "Aren't you bored of this?"

   "Hey!" a student yelled, slamming her hands on the table. "We're trying to study here!" She huffed when Caroline only smiled and wagged her finger. "Where's the manager in this place?"

   Stefan walked up to her. "Someone ask for the manager?"

   "Yes!" the girl huffed, pointing at Caroline. "Can you make her stop, some of us are trying to study here." 

   He leaned his hands on the table and looked at her, giving her an empty smile. "How about you grab this knife and bleed into this cup?" He laid a knife on the table and then a mug. 

   "I will grab this knife and bleed into this cup," the girl repeated as she grabbed the knife. She sliced her palm open, then held it over the mug. 

   Stefan grabbed the knife and held it up, admiring the blood with an empty look. He passed a finger through the sleek metal and pushed it to his mouth, getting a small taste before he drank from the mug.

   The doors to the bar opened. Matt Donovan and Tyler Lockwood walked in, the pair wearing similar outfits from the police training academy. They quickly stopped when they came closer, their eyes wide and glancing around.

   "What did we just walk into?" Tyler warily asked. 

   "Look who it is!" I grinned and ambled towards where Stefan sat, eyeing the two boys. "It's the police officers in training. Are you guys here to arrest us?" It was a sarcastic question, a smile decorated on my lips.

   "You can go away now," Stefan compelled the girl. When she ran away, he grabbed the mug and took a sip of the blood. I took a seat where she was and leaned back.

   "What the hell are you guys doing?" Tyler asked, horror clear in his voice. 

   "We're just enjoying the music," Stefan responded, laying the mug back on the table. He pointed to the stage with the bloody knife. "You guys want the next song?"

   "We should get out of here," Matt mumbled, taking a few steps back. He turned to leave, Tyler right behind him.

   Stefan sped and stood in front of them, pointing at them with the knife. "No, stay," he said. "Caroline's taking requests."

   "Come on, everyone!" I yelled as I stood. "Leave!" Many of them had bite marks around their necks and arms, blood decorating their bodies. They were from the three of us, little reminders that we were vampires and bloodthirsty.

   "Clara!" Caroline whined. 

   I turned to her and pointed to Matt and Tyler. "You have two VIP's that want to hear you sing," I said, glancing back at the boys and giving them a wink. 

   They looked uncomfortable as they stepped closer to the stage, as if each footstep would push them closer to their end. They stood close to the stage, but far enough so that they could grab a chair and make it a weapon.

   Caroline began to sing another song, moving around and throwing her head to the side. She smiled and grinned, let the flow in her dress appear as if she were some angel with the sunlight behind her. 

   I went to he bar, grabbing a glass and putting two large pieces of ice in it. The strongest thing they had at the bar was vodka, which I didn't enjoy that much. Instead, I grabbed the whiskey and combined it with the bourbon. Disgusting, but strong enough that it would be a distraction from Caroline's performance. 

   Stefan stood besides me, leaning his head on his hand as he watched her with a bored expression. He let out a sigh and sat up. "Come on," he said, motioning me to follow him with his head. "This is getting too boring."

   "Where are we going?" I asked. 

   He pointed up as he ambled to the back of the bar, towards the kitchen. "I think that after every sex session, there's supposed to be a meal, right?" He chuckled and stopped, crossing his arms. 

   There was a man standing by the wall, compelled to stay there. He didn't look afraid or happy, just a bleak expression. I walked up to him, a chuckle escaping my mouth. "I need a shirt," I said to him. "Take yours off and give it to me." 

   The man quickly took of his shirt and held it in my direction. I dropped the jacket from my shoulders and pulled on his shirt, the overwhelming scent of cologne immediately hitting my nostrils. It wasn't a bad scent, but there was just too much. "He smells good," I commented. "I can't wait to know how he tastes like." I bit into his arm, right in the vein. Stefan was at his other arm. It was just like before, but less messy.

   The man dropped to the floor, a jumble of limbs together as his head was twisted to the side. I passed my finger through the corner of my mouth, collecting the blood and then sucking it. From besides me, Stefan let out a chuckle.

   "I liked you better without a shirt," he said.

   "Too bad," I mumbled, grabbing his jacket from the floor and throwing it at him.

   He shrugged his shoulders and turned, walking out of the kitchen. "Well, looks like Whitmore's gonna need a new philosophy TA," he said as he walked in to the bar. He stopped and looked over at Caroline. "Your mom was teaching you how to ride a bike."

   While Stefan and I had been feeding on the TA, she had been performing another song. After her performance, she began to play a game with her exes. She asked a personal question, if they got it right they would live. If not, they would die. Each had gotten a question right, except the last one.

   "Bingo!" she yelled out excitedly. "And Stefan wins, which means you two lose. Which isn't that bad, actually, because that just means we get to kill the both of you."

   "Fun," I breathed, wiggling my brows once. The looks of terror on their faces made a laugh escape my lips as I slowly moved to one of the nearby tables. I took a seat and leaned back on the chair.

   "Ooh!" Caroline quickly turned and grabbed a coin from the table, then grinned at the two boys in front of her. She flipped the coin and covered it up with her other hand once it landed. "Heads, I kill Tyler, and tails, I kill Matt. Deal?" 

   "Sounds good to me," Stefan answered in a nonchalant tone, taking a seat on the empty chair besides mine.

   Caroline looked at both boys for a moment, and slowly walked over to Tyler. She held out her hands in front of him, ready to show him which face the coin had landed on. Before she could remove her hand, he shoved her hand out of the way.

   "Ooh!" Stefan called. "Looks like somebody's angry."

   "He's a wolf," Caroline commented as she rolled her eyes. "It's his resting face."

   "You wonder why everyone hates vampires?" Tyler asked, anger laced in his voice. "Look at you, messing with people for no reason! That's really brave." He suddenly stood, grabbed his chair, and smashed it into pieces against the table. He grabbed a smaller piece, but threw the rest of the chair towards where Stefan and I sat. It flew over our heads, landing by the other table.

   Stefan let out a laugh and stood. "Are you serious?"

   "What's wrong, Stefan?" Tyler demanded. "Not used to people fighting back?"

   "No, actually I'm just not used to people being this stupid."

   Matt quickly stepped closer to his friend. "Alright, Ty, stop. He will kill you." He turned to Stefan. "He's sorry, okay?"

   Caroline let out a mocking laugh as she slowly moved closer to Tyler. "See that little vein on his forehead?" She traced a line with her finger on her own forehead as she stared at him. "I used to think it was so sexy, but now I'm pretty sure it's just all the blood leaving his brain."

   "Screw you, Caroline," he sneered. He picked up a sharp piece of wood from the broken table and pointed it threateningly towards us. "Come on. Any of you, come at me!"

   "Ty, stop!" Matt pleaded.

   I stood from my seat and slowly ambled towards them, one foot in front of the other. "Three bloodthirsty vampires and two humans walk into a bar," I loudly said, staring at them with a small smirk spread around my lips. "Who gets out alive?"

   "Come on, Tyler," Caroline smiled. "I dare you."

   "Ty, stop," Matt pleaded, a bit more quietly this time. "She will kill you."

   "Get out of here, Matt," Tyler snarled. He lunged at Caroline, prepared to drive the stake through her. She used her speed to grab Matt, making him a human-shield. The stake went into his stomach, making the only non-special human in the room to let out a groan of pain. Tyler stared at his friend in horror, hands shaking.

   "Don't you turn back into a wolf if you kill someone?" I asked, watching as he pressed his hands on Matt's stomach. I circled around them, moving to take a seat on the bar.

   "Does that mean you'll start to pee on fire hydrants again?" Caroline teased, grinning widely as she took a seat besides me.

   "Ooh, that's a very good question," Stefan said. "I mean, if all the rage made you think that you could take us three, maybe this is Nature's way of reconnecting you with your true self."

   "Which is dumber, apparently," I chuckled. 

   "Shut up!" Tyler hissed.

   The door to the bar opened, a dark figure standing right in front of the bit of sunlight that was left. Damon entered the bar, tall and dark and brooding. There was an older woman following closely behind him, familiar but at the same time someone I could care less about.

   Stefan stood from the chair and took a step forward, staring at the woman. There was a stunned look on his face, one that shouldn't be there since there was no humanity.

   "Who is that?" Caroline asked. 

   "That's my mother," he responded. 

   "You have a mother?" I asked, raising my brows. I snapped my fingers and nodded. "Right, yeah, I forgot. Didn't I calm you down after her funeral?"

   "I had a mom," Stefan said, still staring at the woman. "She died. So, whoever this is is Damon's lame attempt to get my humanity back."

   "Let me guess: then you get my humanity back on," Caroline hissed. "I don't think so." She grabbed the stake Tyler had used on Matt, and stabbed him in the back. "Sorry, Stefan, but thanks for the heads up." She sped out of the bar.

   I watched as the woman went towards Stefan and pulled the stake from his back, keeping a small distance between herself and him. It was as if she didn't want to be close to him, as if she wanted to be in another place. As they spoke, I heard emotions come from Stefan's voice. 

   I jumped down from the counter and walked around them, preparing to walk out of the door when a hand grabbed my arm. I let out a groan and craned my neck back. "Damon," I breathed. "Let go of my arm before I break yours." There was a smile on my lips, true and annoyed. 

   "I don't think so," he simply said, pulling me back to stand in front of him. He grabbed my other arm, making me watch the exchange between Stefan and the woman they claimed to be their mother. His lips were close to my ear, and he whispered, "You see that right there? That's Stefan getting his humanity back with each word she tells him. The same thing is going to happen to you and to Caroline."

   I let out a small laugh and tried to pull my arms away from his hold. Each time I moved, it tightened. "Let me go, Damon," I said in a menacing tone. "If you don't, I'm going to pull your heart out of your chest."

   "You won't be able to, Clara," he simply said. "You're going to forgive me for this once your humanity comes back."

   "You're so sure that it will," I chuckled, craning my head back to look at him. "It's so hot to see you try. The thing is, Damon, I have nothing left, so good luck trying to get it back." 

   He stared down at me, eyes slightly squinted and lips slightly pursed. "We'll see," he softly said, laying a hand around my neck and twisting it.