ཀ ཀ ཀ

"What's going on?" Gwendolyn asks rejoining Bonnie, and now Matt, as she exits the bathroom.

"Caroline's here at the carnival." Bonnie answers.

"What?" Gwendolyn's eyes widen in surprise. "Is Bryce with her?" She couldn't imagine Bryce coming to this, especially when she wasn't even going to.

Matt shakes his head no. "Yeah. She freaked out and she's been like that all day. Cool one minute and crazy and neurotic the next."

"She almost died. It's bound to mess with her head." Bonnie points out. "Plus, she's Caroline." She chuckles lightly.

"That's true." Gwendolyn agrees.

"Yeah. I'm used to the insecurities and all that, you know. That's who she is, love it or hate it. But this seemed, I don't know... different... more." He tries to get out. "I-I can't explain it."

"Her twin sister did just get back after... what happened, you know." Gwendolyn says. "It's a lot to take in just a couple days." She can't even imagine what Caroline's been going through or thinking these past couple days. Of course she seemed fine when they visited her, but you can never know for sure...

ཀ ཀ ཀ

Bryce couldn't bring herself to go to the carnival, which Caroline understood. Caroline felt guilty for going without Bryce, but she had to get out. She craved the fresh air, some type of normalcy again, but she felt like she was abandoning Bryce, even if it was to drop her off at home. Bryce made it clear she wanted her sister to go have a good time, Caroline deserved it. After almost dying, she deserved to go to the school carnival with her friends... Bryce didn't want to drag her down to the level she has sunk to.

Bryce has changed so much over the past year, but Caroline hasn't. She's stayed her true self and Bryce was grateful for that. Bryce knows what she did effected Caroline... and her mom... Bryce knew she wasn't the only one that her actions hurt, but that didn't stop her from doing it.

Which hurts even more. It eats at her from the inside out, chipping away at her piece by piece. That she couldn't snap out of it, or stop herself from doing what she did, despite the fact that it would hurt a lot of people in the process. Her guilt was a constant weight on her mind, suffocating her until it drove her mad.

She stood in the doorway of her bedroom for a few minutes, scared to go in. She felt like once she crossed the thresh hold of the doorway... it would all come rushing back. All her pain, all her visions, all her dreams, and her nightmares.

'You can do it.'

She felt a force gently nudge her forward and a whisper in the wind encouraging her to take the first step inside. But this room is haunted. And tainted, and burdened...

She places her bag down as she slowly enters her room, not recognizing it anymore, or the person who lived in it before. Pictures of her with Elena, Caroline, Gwendolyn, and Bonnie hung on her bulletin board, untouched from before, along with an array of theatre and recital tickets. The broken vanity mirror where glass crunched against the flesh of her feet was now repaired, as if it was never broken to begin with. Magazines scatter across her dresser, along with perfume bottles, ribbons, necklaces... everything seemed untouched, and unharmed.

She swallows, slowly inching to the bathroom, fingers shaking as she goes to turn on the light switch, letting out a choked breath as she flicks it- but the light doesn't turn on. Her heart beat hammers in her ears, growing louder with each second that passes as she tries it again, and again, feeling a drenched panic wash over her. A small huff of frustration leaves her lips before she looks up to find an outline of a dark figure in her bathroom in mirror. She goes to scream but can't, no sound comes out of her mouth other than a choked sobbing noise. Blood drips down the glass of the mirror as she stares in horror and her back hits the bathroom doorframe.

"No-" Bryce whispers. "No, no." It's not real, it's not real, you're just crazy.

"Welcome home, Bryce."

Warm tears stream down Bryce's face as her back rakes down the wall until she reaches the floor. She covers her ears with her hands and sinks into a fetal position.

"Everything you see is not real."

"They are figments of your imagination."

"Whoever, whatever it is your seeing, is just your ill mind, playing tricks on you."

"Here. This will help make it all go away."

"You can't get rid of me, Bryce."

"Wake up!"

"How did you sleep last night?"

"Fine."

"Fine?"

"Mhmm."

"Did you see anything or anyone particular? Unusual? Did you see him?"

"You can't shut me out, or medicate me away, Bryce. I will find you."

ཀ ཀ ཀ

Gwendolyn and Bonnie finally find Caroline outside with Damon, Stefan, and Elena.

"Caroline?" Bonnie looks at the blonde with a blood covered mouth.

Gwendolyn steps around Bonnie, her face dropping instantly, heart sinking to her stomach.

"It's okay, come on." Stefan whispers.

"Oh. You're not." Bonnie shakes her head, face crumpling. "You can't, you can't be."

"Bonnie." Gwendolyn gently grabs Bonnie's elbow, knowing that can't freak out on her. Bonnie pulls out of Gwendolyn's grasp and rushes over, grabbing Caroline's arm. Oh. Oh, Caroline.

"Bonnie." Caroline cries. "Gwendolyn."

Bonnie shakes her head, stepping back in horror as Gwendolyn stands frozen. No. She was just in the hospital, she was fine. She was alive, she was Caroline- she is still Caroline, Gwendolyn, the younger Bennett witch tells herself. Matt said she had been acting weird... but she never thought it meant this.

Bonnie rushes over to the bed of the truck as Elena ushers Caroline on.

The blood on her face... Bonnie leans her head down and Gwendolyn couldn't bring herself to move... it was a body.

Caroline killed somebody- ate somebody.

Ate somebody.

The words echo through Gwendolyn mind as she tries to swallow, her mouth so dry she couldn't. As Caroline passes her quickly she angles her gaze down, the dark, evil  feeling wanting to swallow her whole.

"I can't believe this is happening." Bonnie sniffs, backing away from the truck.

"Come on. Don't pout about it." Damon says, walking over with a shovel.

"Excuse me?" Gwendolyn tilts her head at him.

"We got a body to bury." He speaks so nonchalantly as he stops beside Elena. He says something to her quietly as Bonnie watches him, raising her chin.

"Bonnie." Gwendolyn looks at her, knowing she's about to do something.

"Uhh!" Damon groans in pain, doubling over before dropping to his knees and falling down. Elena turns her head. The handle of the water faucet turns as the hose starts to move and pour out.

"I told you what would happen if anyone else got hurt." Bonnie says.

Gwendolyn takes a step back, her head splitting with a headache over everything. Damon's blood saved Caroline, they didn't think this would even be a possibility. He doesn't care what happens to Caroline— does that matter when he saved her life? Should they have let Caroline just... die? She's dead now... Is this their fault? Should they have just let Caroline's future be decided?

"I didn't do this!" Damon shouts.

"Bonnie, it wasn't his fault." Elena speaks up to defend.

"Everything that happens is his fault, Elena." Bonnie stresses.

But what if it was theirs? What if they disrupted the balance of how things should be?

Because as much as Gwendolyn wants to blame Damon... she just can't bring herself to do so. Not entirely. Sure she could say it was his blood, it was. And he was a vampire, but so was Stefan. And now Caroline. Gwendolyn couldn't find it in her to want to punish Damon for what happened to Caroline. But Bonnie was angry. And she's been here, in Mystic Falls. Gwendolyn hasn't. But punishing Damon Salvatore wasn't going to bring Grams back. Locking herself up in the house forever wasn't going to bring Grams back. Never coming back to school wasn't going to either...

"Bonnie, what are you doing?" Elena asks. Flames ignite in the path of the water towards Damon. "Bonnie, Bonnie, stop it. Gwendolyn,  Gwendolyn, do something!" Elena shouts at her, snapping her out of her own head.

"Bonnie." Gwendolyn steps beside her cousin. "Bonnie, you've made your point."

"You're gonna kill him!" Elena cries out.

Gwendolyn bites the inside of her cheek, knowing Bonnie's going to be angry at her for doing what she's about to do. She moves in front of Bonnie, inhaling as she focuses her attention on Bonnie's spell.

"Bonnie, enough." Gwendolyn snaps, a wave of energy washes over Bonnie, snapping her out of it.

"Gwendolyn? Why, why did you stop me?! You?!" Bonnie snaps at her.

"Killing him isn't going to make Caroline human again, Bonnie." Gwendolyn breathes out, tilting her head, her eyes soften. "And it isn't going to bring Grams back."

"Bonnie-" Elena starts.

"Elena, please." Gwendolyn holds her hand up, shaking her head. She glances over at the Salvatore vampire, wondering how many chances he's gotten. Too many. Bonnie's hated him since she met him. "We can't. We can't going around taking lives or trading them, Bonnie. Not even his." She looks back at her cousin. "Or what does make us?" Her voice cracks slightly. "No better than him, or them." She refers to vampires. Bonnie crumbles as she falls into her cousin's embrace.

Gwendolyn knows she's missed a lot, and she hasn't been here for many things. But she's here now. And they have to do better, they have to be better. Or Grams would've died for nothing. Her and Bonnie have to get through this. They have to.

And Caroline has to get through this, she can. And Bryce can, even Elena. They have to. It can't stay like this forever, right?

ཀ ཀ ཀ

𝟶ʙᴜᴛᴛᴇʀʙɪsᴄᴜɪᴛ𝟽 sᴘᴇᴀᴋs!

Hello, hellooo!! Welcome back to Cardiac Cravinggg!!

Although he hasn't officallyyy made his debut yet... happy birthday to King Mikaelsonnn!! I took his test a few months ago & he is an aries kingggg... surprised? Not one bit lmao. I was gonna update on Thursday for the books 5 month anniversary & make his birthday then buttt idk I was just feeling March 29th for him (and I had a littleee bit to finish so I took that as my sign lmao)

Anywayssss... I hope y'all enjoyed the chapter!! Bryce is finally home... oof, & Gwendolyn has finally stepped out into the world again!! (we saw how that went for her, huh...) I rlly love how I wrote her perspective on Bonnie killing Damon bc it just feels very much Gwendolyn!! She doesn't love Damon by any means bahaha, but her wanting to be better & do better is just so her! And ugh, she's gonna be in for such a rude awakening...

And with that we have now finished episode two!! Hope y'all are loving the book so far!! And again, we're just getting started ;) Until next timeee, don't be afraid to comment your thoughts, questions, & reactionsss, mwah!! <333