SEASON ONE — EPISODE FOURTEEN
"𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙞 𝙞𝙜𝙣𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪"

‧˚꒰🍷꒱༘‧—

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

'✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃 IT WAS A BORING DAY, a Saturday and Brooke had zero plans, which was a norm before she found out about the supernatural. She laid in her bed for half of the day, ignoring the pestering coming from Nate for her to get out of bed and actually do something productive with her day.

Unusually, she'd received no messages from Caroline, Matt, Ben, Stefan or Bonnie, or even Elena, her phone had gone radio silent. And while it was nice to have some peace and quiet for once in her life, she felt something off.

Finally, just as she was about to drift off for a nap, her phone buzzed beside her and she huffed, reluctantly picking it up, holding it to her ear, "Hello? You ring rang Brooke." She joked a little, her voice slightly slurred due to her tiredness.

"Brooke, it's Caroline. I was just at the Grill looking for Matt, obviously, and I saw Ben McKittrick walking out with Bonnie." Caroline told her with a sympathetic tone, ready for Brooke's wrath.

"What? What do you mean?" Brooke sat up, her brows knitted together in confusion, the blanket falling from her chest to reveal her pale yellow tank top.

"They were totally on a date, they did karaoke and they were holding hands and everything." Caroline gushed as if it was the happiest news she'd ever heard but Brooke only grumbled, climbing out of her bed.

"Thanks for telling me, Care." Brooke smiled in the slightest, exiting her room to pull on her UGG boots and her jacket, still clad in her pyjamas.

"No problem, just don't do anything stupid... and call me if you need anything!" Caroline exclaimed before Brooke ended the call, ignoring the questions she received from Nate, who was sat on the couch, scrolling through his phone.

"I'll be back in, like, twenty minutes." Brooke told her brother, opening the door but he let out a yelp, causing her to pause.

"Remember we have that thing at the Gilbert's around 7." Nate reminded her, pointing a finger in her direction and she nodded before leaving the trailer, closing the door behind her.

As she walked to the bus stop, she had time to process things. She knew for a fact that, even though she'd spent a few weeks getting to know Ben, she definitely wouldn't put this type of thing past him, he was the player type. But, with Bonnie, it was totally unexpected.

The Bennett girl was loyal and kind, more than Caroline and more than Elena, she was one of the sweetest people Brooke had ever met and she'd never — NEVER — do something like this, ever.

So, Brooke came to the conclusion that Bonnie was forced to go on this date whilst she shivered at the bus stop outside the trailer park. She wrapped her jacket closer around her body, her teeth chattering as she waited for the bus to arrive.

After a while of thinking, after while of coming up with theories for how it all even happened, her eyes widened with realisation and she sat up in the bus seat, clearly filled with shock and slight confusion. A few people, who were also on the bus, looked towards her, wondering why she was acting so weird but she ignored them, quickly climbing off of the bus.

When her feet touched the concrete in front of the apartment complex, the bus driving off, she felt a shiver run up her spine... and not from the chilly temperature.

Brooke reached into her pocket and pulled out her cell, pressing on Stefan's contact. She stayed outside the parking lot, knowing that if Ben saw her, he'd kill her in an instant, "Stefan?" Brooke spoke quietly, on the verge of tears.

"Brooke? Are you okay? Where are you?" Stefan's voice came through the line and Brooke wrapped her free arm around her stomach in hopes to keep her warm, the strong wind blowing through her hair.

"Ben is a vampire, Stefan and I think he's killed—Hmph!" Struggling was heard down the line and Stefan's eyes widened before the call came to an end.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

BROOKE FELT RINGING IN HER EARS, she felt a banging in her head and her vision was blurry as her eyes fluttered open. She slowly sat up, silently begging the ringing in her ears to come to an end as she tried to clear her vision. She jumped in fear when she noticed Ben lying beside her on the bed, his arm draped over her thighs and her heart began to thump in her chest, her eyes widening.

She squinted her eyes towards him, her blurry vision becoming clear and the loud ringing in her ears going silent. As quietly as possible, she moved her legs from under his arm and the blanket, draping them over the edge of the bed but just as she went to stand up, she heard his voice.

"Where are you going?" He murmured, his tired voice causing Brooke to silently curse herself, her eyes squeezing shut momentarily.

"Um, the bathroom." Brooke muttered quietly, climbing off of the bed and she took a few steps towards the bathroom, sending a glance in Ben's direction. That was her chance.

She sprinted as fast as she possibly could towards the door and her fingertips just brushed against the door knob before Ben was stood in front of her, a smug smirk slapped onto his lips as if it was all amusing to him, as if her fear was a joke.

"What did you do to Bonnie?" Brooke snapped, her eyes squinted up towards him and he chuckled, nodding his head towards the bathroom. She spun around, the ends of her hair whipping his cheek as she quickly rushed towards the bathroom in hopes that Bonnie was okay.

"I hope this doesn't mean we still can't be friends." Ben joked, playing with her feelings like he was doing all along, like every single boy she'd ever talked to romantically had done. She didn't even spare him a glance, her hand twisting the handle of the bathroom door and she walked inside, fiddling with the light switch until the room was finally lit up with a buzzing yellow light.

The door slammed behind her once she entered and she jumped, turning around with wide eyes. He'd locked her in the bathroom, what did she expect? Her eyes began to water, everything beginning to kick in and she turned around again, dragging a hand down the side of her face as a tear fell down her cheek.

Brooke reached forwards and pulled the shower curtain back to reveal Bonnie passed out in the bathtub. Her eyes widened and she immediately kneeled down, running a finger over the wound at the top of Bonnie's forehead gently.

The aforementioned girl seemed to be completely knocked out and wasn't going to wake up anytime soon, even after Brooke attempted to shake her shoulders, Bonnie stayed unconscious. So, she shuffled her side against the side of the bathtub, resting her head on Bonnie's as she cried silently, just wishing for all of the torture to end...

At least a few hours later, the door to the bathroom opened and Elena came tumbling inside as if she'd been pushed. The door closed behind her and Elena looked up from the ground, her eyes locking onto Brooke's, "Brooke!" Elena sighed heavily in relief, scrambling forwards to wrap her arms around her cousin.

The two girls began to hysterically sob in each other's arms whilst Bonnie stirred awake, causing them to pull away and rush over to the witch, making sure she was okay, "Are you okay? Are you both okay?" Elena spoke between sniffles, attempting to calm herself down for the sake of her closest friends, even if her and Brooke weren't as close recently.

Elena pushed herself up from the ground and grabbed a dry cloth from the sink, soaking it in a little warm water before she sat back down on the ground, handing the wet cloth to Brooke to hold against the wound on Bonnie's head.

"Oh my G— Ben is a vam—" Before Bonnie could finish, her eyes wide with shock, Brooke held her finger against her lips, shushing her.

"We know..." Brooke whispered as quietly as she could and Elena stood up, turning on the water again but this time, she left it on in hopes that it would muffle their conversation.

"I don't even remember what happened. One minute I was shopping and the next I was in the Grill." Bonnie furrowed her brows in confusion as she explained and Brooke shook her head, brushing some hair behind Bonnie's ear comfortingly.

"I think you were compelled, we really need to get you some vervain. Here." Brooke reached up to one of her earrings and took it out before holding it up to Bonnie's ear, sending her a look of confirmation before she put it in. Once Bonnie nodded with a slight wince due to her agonising headache, Brooke slid the earring onto Bonnie's earlobe, protecting her from being compelled.

"Thanks." Bonnie muttered, squeezing her eyes shut and Brooke let out a heavy sigh, shaking her head in disbelief.

"I can't believe I fell for him... I'm such a stupid bi—"

"No, he had all of us fooled." Elena defended, cutting her cousin off before she offended herself too much and Brooke only shook her head in response.

"What's going on? Why are we here?" Bonnie spoke up, bringing the attention back to her and both cousins looked back over at Bonnie.

"It must have something to do with the tomb and Emily's spell book." Elena explained, her voice hushed.

"Spell book?" Brooke repeated, her brows knitted together as she leaned forwards, her cheeks stained with dried tears.

"Damon said that it could be used to open the tomb." Elena answered, glancing between both of the girls.

"Why didn't I know about any of this?" Brooke asked, her tone slightly irritated but she tried to hide it for the sake of the life vs death situation they were currently in.

"I'm asking the same question. I'm supposed to be Emily's ancestor." Bonnie sat up a little, begging her headache to just go away, to disappear for just a moment, to give her just a mere second of peace.

"I was trying to keep you both out of it, hoping it would never come to this." Elena explained, fiddling with the sleeves of her shirt whilst Brooke leaned her head back against the wall, staring up at the ceiling tiredly.

"Come to what?" Bonnie asked, clearly engaged.

"They need a witch... to break the spell and let the vampires out." With Elena's words, Brooke's ears perked up and she quickly lowered her head, her wide eyes fixed on Elena's face.

"What? Are they ins—" Before Brooke could finish her question, the door swung open with a loud thud, sending a shock of pain in the back of the Elliot's head. Ben burst into the bathroom, his eyes landing on Brooke before anyone else as the three girls protected each other, mostly Brooke.

She shuffled in front of Bonnie and Elena, watching with her heart pounding in her chest as he turned off the running faucet, "You're wasting your time. I'm not gonna help you." Bonnie told him, her voice laced with anger and Ben approached with a low chuckle, crouching down in front of Brooke.

"That's why your little friends are here." Ben gently grabbed ahold of Brooke's arm and pulled her forwards so her back was against his chest. She struggled in his grip, attempting to fight him off of her whilst Elena and Bonnie watched in terror but it was no use, he was 100x more stronger than her, "Motivation for you to behave."

"Get off of me!" Brooke yelled, still trying to fight his grasp, his fingers digging into her skin, bound to cause a few bruises but he refused to let her go.

"Come on, you were begging me not to stop just a few days ago. What changed?" Ben smirked, pulling her to stand up with him and both Elena and Bonnie watched with teary eyes as a singular tear fell down Brooke's cheek.

"I found out you were just playing me all along, that's what changed." She snapped back, continuing to struggled against him, "Not to mention that you're a vampire!"

"I wasn't playing you. I actually like you, you're cute, which is why I don't want to hurt you... so stop!" He demanded, a hint of irritation now laced in his voice as he begged her to stop fighting him and after a few moments, she let out a huff, her fighting coming to a pause, "Thank you. Now, you, get out. She wants to talk to you. Now!" He pointed at Elena, who hesitantly stood up and wearily exited the bathroom.

Ben shuffled over to the door and closed it, his arm still wrapped around Brooke. She looked over at Bonnie, the two sending each other pained looks, as if they were apologising to each other for reasons they didn't need to telepathically.

He reluctantly let go of Brooke, watching with a somewhat hurt expression as she immediately leaped from his arms to Bonnie, wrapping her arms around her best—friend.

"You hate me now, don't you?" Ben muttered, leaning against the sink counter with his hands on the edge, clenching his jaw in attempt to hide his pain.

"No shit. Look at what you did." Brooke brushed some of Bonnie's hair to the side, showing the bloodied scratch on the girl's forehead before she reached her hand up and brushed her own hair aside, revealing the scratch on her own forehead.

"I didn't mean to hurt you." He pushed away from the counter and took a few steps forwards, only for Brooke to shield Bonnie even further than before, her arms completely wrapped around the witch's frame.

"Stop." She whispered, her eyes welling up with tears. She never used to be so emotional, but after going through so much in such little time, she supposed she'd gone soft.

"Fuck. You hate me." Ben turned around, grumbling angrily and he violently kicked the cabinet door, causing it to fall off of its hinges. Both of the girls flinched in fear and Bonnie hid her face in Brooke's sleeve.

Brooke stayed quiet, just watching him as she sniffled back tears. He leaned against sink, his face buried in his hands when Anna knocked on the door, "I'm leaving." She called out, her voice muffled through the door and Ben pushed off of the sink, opening the door.

"Out." He ordered, his eyes painfully fixed on Brooke and she obeyed, helping Bonnie up out of the bathtub. She led her out of the bathroom and into the bedroom, her eyes immediately landing on Elena, who sat on the edge of one of the beds.

"Keep them buttoned down. Compulsion won't work. Just use violence." Anna ordered, and the mention of violence — specifically towards Brooke — sent a pang in Ben's cold heart but he nodded nonetheless, avoiding Anna's gaze with an awkward smile.

"Right. I got that." Ben responded as Brooke helped Bonnie sit down on the other bed and Anna left the apartment, leaving the four alone, "Behave, please. I don't want to hurt any of you." He explained as he pulled off his jacket and Brooke sat down beside Bonnie, holding her hand tightly, "So... tell me..." He draped his jacket over the back of a chair before sitting down, "How long have you been a witch?"

Elena crossed her arms over her chest, letting out an annoyed sigh, "Is there anything to drink here?"

Ben stood up at this, walking towards Elena with a smirk, "Are you offering?" He leaned down just an inch and Elena moved back on the back, looking up at him with wide eyes, "There's water on the nightstand."

Elena watched as he walked away, his back turned to them as he thought about what to do and Brooke leaned over, grabbing the glass before the Gilbert could. Elena sent Brooke a confused glare, wondering what she was up to as Brooke passed the water to Bonnie with a knowing look on her face.

"You need it more." Brooke muttered quietly, though Ben could still hear and he smiled just slightly at her kindness. He would never admit it or tell anyone but he fell for Brooke Elliot, undeniably.

Bonnie nodded unsurely, taking the glass with her free hand, her other hand still latched in Brooke's and she turned, splashing the water over Ben's sleeve. She narrowed her eyes, somehow managing to turn the water to flames even after having a concussion and Ben began to scream, patting his sleeve in panic.

Bonnie, Elena and Brooke all rushed to the door, opening it and sliding out. But, luck was never on Brooke Elliot's side and Ben managed to stop the fire starting on his arm just before Brooke managed to escape. He wrapped his arm around her waist and she let out a loud scream, kicking her legs as he lifted her from the ground.

"Come back in! Now!" Ben yelled to the two girls now stood outside the apartment in the bright sunlight, informing them that it was morning.

"No, go! Run!" Brooke screamed out, continuing to kick her legs around and Ben placed his hand over her mouth, mentally cursing himself for being so stupid.

Unsurprising to the both of them, Elena and Bonnie did as Brooke told them to, running away as fast as they could and because Ben didn't own a daylight ring, he was unable to go after them, "Fuck! I'm gonna kill you!" He yelled, but only she believed it, he knew he was unable to do so much as punch her, never mind ending her life.

"Do it!" Brooke screamed again, kicking her legs around but eventually, she was dropped to the ground and Ben's cries of agony were heard for the second time, the bright sun burning his skin.

Stefan appeared in the doorway, opening the door wide and pulling the curtains off of the wall, almost the entire room being filled with light. He stormed past Brooke, who shuffled away from Ben and he looked down at the burnt vampire curled up between the beds, an angered look on his face.

"When the sun goes down, leave town. If I ever see you again, I will kill you." Stefan told Ben calmly before he rushed over to Brooke, easily scooping her up in his arms and he sped out of the apartment, into the bright daylight.

Brooke shielded her eyes, her brows scrunched together, "It's so bright." She groaned and he made his way to his car where Elena and Bonnie already were, Elena in the passenger seat and Bonnie in the backseat.

"Yeah, I'm sorry." Stefan smiled sympathetically and opened one of the back doors, setting her down beside Bonnie as carefully as possible. Brooke let out a soft laugh, despite everything that she and her friends had just been through, a hint of a smile on her lips.

"What are you sorry for? You can't lower the brightness of the sun." Brooke rolled her eyes and Stefan leaned down, smirking wide.

"Says who?" He raised a brow and she rolled her eyes again, watching as he chuckled, closing the door. Brooke turned to Bonnie, who still seemed a little shaken up and she reached over, placing her hand over hers.

"You're safe now, BonBon. It'll all be okay." Brooke reassured, despite not believing her own words but Bonnie nodded, letting out a stressed sigh, Brooke's words of sincerity seemingly washing her worries away... at least for a little while.

@amxliewrites — starring role
2025