a/n: Char's outfit for the chapter is above!

✫彡𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒆

Charlotte had just begun cleaning the dorm when she eyed the bottle of whiskey in the cupboard. She shouldn't. She knows she shouldn't. Lina said it was a bad idea. Well, Lina is not here.

She closed the cupboard. It was too early for a drink anyways. Bad Costa Rica habits should stay in Costa Rica. She can bake, yes. Charlotte loved baking and that was a good time to have a cupcake.

She rose to her feet just as Elena walked into the room, "Megan's memorial outside is growing by the minute."

"Ugh, college kids are so dramatic," Caroline got out of the bathroom, sighing, "She was on campus for, like, one day. She couldn't have made that many friends."

Charlotte shook her head, "That was tragic, what's worse is it being ruled as a suicide. As if someone would up their life and get to college, interact with people, and then throw themselves off a building."

Caroline took that in, nodding, "You are right, sorry, I am in a mood."

"You talked to Tyler?"

The Forbes folded a shirt, exhaling in frustration, "He's deferring from enrolling and deferring from returning my phone calls, so I'm deferring from having sex with him ever again."

Charlotte patted her back as Elena asked them, "How's the snooping going? Any explanation why our vervain-laced," She looked back to check for any unwanted eavesdroppers and lowered her voice, "vampire-slaughtered roommate had a picture of my dad on her phone?"

"Nope, nothing of relevance anyways."

"Oh, um, I went by the hospital this morning — Megan's death certificate. It says she died of suicide," Elena handed the two a folder, "No mention of the gaping vampire bites on her neck. So, whoever signed off on the cause of death was part of the cover-up, just like the Founders Council back home."

"Oh, God, I can't do this again," Charlotte shook her head, looking down at the signature of whoever released the certificate, "Dr. Wesley Maxfield."

The Gilbert girl nodded, revealing, "A.K.A., our Applied Microbiology professor. I switched our classes around, so that we could—"

"What? I am majoring in Architecture, that's as far off from micro whatever as possible," She shook her head, "We are not doing this. If we get too close, we risk ourselves."

"Then we won't get too close, just close enough," Elena reassured.

"Elena, we are supposed to be taking Intro to Communication. What happened to getting drunk and making bad decisions about boys?" Caroline disagreed, running a hand over her forehead, "What happened to our fun freshman year at college? I am supposed to be a drama major!"

"You're not going to be an Anything major if we get exposed as vampires!"

Elena paused, realizing her voice had been rising. The three of them took a deep breath before the doppelganger spoke up again, "We are still gonna have our fun year, Caroline, but we have to protect ourselves."

"The way Damon kept his secret in Mystic Falls was because he infiltrated the Founders Council. So, bust out those alleged acting skills, and let's get on it, okay?"

"I barely got an A minus in Biology, I am so not gonna do good on this course," Charlotte said, folding her arms together, "It will be embarrassing."

❃❃❃

Charlotte, Caroline, and Elena make their way into the lecture hall for Dr. Maxfield's class. They passed by Jesse on their way to their seats. Charlotte had her head buried in a book, trying to gather as much background information on the course as possible but it was impossible with a few minutes before class.

"Hey, Blow-Off Girl," Jesse called out, addressing Caroline, "Aren't you a freshman? How are you in this class?"

Caroline scoffed, "What? I love—" She stuttered, looking at the blackboard, "—Applied Microbiology...It's, like, my favorite biology. You know, little things are just so...cute."

"They are so much," Charlotte commented, turning through the pages of the course's textbook.

Jesse made a move, asking, "Are you going to the bonfire tonight? Or are you just gonna get really close and then turn around and leave again?"

Elena answered for her, "She'll be there."

"Sweet. We'll hang."

Elena gave him a thumbs-up before Caroline pushed her and Charlotte away to a few rows back. They sat down and the blonde gave Elena a look.

"What? You said you wanted to make bad decisions about boys. He's cute, he's interested, and most importantly, unlike Tyler, he's here."

Charlotte turned a page in the textbook, adding, "Yeah, Jesse would be your first good decision. Guys who do Microbiology are probably committed, unlike someone."

Caroline narrowed her eyes at the two but didn't respond. Just then, Dr. Maxfield walked into the lecture hall.

"Morning, everyone. I'm Dr. Maxfield. My first name is Wes, but call me Dr. Maxfield. One day, when you're out of med school, you'll understand," He started and Charlotte quickly closed her textbook, focusing.

"So, you're all going to this bonfire tonight, right? Well, here's a quick history lesson for you. Whitmore was founded as a hospital during the Civil War. Deadliest war in American history — over 600,000 casualties."

"Disease was so prevalent that once a week, they had to gather all the dead, rotting bodies, put them in a pile, and light the whole thing on fire. So tonight, when you're getting drunk and partying, stop for a second, close your eyes, and imagine the rancid smell of a hundred rotting corpses."

"Creep-y," Caroline commented.

"Which brings us to microbiology..."

Elena countered, "But hottie."

"...because that rancid smell comes from a very specific bacteria. Isn't that right, chatty girls in the back?"

He looked up at Caroline and Elena but Charlotte, knowing they had a plan and a reason to be here, dissociated herself from the two and looked at them with the rest of the class as if she had just seen them today.

"And what is that bacteria?"

"Uh, that's the, um...um...," She turned a few pages in a book she had, "I don't know."

"Maybe because you're freshmen, who shouldn't be in this class," He made a show of them, "How do I know? I'm observant—a skill you'll learn in Bio 101, down the hall."

Dr. Maxfield pointed to the door, while Caroline and Elena shifted uncomfortably in their seats and got up. Elena threw Charlotte a look and she went to get up before Elena gave her a look that clearly meant she should stay.

Charlotte turned her focus back on Dr. Maxfield, trying her best to appear as a junior who knows what was going on.

❃❃❃

Charlotte got out of class, two hours later. She dialed Elena's number, getting out to get herself something to drink, "Yes, it's finally over. Where are you?"

"Near that cafe below our dorm," Elena answered, adding, "But hey, Charlotte, maybe—"

"Okay, I will see you there, bye," The brunette hung up, slipping her phone into her purse.

In a few minutes, Charlotte was making her way through a crowd of excited freshmen, like herself, and to Elena. She paused, a few feet before the doppelganger's table to see the back of someone sitting across from her.

"Elena," She called over, her steps slowing down before Elena stood up and the person she was with turned around, "Stefan?"

"Charlotte, long time no see," He turned, greeting with open arms and the petite brunette looked from his open arms to his face as though he had grown three heads, "Alright then."

"What are you doing here?"

"Stefan wanted to let us know—"

She was cut off when he turned to her, "Stop talking."

As if compelled into silence, Elena's lips clamped shut and she didn't finish her sentence.

Charlotte looked from Elena to Stefan, "Uh, what is going on?"

"Huh, wasn't expecting the confusion. I thought at least Damon would fill you in on such a delicate matter."

Charlotte squeezed her eyes shut, "What delicate matter? I don't understand what you are saying, Stefan?"

He arched an eyebrow, watching her intently, "Well, this is going to be a fun surprise."

She shook her head, "Elena, let's—"

"Your boyfriend didn't break up with you, I did, for him," He revealed and lit a switch in her mind, "If I was going to impersonate Stefan, I had to get rid of his baggage."

"What...what..."

He sat down, leaning back on the bench, "Originally, I was going to break up with you and leave. However, as soon as I started speaking, your head formed all of these thoughts, all of these insecurities rushing in and I just, I couldn't resist it. I love a good game."

"So, there's that. You and your boyfriend are cool, I was just shaking your little boat."

"I, I don't understand."

Silas rolled his eyes, annoyed with her, "Aren't you supposed to be the smart one? Do I have to spell it out? I am Silas. The piece of stone in the car trunk."

Charlotte took a step back, shaking her head over and over again, "No, no, that's not true. Silas is gone. You...Stefan, he made sure of that."

"No, I, Silas, made sure Stefan has one of his best summers."

"Where is Stefan?"

"You can ask Damon that," Silas smiled up at her and it made her sick to her stomach to think of what Stefan went through at his hands.

❃❃❃

Stefan broke up with her. He left her. Stefan was the bad guy in that situation. Stefan was the guy she spent the summer dreaming of rearranging his face, to one less pretty and not as heartbreaking. He betrayed her. That was what she knew.

She kept repeating those facts in her head, trying to steady her heart's rapid beats. It was going to be okay, it had to be. She would find Damon and he would explain it all, it would make sense.

The worst of it all. As soon as Silas walked away. Elena couldn't remember any of it. Only Jeremy's expulsion and Damon's lies. That was it.

Charlotte's head was spinning as Elena pulled her through the crowds and into the bonfire. She couldn't be here. She should leave. She needed to find Damon and get an explanation. He needed to tell her that whatever happened that morning was a cruel joke and that Stefan, the guy who broke her heart, was fine. More than fine.

She lost Elena in the crowd and got even more unstable, "Elena! Elena!" She was turning around herself, her anxiety growing by the minute when she couldn't locate her friend.

"Elena," She called out again, her voice involuntarily lower this time, "Elena."

She took in quick deep breaths, suddenly more aware of the sound of her heartbeats, getting louder and louder that she had to cover her ears. A group of students passing by pumped into her and she got pushed back a few steps.

Charlotte desperately tried to focus on her breathing but she couldn't. She felt her lungs giving up on her, no air would come out or in as she stammered around the bonfire. She gasped when someone placed a hand on her shoulder, pulling her a few inches away from the fire.

"Are you—" She could see someone speaking to her but it was like his words met an iceberg and sank before reaching her, "you—hear—"

She was struggling to breathe once again as whomever it was that stopped for her, pulled her away from the situation. He found a quieter place before seating her down.

"Breathe, breathe, breathe," He kept repeating over and over again, in hopes that at least once she managed to hear him and comprehend it, "Breathe, breathe, you are having a panic attack. I need you to breathe."

"Breathe slow, breathe deep. You are going to be okay."

She followed his instructions, taking in a deep breath and trying her best to focus on one good thing that didn't feed the chaos in her head. Charlotte looked up to see someone sitting in front of her, breathing himself to remind her how breathing works in case she forgot.

She did exactly what he did, focusing on breathing slow and deep to calm her nerves and steady her heartbeat.

"Can you count with me?" He asked her, "Backwards? Can you count with me backwards?"

She nodded, taking in another deep breath as he started, "Twenty."

"Nineteen," She counted, nodding to herself, "Eighteen," She squeezed her eyes shut, focusing, "Seventeen," Charlotte paused, struggling, "Uh...six—"

"Sixteen, yes, you are doing great, keep going."

She continued, her focus slowly shifting from Stefan's situation to counting backward correctly and breathing. She nodded to herself when she reached number one, it was okay. She was okay.

"Thank you," She inhaled sharply, "I am fine now, thank you so much..." She trailed off.

"Ted, and don't mention it. Glad you are okay," He reassured her, tapping her hand awkwardly, "If you need to stay down a few more minutes, that's okay too."

She looked out at the bonfire and ran a hand over her forehead, "Yeah, yeah, I think I will just...stay here for a little while."

"Great, I will keep you company."

❃❃❃

A little while had passed before Charlotte left the bonfire and bid Ted goodbye. Caroline called her on the way to the dorms, checking on her.

"What is going on? Damon's here?" She asked over the phone, hanging up when she came face to face with Caroline on the steps of the stairs.

"Yes, he came a few hours ago. Apparently, Silas is here and Stefan never really got rid of him."

Charlotte nodded, "Yeah, Silas gloated about that earlier," She walked through the hallway, sighing as she turned their room's door knob, "So, where is Damon?"

She swung the door open to find a shirtless Damon tied to a chair and Elena impaled to another, "Uh..."

Caroline looked between the two, stating, "I think we need to set some ground rules for when boyfriends come to visit."

❃❃❃

"I can not believe you," Charlotte shook her head, walking out of the dorm room as Damon followed her, "You are unbelievable, Damon."

"I had to fix it before letting you know."

She scoffed, turning to face him, "Fix it? Yeah, how is that working out for you now?" Charlotte folded her arms together, "How could you not tell me that Stefan has been drowning in the quarry all this time?"

"How could you let me go on thinking I was some victim when Silas orchestrated all of this?"

"Charlotte," Damon approached her and she stepped back, "All I knew is that Stefan and you parted ways after Graduation. You can't blame this on me."

"Yes, yes, I can," She turned around, walking into the library that was empty with the bonfire still going on, "The moment you found out, you should have called me. You should have told me everything. I wasn't supposed to find out through Silas, of all people."

"What would you have done? Searched the quarry yourself? I am handling it, Charlotte."

Charlotte looked at him again, shaking her head, "You are doing a very poor job at handling it. And yes, yeah, I would have searched the quarry myself. It's called being unconditionally in love with someone, you should try it sometime."

Damon placed his hands on her shoulders, "You are worried, I get it. We will find him. He will be okay."

"But what if he is not?" She looked up at him, tears forming in her eyes, "He's been drowning over and over again this entire time, Damon."

"I know, I know," He sighed, pulling the petite brunette into his arms, "We will find him."

❃❃❃