Drag Me to Cell(O)

“I  wondered what it would be like.” Those thoughts came from being a banshee and having nearly died herself. “You make it sound peaceful. I never expected that.” If Paige didn’t know what happened, Lydia guessed it would be the same for everyone. “They might be relieved to see you again. I see where you are coming from though.”

“That’s how it was for me, at least,” Paige confirmed.  “There didn’t seem to be an afterlife in the sense that everyone talks about it, where you’re up in the clouds or seeing your old friends, just a quiet darkness.”  She wasn’t sure whether that was a relief or a disappointment, but it probably depended on a person’s point of view.

“They might be, but there would be so much to explain.  They’ve had a dozen years to grieve and get over me, and I don’t want to ruin that by showing up out of the blue.”

“I’ll bring you a pillow too, just so you’re not missing out.” He winked, looking around. “No, you’ve got a nice set up. It’s something at least.” He smiled, moving to walk around. “We could make it into a pretty cool pad for you.”

“Only if you want to,” Paige offered shyly.  “It’s not like it’s bothering me not having one here.”  It was nice to hear that he saw the potential in the house, because once upon a time it had actually been pretty nice.  “Probably a cooler pad if I could get them to turn the power back on, huh?”

“I’ll bring you some.” He smiled, turning his face to kiss the top of her head. “Anything else you need?”

Paige blushed again, considering the question before shaking her head.  “Nothing I can think of.  I’ve got some blankets in my room that someone forgot in the hall closet, and my coat’s actually a decent pillow.  I can show you around, but this is kinda what the whole place looks like,” she laughed.

Never being one for religion, Lydia didn’t spend any time thinking about the afterlife or heaven and hell. It was pretty much just a story and living in Beacon Hills, it wasn’t like it gave proof for either of those places. “There was nothing?” She was surprised by that, having expected something. “Do you know how you came back? I’ve heard a few people have come back from the dead.” Lydia took a sip of her coffee. “That would have been. I’m glad for you. Have you seen your parents or did they move away?”

“Not that I can remember,” Paige shook her head.  “Unless it got erased or blacked out or something during my coming back, death is pretty quiet.”  Lydia’s question prompted another, firmer shake of her head.  “No idea.  There wasn’t anyone there when it happened, at least that I know of, I just woke up underground and dug myself out.”  She drained the last of her coffee but continued cradling the mug.  “They moved.  Thank god, too, the last thing I want is to try and explain why I’m still basically the same age I was when I died.”

Brett took Paige’s hand and walked with her towards the house, pulling out his phone he turned on the light as they made their way inside. “Remind me to bring you candles sometime.” He smiled, looking around and shining the light.

Paige pulled back the boards on the door, letting Brett in before rejoining him and taking his arm.  “That’d be cool,” she smiled.  “I was hoping there might be some in the attic, but I think my parents cleaned it out.”

Brett studied the house, smiling softly to himself. “So this is where you grew up?” He asked, turning to look at her. “Shall we go inside?” He asked, gesturing towards it.

Paige nodded.  “Yeah, this is the old family home.”  Not that there was any family in it, anymore.  “Sure!  You’ll have to use the light on your phone or something though, there’s no power so it’s pretty dark at night.”

“I wouldn’t mind seeing it, who knows maybe I’ll be surprised.” He grinned, looking down at her. “Show me.”

“I guess we’ll see,” Paige agreed, walking through town at a slow pace with him at her side.  Her family home was likely the subject of worried meetings of the neighborhood watch, wanting its dilapidated shell away from the manicured lawns and immaculate gardens that surrounded it.  Either that, or no one really took much notice - it was Beacon Hills, after all.  “There we go,” she gestured.  “I’ve got the boards on the back door pried up but you can’t tell from looking at it.”

Moving out of the booth Brett helped Paige up and walked her out the door after paying and leaving a tip. Once outside he hooked his arm around hers. “So where to now, Paige?” He asked with a smile.

“That’s a good question,” she admitted, not having thought the night through any further.  It had already been much more, and much better, than she had anticipated, so whatever they did next would be good with her.  “I’d offer to show you where I live, but I think one abandoned house probably looks like all the others.”

The response was not what she had ever expected. It was Beacon Hills and she was a Banshee so her surprise was surprising. “Thankfully I have no idea but you can tell me if it isn’t too hard.” Since she had joined Scott’s pack and learned of the supernatural occurrences in her town, she had wanted to help. The time she had saved a life was the best she had ever felt so she wanted to help people because of that and because of Scott. “Something is better than nothing.”

“I wish it was a really cool story,” Paige admitted between sips of coffee.  “Like that I’d seen pearly gates and a big bearded guy and all that.  But all I really remember is darkness.  It wasn’t bad, like I didn’t feel lonely, it was just like...being asleep in a dark room, I guess.  That’s pretty much all there was between dying and digging myself out of my grave.”  She nodded, smiling at Lydia.  “I’m just glad no one ever moved into the place, because that would have been awkward.”

Relieved she didn’t seem too upset about the collision, Nolan smiled - albeit a bit awkwardly, and stepped aside to let her pass. “No, I’m good,” he started, glancing around for anything that may have fallen from his pockets, “just stumbled a bit.”

He hadn’t seen his wallet laying on the cement next to him until after the words had left his mouth and, by then, it was too late to correct himself. Besides, it wasn’t as if it made much of a difference in the long run. This way she didn’t have to feel bad in the least and he wouldn’t have to look like any more of a fool than he already had. Solidifying his point with another small smile, he left it at that. 

That was a relief, at least.  Paige didn’t mind being clumsy, but if it was going to affect other people then that was where it needed to stop.  Looking between the stranger and his path to the shop, she made an educated guess about his destination.  He didn’t look like her, the sort who was only going to be in there to play an instrument that she had no intention of buying, so she assumed that he was there to make a purchase - and would thus be treated a little better by the owner.

“You going in?” she gestured to the store.  “If you are, just know that Max-” the owner, whose name she’d learned purely by accident - “is in a mood today.  Apparently he thinks his wife is cheating on him, and he’s going to take it out on customers.”

Being a broke teenager, it wasn’t often Nolan had extra money to spend, but when he did, it was often on his affinity for music and sport. This time, he’d decided to fork over the $25 it would take to get a new set of strings for his guitar. He’d had the current set for several months and he could already hear them failing on him, not too surprising considering they were $5 strings. The cheapest he could find at the time. 

Pausing a moment to check a text from his roommate, he looked up just in time to collide with a young woman leaving the store. “Fuck, I’m so sorry!” He apologized, heeding her abrupt warning and bending down to grab her coat for her. Despite appearing to be a similar age, he didn’t recognize her. Maybe she was new...or back from the dead - it seemed to be a thing nowadays. 

“Here -” Nolan handed back the jacket. “Again, so sorry! I should’ve been paying attention.” 

Paige let out a relieved sigh as her jacket was retrieved from the floor unharmed, and she accepted it gratefully before wrapping it around her waist to keep the same accident from happening again.  “It’s alright,” she promised.  “No harm done, and I wasn’t paying any attention either.”  In fact it had probably been more her fault than his, but she didn’t see any need to shoot down his apology when he seemed so sincere about it.

He didn’t look familiar, but that wasn’t a surprise - she hadn’t met most of the people who occupied the town these days, but hoped that going back to school for a final year might help with that.  “You alright, though?  I didn’t make you drop anything?”

Olivia noted how happy the compliment seemed to make the other, her own smile growing as well. “Of course! Everyone should hear how good they are at what they excel once in a while.” She paused, shrugging. “Or more like all the time.” When the younger female questioned the older about her piano skills, the vampire straightened her stance, pride evident in her voice. “I’ve gotten quite good, I’d say.” She’d spent centuries perfecting the art, along with practicing her singing–she’d never heard otherwise, but even if those around her didn’t like it, she would continue to regard her skills as exceptional. Her lack of improvement in string instruments was not shared in all aspects of music. Olivia noted the girl’s hesitation, for a moment wondering if the issue was that they were strangers. The young brunette seemed to get over whatever it was rather quickly though, the older offering her a smile. “Excellent! I wasn’t expecting them to be so good, but they’ve turned out to be delicious. Especially the strawberry one.” That however might have been biased, considering it was the easiest one to hide the few drops of blood the vampire had to integrate into every food to ensure it wouldn’t taste rotten. She turned towards the exit of the music shop, expecting the other to follow. “I’m Olivia, by the way.”

Paige couldn’t help but agree with that, because people didn’t get to hear nearly enough when they were good at something versus when they were terrible and everyone wanted to let them know.  “All the time is good,” she grinned, nodding.  “That’s awesome!  I’d love to play with you someday, but I don’t know if they’d let us both hang out in here for that long.”  Paige’s presence was barely tolerated, and adding a second person seemed like it was asking for trouble.  She headed for the store’s exit as well, grinning at Olivia’s enthusiasm over the smoothies.  “I don’t think I’ve tried them, but i’m looking forward to it.  Strawberry is a good flavor for pretty much anything, I think.”  As they passed back into the mall, Paige turned toward her a little.  “I’m Paige - it’s nice meeting you, Olivia.  Do you live here in town?”

The first time he saw her was on their first day of history class, his gaze lingering on her when he walked passed her desk, not really giving it much thought as his friends called for his attention. That repeated a few times over the course of the year, the boy always looking away before their eyes could meet, never approaching her even though the girl definitely caught his interest, no matter if their social circles and extra curriculum activities seemed to be incredibly different. It took them forever to finally speak to each other, their first conversation a mess Derek was completely at fault for, the boy quickly regretting his actions and wanting to make sure Paige hadn’t actually been offended. He was just playing around, showing off, thinking that would impress her instead of being polite and friendly.

Somehow it worked, even if it shouldn’t have, even if months after Derek wished she had never walked out of that music room in the first place. Paige should have ignored him, should have seen how unworthy of her friendship he was, how undeserving of her affection he would always be. He should have left her alone, should have realized his desires weren’t hers, that he had no right to make any decisions for her or force any part of his life on her. He betrayed her, he killed her, and whatever his intentions were would never make up for any of it.

And now she stood right in front of him, anxious to hear her name from his voice, desperate to get away from him. Derek knew he should have let her go, that he had no right to ask anything of her, no right to even be in her presence. Paige didn’t owe him anything, no matter if she had returned from the dead or somehow survived the bite. If she wanted to leave, he should have let her, should have never said her name and left her alone, let her enjoy whatever miracle had allowed her a second chance at life in peace.

“Paige, wait.” Derek moved forward when the girl dropped her things, resting on one knee and helping her gather the items. “Please.” He looked up then, offering the brunette her belongings, green eyes trying to meet hers under the hood. “I’ll make you the food. You can leave after that. Just…stay.” He had no right to request that, Derek was well aware. But he couldn’t let her go, not yet. He needed to know, he needed to understand. “Please…”

It wasn’t until that moment, when he was down on her level and looking in his eyes, that it finally struck her just who she was speaking to.  Derek.  The revelation hit like a hammer, and her legs went rubbery in a way that left her unsure whether she was going to remain upright for much longer.  Even after talking to Peter, even knowing that he was in town, it was still a brutal shock to the system to see the boy she’d loved and realize that he’d become a man as the world had moved on without her.  The boyish twinkling in his eyes had been replaced by something else, pain and sorrow that the years between her death and her resurrection had visited upon him, and though his features looked older it was those eyes that added years to his face.

She did fall, then, or at least slipped and stumbled backward into the booth.  Her hood fell back as her body met the seat and there was no longer any hiding her expression from him.  When this had all been hypothetical, this conversation, she had thought herself prepared.  Thought that she could explain what she knew and that things might be okay between them.  But now, in the moment, Paige wondered whether anything would be okay.  This wasn’t the reunion of two star-crossed lovers who could kiss and fall into each other’s arms.  Derek was older now, changed, not the person she’d left behind.  She, on the other hand, had barely aged in twelve years gone.  Things could never be the way they were.

As quickly as that thought struck her, though, she realized that maybe that was okay.  Whatever life had given Derek, he’d had a life.  And that made her happy, to know that he had been able to move on and become the man that he was meant to be.  “Derek,” her voice was thick.  “I’ll tell you my name if you can play one instrument in here.”  It was a moment she knew they’d both remember, and the first thing that she could actually summon to her mind to say.  “I’m not going anywhere - couldn’t if I wanted to, right now.”  She took a breath and reached out to put a hand on his cheek.  “It’s okay,” she promised.  “It’s okay.”  Paige couldn’t absolve him of what he thought of as his sins, but she could assure him that she didn’t hold him responsible for them.

Brett smiled, shaking his head her. He watched her finish the milkshake, fascinated by the red tint to her cheeks. At her words he smiled again and leaned over to kiss her. 

“Ready to get out of here?” He asked softly.

Paige had to lean forward a little to meet his lips, but didn’t mind the effort one bit.  Pulling back she grinned, nodding.  “Let’s do it.”

With the fake ID that Brett had helped her procure, Paige had happily obtained her library card and was now able to spend hours in front of the old computers in the building catching up on everything that she’d missed.  It was taking much longer than she’d imagined, and she still couldn’t figure out what the hell memes were supposed to be, but it was a warm place to hang out and the odds of getting kicked out were much smaller than at the mall.  Her favorite pastime had quickly become compiling Spotify playlists of the top songs for every year she’d been gone, plugging in a set of headphones she’d checked out at the desk and discovering songs and artists that weren’t new but new to her.  Some days she got through many of them, some days she’d get hung up on a single song - most recently Seether and Amy Lee’s Broken - and listen to it on repeat until she could picture every note in her head.  Once the novelty of it had passed, she began to plan a trip to the school’s music room to see if she could recreate it.

Music, the internet, a comfortable chair - that was the habit, and she lost herself in it over and over.  Nothing changed but the notes filling a stationery pad she’d lifted from one of the hotel rooms, and what part of the world wide web she was learning - until one day, out of nowhere, it did.  The song she’d been in the middle of, a particularly good one, hitched and stalled, and she looked up from her notes to see one message in a grey box that hovered in the center of the screen.  It looked so natural that it took her a few moments to realize that the message displayed wasn’t some sort of computer error message.  In fact it was directed at her.  Or at the very least, about her.  She pulled off her headphones, tilting her head curiously as she regarded it.

Awaiting input

Paige Krasikeva has been saved.

Further instructions (Y/N)?

C:\\

“What the heck...” her gaze swivelled back and forth as she tried to figure out whether someone in the library was playing some sort of trick.  There was only one other person on the computers, though, and from what it looked like he was doing with his free hand she doubted it was him.  The librarians were chatting softly at the desk, and she assumed it wasn’t them either.  What it meant, was the question.  Was it some kind of file that had been saved?  Or was it literally talking about her being saved?  And what further instructions could it want?  She reached out for the Y key on the keyboard, about to press it down when the computer’s tower sparked and the entire system shut down - followed by every light and electrical device in the library.