The Vampire Diaries
Morning light filtered through the gaps in the curtains, falling onto the desk.
Elena Gilbert sat at the desk, her pen pausing for a moment over her diary.
She wrote: "Today will be different. I will smile, and I will tell people I'm fine—and I'll say it convincingly enough."
Closing the diary, she took a deep breath.
The sound of a door slamming echoed from the hallway. Jeremy left without looking back; he hadn't spoken a proper word since their parents died.
Aunt Jenna peeked her head out from the kitchen, flour dusting her apron, trying to force a smile.
On the first day of school, the hallways of Mystic Falls High were crowded.
Elena ran into her ex-boyfriend, Matt Donovan, as she navigated the crowd. He gave a nod but said nothing.
Caroline Forbes approached, her smile polished and forced, as if competing against an invisible opponent.
Bonnie Bennett hooked an arm through hers from behind: "You look much better today." Elena squeezed her hand back.
A stranger stood at the end of the hallway.
Dark hair, lean build, quietly looking over his class schedule.
He looked like he had just moved here—because in this town, Elena knew every face.
Bonnie followed her gaze: "I heard he's new."
Elena looked away and kept walking.
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