Leo stood before the full-length mirror in his quiet bedroom, studying his reflection. The man who looked back was the picture of effortless perfection. His skin was smooth without a single flaw. His eyes, a deep shade of brown that seemed almost black, were calm and unreadable. His black hair was styled precisely, and his clothes fit him as if they were made for him alone: a tailored black coat over a simple white t-shirt, and dark pants without a single wrinkle.
On the surface, he looked every bit the charming, handsome guest ready for a high-society party. But the expression in his eyes was flat. The entire event felt like a chore. He didn't want to go, and he certainly didn't want to go as Caroline Forbes's trophy date. The memory of her forceful negotiation in the cafeteria—calling in a debt he'd vaguely agreed to—still left a bitter taste in his mouth. It had broken his good mood entirely, replacing it with a sense of cold obligation.
But he had given his word. A promise, however loosely given, was binding to him. He did not go back on his word; it was a simple, inflexible rule he lived by. That was one reason he was going tonight.
The other reason was tucked away in his mind, a puzzle he hadn't solved: the Bennett family locket.From the fragments of plot he could remember, he knew the locket was important. Damon Salvatore wanted it badly. That much was clear. But the specifics were fuzzy—why it was so important, what power it truly held, or what exactly Damon planned to do with it, he couldn't recall. The details were just out of reach.He didn't want to waste any more energy and time trying to check in the memory. He trusted that once he saw the locket, the necessary information would click into place.
With a final, dispassionate glance at his perfect reflection, he turned from the mirror. He picked up the single car key from his dresser, its metal cool in his hand. He walked downstairs, his footsteps quiet in the empty house, and stepped out into the evening air.
A sleek, black car was parked in the driveway. He slid into the driver's seat, the interior silent and still. Starting the engine, he pulled out onto the street, the headlights cutting through the gathering dusk. He drove with focused calm, not toward Caroline's house, to fulfill a promise he wished he'd never made.
Leo drove his car to Caroline's house and came to a smooth stop at the curb. The house was quiet, but a warm, orange-tinted light glowed from the living room window. He gave the car horn two soft, polite taps to let her know he was there.
He waited. After a minute or two, the front door opened. Caroline stepped out onto the porch, and the yellow porch light immediately lit her up. She was wearing the sapphire blue dress she had talked about. It was strapless, fitting her without a wrinkle, and the fabric caught the light with a subtle shimmer. For one brief, unguarded moment, Leo was genuinely surprised. The dress was impressive, and it matched her perfectly—elegant and sharp, highlighting her confident posture and making her look, undeniably, striking. He blinked, then quickly smoothed his features back into his usual expression of neutral calm, the mild surprise gone as if it had never been there.
Caroline pulled the front door shut and walked toward the car. She was smiling a pleased, knowing smile. She had seen that flicker of reaction on his face before he hid it. Now, he looked just like he always did: composed, casual, and a little indifferent, like he had in the cafeteria. It was the look of someone who wasn't easily impressed, and that made her mission clear.
She didn't go straight to the car door. Instead, she stopped right beside the passenger window where he could see her clearly. Knowing she had his attention, she did a small, graceful turn on the spot, letting him see the dress from all sides. Then she looked back at him through the glass, her eyes bright and full of expectation. Her smile was confident, but there was a real question underneath it.
"So?" she asked, her voice carrying a mix of playful demand and genuine curiosity. She leaned in slightly. "Don't leave me in suspense. I've been planning this for weeks. How do I look?"
Leo held her gaze as she asked the question. He could see the eager expectation and the genuine curiosity shining in her eyes. She wanted—needed—the compliment. Despite his lingering annoyance at her earlier strong-arming, a part of him didn't want to be the one to dim that light. She had forced his hand, but she hadn't been cruel. She had just been... Caroline.
So, he offered a single, slow nod. It was a silent, succinct acknowledgment. Yes. You look as good as you clearly think you do. Without a word, he turned back to face the windshield, twisted the key in the ignition, and the car's engine purred to life.
Caroline watched that single nod, and her instincts, which were always sharp, translated it perfectly. The compliment was there, but the warmth was absent. He was still closed off, still quietly angry about the debt she'd called in at lunch. She understood immediately: if he carried this cold, detached energy into the party, the entire night would be a strained, miserable failure. She couldn't allow that. She had to fix this now.
She opened the passenger door and slid into the leather seat, carefully arranging the folds of her blue dress. As she turned to face him, he happened to glance over at the same moment. Their eyes met again in the dim light of the car's interior.
Caroline didn't try another dazzling smile. Instead, she let her expression soften into something more sincere and slightly apologetic. She took a quiet breath, choosing her words with uncharacteristic care.
"Look," she began, her voice lower and less performative than before. "About today… at lunch." She paused, searching his impassive face. "I know I can be a lot. And I know I backed you into a corner with the whole 'you owe me' thing." She waved a hand, the gesture admitting a fault. "It's just… this party is a really big deal. And the idea of going alone, or worse, of you going with someone else…" She let the sentence hang, allowing the honest insecurity to show for just a second before she gently steered away from it. "But that's my stuff to deal with. You're here now, and I am truly grateful.."
She smoothed her dress again, a nervous habit. "So, how about we just… start over? From right now. No debts, no obligations for the rest of the night." She offered him a tentative, hopeful look. "We're just two people going to a party. Can we do that?"
Leo continued to look at her. In his experience, some things, once broken, could never be truly fixed. Trust, once bent out of shape, never sat quite right again. Her behaviour in the cafeteria had felt like that—a crack in their understanding. But as he listened to her apology and saw the genuine, nervous hope in her eyes, he also saw the effort she had put into this night. Her dress, her planning, even this attempt to make things right. She hadn't tried to pretend nothing happened; she had acknowledged it directly. That mattered.
He didn't believe the crack was gone, but he saw no value in punishing her all night for it. The promise was already being kept. He could choose to make it unbearable, or he could choose to move forward.
"Deal done, Caroline," he said, his voice quiet but clear. It wasn't warm, but the ice in it had melted. It was simply an acceptance of her terms.
A huge, radiant smile instantly broke across her face, lighting up her whole expression with pure relief. Before he could react, she leaned across the center console and gave him a quick, tight hug.
"Thank you," she said, settling back into her seat and smoothing her dress, her words sincere and breathless. "You won't regret it. I promise, tonight will be perfect. I have the whole schedule in my head. We'll make a grand entrance, hit the punch bowl before the council members drone on too long, and I've already scoped out which terrace has the best view for… well, for whatever." She caught herself rambling and laughed, a light, happy sound. "Okay, sorry. I'll stop planning out loud."
A relaxed silence settled in the car, completely different from the stiff quiet before. As Leo listened to Caroline's excited planning, a faint, almost invisible smile touched his lips. He shook his head slightly, not in annoyance, but in quiet amusement. Then he turned forward, shifted the car into gear, and pulled away from the curb. He drove toward the center of town where the lights of the Lockwood mansion were waiting.
The gentle flash of streetlights passed over Caroline's face as they drove. She had seen that tiny, nearly invisible smile on Leo's lips, and it made her own smile become more real and content.She knew that this matter was solved, now her mind buzzing with the potential of the evening ahead.
Leo focused on the road, the initial resentment now a dull background hum, replaced by a steady resolve to see the night through. The party, the people, and the hidden purpose for the locket all lay ahead, down the dark, tree-lined road.
***