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[A Normal Life] in love (with you)
Title: in love (with you)
Fandom: The Vampire Diaries
Universe: A Normal Life
Relationship: Tyler Lockwood / Caroline Forbes, implied Stefan Salvatore / Elena Gilbert
Summary: Tyler realizes he's in love with Caroline, and he's not sure when it all started.
Notes: A short fic to kick my gear back into writing mode! I don't think I'll ever abandon this universe completely, but it's been hard to write the next chapter for the main fic, so these snippets [taking place AFTER the main fic] have helped. If you enjoyed the glimpses into Stefan's social life, I hope you'll enjoy these too. :>
You think you're in love with Caroline Forbes. You don't know when or how or God, even why - but when she smiles at you, the whole world stops spinning and you're blinded by her bright blue eyes and the crinkles at the edges of her eyes and- and fuck, you sound like one of Stefan's dumb romance novels. (No offense.)
The world moves in slow motion when she walks towards you and reaches out for your hand. For her, it's a platonic gesture, the kind of comfort brought through years of experience. For you, it's slow, agonizing torture. Her gentle touch was worse than your transformations. You could mark a full moon on a calendar, but there was no way you could've guessed her spellbinding effect on you.
Even when it's only the six of you grabbing coffee at the Velvet Room, you're mesmerized by the lilt of her voice and even how she stretches out her arm to give you a London Fog latte.
(See? She even knows your usual order.)
"Tyler?" She tilts her head at you with wide-eyed innocence. "You okay? You've, uh, been kinda weird lately."
Your best friends exchange amused glances before bursting into laughter. The whole restaurant turns to stare at you - and you almost wish you could vanish into thin air or blend into those push leather booths.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine," you stammer, staring down at the swirls in your latte. Your face was probably all red too. You weren't willing to confirm that sneaking suspicion.
Matt takes a sip of his au lait. "No weirder than usual, Care."
Jeremy and Elena roll their eyes at each other, and you're suddenly glad that Stefan's too preoccupied with his book (some dumb YA novel) to care about the conversation. Caroline, though, nudges Stefan with her free hand.
In the loudest whisper you've ever heard, she asks, "Is he sick?"
"He's lovesick, if that counts." Stefan turns the page without missing a beat.
Oooor maybe your best friend would throw you into the sharks like it was any other Thursday, and Elena and Matt are struggling to hold in their laughter as Jeremy loses it altogether.
What had you ever done to deserve friends like them? The last thing you wanted was Caroline freaking Forbes at your tail, trying to figure out when you had decided she was the most beautiful woman on Earth.
"Oh." Caroline blinks back surprise, unable to keep disappointment (wait, disappointment?) off her face. "Is it Slutty Sophie?"
You weren't going to face Damon or Uncle Mace's wrath today, so you amend, "Stunning Sophie, and no. Not really."
Stefan's shoulders are shaking from behind his novel, though Elena doesn't seem to care as she leans on him.
"It's so obvious," Elena has to admit with a laugh that sounds more sinister than genuine. "Like, way more obvious than my big fat crush on Stefan."
"You've also dated him since, like, kindergarten. Of course you'd be obvious." Caroline says, clicking her tongue in disapproval. "I swear, though, I've never seen Tyler like this."
Invisibility would be a really cool superpower right now. Too bad that had never been on the werewolf skill sheet - shapeshifting, enhanced senses, tracking people down via scent, and yet, no blending into the scenery. Of course. You never asked for the werewolf life, but if it was your inevitable fate, why not get something useful out of it?
Like disappearing into your leather booth and walking right out of the cafe??
Matt manages a smile as he leans in and pulls out his cell phone. Like a photographer about to capture his elusive subject, he said, "You'd better take a picture. I don't think he'll last like this much longer."
"Yeah, because your face isn't going to last--" You bite your tongue, still glaring at your (stupid, stupid) friends.
Stefan snorts. "Even for you, that was terrible."
(You could still punch them, right? Surely it was a rule in the werewolf code of conduct. Thou wilst be allowed to punch thy asshole friends.)
"Shut up," you growl, your voice sounding more wolf than human as you gnash your teeth at Stefan.
Matt and Elena recoil back, while Jeremy? Stupid Jeremy waves a chocolate croissant in your face.
With a smug grin, he almost sings, "Whoa! Easy, boy. Down, boy."
You narrow your eyes at him, seizing it in mid-air. "Not. Funny."
In hindsight, you shouldn't have told the group your deepest and darkest secret. The dog jokes were wearing out their welcome. At this rate, you figured, the boys were probably going to buy you a dog collar for your birthday.
"Seriously, Jeremy?" Caroline scowled as she took a sip of her latte. "Our poor best friend has a crush and you're making dog jokes?"
Right, you'd told everyone except Care. Thank you, past self, for actually making a smart and rational decision.
Without a minute to spare, she pulls out her clipboard and a pen and starts jotting down notes. "So you don't like Sophie, but you're thinking about someone. Girl, right? You don't play for the other team?"
"Not that I know of," you admit, furrowing your brow.
"That's a relief." Elena peers over Stefan's shoulder, now intent on reading the YA novel with him. "For a second, I thought I'd have to share Stefan."
Stefan turns another page in his novel. "Nah. I'm not good at sharing."
Jeremy gives you a resigned shrug, and it's all you can do from repeating the gesture back. Stefan wasn't wrong: as close as you were, he and Elena were on a different wavelength altogether. A super nerdy wavelength, really. They were all about classical authors, or new "diverse" authors, or some new literature movement you'd never heard about. Mostly, you admired their attention span. The Internet had eroded yours a long, long time ago.
Care clicks her tongue in disapproval. "Focus! This is important stuff here."
To who? You want her, not her matchmaking skills.
Before you can say another word, Stefan closes his book and grabs the clipboard from her. "Care. Come on, you really don't know?"
She shakes her head. "I know he likes someone. He's been spacing out lately, and he's started doing things differently. Like his cologne."
You sit up a little straighter, right as Matt murmurs, "How do you even notice a thing like that?"
Vampire senses, maybe. You had changed your cologne in the past month, upon hearing that she preferred something a little muskier - but you hadn't ever expected her to notice. Care was too focused on school and her extracurriculars. She didn't have time for love, or so she'd told everyone at the time.
Now, you were starting to wonder about that paper-thin excuse. "What about my cologne?"
"It smells nice, but it's new." She shrugs. "Point is, you're changing up your routine, and I know it's for her."
"Or his inner wolf," Jeremy grumbles under his breath.
Some day, you swear, you were going to find new friends, because they weren't doing you any favors. Matt gently nudges Jeremy before you could kick him - and it's for the best, because your aim was spectacularly off. Poor Elena's glare could've woken the dead.
Caroline stifles a laugh, distracting herself with nonsensical scribbles on her clipboard.
After what feels like eternity, you gesture for the door. Matt nods, getting up so you can rise to your feet and head out. "Care? Can uh, can we talk outside?"
She blinks back surprise. "Can't you say it in front of everyone?"
"Nope," Stefan's voice is firm yet gentle this time. He even closes his book as he reaches out for Caroline's hand and squeezes it. "Trust us. This, you'll want to hear in private."
She raises her eyebrows, but says nothing else as she gathers her things and follows you out the door. You wait until you're safely out of everyone's hearing range before you gather up what little courage you have and--
"Why won't you tell me?" Her voice's almost cracking as she reaches out for your hands. "Ty, we don't do this secret-thing. It's weird, and I don't like it, and I want to know--"
"It's you, dummy." You're so close to laughing as you stare into her big, beautiful eyes. "It's always been you."
She squeezes your hands even tighter. "What? I... I...."
For the first time in your life, you've managed to render Caroline freaking Forbes speechless. If you marked milestones, you would've put a big gold star on your calendar. Instead, you lean forward and rest your forehead on hers.
She pulls in closer, resting her hands on your chest as she listens to the steady sound of your heartbeat. In this moment, you weren't a newly born werewolf, nor was she a fledgling vampire. Nor were you members of a (dying) town dynasty. You were a kid hopelessly in love with your best friend, and for a moment, you could pretend she shared the sentiment.
"I love you too, silly," she says, pulling you into an impossibly tight hug.
You blinked back surprise. "But I didn't..."
"You didn't have to. Your heart spoke for itself."
You scrunch up your whole face at her, whispering in her ear, "Tattletale." Her ensuing laugh is so warm and rich and genuine that you can't help adding, "I love you, okay? I love you and I want to see where this goes and I don't--"
She pulls back only to place a finger to your lips. "It's okay. I know."
She does? Miss Student Council VP?? Your expression must've spoken for you because she laughs again and reaches out to hold your cheeks in her hands.
Her touch shakes you and reaffirms what you've always known.
So without hesitation, you lean in and kiss her. You don't know how or why or when, but you are way too deep in love with your favorite (and only) sweet Caroline.
Fandom: The Vampire Diaries
Universe: A Normal Life
Relationship: Tyler Lockwood / Caroline Forbes, implied Stefan Salvatore / Elena Gilbert
Summary: Tyler realizes he's in love with Caroline, and he's not sure when it all started.
Notes: A short fic to kick my gear back into writing mode! I don't think I'll ever abandon this universe completely, but it's been hard to write the next chapter for the main fic, so these snippets [taking place AFTER the main fic] have helped. If you enjoyed the glimpses into Stefan's social life, I hope you'll enjoy these too. :>
You think you're in love with Caroline Forbes. You don't know when or how or God, even why - but when she smiles at you, the whole world stops spinning and you're blinded by her bright blue eyes and the crinkles at the edges of her eyes and- and fuck, you sound like one of Stefan's dumb romance novels. (No offense.)
The world moves in slow motion when she walks towards you and reaches out for your hand. For her, it's a platonic gesture, the kind of comfort brought through years of experience. For you, it's slow, agonizing torture. Her gentle touch was worse than your transformations. You could mark a full moon on a calendar, but there was no way you could've guessed her spellbinding effect on you.
Even when it's only the six of you grabbing coffee at the Velvet Room, you're mesmerized by the lilt of her voice and even how she stretches out her arm to give you a London Fog latte.
(See? She even knows your usual order.)
"Tyler?" She tilts her head at you with wide-eyed innocence. "You okay? You've, uh, been kinda weird lately."
Your best friends exchange amused glances before bursting into laughter. The whole restaurant turns to stare at you - and you almost wish you could vanish into thin air or blend into those push leather booths.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine," you stammer, staring down at the swirls in your latte. Your face was probably all red too. You weren't willing to confirm that sneaking suspicion.
Matt takes a sip of his au lait. "No weirder than usual, Care."
Jeremy and Elena roll their eyes at each other, and you're suddenly glad that Stefan's too preoccupied with his book (some dumb YA novel) to care about the conversation. Caroline, though, nudges Stefan with her free hand.
In the loudest whisper you've ever heard, she asks, "Is he sick?"
"He's lovesick, if that counts." Stefan turns the page without missing a beat.
Oooor maybe your best friend would throw you into the sharks like it was any other Thursday, and Elena and Matt are struggling to hold in their laughter as Jeremy loses it altogether.
What had you ever done to deserve friends like them? The last thing you wanted was Caroline freaking Forbes at your tail, trying to figure out when you had decided she was the most beautiful woman on Earth.
"Oh." Caroline blinks back surprise, unable to keep disappointment (wait, disappointment?) off her face. "Is it Slutty Sophie?"
You weren't going to face Damon or Uncle Mace's wrath today, so you amend, "Stunning Sophie, and no. Not really."
Stefan's shoulders are shaking from behind his novel, though Elena doesn't seem to care as she leans on him.
"It's so obvious," Elena has to admit with a laugh that sounds more sinister than genuine. "Like, way more obvious than my big fat crush on Stefan."
"You've also dated him since, like, kindergarten. Of course you'd be obvious." Caroline says, clicking her tongue in disapproval. "I swear, though, I've never seen Tyler like this."
Invisibility would be a really cool superpower right now. Too bad that had never been on the werewolf skill sheet - shapeshifting, enhanced senses, tracking people down via scent, and yet, no blending into the scenery. Of course. You never asked for the werewolf life, but if it was your inevitable fate, why not get something useful out of it?
Like disappearing into your leather booth and walking right out of the cafe??
Matt manages a smile as he leans in and pulls out his cell phone. Like a photographer about to capture his elusive subject, he said, "You'd better take a picture. I don't think he'll last like this much longer."
"Yeah, because your face isn't going to last--" You bite your tongue, still glaring at your (stupid, stupid) friends.
Stefan snorts. "Even for you, that was terrible."
(You could still punch them, right? Surely it was a rule in the werewolf code of conduct. Thou wilst be allowed to punch thy asshole friends.)
"Shut up," you growl, your voice sounding more wolf than human as you gnash your teeth at Stefan.
Matt and Elena recoil back, while Jeremy? Stupid Jeremy waves a chocolate croissant in your face.
With a smug grin, he almost sings, "Whoa! Easy, boy. Down, boy."
You narrow your eyes at him, seizing it in mid-air. "Not. Funny."
In hindsight, you shouldn't have told the group your deepest and darkest secret. The dog jokes were wearing out their welcome. At this rate, you figured, the boys were probably going to buy you a dog collar for your birthday.
"Seriously, Jeremy?" Caroline scowled as she took a sip of her latte. "Our poor best friend has a crush and you're making dog jokes?"
Right, you'd told everyone except Care. Thank you, past self, for actually making a smart and rational decision.
Without a minute to spare, she pulls out her clipboard and a pen and starts jotting down notes. "So you don't like Sophie, but you're thinking about someone. Girl, right? You don't play for the other team?"
"Not that I know of," you admit, furrowing your brow.
"That's a relief." Elena peers over Stefan's shoulder, now intent on reading the YA novel with him. "For a second, I thought I'd have to share Stefan."
Stefan turns another page in his novel. "Nah. I'm not good at sharing."
Jeremy gives you a resigned shrug, and it's all you can do from repeating the gesture back. Stefan wasn't wrong: as close as you were, he and Elena were on a different wavelength altogether. A super nerdy wavelength, really. They were all about classical authors, or new "diverse" authors, or some new literature movement you'd never heard about. Mostly, you admired their attention span. The Internet had eroded yours a long, long time ago.
Care clicks her tongue in disapproval. "Focus! This is important stuff here."
To who? You want her, not her matchmaking skills.
Before you can say another word, Stefan closes his book and grabs the clipboard from her. "Care. Come on, you really don't know?"
She shakes her head. "I know he likes someone. He's been spacing out lately, and he's started doing things differently. Like his cologne."
You sit up a little straighter, right as Matt murmurs, "How do you even notice a thing like that?"
Vampire senses, maybe. You had changed your cologne in the past month, upon hearing that she preferred something a little muskier - but you hadn't ever expected her to notice. Care was too focused on school and her extracurriculars. She didn't have time for love, or so she'd told everyone at the time.
Now, you were starting to wonder about that paper-thin excuse. "What about my cologne?"
"It smells nice, but it's new." She shrugs. "Point is, you're changing up your routine, and I know it's for her."
"Or his inner wolf," Jeremy grumbles under his breath.
Some day, you swear, you were going to find new friends, because they weren't doing you any favors. Matt gently nudges Jeremy before you could kick him - and it's for the best, because your aim was spectacularly off. Poor Elena's glare could've woken the dead.
Caroline stifles a laugh, distracting herself with nonsensical scribbles on her clipboard.
After what feels like eternity, you gesture for the door. Matt nods, getting up so you can rise to your feet and head out. "Care? Can uh, can we talk outside?"
She blinks back surprise. "Can't you say it in front of everyone?"
"Nope," Stefan's voice is firm yet gentle this time. He even closes his book as he reaches out for Caroline's hand and squeezes it. "Trust us. This, you'll want to hear in private."
She raises her eyebrows, but says nothing else as she gathers her things and follows you out the door. You wait until you're safely out of everyone's hearing range before you gather up what little courage you have and--
"Why won't you tell me?" Her voice's almost cracking as she reaches out for your hands. "Ty, we don't do this secret-thing. It's weird, and I don't like it, and I want to know--"
"It's you, dummy." You're so close to laughing as you stare into her big, beautiful eyes. "It's always been you."
She squeezes your hands even tighter. "What? I... I...."
For the first time in your life, you've managed to render Caroline freaking Forbes speechless. If you marked milestones, you would've put a big gold star on your calendar. Instead, you lean forward and rest your forehead on hers.
She pulls in closer, resting her hands on your chest as she listens to the steady sound of your heartbeat. In this moment, you weren't a newly born werewolf, nor was she a fledgling vampire. Nor were you members of a (dying) town dynasty. You were a kid hopelessly in love with your best friend, and for a moment, you could pretend she shared the sentiment.
"I love you too, silly," she says, pulling you into an impossibly tight hug.
You blinked back surprise. "But I didn't..."
"You didn't have to. Your heart spoke for itself."
You scrunch up your whole face at her, whispering in her ear, "Tattletale." Her ensuing laugh is so warm and rich and genuine that you can't help adding, "I love you, okay? I love you and I want to see where this goes and I don't--"
She pulls back only to place a finger to your lips. "It's okay. I know."
She does? Miss Student Council VP?? Your expression must've spoken for you because she laughs again and reaches out to hold your cheeks in her hands.
Her touch shakes you and reaffirms what you've always known.
So without hesitation, you lean in and kiss her. You don't know how or why or when, but you are way too deep in love with your favorite (and only) sweet Caroline.