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[TVD - ANL] group projects
Title: Group Projects
Fandom: The Vampire Diaries
Universe: A Normal Life
Relationships: Stefan/Elena, friendship between Stefan, Elena, Tyler, Matt, and Caroline
Summary: Stefan and Elena don't get paired up for a group project and for a moment, it feels like their world is about to end.
Word Count: 1582
Notes: Written in a desperate attempt to kickstart my gears for this 'verse and the main fic. I keep circling back to these kids, because their friendship means so much to me and we see so little of it in canon. Hopefully this'll motivate me!
During 6th period, Mr. Saltzman announced a group project in AP Government. The chairs groan with the weight of a thousand years as students squirm in their seats and papers shuffle to the back of the room. As Stefan skimmed the worksheet, he swore that if he were ever a teacher, he'd ban them forever. Group projects were an evil worse than vampires. A vampire could drain your blood, sure, but group work always drained his soul along with sweat, tears, and more work than seemed humanly possible.
Mr. Saltzman organized the groups by a count-off. (No scurrying to their usual groups.) Each student held up fingers - one, two, or three - and then, in the blink of an eye, all eyes were on Stefan.
He took one frantic look around before holding up two fingers and mouthing to Elena, "Sorry."
She stifled a laugh as she met his gaze and held up three fingers. As the counting continued, all he could focus on was her warm, sympathetic face. Ever since third grade, they had always been partners, from middle school science fairs to awkward dances and everything in-between. If they could choose their groups, they always found each other first. Mr. Saltzman had to drive a randomized wedge into their well-oiled machine, and of course, Stefan realized as he saw who else had the number two, he had to have the slackers with him.
With a heavy sigh, Stefan rose to meet the inevitable.
Matt followed him to the right-hand corner, under the giant FDR poster, and slung his arm around Stefan's shoulder. "You've still got me, at least."
Stefan gave him the smallest of smiles. "Small mercies."
"Chin up. You can't partner up with Elena for every little thing."
Stefan almost let out a whimper. Almost, because he was a Salvatore, and Salvatores didn't whimper about something as silly as an AP Government school project. They did, however, whip out their phone and text a complaint to their older brother about their dumb history teacher.
Surely Damon would have some sympathy - or at least convince the teacher to bend the rules for the girl Mr. Saltzman almost killed. (Yeah, no, Stefan would never forgive him for that.)
The reply comes almost instantaneously:
Matt peered over his shoulder and let out a laugh. "Nice try, Stefano."
After school, Stefan and Matt piled into an empty classroom to join their friends. In half an hour, they would head off to their extracurriculars: cheerleading for Elena and Caroline; football for Matt; and Model UN for Stefan and Tyler. Bonnie and Jeremy had headed to the yearbook meeting early (something about crunch time and mistaken deadlines).
A small part of Stefan wished they could visit the Grill like kids on TV, but then he would have nothing for those shiny college applications. His future mattered more - and in turn, so did things like (stupid) group projects and after-school clubs.
"I can't believe the nerve of Mr. Saltzman," Elena was saying as Stefan walked in. "I got paired with Sue Carson. Do you know how much work we're gonna accomplish this weekend?"
Tyler winced in sympathy. "I'm gonna guess none."
"Bingo."
Stefan laughed as he rushed over to greet Elena with a kiss. "You'll have to knock some sense into her." He paused. "Not literally."
Caroline shook her head at Stefan. "I don't think brute force was the answer to begin with."
"You also think a party is the answer to everything," Stefan pointed out, sitting on one of the desks.
"Because it is." Caroline shrugged, ignoring Tyler's and Matt's (losing) struggle to keep their expressions even.
"What about you and Matt?" Elena folded her arms. "I saw that you were paired up with Caleb Smallwood. That can't end well."
"It will if he wants us to qualify for state," Matt said, his voice growing solemn as he leaned on Tyler. "We already lost one player to academia. Can't afford to lose another."
"You didn't lose me," Tyler protested, making no attempt to push Matt off him. "I'm doing Model UN of my own free will this year."
"Just remember, man: Malaysia's a Muslim country."
The entire room burst into laughter. For the past three months, it should be noted, Tyler had missed the memo. Even though it was plastered all over Wikipedia. Even though it was in their constitution. Even though the entire delegation had primed him to remember this. In hindsight, it was almost impressive.
Tyler's cheeks grew a brilliant shade of red as he buried himself in Matt's shoulder. "I don't think I'm allowed to forget."
"So, the Grill this Friday?" Stefan needed something to look forward to, before the weight of school crushed his shoulders again and again. "We'll celebrate getting through yet another week here."
"Sounds good to me," Elena murmured, squeezing Stefan's hand.
Caroline, Tyler, and Matt nodded.
"I'll see if I can swing an employee discount." Matt's smile was almost contagious as he finally let go of Tyler. "All those sweet potato fries add up, you know."
"Don't try too hard on our behalf." Caroline furrowed her brow at him, though her eyes betrayed her relief.
There was an awkward lull for a few seconds, broken only by the pin-drop silence outside. If their classmates had already scurried off, then they couldn't postpone their commitments for much longer. Most nights, they couldn't afford to visit the Grill. Homework took four hours on average, not counting SAT or ACT prep, and the cycle always began anew the next day. Weekends were sometimes (maybe) a respite. College was supposed to be easier, right? Hopefully?
Because at this rate, high school might as well be a method of torture.
Since she was co-captain of the squad, Caroline was the first to leave. Then Matt and Tyler wandered off in search of food, and theoretically, Stefan knew he should go. Model UN wouldn't end until six, and Damon would need help preparing dinner. A hungry stomach made for a terrible sous-chef.
Except Elena was staring out the window with a pensive expression, so he folded his arms and followed her gaze. The leaves were starting to fall, scattering across the field and track outside.
She spoke first, "It feels weird, you know?"
"What does?"
"All this... you know, normal stuff." She clutched her necklace and ignored the faint violent hue beneath her fingers. "We're talking about school, and the Grill, and regular old high school stuff when - when you can cast magic, Stefan, and I look like this girl named Katherine, and Bonnie and Anna are actually hundreds of years old."
Stefan snorted. "Do you want us to talk about that?"
"Yes? No? I don't know, maybe?" Her voice grew anxious. "Stef, it's... it's terrifying. I can take SAT practice tests, and I can force Sue into pulling her weight, but I can't fight vampires."
"And you don't have to." Stefan enveloped her in the tightest hug possible. "As long as Damon and I are around, we've got your back."
"I know. I know, I just- I feel like I should be doing something more."
"You are." Stefan pulled back only to rest his forehead on top of hers. "You're a survivor, right? One day at a time..."
She laughed, despite the tears threatening to well up in her eyes. "But you're a fighter, Stef. I saw you texting Damon about switching us up."
"Nah. I'm a coward." Stefan knew the truth when it was staring him in the face. "My world isn't going to end because we're stuck with the biggest slackers in the grade, and yours isn't going to end because of magic or vampires or whatever life throws at us."
At least, he hoped it wouldn't. Elena closed her eyes and rested her head on his shoulders. This moment, he wanted to last forever. Their heartbeats were one and as long as they remained like this, maybe he could keep protecting her. Maybe they wouldn't have to pretend to put one foot before the other, and maybe they could hope hours of homework were their only arch-nemeses.
It was Elena who let go first with a chaste kiss. "Probably not," she said. "Thanks, Stef. I needed that."
"Anytime."
She turned towards the door, slinging her messenger bag across her shoulders. "Come onnnnnn. We're gonna be late."
Despite himself, he can't quite help teasing, "If we aren't already?"
She scrunched up her whole face at him. "Well, we are now."
As he entered the Grill that Friday evening, finished project tucked in his backpack, Stefan felt the weight of the world slide off him. Wrangling Caleb and Matt had been a gargantuan task, but it was done, and on Monday, they'd present it as-is. (Only final editing touches and last-minute mistakes, if any were left. Thank God.)
Elena was saying to Caroline as he approached, "Four hours. That's how long it took Sue to get focused."
From the nearby pool table, Tyler interrupted, "That's what she said."
As Elena and Caroline burst into laughter, the world slid back into place. Damon might've had a point: no matter how much Stefan hated group projects (Elena-less group projects), they weren't as impossible as he feared. After all, at the end of the night, they had each other - and as long as they had that unbreakable bond, even the laziest partners were easy to handle.
Fandom: The Vampire Diaries
Universe: A Normal Life
Relationships: Stefan/Elena, friendship between Stefan, Elena, Tyler, Matt, and Caroline
Summary: Stefan and Elena don't get paired up for a group project and for a moment, it feels like their world is about to end.
Word Count: 1582
Notes: Written in a desperate attempt to kickstart my gears for this 'verse and the main fic. I keep circling back to these kids, because their friendship means so much to me and we see so little of it in canon. Hopefully this'll motivate me!
During 6th period, Mr. Saltzman announced a group project in AP Government. The chairs groan with the weight of a thousand years as students squirm in their seats and papers shuffle to the back of the room. As Stefan skimmed the worksheet, he swore that if he were ever a teacher, he'd ban them forever. Group projects were an evil worse than vampires. A vampire could drain your blood, sure, but group work always drained his soul along with sweat, tears, and more work than seemed humanly possible.
Mr. Saltzman organized the groups by a count-off. (No scurrying to their usual groups.) Each student held up fingers - one, two, or three - and then, in the blink of an eye, all eyes were on Stefan.
He took one frantic look around before holding up two fingers and mouthing to Elena, "Sorry."
She stifled a laugh as she met his gaze and held up three fingers. As the counting continued, all he could focus on was her warm, sympathetic face. Ever since third grade, they had always been partners, from middle school science fairs to awkward dances and everything in-between. If they could choose their groups, they always found each other first. Mr. Saltzman had to drive a randomized wedge into their well-oiled machine, and of course, Stefan realized as he saw who else had the number two, he had to have the slackers with him.
With a heavy sigh, Stefan rose to meet the inevitable.
Matt followed him to the right-hand corner, under the giant FDR poster, and slung his arm around Stefan's shoulder. "You've still got me, at least."
Stefan gave him the smallest of smiles. "Small mercies."
"Chin up. You can't partner up with Elena for every little thing."
Stefan almost let out a whimper. Almost, because he was a Salvatore, and Salvatores didn't whimper about something as silly as an AP Government school project. They did, however, whip out their phone and text a complaint to their older brother about their dumb history teacher.
Surely Damon would have some sympathy - or at least convince the teacher to bend the rules for the girl Mr. Saltzman almost killed. (Yeah, no, Stefan would never forgive him for that.)
The reply comes almost instantaneously:
yeah right. You're going to suffer through this one, brother. It'll build character!!
Matt peered over his shoulder and let out a laugh. "Nice try, Stefano."
After school, Stefan and Matt piled into an empty classroom to join their friends. In half an hour, they would head off to their extracurriculars: cheerleading for Elena and Caroline; football for Matt; and Model UN for Stefan and Tyler. Bonnie and Jeremy had headed to the yearbook meeting early (something about crunch time and mistaken deadlines).
A small part of Stefan wished they could visit the Grill like kids on TV, but then he would have nothing for those shiny college applications. His future mattered more - and in turn, so did things like (stupid) group projects and after-school clubs.
"I can't believe the nerve of Mr. Saltzman," Elena was saying as Stefan walked in. "I got paired with Sue Carson. Do you know how much work we're gonna accomplish this weekend?"
Tyler winced in sympathy. "I'm gonna guess none."
"Bingo."
Stefan laughed as he rushed over to greet Elena with a kiss. "You'll have to knock some sense into her." He paused. "Not literally."
Caroline shook her head at Stefan. "I don't think brute force was the answer to begin with."
"You also think a party is the answer to everything," Stefan pointed out, sitting on one of the desks.
"Because it is." Caroline shrugged, ignoring Tyler's and Matt's (losing) struggle to keep their expressions even.
"What about you and Matt?" Elena folded her arms. "I saw that you were paired up with Caleb Smallwood. That can't end well."
"It will if he wants us to qualify for state," Matt said, his voice growing solemn as he leaned on Tyler. "We already lost one player to academia. Can't afford to lose another."
"You didn't lose me," Tyler protested, making no attempt to push Matt off him. "I'm doing Model UN of my own free will this year."
"Just remember, man: Malaysia's a Muslim country."
The entire room burst into laughter. For the past three months, it should be noted, Tyler had missed the memo. Even though it was plastered all over Wikipedia. Even though it was in their constitution. Even though the entire delegation had primed him to remember this. In hindsight, it was almost impressive.
Tyler's cheeks grew a brilliant shade of red as he buried himself in Matt's shoulder. "I don't think I'm allowed to forget."
"So, the Grill this Friday?" Stefan needed something to look forward to, before the weight of school crushed his shoulders again and again. "We'll celebrate getting through yet another week here."
"Sounds good to me," Elena murmured, squeezing Stefan's hand.
Caroline, Tyler, and Matt nodded.
"I'll see if I can swing an employee discount." Matt's smile was almost contagious as he finally let go of Tyler. "All those sweet potato fries add up, you know."
"Don't try too hard on our behalf." Caroline furrowed her brow at him, though her eyes betrayed her relief.
There was an awkward lull for a few seconds, broken only by the pin-drop silence outside. If their classmates had already scurried off, then they couldn't postpone their commitments for much longer. Most nights, they couldn't afford to visit the Grill. Homework took four hours on average, not counting SAT or ACT prep, and the cycle always began anew the next day. Weekends were sometimes (maybe) a respite. College was supposed to be easier, right? Hopefully?
Because at this rate, high school might as well be a method of torture.
Since she was co-captain of the squad, Caroline was the first to leave. Then Matt and Tyler wandered off in search of food, and theoretically, Stefan knew he should go. Model UN wouldn't end until six, and Damon would need help preparing dinner. A hungry stomach made for a terrible sous-chef.
Except Elena was staring out the window with a pensive expression, so he folded his arms and followed her gaze. The leaves were starting to fall, scattering across the field and track outside.
She spoke first, "It feels weird, you know?"
"What does?"
"All this... you know, normal stuff." She clutched her necklace and ignored the faint violent hue beneath her fingers. "We're talking about school, and the Grill, and regular old high school stuff when - when you can cast magic, Stefan, and I look like this girl named Katherine, and Bonnie and Anna are actually hundreds of years old."
Stefan snorted. "Do you want us to talk about that?"
"Yes? No? I don't know, maybe?" Her voice grew anxious. "Stef, it's... it's terrifying. I can take SAT practice tests, and I can force Sue into pulling her weight, but I can't fight vampires."
"And you don't have to." Stefan enveloped her in the tightest hug possible. "As long as Damon and I are around, we've got your back."
"I know. I know, I just- I feel like I should be doing something more."
"You are." Stefan pulled back only to rest his forehead on top of hers. "You're a survivor, right? One day at a time..."
She laughed, despite the tears threatening to well up in her eyes. "But you're a fighter, Stef. I saw you texting Damon about switching us up."
"Nah. I'm a coward." Stefan knew the truth when it was staring him in the face. "My world isn't going to end because we're stuck with the biggest slackers in the grade, and yours isn't going to end because of magic or vampires or whatever life throws at us."
At least, he hoped it wouldn't. Elena closed her eyes and rested her head on his shoulders. This moment, he wanted to last forever. Their heartbeats were one and as long as they remained like this, maybe he could keep protecting her. Maybe they wouldn't have to pretend to put one foot before the other, and maybe they could hope hours of homework were their only arch-nemeses.
It was Elena who let go first with a chaste kiss. "Probably not," she said. "Thanks, Stef. I needed that."
"Anytime."
She turned towards the door, slinging her messenger bag across her shoulders. "Come onnnnnn. We're gonna be late."
Despite himself, he can't quite help teasing, "If we aren't already?"
She scrunched up her whole face at him. "Well, we are now."
As he entered the Grill that Friday evening, finished project tucked in his backpack, Stefan felt the weight of the world slide off him. Wrangling Caleb and Matt had been a gargantuan task, but it was done, and on Monday, they'd present it as-is. (Only final editing touches and last-minute mistakes, if any were left. Thank God.)
Elena was saying to Caroline as he approached, "Four hours. That's how long it took Sue to get focused."
From the nearby pool table, Tyler interrupted, "That's what she said."
As Elena and Caroline burst into laughter, the world slid back into place. Damon might've had a point: no matter how much Stefan hated group projects (Elena-less group projects), they weren't as impossible as he feared. After all, at the end of the night, they had each other - and as long as they had that unbreakable bond, even the laziest partners were easy to handle.