stefan salvatore (drinkingproblem) wrote in thedisplaced, @ 2018-02-11 17:07:00 |
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Later afternoon, day of arrival
Emmeline Vance ✦ Stefan Salvatore
Talking/Drinking @ Meridian Lounge Pretty Tame Complete & Closed |
The first drink went down rather quickly. It was easy to focus on making sure she didn’t lose anyone in the jump, but the everlasting images of the space cruise was still on her mind. Yes, a cruise did sound nice and she would enjoy laying out in the sun. At the moment, she wanted to have a drink with Stefan, and maybe talk about everything that had happened last time. “Thanks for being here with me.” Her second drink was handed to her and she looked over to Stefan. “I appreciate it.” Everything Damon had told him had been pretty vague, but Stefan knew enough to know that it hadn’t been all fun and games. Emmeline has been through a lot, his brother had told him, and while Stefan couldn’t remember any of it, not even the relationship the two of them had once had, but he wanted to be there for her all the same if he could be. “You don’t have to thank me for being a friend,” he objected as he reached for his own glass. “It’s the least I can do.” Smiling she looked away and took a drink. “I don’t know how much Damon told you about our trip to space,” she started. Emmeline wasn’t sure if she just thought it best to get the stories over with or because being around Stefan always made her feel more at ease to talk about the more serious matters. “It seemed fun at first. There was a lot to do, seemed like a perfect vacation. We even started visiting different worlds. Of course not every place was going to be perfect. The Avatar world, people called it but the movie came out long after where I was from, didn’t know much about it. People ran into some trouble there.” “Things on the ship started to malfunction. We sent people in pods to search for help, and one of them ran into some serious trouble. Everyone but one person in that pod died, including a friend I had made. That was how the trouble with the Xenomorph started, where I almost died.” She paused to take a larger sip of her drink. “Almost losing our air, the Xenomorph, losing our powers, and in the end we were headed towards a black hole. We would have died, all of us had it not been for us suddenly reappearing back in Tumbleweed. Hell, there are some people who aren’t certain we didn’t die but were just brought back. Honestly, I don’t know which of that to believe.” Emmeline sighed. “There’s probably a lot more I’m not mentioning, but it’s why I’m trying to be positive about this place. Life is far from perfect, but I’d at least like to give this place a chance. Have some fun, and not go back to where I’m ready for trouble and constantly looking over my shoulder.” Stefan listened patiently, letting her get it all out. Damon hadn’t really given him details and as he listened to her story, he got a little more of a sense of why this cruise ship would be unsettling for her. Even he had wondered how much he should trust their seemingly idyllic surroundings, but after what she’d lived through, she had even more reason to doubt it was genuine. “After all of that, you still want to stay positive?” Stefan was visibly impressed by that. What she’d just told him would be enough to turn most people cynical, but here she was, still trying to trust it. It was easy to see how he had fallen for her during his previous visits to Tumbelweed. “I’m not sure I could be that optimistic in your position.” All Emmeline could do was shrug. “I’m not too fond of the alternative.” After getting all of that off her chest, she finally looked his way. “I guess I’m just used to it by now. Back home,” she paused. “There were days where we felt like we were drowning. After we lost,” her voice didn’t crack but she still hated saying it. “After we lost Lily and James, Sirius getting blamed, I didn’t handle it well. I either didn’t handle it all together or I handled it poorly.” The interesting part was that her past was getting easier to talk about. Maybe it was because she was in a much better place or just as people said, it took time. Emmeline was sure it because of being here. “In the end, I don’t want to get back to that Emmeline. I didn’t recognize her, and I certainly didn’t like her.” She grinned. “Or maybe this place just turned me soft.” Stefan shook his head. “I wouldn’t call it soft. It takes a lot of strength to keep having faith and hoping for the best when you’ve seen the worst happen. You would have every reason not to handle of of this well. The fact that you’re trying makes you strong, not soft.” Handling things poorly was something Stefan was good at. Sometimes he tried to be a better person, to keep going no matter what happened and keep living his life, but that wasn’t always easy to do. He could relate to handling the bad things poorly more than he cared to admit. “We’ve all done things we’re not proud of in our pasts, Emmeline. You’re taking yours and trying to be better. That’s an admiral thing.” His words did make her feel better, and she counted herself lucky that she was surrounded by people that understood her. Back home it didn’t often feel that way, especially after she and Remus lost everyone. He had his own journey to take, his way of handling things and while the two friends did their best to keep in touch and check in, they were also handling it alone. Here? Emmeline didn’t feel alone. “Thank you, Stefan. I am feeling a little better.” She finished her drink, and hoping to turn the serious part of the conversation around. “What do you want to do now? Explore? We can find Damon and Rose?” “Do we want to find Damon and Rose?” Stefan asked, half-joking. He’d already seen Damon’s insinuation that Rose should just come sleep with him regardless of where she’d been assigned on the ship. “I think you should probably count your blessings to not be sharing a suite with us.” He laughed softly and shook his head as he finished his own drink. Stefan was happy for his brother, despite his joking. He’d been afraid of what Elena’s departure might mean for Damon and had been pleasantly surprised to be proven wrong there. If Rose was the reason for that, he was grateful. But that didn’t mean he really wanted to get an eyeful of either of them in the honeymoon phase they seemed to be lingering in. “That is a fair point,” she laughed. “Don’t know if I’d go that far. I’m so used to living with you and Damon. It feels weird to be with someone I don’t even know.” Her eyebrows raised. “But you’re not wrong.” After seeing Damon losing Elena more than once, Emmeline was happy that he and Rose connected. Yes, it did worry her a little as to what would happen if Rose and Stefan disappeared again. She and Damon were strong though, even if it always seemed to end up being the two of them, they were able to take life as it came. Not only that but to make sure not to pass on opportunities to be happy. That was an important lesson for them, to not let go of the moments and the people that made them happy. “If they ever get crazy, just come over to my place.” After a beat she added, “So just the two of us tonight then? What do you want to do?” “Well, we have a whole ship to explore,” Stefan said with a smile. He was grateful they all had their own bedrooms in the suite at least, but he would definitely keep her offer in mind in case he ever needed it. For now, he decided he wanted to focus on the moment with Emmeline and trying to take her mind off of the things that had happened in the past. “Where do you think we should start?” he asked her. “Another drink, some exploring of what else there is to do or see? Just wander around and see what we find?” Emmeline thought about it for a moment then said, “One more drink.” It was difficult to keep her guard up when it came to Stefan. Even if he didn’t have the same memories as Emmeline, she still enjoyed spending time with him. Regardless of what happened in the past, having him here now meant that she had her friend back. As uneasy as she was feeling tonight, she really could use a friend. “I say we check out the casino or maybe the club next.” “You got it,” Stefan agreed, signaling to the bartender for a refill of their drinks. Sometimes he thought it would be better for Emmeline if he kept his distance, considering all she’d been through and the way he seemed to always end up leaving her, but if this was what she wanted, he’d give her his company. |