Lexi is Stefan's Biffle!!! (bubbly_vamp) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2014-02-11 23:39:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, elena gilbert, lexi branson |
Who: Lexi Branson and Elena Gilbert
What: Having lunch and offering Elena help
When: Backdated: Saturday, February 1st. Afternoon
Where: Granny's Diner
Rating: Mostly Family Friendly.
Status: Complete
It had been a few days now since Elena had told her what had happened with Damon and as of the last time she’d talked to Elena, she had hooked up with Tom, which was kind of ironic and as far as she knew, Elena and Damon were still together, but on a break. Lexi had yet to see Damon’s post about them breaking up so she didn’t really know what to expect when Elena showed up. She wished that Elena could see what everyone else saw in Damon and was afraid that because Damon was her first love, Elena would never be able to break it off with him and that they would always have an unhealthy relationship. They had decided to get together for lunch at Granny’s since it was fairly close to both of them and Lexi enjoyed their food. Lexi was sitting in her car, in the parking lot of Granny’s, waiting for Elena to show up so they could go in together.
At this point, Elena was pretty much sick of everything. Almost every day this week had been a fight against someone and she was tired. She had enough on her plate from being a teenager starting college and now...her relationship was in shambles. Actually...it wasn’t a thing anymore. Part of her was glad because she hoped it might giver her time to organize her life; the other side, however, was rather torn up over the whole affair. Still, she couldn’t deny that it was for the better. Her and Damon had done nothing as of late besides drive each other absolutely crazy.
Pulling her little car up to Granny’s to meet Lexi, the girl flicked down her mirror to look over her makeup and make sure she was at least physically put together. This week was far from a cakewalk and even the good parts had seemed blackened in some way. But she couldn’t let herself think about that. She got out of her car and walked up to the front door, brown doe eyes searching the parking lot for Lexi.
Lexi had been checking instagram when she saw Elena’s car pull up a few spaces away. Shutting her phone and sticking it in her purse, Lexi got out of her car, pressed the button to lock the door then walked up to the door to meet Elena, “Hey! How’re you feeling?” She asked, wrapping her arms around Elena in a friendly hug. If there was one thing Lexi was sure that Elena needed right now, it was a hug.
When Elena saw Lexi, she grinned at her friend and returned the hug she was enveloped with. It was always comforting--while Elena certainly enjoyed her words, actions were sometimes the best, especially the warming kind like this. She was in definite need of it right now because...her heart was pretty broken at this point. She needed a friend and a major change in her life. Elena needed some strength to pull herself up. Or maybe just a kick in the head.
“I’m...alright,” she said with a little shrug, trying to keep the smile on her face. It was a bit hard, but things were getting easier. Elena was still trying to convince herself that this was the right choice, as much as it hurt.
Lexi nodded as she kept an arm wrapped around Elena’s waist as she turned towards the door and guided them both inside, “Well, I’m glad you agreed to come out with me. I know it hurts, but you don’t want to be moping around. Getting out and doing things is always the best thing you can do.” Lexi had, had a few pretty bad breakups in the past and after spending a day moping, she would always get up and do something, which usually involved convincing Stefan to do something crazy and stupid with her. Of course even though Lexi had been in a relationship with Huck for the last three years, she still tried to convince Stefan to do stupid and crazy things every now and then.
No, Elena did better when she wasn’t hanging out alone in her room, being upset. She was too lively for that and if the depression ever hit, she tended to stop it before things got too bad. ...Or at least bury her problems in something else. Thankfully, that was what friends were for.
Elena let Lexi lead them inside and she glanced around the place, adjusting her purse on her shoulder. “I...I need to change things,” she whispered with a bit of determination, wide brown eyes going back towards her friend’s face. “That’s what I need.”
Lexi led them over to a table slid into one side, “Change can be good as long as you’re changing the right things. You only want to change if it’s for yourself and not someone else.” Elena had already expressed an interest in changing for the right reasons, which Lexi was happy to help her with. “So, what all have you been thinking needs to be changed? Or what do you want to work on?” Finding out what Elena wanted was the first step.
She took a seat across from Lexi and sat her purse down in the booth beside her. She lifted a hand and ran her fingers through her dark brown hair, a sigh emerging on her lips at the same moment. “I do want to change for myself. I’ve realized it’s silly for me to rely on someone so completely for everything. It was selfish,” Elena admitted, looking down at the table, biting her lip. She felt a little bad over the whole thing, even if Damon had always said he’d offered to take care of her anyways. Elena still didn’t think it was right as she now looked back. “I have to be able to stand on my own two feet.”
Lexi had always been somewhat independent even when she had lived at home with her parents and brother. She’d gotten her driver’s license as soon as she was able and worked a few various part time jobs over the years before she’d gotten the job at Disneyland and the few commercials she’d done, so helping Elena or anyone else for that matter came easy to her, “Good. So, what do you want to do? Tell me and I’ll see what I can do to help.” She wasn’t going to do it all for Elena, because then she’d be doing what Damon did, but she could steer Elena in the right direction.
Elena had always had everything provided for her. She was sure that if her parents were still alive, they would have slowly weaned her off their support and helped her bloom into a woman, but that wasn’t going to happen now. Not unless she pushed herself into it. “I think I want to get a job. Something on the side to bring in a little money, but also more for experience.” Elena had volunteered before, which was sort of a job, but she’d never gotten paid. And with the money she would make from this, she could save it as her personal income and things she wanted and leave the rest of their money for the necessities. “I’m not really sure if I should stay in college at this point, even if my parents had put aside all this money for it…”
“Stay in school,” Lexi said as a waitress came up to take their drink order then left, “You might think it’d be easier to take a year off, but it’ll be even harder to get back into it later on.” It wasn’t that she thought Elena couldn’t do it later on, but it was just easier to keep going if she had the means and was doing well. “Any idea what kind of job you want?”
She looked up at the waitress as she came over and Elena ordered herself a coffee before her brown eyes went back to her friend. She knew that Lexi was right--besides, her parents probably would have been let down if Elena had attempted to quit school, even if it was only for a little bit. She wanted to do them proud, even if they were gone. “Right...um. I guess something with people? I think I’d do pretty well in retail or something like that.”
Lexi nodded as she listened to Elena, “I think there are some positions open at Disney, if you don’t mind making the drive to Anaheim.” It wasn’t like it was too far, but it wasn’t just down the street either, “Nothing like what I do, but I think some of the restaurants might have openings. I can look into it if you’re interested.” It’d be fun to have Elena working in Disney too, because Lexi could probably convince whoever Elena’s supervisor would be, to let Elena take her break at the same time as her.
She grinned at the idea of working at Disney with Lexi and how fun it might be, even being in a restaurant. She might not have worked in food before, but Elena was a pretty quick and eager learner so she thought she might fit in just fine. “I’d like that, actually. I don’t know how good I’d be at being a face for a character,” she admitted to Lexi, giving a pleased giggle. “Maybe I could work my way up.”
“Awesome! I’ll ask around when I go in tomorrow.” Lexi grinned as the waitress brought their drinks and asked if they were ready to order. Lex went first, ordering a bacon cheeseburger and french fries then waited for Elena to order and for the waitress to leave before picking up their conversation, “Okay, so that’s one thing down.” Lexi was confident that she could help Elena get an in considering how long Lexi, herself, had been working there, “What’s next?”
When the waitress came back around, Elena started pouring sugar and creamer in her coffee, glancing over the menu and deciding on a chicken sandwich with a side of fries and ranch. When they were alone again, the girl licked at her lips, lifting her mug to sip at her hot drink. “Jeremy and I decided we’re going to sell the house,” she admitted to Lexi. They weren’t completely sure how to go about it, but they both agreed it was for the best. New start, new place away from the hurt. Somewhere they could grow. “We’re going to get an apartment.”
“Really? That’s probably a good idea.” Lexi said, sipping her soda through her straw, “Whose idea was that?” She knew, from Elena, that Jeremy hadn’t wanted to leave the house at first and that it was because of him that they had stayed there as long as they had, “Are you gonna look around here? I assume you wanna stay in Huntington since he’s still in high school?” It only made the most sense so that Jeremy didn’t have to change schools so close to the end of his senior year.
“Jeremy brought it up, but I’d been thinking the same thing. There’s pain for us in that house and...I want it to be full of a love for a family again. I want that darkness erased,” she told Lexi, dropping her head and staring down into the tan of her coffee. “Our sister has moved on, it’s time for us to do the same.” Elena felt in her heart that selling the house would bring them some sort of peace and they could start off new. “Nope, we won’t be leaving Huntington Beach though. There’s no point in that. Everyone is here.”
Lexi nodded, smiling. “Good. That’s really good.” She reached across the table and laid a hand over one of Elena’s, “You guys will do well in a new place. I’m not entirely sure how you’d go about selling a house, but maybe call a realtor and ask them,” It seemed like a good place to start and they’d be able to tell Elena and Jeremy exactly what they would need to do to get the ball rolling.
Elena returned the smile and squeezed her friend’s hand in a reassuring motion. She felt at least a little bit more confident knowing that someone thought they were heading in the right direction with things. On top of the bad memories, they didn’t need the space when it was just the two of them. Elena thought things would be much more comfortable in a small apartment. The money they got from selling the house would take care of rent and utilities for quite a while, among other things. She was thankful that her parents had thought so far ahead to try and make sure their children would live comfortably after their deaths, as heartbreaking as it was. “It’s a good house. Nice location. Great for a growing family. I don’t think it’d be too hard to sell...and I was kinda thinking if Stefan and Rebekah would be interested…”
“I think that’s a great idea,” Sure, it was just Stefan, Rebekah and Nat, but Lexi knew that Stefan wanted more kids and a bigger house would be good for them. Maybe then Stefan could get that dog he wouldn’t shut up about wanting. “You should definitely talk to them about it. Tell them you’re gonna sell then talk to the realtor and they’ll probably tell you what it’s worth or whatever.” They’d probably have to have someone come out to look at the house to determine that, but Lexi didn’t think it’d be too difficult.
She knew the house would fit them, as cute as their little cottage was. It gave them room to grow and then Elena knew it would be in good hands, fostering a young family like it had for the Gilberts. Her and Jeremy would be able to visit as well, but Elena didn’t want to think too far ahead. She still had to mention it. “We’ll get it figured out,” she assured Lexi, sipping at her coffee. “Whether it’s a long process or a short one. I hope we can just get it sorted out before summer.”
“I’m sure you will.” Lexi was glad that things seemed to be going well for Elena and Jeremy, because Lexi knew from some of Jeremy’s posts on Valarnet that things had been strained for a long time now. “So, we’ve got, get a job and sell the house, get an apartment checked off on your list. Anything else?” She knew that Elena already had a car since that’s how she’d gotten to the diner so that wasn’t something her friend needed to think about.
Oh god, so she supposed it had to come up sooner or later and Elena wasn’t sure what else to really say. She couldn’t be distracted as their food hadn’t come up yet either. She’d have to bring up the big “D” word that everyone loved to hear about so much. “Um...you know, guys,” the brunette tried, cocking her head to the side and playing with the loose curls of her hair. “Sex. Stuff like that.”
Despite not wanting to actually talk about Damon today, Lexi knew that realistically he would come up, “Are we talking about any guys in particular or are you trying to figure out how you’re gonna have sex with your new boyfriend at home when your room is gonna be closer to Jeremy’s?” She gave Elena a sly smirk as she teased her a bit, wanting to lighten the mood before they got into actually talking about him.
The mood wasn’t really lightened on Elena’s part. She just made the sort of face where it was obvious she couldn’t even imagine a new boyfriend, let alone having sex with him in the dream apartment for her and Jeremy. She might have broken things off with Damon, but the feelings were still there, whether it was romantic or sexual. “I...um…” She blushed a bit and buried herself in her coffee, taking a big gulp.
“You what?” Lexi was curious as to what Elena had to say, considering she already knew that Elena had, had sex with Tom Sawyer, which she thought was a pretty crazy coincidence that she knew him, considering he not only hit on her and Rebekah a few months earlier, but was also the one turning Huck’s novel into a movie, “If this is about Tom, you already told me about him.” She smirked and took a sip of her own drink.
“No, it’s not about Tom,” Elena said, as nice as he was, and as great as he had been in bed. She took another sip of her coffee and then set the mug down on the table, though her fingers played with the handle. “I broke up with Damon. Like...a real break-up. And I was just thinking that I don’t really want to...sleep around. Because having sex with Tom was crazy enough for me,” the little brunette explained to her older friend. She figured she could have very easily gotten into his bed again, but she didn’t want to. She’d rather just focus on herself. “But a girl still needs her outlets.”
A smirk spread across Lexi’s lips as she figured out what Elena was talking about, “Ah! You wanna get a vibrator, right?” If Elena was gonna ask anyone for advice in that department, it was Lexi. She had no shame when it came to talking about sex related things and going to sex stores. Plus Lexi would be able to recommend a good first vibrator for Elena.
“Shhh,” Elena hushed, blushing bright red and reaching a hand out in embarrassment. “Don’t be so...loud about it.” Even after being with Damon and learning all sorts of tricks in the bedroom, she could still be a little shy over everything. She didn’t tend to talk much about sex in public or be completely open about it...she had her moments though. Elena could be feisty if the moment was right. “But yes. Basically...that’s what I’m saying.”
Lexi couldn’t help but find it kind of adorable how Elena reacted to her talking so openly about sex toys, but she was used to it from Stefan, but unlike with Stefan, she didn’t want to cause Elena too much more embarrassment, so she decided not to continue talking so openly about it, “I can recommend some things or we can go shopping after we eat. There’s one place that’s really nice. Like, it’s not skeezy like you’d think of those stores being.” She figured that was best for Elena’s first trip to a sex store.
Elena calmed down a bit when Lexi seemed to relax on the subject, seeming to not want to embarrass the girl in the middle of the restaurant. She gave a little nod of her head as she took a deep breath, smiling in the process. “I’d...like that actually,” she told her friend, moving to sip on her coffee again. She’d never had a sex toy for herself but she’d always kinda wanted one. ...Elena had just figured guys like Damon would never have enjoyed knowing their girlfriends had that sort of thing. “Could be fun.”
Lexi smirked, “Well, you’ve come to the right person.” She was glad that Elena trusted her enough to ask her to help her on this topic, “When we’re done here, you can follow me there. We’ll get you the perfect vi...toy.” She caught herself before she said vibrator out loud again. “Just make sure to lock your bedroom door when you use it, cause I doubt you want Jeremy accidently walking in.”
Yeah, she was pretty sure that would be the most embarrassing thing to ever happen to her, but she’d never had any problem like that with her brother in all their years yet. They tended to respect each others’ privacy and had a closed door policy. “You’re a good friend,” the brunette told Lexi suddenly, smiling over the top of her coffee mug, looking completely content with everything.
“Hey, I just want to help make sure that you’re happy and can function on your own without having to rely on anyone else.” Lexi was going to help Elena get a job, but she wasn’t going to hold her hand while she filled out applications or sit and watch her as she did her homework or anything like that. Elena had to learn to be independent and to do things on her own. She couldn’t rely on Damon or anyone else to do things for her or to take care of her.
“I appreciate it.” And she really meant it. Elena should have known this was what she needed all along, to be able to stand on her own two feet for the good of herself and her life. It might be tough getting used to it, but she was pretty sure if she could handle college, the rest would come pretty easy in time.