Jeremy Gilbert (savedbythering) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2020-04-08 21:11:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, caroline forbes, jeremy gilbert |
Who: Jeremy Gilbert & Caroline Forbes
When: Backdated: Second week of March when Caroline came back
Where: Gilbert House
What: Catching Up
Rating/Warnings: Family Friendly
Status: Complete
Caroline was back in Orange County. She returned for her mother, but after breaking up with Jesse a year ago New York didn’t really feel like home anymore. Sure she had friends there, a career, a life. But she missed her friends in Orange County and her mom. As exciting and intoxicating as New York was, it wasn’t home.
Now that she was back and had thoroughly checked on her mom, Caroline wanted to see her friends. She hadn’t even told them she was coming back, just sort of returned. It had all happened pretty suddenly though, with her mom getting sick. There wasn’t much time to alert anyone. So Caroline decided to go surprise one of her best friends - Elena Gilbert.
With a large smile on her face, Caroline rang the bell to the Gilbert home, expecting her best friend to answer.
Jeremy was lounging around in the living room, neither of his sisters were home so he didn’t have to share the couch or the tv, which meant he could watch whatever he wanted. However, he’d been so busy lately that he’d fallen asleep shortly after he’d sat down on the couch and probably would have slept there even longer had the doorbell not rang.
It wasn’t the doorbell exactly that had woken him, but Dragon’s barking in response to the doorbell. “Dragon! Stop it.” Jeremy groaned as he awoke and pushed himself up off the couch. He’d never understand why dogs barked whenever the doorbell rang, but it was extremely annoying especially since he didn’t listen and was still barking and moving back and forth from the door to the doorway of the living room, waiting for Jeremy to answer it.
“Go lay down,” He said as he reached the hallway and pushed the boxer, gently, back towards the living room where one of his beds was. He was sure that whoever was at the door wouldn’t appreciate having a hyperactive boxer jumping at them. Reaching the door, Jeremy unlocked it and pulled it open without asking who it was, partly because he was still half asleep and didn’t think about it. However, upon seeing who it was who had rung the doorbell, he quickly woke fully, “Caroline?”
There was a dog barking? Since when did Elena have a dog? She racked her brain over their conversations for the past few years and couldn’t remember anything about a dog. Maybe she had mentioned it and Caroline had just been too busy with everything in New York to make much of a note of it.
But then Jeremy answered the door. Not exactly who Caroline was expecting which was silly because he lived there too. And even if she had come to see Elena she was still happy to see Jeremy which was precisely why she greeted him with a hug. “Hey,” she said as she wrapped her arms around him, smile still on her face. “Long time no see,” she added, releasing him from her grasp.
Jeremy hadn’t seen Caroline in a couple of years so he was surprised to see her on their doorstep, but as surprised as he was, he returned the hug and smiled back at her when he was released, “Hey. What’re you doing back? Not that it isn’t great to see you.” He knew that Caroline’s mother was still in Orange County so he assumed that was the main reason she’d come back, but he didn’t want to assume that was the only reason. “Do you wanna come in?”
Now that she had released Jeremy from the hug it gave her a good chance to really get a look at him. He looked different than the last time she saw him, which of course he did, he was a teenager back then. But he also looked better, healthier. “If you don’t mind?” Caroline would love to come in and catch up with Jeremy. She was pretty sure Elena wasn’t home, she had a feeling Elena would have come out when she heard Caroline’s voice.
“I’m back,” she confirmed. “Came back to be with my mom,” she paused not wanting to dwell on that. “And you know, I missed all of you,” she added keeping things on a lighter note as Caroline usually tended to do.
A lot had changed since the last time Jeremy had really seen Caroline and most of those changes had been credited to Jeremy’s dreams as well as Myrcella. Sure, he still got high on occasion, but he was far from the teenage junkie he had been in high school and after his parents had died. He had also filled out quite a bit, partly due to being a hunter, but also because he worked out regularly now. “Do you want something to drink?” He asked as he moved aside to allow Caroline to enter the house then closed the door once she was inside, “How is your mom?”
“Sure,” Caroline replied as she stepped inside. “Water?” Just because she knew if she ended up chatting for a bit she would probably get thirsty. “She’s okay.” As okay as someone with cancer could be at least but she didn’t want to dwell on that. “But what about you? How have you been? It’s been forever since we really caught up.” Not that they were super close growing up. He was always Elena’s and Katherine’s little brother. Still Caroline genuinely cared about him.
Jeremy gestured for her to follow him into the kitchen and once there he got a glass and poured Caroline a glass of water then placed it on the counter near her, “I’m glad to hear that she’s doing well,” He hadn’t heard too much about Mrs. Forbes in awhile, but he knew that she was sick much like in the dreams. He just hoped that she had a better outcome than she’d had there. When he thought about it, it was extremely strange how in the dreams all of their parents were dead. “I’ve been good. I moved back in here last year when my ex moved and I’m training to be an EMT at the moment. What about you?”
“Wow,” Caroline replied. “That’s really impressive, Jeremy. What made you want to do that?” She never would have thought the kid she left behind would grow up to be an EMT. That was a very honorable career. She picked up the glass of water taking a sip before answering his question. “After I graduated,” from Cornell, not high school. “I started working as an event coordinator back in New York for the past three years. Hopefully I can get started doing that here soon too.”
“I want to be able to help people.” Jeremy had never wanted to be a doctor like their father or Elena, but after everything that had happened over the last few years, their parents dying, the dreams and becoming a Hunter and helping people during the various OC invasions, Jeremy had decided that helping people was what he most enjoyed doing and thought that becoming an EMT was a good way to go about that, “I am not the least bit surprised that you became an event planner. You always did enjoy planning any parties or events in high school.”
“You’ve come a long way, Jer,” Caroline couldn’t help but comment. Even with just talking to him for a few minutes Caroline could see it. Even though he wasn’t her little brother she still thought of the Gilberts as family. She couldn’t help but be proud of him. “Exactly!” she agreed. It was what she had always been proud of. “I did a lot of weddings and extravagant parties back in New York and a few charity events here and there. I want to focus more on that now. Do some good you know?”
Jeremy nodded, “Hey and you might even get some celebrity events. I always felt like you’d fit in perfectly with celebrities.” Where some people were awkward when they met famous people Caroline almost never seemed awkward in any situation; at least that had always been Jeremy’s perception of her throughout the time he had known her. “Maybe you’ll become besties with Kim Kardashain.” He smirked as he leaned against the counter.
“I’m going to take that as a compliment,” Caroline replied laughing. She wasn’t exactly sure she wanted to be best friends with any of the Kardashians. But it was flattering that Jeremy thought she would fit in just fine with celebrities. “I’m guessing you want an introduction to my possible bestie?” she joked.
“You should take it as that,” Jeremy laughed as well, “And I mean, if you happen to think about it.” He was mostly joking, but he wouldn’t say no to meeting Kylie Jenner if the opportunity ever presented itself. “So, been up to anything else while you were away?”
“If I ever work an event for the Kardashians I’ll be sure to bring you along,” Caroline assured only half joking. “I was dating this guy for a bit,” Caroline said with a shrug of her shoulders taking a sip of water. “But we just grew a part after college.” It was a pretty mutual break up. “Other than that mostly just working.”
“I’ll be holding you to that,” Jeremy knew that Caroline was mostly joking which was fine since he was as well, “Sounds like me and Myrcella. The mutual part anyway.” Had he been able to, Jeremy would have made the move with Myrcella, but at that time it wasn’t the right time for him to move to England. Not when Elena and Katherine were going to be becoming vampires at any time. He just hadn’t felt right leaving them and Myrcella had completely understood him needing to be there for his family since she had needed to move back to England for her own family. “But hey, I’m glad you’re back. Elena and Katherine are going to be really happy to see you.”
“Who knew we’d ever have something in common,” she joked. Luckily for Caroline her two main breakups had been mutual. Though breaking up with her high school boyfriend because they were going to seperate colleges had been more heartbreaking for her than when she broke up with Jesse. Being so young probably contributed to that. But no matter she was very much over both by now.
“Thanks Jeremy. It’s good to be back.”