Chapter 1

"Well, if it isn't little Caroline Forbes," I heard from a few steps ahead of me.

I looked up to see my best friend since I was 12, Stefan Salvatore. He was wearing a smile, which he rarely did, and his green eyes were crinkling at the sides. I dropped my laptop bag and purse and ran to him. I jumped to put my arms around his neck. He swayed from my unexpected weight.

"Gez, Care," Stefan wheezed, wrapping his arms around me. "You miss me or something?"

I bit my lip to fight back tears. I hadn't seen Stefan since I left to go to college in New York five years ago. He was one of the only people, besides my mom, that I had kept in touch with relatively well throughout the years. After the last few months I'd had, it didn't take much to make me cry nowadays.

"Care?" Stefan called again. He patted me on the back.

"Sorry," I mumbled as I disconnected myself from him.

"You all right?" he asked, rubbing his thumb across my cheek.

"Yeah," I said, with a fake, chipper smile.

Stefan snorted. "Right then," he said, taking his hand off my face and replacing an arm around my shoulders. "How much luggage do you have for me to carry?"

I laughed and collected my carry-ons. "Just three suitcases."

Stefan gasped. "My, how you have changed, Caroline Forbes."

Had I ever.