home truths

Once they hit the shore in Aruba Hector took a few seconds to himself. His feet driven down into the sand as he slowly inhaled the fresh sea air. As the salt hit his lungs, memories of his life on the waters flooded his mind. The sea was still his second home, York his first home and now Mystic Falls his third. The tiny town had knocked New York from that place. But then after a few hours he remembered how bloody annoying sand was. It settled everywhere. Even as he emptied his pocket out to retrieve his wallets little specks tumbled from his hand and onto the bar as he fumbled through the notes.

Alongside the bar tab he was also pulling out various notes to give as a tip to the bartender, even though she’d forgotten to bring Linc his drink and accidentally gave Lawrence a vodka and coke rather than vodka and rum. It wasn’t like Hector was going to miss another few hundred dollars.

Centuries back he would have been clinging onto his money fiercely. There was a common misconception that wealth had followed him throughout life as almost everyone he knew had only known him as a man with money, but he left York with hardly anything to his name. It was a struggle to even pay for his daylight.

As he spotted Penny at the bar he tried to recall seeing her on a boat coming over to Aruba. Of course she didn’t need to sail with them, not when she had other means of transport, according to Kit. Hector half shrugged at Penny’s question, “I don’t know. I know you’re old… ish. I’m seven hundred and sixty…” He paused, trying to remember his previous birthday. “Five.” He eventually added, not even considering there were humans surrounding them who could be listening to the conversation.

Hector constantly kept his eye glued to the ground. Whilst he didn’t engage in general gossip– apart from with Magnus and most recently with Kit– he did try and keep up with who was dating who. It was common knowledge Lawrence and Penny had a thing going on, but then suddenly that thing stopped and now Tobi was having a thing with Penny. This was all things he’d managed to pick up from snippets of conversations between people. Perks of having sensitive hearing. “No judgement here.” He held his hands up for a second.

He took the drink, giving Penny a quick nod. “Not gonna say no to a free drink. Thanks.” His eyes bounced around the bar, trying to spot the bartender. His attention drifted back to her as he remembered she never actually answered his question. “So, are you here with Tobi or Lawrence?” He sipped the free drink, downing almost half of it, “Stick with Lawrence. He’s immortal and won’t die on you… humans die too bloody easily.” He paused for a moment, realising what he’d just said to Penny. The alcohol had loosened his tongue, “Sorry. Ignore me. I’m rather intoxicated.” And now wasn’t the time to bring up Evelyn, dragging up old memories of her. That type of conversation was save for a Wednesday evening when he and Kit were sharing a bottle of wine in his office discussing their problems.


PENNY BARTLETT

Thankfully she gave him her birth year otherwise they could have been there for another five minutes while Hector tried to figure it out. His brain wasn’t exactly computing properly. He couldn’t even figure out what twenty percent of their bill was, to leave a tip. Instead he just lay down more and more money until it seemed like it was enough. “You’ve been around long enough then.” She was a complete child then, not like Remzi.

Hector watched Penny intently, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly as she spoke. Her words hung in the air like a heavy mist, thick with the weight of loss and frustration. He could feel it — the pain, the bitterness. It resonated with something deep within him. His eyes softened as he caught the flicker of emotion in her— the way she turned her head, trying to hide the tears. The inevitability of death was a cruel lesson that never got easier to learn.

He leaned back, exhaling slowly, as if the weight of the centuries pressed down on his chest. “Potentially. Lawrence is a bit of an idiot sometimes.” He responded with a flicker of a smile on his face. “If I was to fall in love again I would choose someone immortal. It’s hard working trying to protect a human… they can die from being hit by a car or being hanged.” Hector paused, his gaze distant for a moment, as if he was looking into the past. “Losing someone you love is enough to put you off finding it ever again.” He said as his gaze returned to her, “I’m far too drunk to be having this conversation.” This was the first time he’d actually met Penny and here he was sharing his life story with her.

PENNY BARTLETT

Hector nodded in quiet agreement, acknowledging her comment without adding much to it. Yes, they had their weaknesses—he was living proof of that. There was something out there, warping the minds of vampires, slowly unraveling them from within. “Many,” he murmured softly, his voice laced with a subtle gravity. His gaze shifted towards her, eyes slightly glazed from the alcohol but still sharp enough to notice the weight she carried beneath her words. She was hiding something—a wound, perhaps, one she wasn’t ready to expose.

He caught the small, sad grin she forced onto her face. He was old, maybe too old sometimes. Hector had lived the span of a human life seven times over, and soon it would be eight. People weren’t designed to live that long. Humans, with their fleeting years, managed to cram in multiple failed relationships, their lists of loved and lost much longer than Hector’s own. “A few what? Girlfriends? Plenty. Women I’ve loved? Just the one.” He paused, the echo of the words sounding sadder than he’d expected. “I’ve only ever truly loved one woman, and she died... sentenced to death for a crime she didn’t commit. Hanging.” A few minutes. That’s all he needed and he could have saved her. “But it sounds like you’ve lost an immortal?”He’d laid his heartbreak bare. The floor was hers now, should she choose to share her own.

PENNY BARTLETT