their T-shirts back on over their bathing suits almost immediately. They always did: Their pale skin burned instead of tanned. Celia lounged on a towel, looking spectacular in a casual yet daringly cut white swimsuit. The effect of the pure white against Celia's coffee-colored skin was amazing. Matt noticed Meredith's eyes passing over her and then glancing sharply at Alaric. But Alaric was too busy shucking down to a pair of red trunks. Stefan stayed out of the direct sunlight, remaining in his dark jeans and black T-shirt.
Wasn't that a little creepy, too? Matt thought. Stefan's ring protected him from the sun's rays, didn't it? Did he stil have to stick to the shadows? And what was with the black clothing? Was he pretending to be Damon now? Matt frowned at the thought: One Damon had been more than enough.
Matt shook his head, stretched his arms and legs, turned his face toward the sun, and tried to get rid of his thoughts. He liked Stefan. He always had. Stefan was a good guy. A vampire, a dry voice in the back of his mind noted, even a harmless one, can rarely be described as a good guy. Matt ignored the voice.
"Let's jump!" he said, and headed toward the waterfal .
"Not Meredith," said Stefan flatly. "Not Meredith, and not Celia. You two stay here."
There was a little silence, and he glanced up from the gril to see his friends staring at him. He kept his face neutral as he returned their gazes. This was a life-or-death situation. It was Stefan's responsibility now to keep them safe, whether they liked it or not. He looked at them each in turn, holding their eyes. He was not going to back down.
Meredith had risen to her feet to fol ow Matt to the fal s'
edge, and she hesitated for a moment, clearly unsure how to react. Then her face hardened, and Stefan saw that she had chosen to take a stand.
She stepped toward him. "I'm sorry, Stefan," she said, her voice level. "I know you're worried, but I'm going to do what I decide I want to do. I can look after myself."
She moved to join Matt, who was standing at the edge of the cliff, but Stefan's hand whipped out to grab her wrist, his fingers as strong as steel. "No, Meredith," he said firmly. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Bonnie's mouth drop open. Everyone was looking at him with puzzled, anxious faces, and Stefan tried to soften his tone. "I'm just trying to do what's best for you."
Meredith sighed, a long, gusty sound, and seemed to be making an effort to let go of some of her anger. "I know that, Stefan," she said reasonably, "and I appreciate it. But I can't go through the world not doing the things I usual y do, just waiting for whatever this is to come get me."
She tried to move around him, but he sidestepped to block her way again.
Meredith glanced at Celia, who threw up her hands and shook her head. "Don't look at me," Celia said. "I have no urge to jump off a cliff. I'm just going to lie in the sunshine and let you al work this out yourselves." She leaned back on her hands and turned her face toward the sun. Meredith's eyes narrowed and she whirled back to Stefan. As she was opening her mouth, Elena broke in.
"What if the rest of us go first?" she suggested placatingly to Stefan. "We can make sure there's nothing clearly dangerous down there. And we'l be near her at the bottom. Nobody's ever been hurt jumping here, not that I've heard of. Right, guys?" Matt and Bonnie nodded in agreement.
Stefan felt himself softening. Whenever Elena used her logical voice and her wide, appealing eyes, he found himself agreeing to plans that, in his heart of hearts, he thought were foolhardy.
Elena pressed her advantage. "You could stand right by the water below, too," she said. "Then, if there's any problem, you could dive in right away. You're so fast, you'd get there before anything bad could happen."
Stefan knew this was wrong. He hadn't forgotten that sick swoop of despair, of realizing he was too slow to save someone. Once again, he saw Damon's long, graceful leap toward Bonnie that had ended with Damon fal ing to earth, a wooden branch driven through his heart. Damon had died because Stefan was too slow to save him, too slow to realize