"Becky, please don't wear the jumpsuit, okay? I've seen how it looks on you — trust me, this year you should go for a completely different kind of showgirl."
"Maybe we should slow down the car-wash moves a bit—no~"
Ron leaned against the doorframe, watching Caroline busily directing her friends about outfits for tomorrow's Sexy Car Wash Festival. With a mischievous grin, he crept up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.
"Oh my—! What the—" Caroline yelped in surprise, quickly hanging up her call. "Sorry, gotta go—talk tomorrow!"
"Hey! Let go. I haven't forgiven you yet," she scolded, smacking at Ron's wandering hands.
"Don't be like that, you've been ignoring me for days," Ron said, clinging stubbornly to her.
"I am mad, Ron. And I came tonight to settle this." Caroline's tone turned serious as she forcefully pushed him off and folded her arms.
"Alright, alright…" Ron sighed and flopped onto the bed in defeat.
"Don't play dead on me. What exactly are you hiding?" Caroline demanded, giving him a small kick. "If you really don't trust me enough to share your secret, then maybe we're not right for each other. I don't want to be with someone who keeps things from me."
"Caroline, it's not that I don't trust you," Ron said, sounding helpless. "It's just… this thing is unbelievable. I'm afraid you won't be able to accept it."
"What kind of 'thing' are you hiding with Sarah, Stefan, and Damon? You've been dodging my questions for weeks. And where is Sarah, anyway? She's been missing for days!" Caroline snapped, frustration rising as she kicked him again.
"You really want to know? No regrets?" Ron asked, sitting up abruptly.
"Of course! Why else would I be here?" Caroline replied, exasperated.
"Fine, but you have to promise me — what I'm about to tell you doesn't leave this room. You can't tell anyone." Ron's tone was dead serious.
"Yeah, yeah, I promise. Now spit it out," Caroline said impatiently.
"I have powers," Ron said. "I can use magic."
"Pfft!" Caroline burst into laughter. "If you don't want to tell me, at least come up with a better excuse."
"Here," Ron said calmly. "Drink some water first. Then I'll show you."
He used the Rabbit Talisman, dashing downstairs in a blur, and returned almost instantly with a glass of water — moving faster than the human eye could follow.
"Ah—AHHH!" Caroline screamed, jumping back in shock. Ron quickly covered her mouth.
"Shh! Now you see why I didn't tell you," he whispered. "And that's just one of my abilities."
"Oh… well," Caroline blinked, processing it. "It's not that bad. My boyfriend's basically Superman. Could be worse."
Ron couldn't help but chuckle. "So, you're not scared?"
"I guess not," she said, her curiosity taking over. "But what about Stefan and the others? Are they like you?"
"They're… different. Stefan and his brother are vampires."
"Vamp—what?" Caroline froze, eyes wide. When she finally processed it, she tried to scream again, but Ron covered her mouth before she could.
"It's okay. Calm down. Not all vampires are bad," Ron soothed.
Once she had composed herself, he told her everything — Stefan's struggle with bloodlust, Damon's punishment, Bonnie's witch powers, Sarah's disappearance — all of it.
"So besides super speed, what else can you do?" Caroline asked, intrigued now.
"I can heal injuries… and I can't die," Ron said honestly. "There might be more abilities, but I haven't unlocked them yet."
"Can't die?" Caroline asked softly. "Does that mean when I'm old, you'll still look like this?"
"Probably. Once I hit eighteen or nineteen, I'll stop aging. I'm not really sure… I just know I can't die," Ron admitted.
Caroline fell silent for a long moment. Then she said quietly, "Ron… maybe we're not meant to be."
Ron's heart sank. "Caroline, don't say that…"
"I'm sixteen now — we look the same age. But what about later? I'll grow old… and you won't. You'll stay young forever. I'll die someday. You won't." Her voice trembled, but her gaze was steady.
Ron pulled her into his arms. "Then I'll find a way. In this world, there are witches, vampires, and people like me. There has to be* a way to keep you with me* — always."
"Let me go home and think, okay? This is… a lot to take in," Caroline said softly, hugging him back before gently pulling away.
"Alright," Ron whispered, releasing her reluctantly.
"I'll give you my answer once I've thought it through," she said with a faint smile.
"No matter what you decide, I'll respect it," Ron said. "But don't tell anyone about tonight — not Stefan, not Elena, no one. Damon's situation is under control, and Stefan will deal with the rest."
"Okay," Caroline said, smiling sweetly. "Thank you."
Ron drove her home, then returned to his own place, collapsing onto his bed.
Sleep wouldn't come. His mind raced — the Twelve Talismans, the secret of immortality, the thought of Caroline growing old while he stayed young.
Would he really have to live forever… alone?
Turning into a vampire was the easiest way — but he'd already rejected that. After seeing Stefan's torment, he knew immortality came with a curse. Living on blood wasn't life, it was slavery.
And what kind of future could he and Caroline have then?
He didn't yet know that becoming a vampire meant losing the ability to have children forever.
For now, he could only lie there, staring into the dark, lost between love and eternity —
until exhaustion finally claimed him.