Klaus smiled as Katherine flew from the apartment.
"She'll never come back!" Stefan shouted incredulously.
"She doesn't need to. You should know, Stefan. The best part of the hunt is the chase" replied Klaus. "Come on, that's enough for now. I've got something better in store for you."
Only Klaus knew that he had left something out of his explanation of the "cure" for Damon. He didn't need to convince Stefan to stay with him, because after tonight, Stefan wouldn't have a reason to come back.
All Damon could focus on was the sweetness of Elena's lips on his. Now having tasted the real thing, he wondered how he could have ever confused Katherine for her. His heart leapt at the thought that the love of his life might possibly care for him. He was so wrapped up that he didn't even notice-
"I'm the one you should be thanking; I'm the one that brought the cure" Katherine called out from the doorway of Damon's bedroom. Damon and Elena broke apart like two teens caught by their parents on second base.
Katherine poured the thick crimson liquid down his throat. Almost immediately he could feel his veins stop burning, his breathing get easier.
"Don't worry about Stefan. He gave himself over to Klaus to pay for this. I wouldn't expect him anytime soon", Katherine said from the doorway. "Oh and it's okay to love them both for different reasons. I did."
Elena spent the night with Damon, still concerned that the cure might not work as it should have. But he slept soundly. She couldn't help herself; she was so happy he was going to be okay that every so often she reached up and stroked his face. He was so peaceful when he slept.
She awoke in the morning, expecting Damon to be a mere centimeters away, as he had all night. Only his side of the bed was empty. Frowning, she sat up, squinting in the sunlight and trying to flatten her bed head.
She walked through the house checking rooms and calling for him softly. Elena just hoped he hadn't set out on his own to try and save Stefan.
Stefan. Elena paused at his doorway, lost in thought. I can't keep treating them like this. I knew Damon loved me and still I used his affection for my own selfish reasons. Maybe I'm more like Katherine than I ever wanted to be.
And that's where Damon found her, leaning against Stefan's doorframe and (he imagined) cursing her luck for being left with the wrong brother. "Don't worry Princess, we'll find Saint Stefan. As soon as we get you some breakfast. I made omelets and we have some BLOOD orange juice."
Elena couldn't help but smile at his small joke. Relaxing slightly, she turned and followed Damon down the stairs.
Elena and Damon sat at the breakfast nook bathed in sunlight, each lost in their own thoughts. Damon, crushed once again by Elena's pining for Stefan, kept trying to flip off the switch to his emotions. Just for one day- he needed a break from caring about her. But he couldn't turn it off. He was getting more frustrated by the moment when suddenly Elena grabbed his hand-
"Damon! Where is your ring? Why did you take it off and why…aren't you on fire right now?"
Damon, a bit freaked out himself jumped up and ran to the shadows. Looking himself over, he walked into the living room where he found his ring, still sitting on the wet bar. Right where he had left it the day before after his "last" drink. Elena walking up behind him, took his hand and found something she hadn't noticed before- his skin was warm to the touch.
"…Damon? Is it possible? Have you drank any blood since last night? I think…I think you have a pulse. What's happening!"