Fifth Time's a Charm
Summary: Four times Elena hated Damon, and one time she didn't. Delena one-shot.
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒஐஐ Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒஐஐ Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒஐஐ Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒஐஐ Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒஐஐ Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒஐஐ
One.
The first time Elena Gilbert saw Damon Salvatore, it was in the Mystic Grill – specifically, at the bar. He had a glass of amber liquid in his hand, and as she watched, he tossed all of it back in one long pull. Although Elena was sure that she liked Stefan, she couldn't help but think the stranger was attractive. Dark hair, ice blue eyes. How could she not find him at least somewhat attractive?
She slid ono the bar stool beside him, glancing over at him again. Blue eyes turned in her direction and then widened.
"Katherine?"
His voice sounded almost breathless, oddly enough, though she was sure that he'd only been sitting there for quite some time. Breathless and filled with astonishment.
Elena felt stirrings of disappointment in her chest and in the pit of her stomach. She wasn't sure what she had been expecting or wanting the man to say, but it certainly wasn't that – not another girl's name. Still, she had no right to be feeling anything of the sort – she belonged to Stefan right now, and he was hers. She struggled to push the disappointment down.
"Katherine," he repeated, which got her attention this time. Her cheeks heated slightly.
"I, um, no. My name is Elena."
It obviously was not her fault that she wasn't this Katherine girl, but still, she felt something akin to guilt when she saw the pain that momentarily flickered in his eyes when she spoke. Before she could make a move to try and help, it was gone, replaced with a hard mask.
"Elena," he said softly. His voice had certainly changed. Now it was cool and almost spiteful. "I've heard all about you from my dearest brother."
She was at a loss. Whose brother could he be? A boy in the high school?
"And by your blank expression – doesn't really suit you, by the way – you don't know who I'm talking about. Stefan. I'm talking about Stefan."
His tone had changed from simply cold to utterly sarcastic, with a biting edge to it. Elena's back stiffened slightly in a defensive way
"Stefan is your brother?" Stefan hadn't even told her he had a brother. She hasn't seen this man around the boarding house… but yet now that she saw it, there was certainly a resemblance in facial structure. "Stefan never mentioned a brother. What's your name?"
"Ah yes. Of course he wouldn't, Stefan is ashamed because I'm so much better than him. Always has been… it's an unfortunate flaw. Vanity." He flashed a white grin at her and her heart momentarily stuttered, before he turned back to the bar waved the man behind it over to give him a refill.
"Are you drunk?" she found herself asking, though she really didn't know where the words had come from. It was a valid enough question, certainly. His eyes looked like that of a drunk man.
"Not at all, my dear." He shrugged off the question and chugged his new drink in one go. "I'm just naturally this charming. Now," and he swiveled on the stool to face her again, raising the nearly-empty glass to her, "Tell me, how is dear brother Jeremy? What's he doing nowadays?"
She was rendered speechless by the new harsh and biting tone in his voice, by the words themselves that were coming from his mouth. How could anyone change from being half-friendly to being so cruel in the span of only a second?
"Cocaine? Marijuana? Ecstasy? Is there a difference?" He cocked his head to one side, watching her even as she slid off the stool and made a beeline for the exit without ever responding to his questions.
It wouldn't do to bond with Stefan's little plaything so quickly, after all.
[A/N] This will be continued shortly!