Title: One More Night
Summary: Elena isn't as frightened as she should be when she finds out that vampires really exist. If anything, she is curious and… dare she even say it, a little excited. Then there is Damon.
Rating: M, eventually
Disclaimer: I don't, in any way, profit from this story. All creative rights to the characters belong to their original creator(s) – no copyright infringement is intended.
It had been a normal day as far as days go in Mystic Falls. Elena and Caroline had decided to have an impromptu celebration of the lack of drama in their otherwise dramatic lives with burgers, nachos and a well concealed bottle of Vodka to be consumed only during trips to the restroom. Needless to say, as the evening wore on, their appetite waned and the amount of restroom trips increased three fold.
Since Elena had discovered the existence of vampires and the fact that her kind-of boyfriend and his brother were of the undead persuasion, she hit her default switch and found it led to 'party'. She knew Caroline was happy with this about turn and thought that the 'old Elena' was back but in reality, Elena just didn't know to cope with this new information or the feelings that it stirred within her.
She knew she couldn't share with Caroline what she had found out because that would inevitably mean that she would then have to face the fact that she wasn't actually afraid. She realised that she should be but all she felt was curiosity and dare she admit it, excitement. Seeing Stefan with fangs, dark eyes and in a fit of hunger was actually something that she wanted to see more of, to explore, to talk to him about.
But when she approached the subject, he either turned away or physically removed himself from her personal space and said that the less she saw it and the less they discussed it, the better. She knew that he was trying to protect her, to make her trust him again but he didn't seem to grasp the fact that the reason she had acted the way she had at his revelation was that he didn't trust her enough to tell her earlier. Instead, he had gone to lengths so far beyond imaginable to conceal his secret.
Stefan was ashamed of his vampire nature, his true face and all that came with it and he felt embarrassed when it came to acknowledging it. Sure, he used his skills and influence to ensure that she was safe and that she would come to no harm but she wasn't stupid. She knew the possibilities of the power that he held and the way in which he fought to keep it not only under control by drinking animal blood but also buried deep so he didn't have to deal with it in any real way.
The whole situation frustrated her and she had no idea how to resolve it.
"Thinking of Stefan?" Caroline slurred as she returned to the booth, her bag tucked under her arm tightly so she didn't reveal its contents.
Elena settled for a nod which prompted a goo-ey look and a dreamy sigh.
"You guys are sooo cute together. You can tell by the way he looks at you, he's totally into you."
Elena smiled, realising her friend was right. "He is, isn't he?" She giggled, girlishly and took a sip of her soda for appearance sake.
"I just wish Damon would look at me the way Stefan looks at you." Caroline mumbled as she rested her chin on her hand, pouting.
Caroline and Damon had been on and off again for weeks now and Caroline couldn't figure out why he wasn't as into her as she was him. Elena felt a pang of guilt low in her stomach as she watched her glum friend pining. Damon was a vampire to but not only had Elena been sworn to secrecy by Stefan, she'd been sworn to secrecy by Damon.
Though the threat was implied, the sentiment was clear. If she told anyone, including her friend, about the existence of vampires then she was not only endangering Stefan and Damon, but herself and everyone close to her.
Elena decided to go for tough love to see if that would snap Caroline out of her Damon haze. "Damon's just Damon. If you don't accept him for how he is, then you'll just be disappointed."
"But he's so delicious, Elena. He's broken and he's bad but underneath all that sarcasm and eyebrow quirking he's soft and vulnerable and .. perfect for me." She sighed again, her eyes glazing over in Damon filled adoration.
Elena opened her mouth to speak but words were not forthcoming. She knew deep down that she agreed with Caroline, that somewhere underneath all of his bad boy glory that he was vulnerable and broken but that didn't excuse all of the bad things he had done - scratch that, was still doing. And all in the name of love. Or psychopathic obsession.
His pursuit of Katherine was something that Elena had yet to get her head round but it was reason enough for Elena to be sure that Caroline would never see Damon look at her the way she clearly wished he would.
Knowing Damon the short length of time she had, she felt sure that he didn't feel so deeply or passionate about just anyone or anything. His eyes burned and flashed at the mere mention of Katherine's name and Elena knew that his want for her was all consuming.
If she compared Damon to Stefan, they were like night and day. Damon was all fire and ice, extremes and opposites whereas Stefan was rainbows and vanilla, an ethereal beauty, comfort and safety.
She wouldn't know where to begin with a passion as strong as Damon's. She didn't think she would be able to cope if Stefan looked at her the way Damon looked when he thought about Katherine. With the variety of emotions she had been subjected to already in her relatively young life, she welcomed the security and quiet tenderness that Stefan not only projected but took great care to envelope her in. But if only I could get him to share himself with me as I've shared myself with him...
Elena knew that Damon was just a passing obsession for Caroline, that this was Caroline wanting what she couldn't have. She wasn't used to the chase, she was used to guys falling at her feet, swooning and begging her for a date. Damon had come along and bucked every trend and it had bugged Caroline to the point of drinking in the Grill bathroom on a Friday night.
She could see why he had Caroline chasing after him though. He had the whole mean and moody thing down to a tee with those piercing blue eyes and messy raven hair that made you want to run your fingers through it... Where did that come from?
Shaking her head in frustration, Elena tried to focus. "We need a plan," she said determinedly. "We're here celebrating our drama free life when really, we're commiserating."
"Hold on, why are you commiserating?" Caroline tilted her head at her friend in confusion.
Elena shook her head. "I mean, we're sat here waiting for something to happen - I'm waiting for Stefan to make his move and open up to me and you're here waiting for Damon to have a revelation and decide he is into you after all."
Caroline nodded along emphatically. "Yeah, you're right. We're sat here celebrating our drama free lives when really, what we need is drama!"
"Well, we need something." Elena nodded along to, caught up in her own motivational speech. "I say we need a plan. We need to take charge."
"You need to talk to Stefan." Caroline flailed her arms at Elena wildly.
"You need to make Damon jealous." Elena wagged a finger back at her. It was the only way she could think to deflect her friend's attention.
"Why didn't I think of that?" Caroline marveled at the sheer genius of this suggestion.
"Because you're wasted?" Elena hiccupped and picked up Caroline's purse. "And shortly, I will be to."
"No shortly about it!" Caroline waved Elena away from the booth before resting her head on her forearm on the table.
Carefully, Elena weaved her way to the restroom trying to make sure she didn't attract attention from any of the patrons or bar staff. Having successfully navigated her way through the tables, she entered the bathroom only to find it already occupied by what appeared to be a couple making out.
"Oops, sorry..." Elena attempted to back up but hit her elbow on the door handle and stumbled backwards.
It was only when she didn't hit the floor that she realised that she was being cradled in someone's arms. Damon's arms.
"What the?" She could feel her heart pounding with the sudden disorientation and her sudden proximity to Damon.
"Stupid lock." He mumbled.
He had started talking to her but she couldn't focus on what he was saying as she was too fixated on the crimson blood smeared across his lips and at the corner of his mouth. Her eyes lifted and met his gaze, black orbs rimmed with black veins. She couldn't help but raise her hand to trace the dark web around his right eye but before her skin could make contact with his, she was unceremoniously dropped to the floor.
Struggling to sit up, she rested on her right elbow to watch the back of Damon as he mumbled something to the girl he had been previously occupied with. Without a word, the girl stepped around him, over Elena and back out into the Grill. It was then Elena's eyes snapped into sharp focus and she saw how angry he truly was.
Deciding a pre-emptive strike was best, she tilted her chin up at him as defiantly as she could and said, "I'm not afraid of you."
With a flash he was crouching over her.
"Well, you should be." He leaned forward ever so slightly, his face just millimeters from hers. "I could drain everyone in this bar dry before you could even get to your feet."
"But you won't." Elena was mesmerised now, lost in the depths of his gaze.
"You seem so sure." He tilted his head as he studied her face with equal curiosity.
"I am." She murmured as she felt a warm rush sweep over her.
"I'm not a hero, Elena. I'm not a good guy." It may have been her imagination but she was sure that she saw a flash of sorrow cross his face before he carefully schooled his features back to neutral.
Her voice was barely above a whisper. "Why didn't you didn't kill her then? Isn't that what you do?"
"It's not all I do." The blackness of his eyes receded and he winked. "What would you like me to tell you?"
"The truth." A shiver chased the length of Elena's spine as she prepared herself for his response.
"I showed her things that your pretty little mind can't even begin to conceive of. I did things to her that you wouldn't even know the name of. We drank each other's blood until we were so drunk on each other we couldn't see straight and just when I thought we were done she begged me to do it all over again."
Elena gulped. She had nothing to say about that but it had given her plenty to think about.
He laughed then, loudly and his grin practically split his face in half. It was one of the most beautiful things Elena had ever seen and she hadn't been prepared for it. This man, this vampire was making her feel all kinds of weird and she had no idea what to do about it.
For the first time in months, rainbows and vanilla were the furthest things from her mind.
A/N Yes, this is a new story! 'Everything's Made to be Broken' has been taken down until I can clear my mind enough to feel like I'm doing it justice… This one kind of burrowed into my mind before I gave in and laid out Chapter 1 so I hope you like 'One More Night' enough to hit 'Follow' or even better, to leave me a review – my battered muse would be extremely grateful!