Blind Love
A/N: This is my first Vampire Diaries fic, so please give me a chance to adjust from writing about Manga to writing about my favorite show. I have been thinking about this idea for a long time. There are a lot of Elena-memory loss fics so I decided to do the opposite. This is set where Elena is still human, I suppose the alternative to season 4.
Also the concept of this is that despite what's happening, it feels right for them, more specifically him.
I have no idea whether this story will work or not, but I would appreciate some reviews as per whether I'm doing alright, if it's interesting etc.
Damon, where the hell are you? Elena thought; checking her phone for the hundredth time that evening. No missed calls, no texts, and no answer from his line. Typical Damon.
She mentally cursed, shoving her phone into her jeans pocket and switched the engine of her car back on to resume her search for the older Salvatore. She hadn't seen Damon since their trip to Denver, and although that was unusual for him, she presumed nothing was wrong until Stefan called her. He hadn't seen or heard from Damon either and fear had finally set in.
Damon wouldn't just disappear, would he? No, he promised her he wouldn't leave her again. Not when this whole thing with Klaus was still happening. Not after everything….
Her knuckles turned white from the strong grip on the steering wheel as she drove through the route Stefan gave to her for the second time. He definitely wasn't in Mystic Falls, that she was sure of.
Pulling into the side of the road, she hit the wheel in frustration. Her heart was thumping in a mixture of worry and anger. She took a deep breath. She had to remain calm; he was over 150 years old for God's sake.
He was probably off on the Damon binge spree special; feeding, fucking and killing. She gritted her teeth and her chest grew heavy with jealousy at the thought of Damon off with some sorority girls. No, she would fight with him later, when he was home. She knew it was his way of dealing with pain but that didn't mean that it hurt her any less.
Think Elena, think. What would Damon do…She sat still for what felt like minutes before coming to a sharp conclusion. Georgia! Of course he would go there; it would explain why he was gone for days. When he had brought her there for a much needed timeout, it helped her forget all about Mystic Falls, and the current problems they faced. She smiled at the memory.
Pulling back out her phone, she quickly typed a message to Stefan who was probably still at the far side of town searching.
Message to: Stefan
Think I know where Damon is, will let you know when I get there.
Several seconds later her phone vibrated. She opened the message quickly.
Message From: Stefan
Be Careful, I'm going to keep looking here.
Pushing the phone aside, she almost slammed on the accelerator, doing a U-turn in the direction of Georgia. A wave of guilt washed over her, she probably should have told Stefan she was driving all the way to Georgia when it was near dark. But he would have tried to stop her, and this was Damon so she couldn't wait for any body's approval. Lord knows he never did. She was finally taking a chapter from the impulsive Damon novels and it felt pretty good.
The drive was long, and tiring. Then again she didn't have Damon to keep her company like last time. Her eyes focused on the familiar signs as she passed by, and she began to feel anxious and excited at what she might find when she sees him. Would he be happy to see her? Would he try and shut her out for the hundredth time?
She turned a sharp left off the highway, glad to be near Georgia as the night was starting to hone in quickly. Great, looks like I have to look for him in the dark. She mentally laughed at the reaction Damon will have when he realizes what she did. She could easily picture those furious, yet soft and worried blue eyes that somehow see through her every time. Her cheeks warmed at the thought.
Switching on her lights so as to see the road better, she saw a bareback figure in the distance, walking in the middle of the narrow road. As she slowed her speed, she watched as the figure kept moving forward but slowly, as though dazed. She squinted to try get a better view.
A lump formed in her throat. What if it's like last time when she crashed her car to avoid one of Isobel's men? As much as she wished it was a drunk person staggering home, she knew better than to jump to a hasty conclusion. It could be a vampire, fooling her so the second she drops her guard, it pounces on her. The past 4 years taught her so much about the dangers that faced her and all of her doppelganger glory.
She reached for the vervain grenade in her purse on the passenger seat, just in case. Alaric had taught her how to temporarily stun a vampire for long enough to escape.
As the car moved closer to the unwavering figure that was still moving, Elena quickly attempted to drive around the man, only to slam on the brakes when she recognized the person.
"Damon!?" She couldn't believe it was him. His dark hair was tousled and wild, his cerulean eyes looking confused and empty. The intimidating yet sex exuding vampire that was Damon Salvatore seemed different... It was as though he was a former shell of himself.
Damon stopped walking and turned to look at her, his expression blank.
"Who are you?"
She eyed him warily before turning off the engine and hopping out of the car to him. After the uproar he caused with his disappearance, she was in no mood to play dumb. "Damon stop playing games, it's me, Elena"
She gasped when she took in his bare muscled chest which was covered in dry blood. Sure, she had seen him topless on numerous occasions but to know that he was hurt, hurt her. Unconsciously, she reached out to touch his defined chest but was greeted with air as he stepped back at vampire speed.
"I don't know you" His reply was deadpanned and almost accusing, as though he honestly didn't believe her.
Elena was taken aback; if this was a game it sure as hell wasn't funny. Her brown eyes were scanning him thoroughly; he looked as though he had been out on a three day binge, or at a festival of some sort. She sighed mentally, rolling her eyes before giving in and playing along. Whatever would help speed up them getting back to Mystic Falls.
"Elena Gilbert… you know… always getting into trouble, doppelganger, and Stefan's girlfriend?" She was waiting for him to break into that arrogant smirk and tease her for falling for such a stupid game, but instead she was greeted with furrowed brows and a piercing stare.
An awkward silence passed before he spoke up "Whose Stefan?"
She felt something inside her snap. Normally Damon's sarcasm and attitudes would result in an eye roll or a witty comeback. But today she had been so worked up on finding him that she was angry at how he was acting.
"Okay did you take something recently? Feed from someone who was on some sort of drug? Seriously Damon, this isn't funny. I can understand you avoiding me, and wanting to forget me but Stefan? You can't erase your brother from your memories. If you have a problem with us, take it out on me, not him!" Elena panted in anger, taking in a much needed breath.
She didn't miss the way his eyes darkened as he watched her; his stare never wavering. His nostrils flared as he quickly looked her over before returning to her eyes which were laced with accusation and worry? Whoever this girl was hell-bent on making sure they knew each other. He knew he should have ignored her and kept walking but there was something about her he recognized, but couldn't decipher.
"I don't know who Stefan is, or who you are for that matter…but there is something about you I can't figure out" His gaze softened as he focused on her. He couldn't remember her, or Stefan, or anything before today. But she was familiar, and as much as he hated it and it aggravated him, he needed to be around a familiar environment.
She felt as though her heart shattered. She had no idea what happened to him but all she knew was she needed to get him home and talk to Bonnie, maybe she could fix it. She slowly reached out and took his hand between her small ones, and placed it over her heart.
"That's because you do know me, Damon…and I know you. Trust me; I am going to help you remember. We will find a way." Her eyes almost pleaded with his as he searched her face for any signs of lies.
He nodded slowly. He could hear her heart thumping loudly and quickly beneath his hand and only for the fact that he felt as though she was the only important thing in his life right now, he would have torn into her neck and drained the life force from her.
She noticed how rigid his stance was, and how noticeably his icy blue orbs were shifting to the vein lined façade that was his vampire face. He diverted his gaze and exhaled the breath he had been holding.
"I'm sorry" His voice was barely above a whisper.
Elena felt a shudder wrack her spine. It was rare she saw this soft, gentle side of Damon so frequently. He was still Damon but not the rough, cold, arrogant vampire that she grew to care so deeply for. The façade he had perfected all those years ago. This shell of Damon was the broken, confused and lonely side of him, which he rarely let her see.
His gaze returned to her and she inhaled a sharp breath at the intensity of it. Even after Denver, he still had that hold over her that Stefan never had. She was sure if he kept looking at her like that, they would cross boundaries that they've neared before, and ones that he isn't ready for in this state of mind.
Breaking the eye contact, she cleared her throat in an attempt to settle her erratic heartbeat.
"Come on, we should head back home…everybody was worried about you."
She noticed his questioning look and before he could ask her about "everybody else", she waved him off and told him she would explain later. She climbed into the backseat and retrieved a blanket and grabbed the blood bag that Stefan left her in case.
She handed him the items and got into the driver's seat. He eyed the car before hesitantly getting in and tearing open the blood bag and draining its contents. He released a sigh of contentment once the bag was almost clear; his blue veins appearing and disappearing in just seconds.
Elena tried to keep her focus on the road as she turned her car back in the direction of Mystic Falls. She knew he was watching her and whatever feelings of tiredness she had, were now completely gone. She needed to say something.
"So um, do you remember anything before today?"
Damon turned his attention to the window and tried to focus. He couldn't remember anything. His mind was blank, the only clear indication of his past being the girl beside him.
"No..." He let out a low growl and she smiled to herself. Typical Damon to get annoyed by something he had no control over. Maybe this side of him wasn't all too different.
He must have seen her because when she glanced at him, he was staring back at her with a less than amused expression.
"Sorry..." She mumbled.
The silence in the car was deafening as she continued to drive; grateful they were finally leaving Georgia. She always thought the next time she went to Georgia would be under very different circumstances…and with Damon in a whole new light. But things were different now, she was with Stefan and Damon lost his memory. Things were far from how she would have liked it to be, and she had nobody to blame but herself.
Her thoughts were interrupted as her phone went off in her jeans pocket. Damon eyed her wearily as she pulled the phone out and saw Stefan's name flashing across the screen.
Grabbing a hold of the wheel firmly, she answered the phone on speakerphone and flashed an apologizing smile to Damon.
"Elena? Where are you?" Stefan's voice sounded frantic.
"Sorry Stefan I'm on the way home, I found Damon." She was watching Damon from the corner of her eye, waiting for his reaction to his younger brother's voice.
His brows were furrowed but he didn't say anything.
"Wait hold on, you FOUND him and your only telling me now?" Stefan's tone made Elena clench the wheel in frustration. Didn't he trust her with Damon to bring him home?
"It's more complicated than that. Damon, he-well he can't remember anything." Elena watched as Damon's jaw clenched. Great. She thought. The last thing she needed was an amnesiac angry Damon.
"What do you mean? Is he drunk?" Stefan's reply only further annoyed Damon, and he found it hard to contain his anger. Before he could even think of a reply to the brother he had no recollection of, Elena bet him to it.
"His memory is gone Stefan! We don't know what happened to him but I'm bringing him home, and maybe Bonnie can do something about reversing it." For the first time in her life, she could understand why Damon easily got pissed off with Stefan. This side of him was less than appealing.
There was a short silence from the other end of the line. "So he doesn't remember anything or anyone?" Stefan concluded.
"No."
"Not even me?"
Elena sighed sadly "No"
Another pause passed before he spoke up again.
"What about Katherine?"
Damon shook his head. Elena was surprised at that one. "No"
They heard Stefan clear his throat awkwardly. "And you...Does he remember you?"
Elena pursed her lips. She could perfectly picture what Stefan's reaction to this would be. He would become suspicious and slightly paranoid; accusing this of all being a hoax to try and win her over.
"Not exactly…its, well he doesn't remember me in general, but he feels as though he should know me.."
Another silence passed and Elena turned her gaze to Damon who was looking at her with that intense expression that he seemed to save for her on a regular basis. She shifted in her seat, trying to alleviate some of the heat that was inching lower and lower in her body. She was pretty sure Damon noticed because he looked at her with intensified interest.
Stefan's voice broke them out of their reverie.
"I see…Right I guess I'll see you when you get back."
Before she could respond, he hung up and the line went dead between them. She shook her head in frustration at Stefan's entirely too predictable attitude. He really needed to get over it, she chose him and he still had issues. It was a never ending cycle.
Reaching for her phone on the dashboard, she tried to keep her eye on the road while multitasking. She accidentally knocked the phone onto the floor and bent over to retrieve it, temporarily taking her eyes off the road. At that moment Damon had chosen to help her get the phone and their hands brushed slightly.
Elena's eyes met his in shock at the strong spark from such a simple touch. She knew she still had lingering feelings but she never thought they were as intense as that.
The moment was ruined by Damon shouting something at her and her hearing the loud screeching of tires at the same time. She never saw the bright headlights that were coming in their direction, nor Damon's rapid movements. It all happened so quickly.
Before she could comprehend what happened, she realized she was pressed against his familiar, hard chest and his arm firmly locked around her back and he was steering them away from the oncoming car, to safety. She would never understand vampire speed.
He had slowed the pace of the car and glanced down at her with concerned eyes. "You okay?"
She could feel the vibration of his voice through his chest which, still bare, was practically covering her entire body in protection. His spicy cologne scent filled her nostrils and she wanted to purr in contentment of the situation she was in. Her relaxed state was short lived as he was still staring at her waiting for her answer.
She nodded in confirmation, afraid her voice would come out in a squeak.
Much to her disappointment, he loosened his grip, allowing her to sit up in the passenger seat. She smiled shyly at him, smoothing out her clothes and putting on her seat belt which evidently was removed with force.
"Thank you Damon...I didn't even see it coming"
He gave her a reassuring smile and fixated his piercing yet intrigued stare on her again. He seemed to be in deep thought; mulling around in his head before he decided to take a chance. "Somehow, that doesn't feel like the first time I've saved you…"
Elena's eyes widened momentarily before she relaxed into a small smile. She nodded and his face lit up in interest.
"It wasn't, and I'm pretty sure it's not the last time either."
For the first time since shed found him she felt hope. His memories might not totally be lost, and for her, that was enough for now.
Authors Note:
Okay so I know its short, but I can't give away too much in the first chapter. The rest will be longer if you guys think that it's worth continuing. Also, the rating will go up to M… ;)
Leave me your thoughts, please?