When the Levee Breaks

The night air was cool and crisp as I ran unseen through the dark streets of Mystic Falls. A grin came to my lips as I saw the world flashing by me. Running was something I never expected I'd get a chance to do again. I had quite nearly given into death. Lying in my bed with Elena so close by my side, it had almost seemed I deserved to die. The touch of her lips against mine made me think that perhaps it was my time to go, but those thoughts were long gone now.

For once, Katherine had done something kind, repaid a debt. As my world flickered around me, seeming to mix the past and present seamlessly, she had stepped into my room. The sight of her and Elena there together had sent me for a thrilling spin. If I was to die after all, whose company should I choose for the ending of my life but the two girls who had shaped so much of it?

But Katherine hadn't brought death. No, instead she brought something better. Life.

Elena was on her way home for the night, undoubtedly worrying herself about everything. Stefan, Jeremy, Alaric, the fact that she'd just given in and clearly admitted to herself that she loved me... Yeah, her list was long.

But I didn't care, I had someone else to see.

As I neared her house, I slowed down. I hoped she wouldn't see me there, but then, screw it, it wouldn't matter. I scurried into her backyard, picking up his scent instantly. I knew where Jenna's bedroom window was, and I knew that was where he would be. The window stood precariously open, making this all the easier for me. With one fluid leap, I was squatting on the window sill.

The second my foot made contact with the bedroom's wooden floor, he snapped around in his chair at Jenna's desk where he had been studying some webpage on her computer. Fear turned to shock as his eyes met mine.

"Damon?" he exclaimed after blinking a few times as if I was some dream that would vanish once his eyes focused through the darkness.

"Ric," I responded simply.

He was out of his chair and halfway across the room in an instant, and I laughed as I considered how near he had gotten to vampire speed. "Damon, how are you here?" He still looked as though he fully believed he was seeing a ghost.

"Well, I walked through my front door, ran here, and jumped through that window right there," I explained.

He rolled his eyes. "I meant... I thought Tyler bit you?"

"Yes, that son of a bitch did bite me."

He sighed in exasperation. "Damon, can you just quit playing your little game and tell me what happened? How are you even alive?"

"Fine," I mimicked his exasperated sigh, "Well first, that mutt bit me, but I'm sure you've already had that entire story recounted to you." When he nodded, I continued, "So I was planning on dying alone with the only person I've ever really been able to trust- myself. But then Elena came to be with me, then Katherine joined our little party. Long story short, apparently Stefan made some sort of deal with Klaus to fetch me a cure, and Katherine was sent to deliver it. I drank the cure, Katherine left, then Elena left, and now I'm here with you."

I watched relief flicker through his eyes, but then it turned to worry once more. "Wait, did you say Stefan made a deal with Klaus? What was it, is he okay?"

"Dunno. Not why I'm here. I'll take care of that at some point, later."

"Then why are you here, Damon?" he asked, confused.

That was a damn good question. Why had I chosen to come and see Alaric over checking in on Stefan or tracking down Katherine?

After a few seconds of silence, I settled for the only answer that would come to mind, "I'm here to tell you I'm alive. Figured you might've wanted to know that."

He laughed humorlessly as I stood in front of him, still wondering why I had bothered to come and see him at all. But what he did next made me forget any possible answers. Hell, it made me forget the question.

Alaric was already standing fairly close to me, but I felt the air move around me as he leaned in even closer. And his lips brushed mine.

I was crouched against the far wall of Jenna's bedroom before he could even open his eyes. "The fuck, Alaric?" I growled menacingly.

I could hear the man's heartbeat quicken as though even he was surprised by his own actions. He blushed as he spoke, "I just... I thought I lost you Damon. First it was Isobel. I loved her, and then she just up and left, no longer interested. Then there was Jenna. I really loved Jenna, but things went so horribly wrong between us, and... and now she's dead, and we never even really patched things up. Then Tyler bit you, and I know what werewolf bites do to vampires. Somehow the thought of losing you overshadowed the loss of Isobel, or even that of Jenna." A silent tear rolled down his face as he spoke. "Look at my computer Damon, I was researching cures for vampires with werewolf bites. Something kept me holding onto nothing for you, I had to find a way to save you, or I would die trying. I... I need you, Damon. I've never... felt this way about a guy before, but... We've gotten close, saved each other a few times, and I can't stand the thought of losing you, too. I'm sorry."

Something clicked, and I suddenly had the sensation that my pants were just too damn tight. So maybe there had been an ulterior motive in my late-night visit. It wasn't as though I'd never pondered how his lips might taste against mine; the thought had just never occurred to me that perhaps I'd someday get to find out. And I'd never felt that way about a man either, but now... Maybe I could see exactly where he was coming from. My near-death experience had brought with it a realization- Elena would always be Stefan's, and Katherine would always be... well, Katherine. Neither of them were about to give up their lives to love me, and it was high time I stopped running around in circles chasing them.

"Oh, fuck me," I said to myself, much too low for Alaric to have heard me, and I laughed as the words took on a double-meaning.

His eyes widened as I closed the gap between us at lightning speed, pressing my lips against his. The kiss was much harder than the first had been, and I soon pushed my tongue into his mouth. I wasn't going to beg for entrance like some stupid teenager, not that he objected in any way. If we were doing this, it was going to be on my terms, and I would be getting what I wanted. Our tongues danced in each other's mouths, fighting for dominance, and he moaned into my mouth as I flicked my tongue up against the roof of his mouth and lifted him in an easy hop onto the bed.

I landed on top of him, my hands immediately searching for the hemline of his grayish-blue tee shirt and pushing it up and off him. As my hands brushed up his torso, he bit my lip lightly in surprise.

"Woah there," I said, moving my face only millimeters from his to speak, "No biting is gonna have to be a rule here. If I can't do it, you can't either."

He shook his head slightly in agreement, his breath hitching as our eyes met. Once he agreed to my condition, I continued with what I'd been doing. Instead of moving back to kiss his lips, I went for his neck instead, and his breath came sharply as my lips touched him there, his hips bucking up in surprised excitement. I pushed his hips back down with one hand, and had his pants off with the other. He moaned as I moved my lips down his smooth body and grabbed the waistband of his boxers with my teeth, pulling them down without using my hands.

As I passed his erection, I was sure to brush my lips lightly against it, causing him to moan my name, which only got me harder. Once his underwear was gone, I moved back to kissing his lips. If we were going to have sex, I was going to do it the same way I would have with any girl. It would be drawn out, and I would tease him until he quite nearly had to beg for it.

His hand moved toward the buttons on my shirt, wanting to get it off. It only seemed fair that I let him take it, as I already had him laying under me fully naked when I was still fully clothed, so I allowed it. Once he had it off, he pushed his tongue deeper into my mouth in a motion so thrilling I bucked my hips against him, quickly losing control of the situation.

I was the one moaning into his mouth as he continued the bucking, savoring the feel of his erection against my jeans. When I could no longer stand it, I detached myself from him for a split second, returning sans clothing before he could even protest to my departure. As we started kissing once more, I reached down, making him groan as I brushed my fingers against the head of his cock, already wet with pre-cum. He threw his head back and grasped at the sheets when I wrapped my hand fully around his dick then replaced it with my mouth. I brushed my tongue against his shaft, then took his whole dick in my mouth without warning, moving up and down it, harder and faster each time. Soon, he was lost in bliss as I reached a speed only a vampire could ever achieve, and that, coupled with his thrusts into my mouth, made him cum down my throat in spurt after spurt as he rode out the orgasm.

When I backed off, I kissed him deeply, passionately, once more, letting him taste himself in my mouth as I regained my control over the situation.

"Da-Damon," he whimpered, "Need you. Now."

And that was invitation enough. I held two of my fingers up to his mouth, and he eagerly took them for lack of lube. I kneeled between his legs, easing one finger in, then two.

"Damn, you're already ready for this," I muttered as I pulled my fingers away and he whined at the loss. "Flip over."

"N-no," he answered, "I want to see you."

"It'll hurt less if you just do it," I warned.

"Do-don't care. Please?"

I gave in, aligning myself with his entrance while he wrapped his legs around my waist. I couldn't wait any longer for this release. I plunged in as he screamed, pain mixing with pleasure.

"Shhhhh!" I commanded, "Elena and Jeremy are home, too, Ric."

I began to move slowly when he nodded, his hand intertwining in my hair, pulling me ever-closer to him. Pure animal pleasure took over as I gained speed, the noises he was making into my mouth spurring me on as I hit every sweet spot inside of him. I knew he was nearing the edge, teetering into another orgasm, so I forced my hand in between us, and the second I found his dick, he came, slicking my stomach. The extra heat between us pushed me into a wave of pleasure as well.

"So fucking good," I moaned, coming harder than I ever had with anyone before, prolonging his pleasure with the feeling of me coming deep inside of him. As I did though, I felt my features changing, fangs elongating, and my jaw ached harder than it already had been. I had to stop, had to regain control before this turned out horribly wrong.

I pulled out quickly, turning my face away from him so he wouldn't see my struggle. I was seeing stars as I tried to breathe deeply, grasping at the edge of the bed so I couldn't turn toward him.

"Damon?" he whispered, apparently not putting two and two together.

When I didn't answer, he must've understood, because he touched my face gently, exerting a small amount of pressure in his direction. I could've withstood it easily, but it took me surprise, so I turned toward him, expecting him to show some sort of shock or fear. But he didn't. Instead he whispered, "It's okay," as he pulled me into a gentle kiss.

I was so taken aback that I found enough strength to control myself once more, returning the kiss. When we broke away, I was smiling, legitimately happy for the first time in years.

"That was... wow," he said when his breathing calmed down.

"Understatement of the century," I responded, "And I would know."

He laughed initially, but soon it died down as he turned toward me and spoke, "I'm sorry..."

"For?"

"For this. I'm sorry I kissed you if you were uncomfortable with it. I'm sorry this happened if it wasn't what you really wanted," he said, shifting his weight uncomfortably.

"Alaric," I said in a tone that commanded his full attention, "If this hadn't been what I'd wanted, do you honestly think I would've allowed it to happen?"

He considered for a moment. "Probably not... But you just almost died... Well died again. And maybe you just wanted a warm body."

"Oh please, if that was what I wanted, do you think I would've come to you? Not that this wasn't amazing, just that I would hardly have expected it here. I came to see you because... because, well because I, uh..." I trailed off, hardly wanting to say the words that came to mind.

He caught my drift though, because he didn't make me finish my sentence. "I love you, too," he said, a smile crossing his lips.

I felt a dark smile dancing on my face as well. It was as if he'd read my mind. And I'd have had it no other way.

Like it? Hate it? Please do let me know either way :) Meant to be a one-shot, but I'm considering continuing it, so reviews would be much appreciated!

- Non Timebo Malo