Damon Salvatore never felt love. Not until he met Elena. Beautiful, funny, breathtaking Elena Gilbert. With her long chestnut tresses and golden-brown eyes, he found her to be adorably irresistible. This adoration was never revealed, though. For Elena was his brother Stefan's girlfriend. He would never, never be able to love anyone else the way he did for her.
Though she may have the looks of his deceitful past-love, Katherine, Elena had way more compassion for others, not to mention patience. He loved that about her. Never would he have expected, though, for Elena to stumble through the boarding house door, sobbing uncontrollably. And he never would have expected for it to be his name crying from elena's lips, instead of Stefan's.
He strode over to where she was kneeling, hugging herself on the ground, and took her into his arms. Her body tensed up as his arms snaked around her waist, and he immediately loosened his hold. Holding her gaze with his, Damon's glacial concerned eyes searched Elena's pained ones as he asked the question that burned through his brain. "What happened, Elena?" His voice sounded hard and cold even to his ears, and he instantly regretted his unintentional tone as she slipped out from beneath his arms and ran back out the door. He didn't go after her. He couldn't go after her. Elena wasn't his and Damon didn't want to risk hurting her anymore than she already was. He just wished he knew what had happened. Not knowing what had condemned his secret love's innocent spirit ate away at him. He promised to himself that he would find out soon, and protect her and nurture her. Even if it killed him.
Elena Gilbert slammed her bedroom door shut and slumped against the doorframe. Every sob wracked her body with tremors of despair. The image of Jason, the guy she met at the Grill, standing over her with his arm raised wouldn't leave her mind. Elena was so ignorant, she always tried to see the good in people and the end result was her being treated like an animal, and tossed away like trash.
Useless trash. That's what Elena was. She couldn't live like this anymore. It was too much. Getting up, she stumbled over to her supplies drawer and took out the switchblade she had used to cut open the present Stefan had given her for her birthday. She rolled up her sleeve of her left arm, admiring how she was able to keep her heavily scarred arms hidden from the universe. Then she shamelessly brought the tip of the blade against her arm, and pressed.
She pressed until the tingling sensation of blood leaving her body caused a flow of crimson wetness on her arms. To her, it was pure bliss. Cutting was her only escape from the real world and the problems that ensued. It helped her deal with all the loss that was thrown at her. It helped her fight through the pain she felt every day. She never told anyone, because what would they think of her? They wouldn't want to deal with her problems, she caused enough already.
Elena would be sent away so no one would have to handle her mess. She was sure nobody would miss her, that no one would ever care. Cutting wasnt her only escape, though. Elena resorted to anorexia and bulimia because she didn't feel well about her body looked. All she could see was fat. Her friends Caroline and Bonnie had perfect, petite bodies. Why couldn't she be like them?
She felt she was too much skin, so she found ways to turn her healthy body into the skeletal thin-ness she desired. She hardly ate. When she did, it went right back down the drain, when she was able to get away with it. She had been doing it so long, that she had no idea how to stop. Harming herself seemed to take off the edge that life threw at her. It helped her actually live, even though it was unknowingly taking her life.
She didn't need help, she didn't need anybody. Only until Damon Salvatore came along. That's when she needed somebody. That's when she needed Damon. Elena had Stefan, but he was too protective of her.Sure, Stefan would come to the rescue and get Elena through this, but he would be disappointed and disgusted with her, and it would only drive her to do it again.
With Damon it would be different because he would be there for her, her rock and help her survive this, but deep down she knew he would be infuriated if he knew what Elena did to herself when she was alone. She was sure he would hate her if he found out, but he would never show it. This only made Elena more desperate and depressed as she never wanted to lose him, but she needed his help to get over her insidious addictions. Needed his help to cure her of herself.
She felt herself slipping away from consciousness, so she realized she had to tell him now, before it was too late. Weakly, she got up and dragged herself to her desk and took out her phone before collapsing between the desk and her bed in defeat. Pressing the speed dial for Damon, she waited as the phone rang for him to pick up. After ringing three times, she heard his voice.
"Hello Elena, you're not calling me to yell are you? I already have a mother, thanks." He said sardonically. A sob hitched itself in her throat as she replied to him, "Damon, i- i'm sorry.." She trailed off as coughing overtook her and her body shook violently. "Elena, are you alright? I mean i know i make the ladies nervous, but you sound sick or something. Too much of Stefan?" He joked.
As she struggled to regain control of her breathing and voice, Elena didn't answer for a few moments. "Damon.. I love you..I love you." She said quietly, ashamed. He, on the other hand was shocked. He had been waiting three years for those words to leave his lips,for her to finally choose him. "I, I love you too Elena. Since the first moment i laid eyes on you." He whispered the last part, awed. Tears of agony and joy sprung into her eyes, and a tiny sob left her throat.
She didn't think Damon heard it, but he did. "Elena, what's wrong? You know you can tell me, i'm here for you, Princess, i pro-" He was cut off by Elena. "I have to go, Damon. I'm sorry." Her voice was urgent, and pained and Damon knew something was terribly wrong with her, but she hung up before he had a chance to ask her. He had to see her, and that was just what he was going to do.
Elena closed her eyes as she dropped the phone onto the floor. She wanted this pain to be over, it was unbearable. Though, she wasn't leaving this world until she got to say goodbye to Damon. She needed to. Black spots dotted her vision, and she finally succumbed to darkness. Elena looked almost peaceful, save for the blood running from her wrists. She was finally breaking free from her own personal hell.
Damon, meanwhile, rushed out of the house and into his car, wanting to hurry to Elena's house. He sped through two red lights, one stop sign, and finally arrived at his destination. Hurrying out of his car, he bounded up the steps of the Gilbert house and knocked on the door. Nobody answered. He knocked again, but to no avail.
that's when he opened the door and found it suspiciously unlocked. Weird. As he ventured further into the house, he called out Elena's name, with no answer in return. Going up the steps to her bedroom, he called her name again. She didn't answer. That's when he heard it. The slow, almost nonexistent beating of a heart. Coming from her room. Damon sucked in his breath worried, and went to her door.
Also being unlocked, he opened it, anxious. What he found broke his previously unbreakable heart into a million miserable pieces. Elena was unconscious, slumped in front of her bed with blood pumping slowly out of her wrists. Her skin, once a tanned healthy glow, was pallid, almost dead looking.
Wasting no time, Damon appeared next to Elena, bit into his wrist and pressed it against her mouth. She didn't respond to the blood. Pressing it harder, he pleaded desperately with her. "Elena, please take my blood, losing you is not worth my life, i love you. Please, princess, just take my blood!" Moments later, she was still unresponsive, and Damon cried.
He cried more than he ever had in his 156 years of living. Guilt consumed him, as he felt he should have just followed Elena when she left earlier. If he had, she would have been alright at this moment. Damon buried his face into her neck, and his tears soaked her shoulder. He picked her up into his arms, and proceeded to take her back to the boarding house. He would make her live, even if he himself died trying.