None of this belongs to me. All of this is a complete work of Fiction.

Warning: 18+ Material, language, and Smut in later chapters

Exhilarated

Chapter 1

Elena walks silently into the theater that is crowded with people just like her. Tired, bored, teenagers that would much rather be doing worksheets than sitting on the hard, uncomfortable, theater floor. Their History teachers have a "special treat" for them, one that doesn't excite her in the least. In eight days a state election will commence, and a leader will be chosen. Today the student council has arranged for the candidates to come in and answer some questions that the students might have.

Elena isn't into politics, unlike a few of her friends who have written questions to ask the candidates. As they walk into the theater, Elena sees a long table that has been taken from the school's cafeteria, seven chairs are lined up behind the table, and drinks have been placed on each one. While the other classes end up sitting in the back of the theater, Elena's class sits in the front.

The world Elena lives in has never been a very exciting one. Her life is normal. No adventure, or passion, or danger. Nothing like the teen Romance novels she reads or the TV shows she watches. The worst part is that she is almost one hundred percent certain that it will stay that way. But she doesn't want it to. She doesn't want to end up as a normal, mature woman with children, but one that didn't take the time to live her life, to travel the world and see the sights.

"We would appreciate if all of you would quiet down." Says the Student body president as she takes her seat near the table meant for the candidates. At the sound of her voice, almost all of the teenagers quiet their voices and await what comes next, only a few stragglers continue their conversations.

"It is a great honor to have these seven wonderful candidates to come to our school. These past years it has shown that youth are a lot less interested in the vote. Ages from 18-24 have voted considerably less, and with this forum, we hope to change that." The girl smiles as she reads from her previously prepared script.

Everyone starts clapping as the candidates come out from behind the curtain and take their seats in the front. Elena watches as each of them sits in their designated spots, her eyes travel down the table until she reaches the second-to-last chair. And there he sits, his arms crossed, his icy blue eyes piercing into every person that catches his gaze. His hair is as black as night, his skin is a creamy color, and his jawline is like none other. His lips are perfectly sculpted, they're pink and plump and soft. His eyelashes are unfairly long. And as he stands up to introduce himself, Elena gets to observe more of him. He appears to be around 5'10 in hight, he stands tall and mighty over the students. Elena can almost see his sculpted shoulders, and six pack through his tight, white, button down shirt.

As the rest of the crowd claps, Elena does not. She sits there, her lips slightly agape as she stares at the man. And as soon as their eyes lock, she looks away. Elena may be eighteen, but that doesn't mean she's going to go off and get with an older guy, or any guy at all for that matter. Elena has never had a boyfriend. Never been kissed and so on and so forth. But that doesn't mean she's never loved.

Elena takes a deep breath and decided that it would probably be best just not to look at the man, that way the temptation will go away, right? Elena ends up not listening to the other candidates names but when the man stands up, the one with the stormy blue eyes, any thoughts that don't have to do with what's going on in front of her, vacate her mind.

As he talks of what he hopes to achieve, his plans for the great state of Virginia, Elena is mesmerized. It's like every word that comes out of his mouth draws her closer. His velvet voice caresses every statement, every dream, every hope. Elena can't seem to slow the pace of her heart down, her chest rises fast and heavy.

It is impossible to tear her eyes away from the captivating man that is affecting her in such an unfamiliar way. Elena has never felt this way by just being near a man. The feelings interest her, she wants to hold on to them, to explore them, to find out why, but all too soon the man finishes speaking, he sits back in his chair.

Her eyes travel down the table once more, scanning over each name tag that is taped to the table in front of each candidate. She smiles uncontrollably as she reads his name. Damon Salvatore. It suits him. It has an implied danger to it. And just by looking at him, it is apparent that this man, this Damon Salvatore, has dangerous, deep,dark, secrets.

The Candidates begin to answer questions, both from the School President and the crowd. Elena tries to listen to what they're saying, due to the fact that she's been given the task of writing down notes about each candidate, but she can hardly focus. She tries to scribble down jot notes of what they're saying when, all of a sudden she feels eyes on her. Moving her head only slightly, she finds that Damon's eyes are locked on her every movement, however his eyes show no form of emotion. If he feels anything, he hides it well.

All too soon he eyes go back to the crowd. Each candidate stands up and claps, awarding the student council for their hard work.

"And we have one more thing to announce." The student Vice-President announces with a wide grin on his face.

"When the winning candidate is announced in eight days, they will go through all of your student files and end up choosing a student to mentor. Of course you all have the option of saying no, however just remember that you can use as many things as possible to fill up those University applications." Explains the student president.

Nearly straight away Damon's eyes find hers. He seems to be looking her over, judging her. The lunch bell rings straight away. Elena slings her backpack over her shoulder, her cheeks turn a shade of pink as she finds that Damon is still staring at her. It's her who looks away first, filing out of the theater along with the other students.

###

Elena opens the door to her house, finding that no one is home. Just like usual. She places her backpack on the stairs and heads to the kitchen to fix a quick after school snack.

She fills up the kettle with water, placing it on the stove, she waits for it to boil. As Elena stands there, her mind travels back to Damon. His ice blue eyes, there was something in them she has never come across before. Danger? Passion? Or maybe the adventure she's been looking for?

But Damon isn't an option. She doubts that Damon will even consider her for the mentorship if he wins. She is apart of no clubs, her highest grade is an eighty, he probably wants a much smarter student to mentor.

The whistle of the kettle pulls her out of her thoughts. She fixes a cup of earl grey tea, before going up to her room, and sitting down at her desk. Opening her laptop, she suddenly has an idea. The temptation to go through with it is too strong.

Elena types Damon Salvatore into her search engine. Her heart beats fast in her chest as a picture of him appears. She chooses the most recent article. As she reads through it, the guilt takes a hold of her.

Damon Salvatore: Came from nothing

Damon Salvatore is most likely to win the state election, with seventy five percent of the votes. However Salvatore is more than what meets the eye. Orphaned at the age of four due to his parents car going off of Wickery Bridge in the small town of Mystic Falls, taken in by his uncle Zach who at the time had very limited funds. During his highschool years Damon was a star athlete as well as the top student, having made honor roll every year, he managed to get into an Ivy League university. He never returned to Mystic Falls, until now when he is rumored to have bought a house there.

Elena shuts the laptop. It feels wrong to just dig into his life like this. He may be a politician, but he still feels like a normal person. She wouldn't people to know everything about her, or to have people following her around with cameras. Elena can understand Damon's emotionless look the entire time in the theater. He's had a hard life.

###

Nine Days Later

Last night Elena watched on TV as Damon became the new state senator. She's glad that he won, he seems to be a very good leader, and she feels like after all that he's gone through he deserves something to finally go the way he wants it to.

As she stands in the theater, Damon walks up to stand beside the student Vice President and President. The Vice President hands him the microphone. Elena's heart beats frantically. There's a part of her that desperately hopes she will be picked, but there is also a part of her that knows it wouldn't turn out well if that were to happen.

"There were so many of you to choose from. All of you were amazing candidates, however I could only choose one of you. The decision was hard, but I am very pleased to announce that I will be mentoring Elena Gilbert." Her heart feels like it just skipped a beat as his velvet voice pronounces her name. The entire theater turns to look at her, including Damon.

"C'mon up her Elena." Says the vice president, she can hear the surprise in his voice that Damon ended up picking her. The girl in the background.

Elena forces her feet to move, not wanting to look like a compleat idiot. She can feel that her entire face has gone red. Everyone keeps their eyes glued on her as she walks, she makes it to where Damon stands. Being so close to him is almost too much to take. She didn't know her heart could beat so fast, and that her knees could feel so weak.

Damon reaches for her hand, she lets him take it. He shakes it for a few moments, oddly he leans in a little too close. "I'm very excited to mentor you Elena.".

Okay, so I've been working on this chapter off and on for a little while. I'm not sure if it's good idea, so I would really like to know what you guys think. Please Review and tell me what you think! Thanks for reading, and if you like it favorite and follow! :)