Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the Lori, at least I think I do :) Nope, all the good stuff belongs to L. J. Smith...anyways, onwards we go!
August 2009
She was lay across the bed, her left arm behind her head in place of a pillow and her right hand slumped on her stomach, index finger tapping up and down lazily. Her eyes were moving underneath her lids in an anxious manner.
She absently listened to the familiar noises of New York City. Blaring sirens, honking cars, the screaming of passing pedestrians and the one and only comforting sound to be found, the slight breeze that came along every few minutes through the homemade drapes that covered the one window in her room.
It was hot, too hot and not made any better by the small, crowed apartment. She could feel the little beads of sweat rolling down the sides of her face and shifted her bare legs slightly to keep them from sticking to the wrinkled sheets. Pretty soon she was going to have to discard the black button down dress shirt she was currently wearing, left over from an ex she assumed, and settle for just her undergarments. She was just about to slip off into what would probably be a heat induced coma when she suddenly felt it.
Her lids snapped open and she focused her dark eyes on the ceiling, holding her breath for a moment as she tried to determine if she felt what she thought she had, only to release the air a moment later as a small smirk started to form at the corner of her mouth.
Indeed she had felt it.
She tilted her head to the right slightly to gaze at the small window, feeling the messy ends of her ponytail grazing the fingertips of the hand that was still behind her head. She propped herself up and swung her legs over the side of the bed, her bare feet hitting the hard floors as she stood up. Her feet carried her the five steps between the bed and the window and swiftly pulled the drapes fully open.
"Hello little bird."
The black crow gazed up at her, emitting a small noise from it's beak as it did so. She stepped aside some to gesture for the bird to come in, watching it with both eyes as it raised it's shiny black feathered wings to jump down off the shill.
At that exact moment she felt the rush of wind by her as she closed the drapes back up again and turned to face her guest, only to find there was no one there.
She frowned slightly at the empty space in front of her before she understood.
"Ohh, I get it. You want to play hide and seek do you?" her soft voice echoed off the walls and she started to walk around the room. "Ok, let's see…are you under the bed?" she got down on her hands and knees and peeked under the bed frame. "No, not there." She got back up and padded into the connecting bathroom and switched on the light. "The shower maybe?" asking the invisible air around her as she pulled back the shower curtain. "Nope, not there either." She chuckled to herself lightly while walking back into the room and out into the narrow hallway. All of her movements slow and precise, this was the most entertainment she had had in a long time, she had no interest in rushing things. "I know, you're in the closet!" she flung the door open only to find that it too was empty of any existence. She put her hands on her hips in a teasing manner. "C'mon now, you can't hide from me all night."
She shut the door in front of her and turned the corner to enter the kitchen and stopped for a moment to take in the new surroundings, then smiled.
"There you are."
She hit the switch for the overhead light so she could take a closer at him, it had been so long since she last seen him, a little over a year to be exact. It only took a second to conclude he looked exactly the same, not surprising, it was one of the perks of his nature after all. He stood there clad in black and his favorite jacket, naturally, and waited for her to complete her inspection, just as he always did. He still had the same handsome, youthful face, the same dark, perfectly messy hair, the same Cheshire cat-like grin and most importantly, those same eyes. The same sparkling blue eyes that held a lifetime plus of knowledge, mystery, amusement and countless secrets. There he stood, looking absolutely perfect to her.
She leaned against the door frame and crossed her arms over her chest and had to suppress the giggle that was in her throat from the pure happiness she was feeling at the moment.
"Damon Salvatore."
"Lori Miller." He answered back in that velvety smooth voice of his.
"And to what do I owe this immense pleasure?" she questioned, though only for show.
He shrugged nonchalantly. "Oh you know, I was in town and I figured, what kind of monstrous person would I be if I didn't swing by to say hello?"
She held a hand to her chest. "That's so thoughtful of you!"
Damon smiled a little wider, there was the sassiness he had grown so fond of over the years. Good, she hadn't changed then.
"Well, normally I would play this little charade out a bit longer but I'm afraid it's just too damn hot tonight to play coy so I'll just come right out with it, What do you want Damon?"
He feigned innocence. "What, you mean it can't be enough that I just wanted to say hi?"
Ah, so he wanted to be begged did he? Well, she could do that if it made him feel better. So she put on her own face of staged sternness. "Now now Damon, there's only one real reason that you come to visit, how stupid do you think me?"
He sat down at the small dining table and leaned forward as if he were in a deep thought. "Well, would you happen to be offering that one thing?"
"Don't I always?"
"And as a guest in your home I suppose it would be kind of rude to deny you what obviously brings you such joy?"
She pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes slightly. "Mmm, terribly rude."
"And one thing I'm not is rude."
"Of course."
He nodded and then gave a dramatic sigh. "Would you please?"
She nodded in agreement. "It would be my honor." and then she broke out a smile that mirrored the one that was taking over his face once more and opened the refrigerator door.
He took that chance to drink in the view of her and mused to himself what an unlikely pair they were. He still wasn't quite sure of how she even survived their first encounter, all those years ago. Usually there would have been no thought about it. He would have paid her a compliment or two, depending on what mood he was in, and then in the blink of an eye he would drain her of every ounce of blood in her body and leave her for dead, usually. But there was something about her, Ms. Lori Miller. What could he say? She was charming in her own right, and, as he would later come to find out, had the power of persuasion on her side, a power he was all too willing to give into. But it wasn't so bad, she wasn't so bad. She didn't have a problem with what he was, she accepted the information as if he had told her it was going to rain. He didn't get hounded by questions, not ones he had a problem answering anyways, but of course like anything else that also depended on his mood. He didn't get accusing glares for anything he did, she didn't act any differently at all. It took him by surprise to say the least. It wasn't until the third time he had come back to visit her that he decided he definitely hadn't somehow compelled her in a drunken stupor and just forgot about it. And she didn't ask for much in return, didn't expect much in return. She just wanted someone to pay attention to her for a few minutes every now and then and she was content. He didn't mind, she got what she wanted and he was graciously repaid in return. Yes, to him it was a very fair trade off.
She broke him out of the trance he didn't realize he had gone into when she slammed down two cold beers and of course, the piece de' la ristaunt, a jar of pickles.
He had to laugh out loud himself, but he wasn't ashamed of it, he did love his pickles.
"That's my girl."
She sat down and just smiled as he opened the jar and grabbed a slice.
"So what does bring you to town exactly?"
"Just got back from Italy."
"Nice, business or pleasure?"
He smiled in between a bite. "Pleasure, always pleasure right?"
"Touché." she held up her beer to him. She then took a look at his face again and noticed something that was different than the last time. "You look perkier than usual, you're eating well then?"
"Of course. Just had a bite before I came up actually."
"Glad to hear you're taking care of yourself."
"And what about you? What have you been doing with yourself?"
She gave him a mock gasp. "You mean to tell me you haven't heard?"
"Apparently not."
"Well, hold on to your seat pal. You just so happen to be talking to the Head Manager of O'Malley's Tavern!"
He raised a eyebrow at her. "Congratulations! That's quite an accomplishment." there went the oh so familiar glint in his eyes.
"Yes, my parents are very proud." she scoffed at her own remark.
"And what about the boys, hmm? Breaking any hearts?"
She snorted at that and motioned to the apartment around them. "Does it look as though I've had any company?"
He leered at her from the corner of his eyes. "It looks as though you were expecting company."
It was then she seemed to take notice of her barely dressed form and punched him lightly. He just chuckled and went back to his snack.
They talked like that for several hours, just two people casually conversing about this and that, playing catch up. It was their ritual, the same thing every time he came. This was the longest, by far, he had ever stayed and she assumed it was because he probably wasn't planning on coming back for a while, more likely than not even longer than this stretch, so she made sure to soak it all up, mentally recording everything so she could replay it in her head when she needed to. It was around 3:00 am when she walked with him over to the window of the living room as he prepared to leave.
"So where are you heading now Mr. Salvatore?"
"Actually, I'm heading down to Mystic Falls."
"Really?" she asked with a slight start.
He smirked. "Really. I'm thinking it's about time I paid my little brother a visit."
She was taken aback by that some. She knew the story, some of it anyways, of his brother and him. Obviously he was going for more than just that, but it wasn't her place to ask questions like that.
"Family reunion huh? Have fun." she exaggerated the fun part., clearly beaming with sarcasm, her inner sass always coming into play at some point or another.
"I plan on it." he turned around and faced her, long and hard, it was going to be a long time he thought. Not the last time, not if he had a say in it, but a long time. Too bad, it was so hard to find a good pickle dealer too.
"Well Ms. Miller, as always your kindness weakens my cold black heart."
She laughed. "Bull."
"Well of course it's bull but it sounds good." he gave her one more flash of a smile. "Until next time?"
"You bet. My window is always opened."
He bowed to her and then, just as quick as he had shown up he disappeared into the night once more.
She stood for a moment. She stared at the empty space for a couple of minutes before turning around and heading back to her room, whispering to herself as she did.
"Goodbye little bird."
Have you ever wished for an endless night
Lassoed the moon and the stars
And pulled that rope tight
Have you ever held your breath
And asked yourself
Will it ever get better
Than tonight
Glitter in the Air By: Pink
Terrible fluff, I know. But I couldn't help it! When watching that scene in episode 11, 'Bloodlines' where he takes the pickle from Elena and says "You don't like pickles, what's wrong with you?" it reminded me of Dane Cook's comedy act, not to mention my own love of pickles, and, you know, I was inspired. Anyways, that's my defense and I'm sticking to it!