"So, what? This, our whole relationship, was just something to amuse yourself with until 'The love of your life' decided to have a relationship with you, instead of just having you cheat on me?"

"Yep."

His answer stung. It did back then, and it still did now. Even when Scarlett wasn't thinking about it. It changed her. He changed her. She wasn't her happy self anymore. Now she was filled with hate. Where her heart once flowed with love and tenderness, was now a cold beating rock, flooding with acid.

She pushed everyone away. Her friends. Her family. Even her enemies were avoiding her.

Her hand was bleeding from the cuts left by the mirror she punched a few moments ago. Her reflection seemed to have taunted her, and she snapped, hoping that by destroying the mirror, she'd destroy that taunting voice in her head. Instead, all it did was create more distorted reflections of herself, all smirking back at her.

She hissed when the hot water hit the cuts, but was content with being able to feel something again. A smile pulled at her lips, and she finished her shower quickly. She needed to get out of the house before she went insane.

Maybe drinking her problems away, wasn't the best route to take, but seeing that she had the ever-charming older Salvatore and his semi-retired vampire hunter friend, as drinking buddies, she shrugged off her coat and ordered a drink, knowing fully well that neither of the two men would let her get away from them now that she was seated between them

She felt happier than she had in years, that is, until she saw what - or who - Damon was shamelessly glaring at. The happiness rapidly died as it became suffocated by the anger bubbling its way to the surface, burning to get through her.

She jumped off her bar stool and started moving towards her target, when she was suddenly spun around, causing her to crash right into Alaric's chest.

"Are you insane?" Alaric scolded her while Damon kept his glare on the figure at the back of the room. "The guy's an original vampire, he could kill you." She pulled away from him and set her sights on the girl who was wrapping herself around Scarlett's ex.

Without stopping to analyze what she was about to do, she pulled the girl away from the sadistic smirk playing on his lips, and threw her to the ground. A protest sounded from him, but it died instantly when Scarlett's hand made contact with his cheek, a resounding clap echoing through the bar.

Grabbing her coat, she stormed outside and charged home as fast as she could in high heels. She stopped in her tracks when a low growl sounded around her, a surprised gasp left her lungs in a flush when she walked right into him.

He grabbed her arm and she slapped him again, this time savoring the way his eyes darkened. His grip tightened, and a whimper emitted behind a hiss as she tried to pull herself free. He pulled her against him and lowered his head to her neck, to take in her scent, taunting him, testing him.

"That wasn't very nice." He growled aggressively by her ear. She smirked and pulled back so she could meet his angered eyes with an amused smile.

"Stop being such a cry-baby. I hardly even touched you." She wrenched herself away from him, and his expression went from pissed, to slightly amused.

"Since when are you so...catty?" He smirked at her, knowing fully well that she was on the brink of a rage blast. "What happened to sweet little Scarlett? The one with her head in the clouds as she obsessed over the idea of love?" She met his smiling eyes with a disdainful glare.

"She disappeared the day you did. I was the only replacement available. Don't like it? Fuck off." He grabbed her waist when she tried to move past him, and in an instant, she found herself trapped between a brick wall and his rock hard body, which could just as well have been a brick wall. He nipped at her ear, causing her to stiffen. He smirked at her reaction and did it again, making her stifle a low growl in her throat.

"I like you this way. I'm not too crazy about your resistance to give in to me, but I'll fix that soon enough." She felt his teeth sharpen against her neck, and tried to get away from him. His grip tightened to it almost being too painful to move, but she refused to stop struggling.

Until he broke skin that is.

When her blood leaked into his mouth, he couldn't resist the urge to swallow, and when he did, he latched onto her neck firmly, and forcefully started feeding from her as he claimed her as his.

She felt herself weaken, and tried pushing him away, but he just growled and pushed her harder against the wall. She wanted to cry out in pain, but there wasn't any. It was just pure bliss. And when the world around her started to darken, she whisper-moaned his name so quietly, she didn't think he'd heard her. And then the darkness swallowed her.

"Kol." His eyes snapped open at the mentioning of his name, remembering quite clearly how it had sounded the night before, when his teeth were inside her, and she breathed his name, letting it die on her lips as it rang in his ears as if she was cursing him, and not begging him to fuck her right in the street, in plain view of anyone and everyone who happened to walk by them.

But it wasn't Scarlett who had called his name, it was Elijah. And man did he look pissed. Maybe it's because he found out about Klaus' little plan to torment and kill the Gilbert kid if little miss witchy didn't cooperate, Kol thought to himself. He was just along for the ride because it gave him something to do.

"Good morning brother. You're looking very dapper this morning, as usual. What can I do for you?" Elijah rolled his eyes at Kol as he straightened his tie before replying to Kol's question, trying to plan how he should phrase his reply.

"It's two in the afternoon Kol, and I want you to tell me why there's a human girl in your bed, and why her blood is staining your bed sheets?"
Kol's eyes snapped up to meet Elijah's.

"She's still bleeding?" Kol asked, unnoticed concern lining his voice as he spoke.

"And making a terrible mess as well." Elijah answered bored with Kol's presence already. Kol jumped up and sped past his sibling, wanting to get to his room as fast as possible.

Walking in, his senses were violently assaulted by the bittersweet metallic aroma her blood was filling the room with. She coughed and he was by her side in a second, gently putting her head against his chest as he pulled her back against him, trying to relieve some of the uncomfort she was feeling as he placed his wrist above her lips, a strangled moan leaving his lips as she pulled his wrist against her, and started drinking and lapping ferociously at the blood flowing from the fresh wounds he inflicted.

By the time Scarlett made her way through the darkness, Kol had cleaned and changed her, trying to pass the time as his blood sped up her body's natural healing process. She glanced around the room and noticed him sitting in a black armchair across from her. He wasn't smirking as usual, but he wasn't smiling either. She noticed the concern in his eyes and smiled back at him.

"Looks like I'm not the only one with whip-lash inducing mood swings." She sighed with a smile on her face and stretched her arms towards the ceiling before allowing her eyes to settle on him again before replying.

"Looks that way." He smirked playfully at her, but his eyes started wandering, burning her skin as if memorizing every detail, every curve, every dip, for later use. She realized she was doing the same when his eyes locked with hers, his dark eyes carrying a fire so intense, she could have sworn she felt her core tighten in anticipation.

"Kol-" Her words were cut short as he pushed her on her back and straddled her hips as he sat on her. They studied the other's face for any kind of emotion that might just give them away, but she learnt from the past that any emotion around him was wasted, and she was searching through an endless pit. He has no emotion to show. Her thoughts reminded her. A single tear escaped her, but didn't make it far, because Kol quickly leaned towards her, and kissed it away. Her breathing stilled when his eyes met with her's, flicking down to her lips only once before capturing them with his own in a searing hot kiss.

She wanted to fight back. She needed to. But her limbs would not cooperate, and had developed minds of their own as they wrapped themselves around his body, forcing him closer to her. Their tongues battled for dominance, and he hissed when she raked her teeth over his before catching his lips between her teeth, biting down hard enough to break the skin - if he was human of course.

She bit back a moan when his hand moved up under her shirt, raking his nails lightly on her skin as he neared her breasts. As if remembering where she was, and who she was with, and why she wasn't supposed to be there, she contracted her hand into a fist until her knuckles turned white, and in one fluid motion, pulled his head back with one hand, and connected the other against his jaw, causing him to lose his balance and fall off the bed - more out of shock than actual force - using the opportunity to jump up and run as fast as she could.

Looking back only once to see if she was being pursued, and realizing she wasn't, she turned off on a familiar road and ran up until a familiar structure cast a shadow over her. She didn't stop until she reached the front door, and knocked frantically until it opened up, and she burst through into the arms of a confused older Salvatore, wearing only a pair of faded jeans, and carrying a vile of some kind of alcohol he always had lying around the house.

Damon stumbled back as she locked her arms around his neck, and stabilized himself quickly before holding her close to him as he kicked the door shut. Soothing words of comfort were whispered to her as he carried her to the living room, setting her down on the couch in front of the fire-place. She reluctantly let go of him, and he disappeared upstairs, coming down a few seconds later with a shirt on, and a new bottle of bourbon in his hand. Once he settled on the couch next to her, she turned to him, angry tears were threatening to spill and she blinked them back quickly, not wanting to fall apart on his couch a second time since she ran out on Kol.

His blue orbs studied her quietly, he knew she'd start talking when she was more in control of her emotions, and that it was a bad idea to push her for information. After taking a generous swig from the bottle, he heard her sigh and made himself comfortable as she turned towards him, wiping at the stray tears with her palm.

"He hurt me Damon. Played me like a fucking violin. I want revenge, and you're going to help me." His eyebrows raised in question, but as she started explaining her plan, his eyebrows fell, and his smirk grew to almost being a full-on shit-eating grin.

They walked in with their heads held high, and their arms wrapped around each other. Damon's hand gripped her hip firmly, and pulled her closer to him when he spotted Kol sitting by the bar. A light smirk pulled up her lips when she saw Kol's eyes darken at the pair. They sat down at one of the nearby tables, making sure that they were in clear view of Kol and his venomous looks.

For two hours they sat at their table, trading sweet nothings and sweet kisses, with an occasional make-out session, which ended in her blushing furiously and giggling softly while he nibbled at her ear. Glancing at Kol's original spot, she saw that he was gone, and in an instant, so was the pressure of Damon's lips at the base of her neck.

Snapping her gaze up, she found Kol with a hand clutching at Damon's shirt so tight, his knuckles were paling even more. Damon tried to wriggle out of Kol's grip, lashing out behind him, trying in vain to connect a fist to Kol's face, but Kol never even flinched. She saw the skin beneath his eyes turn translucent, emphasizing the dark veins running beneath it. His eyes went bloodshot and she jumped out of her chair, desperate to get Damon as far away from Kol as she could without drawing too much attention to themselves.

"Kol. Let him go." He mocked contemplating it for a few seconds before smiling at her, his fangs on clear display for all to see.

"No, I don't think I will." she clenched her fist and tried again, not raising her voice too high above the music now blasting through the stereo.

"Kol -"

"You know Scar, I always thought you had better taste than to fall for a love-sick vampire like Mr. Salvatore here." She felt her heart leap at the sound of his little nickname for her. She calmed herself and smirked at him before she slapped him across the face again, causing him to drop said Salvatore to the floor.

"Says the parasite who cheated on me with a girl who turned him down flat more than once." She was trying in vain to keep her anger under control, hissing each word as if she was a snake.
"But seeing as it was all just a game to you, I figured I should start playing along, following you example." She smirked at him again and put her arm around Damon before turning her attention back to the visibly seething Original. "So now I'm playing dirty too."

They left without another word, but she was pretty sure that Damon was sending mental raspberries towards Kol, and almost laughed out loud at the thought of a grown man - a vampire - sticking his tongue out at another vampire because he got to leave with the girl the other one wanted. Damon looked at her with confused amusement when she couldn't stop a small chuckle from breaking through, but she just waved him off and got in the car, knowing fully well that Kol was not going to back down from the challenge she set for him.

I can play this game much better than you Sweetheart.

Lying there. In Damon's bed... She felt out of place, like she didn't belong there, on the soft covers, in the arms of the older Salvatore, her head on his chest. This wasn't where she was supposed to be, where she really wanted to be. She belonged in the arms of another. Under the black velvet covers as they slept the day away. Her lips twitched with an inch of a smile at the memories of days wasted under his covers, his arms wrapped around her, possessively, proving to the world that she was his, his lips and fingers in her hair, as if proving to himself that she was his. Her smile dropped. It was all a game.

She tried not to wake Damon as she stood from the bed, careful not to disturb his peace as she made her way out the room and down the stairs. She's been playing a dangerous game for three weeks now, and the more she played, the guiltier she felt, but at the same time, she felt like victorious.

For every glare was a winning smirk, for every hissed insult was a flirtatious wink. She knew how to play Kol's game. She was insisting on winning it. But now, as she stood in the foyer of the Salvatore's home, she felt immense guilt at the pain she was causing.

Pain that not only she felt when Kol left, but pain that Kol felt, seeing her with Damon, pain that Damon felt, knowing she was only using him to spite Kol. It wasn't her fault. Damon asked for a distraction, she was giving him one. But now, here in the silence, she realized she had been wrong. She walked back up to Damon's room, stopping in the door when she saw him sitting on the bed with jeans on, a knowing smirk on his face as he looked up at her. She took a deep breath and crouched in front of him, forcing him to look her in the eyes.

Before a word was said, he pulled her in for a passionate kiss, one that would have made her head spin if it was the right vampire doing it. After pulling free, he winked at her, no further words were necessary, and yet, she still felt a need to tell him she was wrong, that she was not going to win this game after all. She sure as hell could play it, but there was no way she could win it. She stood by the door and glanced back at Damon over her shoulder.

"I'm sorry Damon." He winked at her, hearing a car pull up, she remembered about a certain other original he was setting his sights on. She smirked at him and left him to his own devices. Passing the gorgeous blond in the foyer, Scarlett noticed a piercing glare Rebekah sent her way. Not wanting to confront the original, she walked out the house as fast as she could, not wanting more trouble that she already had.

She swallowed her pride with great difficulty as Kol stood before her. She replayed his question in her mind, trying not to boil over with acidic rage, and break his nose with a shovel.

"Bored of the Salvatore already?"She looked up at Kol's smirking face, his eyes did not hold their usual amusement. There was something darker, something a bit more sinister, something she knew well, something she could relate to.

"Jealous are we?" And the look was gone, one blink, and it was gone, replaced with anger, and yet, he still had the ability to look amused. Something else flickered in his eyes, but it was too quick to be taken notice of, or recognized. He allowed her inside, the first thing she noticed when walking in, was the lack of other originals. Turning back towards him, her eyebrows pulled together when she saw the solemn look on his face. "Kol?"

His eyes snapped to hers, and he pulled her to him aggressively, she gasped when she collided with his chest, it was cut short when his lips found hers. When he finally let her go, she looked up at him, dazed and even more confused than before. Her confusion evaporated when she saw the pain in his eyes. A pain she was certain was reflecting the pain she'd felt before she left Damon. Regret. Grabbing his jacket firmly, she pulled him towards her. Their lips collided again, violently trying to be the dominant. With teeth clashing, and nails raking against one another, he shoved her up against the wall, the painting next to her shook from the force. She submitted, not feeling enough strength to fight with him anymore.

Immediately, the kisses became softer, tender, more romantic than she'd ever experienced. She pulled him closer to her as he began nibbling on her pulse point. A moan broke free, meeting his own growl as she felt herself growing damp.

And then, her back met with soft covers, a warm welcome to his room, and the only one she could feel. Until she found him above her. Her legs wrapped themselves around his waist as he stared grinding himself against her, slowly and teasingly. She groaned and pulled him closer, their lips meeting in a rivaled passion as he skillfully removed her clothing, piece by piece, allowing it to fall to the floor without a care of where it ended up. She moved to remove his clothes, only to find him already bare. She blushed when suddenly remembering he was a vampire.

Every caress he made, made her feel like she was something to be adored, he'd said it often enough. He knew of every pressure point, where to press when he wanted her writhing in pain, and where to press when he wanted her screaming in pleasure. She moaned when he applied slight pressure, just above her hip bone, and he smirked down at her, loving the way she sounded, loving the way she smelled. Loving her. A short gasp made his hands stop their ministrations as she stared up at him.

Did I just? He thought.

Did he just? She thought.

He brushed his lips against her's. Staring deeply into her eyes. Shock was evident, but he saw another emotion there, one he felt many years ago, when she'd said the same thing to him in a moment of passion. They lay there watching each other, she wanted to speak, but his lips on her's restricted her from doing so. So instead, she placed a tender hand on his cheek, smiling up at him, allowing her walls to come down. Proving to him that she never stopped. He smiled back at her, forcing her closer to him as they kissed as if kissing for the first time.

Lying on the bed, in his arms, she felt at peace. She looked up at him and found him smiling up at the ceiling. She smiled when he looked down at her, as if sensing she was awake. Never had their lust been as pure as it was only a few moments ago. Never had they opened themselves to the other like that before. She sighed in content as she snuggled closer to him, and his arms pulled her closer, possessively.

This time not to prove to others that she belonged to him. Or to prove it to himself. But to prove to her that he wasn't going to back down without a fight if she ever decides to leave him.

She kissed the skin above his still heart. She was not going to let him go ever again.

She loved him

And he loved her

He'd said it, and she believed him.

This wasn't a game anymore.