Damon and the Night Light
Summary: Much to the disappointment of his father, Damon has always slept with a night light in his room ever since he was a baby. After a severe yelling from his dad who had grown fed up with Damon's insisting, Stefan goes to comfort Damon and finds out why Damon sleeps with the light on. Very cute brotherly story!
Chapter 1
Six year old Damon was lying on his watery blue bed, about to go to sleep. A small glow from the wall illuminated the room and kept it dimly lit. Damon smiled as he snuggled into his race car pillow. He loved his room. It was one of the best big kid rooms there was. Blue and red cars drove down his wall in a nice highway and toy cars were scattered everywhere. A blue chest laid at the front of his bed, filled to the brim with a variety of toys.
Damon could feel himself touching the edges of sleep when he was suddenly jerked away by a loud slamming of his door. Damon jumped and turned around to find his dad standing there, an unpleasant look suffusing his face. "I have had it, Damon! That night light has got to go! You are old enough to sleep without it!"
"But Daddy!" Damon protested, shocked by his dad's sudden behavior. "I can't sleep without my night light! The-"
"Silence! I don't want to hear your pitiful excuses anymore! As far as I'm concerned, you are no longer apart of this family. You have brought nothing but shame and dishonor and that will not be tolerated! Until you start acting like a man, I will have nothing to do with you."
Damon watched through glassy eyes as the loud slamming of the door exploded in his ears. The salty water charged rapidly down his cheeks and paltered onto the bedsheets, soaking them in warm water. Damon put his head into his hands and cried. Sobs racked his body as he tried to get himself under control but to no avail. He knew his father hated him, but for him to say it to his face was gut-wrenching. Damon didn't understand how sleeping with a night light is so bad.
His father has always favored his younger brother, Stefan. Damon could tell as soon as they brought him home from the hospital. Even though he was only three, he could see a change in his father demeanor. There was happiness in his eyes that Damon had never seen before when his father was around Stefan. With him, it was only disgust and disappointment. But Damon loved Stefan even though he got all the attention from Father. He would play with his four year old brother every chance he got. But his dad would always discourage Stefan from doing so. He would always tell Stefan that Damon wasn't very nice and that he did things that brought alot of grief and shame to the family. But Stefan wouldn't listen and just play with him anyways. "Atleast someone cares about me." sniffled Damon quietly to himself as he pulled his blanket over him. He was about to fall asleep with his door jarred open a little. Damon whipped his head to only find his four-year old brother standing there with a blanket in his left hand and a bear in the other. "Stefan, what are you doing here? Daddy will be very mad if he catches you here!" Damon hissed softly but firmly.
Stefan slowly approached the bed, looking up at Damon with big chocolate eyes. "I heard Daddy yelling at you, and I just wanted to make sure you were okay."
Damon offered his baby brother a half-smile as he patted the spot next to him. "Come here."
Stefan eagerly took this chance and climbed up on the bed and sat beside Damon, looking at him intently. Damon sighed as he faced his brother, trepidation swirling around his ocean eyes. "Daddy was mad at me for using my night light."
Stefan stared at his brother sadly for a minute before wrapping his pudgy arms around Damon, pulling him close to him. Damon smiled as he returned the same gesture. "I'm sure Daddy didn't mean it." said Stefan, breaking away from the hug.
Damon could feel the sadness turning into rage as he glared holes into the wall with utter bitterness. "He meant every word Stefan. He means every word when he's talking to me."
Stefan stared at his brother sympathetically. He wanted so badly to help Damon and cheer him up but didn't know how. "He disowned me."
"What does that mean?"
Damon fought back the tears threatening to spill from their vessel. "It means I'm no longer apart of this family anymore."
Stefan rested his hand on Damon's shoulder affectionately. "You'll always be apart of this family and my big brother."
Damon smiled at his little brother's child-like innocence. "I sure will."
They sat in silence for a minute, not knowing what else to say. Finally, Stefan broke the ice. "Why do you sleep with a night light?"
The question caught Damon by surprise. "What?"
"Why do you sleep with the light on?" questioned Stefan.
Damon sighed as he leaned his head back. "I use it to keep the bad thing away."
Stefan cocked his head to the side. "What bad thing?"
"You know, the thing that comes out at night."
"A monster?"
Damon shook his head. "No, it's worse then a monster. All monsters do is scare you, but this one eats and bites you. It's called a vampire."
Stefan stared at Damon quizzically. "Vampire?"
Damon nodded. "I read somewhere that they only come out at night, preying on us. They like to drink something out of us. I don't know what it is but it's bad."
"Is it pee?"
Damon smacked his head with his palm. "No, it's something red. If they take too much of it then we can die."
Stefan stared at his brother wide-eyed. "So a night light keeps them away?"
Damon nodded triumphantly. "Yes, light will keep vampires away."
Stefan nodded, still perplexed as to what he just heard. "Have any tried to get in?"
Damon shook his head. "Nope, they can't because of the light."
Stefan suddenly looked at his brother, scared. "Will they come into my room?"
Damon looked thoughtful for a moment, contemplating his brother's question. Finally he answered, "I don't think they will come in there. You're too little to make much of a snack."
Stefan breathed out a sigh of relief and settled in Damon's bed. "Do you mind if I sleep here? I don't wanna go back to my dark room."
Damon nodded, pushing the covers back and making room for Stefan to get in. He snuggled up close to Stefan, pulling the covers on them and putting his arm around Stefan. "Thanks for staying here with me, Stefan. I really appreciate it."
Stefan cast one smile back at his brother before they slipped off into dream world.
145 years later
The front door of the boarding house slammed shut with a bang and Damon walked into the complex, having finished his hunting session. Now, for some strange reason, he wanted to take a nap. Walking up the stairs and to his room, he paused for a minute and made sure no one was looking before he opened the door to his room and stepped inside.
Brown walls surrounded Damon as he stepped onto the soft basin carpet and went over to the dresser that stuck to the far side of the wall next to the window lingering above it. Creaking could be heard as the drawer was being a little forced open. A popping sound could be heard as the drawer successfully got free. A sickening sound could be heard as something hit the wall. Damon slowly walked over to it and picked up the still working night light that he had years ago. It had been ages since he had used it. Damon twiddled it around in his fingers, memories of his father yelling at him and Stefan comforting him buzzed in his mind. He eyes slowly drifted the electric socket directly infront of him. His mind was telling him not to do it but his body spoke back differently. Before he knew it, the angelic glow emitting from the thin layer of glass filled the room, brightening it with a warm sensation. Damon smiled as he left it there and was about to get up with a blinding white light startled him. Damon turned his angry eyes upwards to find Stefan standing there, holding a camera and grinning madly. "So, you're still trying to keep the vampires away?"
Damon breathed out angrily as he stood up. "Give me that camera Stefan."
Stefan grinned as he handed it over to Damon and watched as Damon destroyed it within a blink of an eye. He laughed. "It's ok; I already sent a copy over to Elena's phone."
The End
A/N: I honestly don't know who to feel sorrier for. Damon, for having his dad disown him like that, or Stefan, who I'm predicting isn't going to live very much longer and neither is Elena. Thanks for reading and don't forget to review! :)