A/N: There is a good reason that I rated this fic mature. This chapter will have some violence. Reader discretion is advised.

Since music is my life and gives me many of the ideas I will write about, I will start to post song and artist names that were either inspiration or used in the chapter.
Slipknot - Snuff
Three Days Grace - Animal I Have Become
Seether - Careless whisper
10 Years - Wasteland

Thanks for the reviews!

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Damon sat alone in his '67 Camaro, unaware of everything around him except for the music he was blasting.

He couldn't even remember where he was, only focusing on the pain.

At the moment, he was listening to Snuff by Slipknot.

"Why can't I find that stupid switch?" He thought to himself. "It always seems to disappear the moment you need it most."

"Why do I even need it? I don't really care. I gave up caring a long time ago. I only did that to get Stefan off of my ass. It's not like she ever loved me, anyways."

My heart is just too dark to care / I can't destroy what isn't there

"Who am I kidding? I am deeply, painfully, madly in love with the woman. She was just beginning to bring back the goodness in me that I barely knew still existed."

I don't deserve to have you / Ooh, my smile was taken long ago / If I can change I hope I never know

"I'm such a wreck – so destroyed over this…human. I not only stooped so low to steal a kiss from her, I cherish it; it was the only thing that kept my faith. She's too good for me; so kind and beautiful. How could she love a monster like me?"

I only wish you weren't my friend / Then I could hurt you in the end

"But I still can't leave her. I wish I could just leave, but I can't. I still love her; still feel the need to protect her. So I'll stay, walk through the fire to keep her safe, no matter how much I wish she could feel my pain."

He whispered along to the next line, knowing it was coming, "It took the death of hope to let you go."

Ooh, my love was punished long ago / If you still care don't ever let me know

"If you still care don't ever let me know."

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*Back at the boarding house*

"Woah! Elena…what's wrong? Are you okay? You've been crying."

Dazed, she answers "I-I'm fine, Stefan."

He goes to hug her, and she shies away.

"What's going on, Elena? And why do I smell Damon on you?"

Shocked, she says "I-I don't know, I swear. I just…I wanted to see you."

"You're lying."

"No, Stefan, I-"

She sighs and hugs him.

She looks up at him and he can immediately pinpoint where he smelled his brother.

"He kissed you."

"No. I wouldn't let him even if he wanted to."

"That's a lie and you know it! Where is he?"

"Stefan, he didn't do anything –"

"So it was you? Did you finally whore out with my brother?" He pushes her into the wall and keeps her there.

She gasps, "Stefan! You're hurting me!"

She tries to break free and he grabs her wrist.

She screams, "Stefan, stop it!"

"Or what? Your boyfriend will beat me up? Was this all a lie? I LOVED YOU, YOU LITTLE BITCH!"

He struck her across the face, not holding back, and she slammed into the wall, breaking a picture and cutting her wrist in the process.

The last thing she saw was his face, covered in blood. Her blood.

Somehow he mustered up the strength to stop drinking from her.

Then he realized what he'd done.

"Elena? ELENA! I'm so sorry! Please wake up. I love you!" He said, shaking her.

"Fuck! There's so much blood. I have to clean this up. I'll get you home, don't worry."

It took all of his strength not to drain her at that moment, but he knew that this time he wouldn't be able to control the monster inside of him. There was no controlling it, now.

As he gathered supplies to clean the mess he had made, he thought of how he would finish dealing with this problem tomorrow.

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Damon wasn't holding back anymore; he was letting the thoughts and tears flow.

"Come on, Damon. That's a lie; you care."

"You and I, we have something; an understanding."

"I'm surprised that you thought I'd kiss you back."

"Yes, you have lost me forever."

"I love Stefan. It's always going to be Stefan."

"The truth is, I've never loved you. It was always Stefan."

"Stefan. Stefan. Stefan. Stefan. Stef-"

"NO! Damnit, why is this happening to me? I just need it to stop. Make the pain stop!"

He felt like he was going insane, Elena's voice repeating those moments he always cherished.

So he calmed his nerves the only way he knew how.

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Damon sat at the bar in Mystic Grill, empty glasses strewn about, and a ditsy blonde nibbling on his ear.

"Can you at least try to control yourself? I said I wouldn't take you home and I meant it. Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to drown my pain with my best friend, Jack."

"Ew, sorry, I didn't know you were gay."

Damon gives her an evil glare. "Just. Leave."

He watched as she stumbled over to a booth with two other guys before he got up and left.

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Stefan finished cleaning up, took the trash out, and carried Elena to her car.

When they got to her house, everyone was asleep, so he carried her up the stairs and put her on her bed. He didn't bother taking her shoes off or putting a cover over her, he was too angry to be affectionate.

He couldn't even look at her right now; all he could think about was what the fuck she'd done, so he left; jumped out the window, but he'd be back before she woke up.

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Damon finally arrived home, drunk out of his mind, but it didn't matter how drunk he was, he could always pick up on the faintest smell of blood.

He walked in the door and immediately turned to the place that was such a horrific scene just an hour earlier.

"Didn't there used to be a picture there?" He thought.

He froze.

The blood…it was Elena's.

"Stefan?" He yelled, running up the stairs and into his room.

"Damon. What's wrong?" He said, trying to keep the anger out of his voice.

"What happened? Is Elena okay? I could smell her blood downstairs."

"Oh. Yeah, she slipped, broke a picture and cut herself. I tried to clean up."

"Is she okay?"

"Yes, Damon, she's fine. Home in bed. Now would you like to tell me what you were doing with her?"

"I didn't do anything." He said with his trademark grin.

"Don't lie to me, I could smell you on her."

"Look, all I did was return her necklace. Now, if you don't mind, I need another drink."

He went back downstairs and continued to drown his sorrow, but he couldn't shake the thought that Stefan was hiding something from him.

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The next day, Elena woke up sore and groggy.

"Good morning."

She gasped "Stefan? What are you doing here?"

"I just came to check on you. You know I don't like hurting you, but bad things happen when you can't be faithful. Just remember that. I'll see you later."

He disappeared out the window without another word, leaving Elena alone in her room. And, oh, did she feel alone.

She slowly and painfully got up to brush her teeth.
When she looked in the mirror, she was appalled.
Her eye was bruised and swollen, her wrist just starting to heal, and her neck…
Her neck was the worst.
Usually vampire bites were just two small holes, but she looked like she'd been attacked by…an animal.
An animal; that was the only way to describe the mauled, shredded skin that looked like it had come from a horror movie.

She knew she couldn't go to school, but Aunt Jenna would have a heart attack if she saw her like this, and Jeremy would want to kill Stefan, which would get himself killed in the process. Bonnie would probably react in the same way.
She felt like she had nowhere to turn.

So she called Damon.

"Hello, Elena. Trying to reach Stefan? I'm sure he's around here somewhere-"

"NO! Damon, please don't try to find him, and don't tell him I called you. Please."

"Elena, what's going on?"

"Can you just come over?"

"Alright, I'll be there soon, but-"

"Hurry. And come through the window."

She hung up her phone, locked her bedroom doors, and opened her window.