A/N- You guys asked for it. Here it is! I have never written so fast before, haha... I think Caroline is just so damn good the words just flow. Please let me know what you think and there shall be more. REVEIW Tc

Chapter 2

Caroline stared aimlessly out the window as she sat in Damon's swanky SUV thinking about all the things that had changed. It had been 6 months... 6 whole months since she had seen Stefan's face and it was killing her, but she couldn't show it. She was just his friend after all; he had left behind a heartbroken girlfriend and a drunken brother... though Damon always was a drunk Stefan or no Stefan. Caroline had been a little trooper for the past 6 months helping Elena as much as possible, attempting to help Damon before he threw one of his giant ass books straight at her face yelling 'Leave me alone'. She couldn't afford to break down herself, Bonnie was consumed with trying to take care of a new and hindering on evil Jeremy and Alaric was never sober enough to help anyone, she was all that was left and she dedicated most of her time to Elena. Elena was a mess that was for sure, she still couldn't accept that they had lost Stefan; she still tried to find ways to look for him. Secretly Caroline agreed with her, but this search for Stefan wasn't doing Elena any good so she steered her away from that topic as much as possible but to no avail. Never in the past six months had Elena ever asked how Caroline was, never had the words 'How are you Caroline?' come out of her mouth; until today. Finally today Elena seemed to come out of the world of Stefan, it wouldn't be long before even Caroline would have gotten tired of helping Elena as Elena simply didn't want to be helped. But how could she blame her...

"So what's new in your life Blondie?" Damon asked startling her out of her own thoughts and forcing her to have all new much more confusing thoughts

Why is he being so nice to me? "Ah... nothing much Damon" she replied giving him a quizzical expression

"What... why are you looking at like that?"

"Uhm... I don't know let me think, maybe because you're being nice to me" she said mockingly

"I can be nice to you" Damon deadpanned

"No you can't" came the firm reply leaving nothing for interpretation

"Uh... yes I can"

"No you can't Damon" she repeated emphasizing on the you.

"I can do whatever the hell I want Barbie" he said angrily now

"That I know. But you have never willingly or unwillingly been nice to me... in fact you called me shallow and stupid... oh and you tried to kill me more than once." She added dramatically making use of her hands to bring her point home

"You can't count that against me, I've tried to kill everyone I know at one point or another." He stated

"Whatever Damon... just get me home" she said after a long pause

Damon looked at her in a funny way and she could tell he was thinking about what or how to say next. This didn't make her feel any better, nothing he had to say to her would be any good. So she just stared out the window waiting for him to say whatever the hell he wanted to.

"Okay... so I haven't always been nice to you, I'm trying to change that and be nice... you know... for a change" he raised his eyebrows and rolled his eyes realizing just how ridiculous that sounded.

"Why?" she asked knowing full well there was only one possible reason for Damon Salvatore to be nice to her... but hey a girl can hope.

"Because I need a favor" He said making a little guilty face

Of course he need a favor why else... stupid girl she said to herself. "What kind of favor Damon" she said simply and even Damon could see the lifelessness in her response

"Ah..." he began not sure what to say, she had seemed quite happy when she left the boarding house why was she so grumpy now "I... well, you know a lot more about the whole girl things than I do. I'm not good at dating or you know whatever... I'm very old you see... I was just wondering if Uhm" he was trying to add some humor and searched her eyes for any sign of emotions; seeing none he just stopped in his tracks and didn't say a word. What the hell was I thinking?

"You want me to help you wine and dine Elena" she said which sounded more like a statement than a question

"Uh... yeah but not exactly like that Caroline, I mean just you know what are the right things to say and whatever... just in that sense." He says softly so perplexed at the coldness on her face that he forgets to call her Barbie/Blondie.

"Okay Damon, I'll see you tomorrow"

Before he can thank her she is already out the door and heading towards her front door leaving him thinking what the hell happened?

Caroline wanted to cry, she knew she would so she ran into her room and banged the door shut. She wanted to throw things but she knew she couldn't. She lay down on her bed with a big thud and silently cried. She knew full well she had always been the second choice after Elena. Elena was the trophy she was the consolation prize. Whether it was her friends, her mentors, her teacher and boys- especially boys... it was always Elena first. Caroline did everything she thought would make someone just anyone chose her over Elena, it never worked. Stefan told her flat out without a second's hesitation that 'we are never gonna happen', Damon fed off her, screwed her brains out but looked at Elena with all the love she craved for. Matt told her bluntly that he wasn't over Elena and probably never would be, Tyler was just her friend. But she was sure if Elena went to him he would pick her any day. Somehow over the many years Caroline had come to terms with this harsh reality. Damon was just the jerk who used her, and now someone she had to get along with. Stefan had become her friend, her mentor, her guru. She accepted he would never think of her that way, which sometimes still hurt her. Matt was over. She had started to expect being second choice when it came to men, but now when Damon was being nice to her only only because she would help him get Elena, it made her feel worthless. Someone couldn't be nice to her without having it be all about Elena. What's wrong with me? She couldn't remember the number of times she thought about this. She could never find an actual answer so that was when she reached a conclusion then and there at that second, she knew she just wasn't good enough, and she never would be. She might as well just get used to it. It doesn't matter how hard she tries, she always just be a simple annoying blonde chic/vampire. No one will ever want her, they'll just have to settle for her and now she'll have to settle for that too.

Sighing deeply she got off her bed and changed into her favorite shorts and sweatshirt and started thinking about how Damon could impress Elena. She knew her friend inside out; she knew she could help him make Elena happy. She suppressed the burning sensation in her throat, controlled her tears and started to plan what she had begun to call "The soul mates project". She was sure Damon and Elena were soul mates; she had never seen any man go through so many trials and tribulations for a woman. Despite the pain she was happy that maybe just maybe something good could come from Stefan's disappearance.

"Ok... first things first Damon. You can't be so arrogant."

"I don't understand" he stated simply. He really didn't understand

"Yes. Tone down on the 'I'm Damon Salvatore bitch' attitude. It's not endearing" she said strictly waving her fork in his face

"Okay 1st of all I never have and never will say bitch like slang... unless it's to Katherine, then it's just an understatement. I'm not shy of using actual swear words. Second of all what do you mean don't be arrogant?" he asked perplexed

"Just don't." she stated as if it's a button you just have to press "Oh and no touching until at least the 3rd date." She added

"I don't understand" he repeated sounding scared now. He didn't think he would regret the decision so soon.

"You have to be a gentleman Damon. You can't take her out for dinner than feel her up in the car" she said with the air of explaining two plus two equal four to an over enthusiastic toddler.

"Ok how about in the house" he said shifting around uncomfortably in his seat

"What house? No one is going to anyone's house. You will drop her home and then go back to your house and call her the next morning. There will be no going home... any home" she added when he opened his mouth

"So you mean to say, I take her out to dinner be a good little boy and I get nothing in return." He asked

"You want sex Damon, go find a hooker... with your compelling powers you won't even have to pay her" Caroline snapped at him.

"God Barbie I was just having a little fun. Why do you have take everything so seriously." He said putting his hands up in surrender. They were eating at the grill, well she was eating he was drinking. It had been a week since he had asked her to help him. He didn't see nor speak to her for at least 4 days after that night. He was worried, even Elena was worried; they were both so used to her barging through the doors every evening. At first out of instinct Damon thought something bad had happened and he called her at least 20 times and searched all the places she went. When she finally called him back both him and Elena yelled at her for an hour. She told him to meet her at the grill because she wanted to discuss strategy. He wasn't so sure if this was strategy or just her way of scaring the crap out of him. No being cocky, no touching. What the hell? It had been a week and there was something different about her, he just couldn't place it.

"Not the time place or moment to be your humorous self Damon" she mocked "So where was I? Right so remember Damon, she thinks you me and her are going out for dinner. You don't know how hard I had to work to convince her to leave the house so don't forget and don't be drunk on that day. You tell her that I had to go help Tyler unexpectedly and you drive her to the restaurant and then I'll call in a while and say that I can't make it okay. You be a wonderful date drive her home and then go back to the boarding house. We'll talk about when to call her after the date, I don't think you can retain so much information at once." She added as an afterthought

"Yes Mam" he smirked. When did she get so bossy? He thought. "You know Caroline you look really sexy when you're all bossy" he added cocking an eye and immediately his face fell seeing that she didn't blush. She always blushed, every time he said something like this, or made sure she saw him looking at her from top to down she always always smiled shyly and turned her face away. Not today though, she simply raised an eyebrow towards him and gave him a disgusted look and went on and on about what he should and shouldn't say at the date. After about an hour of reprimanding him at every topic he was ready to discuss on his date she got up from her chair and left without giving him a kiss on his cheek or that lively ear to ear smile that had become her trademark.

Even though he was supposed to be thinking about his date which was to take place in a couple of hours he couldn't help think what had changed in her. She wasn't the same Caroline anymore, what could have happened in a week. She had lost spark in her eye, she was always smiling and annoyingly bubbly. He always said he hated it but for the past six months nothing other than hear her over-enthusiastic bubbly talks had made him smile and now she was just so cold, what happened? He missed his vivacious Barbie. He shook his vigorously and even slapped himself on the head for thinking that. What the hell is wrong with you Damon?

Caroline was sitting in front of her dresser in the boarding house. She stayed here and at her Mom's house, sometimes when she didn't want to be around Elena Damon or even her mother she stayed at Tyler's house. Today she knew Damon would come back from the date and she wanted to find out what happened, and decide when he should call Elena, so she stayed at the boarding house. Stefan had given her her own room here, and she remembered how excited she was to decorate it and how he had frowned so deeply when he saw the credit card bill that she was afraid his brows would never separate. She had still felt the same way when Stefan was here, and she knew of all people he would never choose her over Elena; but Stefan was different he made her feel important even as a friend no one else had managed to do that before. No one could tell that his disappearance had been hard on her; she had been so busy taking care of everyone else. She hadn't just lost her best friend she had lost her sound of reason. She wanted to find him so bad, Damon and Elena had tried she had helped but there was just no way to do so. She had decided she would find Stefan, simply for lack of better things to do. She had made so many plans almost immediately after Stefan left, but she had to wait until Elena was better. Once she was once her and Damon...

Why does it hurt to think of them together? She thought. She shook her head and continued combing her golden locks. She had decided what she would do, she knew they would try to stop her especially Elena. Elena had grown quite attached to Caroline in the past six months, yet Caroline was determined to...

She jumped slightly when she heard a noise downstairs; it was coming from the kitchen. It sounded as if someone was rumbling through things. A burglar she though. Who would be stupid enough to rob this place? She started to walk down the stairs slowly careful to not make a noise. Damon couldn't have come home, she never heard the car.

She reached the opening of the kitchen ready to fight trying to remember all the things Damon had taught her and saw a man hunting through the fridge for something. She wondered why she was scared, she was unbreakable literally yet she was afraid. Slowly she started to creep up behind the man with a baseball bat in her hand and was about to swing at him when he turned around and she gasped loudly and dropped the bat

"Stefan" she screamed