A/N: Hello again, sorry for the delay with the storyI have been trying to make it as perfect as possible. If you have any suggestions for the plot feel free to message me or review :) Thanks again to my amazing beta Naishu (seriously, read her stuff its amazing) for all the grammer checks she did. I hope you enjoy the chapter.
Damon slid the drink over to Faith, who sniffed it and handed it back to him.
'I don't drink,' Damon gave her a look before finishing it himself, almost as if they hadn't had the same conversation for the past two nights. Of course, he was usually gone by that time.
He pointed at the glass and gave a thumbs up, and Faith found herself nodding at him once again.
Damon really hadn't been a good associate so far. Maybe she hadn't been clear about what exactly she needed for him to do as her associate...what she had wanted him to do. He had been keeping her hidden, and she had needed an ally in the town who would drop her name and make the town aware of her presence.
Damon nudged her and she turned to him, shocked by the contact. The last time he had touched her he had been attempting to kill her... again.
Ms. Lockwood sauntered into the bar, throwing a considerate look at Damon as she approached the bartender. Faith checked her watch. 'On time, doesn't this woman have anything else to do?' Faith found herself mimicking the ex-mayor wife's order 'A small martini please'. She looked at Damon and picked up her bag, giving him a slap on the back and standing from her seat.
'Well, I'm off!' Damon gave her a perplexed look and she smiled at him. He raised an eyebrow, and she let out a sigh. 'I have to go to work'
Damon tilted his head, looking at his watch. 'At this time? What do you do?' he eyed her wearily as she hugged her trench and shook her head. If Faith was a fool, she would have thought that he wanted her to stay.
'That's something you will hopefully never have to find out...' Damon opened his mouth to argue with her, but she held a finger up and headed for the exit, still shaking her head. A small smile crept onto her lips.
Faith stepping out into the nights air releasing a breath as she did so, she turned round the corner. Her face dropped when she came face to face with a long haired brunette with a terrifyingly serious expression on her young face, instantly dampening her mood.
'Are you alright?' Faith asked.
'Faith, you need to stay away from Damon...he's bad news.' Faith looked at the girl, wide eyed. Upon further inspection she realised that she was a teenager. Faith couldn't help but feel slightly freaked out that this anonymous girl knew her name, that she had an advantage over her.
'Excuse me?'
'Faith, I mean this in your best interest; you don't know what you're getting yourself into. He's bad news.'
'Yeah... what's your name?'
'Elena' Now they were even.
'Elena trust me, I know a lot more about Damon than you may think, but thank you very much for your warning.' Elena nodded unsurely and Faith walked around her, however Elena wasn't going to give up so easily.
'Faith, you don't know! He'll hurt you, he isn't normal' Elena said quietly, her eyes even more serious than before.
'Elena, none of us are normal. Thank-you very much for your warning, but I'm late for work' Faith dug her hand into her pocket and handed Elena her card. 'If you want to give me another warning we can meet up, but right now I need to go, sorry that I couldn't talk for longer. Bye.'
Elena watched Faith walked away and let out a sigh, gesturing for Stefan to reveal himself. He instantly wrapped his arms around her, Elena instantly relaxing at his touch.
'It's alright, she'll see soon'
'But he killed someone Stefan-again! He's reckless!'
'I know!' He said. Elena let out a frustrated groan, annoyed at how cautious she now felt around Damon; how he made her worry for those she loved and cared for, even those she didn't know. She felt even more surprised that she no longer could tell him her concerns directly.
Stefan simply held her, his hands weaving themselves into her hair before they both stepped into the Grill. It didn't take them long to find Damon, already starting to doze against the table. Stefan pulled him up just as his was about to fall into it.
'We need to talk' Stefan stated. Stefan and Elena both took seats at the table with Damon, who let out a groan.
'About what?'
'Faith.' Stefan stated.
'Faith...' Damon drawled. His eyebrow raised as he repeated the word, did they honestly believe that he needed religion.
Elena leaned towards Damon. 'Leave her alone' she said quietly. Damon felt something inside him gear up, and before he had even thought of doing it, he smirked.
'Faith came to me...she needed an associate.' He made quotation marks in the air as he did so, enjoying the look of confusion on their faces.
'A what?'
'An associate. If you don't understand what that means, I will be happy to help you find it in a dictionary.' He stood. 'Goodbye...' smiling at Stefan and Elena, he left.
Faith signed the last of the paperwork on her desk and let out a sigh of relief. It had been about three hours since she'd left Damon in the bar, and since then she'd been up to her neck in paperwork. Rachel dropped another stack of paperwork on her desk and Faith let out a groan, so much for finished. Rachel simply chuckled, tossing her blonde hair to the side and taking her seat next to her.
'The many perks of the night shift' Faith muttered.
'Tell me about it' Rachel agreed, tying her hair into a high bun. They simultaneously let out a groan when they realised they weren't even halfway through their shift. Long working hours were good conditions for making friends though, which Faith and Rachel were.
'So how was today's meeting?' Rachel asked. Faith raised an eyebrow at her.
'It was the same, as the other two, slow' she replied.
'Are you sure you don't like him? If you want someone to show you around I can...' Rachel implied.
'I don't like him like that...maybe we could be friends.' Faith's thoughts flashed back to Damon biting into her, and she absentmindedly rubbed her neck. 'Trust me I don't, it's just...he knows things' Faith turned to Rachel, who simply shrugged her shoulders.
'You know, when I decided to become an ER nurse, I thought I would be busy' Rachel muttered.
'I prefer paediatrics. When I booked my ER experience, I expected a scene from-!' the banging of doors jolted both of them from their calm states! In a flash they were up on their feet and running from behind the desk to meet the only people for the night. Mystic falls was such a small town, especially on a Wednesday, so they hadn't been expecting anyone really.
Faith and Rachel came face to face with a surprisingly sober Damon, another man, and an obviously pained Elena. Rachel quickly moved Elena into one of the open rooms to tend to her arm, leaving Stefan, Damon, and Faith to stare at each other.
'So, this is your job?' Damon asked. Faith didn't have a chance to reply.
'Dr Freeman...eh?' He mused, reading of her name badge. Faith smiled and held a finger at Damon, before entering Elena's room.
'Well well, we meet twice in one night.' Faith mused as she examined Elena's arm, making sure that she put as little pressure as possible on it. Elena winced as Faith set it down. 'Well, it's a fracture; so you will need a cast'.
Stefan rubbed his chin 'How long will the cast be on for?' he pointedly asked.
'About 6 weeks' they both let out a groan, and Faith groaned along with them, smiling as she took Elena's details. Damon briskly walked in and took a seat on the bed with Elena. 'Excuse me Elena, but what exactly happened for your injury to occur?' Faith asked.
Elena seemed nervous before tugging out a small smile.
'A bookcase fell on me' She said, pulling out whatever came to mind first. Faith nodded, suppressing a smile and noticing how Stefan and Damon both winced as they once again looked at Elena.
'Oh, I see...' Faith ripped out the prescription form that she'd been scribbling on and handed it Elena, looking between Stefan and Damon. She once again checked over Elena's arm and nodded to herself 'I just wanted to be sure. I've prescribed some painkillers to numb the pain and I will leave Nurse Raphael to set your cast.' She nodded at them and headed out as Rachel walked in with a casting set.
Faith found her way back to her desk and threw her clipboard on it, jumping slightly when she saw Damon leaning over at the desk, invading her personal space. She leaned back and smiled at him.
'So Dr. Freeman, this is your job?' he repeated.
'I hoped you would never have to find out, but yes.'
'Why?'
'Well, most people only find out when I tell them and since I didn't plan on telling you, the only way you could find out is through injury' she paused for a moment 'but, at least she'll be fine.'
'But why didn't you plan on telling me?' Faith shifted in her spot thought before answering.
'Honestly?' Damon nodded, suddenly curious. 'Because I don't trust you enough, its very obvious that you may try and kill me again' she whispered, her honesty surprising even herself.
An awkward silence eased through them, the same one that they had experienced over their 'associate' meetings. 'So, who's the guy in there with Elena?'
Damon stood back when he heard her refer directly to Elena. 'Wait, how do you know Elena?'
Faith shifted uncomfortably in her seat 'I mether on my way to work. So who's the guy?'
'My brother, Stefan' his name rang a bell...
'Oh, so he's a...' she made a fang face and he nodded. Faith watched Damon for a moment, astounded that he had actually told her who his brother was. She looked away and began filling out the paper work for Elena just as she stepped out of the cubicle, followed closely by Stefan.
In a flash Damon was by Stefan and Elena's side. They awkwardly smiled before walking out of the ward, followed by Damon who gave an even more awkward salute. Faith watched them leave, letting out a breath she hadn't even realised she had been holding.
She found herself walking briskly to her locker, her fingers punching furiously on her phone. She calmed down as she heard another voice on the other end.
'Alexis?'
'Yeah...'
'Alex?'
'You're still calling me, and I'm still on the line...'
'Do you know a Stefan or Elena at school?'
'Yeah, they're in my home room'
'Ok hun, stay away from them'
'But why-'
She closed the phone. Better not to argue this time.
Faith closed her eyes and let her head roll back for a second as she let out a cool breath. Things could never be simple. She sunk to the floor, letting out another groan as she realised that Alexis wasn't safe anymore, and that things had gotten a lot more complicated than she had anticipated. Nothing was going to change that.
She heard a soft knock on the door and looked up to see Rachel, a worried look on her face.
'Are you alright?'
'Yeah, I'm fine' She replied. Rachel instantly perked up.
'So, was that Damon?'
'The guy in black was'
'He's cute, kinda dangerous looking'
Faith let out a low chuckle. You have no idea.
