It's Not You That I Love

Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own the Vampire Diaries, although I would love to own it if anyone who does own it wants to offer up the rights or wants me to write an episode… I would and I would use a total TVD twist in the storyline too. And there would be a lot of Stelena, too! I just love them together….and Stefan never would have left in the season finale, because he needs to be in the show, because I love him, and Damon and Elena never would have kissed (even though it barely counts as a kiss).

No previously, because I think too much happened. I did one but it was almost a page, so what's the point, go back and read the prior chapters .But hey, read and review.

"Wait!" I yelled, "What the hell is everyone talking about?"

"You might as well tell her, Damon, since you seem to have told her everything else." Stefan said.

"I'm a vampire," Damon said, "and so is Stefan."

" I kinda figured," I said, looking at my feet and wondering why, since I was feeling a hell of a lot better and stronger, why I hadn't run out of here as fast as I could, "Since you tried to turn me into one."

"That doesn't scare you?" Stefan asked.

"I does. But I'm not going to let that fear cause me to go running out the door, because I don't really have anyplace to go. So I figured that staying here was safer than running out into the forest where who knows what is lurking. Besides, it wouldn't make much difference if I did, you could still catch me." I said.

"We're not going to hurt you."

"Rephrase that, bunny boy, you're not going to hurt her. No promises from me." Damon said, leaning back against the wall of the hallway his arms crossed.

"Damon." Elena said, giving Damon a serious look.

"What? I'm being serious, Elena. If she causes a threat to-"

"You're not going to hurt her, she's nearly all of the family I have left. I won't let you kill her. Plus, once John sees her he'll protect her too. You won't be able to get even close to her, I'll make sure of that."

"Fine," He said, sighing. "But I hope you know what you're doing."

Damon was already walking down the hallway when Elena called after him, "Don't worry, I do."

But the sound was only distant to me, because for some reason unbeknownst to me, I was walking as fast as I could down the hall, trying to catch up to Damon, who had sped away from the scene. "Damon!" I called, ignoring the shouts of protests from behind me.

Damon's POV

No one cared, and no one understood that no matter what I felt or wanted to do, I couldn't promise not to kill the beautiful Lydia. Because if it came between her and Elena, I knew I had to pick Elena. Stefan would choose to kill Lydia too, if it came down to it, but he would choose it at the last moment, and so she would forgive him. But never me, never would she ever forgive me if I killed Lydia to protect her.

But even worse than my inner monologue of yelling out in anger, frustration, and sadness, was the echoing footsteps behind me as I walked down the hall to my bedroom. "Listen, if-" I began bitterly.

"I'm sorry." The sweet, small voice of Lydia barely reached me from where I was standing. But reach it did, across the hallway, wrapping itself around me, consuming me. No one ever apologized to me. I take that back, only a few people. The most recent being Stefan's 150 years overdue. "I understand what you're saying…I get it, and I'm sorry that they didn't."

I laughed a weak laugh, "It doesn't matter."

"Of course it does. It always matters, even if you don't see it. Every word, every action, creates a domino effect. And I've heard you do a lot of impulsive things Damon, and that leads to-"

"Go back to Elena and Stefan." I said, my teeth clenched as I walked forward and into my bedroom, hoping she wouldn't follow me. But of course the next thing I hear are her footsteps, growing even closer.

"No. Damon, I understand how you feel. Alone, abandoned, like life isn't fair. I know because I feel that way, too. Everyone does. The only difference is that some of us truly are alone." I sat down on my bed, watching as she stood in the doorway, too shy to move any farther past that. And I wonder how someone who doesn't seem to even understand what her own life is currently, can understand mine so perfectly. "But you're not alone, Damon. It doesn't matter,is what you say. But it does. You feel alone, and you don't notice the people that are there, that care. Elena cares, Damon, and I know that means more to you than you want to admit. And Stefan does,too. You just have to-"

"I told you to go back to Stefan and Elena!" I yelled, moving at vampire past until I had her slammed up against the wall. She was blinking rapidly, in shock and disbelief.

"Damon, I-"

"Lydia?" Elena's voice sounded from close by, startling me so I let go of Lydia, and she slid to the ground.

"What did you do Damon?" Stefan said, slamming me into the opposite wall.

"Lydia!" I watched as Elena entered the room, running toward her sister, who was clutching her reddened neck. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." I said, unable to look away from Damon's hurt eyes. Hurt eyes that weren't upset because they hurt me, but eyes that were upset because the collateral damage was hurting his brother's girlfriend, whom he loved. And what wasn't helping, was the fact that Elena was glaring at him, her eyes set intently on hurting him, driving him deeper into his own personal hell. "Elena, he didn't mean to hurt me. He was just upset, I pissed him off."

"That doesn't mean he's given the right to hurt you, to hurt anyone." Stefan said, keeping his hand clutched on Damon's neck, cutting off his air supply.

"You try being the one who everyone hates, Stefan, and then see how it makes you feel, makes you react." I said, a little angry at him for being so inconsiderate.

"For the longest time I was the person everyone hated." Stefan said, letting go of Damon, "But even I didn't react like he does. How he reacts to situations is pathetic."

"Stefan…" Elena said, disapprovingly.

"It's okay." Damon said, "I deserved it, you don't have to stick up for me, I can handle it." He said, staring at specifically me.

"Damon-"

Just then, the doorbell rang, and we all turned to the sound. "I'll get it." Stefan said.

"Play nice." Elena said, following Stefan, and leaving Damon and I alone again.

"I'm sorry…You were just being nice, considerate. And I hurt you." Damon said, walking over to me and helping me stand on my shaky legs.

"It's okay…I invaded foreign territory that I guess I shouldn't have." I said, not letting go of his hand for a couple of reasons. The first was that I wasn't positive that I wouldn't collapse if I did let go, the second was that it felt so nice to be holding his hand that I didn't want to let go. He felt like someone dependable, which was funny because he almost just killed me, and he felt comfortable, like an inviting warmth.

I smiled at him, lost in the moment. "Still…I shouldn't have-" He said, his face reading the clear emotion, that he was upset.

"Lydia!" Elena's voice called, interrupting whatever Damon was saying "Come here!"

"Sorry, I guess I'd better…"

"Yeah, you better go." He said. Not dropping my hand, but instead walking with me. And suddenly, what was comfortable before was now awkward. Especially since we were about to see Elena and Stefan and whoever else was there.

But when we reached the front entry, we were in too much shock to let go of each others hand. In fact, I think we squeezed our hands tighter. Because there at the entry, was my father, Jonathan Gilbert.

That's right, John's back! Yeah! So the next chapter is dedicated in entirety to him. Because I miss him, and I want him to come back but know he never will (I was an uncle john fan from the beginning, people.) ….And remember, this takes place right after Daddy Issues, pretending, of course, that Elena and Stefan never went away on a romantic getaway (aww…those two are so cute together…) …