Thanks for the reviews. I plan on updating more frequently now. School was crazy for a while so my apologies for the lack of updates.
Recap: "Oh" Bonnie said. "My" I replied. Just then Caroline walked in the room and exclaimed, "God, oh my god!" we just stared at the object that lay before our eyes.
The box was stacked with journals. But atop all of the dusty books was a ring. It had a silver band with small diamonds surrounding a lapis lazuli. "It's gorgeous!" Caroline exclaims, breaking the trance that we fell into. I followed her example and said, "It's a beautiful ring, I wonder who it belongs to?" Caroline picked up a journal and said, "Maybe the information Mr. Grumpy Pants has in here will shed some light on the subject…"
Bonnie dug around the box and found one of the earliest ones. She opened it and began to read;
"November 28, 1855
What is wrong with me? Father says that I killed my mother; the maids say I steal the china dishes, and Stefan says that there must be something wrong with me because Father hates me. Why me? It was Stefan that killed mother in the first place. Mother was the only one that loved me. So why does Father suspect me of murdering her?"
Wow, I didn't know that someone would ever be that cruel and accusing. Who could ever hate a child? Caroline grabbed the book from Bonnie who was frozen in shock and began at the next entry.
"November 29, 1855
Father beat me again. I will probably have scars from this round. He used the whip meant for the horses on me! The bruises run along my back. They are crossed by gashes and older scars, I didn't even do anything. He said that my behavior is unacceptable and if it doesn't improve I will be outside for a day or two. I'm afraid because it is snowing hard and the temperatures are below freezing. I am only 10, why am I hurt every day? When I grow up, someone will love me. Maybe my mother will come back for me…."
The pages were stained with tears and the words tore at our hearts. "Why would someone treat a boy; a child like that?" Bonnie asked incredulously. "What kind of monster would do that?" I asked, dumbfounded. "No wonder he is so obnoxious, he just built his walls for so long that he acts rough to keep them up." Caroline comments. I feel guilt pooling in my stomach. How could I be so cruel and uncaring towards him? Maybe his feelings for me aren't a hoax….. "I think I owe Damon a giant apology… I haven't been that kind lately. He did use me as his personal toy for a while; but no one deserves to grow up like that!" Caroline exclaimed, tears brimming in her eyes. I decided to read the last entry for that month.
"November 30, 1855
Today is the worst the punishments have ever been. I got whipped for talking to loud, then when I justified myself to a maid who had accused me of beating Stefan, father took me outside. He threw me over his shoulder and marched us to the creek. He dunked my head under the water swiftly; I didn't even have the chance to cry out for help. He must've held me under for too long because my lungs burned and my vision began to go black. I cannot remember the rest for I fainted. He just left me laying on the river bank, left me for dead. A young woman by the name of Emily Bennet came to my aid once father was out of sight. She assessed my head quickly and concluded that I did not suffer from any trauma. I will be forever indebted to Emily Bennet. I must think of a way to repay her for her services without my father knowing. Well, I can hear Stefan "sneaking" up the stairs. I will continue writing tomorrow."
Bonnie was obviously interested in any information leading to her ancestry so the fact the Damon knew Emily Bennet and that she saw some good in him made her more sympathetic. Caroline and I both had tears in our eyes and Bonnie was shaking. Caroline murmured something about needing to get her laptop and Bonnie left to make some tea for us.
I sat there thinking about when Damon lost Rose, he was so crushed. I have noticed that about him, he reacts to death more strongly than the rest of us. I have a feeling that it's because of his mother's death when he was young. Caroline told me that he looks at me with love in his eyes a while ago. I told her that he was probably thinking inappropriate thoughts about Katherine. But the fact that Katherine betrayed him weighed heavy on my mind as I thought about how he must feel when he sees me with Stefan. I felt a tear slide down my cheek as I thought of the day that he AND Stefan saved me from Elijah. I ran down the stairs towards him with my arms open, but I was truly running to Stefan. The look on his face that day still haunts me. I was the one that hurt him. It wasn't the other way around.
Caroline and bonnie returned a short while later with tea and a computer already on the Netflix homepage. I nodded in agreement when Caroline wiped the tears from her eyes and in a cheery voice said, "I think it's time for a Degrassi marathon. I need to get sucked into some non-supernatural high school drama."
Bonnie handed us our tea and as if she had read Caroline's mind she brought some blankets for us to cuddle up in and watch Degrassi. She also brought a box of tissues from the living room that we might need, considering we are kind of teary.
The others fell asleep quickly but I couldn't possibly sleep without being plagued by nightmares of a little, abused, 10-year-old boy.
A/N: Thanks to GryffindorByHeart7, and 3 guests I was motivated enough to keep writing. The more reviews I get, the faster I'll update and the sooner the story will get more interesting! Please review! They all make my day and since I'm in the middle of CRTs I have an excuse to not update if there isn't enough reviews…. Jk; this story is like my kid I can't just leave it! More of Stefan and/or Mary in the next chappie!
