His head was pounding, spinning in circles that made him feel nauseous as he felt himself awake from his slumber. He had no memory of falling asleep. He had no memory of anything he had done the last few days. Maybe it was the best that he didn't, the way he was feeling it felt like a truck had hit him repeatedly. His eyes protested to open, to adjust the stream of light that was shining bright upon his face. With his blue orbs hidden, he rang his tongue across his lips, finding them dry and chapped but with a sweet taste. It was blood, he could tell by the coppery tang that he was used to but it tasted different. It was sweet, almost like candy and no comparison to what he had drank before.

Panic rushed through him as he bolted up right, his eyes dazed as they darted around the surroundings to find himself in his bedroom back at the boarding house. Who had he killed? Normally he would remember, he had a good memory of the girls he had bitten but nothing was coming to him. His hand flew to his forehead as he felt dizziness sweep over him, the sunlight blinding him. His raven locks were stuck to his face so he swept them back from his face, his eyes landing on the blood bag that was on the side table. He frowned in confusion. It had been cut open. Not bitten into like himself or Caroline would achieve the red fluid but cut, with scissors.

A small breath beckoned from the corner of the room, a leather couch sat beside a bookshelf where his mother's books made home. The petite frame of Elena was curled under a blanket, two blood bags sat on the floor at her feet and a book had fallen open at where she had dozed off. His eyes returned to her face, so peaceful yet she was frowning also, he could hear her gritting her teeth together. He moved slowly in the bed, pushing the sheets from himself to find himself fully dressed, minus his shoes. He was disgusting. Mud caked his black jeans and his shirt was unbuttoned, a rip in the left arm.

Had she done this for him? Got him from a binge at the Grill and stayed with him? It was then he caught sight of the puncture marks on her wrist, the skin blue and black around it from his grip. He had bitten Elena. Hard, she was shivering from the loss of blood from her system, he could see the thin fabric of the blanket moving above her and it alarmed him more than anything had in his life and afterlife. It was then that he remembered everything. Her car crashing into him, passing out, hearing her screams, practically draining her of blood. Guilt seized his body and if his heart were beating, it would of stopped at the realization he had nearly killed her.

Without releasing, he was getting up. It was as if gravity were pulling him over to her, to make sure she was okay. To care for her, even if he couldn't admit to wanting to, couldn't believe she wanted to be cared for by him. With what strength he had, he knelt in front of her, closing the book but marking the page for her. He moved the blood bags and moved the blanket so it covered her completely. He noticed her converse and a bag at the side of the couch, how long had he been out? Moving to her side once more, he watched as she curled into the blanket further, a content sigh leaving her lips. He couldn't help but smile gently at the sight in front of her but it faded immediately as he saw her wrist once more.

Just like the first night he had met her, he ran his hand gently across her cheek, moving it across her jaw and then to her wrist. She was cold. Freezing almost in that one spot but it was healing. He could see it wasn't as bad as it should have been. He heard a slam from the basement and his head turned sharply in defence. Stefan wouldn't be in the house, Elena wouldn't of been here if he had been.

"Jeremy," he muttered slightly to himself as he rose to his feet, letting himself gaze at Elena once more before turning to make his way to the basement. Descending the stairs, he noticed the door was firmly closed. He walked over and pulled the handle, it was locked. If it wasn't Jeremy, who was it? Carefully he walked down the stone steps and straight away he felt himself rolling his eyes at the sight of the girl in front of him. "Blondie, what are you doing?"

Caroline removed her lips from the plastic, wiping the blood from the corner of her lips before responding. She was sat on top of the fridge, her legs crossed and her boots clicking against the side of the container. "Well, I'm drinking. Unless Elena hit you really hard you can't tell."

"What are you doing here?" he rephrased, emphasizing on the last word of his sentence as he leant against the cold stone of the building, more to support himself than try to come across as his usually calm self. Caroline shook her head, her blonde curls moving across her front. Seeing his fatigue, she passed the bag to Damon before crossing her arms over her chest.

"Elena called me from the state line two nights ago. She was freaking out about you dying or something and that she hit you with her car. I thought you were just being you and playing with her but she was crying. So I drove out there, stopped you from killing her by sucking her dry then brought you back here. You're not the lightest person, you know that? You should probably lay off the food." She said, her normal spunky self still there. Draining the bag, he looked up at her, playing with the edge in interest.

"She was crying?" he asked stupidly, making Caroline scoff.

"Of course she was. Damon, the grim reaper was basically at your side with her. You were grey and you weren't breathing, she was scared. She cares about you, what else would she do?" she said firmly. "She hasn't moved form that couch unless it were to go to the bathroom or get you more blood."

He stared at her for a second, taking in the information. His eyes found the floor as she raised an eyebrow in wonder. The questions were going to flood in now, he could feel them rising in her throat and he prepared himself. When female vampire spoke however, he got a shock at what she said.

"She spoke to Stefan. She told him everything and sure, he's devastated but he's come to terms with it, or so he says. He was here yesterday, trying to wake you up. Any pain Elena feels, he feels it too and he knows she's worried about you. She thought you were going to wake up until you finally bit her."

"Why did she let me do that?" he interrupted suddenly, the anger evident in his eyes as he found hers once more. "How is she still breathing? I was starved for a reason, I could have killed her."

"I gave her my blood. She's just recovering now. She refused it for a day until Stefan forced her so she's still weak. She didn't want you too die Damon, doesn't that say something or are you too stupid to let it sink in to your thick skull? You'd think you'd understand. She would rather die than let you!" he saw she was frustrated with him. He was stubborn, he knew that but he could never let himself believe that someone had chosen him over his saintly brother.

"Help me move her, that couch isn't comfortable." He dropped the subject quicker than it had been brought up. He looked at her, making her move from her position on the fridge and soon following him back to his bedroom. He attempted to help Caroline change the sheets, the mud from his body haven sunken into the white material before moving Elena, replacing her in the spot he vacated no longer than ten minutes ago.

"You'd be cute together,"

"Shut up Blondie," he said moving the sheet over Elena, watching her turn on her side, deep in slumber.

Caroline was perched upon the edge of the arm chair next to the fire place, her eyes locked on the grand piano in the corner of the room, hidden by the darkness that encased it. "Damon," she said simply, not moving her eyes from the instrument, hoping he'd answer.

"Blondie," he replied flatly, pouring more scotch into the one remaining tumbler that was left on the table. "By the way, what happened to my glasses?" he asked placing the lid back on the bottle.

"Like I said, you weren't easy to get up to your bedroom. You fell into the table and broke them," she told him, making him shrug in the process at the thought, downing the golden liquid in one go. "Anyway, why do you have that piano if you can't play? Stefan can't either."

"Who says I can't play?" he asked moving to sit back on the couch in his usual spot. He placed the tumbler on the coffee table in front of him and watched Caroline as she frowned. "My father taught me,"

She turned then at his comment. His father, who hated him supposedly had taught him to play the piano. She figured it must have been before his mother died, before his father became bitter. Elena had told her everything, obviously. "But your father didn't like you. That's why you're such a sadistic bastard, right?"

"Thanks, that makes me feel so much better in my time of need." His tone was flat, no emotion in his reply as she glared at him, wanting him to continue. "My father taught me when I was 6, it was the one thing we'd do together that wouldn't lead to him giving up on me. You'd be surprised at how good I am," he said smugly, smirking at her.

"Why have you not played then? I've known you how long now?"

"Too long," he said standing up again, walking slowly over to the piano. It was exact replica of his fathers, he could make people believe it was his if he wanted to. He ran his hand over the wooden top, dust forming on his fingers. "It brings back bad memories, Blondie, I only keep it for the period look,"

"You could be so nice Damon, you were sweet at one point when you were with me. You're sweet around Elena, you could have friends." She was quiet as she finished her sentence. A human couldn't hear her but he did, even if on the other side of the room.

"I don't need friends Caroline, well apart from your mom," he said sitting on the stool and facing her. "I don't need Elena, I don't need you, obviously. I don't need Stefan. I don't need anyone to survive. I've managed it long enough. Haven't I?

"I could say otherwise," she added quickly. "If Elena wasn't here the last few days, you would of withered away into nothing."

He was silenced. She was right. Blondie was right and he hated to admit that fact. She was talking but he wasn't listening. He was lost in thought of the picture that he could make of him and Elena in the future. If he opened up to her fully like he had to Katherine. Like he had to random woman at some point.

"Elena doesn't have it as easy as you think she does, Damon. Her life may be even more complicated than yours even if that's hard for you too believe. Her parents died, she almost died with them. Her best friends are a witch and a vampire. Her mother is a vampire and her dad is quite frankly a dick. She hates John, she hates Isobel. Elena might just need as much care as you. Maybe more and if anyone in the world could give it to her, its you cause you know what it feels like. She loved Stefan at one point, yes but her heart has changed its mind. She can't control who she loves and neither can you. I can see it when you look at her. You love her and you want her to love you back so much, just break down those walls. Being a vampire isn't holding you back. It hasn't held me back."

His ears came back to reality during her speech about Elena. She was right again. He had been a dick to her, thinking his life was the worst thing ever to hit planet earth. His life must seem like a piece of cake to her but he knew she lived with the guilt of her parent's death everyday of her life.

"Call me when she wakes up." He wasn't aware of her leaving. He didn't remotely care that she had left. It hadn't been much of a joy that she was there in the first place. He jumped as she slammed the door, his eyes darting to where she was before then up towards the roof.

"Stupid Caroline," he mumbled to himself with many other words after as he moved round in the stool in front of the piano. He looked at the old thing and saw his father's name engraved in the one piece he had managed to save from before it was wrecked. He sighed blowing the dust from the area before standing up, heading towards the stairs and moving slowly as he returned to his bedroom. Pushing the door open, grimacing at the small creak it gave off, he looked around, almost timidly at Elena lying in his bed, sound asleep. He smiled, a crooked one but a smile all the same as he closed the door behind him, walking to the en suite bathroom, stopping for fresh clothes. Figuring she was fast asleep he removed his shirt at his dresser, propping it over the back of a chair to throw out once he had cleaned himself up. That was when he heard her mumble, turn in the bed and let out a small yawn.

"What? Why am I in your bed?" her voice was tired as if it had a delayed reaction to her wakening.

"I know for a fact that the couch over there isn't the bed place for a sleep." He said turning to look at her, seeing her eyes widen slightly at the sight of him, his bare torso more so. He chuckled to himself quietly seeing her eyes move to the sheets, her fingers playing with the material awkwardly.

"Are you okay?" she asked, not looking up at him as she moved out of the bed.

"Fine and dandy," he said turning back to the dresser, pulling out a black t-shirt and placing it over his shoulder. "Thanks for hitting me with your car, it felt awesome."

"Damon.."

Her tone gave him the warning he probably needed. Since his talk with Caroline, he had placed his walls up further and didn't intend on bringing them down. His body shifted and he was sitting next to her on the bed in a flash, quicker than she expected. "I'm okay, thanks to you. But I have a question?"

Her eyes found his and she knew what was coming. "What were you thinking making me bite you?"

She found herself unable to form a sentence or even a word. Elena gulped in attempt to push her nerves down, she was scared at that moment. She knew he wouldn't be happy when he found out. He was waiting, his blue eyes penetrating hers with such intensity that it made her melt inside. "It was the only way to save you,"

He blinked, his long lashes hitting his cheek as he moved his head to turn to the look at the door. She waited patiently for his reply but he simply stood up, walking to the bathroom and going inside, nothing more said.

Elena sat, watching the door in a hope that it would open again and he would say something but it didn't. She heard the shower start and knew he would be silent for the rest of the night. Sighing, she felt her strength suddenly emerge, Caroline's blood obviously in her system so she stood, placed her shoes on and grabbed her bag. There wasn't much of a point hanging around, he was Damon, and he would make her wait a lifetime if he wanted to.

"Bye Damon," she said knowing he'd hear her from the shower. Her hand was on the golden knob, prepared to turn it as she heard the door open. She turned and saw Damon standing right in front of her, only clad in his boxers now. She looked up at him, his height getting the best of her and found his lips against hers. This time however, it wasn't urgent, it wasn't frenzied. It was soft, gentle and full of love, so much love that she felt dizzy, and a good dizzy not like she had felt before.

His hands were placed on her waist, his lips moving slowly across hers, applying the correct pressure to prove how he felt. She was kissing back for only a second when he pulled away, his voice low as he spoke. "Goodbye Elena," he whispered, his lips grazing hers as they moved as he stepped back. Her hand found his wrist and she looked back at him, her eyes dazzling with what had just happened.

"We need to talk about this Damon." She told, pulling him back to her, finding to protest as he stepped in front of her once more, his skin tingling at her touch. "I want to know you. Let me understand. Just a little bit."

He thought for a second, his eyes on her hand. With his other hand, he moved it, placing it at her side, managing to pry her off with ease. "Come back tomorrow," he said, his hand moving slowly from her arm as he turned, returning to the bathroom and the steaming water that was now erupting from the shower. As he closed the door, she opened his bedroom one and left, returning home and wondering what he was going to admit.

Well there's that, this chapter was written three times. Originally it was Katherine who was supposed to help Elena but I changed my mind. Elena and Damon are not a couple! yet... but I am looking forward to the next chapter since Damon will open up. Thank you guys for all your reviews and hi to any new readers! Click the review button and let me know what you think!