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Their trip was very relaxed, both of them had a lot to talk, and when Claire got really tired again, Elena took over the wheel and let her friend take a quick nap. After a two-hour drive, they were just pausing at a small gas station to get some food and water, when Stefan called.
"Damon called. From what I can tell, he's really drunk, so he's probably still where Claire located him before. Try some college bars maybe. Anything with booze," he suggested.
"Thanks, Stefan, we'll do our best. What did he say?" Elena asked.
"He was just going on about how the whole world never choses him, etc. He also threatened to never return, but I think he just wants us to come after him and beg him to come back."
"Which is exactly what we're doing...," Elena said, a bit annoyed. Damon sort of always gets what he wants. Not the women, but at least the attention. "Alright, I'll call you when we get there. Love you!"
Claire shot her an almost disgusted look. Love. Urgh. She finished the Red Bull she had desperately needed and they got into her car again. After two more hours, they finally reached Deville, the city they had located Damon in. There was a college in Deville, which meant lots of desperate, drunk college girls in bars. She knew exactly why Damon would come here. They drove into the city centre and Claire parked in front of a closed grocery store.
"What now?" Elena asked a bit impatient. Claire got out of the car. Elena did the same.
"Well... There's some guys over there. Let's go ask them where the nearest bar is," she said and headed off in the direction of a few college guys.
"Wait, how do you know that he will be here? I'm sure there's bars all over in this town!" Elena tried to stop her.
"Because I can sense him. He's not far away," Claire answered smoothly and once again, Elena was surprised. She really always underestimated her.
They approached the group of guys, who immediately stopped talking and stared at the two girls. "Well, look at that! Ladies! Care to join us for a drink?" one of them asked.
Claire shot him a gorgeous smile, whereas Elena was looking a bit uncomfortable. "That's so sweet of you, but we're meeting our boyfriends in a bar near here. Unfortunately, we can't seem to find it, they just told us that it's around the...um, big tower somewhere," she quickly made up.
"Aw, come on girls, why settle with two when you can have five?" the one from before said, gesturing at all of them.
"Yeah... no, thank you. They just got out of prison, so they're really sex-deprived and probably quite impatient. So, do you know the bar?" Claire innocently replied. Their jaws dropped.
"Um... You take the second left down this street and then the first to the right, then you should be there," another one now said. They all looked very uncomfortable all over sudden and after Claire chimed a gleeful "Thank you so much!", they started walking in the other direction. Elena chuckled.
They followed the directions and after a few minutes, they stood in front of a big and dark bar called 'Blackfriar's'. Claire stopped dead after entering.
"What's the matter?" Elena asked, quite alarmed about Claire's behaviour.
"He's definitely here. I can feel him. You take the left, I'll take the right. We'll meet again here," she instructed and was gone before Elena could ask any further questions.
The bar consisted of two floors. Above ground, it was a huge room with tables and booths and a huge bar in the middle. In the cellar, there were some smaller tables with seating cushions and couches on the side, a huge stage in the front, and everything in between was a dance floor. Claire made her way through the tables, always alert and looking everywhere, but she could not see Damon. After about ten minutes, she met Elena in front of the entrance again.
"Any luck?" she asked, but Elena only shook her head. "That means he's probably downstairs. Let's have a look!" she said and grabbed her friend by the hand to not lose her. They got hit on a few times on their way, but their serious faces always scared the guys off. In the cellar, the music was way louder and the room darker than above. A karaoke night was going on, two girls were just performing a dreadful version of 'I kissed a girl'. Claire and Elena looked at them a bit and both had to laugh when the song ended and they kissed for real. The audience cheered them on. It had a dark and seductive atmosphere down there, and they saw some couples making out on the cushions or in darker corners. Slowly, they made their way up to the stage, when a group of three girls caught their attention. They were also seated on a few of the cushions, giggling and grinding all over a man seated in between them. A blonde girl with a very short skirt was sitting on his lap, almost riding him while his hands were on her ass and her back. Elena and Claire caught sight of a very familiar ring. Elena's face changed to anger, she almost growled and stormed towards the group. Claire decided to let her have a try first. She was interested in how he would react, seeing Elena here. Also, her friend's obvious jealousy astonished her a bit.
Elena reached the group, grabbed the blond mini-prostitute by her shoulders and shoved her off Damon. He had his eyes closed, a devilish grin on his face and a few drops of blood in the corners of his mouth. His victim had a quite distinct mark on her neck, Claire could now see. When he felt the blonde leave her place in his lap, he opened his eyes and blinked a few times to make sure it was really Elena who stood in front of him. She pulled up one of her brows and shot him an angry look.
"If this isn't my favourite brother's girlfriend. Have you left him and come to finally be with me?" he provoked her, his speech a bit slurry from all the alcohol he had in him already. Elena slowly bent down towards him, and before he could react, she had slapped him. His head flew to the side, the three girls let out a short scream and hurried off. He was really hot, but no way they would deal with an angry girlfriend.
"Why do you always have to go back to your old self? Seriously, Damon? College chicks in mini skirts? You can do so much better. Now, let's go home!" Elena said and tried to take his hand to pull him up. Instead, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her down closer to him, the drunk guy now gone and a stone cold look now on his face.
"Ouch! Damon! You're hurting me! Elena complained. The look on his face scared her a bit. She knew that look, and it never meant any good.
"Not as much as you're hurting me all the time. There's days when you're like 'I'm your friend, Damon, I'm here for you!' and on the next you're like 'I don't trust myself around you, leave me alone!' But tell me, how many times have I saved you? How many times was I there for you when Stefan wasn't? I am the one who always tells you the truth, who never tries to protect you by hiding something from you! And yet, you chose him! I'm not going after you any more, Elena! Leave me alone, I'm not coming back!" he almost shouted and let go of her hand.
Elena stood there, frozen. His words had gotten to her. Deep down, she knew that he was right in so many ways. But she could never be with him and feel safe. The fact that she knew how he treated women, that he had engaged in sex with her mother and Caroline and had gotten rid of them when he was bored... All that and so much more where the reasons why she only wanted him as a friend, she saw that now. A single tear ran down her cheek. She had been sort of in love with him, but that was before today. Before she saw how easily he could change back into old patterns. When they drove here, she kind of hoped that they would find him in a lonely hotel room, the only company he had a bottle of Jack Daniel's. But no such luck. He was hurt, and therefore, he hurt her. Just like it was when he broke Jeremy's neck. Elena knew that they had no future. She turned around to leave when Claire caught her arm.
"What happened?" she asked, a concerned look on her face.
"We're over. He's the same he always was. I have to get out of here!" Elena answered.
Claire nodded and said "Wait for me outside, I'll deal with him." She let go of her friend, who stormed up the stairs immediately. She turned around to face Damon. He shot her a deadly look, lifted himself from the cushion and was only inches away from her in an instant.
"What are you doing here? I thought we were done!" he snarled at her.
Claire locked eyes with him, but instead of the brilliant blue she saw a few times today, they were almost black now. She had to swallow. So this was evil Damon. She was unable to say anything, she found him so incredibly sexy and scary at the same time. Either she could apologize and risk him storming away, or she had to be a bit more risky and surprise him. He was still awaiting her reply, when she softly licked her lips and stepped closer. Their bodies touched again and she felt a shiver rushing through her. She leaned in closer to his ear and whispered "I was wrong. Come back, Damon."
She stepped back to see his reaction, but he still looked at her with that stone cold expression on his face. "Show me", he said with gritted teeth.
Claire was taken aback. "What do you mean?"
"Show me why you were wrong. Why I should come back. And 'I will sleep with you' is not sufficient", Damon answered, his expression still the same.
She let go of him and stepped back. This was not what she had expected. How on earth was she gonna convince him it was a good idea to come back? She knew nothing she could say would be enough, and she also did not know what to say. The truth was that she was terribly afraid of what would happen if he came back. There was something about him... something between them... she could not explain it, she never had to deal with it before, but there was much more than sexual tension that made her so attracted to him. He was still staring at her with those intense eyes. She had to do something! Almost hysterical, she searched the bar for an answer, feeling like a bunny about to be eaten by a fox. Suddenly, she had an idea.
Claire shot Damon a short glance and walked over to the stage. A teenager sat in front of a mixing desk, obviously the one in charge. His eyes widened when he saw the beautiful black-haired girl approach him. She did not greet him, she only bent down to whisper in his ear. He nodded and gave her a microphone and waved to a guy from the band. He approached Claire and they quickly talked. He was instantly a sucker for her looks, and it was more than easy for her to get what she wanted.
She shot Damon a last look before she got on stage. He was still standing in the same place, arms crossed, a stoic expression on his face. Nothing of the usual sarcastic features could be found in it. Claire swallowed. Would it be enough? She really hoped so.
The band started with the first riffs. She took a deep breath and stepped on stage. Everybody was looking at her. With her leather jacket, the long legs packed tight in black leather pants and the 'fuck me' heels, she was the centre of attention. Slowly, she walked into the middle, looked at the strange faces in the audience only to find his face. When she found it, she took a last deep breath and started singing...
What song will Claire perform? Any ideas? Suggestions? Bring it!
