Chapter 7
'Cause if you're not really here
Then the stars don't even matter
Now I'm filled to the top with fear
But it's all just a bunch of matter
Cause if you're not really here
Then I don't want to be either
I wanna be next to you
Sam Sparro – Black and Gold
Gazing up into Damon's face it all came back to her. The searing pain as wounds ripped through her flesh, Damon holding her, begging her to keep breathing. She remembered his face, how much it had broken her heart to see him hurting like that. She remembered whispering words of comfort to Stefan, telling Damon she would always be with him.
Then she had died. She had died.
Her breathing became shorter as the reality of her situation set in. everybody thought she was dead. Maybe she was dead. Maybe she was a vampire, maybe she…she began to hyperventilate and fresh tears flooded down her cheeks.
"Damon." She gasped, grabbing onto his jacket for support.
She clutched at him desperately and his brow furrowed in concern.
He quickly scooped her up in his arms and she didn't protest as he carried her into the house. Using vampire speed he set her on the couch and disappeared, reappearing at her side with a warm flannel and some bandages.
Elena was crying almost hysterically by this point, she was staring at her bloodstained hands and trying to keep some concept of reality at the forefront of her brain. She was so confused. She was so frightened.
Damon knelt in front of her and gently lifted her chin. He stroked down her cheek, wiping away tears. She blinked at him, her eyes heavy with smudged makeup, her dark brown orbs pleading with him to help her, to explain to her.
He wiped her face with the flannel, cleaning away the dirt, makeup and tears. She stopped crying as he worked, calmed by his caring touch. He brushed his thumb along her bottom lip.
"You're really here." He whispered, the faint caress of a smile touching his lips.
His brow creased as he fought the overwhelming emotion that was overtaking him.
Elena could see his inner struggle, could see in his eyes how much he had been hurt, how much he had lost.
Instinctively she wrapped her arms around his neck, resting her head against his shoulder. He pulled her close to him and stroked her hair.
"I'm scared Damon." She said quietly after a few minutes.
He pulled away to look at her.
"Hey, you're alive…and that's all that matters." He replied softly. "I promise we'll figure this all out."
She nodded shakily.
"I'm sorry." She murmured.
Damon frowned.
"What for?"
"You were sad when I was…dead." She trailed off seeing the expression on his face.
He stared at her in shock; she was apologizing for what? Dying? Or for making him sad, although that was the understatement of the century… Had she shown up two minutes later she would have found nothing but a pile of ash and an abandoned ring. So really she had saved his life again. Even though he had failed to save hers.
He sighed and looked away from her confused eyes.
"Elena sweetie, you have nothing to be sorry for." He paused. "If anyone should be apologizing it's me. For so many things, that I don't even know where to begin."
He gently brushed his fingers under her eyes.
"Every time there were tears in your eyes because of me. Every time I made your life harder and more painful."
Elena was gazing at him, stunned. She had never in a million years conceived of hearing these words out of Damon Salvatore's mouth. And yet here he was, opening himself up to her, leaving himself completely unprotected and vulnerable in a most un-Damon-like way.
She had never seen his bright blue eyes so soft, and she felt fresh tears trickle down her face at the beauty of the moment. This Damon, the one she had fought so hard to discover, he was extraordinary and wonderful and worth every second of heart ache.
"I'm so sorry Elena."
Those words meant more to her than he could ever imagine.
I know its short :( I have a really busy couple of weeks right now, I will do my best to update regularly but just bare with me! 3
