A\N Thank you for all your kind words! This is my favourite story so far, 80 reviews already! Twenty more and we'll get that nice hundred ;)

Anyway please enjoy this chapter and review… Oh, and I'm so stupid, I realized now which button I have to click to get that line that divides the page. Seriously, I'm so dumb…haha.

~Amy


"I don't want to hear it!" Elena screamed, tears were now streaming heavily down her cheeks as Damon took a step towards her. She backed away until she found herself backed up against the wall, and Damon grabbed her face in his hands firmly.

"Just listen to…"

"No, I don't want to deal with your lies," Elena said, breathing heavily and her eyeliner smudging all around her eyes. She jerked away from him, and then her back slowly slid against the wall until she was now on the floor, her head buried between her knees. She let out a sob that was heartbreaking.

Damon couldn't bear to see her in this state. He reached out to touch her but she flinched away from him as if she was scalded.

"Don't touch me."

Damon kneeled down in front of her. "I can explain. I need to explain."

"What do you have to tell me, Damon? That I just gave myself to you or that you used me as your slut to replace her?"

"Damn it, Elena!" Damon spat, his fist going directly to the wall next to Elena's head, and she closed her eyes, her body shaking violently. Damon instantly regretted it when he saw that he was scaring her.

He wrapped a gentle arm around her and this time Elena let him. He pulled her slowly up and guided her to the bed.

"I know this picture must've confused you," Damon brushed a stray piece of hair behind her ear. "But I want to explain. Please give me a chance."

Elena stood silently waiting, though her heart was breaking inside.

"Katherine was the first girl I loved," Damon started sincerely. "We met in 1864, during the war. She was with my brother Stefan first…but I wanted her, Elena. And she started to spend the nights with me behind Stefan's back. However, she later revealed her secret…she was a vampire."

"She's the one who turned you, isn't she?" Elena covered her mouth in a sudden gasp.

"Yes. She compelled us to protect her secret from each other until one day my brother decided to trust our father. He spiked his drink with vervain and when Katherine drank Stefan's blood it revealed who she was. The townspeople took her away from me…as I watched."

Damon paused and searched for Elena's face. She was avoiding his gaze.

"We desperately tried to save her, but our father pulled the trigger on us himself."

Elena shivered, her eyes widening. "He killed you? Your own father?"

"He didn't want to have the Salvatore name spoiled," Damon spat, "We did everything that we shouldn't have done. She was a vampire, and they weren't allowed to live, my father hated them. Second, we were sleeping with her-both of us. At my time, certain actions weren't allowed… not before wedlock, at least. Anyway… They took her away from me, and for over a hundred and forty five years I wanted to break the spell that kept her in a tomb with the other vampires that were caught…"

"A spell?" Elena's eyes widened in fear. "Witches? Witches exist?"

Damon nodded.

"Oh my God… and Bonnie told me about her thinking she was a psychic! I didn't believe her…"

"Who's Bonnie?"

"She's a…She was a friend." Elena shrugged at the thought of Bonnie, her dear friend.

Damon nodded slightly. "I managed to get in the tomb located near Fell's Church, in Mystic Falls, this year-only to find that Katherine was not in the tomb. She is alive….but she never bothered to come and find me."

"So you used me as her replacement," Elena concluded, deeply hurt.

Damon took her chin in his hands and gently turned her face around to lock his eyes with hers. "When I first saw you, yes," He said truthfully. "I wanted nothing more than to take out my anger on you-in every way possible. I wanted to hurt you like she hurt me. I wanted to rip you apart," He was tracing her carotid artery with his finger now, and Elena fought the urge to step away. "But then I realized how much power you had over me. You made me feel, somehow…You made me want to protect you. That's why I couldn't stand the idea of a vampire ripping violently at your neck on my behalf. To be honest, you don't remind me of her at all. You are sweet and selfless, she was seductive and selfish."

They stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity before Elena swallowed soundly.

"I appreciate you being honest with me," She said carefully. "But I can't just sit here and pretend that everything is normal. I can't… and I won't. So let's just deal with it the way it was, I am your food and you are my predator."

"Elena…"

"Please, if you ever felt something for me…you'll let this go," Elena begged, tears almost welling up again. "Don't make it harder than it already is."


Months passed since Elena discovered Katherine's picture. During those months, their relationship only seemed to get distant over time. Damon tried to talk to Elena, but she just locked herself in her bedroom not even going for dinner. Once, Damon tried to stroke her cheek when he brought her food, but she just flinched away from him again, telling him that she couldn't bear it. He had to admit, without her his life seemed to be empty and this resulted to him draining and killing innocent girls hoping to ease him. He soon started to become snappy and once he even grabbed Elena and threatened her to turn her into a vampire if she doesn't stop behaving like this. But as soon as the words escaped his mouth, he instantly regretted them.

"I brought you some coffee, dear," Larissa said quietly as Elena lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling. When Elena didn't talk to her, Larissa slowly sat next to her.

"Tell me what's on your mind, Elena."

"I-I don't even know," Elena admitted. "I told you about the picture I found. I just keep screaming at myself to be a strong woman but inside I'm falling to pieces. I'm a complete mess, and I'm insecure."

"Honey, you are not a mess," Larissa said, touching her arm gently and talking to her like she was talking to her daughter. "You love him. I get it."

"I don't even know if I do…"

"Elena, I once told you that vampires often mix lust with love. However, if Damon wanted to keep on taking advantage of you, he would've. But he let you go, he let you be free to choose."

Larissa paused. "I lived with Damon longer than you, and I know him. He wants you, Elena-I'm still not sure in what way, but he does. He is lost without you, I can see it in his eyes. He is starting to turn off his humanity again and the key of his humanity is you, Elena. If you want him, the opportunity's now…when a vampire turns it off, he is immune to everything including love."

Larissa sighed and stood up. "It's not my job to tell you what to do. But you need to be careful, otherwise both of you will get hurt."

.

.

Larissa's words replayed in Elena's head as she stood in the warm bath tub, gently massaging her roots with the strawberry shampoo she liked. It was true, she was in love. She still had her doubts, but what else would she call it?

As she put on a tank top and black elastic pants, she grabbed her hairbrush and went back to her room to brush her hair only to find Damon sitting on her bed. He looked drunk. She hadn't seen him in a while, because he had been avoiding her since he threatened her.

Elena stood frozen near the bathroom door as Damon slowly lifted his head up to meet her gaze, and then he slowly moved towards her.

"Jenna's been freed."

Of all the things in the world, Elena definitely didn't expect this to be a part of them. Her eyes filled with happiness and her cheeks flushed red.

"Oh my God," Elena said when she found her voice again. "H-how?"

"The human rights movement took care of it." He answered simply, but Elena knew that Damon surely had convinced them.

"Thank you," She whispered, her heart beating fast.

Without warning Damon's hand shot and grabbed her wrist, placing it on his heart.

"What are you doing?" Elena asked in surprise, trying to jerk her arm away.

"Feel that?" Damon said in a whisper, "That's my faint heartbeat, because vampires don't have a strong one."

Unable to know what this had to do with Jenna, Elena stared at him as he turned her around, still tightly holding her wrist up. "Right here just below the ribcage…next to the spine, that's your way to a vampire's heart. To my death," He added, and his fingers slid under her tank top caressing her ribcage. Elena stopped herself from moaning as his fingers gently trailed circles in the same area, before moving to the hipbone and finally trailing her waistline with the feather-light touch of his fingertips.

He continued to press her back against him and his cheek was now pressed to hers, his lips inches away from touching her skin. "Don't fight me, Elena," He said, his voice pleading.

When Elena didn't move he pressed a kiss on her cheek and trailed his lips until they met her ear. "You want me like I want you. Like I need you."

"Please, stop," Elena weakly pleaded, but both he and she knew that Elena was lying.

"No," He growled next to her ear. It wasn't an angry growl, more of frustration and want and to get her to realize how much he wanted her. He pressed a kiss on her face. "Tell me you don't want me now, Elena. Look me in the eye as I hold you like this and tell me you hate me. And I will never bother you again."

He gently turned her around so that he could stare into her chocolate brown orbs, and Elena stared into his blue ones. No, it wasn't true, she couldn't say it. She wanted him. Her entire body and soul ached for him.

"I-I want you, Damon," Elena suddenly choked out, and Damon didn't need to be told twice before grabbing her face in his hands and kissed her breathless, his grip on her almost possessive as she gave in to his tight embrace.

"I love you," Damon breathed in her hair.

"I love you too," Elena said automatically, and to her own surprise, she really did mean it. She loved him, no regrets and no thoughts.

.

.

Elena was curled up to Damon's chest, and he was playing with her hair in a soothing and calm movement. She enjoyed the rhythm of his touch while he enjoyed the rhythm of her heart beating, her breathing and having her warm body next to him.

"Damon?"

"Yes, sweetheart?"

"What happens if I drink your blood when you drink mine?"

"Where did you get that idea from?" He said, kissing the top of her head.

"I…heard it before, I guess. What would happen?"

"It would take a relationship between a human and a vampire to an entirely different level, princess. Like binding them together…They will feel each other's emotions. They will know if the other's in trouble."

"Oh, I see."

"Would you consider doing that with me?" Elena said after a while, and she felt Damon tense up.

"Elena, blood sharing is a serious business," He said with a serious tone. "I want you to have a clear head when you decide to do it. As I said, we will be bound together-"

"I want to do it, Damon. I don't ever want to lose you."

"You won't," he assured her. "But you don't have to."

"I want to," Elena insisted.

Seeing her determination, Damon pulled her slightly and sat her between his legs, and letting his arm free her waist for a minute, he bit into his wrist and moved it to her mouth as in the same time his fangs slowly entered Elena's neck, slowly sucking on the blood, not hurting her more than necessary. She was enjoying it now, too, and as the bitter liquid entered her mouth she instantly felt the connection between them, the fire.

Damon was finding it hard to stop drinking with this going on. He could control himself, but he wasn't made of stone, either. Elena let out a small whimper of pain when Damon had been drinking for too long and with the sound, he immediately withdrew, feeling her pain through the connection.

"I'm so sorry, did I take a lot?" He said with sincere look in his eyes.

"I'm okay," Elena managed to whisper, though the pain in her neck was still not yet relieved. Damon cleaned the blood with his fingers and Elena now had two neat bite marks on her neck and he impulsively lay down and kissed them.

"Do you want more blood so that they will heal?" he asked her.

"No," Elena said with a smile. "I'm all good."

There was a sudden knock on the door and Damon was surprised since no one usually visited.

"I'll be back, princess," He said, pressing a light kiss to her lips.

Damon flashed to the door and opened it, only to see Duncan at the door. He stepped in easily and Damon shot him a cold look.

"Oh, come on, Damon. Usually you'll be happy to see me."

"Not the case today."

"Yeah, yeah…I know that I tried feeding on your girl and all," He rolled his eyes. "I thought she was just trash to you, I didn't realize you'll care."

"What brought you here, Duncan?"

"Vladimir sent me. He wants you and the girl to come to the residence for a talk."

"I'm not bringing Elena with me."

"Sure you are," Duncan flashed him an arrogant smirk. "Because Vladimir always gets what he wants. He wants you and the girl right now-Let's just say especially the girl," He rose his eyebrows seductively. "God, who doesn't want that girl? The fire inside her when she was in the room could be felt from miles away."

Damon's hands were itching to pin the bastard down, but he knew that he stood no chance against the authorities.

"Tomorrow, 11pm," Duncan ordered. "If you don't show up, we will."

With that, he vanished.

Damon took a deep breath. What did they want? Why did he say that Vladimir especially wanted Elena? No, this wasn't good. When Vladimir was interesting in something, he gets it. No, correction, when Vladimir was interested in a woman, he did everything in his power to make her his and then throw her away.

He wasn't going to let Elena get hurt. They weren't going to take her away.

She was his and his only.


True Blood's Blood sharing thing was inspiring for this chapter.

Constructive Criticism is also appreciated. Please, help me reach one hundred so leave reviews ;)