She was blissfully happy. The past few days had been heaven. Damon was amazing. She was lost in his love and passion. She was overwhelmed and scared as hell but she liked it. It was what she needed. She was in her apartment right now waiting for Damon. She missed him like hell.
"Elena?" A voice burst her little bubble of contentment.
She whirled around, shocked by his voice.
"Stefan? What the hell do you want?"
Stefan paused, seemingly unsure of how to continue. "I want another chance, Elena. I really do. I think I love you it just took seeing you with him to realise it."
Rage coursed through her veins. He thought he could come in and say that to her? He thought proclaiming his love – with was undoubtedly brought on by jealously – would turn her away from Damon.
"No, Stefan. I love him – not you." The words sounded harsh but he needed to hear them. He couldn't be left with even a glimpse of hope. He was too persistent.
She watched him draw nearer, a strange look in his eyes which she couldn't place.
"You love me, Elena. You always have, always will." his voice cut through her. He put her on edge. She'd never been completely comfortable around him.
Then she felt cold lips on hers and unasked for hands roaming her body. She was shoved backwards into a wall and she felt something behind her shatter and break. A mirror. She struggled to push him away but he was strong. He held firm, claiming her even though she was someone else's.
His lips attacked her neck and his hands fingered her jeans. She knew he would leave marks, marking her out. Fear overtook her. She struggled futilely, unable to push him away. His hands grabbed her wrists, pinning them above her head. She felt bruises forming under his harsh grip. She closed her eyes and stopped fighting, waiting for him to stop. It had to stop eventually.
He took her cease of struggle as acceptance and doubled his kiss. It was cold and hard and meaningless to her, but to him she knew he would feel something completely different. His hands were hard on her waist, leaving more bruises. A single tear leaked out her eye and trailed down her cheek.
Stefan paused, tasting the salt on his lips. He glanced up, his eyes confused and he took in her pained state. He let out an anguished cry, like that of a wounded animal.
"I'm sorry, Elena. I'm so sorry."
And he fled the room.
She crumpled, unable to comprehend what had just happened. She shook uncontrollably, leaning against the door for support. She felt dirty, violated.
She hurried to the bathroom and ran a bath, desperate to rid herself of the feel of him. She gratefully sunk into the hot water and tried to forget about what had just occurred.
She didn't know how long she lay there for – long enough for the water to turn cold. With a groan she heaved herself up and got ready for bed.
She caught a glance of herself in the full length mirror. There were marks all down her neck. They weren't loving – small tokens of affection, then were dark and angry, some looking more like a bruise. She cringed as she looked over the rest of her body. Dark bruise blossoming around her hips and shoulder, with dark marks around her wrists.
She hurried over to her closet and cursed when a sharp pain sliced through her foot. She glanced down at the dark red leaking out onto her pale carpet. She'd stood on part of the mirror. At this moment she didn't care. She wanted sleep. Nothing more.
More tears leaked out and she rummaged through her drawers. She pulled out a long sleeved top and sweats and dragged them over her body, hiding the marks of the night.
She didn't want to wait up for Damon and face his questions about the broken fragments of mirror that lay around the floor and the blood that had stained the carpet.. He would assume the worst. She couldn't lose him. She crawled into bed and wrapped the duvet around her. She couldn't sleep for a long time, her eyes fixed on the dark wall, ugly thoughts staining her mind.
He groaned. He was so late. He should have been at Elena's over an hour ago. Damn traffic. He glanced at his phone and frowned. No missed calls – not even a text. A worry settled in his stomach and he pressed his foot down, eager to get home to her. He liked the sound of that. Home. He'd spend so much time there that's what it felt like but with him the expression 'home is where the heart is' actually made sense.
He pulled into the parking lot of her apartment block and hurried to her door. He knocked lightly, almost anxious for her reaction. No answer. He frowned again. Was she sick or something? He fished out the key Caroline had given him weeks ago and unlocked the door.
Darkness. What? Now he was really confused. He shut the door gently and edged to Elena's bedroom, quietly opening the door.
"'Lena? You oka-" he stopped dead in his tracks as he took in the room.
Broken mirror; blood – but that wasn't what stopped him. What stopped him was Elena's eyes, which were wide and staring, fixed on a patch of wall. They were haunted and she was pale as bone.
He didn't what had happened. He sat on the bed softly and began to rub soothing circles on her back. She cringed away from him. She cringed. He head snapped round and her eyes lost some of the sad hauntedness they had held and she relaxed slightly.
His hands resumed there circling as he edged closer to her. Her breathing evened out as she fell asleep. She looked so peaceful, the tightness gone from her face. He stroked her hair away from her face and neck and leaned in to press a kiss to her cheek. As he leaned in her noticed several marks marring her neck.
He froze and pulled back, before stroking his hand over the marks. He hadn't put them there. His heart dropped to his stomach. She had let another man touch her? Kiss her? Even after everything they had been through he clearly wasn't enough.
He sat up and trailed his gaze over the rest of her body, taking in every detail. Dark bruises covering her hips and her wrists were red and the bruises that were forming there looked as if a hand had been clasped around it too tightly. He noticed her back was red and raw. His heart was thudding a million thoughts overwhelming his brain. His mind refused to process what he saw. He would rather believe she had cheated on him than been assaulted. He sank back into the soft pillows, his mind working on overdrive, flicking through possible scenarios. Who?
He lay there listening to her breathing. She woke at one point, her breathing speeding up and she was twitching slightly. She made no move to curl into him and is broke his heart just a little.
The hours dragged on, sleep didn't come to him. He knew that next to him Elena lay wide awake.
He couldn't decide what had happened. He couldn't bring himself to ask. He couldn't stand if something had happened to her while he hadn't been there and he couldn't stand if she had been with another man.
A/u: Uh, yeah. I seem to like leaving you guys hanging..
Don't worry, I know where I'm going with the next chapter. Will be up soon! Love you guys!
Please review, it means the world to me!
-E x
