Disclaimer: Any recognisable characters are not of my own creation, but belong to L.J. Smith, the CW and their respective partners.
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I know, I'm a horrible person for not updating sooner, but real life is a bitch who has something against me.
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Chapter 13: Complications
"A little to the left! No that doesn't look right… back to the right again?" Damon attempted to control his glares as he pushed the sofa back and forth according to Elena's direction. She stood with her hip cocked, a finger tapping her lips as she squinted at the sofa as she considered it's positioning.
"Come on, Elena, we did the furniture yesterday," Damon whined standing upright,
"Move it back a little bit!" Came Caroline's voice as she dragged a large trunk into the room with Klaus pushing the other end.
Damon gritted his teeth, looking to Elena to see if she approved, with her nodding enthusiastically at him. Damon grit his teeth harder as he shoved the offending piece of furniture back half a metre. "Perfect!" Elena said beaming at him, ignoring his petulant behaviour.
"I do know what I am doing," Caroline said smugly, "Where do you want this?" She asked Elena,
"Umm, I think that is the one with the rest of my clothes in from home, would you mind putting it in the bedroom?" Elena asked,
"Of course!" Caroline said perkily, bending to push the trunk, noticing Klaus hadn't moved but was still standing in front of her, Caroline growled, "Be a decent guy for once and help me move this thing?"
Klaus raised an eyebrow at her before realising he had to keep up the charade of Caroline not being able to move a three hundred pound wooden trunk on her own. He slumped and pulled the handle with one hand, stomping to the bedroom.
Elena turned to Damon, "You aren't going to help Caroline?"
Damon shrugged, "She can handle it." He said, flopping down onto the sofa,
Elena shook her head, bending to pick up a discarded knick-knack, "Such a gentleman. What is up with those two today?" She asked, putting the object on her mantle,
"They are always bickering," He said dismissively,
"No, something is different. Caroline's annoyed," Elena muttered picking up a framed family photograph from a open suitcase she placed it on the mantle as well, stroking the frame longingly before turning back to Damon,
"Caroline's always annoyed," He said picking at the piping on the arm of the sofa, groaning as Elena pulled him up by his hand and shoved him towards the front door, "She is not. Do something useful and bring up that other trunk would you?"
Damon rolled his eyes yet again, turning to the front door and dragging his feet as he went, Klaus walking out from the bedroom, a face like thunder, he looked to Damon and growled, "Trunk?"
Damon nodded stiffly and the two men made their way back down to the ground floor where the other trunk was waiting.
Elena wandered into her bedroom, finding a angry looking Caroline viciously hanging clothes in Elena's new armoire, "Woah there, what did the clothes ever do to you?" Elena asked warily, expecting a Caroline-like tornado,
She span round to face her, "Nothing, they did nothing, that is the problem," Caroline said with a hint of hysteria,
Elena took a step forward warily, "Is something going on Care?"
"No, no, everything's fine, everything is just fine." She grumbled, slamming a hanger into the wardrobe,
"You know you guys do not have to help me move in, right? I can do this myself. And I am sorry about Damon, I told him he should have moved the trunk instead of you." Elena said, apologising for her boyfriend's behaviour in case that was what had Caroline all riled up,
"Damon is Damon, I was not expecting help. I want to help you move in, I really do. Besides I had to scope this place out," Caroline said, sounding a little more like herself,
"It's pretty, right?" Elena said excitedly, moving forward to start folding things from the trunk to be put into drawers,
"It is expensive." Caroline responded in return,
Elena paled, "How expensive?"
"Almost worth as much as my house, expensive." Caroline said gleefully,
Her eyes widened, "What? Please tell me you are not serious!" Elena hissed, "It's not even a quarter of the size of your house!"
"But my house is 10 minutes from the centre of the city. You are in the centre of the city."
"I did not realise it made that much of a difference." Elena was whispering now as she heard them men stomping through the apartment door.
"What are you going to do about it?" Caroline asked, lowering her voice as well.
"There is nothing I can do about it. Except pray he and I don't break up,"
"I doubt he would kick you out if you did break up," Caroline said,
"Really?" She asked surprised,
"Elena!" Caroline exclaimed, "You are with him! Do you really think you are with a man who would kick you out because he got fed up of you?"
"From the way you describe him it sounds exactly like what he would do." Elena said slowly as if she were walking into a verbal trap,
"But that is irrelevant. I have never seen him love anyone before. It is debateable as to whether or not he loves his own brother. But you that is an entirely different story."
"You are imagining things Caroline," Elena said,
"He saw you on more than one occasion. He pursued you. He is not pressuring you to have sex, he has not hurt you, and he just gave you a fucking apartment. Even I have to admit, this is not the Damon Salvatore I know."
"Caroline, you are being silly," She dismissed with a wave of her hand, continuing to fold items of clothing,
"No, I am telling you the truth. I am not saying you still shouldn't be wary, you should. But the fact that he pursued you, knowing you would not have sex with him, carrying on to court you knowing you were not going to give into him willingly. Well, the old Damon would have found some other dumb Dora in a second and dropped you like a hot potato."
"Thanks, Caroline," Elena muttered sarcastically,
"Hey, it is a compliment! Just saying, you did not know him a few months ago. I did. Why did you think I did not want you around him, hmm?"
"I thought you were being overdramatic." Elena said teasingly, Caroline's mouth dropping open, she threw the slip she was holding directly at Elena's face, both of them breaking out into giggles.
There was a knock at the door, Damon poking his head in, "Sweetheart, Klaus and I need to head into work, will you be okay?" He said, not noticing how Caroline's face fell.
Elena grinned at him walking towards him nodding, "Leave any of the heavy stuff to me when I come back later, or let Caroline do it." He told her authoritatively, his words about Caroline earning him a smack to the chest,
He smirked at her, pulling her close, "She is stronger than she looks," He said quietly to Elena, making her roll her eyes at him, she leant up kissing his lips gently. As she pulled away he pulled her closer, deepening the kiss.
Elena jumped when she heard gagging noises behind her, breaking the kiss and turning to her best friend, "Jesus H. Christ, you two will make me sick," Caroline said with a grimace, holding her stomach,
Damon ignored her, and pressed a kiss to the top of Elena's head, "See you later," He whispered, slipping away from her,
She turned just as he slipped from the room, "Bye!" She shouted after him, hearing the main apartment door shut a moment later.
"He didn't even say goodbye." Caroline whispered disbelievingly to herself, tears blurring her vision as she busied her hands in the trunk, making sure her best friend didn't notice she was on the brink of tears.
…
That evening Elena bounced to the door as she heard knocking. Knowing it was Damon she opened the door without preamble, "Hello!" She said brightly, widening the door to let him in.
Damon sighed, turning and shutting the door behind him, "Elena, what have I told you about opening the door like that?"
Her face fell a little, "To ask who it is first," She huffed,
Damon approached her carefully, stroking her cheek, "I know you think it's stupid, but you need to ask who it is. And if they do not say who they are-"
"I telephone you or Felix." Elena repeated, not quite believing she had forgotten to ask who it was after how many times he had drummed it into her.
"Good. Just remember next time. Even if you know I am coming around." He said, leaning down and pecking her lips. Pulling away she seemed to brighten a bit,
"I just had something to eat, would you like something?" She asked almost shyly,
"I just ate before I came," He told her, although not to the extent of what he had eaten: a blonde in the alleyway behind her building, "But do I get the grand tour now?"
She looked at him strangely, "You were here earlier, and you own the place, surely you do not need the tour?" She asked smiling, trying to figure out what he was up to.
"But I want to see what you have done with the place,"
"Okay," She said slowly, still smiling at his strange behaviour, she stepped away from him gesturing to the blue space around her, "Foyer," She said, turning and walking to the next room. The walls were painted the same soft blue colour as the foyer, as well as a padded feature wall with patterned purple, white, grey and blue diamond shapes. It also had a fireplace with a silver mantle, a fashionably shaped mirror hanging above it, the mantle holding family photos and a few knick-knacks. The furniture was all on par with the current fashions, the sofa draped with a homely looking blanket. There were vases of flowers dotted around, the soft light from the chandelier making the soft petals glow.
"Living room," She said, tapping the liquor cabinet by the fireplace, "Bar," she said with a wink, the cabinet having of course been a gift from him. She turned the knob on a door and walked into the kitchen. The walls were painted a soft pastel green where they were not tiled with small white squares, the cabinets and appliances a soft white, with a matching white table and chair set in the corner. "Kitchen," Elena said turning to him, resting her hands on the counter behind her and leaning back.
"You have managed to get everything unpacked?" Damon said with amazement as he stood observing the kitchen,
"I did not have many things to bring here. The furniture got delivered a couple of days ago, and the painters were here the week before that. I unpacked the kitchen things last week. I just needed to bring my clothes and the things Jenna sent." Elena said shrugging, "Plus Caroline is scarily efficient,"
Damon nodded with a smile, "One of her few positive traits," He said, smirking as Elena pointedly ignored his comment, "Can I see the bedroom now? Is this payback for me not showing you mine the first time you came around mine?"
"No, not at all!" She said sarcastically, wondering when he would pick up on it, "This way Mr. Salvatore," She said slipping in front of him, their bodies brushing as she moved, walking in front of him to lead him to the bedroom. She opened the door, walking into the room she held out her hands, "Bedroom," The room itself was the same pale blue as the foyer, a large window to one side with a perfect view of the ever expanding city. There was a cream swirling bedframe, with white sheets and drapes above the bed, pinned back against the wall. There was a small fireplace in one corner, a dressing table against one wall, and a desk against another.
"En suite is through there," Elena said, pointing to a white door,
"I like it, it's very you," He said taking in the femininity of the room and it's step away from the hard lines of the modern trends.
She narrowed her eyes at him, "No bed puns?"
"Well, now that you mention it, I would like to see you on it," He said with a smirk,
"And there it is."
…
A couple of days later Elena was meeting Caroline at one of their favourite tearooms. With Felix insisting since Caroline hadn't arrived yet, that Elena had to go inside to be seated instead of waiting outside where supposedly anything could happen.
Elena sat at a table for two, Felix at another where he could keep a close eye on her, Elena looked at her watch once more. Caroline was twenty minutes late. It was very unusual for Caroline to be late, unless she had found something pretty somewhere and lost track of time. She sighed, pouring a cup of tea for herself as she waited, hoping Caroline had not forgotten about her. As she looked up she saw a bedraggled, pink-cheeked, irritable looking Caroline pushing past waiters, making her way to Elena's table.
She slumped down in a seat opposite Elena, "I am so sorry," She groaned, setting down her purse,
"What happened? Are you okay?" Elena asked worriedly at the state her friend was in,
"Klaus and I had a fight this morning, just before I was due to leave," Caroline muttered, pulling out a compact mirror from her purse, smoothing a hand over her hair, resetting the waves, "And so he stormed off like a big baby, took the car and Andrew with him so I had no way of getting here," She continued huffily, smoothing a finger under her lips to attack a smudge of red from her lipstick, "So I had to telephone a cab over to mine, then there was an automobile accident so I had to walk part way to get here," She growled, snapping the compact shut, "But I am here now, and I am so sorry I am late,"
"What were you fighting about?" Elena asked cautiously, worried over how much they appeared to be fighting lately,
"Something stupid," Caroline muttered, "It's like our bickering turns into a full on war," She said distractedly, pouring herself some tea,
"Why are you fighting so much lately?"
"He's busy with work, and since you left I have been feeling a little lonely, a little neglected to be perfectly honest. So everything turns to a fight; because he's stressed and because I am lonely," She sighed,
"Oh, Care," Elena whispered sympathetically, worrying even more than she had before about her best friends marriage.
"It's fine really," She said, eyes tearing up slightly, "It will get better soon, it has to."
…
A week later Damon was escorting Elena into The Green Mill, one of Al Capone's favourite hang outs, part owned by his right hand man. Damon escorted Elena into the club with a hand resting on the small of her back, nodding to the doormen as they greeted him by his surname. A waiter escorted them to a private table. The club itself was intimate in comparison to A Little Distraction's luxurious grandness. The walls were a deep red with green upholstered booths along each sidewall, smaller tables to the stage, and a dark wood bar.
"Rumour has it there are secret underground exits out of here in case the feds ever raid here," Damon told Elena as they relaxed back into the booth, "Al Capone's idea really."
"But he doesn't own the place?"
"No, his right hand man does, Al practically runs it though." Elena nodded understandingly, eyes drifting to the small stage as a glamorous jazz singer took to the microphone, the band behind her tensing as they began the first strains of a jazz number.
As soon as the woman began singing Damon stiffened, turning his head slowly and grimacing as he spotted the singer. The woman caught his eye, smiling sultrily, running her hand up the stand of the microphone. The dulcet notes oozing like honey from her blood red lips. Elena watched the exchange intently with an arched eyebrow opening her mouth to say something when he turned to her quickly, muttering, "I'm going to go find Al," And turned to press a kiss to her temple, before he stormed from the table.
Elena gaped after him, taking a closer look at the singer with a questioning eye. The woman was statuesque with bobbed red hair and bright blue eyes. She looked like one of the women you would see in a moving picture with her beauty and draping pearls. The woman seemed to grin smugly back at Elena, looking away from her as if she were dismissing her.
Elena's gaze narrowed, searching out one of the waiters, waving them over and ordering one of her favourite cocktails. As she waited her eyes searched for Damon, seeing he was nowhere in sight. She looked at her watch impatiently, noticing it had only been about five minutes since he left.
Fifteen minutes later there was still no sign of Damon and Elena was feeling superbly pissed off. "So you're Damon's new flavour of the week." A distinctly feminine voice purred from beside her. Elena looked up quickly, shocked to find the singer from the stage looking down at her smugly. Distracted from her anger fuelled stewing Elena hadn't noticed the woman had stepped down from the stage, leaving the band to play. Neither had she noticed the woman slink up to her table. She had however, noticed the woman was even more gorgeous close up.
Brain feeling a little foggy, Elena just mumbled, "Sorry?"
The woman let out a mocking laugh, slipping into the booth on the opposite side of Elena, crossing her legs and resting her head delicately upon her hand, "Damon's flavour of the week? The one he's fucking for the next few days."
Startled at her language and the content of what she had said, Elena hissed, "Excuse me? Who exactly do you think you are?"
The woman seemed to perk up at Elena's anger, "Scarlett Devigne, a pleasure to meet you…"
"Elena. Gilbert." She replied coldly, having a distinctly bad feeling about this woman,
Scarlett hummed in response; "I heard he had someone new. I can't say I understand what the fuss is all about though," She said, her voice saccharine sweet as she tilted her head as if observing Elena. As soon as her eyes landed on the diamond necklace Damon had given Elena she raised an eyebrow, "Oh, look, he's bought you presents too, how sweet."
"Yes. He's wonderful. And how might you know Damon?" She asked, voice taking on an acidic tone,
"Ah, the question my dear sweet Miss Gilbert, is how don't I know him?" Scarlett said suggestively with a brazen wink,
Elena felt like an ice-cold bucket of water had been dumped on her head at the realization of how exactly this beautiful woman knew Damon. "I really don't think you have any idea what you are talking about." She said, feeling the full force of denial over the whole situation,
"If there's one thing I do know it is Damon, and how he likes to use poor innocent girls," Scarlett said mockingly, obviously suggesting Elena was one of these girls.
"Damon has never used me," Elena told her vehemently, trying to focus on Damon's loving actions towards her and not the venom the other woman was spewing.
Scarlett laughed, "Oh, my dear! He will feed on you and fuck you; it's what he does. Use you until he becomes bored. But he always comes back to me. Although, I must admit, I do have to share him with Rebekah most of the time. But the three of us can be rather fun, if you know what I mean…" She trailed off lewdly.
Completely stunned, Elena picked out the most confusing thing first, "Feed on me? What on earth are you talking about?" She asked, feeling more and more agitated as the seconds ticked by without Damon there to make this wretched woman go away.
Scarlett tilted her head once more, this time in surprise, "Oh, you haven't found out yet. How adorable. Either that or you can't remember. Damon is very specific with who he shares his secrets with, you know."
"Oh, I know. I just can't see why he would share them with you." She spat. Scarlett looked slightly taken aback by Elena's fire, but looked on admiringly all the same.
A voice cleared behind them and both women looked up to see Damon standing in front of the table, "Scarlett." He practically growled the other woman's name. She merely sighed in response turning back to Elena,
"That's my cue to leave," She said, sliding out of the booth, looking Damon up and down appreciatively before she turned back to Elena, "Have fun, kid. I'm sure I won't be seeing you again." She said in mock kindness, turning and sauntering back to the stage.
Elena turned her glare to Damon, "Who in the hell was that woman?"
"Someone from my past." Damon replied stoically, taking Scarlett's recently vacated place across from Elena, a stark contrast to the start of the night when he had her pulled up against him.
"She seemed to know you very well." She said almost bitterly, gulping down the remainder of her cocktail and signaling the waiter for another.
"She's someone from my past, Elena. That is all." He said stubbornly,
The waiter set the cocktail in front of Elena with a tense smile, sensing the situation. "So seeing her causes you to run off to God knows where and leave me alone in a strange place for half an hour?" Elena hissed quietly, taking a gulp of the drink in front of her.
Damon looked down guiltily, "Look, I'm sorry. I had to talk to Al. We had agreed she wouldn't be working here any longer. I had to find out why she is still here."
"So, she is so involved in your life that you had to get her fired?" She asked taken aback,
"Elena, it's not like that, she's trouble." He said dismissively, trying to appease her,
"So much trouble that you left me here all by myself for half an hour?"
Damon's jaw clenched as he attempted to control his anger, "I am not apologising again, Elena, I-"
"No. You don't get to make excuses for your behaviour, Damon. I don't know if you noticed, but someone tried to kill me a few weeks ago. So I am so sorry if I feel incredibly nervous when the person I am with leaves me alone in a strange place with some whore he shacked up with informing me of your behaviours. Not to mention this place is a hive of fucking mafia activity!"
Damon looked taken aback by her outrage, not to mention swearing, understanding overcoming him slowly. He opened his mouth to say something, perhaps apologise again when Elena shook her head fiercely. "Don't." She hissed. She knocked back the rest of her drink, sliding out of the booth and standing abruptly, turning on her heel and heading for the exit.
Damon called after her, which she promptly ignored, storming to the cloakroom where her coat was being kept, handing over her key impatiently, tapping her foot as she waited, Damon catching up to her.
"Where are you going?" He asked, feeling slightly bewildered, never having seen Elena so angry before.
"Home." She told him curtly, snatching her coat from the poor boy working the room. Swinging it over her shoulders she stalked out into the cool night air, Damon hot on her heels.
"Let me just get the car-"
"No, I'll get a taxi, thank you very much." She told him, walking quickly to the taxi rank and sliding into a cab. Much to her surprise Damon caught the door before she shut it, pushing her along the seat as he slid in beside her, making her huff.
"Is there a problem ma'am?" The taxi driver asked in a thick Chicagoan accent.
"Yes-"
"-No." Damon interrupted, glaring right back at Elena as she glared daggers at him. He barked her address at the taxi driver and they set off on the short journey, the driver suspiciously looking back at Damon every now and then.
As soon as they arrived, Elena shot from the taxi, leaving Damon to pay as she stalked up the steps into her building, not even bothering to thank the doorman as she usually did. Damon called after her as she jabbed the call button for the elevator. "I don't know what you think you are doing, I have nothing more to say to you." Elena said indifferently, still pushing the button impatiently as she gathered subtle attention from the security guards in the lobby.
"I am making sure you get in alright." He said just as the elevator door slid open and Elena stalked inside, jabbing the button for her floor viciously.
She let out an indignant snort, "Now you are worried. Lovely."
"Elena, I do not know why you are being like this. I apologised, I do not see what else I can do." He said, feeling thoroughly frustrated at how he still couldn't read her.
"That is just the point is it not? That you do not see what is so very wrong about this whole situation."
Damon growled, letting his frustration get the better of him, "What the hell do you mean, woman?" He asked angrily,
"This! Us!" She cried gesturing wildly between them, jumping as the elevator pinged and the door slid open, strutting out with a frustrated Damon hot on her heels. "We make no sense!"
"I still have no idea whatsoever about what the hell you are talking about!" He shouted back,
Elena laughed darkly, plucking her keys out of her purse as she approached her door; "You are a womanizing whore-monger, who apparently has sex with any young innocent thing in a dress, 'feeding' on women, what ever that means!" She yelled, shoving her key into her door, and turning to him, "And I am just me. Plain, virginal, little Elena Gilbert. My first kiss, my first anything was with aforementioned man-whore at almost twenty years of age! How pathetic is that?" Elena finished, bitterly laughing,
Damon shook his head, "You aren't-"
"Save it, Damon. We don't work. I'm not her. Or Rebekah." She said brokenly, voice quivering slightly as she turned twisting the key in the lock, only to be swung around her back pressed against the door as Damon kissed her fiercely. Frozen for a moment Elena slowly began to respond, wrapping her arms around him and returning the kiss whole-heartedly, moaning brokenly into his mouth.
Breaking the kiss Damon held her face gently, "I need you. Not anyone else. We work. We do." He told her, feeling desperate at the prospect of losing her.
Everything came crashing back down on her and Elena shoved him away, pulling out her keys she turned the door-knob slamming the door behind her, hearing the lock click securely in place.
"Elena!" Damon shouted, banging on the door angrily. Elena let out a sob as she began to cry, the tears streaming down her face as she pressed her back against the door, sliding down it to rest on the floor, sobbing into her hands, feeling completely unaware as to what she had gotten herself into.
…
Caroline walked dazedly into Klaus' study, moving to stand in front of him. "Caroline, love, how many times have I told you to knock first? It's basic manners." He said suspiciously as he watched her expression, surprised she had appeared and hadn't locked herself in their bedroom like she normally did when she was ignoring him.
"I just received a telephone call." She said blankly.
"Oh yes? Was it Elena informing you about whatever swoon or arse worthy thing Damon has done this time?"
"No. It was my Mom." She told him tonelessly,
Klaus' eyebrows shot up in surprise, "What? Why? She hasn't spoken to you since before our wedding!"
"My Father is dead."
…
A/N:
Next stop Mystic Falls!
I wrote a one-shot called "Get in The Ring" which is basically Klaroline porn (which is turning into a three-shot), so go check that out if your feels are a little wobbly after this. See Elena's apartment on my Polyvore. You can also follow me on Tumblr, all links are on my profile.
Thank you Yana (queenofklaroline) for beta-ing this!
What do you guys think of Scarlett?
Review if you want another chapter in less than a month's time!