Hello readers,
The fifteenth chapter is FINALLY here.
Wow! I'm posting after a month... But this is an extra long chapter to make up for my absence. I was a bit busy last month, also this is my third attempt at posting this chapter... Because it kept getting deleted... Yeah, I am clumsy!
Now go ahead and read it. Don't forget to let me know what you think about this chapter.
Happy reading!
I do not own TVD or the characters but the story is mine.
Suddenly someone wrapped a warm jacket on my shoulders, so I said, "Thanks! But you really didn't have to do this..."
"It's not a big deal, Miss. Gilbert."
I swirled my head back in confusion, not at all expecting the voice to be the one that I was hearing now.
"Mr. Parker?"
The jacket no longer felt warm. Rather it felt like a burden on my shoulders that I desperately wanted to get rid of. The brisk wind was much better than being surrounded by someone else's aroma. Specially someone I didn't like much.
"I told you... call me 'Kai'... What are you doing out here?" He inquired, sporting a lopsided grin which was kind of annoying, but I was more glad about the fact that he wasn't wearing a mask.
"Just needed some air..." I replied smiling. "Thanks for this, but I'm good." Shrugging off his jacket, I held it out for him.
"You are being too formal Elena..."
Taking the jacket back from my hand, Kai raked his eyes along my newly exposed skin and I couldn't help but feel infuriated. Distasteful or not, his lingering gaze made me uneasy and I just wanted to get out of the place at once.
"I think I should go inside."
"Are you sure you want to?" he said faking an innocent smile.
"Yes... I am quite sure. Enjoy your evening." I turned my wheelchair to get back inside but Kai called out, "Elena..." Halting my movement, I glanced backwards.
"He is not who you think him to be."
Those words compelled me to spin around. "What? What are you talking about?" I probed, frowning at his vaguely informative statement.
"You know what I am talking about, or should I say 'who'... I saw you talking to him earlier. Though I must say, it was quite shocking to see that you chose him as your escort for tonight. How do you even know each other?" Kai asked, confusion and irritation evident in his features.
It was quite obvious that Kai was talking about Damon. And here I was hoping, no one would recognize him, because of his mask. But it was very stupid of me, not to realize the gravity of the situation.
Now, I was feeling guilty for asking Damon to accompany me tonight... He might not be intimidated by Kai, as he had told me earlier, but I didn't want to be the reason behind him, facing any sort of trouble.
"That's my personal matter and it will be better if you stay out of it." I replied grimly.
"I am not trying to indulge, but you should know that, whatever that manipulative bastard has told you, is a lie!"
"Mr. Parker! I don't know what problem you have with him, but make no mistake in thinking that I'll allow you to tell me what to believe about Damon. So as I said, please leave this alone!" I countered, subtly challenging him, not to cross his boundaries.
"Wow... I see you have developed quite a soft spot for him, already! " He chuckled cynically, "Just wait until you realize..."
I held my hand up, cutting his words midway, "Stop! You have no right to make assumptions about my personal life. Don't forget that we are colleagues, not friends."
Putting an end to the irrelevant conversation, I took my leave from the scene. As I wheeled back towards the glass door, I heard Kai's voice once again, "Go ahead, I am sure you will see his true color, soon enough."
I entered the hall without paying any heed to his words. But that didn't stop me from wondering what it was, that Kai was referring to. What bothered me all the more was, if he had crossed paths with Damon tonight. If not then, I'd have to find him before Kai does...
Looking around the brilliantly lit hall, I spotted Bonnie and Jeremy dancing to a slow beat, among some other couples, who seemed too engrossed to care about anything else.
Caroline and Klaus were at one side, conversing with some guests. I even spotted Elijah, talking to some of our company delegates, with a glass of bourbon in his hand. But the one person whom my eyes were seeking, was no where to be found.
In spite of peeking in every direction, I couldn't find Damon. It was almost impossible because of two reasons, the masks covering everyone's face. Also my height on the wheelchair, which made me feel like a helpless child in the middle of all the grownups.
However, another clink of glass ripped my attention from the search for the blue eyed man, towards the stage. It was Mr. Klaus Mikaelson, standing behind the microphone, sharing with everyone how lucky he was to have such a beautiful and understanding life partner. Caroline was still standing amidst the others, eyes wet with tears but exhibiting an infectious grin. It was heart warming to observe her like this.
Caroline was really fortunate to have found love and happiness. Which reminded me of the fact that, tonight was about her. It was the celebration of her perfect and successful marriage, and instead of being happy for her, I had been solely concentrating on my distress.
So deciding to focus on what was more important, I started wheeling towards the main couple. Excusing myself quite a few times, I pierced through the excited crowd but some people were clearly irritated, and never considered muffling their grunts or murmurs.
When I finally reached her, Care withdrew her eyes from Klaus' for a moment and smiled at me, extending her hand out to reach mine. Reciprocating her smile, I squeezed her hand, mouthing that I was happy for her.
After delivering an ardent speech, Klaus asked her to join him on the stage and a huge cake was brought into the hall for them. It was perfect. Both of them blew the candles out and cut the cake, while all the spectators applauded and cheered. Bonnie and Jer had come to stand beside me, and all of us clapped continuously as the happy couple shared an affectionate kiss.
They were radiating so much love and joy that it kind of made my heart full with emotions. Would I ever be lucky enough, to be loved this passionately by someone? By Damon? Would he ever see me as more than just a friend?
If not, then why did I feel that there was something more? Even back in the car we had a moment and I was sure that, had Jeremy not obstructed us, Damon would've kissed me. But that never happened and Damon never brought it up again.
How was it possible for him to act so casually after that? Because all I could think about was what would have happened if we had kissed? Would he be happy or would he regret it? Those thoughts made it very difficult to blink my tears away. So I excused myself from Bonnie and Jer and headed towards the washroom to freshen up.
While retiring I noticed the blue eyed man, whom I was moping for, exiting from the corridor leading to the washrooms. Relieved to have found him, I almost missed the masked girl, clad in red, who followed shortly after him. Although when she caught his arm, I paused abruptly and remained at a safe distance from them in case, I hindered something.
Damon stopped in his tracks and turned towards her, as she extended her neck to whisper something in his ears. I stared at the two of them, clueless of what was going on. The girl rose on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. Then she spun around, giving a perfect view of her backless gown and sashayed away from him, clacking her heels on the ivory marbled floor.
What the hell was happening? Damon was with someone else in the washroom? But why? I mean... wasn't he going to kiss me in the car just a while ago? And all the other things that he had done?... sitting with me instead of dancing, telling Elijah we were together, was all that just a pretense... a formality for the friendship that we had? It was then, that I was realizing how wrong I had been to assume his feelings and actions.
I had been gazing at him unblinkingly, with clenched fists, when he looked up. On spotting me, his expression changed from indifferent to flustered and he rushed forward, "Elena are you okay? I was just going outside to check on you..."
"I'm okay and I've been inside from quite some time now. But it seems like you have been too busy to notice." I said keeping a straight face.
"What?... Oh, you mean that!... I don't know who she was. She just followed me inside the washroom... " He replied shaking his head casually.
"Please! You don't have to explain yourself... Actually, I just realized how self centered I had been to ask you to accompany me here. It was unfair to you and I thought of apologizing but that seems unnecessary now... because clearly you have had your share of fun tonight." Gritting my teeth I glanced towards the way the girl had left.
"What are you talking about? No... It's not what it looks like... I was just heading out to look for you, but she crashed into me and spilled her drink on my shirt. So I had to go the washroom and she offered to help."
"Spare me the details Damon, because I'm really not interested."
"Trust me Elena, it was nothing!"
I could've believed him, but the red stains smeared on his entire face were proving that they had shared more than a peck on the cheek.
"Oh, I trust you Damon!... And it maybe 'nothing' to you... this girl, Lex,... but from my point of view, it surely looks like you guys were making out for quite a while and I don't think it's 'nothing'! So forgive me if I am wrong, but this date or whatever it was that we were doing here, is over!"
Handing him a tissue from my purse, I continued, "There is lipstick all over your face, didn't you even check the mirror before coming outside?"
Saying that, I moved past a perplexed looking Damon and headed towards the washroom. Tears were now flowing out from my eyes uncontrollably. Once again, I felt like the eighteen year old, broken hearted, Elena Gilbert who had been cheated on, by her boyfriend. The only difference being that, I didn't love Matt as much as I did Damon and that elevated the pain by a thousand times.
I'd never imagined that the evening which had begun so splendidly, would become so miserable and pathetic by the end of the night. Why couldn't I enjoy a single night without it getting ruined so awfully?
Damon was being so good to me earlier but suddenly I just couldn't seem to recognize him anymore. Was it he who was acting strangely or had I been too blind to realize that I actually knew nothing about him... He never really told me anything about himself, his life, despite which I trusted him, I loved him... But what if Kai Parkar was telling the truth? Was Damon really a liar?
Maybe he didn't think that he owed me any explanation... I mean, I wasn't his girlfriend! Maybe I was overreacting and would regret saying all those things to him later. But blame it on the bubbling liquid or my incoherent emotions, seeing Damon's face covered with red smudges kinda made me lose my mind. First Lex and then this... I just couldn't tolerate it.
In that moment, I just wanted to go back home, get out of that fancy dress, lie down in my bed and cry myself to sleep. But I couldn't leave, as I didn't have my car. If I would call Bonnie or Jer, they would worry about me unnecessarily. Honestly, I was glad that my friends didn't have to encounter any part of the little argument between Damon and me. At least they were enjoying and I didn't want to give them any frown lines.
Spilling some water on my tear stained face I prepared to head outside, my mind constantly whirling around what to say to the man, whom I had stranded outside the washroom. But there was no sign of Damon anywhere...
What was with him disappearing on me tonight?
Once again I had no idea where Damon was and this time neither did I have the energy to look for him among the buzzing crowd. So instead of rejoining my friends, I took a side door and found myself faced with a slim passage to the garden. Deciding to spend some time alone, I proceeded towards the muddy path, which was bordered by tall hedges on either sides.
The secluded outdoors was now the most ideal place for me to be in, considering my red, puffy eyes teamed with my pensive mood. Honestly, all the commotion inside the hall was making me numb and I appreciated the stillness of the night outside, at least no one would disturb me here.
The garden was naturally aesthetic. Dimly lit by the silvery moonlight, which made it look like a surreal painting. There was a beautiful marble fountain in the middle, surrounded by small bushes embellished with tiny blossoms that were emitting the sweetest aroma, lulling me to stay distracted from the frosty air that was blowing in full glory.
Crossing my hands over my chest I started to rub my upper arms. It was too cold and I had missed my coat yet again. That reminded me how Kai Parker had shown up, out of the blue and wrapped his coat around me. It was on me for mere moments, but felt too suffocating because it was unwelcomed.
What was more weird was that Kai Parker was being unusually empathetic towards me. The earlier day he had offered to escort me to the dance and today he had given me his jacket in the freezing cold. Then again he had warned me about Damon and called him a liar... Something didn't feel right about the whole situation and I couldn't help but feel doubtful of his intentions. Was Kai's concern for me genuine?
However one thing was obvious since Kai had followed me outside. He must have been keeping an eye on me previously as he knew that it was Damon who had accompanied me to the party. But he had only come to talk to me when I was alone so he must've been waiting for a chance to do that...
Suddenly, some faint whispering pulled me out from my chain of thoughts and I swiveled my head all around to check, but there was not a single person in the garden. Hearing it again, I turned towards the muddy path which led back towards the mansion. Still there was no sign of anyone. So I pushed my wheelchair towards the direction from which the sound was coming. As soon as I reached close enough I could make out two voices, still whispering, but now they were clearly audible to me.
" Is it done? " It was a man's voice but the hushed tones made it hard for me to recognize it.
"Yes... and I must say that this was the first time I liked doing your dirty work. The guy was so fucking sexy." The girl replied.
It was so dark that in spite of squinting hard, I couldn't make out their features. They were standing by the side entrance of the mansion, in a corner, which was shadowed from the otherwise naturally illuminated outdoors. Remaining behind the hedges which were high enough to hide me from the silhouettes I stayed as quite as possible, even tried to breath softly, incase they could hear me just as I was hearing them.
"Shut up!... Did she see you?" The guy continued in a harsh tone.
"I think she did... I was too busy to notice." I saw the girl shrugging casually.
"You had one job and you couldn't do that! I didn't tell you to fuck him, just make it seem like you had an passionate encounter, in front of her!... And you are telling me that you don't know if she saw you?" he almost threatened her but kept his voice down and I strained my ears not to miss out, any bit of what was being said.
"Don't freak out, she saw us, okay?... I'm sure she did! After that both of them went in different directions. But why do you even care?"
"Mind your own business! Just because I brought you as my date, don't think that, I am bound to answer your stupid questions." He spit out and the girl raised her hands in surrender.
"Whatever dude!...But let me tell you that if you wanted to play the jealousy card, then I don't think you are aware of the situation..."
"I don't give a fuck about what you think... Got it?" Spitting out those words he started moving towards the door.
Hurrying to get inside, the man unknowingly came into the light, giving me a clear view of himself, which left me gaping, as it was none other than Kai Parker. But the girl continued to say whatever he had obstructed her from telling earlier.
" She is paralyzed Kai!... And if I were her, I would never dream about a man like that to be exclusive for me. So if she's sensible she'll know better than to be jealous about something like this and your plan would fail... Now do you give a fuck about my thoughts?"
"Whatever..."
For a while I was numb, taking in the scene and listening to every word with extra attention, but as soon as she uttered those words, it triggered something in me and a gasp escaped from my lips. However I immediately covered my mouth, realizing the mistake that had already been made.
The whispers stopped and I stiffened. This was bad! I shouldn't have made a sound... Now they knew that someone had been eavesdropping on their conversation. There was no way to get out from the place because they were standing by the door and I was farther into the garden, where not a single escape route was visible, especially for someone in a wheelchair.
Afraid to peek again, I remained still and waited for any sound to reach my ears. But there was none, so slowly turning my head, I looked from between the hedges towards the shadowed corner, once again.
Relief rushed into my veins as I saw them walking away, towards the door. As the woman behind Kai started walking, I noted that it was the same girl I had seen Damon with.
Shaking my head to and fro, I closed my eyes, feeling extremely ashamed for behaving so rashly with Damon earlier. I didn't even know what to think of the stunt that Kai had pulled, and how the hell had I fallen into his trap that easily?
Once again I had been utterly wrong about Damon and that too because of a stupid reason. Everything had started clicking now and I felt like a complete idiot. Kai had left open ends in his warning, letting me fill the gaps with whatever doubts I wanted to and I had literally let those accusations cloud my judgement of Damon. Kai had prompted me to believe that Damon was a liar and on seeing him with another woman, I just couldn't picture him doing otherwise.
Now I was certain that Kai had been eagerly waiting for a chance to find me alone, to instigate me against Damon and I had presented him with a golden opportunity. Of course his accusations were baseless, because if he knew something, why wouldn't he tell that to me directly instead of planting seeds of doubt in my head?
God, I couldn't believe this!... I had blamed Damon, not even giving him the benefit of the doubt. Even accused him of using Lex, whom I didn't even know. Now I was totally confused regarding what to do next... of course I would have to apologize but would he still be there inside? Or would he have left already?
My eyes were burning with hot tears in the guilt that I certainly deserved to feel, but it was more necessary to act fast and find Damon before he left thinking that I hated him for a thing which wasn't his fault.
So I quickly checked the place where they had been standing previously. Since the ground was still clear, I turned my wheelchair towards the door to head back inside. But to my utter shock, someone was blocking the way.
Sucking in a sharp breath, I widened my eyes as the person walked towards me. Finally when he stepped into the moonlight, I saw Kai smirking coyly at me, "Hey what are you doing here?"
"Nothing!... I guess crowds are not my thing." I chuckled nervously. "Anyway it's too cold out here, so I'll be heading in." I replied sounding casual, because the last thing that I wanted was, for him to know about my thoughts. Not to mention that I wasn't interested in finding out, if he understood that I had overheard his conversation with that girl.
He came to stand in front of my wheelchair, completely blocking my way. "So soon? But we had just started talking! You know right, that you should've taken my coat the first time I offered it? "
"Maybe... Thanks again but I should leave my friends must've started looking for me by now." I tried to wheel forward but Kai didn't budge from his place. "Please, excuse me, Mr. Parker." I demanded glancing up at the man.
"You wound me Elena!... You can't even call me by my name and here I was thinking what good friends we could become!"
"And why would you think that?" I countered, shrouding my exasperation with a fake smile.
"Because friends trust each other. And I am sure you trust me now, since you have realized that I was telling you the truth about that asshole."
What?...Kai felt that trusted him? That thought disgusted me so much that I felt like screaming. But obviously it wouldn't be sensible. So, keeping my lips pursed and my fists clenched, I tolerated him spewing shit about Damon. However my helplessness certainly didn't lessen my urge of punching his arrogance away.
"And you shouldn't feel sad, he deserved it. I am glad you realized that he is a liar." He kept on bragging and suddenly all I could think about was Damon's crest fallen expression, when I had told him that I didn't believe him. It was only now that I realized the actual reason behind that.
I couldn't put up with his nonsense anymore...Not only was Kai's constant blabbering annoying but also he was, and I had heard him conspiring against Damon with my own ears! So I interrupted him...
"It was nice talking to you. I think I'll get going." Pushing the wheelchair sideways, I tried to avoid his obstruction.
"You are going back to look for him, aren't you? " he asked in a cold voice. Boring his eyes into mine.
I gulped looking elsewhere, "No... I was just... my brother will be worried..."
"You know you're just like my sister...She was also not very great at lying." He said glancing away from me for a moment but instantly realigned his eyes with mine."Why the hell are you changing your mind Elena? That man is a cheater! You just caught him cheating, lying, still you want to trust him?"
"Yes, I trust him... because Damon wasn't lying, you were! You wanted to smear Damon. But now I know the truth and Damon was completely right about you... you cannot be trusted, you are the cheater Mr. Parker!" I retorted sharply.
"Wow... That bastard has really gotten into your head, hasn't he?"
Ignoring his words, I turned my wheelchair slightly and pushed it forward to avoid clashing with him. Suddenly he caught one of the handles of my wheelchair and pulled back. It jerked fiercely, almost making me fall out, but I somehow managed to hold myself back.
"What do you think you are doing?" I asked, anger seeping into my bones at his audacity. "I think you should leave my wheelchair."
"Not so soon..."
"Let her go!" I heard an angry growl from the direction of the side-door and looked up. It was Damon and he was giving Kai a death glare.
I felt a wave of relief washing over me. Thank God! Damon hadn't left... which meant that, I still had a chance to apologize to him and make up for the grave mistake I had made!
Kai glanced backwards, still holding my wheelchair in a vice grip, "Or what?"
"Or I will make you regret, ever daring to come near her!" Damon bellowed coldly with his teeth gritted. That should have sent up chills along my spine, but all I felt was gratefulness. He was threatening Kai for me though I had doubted him just a while ago ...
"Why? Are you afraid that she will start believing me if I do? " Kai sniggered nastily and Damon started striding towards us like a proud lion, zeroing his eyes on Kai's as if to warn him to step aside before he reaches us.
"Afraid? Me? Huh... You should be afraid Parker... don't you remember the miserable existence that you had to endure because of interfering in my business... Now leave her if you don't wanna repeat it." Damon was standing face to face with Kai, pinning the latter with his formidable stare.
I shifted my eyes between them and almost missed Kai flinching. It seemed as if my wheelchair had suddenly burned his hand and I knew that it was the effect of Damon's open threat along with his deadly glare. Who knows what Damon was talking about that had such an impact on Kai...
"Good!... Now apologize to her and make yourself scarce." Damon ordered like a boss and Kai moved away from my wheelchair. Keeping his eyes downcast, he apologized softly and started moving towards the exit. No sooner had he walked two steps that he turned back and shouted out, "He is a liar Elena, don't trust him. He will ruin your life!"
I furrowed my brows, why he so hell bent on making me see that Damon was a liar. Why was Kai being so adamant? However before I could process what happened Damon rushed forward and punched him squarely in the jaw. Kai grunted loudly and I screamed, "Damon!"
"How dare you? Fucking asshole! How dare you talk shit... Don't forget that you are still walking as a free man because of my brother and me."
Damon now held Kai by both his collars and the latter looked like he didn't have the energy to fight back. Which was quite weird because, who gets exhausted by a single punch? I mean, he didn't even try to defend himself that well. What was wrong with this man?
I wheeled forward and positioned myself behind Damon. "Damon, please just leave him."
He didn't move at first, but when Kai's eyelids started drooping, I reached out and placed my hand on the back of Damon's coat, "Please, Damon."
Immediately he let go of Kai's collar, whose head was now almost lolling to the side, and said, " Don't ever try to pull any cheap stunts again. Your actress friend just blurted out everything with a little bribe."
That made me retract my hand from Damon and got me thinking, what would I ever say to him for not trusting him earlier? We were friends but I had failed miserably in living upto that tag.
Frankly, there was no reason for me to be pissed. It wasn't like, he was my boyfriend. He could do whatever he wanted, but he chose to come here with me, stayed by my side when I was sad and tried to make me smile. Whereas I blamed him, doubted him, fought with him... Basically, I had been a complete bitch to him!
Kai gained some semblance and hurried out of our sight. Then Damon started turning back, so I blurted out, "Don't turn back."
He paused in his place and asked, "Why?" His throaty voice was clearly adorned with confusion.
"I want to apologize, so don't turn back or ask questions... just let me do that, okay? "
"But you don't have to... " He replied still turning away from me.
"No, I have to... What I did wasn't right Damon. I shouldn't have fought with you. You were telling the truth, and I should have believed you instead of blaming you. So I have to apologize because I'm sorry Damon... I don't know what came over me. Sorry, that I judged you and said all those nasty things... 'm really very sorry."
Saying all that in one go, kind of shortened my breath, so I exhaled loudly and waited for him to reply. Damon had accompanied me even after knowing that Kai Parker would be here but I had been stupid to get instigated. So, if he chose to be angry or not to forgive me I would understand his mindset.
"Are you done?" He asked in an casual tone, as if he had been desperately waiting for me to finish.
"Yes..." I replied softly. Then he turned back towards me. Looking up I saw him gazing at me intently, he wasn't smiling or saying anything. So I asked him, " Don't you have anything to say to me? "
"I do!... but before that, there is one thing left to be done..." Extending one of his hands towards me, he said, "May I have this dance?"
I stared at his hand open mouthed and then back at him. "You gotta be kidding me! " I replied snorting. Here I was expecting him to be angry, but Damon was in the mood for jokes, as usual.
"I am not kidding..." He tilted his head and quirked his brows urging me to take his hand.
"How can you even be serious about this?" I was now gaping at him my eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
Damon retracted his hand and knelt before me. Holding the handles of my wheelchair he continued, "Do you remember the night we were at the restaurant? I had promised you, that you will dance at the next opportunity you get and this is it!"
He was sporting a genuine smile, his blue eyes twinkling with excitement and all I could think was how stupid I had been to ever doubt this man.
" I know, but how will I... "
"No buts!... I mean, it's a freaking ball Elena, and I know that the evening didn't go as smoothly as it was supposed to, but I don't want to end the night on a heavy note... Now don't tell me that you don't want to dance because that will just make this super awkward!" Damon said smirking mischievously.
"Of course I want to dance! But I can't Damon, and you know that very well." I told looking away from him, to hide the disappointment in my eyes. He knew that I hadn't made that much progress yet, I didn't even have the strength to stand on my feet for more than a few seconds that too with support. How was I supposed to be upright for a dance?
I was fiddling with my dress and biting my lip to keep myself distracted, but Damon placed his hands on mine and assured, "Yes you can... Just trust me."
The conviction in his eyes and the confidence in his voice made me forget my nerves. I parted my lips but failed to find the right words to counter his request.
Smiling at me Damon offered me his hand once again, "It would be rude not to dance you know..." So, finally I let all of my worries drown and decided to trust him completely this time. Reciprocating his smile, I held his hand, "It is tradition!"
Damon stood up halfway, held my feet and placed them on his, one by one. Then he extended his other hand and I caught it too. "Ready?" He asked fixing his eyes on mine and I nodded, tightening my grip on his hands.
Damon pulled me up from my wheelchair in one go and I collided with his chest, making him wobble slightly. But he wrapped one arm around my waist and held me tightly.
One of my hands was still in his and the other was snaked around his neck. I couldn't stand on my own so I was completely leaning on Damon. My chin resting on his left shoulder as he was holding me in place. Had there been anyone else in his place, this would have been too awkward, because now I could feel every hard plain and curve of his upper body and knew that he could feel mine too.
"Are you okay?" He asked once we settled into that position. Feeling his warm breath tingling my right shoulder, I smiled nodding. Knowing very well that he would be able to feel any slight movement of mine.
"Hold on" Saying that, he began to sway slowly and I tightened my arm around his neck and closed my eyes.
"I know there is no music out here but I kinda prefer the quiet, don't you?" He asked softly.
"Yes, I like it too." Turning my face slightly tuned his neck I rested my forehead on his shoulder."
We were swaying in a slow rhythm and I was reveling in the comfort and warmth of his arms which was completely in contrast with the freezing exteriors. Being surrounded by his woody, spicy and masculine aroma, almost made me delve into a fantasy world. But what kept me on track was that, this dance was difficult for both of us, more for Damon because he had to support my entire weight and keep his balance at the same time. And, till now, he was doing a marvelous job!
"Thanks for doing this Damon... I never thought it would be possible." I croaked out before my throat choked up completely due to my happy tears.
"Don't thank me, just enjoy the moment." Damon replied brushing his lips over my ear and I smiled breathing him in deeply. I was happy, enjoying the moment, thanking the heavens for this night. Cause not only was I dancing but also in the arms of the man I loved.
After a few seconds of dancing in the comfortable silence, Damon said, "I'm sorry for being a dick towards your boss..."
"It's okay... I am sorry too for overreacting."
"Please don't apologize any more."
"But aren't you mad at me?" I urged on because until Damon forgave me I wouldn't be able to be at peace.
"Of course not..." He replied in an instant and I felt relieved. "It wasn't your fault Elena... I am sure Parker must have instigated you..."
"But...It was me Damon... I mean Kai did try to convince me not to believe you, but I didn't listen to him... I was looking for you, but when I saw you coming out of the washroom with that girl... I just couldn't think straight." I said softly, dreading that if he would ask me 'why', I wouldn't have an answer.
He didn't reply, just placed my free hand on his chest and brought his hand to my waist. The hugging me closer he twirled around. I chuckled at his action and he repeated it. Wrapping both my arms around him, I started laughing as we kept twirling again and again.
I didn't know if Damon was doing this for fun or to avoid conversation but what I felt at that time was out of this world. We were in a beautiful garden, surrounded by greenery and scented flowers, clinging onto each other and laughing our hearts out without any worries of the world and for me, it was better than any waltz that the world had ever seen.
When we finally came to a halt Damon was feeling so dizzy that he almost stumbled on the ground. Damon was on the grass and me on top on him, just like the first day at his house. The only difference was that tonight we were laughing uncontrollably. Soon the laughter died down and we were panting in order to compose ourselves.
"Does this remind you of something?" he asked still exhaling short and loud breaths, gazing towards me with a sly little grin on his lips.
I blushed remembering how it felt to be in his arms for the first time. Though I was extremely angry on him that day, I couldn't be more glad to have finally met him, my 'blue-eyed stranger'. Cause now I knew that meeting Damon Salvatore was the best thing that had happened to me in all my life.
"The first day that I came looking for you." I smiled biting my lower lip, to hide my blush. He returned the smile looking up at my lips, just as he was doing, back in the car. So I continued, "That also reminds me of how you fought with me, blamed me, threatened me and almost drove me out of your house. The reason why we ended up like this." I teased quirking my brows and smirking at him, trying to lighten the mood of the conversation.
"Guess we aren't so different, huh?" He asked smirking and I hit his chest for drawing that ridiculously offensive conclusion about us, but failed to hide the wide grin that had already appeared on my face.
Slowly he sat up and helped me to turn around, adjusting my back against his chest, just the way in which we sat back in his gym. The garden was being washed by the moonlight at places and the gentle sounds from the fountain made the atmosphere tranquil.
Sitting with each other like this had become a habit of ours. Almost everyday, after the session we used to sit like this for sometime. But today something was different. I was leaning on Damon's chest, with my head on his shoulder and he was leaning on the ground but one of his hands were secured around my waist. The calm and quite was making me crave for him more than ever and I didn't want the night to end.
Further lowering my head on his shoulder, I gazed at the infinite expanse of the night sky, admiring the sparkling stars that made the moon look brighter tonight. Taking a deep breath I closed my eyes trying to save the feeling of being so happy and carefree with Damon, in my memory.
When I felt him fidgeting, I opened my eyes and saw that he was holding a single red rose in front of me. It was stunning and the colour was darker than the ones commonly available. I glimpsed backwards, trying to read his expression, to understand what he was trying to do.
"I had brought this with me, but didn't know how to give it to you... It seemed a little stupid at first, but now it just felt right." His otherwise pale face had a hint of colour and it melted my heart to see him like this.
"I love it." I replied taking the rose from his hands and brought it closer to my nose. Shutting my eyelids I inhaled deeply and the scent of the rose completely filled my senses. It was strong but authentic, just like Damon.
"Do you know why I cancelled our session yesterday?" He asked suddenly. Turning my face slightly, I looked up towards his eyes and shook my head.
"It was because of Lex... she was alone and drunk in a bar. So I had to go look for her and bring her home with me."
Those words shook me out of my reverie. I lowered my eyes from his and turned my face ahead. Yeah... this was it... Damon was telling me the reason that I had so desperately wished to know. This was the truth and I needed to hear it without falling apart. I nodded slightly, "Thanks for telling me."
"Don't you want to know why I went after Lex, specially after texting you all throughout the day about a surprise?"
"I don't know Damon... but I am sorry for telling that you used her. It seems that you care about her a lot...and you should! Lex is really pretty and quite lucky to have you." I said giving him a tight-lipped smile.
"Yes... You are right! I do care about her a lot and she's really lucky...lucky to have a brother-in-law like me."
I furrowed my brows and swiveled my head backwards expecting him to be joking with me, but there was no mirth on his face. He was gazing back at me with a soft smile when he replied, "Lex is Stefan's fiancé."
My lips were parted but I didn't have words to say. So Damon continued, "I was waiting for you to come, when suddenly I received a call from Stefan saying that Lex and him had fought over the phone and that she had come to Mystic Falls for some work, but he had no idea of her whereabouts. And as you know that Stefan lives in New York, it wasn't possible for him to come here on such a short notice. That's why he requested me to look for her and bring her home with I had to cancel the session urgently. Lex is my brother's girl, Elena."
At that time, I was so mortified that I wanted to dig a hole and bury my head into it. I had made a blunder, accusing Damon of using his brother's fiance. God! it must have been so embarrassing for him.
"I don't even know how to start apologizing... it was very wrong of me to talk about her without knowing the truth... But then why didn't you introduce us Damon?"
"Would you believe me if I said that I couldn't wait to be alone with you?" he smirked mischievously.
"Damon!" I chided rolling my eyes.
"I must have forgotten Elena... as you can see I am not very good at socializing."
"I'm feeling so guilty now, for saying those things to you." I said, lowering my eyes and shaking my head swiftly.
"But you didn't know the truth." He insisted. When I didn't look back, he placed a hand under my chin and turned my face towards him slowly. "Hey it's okay... I understand."
I knew he was telling the truth, he understood that I was truly sorry but the thing that was playing inside my mind was that Damon might have surely realized that I didn't like Lex. However he never asked why I reacted that way. Maybe he was considering our friendship but did I have any right to be jealous? Even that girl with Kai, had the sense to realize that what I wished for was unrealistic and would be unfairly imposing on any guy, specially on someone like Damon. He deserved the best, and I was far from that.
"No... it's not okay... it will never be." Tears were stinging at my eyes and I couldn't stop them from flowing out. He rubbed my tears with both his thumbs cradling my face in his hands.
"What's wrong Elena? " His oceanic blues were urging me to let go but I knew that if I did let go... if I told him everything, I wouldn't be able to resurface again, I would keep drowning forever.
"It's nothing Damon... " I said trying to turn my face away, but he was firmly holding it in place.
"Please Elena, I know there is something... something that you are not telling me... what is it?"
"It's nothing, okay? I just wanna go home... Will you take me home?" I said looking up at him with tear stained cheeks. " Please, Damon." I no longer had the energy to compose myself or forget everything and smile again. I didn't feel strong enough to face him anymore, so I gave up and asked him to take me home.
He gazed at me for a few seconds, as if trying to understand why I was suddenly behaving like this. His features had turned grim when he nodded and dropped his hands from my face. I looked away from him thinking how bad he must've felt after everything he had done for me throughout the evening and what I had done for him in return.
"Do you want to go inside to inform your friends that we are leaving?" He asked shifting away from me slightly.
"No...I want to leave."
He rose up taking me in his arms and started walking. We passed the garden in complete silence just Damon's footsteps resounding through the night air. On reaching the wheelchair, he sat me on it and shrugged off his coat, wrapped it around me without a word.
I thought of denying it but it was too cold outside and being warm in his arms for all this while made me feel more exposed to the chill.
As we reached the car, I got a call from Bonnie asking why I was missing from the hall, "Don't worry Bonnie... I am with Damon and he is taking me home...No I was just exhausted...Yeah please tell Caroline that I'm sorry, I'll call her tomorrow... And please don't rush home because of me...enjoy the night okay?...Okay, Bye!"
We had stopped infront of the car when I cut the call. Damon was leaning against the Camaro, his arms crossed over his chest, looking at me with narrowed eyes. "What?...don't you wanna get inside?" I asked pulling the sleeves of his coat closer to my body.
"I didn't know Elena Gilbert could lie so well..."
"I don't know what you are talking about..." I averted my eyes from his, fumbling with my phone and looking the other way.
"Yes you do... But I don't understand why?" He straightened and started walking towards me..."You are so desperate at hiding whatever it is that you are hiding, that you are even ready to lie to your friends? You are ditching the party and fleeing home. In fact you can't even look me in the eye, in case I see through your farce... "
"That is not true at all... I wasn't lying to Bonnie. I really am exhausted. Also I am not fleeing away... and neither am I afraid to face you." I replied crossing my arms over my chest.
"Are you sure?" He said smirking slyly, challenging me to give up.
"Yes!"
"Then tell me what's bothering you... "
"Please Damon just give up already! "
"Why won't you just tell me what's wrong? Is it something I said? Or did Kai do something? Because trust me I will kill him for hurting you... " He looked quite serious and I just didn't want to argue with him on this topic.
"What? No... It's nothing of that sort, okay? Now can we please get inside the car, I'm freezing here!..."
He carried me to the car with gritted teeth and almost pouted lips that made him look more cute than angry. When he went back for my wheelchair I kept my eyes fixed on each of his movements and even heard him muttering something under his breath. But the thought that I had officially pissed off Damon Salvatore was bringing a smile to my face and he would hate me for it.
As he came to sit behind the wheel, I waited for him to start driving, but he made no move to do so. He just sat there like a statue, so I called out his name, "Damon?"
He didn't reply, so I continued, "Please talk to me..."
"Why should I? It's not like you are talking to me..." He was still looking in front with a stern face.
"But I am!... I know you want to hear something else... but why don't you understand that it's not something I want to talk about. Because if I go there, it will be too damn hard to return and I really don't want to complicate things." I replied earnestly, looking ahead.
Damon had turned towards me, trying to read into my words and expressions. So I faced him directly, "Why can't you just forget about it, Damon? Why do you even care?"
"Because you are my friend Elena! You are hurting and scared... and I can't see you like this anymore. " He said holding both my upper arms and looking at me with eyes full of compassion and understanding. And I just couldn't take it anymore...
"That's the thing Damon... you are my friend! And I... I am so very grateful for that. But the problem is, I don't know how to be that anymore... How to pretend that I am okay with this. Because believe me Damon, I'm trying...I am trying not to be selfish, not to impose on you. I know that I'm not perfect, that you don't expect this from me. And that's the reason why I didn't want to share this with you, because this will change everything. You may never feel the same or consider me a friend anymore and that's what scares me the most. Because loving you is the most real thing that I have ever felt in my entire life and I don't think I'll be able to live if I loose you."
Tears had been trickling down my cheeks as I blurted out everything to the man, who was sitting beside me with widened eyes and an awestruck expression on his face. But before I could even raise my hand to wipe my cheeks, Damon cupped my face with both his hands and pressed his forehead to mine. "You will never lose me, Elena...I promise you... I'll never leave you alone! "
With that he jutted forward, crashing his lips against mine, capturing them between his perfectly carved lips. I closed my eyes, losing myself in him for a few seconds as his incredible aroma invaded my senses, making my heart pound in my chest. I felt blood rushing to my cheeks and my body getting heavy because of his sudden move. But when his soft lips started moving against mine, I raised my hands clutching the edge of his unbuttoned collar and kissed him back, with every sliver of passion that I had in me, earning a deep grunt for the back of his throat that sent a shiver down my spine.
Wrapping his arms around my upper body he tugged me closer and I cupped his jaw with one hand and wrapped the other around his neck, caressing his silky, raven hair that I loved so much. He was slowly running his hand over my back, gliding it upwards. Skimming his fingers along the expanse of my bare back, he reached the edge of my off shoulder gown, and tickled me in the process. I could feel the goosebumps rising on every inch of my skin that he touched, all the while moving his lips with mine in an effortless way, that was making my stomach flutter and tingle with need. It was the best feeling in the world, being kissed by the man whom I loved from the core of my being.
When he released my lips from his, for some much needed air, I immediately felt the loss, deep inside my chest. Opening my eyes I gazed at him. Trying to collect my frenzied breaths, I scanned the features of the gorgeous man, who was still holding me close to him, in the same way he had been earlier, when were dancing. But this was obviously more intense, because now my body was completely molded against his chest, and I was free to let my hands wander and feel the contours of his chiseled torso, through his dress shirt. I desperately wished for him to say something, or my nerves would get the better of me.
Looking up with darkened eyes, Damon placed his hand under my jaw and stroked his thumb along my heated skin. "You are by far the most beautiful girl I have ever seen in my life." He said, tucking an unruly strand of hair behind my ear, as he brought his mouth close to my ears and murmured, "And this blush makes you look even more ravishing." Lowering my head, I smiled biting my lip, blushing even more than I already was, at his generous compliments. Damon gently inclined my head upwards and leaned in, pulling my lower lip from between my teeth with his own.
"I always imagined what that would taste like... and I must say that, I'm not entirely disappointed." He teased grinning widely and I gasped, hitting his chest hard for his insensitive joke. He caught my hand on his chest and securing his other arm tightly around my waist, pulled me in for another mind blowing kiss. Making me the happiest girl in the world.
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