Here it is the next chapter everyone!
Disclaimer: I DO NOT own The Vampire Diaries or any of its characters, but the plot and any original characters are mine! No copyright infringement intended. It's just fun to play with the characters ;)
This chapter came inspired by a song: Payphone - Maroon 5
Chapter Five
Damon lay awake in bed until he heard Jen get up, do her morning routine and head downstairs. His eyes widened. 'Oh fuck, Jen!' He rubbed his eyes. 'God I hope she didn't hear anything.' He thought as he made his way to the shower.
One hour later once he was dressed for the day, he walked into JD's room. The little boy was tucked carefully in his bed, hugging a light brown teddy bear with a baby blue bow around its neck. He smiled and walked over to sit on the edge of the bed. He ran a hand through the little boy's hair, and then leaned down to kiss JD's forehead. "I love you, kiddo." He whispered softly into his son's hair and stood up.
He made his way to the kitchen silently, knowing that unsurprisingly Jen would be there making breakfast. It had become routine at the boarding house for him to wake up and already find her in the kitchen, making breakfast for everyone in the house and the guests that they usually had now in the mornings. Just as promised, Caroline, Matt and Jeremy came over every morning and Bonnie came over three times a week, but when he walked into the kitchen this time he was surprised.
Jen was dressed in a simple graphic t-shirt and a pair of jean, which wasn't unusual, but there were 3 times the amount of pancakes she usually made sitting on the counter top, her eyes were red and there were dark circles under her eyes. 'It looks like she was up all night… Fuck… I really hope she didn't hear anything last night or this morning.' He plastered his charming smile on his face and walked over to her. "Good morning."
"Morning." She responded, and yes he did notice that she hadn't said good. She didn't even look up from the bacon she was frying.
"Are you expecting an army over for breakfast?"He teased, pointing to all the pancakes.
"I got a little carried away." The tone of her voice was annoyed.
'Maybe I can lighten the mood a bit.' He thought as his brain processed what he could say. "You look like hell." He joked. "After the long ass day we had yesterday, I expected you to be out like a light. It looks like you were up all night."
She let out a half-hearted laugh. "It's the curse of being a mother, Damon." She rolled her eyes and finally turned to look at him. "After JD was born, I became an insanely light sleeper." She smiled sarcastically.
He face-palmed. "Jen, I'm sorry I-"
"Don't, Damon." She rolled her eyes. "I honestly don't give a shit that you and Elena fucked last night and into the morning."
'Lie.' His mind called out. He could hear the stutter of her hear when she said that, but he allowed her to continue speaking.
"What I do care about is that you left and didn't make it back to tuck JD in." She crossed her arms. "There's something you need to know about children, Damon. Children like and need routine. It makes them feel safe especially little kids. Daddy being there to tuck him into bed is part of JD's routine. He depends on it and expects it now. He knows that you weren't the before, but now that you are? His biggest fear is that one day Daddy won't be there or come back." She narrowed her eyes and rubbed her temples. "It took me over an hour to get him to fall asleep because he wanted to stay up and wait for you. I'm afraid he's going to end up with abandonment issues." She shook her head.
Damon sighed heavily. "I'm sorry, Jen. I didn't mean to upset you." The double apology was clear.
"Damon, you don't have to apologize to me." She rolled her eyes. "You don't owe me any sort of explanation or fealty. You can do whatever you want with whomever you want. I'm not upset. You owe JD an apology. That's all that matters."
'Lie.' Her heart gave her away again, but he wasn't gonna let it go this time. "Don't lie to me." He narrowed his eyes.
"Ok," She chuckled. "Vampire sex is loud so next time be a little more considerate. I like to sleep."
Damon scoffed. She was deflecting. "Bullshit, Jen. I've been where you are. Hell, I am where you are. She didn't even stay the whole night with me. She left because she didn't want Saint Stefan to know." He spat venomously. "I should've been more considerate. You deserve that much, but I should've known better. I should've known better than to sleep with her, but I was pissed and upset so I did what I always do. Got drunk and got laid." He shrugged and looked away. "I fucked up your future and then you had to face the consequences alone. You should've told me! Why didn't you tell me?!" He questioned accusingly.
"So you could feel guilt over something that you had absolutely no control over? Why would I do that to you, Damon?" She retorted with a glare. "And you did not screw up my future! I knew exactly what I was doing when I got involved with you, Damon! I knew there were no preservatives and that there was a chance that I could get pregnant, but I didn't care! All I cared about was being with you because I loved you, Damon." She whispered the last part and turned her back to him.
"You still do." The words slipped out of his mouth before he could stop them and she tensed.
She looked at him over her shoulder. "What?" Her voice was barely over a whisper and her eyes were wide. She'd never actually said the words to him since seeing him again. Sure, her feelings were implied, a big elephant in the room that they ignored, but never acknowledged out loud between them.
"You still love me, right?" This time his voice held conviction. "Max told me you did, but I want to hear it from you." He crossed his arms. "Do you still love me? Even if I ruined your dreams of going to Harvard, and being a lawyer? Even if I got you kicked out of your house? Even if you suffered through depression because of me?"
She turned around with a glare. "Let me ask you a question, Damon. How often did you tell Elena that you loved her using the words I love you? What was it like to admit it the first time?" She walked towards him, her sadness converting into a wall. "It was hell, right? You didn't wanna make her feel guilty or obligated to return your feelings. You admitted it though, but you had a loophole. You compelled her." Jen arched an eyebrow and Damon's eyes widened.
"How the hell did you know that?" He sure as hell hadn't told her.
"It's part of the income of information." She shrugged as if it was nothing. "Now if you didn't want to put Elena through that because you love her, why would you ask me to do that to you?"
Sure, that was pretty much an admittance of her feelings, but he wanted to hear the words, needed to hear the words. "Because the difference between Elena and I is that she didn't want to acknowledge my feelings, but I do. I want to hear you say it. I need to." The sincerity radiated off him.
Her eyes widened and the wall that was holding her up, started to crumble. She stepped back, shaking her head furiously as a lump formed in her throat. "Damon, please don't make me." Her voice broke as tears threatened spill.
*Flashback*
Damon and Jennifer were enjoying the autumn breeze in the garden at the Salvatore Manor. Jennifer was reading a book under a golden-leaved tree. He watched her throw her head back with a laugh.
'She's so beautiful… How did I get so lucky?'He thought with a smile as she looked up at him.
"What could you possibly be looking at for so long, Mister Salvatore?" She asked teasingly as he walked to her.
He chuckled and took a seat next to her. "Just the most beautiful woman in the world." He kissed her softly. "I don't know what I did to deserve you, but I am never giving you up." He whispered, caressing her cheek with his thumb. "I promise."
Tears filled her brown eyes. "Damon…" She leaned into his touch, but never tore her eyes away from his crystal blue ones that shone with his love for her.
"I love you, Jennifer." He smiled, saying the words for the first time. "I love you more than anything on this earth."
She smiled with teary eyes. "I love you too, Damon. You're everything to me."
No more words were need as his lips touched hers once again.
*Flashback End*
Damon blinked his eyes rapidly. She really did love him, and once upon a time he loved her too, more than anything.
"Damon, are you ok?" Her voice snapped him back to reality.
"I'm fine." He shook his head. "I'm sorry, Jen. You can tell me when you feel like you can open yourself up to me again. Promise me you won't be afraid. Promise me you'll be honest because I'll never push you away for feeling the way you feel. I know all too well what that's like." He looked down at the ground, took a breath and looked back up. "Promise me." His eyes were as hard as his voice.
"Only if you promise me the same." She crossed her arms. "Promise me that you'll open up to me about your feelings because you know that I'd never judge you for how you feel."
Damon shouldn't have been surprised by her conditions, but he was anyways. A tense silence came between them and only broke as footsteps came from the foyer.
"Everything ok between mom and dad?" Jeremy asked jokingly having noticed the tension in the room as Caroline, Matt, Elena and Stefan followed him into the room.
Damon and Jen both let out awkward chuckles. "Everything's fine." Jen answered with a smile. "You guys are just in time. I just finished breakfast."
Damon nodded at Jen, his silent agreement to their negotiation, and she nodded back. "I'm gonna go get JD." He gave her a crooked smile and walked out.
"I'll set table for you, Jen." Stefan offered as he began pulling plates out of the cabinet.
"Thanks, Stefan." She gave him a grateful smile which he returned with a kind smile of his own.
"I'll help you, Stefan." Elena went to his side and got the cups.
"Damn, Jen. That's a lot of food." Matt chuckled. "Did you invite half of Mystic Falls over for breakfast?" He asked making everyone laugh.
"I got a little carried away this morning." Jen apologized between laughs. "I was distracted."
"Ooo," Caroline sing-songed. "By Damon?" She smirked.
Jen rolled her eyes. "Not exactly."
"Right…" Caroline said sarcastically. "So Jen, have you decided if you are going to college or going to work?" She asked as she helped Jen carry the food to the table.
"Um…" Jen hesitated. "I'm not going back to school just yet."
"What were you going to go to school for?" Jeremy asked as everyone took their seats.
Jen shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Talking about her previous aspirations was hard enough without it being to people that she barely knew.
"She was going to Harvard to study law." Damon answered on her behalf as he walked into the kitchen holding a fully dressed JD's hand. Jen looked over at him appalled and saw a cocky smirk on his face. "You shouldn't hide your intelligence. You're a smart girl. You were nerd number one of your graduating class."
Jennifer blushed and rolled her eyes. "Haha…" She laughed sarcastically as Damon slipped JD into his booster seat between the 2 of them.
"Good morning, Mommy." The little boy smiled widely.
"Good morning, baby." She kissed each of his cheeks and his forehead.
"Nerd number one?" Jeremy looked confused.
"Valedictorian," Jennifer corrected shyly.
"Seriously?" Caroline asked, surprised. "Man, I'm just an average student, barely." She giggled.
"What was your GPA?" Elena asked curiously.
"Uh…" Jen stuttered. "It was so long ago… I don't even remember."
"Lie." "You're lying." Damon and Caroline said at the same time, making her frown.
"Really?" She arched an eyebrow.
"They're not wrong." Stefan added with a chuckle.
"Not you too, Stefan." Jen groaned with a small smile.
"Just tell us. It's no biggie." Caroline chirped.
Jen huffed in surrender. "It was a 4.7, can we eat now?" Everyone's jaws dropped, except for Damon's. He figured that if she got a 2300 on her SATs she must've had a high grade point average. Jeremy moved to speak and Jen held up her hand. "Unless you're opening your mouth to stuff food in it, I don't wanna hear it. I have no idea what I want to do with myself anymore, ok? Pre-law and law school will take me away from my son so it's not happening." She ended the conversation effectively as Matt and Jeremy exchanged accepting glances as Caroline and Elena did the same with each other. Damon and Stefan had impressed smiles on their faces.
'She's definitely a Petrova.' Stefan chuckled at her 'no nonsense or argument' behavior as everyone continued eating their breakfasts.
"I swear I'm so glad I'm a vampire now because if I wasn't I'd have gained like a hundred pounds since you've moved here, Jen." Caroline fanned herself. "You're an amazing cook."
Jen laughed. "Thanks, Caroline."
"I think I will gain a hundred pounds." Matt added with a pat to his belly and everyone laughed.
"Jen, JD is going out with the guys today, ok?" Damon looked at her for her agreement.
"The guys?" She looked at him skeptically.
He rolled his eyes with a smile. "Stefan, Jeremy and I." He amended.
"Ok." She laughed. "And what exactly will you three being doing on this guys' day out?"
"Man things." He smirked, making her arch an eyebrow. He couldn't help, but tease her a little. "You know typical sports and stuff. We'll be in Richmond, just a call, and an hour and half away." He added to reassure her.
She smiled. "That's fine." She knew this was his way of making things up to JD. "I'll go pack the bag for him and you guys finish cleaning up down here." She walked out.
"And then you can come out with me." Caroline added loud enough for Jen to hear.
"OK, Caroline!" Jen yelled from the stairs as the vampires heard her footsteps upstairs.
"Come on, kiddo." Damon picked JD up. "Let's go make sure that your mom doesn't over-pack." He chuckled, walking out of the kitchen.
"They're a cute little family, huh?" Caroline smiled at the others as the 3 vampires began cleaning at vampire speed.
"It's a little weird actually." Jeremy shrugged. "But nice." He added with a cheeky smile.
"I haven't seen Damon this happy in so long." Stefan smiled happily. "If he was ever this happy." He was truly happy to see more of the old Damon from 1864 resurfacing in his brother. He, as well, had begun getting more and more memories of an 1864 that included Jen, and he remembered how happy his brother once was.
"He actually seems human." Matt joked with a chuckle.
"It's nice to see Damon's humanity more openly." Elena smiled. This was the side of Damon that she loved most. "So what are you going to do with Jen, Caroline?"
"Just talk to her about a few things, like her permanent stay here in Mystic Falls." Caroline answered with a smile as Jen, Damon and JD returned.
"Ready to go?" Stefan looked at the trio. Damon was chuckling, Jen was rolling her eyes and JD was giggling.
"Yes, Uncle Stef." The little boy answered still giggling and Jen handed Damon a messenger type bag.
"What happened?" Elena arched an eyebrow curiously.
"Jen was going to pack half of JD's clothes into his bag," He held up the bag. "I'm glad we went up there to stop her, right kiddo?" He smirked at his mini-me.
"Right, Daddy." JD nodded, still giggling which mad all the grown-ups laugh as well, even his mother. "Mommy put a lot of clothes in my bag."
"Haha," Jen rolled her eyes. "I'm just making sure all the basics are covered." She walked over to the refrigerator, pulled out a small Ziploc bag of baby carrots and juice boxes.
"What are you doing?" Damon sighed.
"Packing some snacks." She answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. She pulled out an insulated Avengers lunchbox, a tiny bag of chips and put some Cheerios in a Ziploc as well.
"Jen, we'll eat while we're there." Damon put a hand on her shoulder.
"It's just in case, Damon. With kids, you must always be prepared." She proceeded to pack everything into the lunchbox and he saw and odd look on her face.
"Are you ok, Jen?" He turned her to face him.
"I'm a little nervous." She admitted after taking a breath. "I've never been away from JD for anything other than work."
Damon's eyes widened slightly. "Really?" He couldn't believe it and she nodded her answer. "He never out with just Max and Ryan or Natalie?"
She shook her head. "JD never went anywhere without me. The circumstances of his birth made things really hard to be away from him and it went on to when he got older." She explained pushing a loose curl behind her ear. "Now I'm a little nervous."
Damon chuckled. "That's typical mom behavior." He threw an arm around her shoulders.
"How would you know?" She asked with an arched brow.
A smirked formed on his face. "I'll tell you some other time, but don't worry." He assured. "Between Stefan, Jeremy and me, we can handle JD. He's a good kid." He picked up said toddler. "You'll be good right, JD?"
"Yes, Daddy." He nodded with a smile.
Damon smiled and looked back at Jen. "See? Everything will be fine." He reassured, earning a smile from the human Petrova descendant.
"Ok." She surrendered. "What time will you be back?"
"Six at the latest." He promised. "If it changes I'll call you."
She took a deep breath and nodded. "Then I guess I'll see you guys at six." She smiled.
"Ok," Jeremy clapped his hands together. "Let's get going!"
Jen pulled JD into her arms closely and hugged him tightly. "Baby, be good ok? Listen to everything your daddy tells you." She whispered into his ear.
JD nodded. "I will, Mommy. I promise."
She pulled back and smiled. "I know you will, sweetie." She handed him back to Damon with worry etched all over her face. "Take care of my baby.
Damon gave her a small smile. "Relax, woman" He teased. "I'll take care of him. He's my kid too."
"I know." She sighed heavily. "I'm sorry. It's not that I don't trust you, Damon. It's just that-"
"You're suffering from mommy separation anxiety." He teased, making her and the others chuckle.
"I guess." She sighed, still chuckling. "Now go before I panic and change my mind." She smirked.
"Ok, we're going." Damon laughed. "Say by to your mom, JD before she decides to keep you to herself." Damon's blue eyes sparkled with amusement and JD giggled.
"Bye, Mommy." He waved eagerly. "We can go now." He said excitedly.
Damon smiled genuinely at Jen. "Bye, Jen and don't worry. I'll bring our son back whole." His eyes looked into her and an unspoken exchange went on between them.
"Bye, Damon." She replied with a small, almost shy smile. 'How does he manage to reduce me to that nervous little 18 year old girl with just a look and that smile of his?' She pushed those thoughts aside.
"Bye, Jen. Thanks for breakfast." Jeremy smiled. "Later, Matt. See ya, Caroline. Bye 'Lena." He waved at his friends and hugged his sister quickly as to no tempt her.
"Bye, Jeremy." "See ya, Jer." Matt and Caroline said at the same time.
"Be careful." Elena advised. "Don't do anything too crazy or stupid." She looked at Damon with a slightly wary look.
Damon scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Oh please, Elena. You seriously think we're gonna have a wild guys' day with my kid with us?" He bit back the string of fuck you's that was dying to slip out of his mouth. Did she truly think so lowly of him?
Elena actually looked at him apologetically, but Jen spoke up before she could fully apologize. "Elena seriously, how much of that type of fun could they actually have with JD there?" She crossed her arms and looked at the younger Petrova with that typical 'reprimanding mother look' on her face. "Damon's a fantastic father. Give him a little more credit." Her voice was between exasperated and annoyed.
Caroline, Jeremy and Matt looked at each other surprised. It wasn't often that someone defended Damon or that Elena was scolded. They didn't know which one was more surprising.
Stefan looked upon the 2 parents curiously. Part of him was surprised and part of him wasn't. He knew Jen loved his brother. He could see it now and in the memories from the past that had begun to surface of the two of them smiling, laughing, holding hands and even the personal memories the he had of her of moments when they would discuss literature, law and art. He hoped that someday his brother would be able to love that way again. "We should get going." Stefan broke the awkward silence. "See ya, Matt. Don't worry, Jen. My nephew is in great hands." He smiled assuring, quietly siding with her before turning to Elena. "Bye, Elena." He kissed her cheek and the 3 men walked out.
"Ok, go change." Caroline pushed Jen towards the stairs before the tense silence could settle in the room again. "We have to go out."
"Ok, ok," Jen chuckled and went upstairs.
"So what are you doing today?" Caroline turned to her best friend.
"Bonnie and I are hanging out." Elena shrugged with an angry look on her face.
"What's with the grumpy face?" Caroline poked her side.
Elena sighed. "It's just… Who the hell does she think she is, scolding me like I'm some little kid? All I wanted to do was make sure that my little brother was gonna be safe just like she was with her son." Anger bubbled in Elena as she tried to push it down. The overwhelming vampire emotions were starting to get the best of her.
"Calm down, Elena." Caroline put a hand on her shoulder. "She was defending Damon because she cares about him, and let's be honest 'Lena. She knows a side of Damon that only Stefan knows, the human side of him. It's the side of him that's been slowly peeking out since she and JD moved in. It's kinda nice seeing that side of him." Caroline explained. "She has feeling for him, Elena. We all know that and she defended him because she thought you were being unfair with him, and you kinda were, but you come before Damon to me and Damon's a dick sometimes so I just didn't say anything." She shrugged. "But to Jen? JD obviously comes first and, naturally, Damon comes second. He's her first love and the father of her baby. Don't take it too hard. I guess now Damon has more than Stefan and you to lean on, even he and Jeremy have been getting closer though. I think she sees farther into Damon than any of us, even Stefan."
Elena stood there and absorbed Caroline's blunt words. 'She's right.' She couldn't fault Jen for defending Damon when she fought for Stefan even through his ripper phase. She just wasn't used to being called out for questioning Damon's behavior and intentions. It was something that she did, that just about everyone did and no one ever challenged or questioned it. "I guess you're right." She sighed. "I'm gonna go and meet with Bonnie. See ya, Care.
Jen and Caroline were walking around the town square with the sun shining brightly above them. "So what'd you want to talk about?" Jen looked at the young blond curiously.
"Well I think your baking is so good and I don't think that it's fair that only a small group of people get to try it." Caroline responded vaguely with a shrug.
"What are you talking about?" Jen furrowed her eyebrows.
Caroline took a breath. "My mom has this friend, Layla Fell, who owns the only bakery here in Mystic Falls. She's been working there practically on her own since she opened it. All she has is someone to work the cash register, but she's always done all the baking. A lot of the recipes have been in the Fell family for generations and the others are all recipes are recipes donated by members of other founding families who didn't have much interest in keeping them." She explained as they continued to walk.
"Where exactly are you going with this, Caroline?" Jen asked with a smirk even though she had a good idea.
"Well, Layla's pretty old now, and she came over for dinner yesterday telling mom and me that she was having a hard time taking care of the business alone and I immediately thought of you. Before I could stop myself, I told her about how you well you bake and stuff. Now, she wants to meet you." She finished with a sheepish smile.
Jennifer laughed at Caroline's antics. "That actually sounds really great, Caroline."
"Really?" The young blonde squeaked and Jen nodded. "That's awesome! I knew you'd be up for it, Jen!" She hugged Jen tightly and pulled back. "You can stop by anytime tomorrow and Layla will be there."
"Thanks, Caroline. This is really nice of you." Jen smiled gratefully.
"It's no problem, Jen." Caroline gave her a smile. "Having you and JD around has made Damon a bit less of an asshole."
Jen laughed. "Well regardless of how I affect Damon, I really am grateful to you, Caroline. It's really nice of you."
"It's no biggie." Caroline chuckled. "I've been trying to understand what you see in Damon besides his dashing good looks. What did or do you see in him, Jen? He's such a dick."
Jen chuckled and shook her head. "That's exactly what he wants you to think, Caroline. Damon always had his usual smartass attitude Caroline. He was fun and free-spirited, which when joined with how hurt and jaded he became after he became a vampire, turned into rashness and self destruction. He's been hurt a lot, Caroline." She sighed. "I don't know if you know, but I know pretty much everything that's happened to Damon since my return to my present. His time here in Mystic Falls has been good because it brought back his humanity, but he's been hurt a lot here as well." Caroline opened her mouth to protest, but Jen continued before she could speak. "Yes, I know he's fucked up a lot, and he hurt you, but he's done a lot of good as well and he has feelings too. Everyone he knows here is Elena's friend and on Elena's side. I have nothing against Elena, I swear," the sincerity was clear in her voice, "but she's hurt him a lot and no one's called her out on it. No matter what Damon's done, no one deserves to be treated the way he has been. If it were someone else treating Elena, Bonnie or even Jeremy that way, wouldn't you say something." Caroline nodded somewhat guiltily. "Exactly, but Elena's only one of many things that has turned Damon into the jaded asshole that you know today."
Caroline felt bad. Jen made a good point and as much as she disliked Damon, no one deserved to have their feelings played with. "What else is there? I mean, I know that there's the Katherine situation."
"Yes," Jen nodded. "The Katherine thing in itself, as well as becoming a vampire, solidified and amplified all of Damon's insecurities. Because Katherine was outside the natural world, she continued to remember me after I left 1864. She noticed that Damon saw similarities between her and what his mind remembered of me, and she took advantage of that, of him. Then she treated him like shit and threw him away, while openly and cruelly stating that she preferred his brother over him. That was not the first time that Damon had felt that pain, and you know very well that it wasn't the last." Her brown eyes met Caroline's as the younger girl nodded. "Damon's mother died of pneumonia when he was 10 years old and Stefan was 3. Giuseppe was utterly distraught; he loved Laura Salvatore more than anything in the world. After her death, he shunned Damon, who was the spitting image of his mother. He doted on Stefan as if he was an only child, and Damon was always negatively compared to his little brother. No matter what he did, Stefan did it better."
"I heard from Stefan that their dad was an ass." Caroline mentioned casually, though she was craving to know more. Stefan and Damon didn't really talk about their human lives.
"If you wanna know what I think of their dad, Caroline, just ask." Jen chuckled and rolled her eyes.
"What did you think of their dad?"
"Giuseppe was a grade A asshole. He was hard on both of them, but at least he was nice to Stefan. Damon and Stefan got along really well. The only problem between them was that sometimes Stefan sided too much with his father and ignored the difference of treatment between them instead of standing up against his dad. Giuseppe treated Damon like shit because he reminded him too much of his dead wife and Damon was 'too spirited and lacked respect'." She did air quotes. "He treated Damon like shit and he wanted Damon to take it. He hated it when Damon stood up to him. He hated that Damon stood up to him which only made him treat Damon worse." Anger coursed through her as she remembered the way Damon's father treated him. "He treated Stefan like he could do no wrong, while Damon never did anything right in his eyes. While Damon may deny it, I know that all he once wanted was for his dad to be proud of him."
"That so sad…" Caroline truly sympathized with her sire. "And that bitch Katherine did her usually bitchy thing."
Jen let out another laugh. Caroline seemed to have that affect on her recently. "Yeah," She agreed. "Look Caroline, I know Damon did you wrong, and that you and Stefan are very close. I'm not asking you to pretend that Damon didn't do what he did or to be 'Team Damon', but I am asking you to look at Damon a little deeper." Jen's eyes pleaded with Caroline to pull away the blinders.
Caroline nodded. "I'll try." She gave a tentative smile.
"That's all I can ask." Jen smiled in returned.
"Well, well, well, I wouldn't believe it, unless I saw it." A smooth British voice rang from behind them.
The 2 young women turned around and came face to face with Klaus. "What are you doing here, Klaus?" Caroline crossed her arms in an annoyed fashion.
He smirked at Caroline. "There's gossip all over town about Damon finally having a woman show up claim to have had his child." He looked at Jen up and down. "I'm guessing that would be you?"
"Yes." Jen rolled her eyes. "I am the mother of Damon's child."
"And how old are you, dear?" He arched an eyebrow.
"You don't have to answer, Jen." Caroline put a hand on her shoulder then turned to glare at the hybrid. "Go away, Klaus."
"Now why would I do that, love?" He asked her with a crooked smile. "I just want to get to know the supposed mother of Damon's child."
Caroline glared daggers at the Brit. "Too bad." She said through clenched teeth. Even though Caroline was annoyed, Jennifer could see the chemistry between the 2.
"It's fine, Caroline." Jen assured her and stepped forward. "I'm 21 and my name is Jennifer Pierce." She said with a smile knowing that not only her age, but her name was going to surprise him.
He looked at her surprised. "You wouldn't happen to know your family history, would you?"
"Yes, I am of the Petrova line." She smirked. "And my son is carrying on the bloodline that means oh so much to you, Klaus."
"Well," He chuckled. "You definitely have that Petrova fire, don't you, dear?"
"And proud of it," She stated with a proud smile.
"So how could you possibly have given birth to his child?" His body got dangerously close to hers as he eyed her suspiciously.
"Magic." She looked at him bored, but her heart hammered in her chest. Even though she knew that he could hear it, she refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing it on her face. "Time travel super spell. I'm sure that the concept of magic and ancient powerful spells is easy for you to grasp." She smiled.
Klaus took a deep breath and then smiled. "You're a very brave human. I'm impressed."She simply shrugged in response. "Now why would you be sent to the past?"
"Dunno." She shrugged again. "I was and then six months later I was brought back."
"Hm… Interesting. I guess it'll have to do. Lovely to meet you, Jennifer." He nodded to her and then turned his attention to Caroline. "It was most certainly wonderful to see you again, love." He smirked cockily and Caroline rolled her eyes.
"Whatever…" She mumbled and Klaus walked away. "Argh, he is so annoying!" She gritted her teeth, making Jen laugh.
"Minus the evil that he's done, I find him rather charming." Jen bumped her shoulder. "That British accent is pretty hot."
"No way!" She shook her head vigorously. "He's totally evil!" She stated vehemently.
'Is she trying to convince me or herself?' Jen fought back the urge to laugh again as they walked to Caroline's car and got in.
"Can I ask you a question?" Caroline asked timidly and Jen nodded her consent as Caroline began the drive back to the boarding house. "I have… this friend. She likes a guy, that's like a bad guy. He's not all bad sometimes, but he's done some really bad things."
"You're not talking about Elena, are you?" Jen asked before she continued.
"No." Caroline shook her head quickly. "It's another friend."
"Ok," Jen nodded. "Continue."
"So the guy that my friend likes he's laid off the bad stuff and he started being really sweet to her. He told her that he really likes her, but she's trying not to like him too. She's also afraid of what her friends will think if she starts dating him." Caroline explained in a single breath. "I figured since you dealt or are dealing with the Damon thing you could give me some advice… so I can tell my friend." She added quickly.
Jen smirked. She knew exactly who Caroline's friend was. "Well on the part of her friends, if he treats her well and makes her happy? That's all they should care about. They don't have to like him, they're not gonna date him. What they do have to do is be supportive of her relationship with him and not rub it in her face if it goes wrong." Jen explained and then placed a hand on Caroline's knee. "On the fighting her feelings part? Take it from someone who knows, fighting what you feel for someone only hurts you and the person. When you start seeing the good in someone, after a while it starts push away the bad. The bad is still there, but it doesn't matter as much anymore."
"What do you mean?" Caroline furrowed her eyebrows.
"When I ended up in 1863, Emily came up to me and said these exact words: "Live and love as if you were never returning home, but always be conscious that you are." At first I didn't understand, but after I met Damon, I did. Of course when I first laid eyes on him, I couldn't ignore how handsome he was. Then he started the innuendos and the jokes, which annoyed me, but made me laugh. I noticed how he was when he got angry and didn't like it. I noticed all the negative things first." Jen answered and took a breath before continuing. "Then little by little I started seeing and embracing the good things. Next thing I knew, I had feelings for him. I fought them and that lasted only a month because he finally convinced me into admitting them. One month later, I decided that I loved him." She looked out the window wistfully with a smile on her face.
"You decided?" Caroline's voice brought her back to reality.
"Yes," She nodded. "I believe that although you may find yourself liking someone without noticing, you choose to love them. You choose to accept the good with a bad, even if it's just a friend or something more. You choose whether or not you will accept that person's flaws enough to have them in your life and in your heart."
Caroline parked in the driveway and they sat in silence for a few seconds as Caroline absorbed her words. "That makes a lot of sense." She smiled at Jen. "Thanks for the advice. I'll tell my friend what you said."
Jen opened the car door with a chuckle. "It was my pleasure, Caroline."She stepped out. "Tell your friend she can come to me for advice any time." She winked. The last thing she was before walking away was the shocked look on Caroline's face.
Ok people! This is it! I hope you guys liked it! I really did :P
Once again, I ask that if you guys have any specific memories between Damon and Jen that you'd like to see just PM me.
Please review! Reviews feed my brain ;)
Until next week!
-Major J.