Disclaimer: I only own my OCs
A/N: This is the chapter where we finally earn that M rating... and we get a side bonus of badass Alexa ;)
XXX
It had been a couple of days since my first date with Damon and life couldn't have been any better. Well, except for the fact that Stefan was still with Klaus and we had no idea where he was. Plus, Caroline had been MIA since my birthday party. So there were things that could be improved. When, well, shit, I was still over the moon because of Damon.
So when I rolled over and encountered a warm body, I didn't even think twice about snuggling up to it. My sleep-addled mind just accepted the fact that it was someone that I trusted. So I just threw my arm over the body and rested my head against their chest.
"Rise and shine, sleepy head," an amused voice whispered into my hair. I batted my hand in the air, hitting absolutely nothing until a gentle hand caught mine. Fingers tangled with mine before resting on a soft shirt.
I grumbled, keeping my eyes closed, "I don't remember inviting you over last night."
Damon chuckled, "Do I ever need an invitation?"
I reluctantly opened my eyes and groaned as I stretched, "Ugh, I suppose not. So what brings you into my bed on this fine morning, Mr Salvatore?"
"I know where Stefan is," was the vampire's answer and I shot up. I spun around in my bed so that I was facing my boyfriend who was lounging beside me.
"For real?" I gasped, rolling my eyes as Damon's gaze immediately shot down to my boobs. I had made the mistake of wearing a tank top to bed last night. Which meant that I was probably showing off a bit more than I normally would. Honestly, you wear a tank top and it's immediately like your boobs think they are on Prison Break. "Where is he? And how did you find out?"
"Well, your favourite person in the world called me this morning," my vampire began before I snorted in disgust.
"Ugh, how is she not dead already?" I groaned dramatically, throwing my head back. "Dumb bitch."
Damon chuckled, low and throaty, "You'll be able to kill her one day, baby."
"Yeah, I better," I huffed, before shuffling closer. "Sorry, carry on with what you were saying."
"Katherine has been keeping tabs on Klaus, knowing where he is so that she can be somewhere else," my boyfriend pulled me down so that I was resting on his chest. "Now the hybrid pain in the ass just so happens to be in the good old Windy City."
"Chicago?" I frowned as Damon's fingers snuck beneath my top to stroke my waist. "Huh, didn't expect that."
"There's a particularly powerful witch that lives there," Damon shrugged as his fingers found their way to my thigh. "He's probably gone there for help."
I tried to ignore the way my skin tingled as he stroked dangerously high on my thigh, "It won't be easy getting Stefan away from Klaus. Especially after what he told you back at the mountains."
"Well, if anyone can do it, your sister can."
"That's true, she is annoyingly stubborn," I huffed, rolling my eyes. "Have you told her yet?"
"Nope," he popped the p and I glanced up at his lips. "Figured that stopping by her room at six in the morning would only get me yelled at."
"Say what?" I twisted my head back so that I could look at the clock. "Seriously, Day, six a.m.? Why would you wake me up this early?"
"It's a long drive to Chicago," Damon laughed at my pout. "And we don't want to risk them leaving town before we get there. But I did put the coffee pot on before I came up."
"For real? Ugh, you're the best," I stretched myself up to give him a kiss. "Wanna help me pack before I wake up everyone else?"
"I can think of something else more interesting to do," my vampire purred, flipping me over so that I was on my back. He settled between my legs, holding himself up on his elbows. He stared down at me, a hungry look in his eyes.
"Damon, what are you doing?" I breathed, my heart pounding in my chest. Ever since our first proper kiss on my birthday, we had been dancing around this. It was even stronger after our first date. That desire to take it to the next stage, I wanted it so bad. I had been attracted to Damon for so long.
Instead of answering me, he leant down to give me a kiss. It was a hungry kiss, one that was new. It was fierce, it made my body feel hot, too hot. I had never felt this way from a simple kiss. His tongue licked my lips and I opened them, while tangling my fingers in his hair. He devoured my mouth with his tongue while one of his hands gently stroked one of my nipples. It was such a light pressure that it was driving me crazy. I groaned into his mouth as he pinched it, rolling it between his fingers.
When air became an issue for me, my vampire moved onto my neck. He sucked on that sweet spot under my ear while his fingers trailed down my body. I felt something sharp scrape against my skin and let out a low moan, my eyes fluttering shut
Damon chuckled against my skin, "Well, that was interesting."
"Just shut up and don't stop," I gasped out as his fingers gently stroked my core with the lightest of pressures. I could feel him smirk against my skin as he continued to tease me over my shorts. I gripped onto his arm, feeling his muscles flex with every movement. I could feel the tension building deep inside, my body was just begging for more. "Day, more, please, please."
My vampire chuckled, returning to nibble on my lips as his hand slipped beneath my shorts. I let out a small gasp at the feel of his skin on mine. I knew that Damon was experienced, but the way that his fingers eroded away my control, it was unreal. He slipped two fingers inside me, quickly finding that sweet spot, while his thumb tormented me by rubbing gentle circles on my sensitive nub. I moaned into Damon's mouth, tightening my grip on him, as he brought me to the edge. The tension was coiled in my stomach and I breathed out Damon's name like a prayer.
He kept me on the edge, pulling back to watch my face as he gave me more pleasure than I had ever felt. My mind was blank, utterly consumed by Damon's fingers, by the tension that just kept building and building. I whimpered out his name, begging for that release, for him to stop that teasing.
It didn't take long for Damon to take pity on me, increasing the pressure and the speed of his fingers. After that, it didn't take long for me to cum. My eyes rolled back as my toes curled. The sheer force of my orgasm caught me by surprise, my body shaking slightly at the pleasure that rolled through it. Damon swallowed my moans, his fingers easing me through it.
"Oh my god," I breathed out when Damon finally pulled back. I just laid there, panting as my body trembled. That was just fucking amazing. Why had I waited so long to experience that? I had never felt anything like it. Fuck me, Damon was talented. The dirty part of my brain was whispering naughty suggestions at me. If he was that talented with his fingers, how talented was he with a certain other body part of his…?
"Hmm, I enjoyed that," Damon hummed into my ear before he licked his fingers clean. My gaze was immediately drawn to his lips. They were curled up in a satisfied smirk and I hated how attracted I was to it. "Time for Chicago."
It took a second for the words to sink in, which was more than enough time for Damon to climb off my bed and start to root through my panty draw. Once I realised what was happening, I shoved myself off of the bed. My head spun for a moment and my legs felt like jelly. Like holy shit, I had never come so hard that my body felt like that.
I stumbled over to the vampire, rolling my eyes as I plucked some of my sexier panties from his grasp, throwing them back into the draw. I pulled him back into a kiss, my hand going down to his crotch. But before I could get there, Damon gently pulled my hand away. I let out a small whine of protest. I was a firm believer of returning the favor. After all, equal sex was good sex.
"If you're a good girl, we can have some more fun when we get back from Chicago," my vampire whispered in my ear. The feel of his breath against my sensitive skin had my body shivering. Damn, it was uber unfair as to how attractive he was.
"Deal," I nodded sharply, before striding over to my bedroom door. I threw it open before yelling, "Elena! Stefan's in Chicago! Get your butt into gear!"
XXX
Of course, Jenna wanted to make sure that we would be okay before we left. I left that to Elena to sort out. She was the one who was most desperate to go. After I yelled out Stefan's location, she immediately let out an overload of questions. I directed most of them to Damon, as a way to keep him out of my panty drawer.
I quickly packed an overnight bag before getting ready. I had no idea how long we would be in Chicago, but I did know that it was a long drive there. It was one of the reasons why I had never been, despite my eternal craving for some of their legendary pizza. With Damon driving, I knew that we would get there slightly quicker than normal, but even then, it would take a while.
After covering up the numerous hickeys that Damon had left on my neck, I pranced down the stairs, bag in hand. I dumped it by the door before making my way into the kitchen. Elena was persuading Jenna to let us go to Chicago with Damon. I knew what her worries were. Klaus thought that Elena was dead. If she went to Chicago, then he could discover the truth. Which would be bad for everyone.
But there was no way that Elena was going to let this opportunity go. She had come so close to Stefan while in the Smoky Mountains. Being forced to leave without seeing him killed her. She wouldn't do the same this time. She was going to go to Chicago, even if she had to sneak there. So, as the amazing sister that I was, I piped up with helpful comments.
"We'll have Damon around to keep us save," I shrugged as I poured myself some coffee. Despite the amazing wakeup that I had; I still needed some coffee. Especially if I was going to spend the next god knows how long just sitting in the car. And with Elena in the backseat, because of course I would be calling shotgun, I knew that I wouldn't be getting any entertainment from Damon. Not the entertainment that I wanted, anyway.
"Damon was with you on the mountain, and look what happened," Jenna rolled her eyes while Ric just sighed into his coffee. I did feel slightly guilty about waking them all up. But I knew that Jenna would blow a gasket if we went to Chicago without telling her. Jeremy was the only one who slept through my announcement. But that didn't surprise me. He could be an incredibly deep sleeper when he wanted to be.
"I don't know what you're talking about," I sniffed, avoiding eye contact with my aunt. "We didn't get eaten. So I see that as a win."
"What makes you think that Chicago will be any safer?" Jenna put her hand on her hip, and I silently 'uh oh'd, that meant that she was getting serious. Our arguments had to get good if we had any chance of being allowed to go.
"Because we can hide from Klaus in buildings instead of behind trees?" I knew that my point was weak the moment I said it. But I couldn't think of anything else to say. Luckily, Elena did.
"Jenna, we'll be fine," Ellie pulled out her most deadly weapon, her big brown eyes. She gave our aunt a pleading look, and grabbed her hand. "I need to do this, please. I have to see him and bring him home. Klaus won't see me and Damon will do anything to keep us safe. Especially Alexa."
"Don't drag me into this anymore than I need to be," I rolled my eyes and pouted into my coffee. I knew what my twin was pulling. Damon would do anything to keep me safe. And he would keep Elena safe for me. He wouldn't let anything happen to her because she was my twin.
I felt a familiar presence settle at the counter next to me and glanced to the side. Damon was watching everything was an amused look in his eye. He knew that Elena would win this, he had accepted that she was ridiculously stubborn. But if by some miracle she wasn't able to convince Jenna, I knew that Damon would just go by himself. He had realised that Stefan wasn't beyond saving now. Even after his brother had threatened me. And he felt like he owed it to Stefan to try and bring him home.
"We can take Ric with us if that makes you feel better," I offered as Damon rested his hand on my back. My skin tingled at his touch and I had to stop myself from fidgeting. I could feel the warmth of his hand through the thin fabric of my t-shirt and my mind flashed back to earlier. I had always admired how talented the vampire's hands were, especially when I watched him whittling stakes. But this was something else. He took me apart so easily. And he enjoyed it.
"Jenna, thank you," my sister sighed happily, drawing me from my thoughts. She threw her arms around our aunt and hugged her tightly.
"What did I miss?" I whispered to Damon, not wanting to draw attention to the fact that I spaced out. My vampire smirked, clearly knowing where my thoughts had gone. He could probably smell my arousal with his stupid vampire senses.
"Jenna said that you both could go as long as Elena turned on her tracker app again," he replied quietly while Elena pulled out her phone. "Ric couldn't accompany as he has to start prep for the start of school."
"Oh no, how awful," I snorted softly, enjoying the low chuckle from Damon. As much as I adored Ric, I was kind of glad he wasn't coming. At least with my sister being our only companion, I could get some alone time with my boyfriend. Not that we could do anything naughty, but it was nice to just be around him.
XXX
The journey to Chicago had been surprisingly fun. Damon had made sure to keep me entertained, be that with car games or annoying my sister. It was especially fun when he pulled out one of Stefan's journals.
"I sure hope we find him," Damon remarked loudly, meeting Ellie's eyes in the mirror. "Cos it would suck if the last memento of Stefan was that crappy old necklace."
I rolled my eyes while Elena raised her hand to touch her necklace, "You're terrible. You know that it has sentimental value. Which is very important to people like them."
"What do you mean, 'people like us'?" my sister raised an eyebrow an eyebrow at me.
"Boring people," I shrugged, enjoying the dirty look that she shot me. It was the little things in life. And besides, if she was annoyed with us, then she wasn't worrying over Stefan. It was clever tactic that I had perfected years ago. Distracting my sister by annoying her was something that worked very well.
"You know, you're just as bad as him," Ellie narrowed her eyes at me.
I snorted, "You're just jealous that Damon gives me nice shiny new jewelry."
"It's an antique," my twin crossed her arms. "Just like Damon is."
"Ooh burn," I laughed and Damon gave me a look. It was one that promised retribution, and I just couldn't wait for him to live up to that. "She's got you there, Damon."
He rolled his eyes as he reached back to pull something out of the bag behind his seat. I was curious as to what he was after and watched eagerly as he pulled out an old journal. I recognised it as I had seen several of them in Stefan's room.
"Oh dang, you stole his diary," I sniggered, eagerly taking it from my vampire when he offered it to me.
"Alexa, don't you dare read that," Elena pulled out one of her sternest tones and I glanced back to pout at her.
"Come on, Ellie, it'll be fun," I protested, using my most pitiful voice in an attempt to change her mind.
"Yeah, Elena," Damon repeated in a mocking tone, and I reached out to lightly smack his arm. He was supposed to be winding up my sister, not me. "IT does paint a pretty little picture of Stefan's first experience in Chicago."
But my sister was holding firm, "It's Stefan's dairy. I'm not going to invade his private thoughts."
"Ugh, you're such a goodie goodie," I rolled my eyes as I opened the journal and started flicking through it. I was looking for something juicy to read. Getting inside Stefan's head, especially while he was on one of his downward spirals, would be fascinating.
"You need to be prepared for what you're about to see," Damon's voice turned serious, and I glanced over at him. It was something that he had probably seen several times over the years, and Damon would be the expert on it. My vampire reached out to flick to a specific page, indicating for me to read it.
Behind me, Elena shook her head, "I've seen Stefan in his darkest periods. I can handle it."
From the few words that I had read, I could say that she definitely hadn't seen the darkest periods. Man, Stefan was a mess back in the day. But how much of it did I tell Elena? Did I start with the more gruesome parts or ease her in gently?
Luckily, Damon made the choice for me, "Alexa, read out March 12, 1922."
"Yes boss," I rolled my eyes before clearing my throat. "'I've blacked out for days. I wake up in strangers' blood. In places I don't recognize. With women I don't remember.'" I let out a dramatic gasp, "OMG, Stefan you dog!"
"Stefan's not a virgin?" Damon added, his voice just as shocked as mine. I had to bite my lip to hide the giggle that wanted to slip free. It felt cheeky to be teasing Stefan like this while he was MIA. But I figured that since he made me jump off the clocktower on my birthday, I was owed a little bit of insulting.
"Elena, did you know that?" I spun around to face my sister, a dramatically shocked look on my face. "Did you know that you didn't take his virginity?"
"I hate you," she rolled her eyes as she reached forward to grab the journal from my hands. She flipped it shut before turning to look out the window, her arms crossed. She was such a killjoy at times. But I could understand her worry. She needed to believe that we could bring Stefan home. Otherwise, what did she have to fight for? Looking for Stefan had kept her going over the summer, while she had been recovering from the mental impact of the sacrifice. If she had to let that go, she would need to find something else to focus on. And for the first time in Mystic Falls history, it was disturbingly quiet on the drama front.
"Ugh, you're no fun," I pouted at her before turning back to my boyfriend. "Damon, entertain me."
He laughed, low and rich, shaking his head, "Back to the game. Tell me if you see a Florida plate."
"Seriously, a Florida one?" I rolled my eyes as I started scanning the cars on the highway around us. "I'm already losing badly; can't you give me an easy one?"
Out of the corner of my eye, I could Ellie quietly opening the journal. I knew that she would read it eventually. It was just a case of how long until she let her curiosity get the better of her. Even when he was going through his dark period before, Stefan had been protecting Elena from the worst of it. But in his journal, he would have written down every dirty detail. And that was what Elena needed right now. She needed to know what she was getting herself involved in.
"Don't you want the win to be worth it when you get there?" Damon laughed at me and I gave him a look.
"Uh, no, I'd rather just have the win, even if it's a dirty one," I rolled my eyes at him and immediately regretted my words when he wiggled his eyebrows at me.
Stupid vampire.
XXX
When we finally arrived in Chicago, Damon directed us to an old apartment building. It was in one of the quieter parts of town, and seemed like an old place for Ripper Stefan to have set up shop. I would have pegged him for being right in the action. Of course, it could have been back in the 1920s. The city had probably changed a lot in the past 90 years.
I followed Elena up the stairs, Damon walking next to me. He directed my sister where to go, while his hand drifted down to my butt. I rolled my eyes each time that he did it, but I had to admit that I enjoyed the feel of his hand there. Ugh, I hated myself sometimes. I really needed to get a grip on those hormones.
"Stefan could have lived anywhere in Chicago and he chose this?" Ellie asked, wrinkling her nose at the old smell of the building.
"There used to be an all-girls high school around the corner," Damon answered as he directed us to one of the doors. He had a mischievous edge to his voice. "But it shut down for attendance issues. Weird."
"Hmm, wonder what happened there," I snorted, unable to resist the need to wind up my sister.
"If you're trying to scare me into giving up and going back, it's not going to work," Ellie sighed, rolling her eyes. Damon had been dropping hints like that ever since we arrived in the city. He had been pointing out places where he had found Stefan's victims, where he had seen Stefan being an ass. Just little details like that.
Damon just held a finger to his lips, shushing her, receiving a dirty look in return. He held his head close to the door, clearly listening to see if his brother had taken up residence in the apartment again. He must have heard absolutely nothing as he gripped the handle and used his super strength to break the lock.
He dropped it to the side before pushing open the door, gesturing for us to go in first. I glanced around the room, surprised by how normal the room looked. Not that I knew what I was expecting, but it wasn't something as normal as this. There weren't even any old blood stains.
"Here we are," my vampire declared, walking in behind us and shutting the door. "Stefan's second personality home."
"Ripper Stefan clearly didn't have much taste in the decorating department," I wrinkled my nose as I caught site of the floral bedsheets.
"He was too busy eating the population of Chicago to care," Damon's voice was filled with amusement as he patted my shoulder.
Ellie walked forward, running her fingers across an old sideboard, leaving a line in the dust, "He obviously hasn't been here."
My vampire shook his head at her, "Tour is not over yet."
He led us over to the kitchen, a hand on my back, his gaze fixed on the shelves next to the old refrigerator. I was surprised that Ripper Stefan had invested in a fridge. Maybe it was already here when he bought the place. Or compelled it off of a poor, unsuspecting victim.
Damon removed his hand from my back to run it along the edge of the panel. He was clearly searching for something and he let out a quiet triumphant noise when he found it. With a click, the shelves swing forward, revealing a small room behind them. The vampire reached in and pulled on the light cord that hung from the ceiling. My gaze was immediately drawn to the bottles on the wall. It didn't take an idiot to realise that they were alcohol. Prohibition was the theme of the twenties, and one of the reasons why I hated the decade. I was surprised that Ripper Stefan cared enough to hide his contraband.
I crept inside, itching to reach out and take one of the bottles. But a glance to the side had me freezing for a different reason. Holy fuck.
"Stefan hid his alcohol," Elena scoffed from behind me, still lurking by the entrance. "What a monster."
"Uh, Ellie, you're gonna wanna see this," I called over to her, slowly raising my hand to point to the wall. It was filled with names. The entire wall was littered with names. Giuseppe Salvatore was at the top, and that was what clued me in on what this was. I reached out to trace some of the names there.
Terrilyn Henson.
Catherine Marid.
John Beach.
Dianne Wagner.
Liam Grant.
Ashley Holliday.
I knew that Stefan had a dark past. But I didn't realise that he had killed this many people. He had always been so good, acting as though he was better than this. But his history was just as bloody as Damon's.
"It's a list of names," Ellie said quietly. I glanced to the side to see a wary look on her face, as her eyes scanned the wall. I knew that it would hit her in a second, and I was determined to comfort her when it did.
Damon hummed in agreement, his eyes watching us both. I gave him a small nod, showing him that he didn't have to worry about me. He didn't look convinced, but he didn't try and usher me out of the room either.
Elena gasped and I immediately wrapped my arm around her, "These are all his victims?"
I glanced over at the wall again. There must have been at least a hundred names there. And those were just the ones that Stefan knew. What if there were other places around the country with names like this? How many had Stefan actually killed?
"Still handling it?" Damon asked as he ushered us out of the room, turning off the light behind us. Ellie was still in shock as I led her over to the table. I had no idea as to how she would handle this. It was a tough fact to swallow, to actually see the names of Stefan's victims.
Damon's words must have knocked her out of her mind as she turned to look at him, "What were you doing in the 1920s? paving the way for women's liberation?"
I think we were both shocked at the slightly vicious tone in my sister's voice. Apparently she was handling her shock by lashing out at Damon. Which was not the best way of doing it. Just because Stefan was eating people left, right and center, doesn't mean that she has to take it out on Damon.
My vampire narrowed his eyes at her, "I was around. Chicago's a big city. Stefan was a cocky ripper douche. But I could avoid him and still indulge in a few Daisy Buchanan's of my own."
My sister and I reacted to that in different ways. Elena looked disgusted at his words, clearly still on the warpath. But I was jealous, and hating myself for it. I honestly needed to get a grip on these hormones. I had Damon now, I didn't need to be jealous of his previous girls. Especially the ones that he ate. Ugh, I was stupid at times.
Damon looked eyes with me and I gave him a nod, showing him that my words hadn't affected me at all. I needed him to know that I wouldn't judge him for his past. We all had one. I had done things that I weren't proud of. I just wanted Damon to trust me with his, even if it was ugly and unpleasant.
My vampire nodded back before heading to the door. Elena frowned and stepped forward, "Where are you going?"
"His old stomping ground," Damon answered, pausing momentarily to look over his shoulder at us.
My sister immediately shook her head, "I'm coming with you."
"No, you stay here and whip up an actual plan," my vampire disagreed and I wrapped an arm around my sister to stop her from doing something stupid. "I'll come back when I find him."
With that said, he left the apartment. Ellie had an unimpressed look on her face and I sighed. Great, now I was left with a grumpy twin.
Yippee for me.
XXX
Once Elena had finished grumbling, I dragged her over to the small couch that sat under the window. It was the least dusty seating area in the room, which was much appreciated. The last thing that I needed was to be sneezing away while I was trying to check in on my sister.
"Hey Ellie, how's it going?" I asked her softly, brushing her hair over her shoulder. Her face was tight with stress and I couldn't help but sigh. Maybe it was a mistake bringing her to Chicago. Maybe I should have left her at home and brought Stefan to her.
"I just…" she shook her head. "Stefan had never really told me about that part of his life. I knew that it was bad and that he had done things that he regretted. But to see all of those names…"
She trailed off and I sighed, wrapping my arm around her and pulling her closer, "It just makes it more real."
"How do you do it?" Ellie asked quietly and I prompted her to explain. "How do you deal with Damon's dark past?"
I paused, considering my words carefully before starting slowly, "We all have a past. And sometimes we have things that we are ashamed of it that past. There's nothing that we can do to change it. And sometimes, we were different people when we did those things, which feels even more true when it comes to vampires and how long they live. So I just focus on actions now. It's what you do and who you are now that is important."
"But you know what Damon's done," Ellie frowned and I sighed.
"And now you know what Stefan's done," I countered softly, resting my head against the top of hers. "Well, some of it anyway. Damon tells me what he's done in the past, and he owns it. He doesn't make excuses for it. And I respect that."
My twin was quiet for a moment, thinking over what I had said. Every word was the truth. Damon and I had spoken several times about his past. I didn't know everything; he had lived a long life so it would be unrealistic to expect to know everything already. But I didn't judge him for what he told me.
"What's going on between you and Damon, anyway?" Ellie's words surprised me and I glanced down at her. I was tempted to pretend that there was nothing going on. That it was all normal. But I really wanted my sister to know that I finally had my man. As much as I liked having that secret, having Damon all to myself, I wanted to share it with my sister.
"Well, I guess that one could say that the relationship has changed between us," I coughed out awkwardly, looking anywhere but my sister.
"Oh my god," she breathed sitting up so that she could face me properly. "Alexa, are you two dating?"
"Yeah, I guess we are," I tried to stop myself from smiling, but from the look on my sister's face, I was failing miserably.
"Since when? Why didn't you tell me?"
"It hasn't been that long," I protested weakly, shrugging my shoulders. "Just since our birthday. And I was going to tell you, it's just… it felt so new and exciting… I just wanted to keep it to myself for a while."
"Oh Lexa, I'm so happy for you," my twin smiled softly as she pulled me into a hug. "I know that you've been waiting for this for a while."
"It's definitely been worth the wait," I smiled into her shoulder before pulling back. "So tell me, who wins the bet? Cos I need to know who I can get something from."
"That would be Caroline," Elena rolled her eyes but I could see the smile teasing her lips. "She was adamant that something would happen then. Of course, she thought that you would drunkenly admit your feelings for him. But I'm guessing that it didn't happen like that?"
"Well, not exactly," I tried to avoid the question before sighing. "It happened after the clock tower. I realised that denying myself was stupid and I just went for it. So Stefan kinda played matchmaker which is kinda hilarious."
Ellie looked sad for a moment before she shook her head. I felt bad at bringing up the name of her boy, but I knew that I couldn't avoid his name forever.
"So when do you think you'll start telling people?" my sister asked, running a hand through her hair.
"Well, I kinda wanna tell Caroline first, and get her blessing," I shrugged, reaching out to start putting small plaits into my twin's hair. "Since she's his ex and I wanna follow the girl code rules. After her, I guess it's just a free for all."
"Caroline will be fine with it," my sister assured me softly, giving me a smile while she let me have my fun with her hair. "But Alexa, just promise me one thing."
"What's that?" I asked, glancing up at her before concentrating on the complicated plait that I was working on.
"That you'll tell people in a sensible way," Elena had a weary look on her face that wasn't completely unjustified. She knew me well enough that I would get creative with this. As I tended to do when it came to big announcements. I wasn't good at revealing things naturally. It just felt awkward.
"Well damn, there goes my plan to announce it by snogging him in the Grill," I rolled my eyes cheekily, laughing when my sister reached out to swat my shoulder. "I'll do it sensibly, Ellie, I promise. I won't tell Jenna by revealing Damon in my bed."
"You're terrible," Ellie laughed and I felt accomplished. Making my sister laugh after finding Stefan's dirty little den was definitely an achievement. And I just loved the sound of her laughing. It wasn't a sound that I had heard often over the summer. Hopefully I would keep hearing it, no matter how this trip went.
XXX
It didn't take long for Elena to dig out Stefan's journal again. I knew that she was curious about this time in Stefan's life. I had to admit that I was too. The younger vampire had always been very tight about his past. Ellie only got more because she was his girlfriend. So I was going to jump at any opportunity to learn more.
She flicked back to the early twenties and read on from there. I rested my head against her shoulder, my eyes scanning the words on the page.
'April, 1922.
Lexi found me last night. Dragged me off the train tracks. Thinks she can make me care again.'
Well, shit, that was one thing that we would have needed. Lexi was apparently a pro at getting Stefan to sober up from his human blood binges. Did we have a chance to do this without her? I knew that Damon was capable, but did he have the patience? I don't think that locking him in the basement cell would work as well this time.
Ellie flicked the page, an unhappy look on her face. I could see why. Her thoughts were definitely reflecting mine. And my heart went out to her.
'June, 1924.
Lexi's driving me crazy. More animal blood, more misery.'
My twin flicked the page again before I could read anymore. But a nasty thought was beginning to form. How long would it take to fix Stefan from this? Last time it took like a week, and he hadn't killed anyone that time. He had just binged on blood bags and munched on poor Amber. This time would be much worse. I had seen the number of victims that Elena and Damon had discovered.
'1935.
Cravings are there, but it's easier. Lexi's on to her next project: getting me to laugh.'
13 years. It took 13 years for the cravings to get easier. And he hadn't laughed in that time. That was a long time for things to be difficult for him. Elena would be in her thirties by that point. Difficult questions would have to be asked. But maybe not just yet. Let's get Stefan home and then we can see what the future would look like.
The sound of footsteps had my sister jolting. I stayed calm, hoping that it was just some of the other people who lived in the building. Because there had to be other people living here, right? But the voice that we heard next had me freezing. My blood ran cold as I heard the dulcet tones of one Klaus the Douchebag.
I spun around to look at my sister, my eyes wide. She sat there, looking pale as she heard Stefan's voice answer whatever it was that Klaus said. Realizing that she had frozen in place, I grabbed her hand and dragged her up from her seat. I left the bag to the side, making a note to grab it after. I dragged my sister towards the little room that Damon had showed us earlier.
My hands shook as I searched the button that opened it. I cursed in my head as I heard the footsteps getting closer. Come on, Alexa, open the fucking door. I breathed out in relief as the door finally opened. I grabbed my sister and shoved her inside. I went to close the door, only for my sister to grab my wrist.
"What about you?" she mouthed; her expression frantic as the footsteps paused.
"I'll be under the bed," I mouthed back, before shaking lose her grip and shutting the door. My heart was pounding in my chest as I ran back over to our bags. I was doing my hardest to keep my footsteps quiet. I couldn't give the game away. I grabbed the bags before rolling under the bed with them. It was incredibly dusty under there, and I had to hold my breath to stop myself from sneezing.
I held my bag to my chest as the door was kicked open. I jumped in surprise as the door banged off of the wall. It was the footsteps that followed that made me close my eyes.
"What a charming little homestead," Klaus remarked sarcastically and I felt my body burn with anger. It was the first time that I had heard him since the sacrifice. Since he killed my sister. It was only because Ellie was here with me, that I kept control of my anger. Otherwise I would be out there, trying to kill him for what he did. But I couldn't put my sister at risk. "Do you feel that? Is anybody here?"
My heart froze in my chest at those words. Oh god, please don't find us. I prayed to every deity in the sky that he wouldn't find my sister. I even got myself ready to act as a distraction if he went looking for her. I would give my life for her if I needed to.
"It's been vacant for decades," Stefan countered, sounding bored. At least we knew that he was okay. He wouldn't be sassing Klaus like that if he wasn't. "People must break in all the time. Why'd you bring me here?"
"Your friend, Liam Grant, the one who drank his wife's blood, I could never figure out why you wanted his name," the hybrid dick sounded quite smug, like he was imparting this amazing secret. "And then you told me about your little secret. It was all part of your special little ritual."
Drank his wife's blood? That's disgusting. Why would he do that? Was Stefan involved in that? Was Ripper Stefan that much of a douche? Ugh, why am I thinking so much about this? Oh yeah, to stop myself from freaking out about the hybrid in the room.
"To write it down," Stefan breathed out, realization clear in his tone.
"And relive the kill, over and over again," Klaus finished off, sounding proud. Whether it was because he knew the ritual or because he was proud of his ripper protégé, I didn't know. And I kinda didn't want to.
The sound of footsteps again had my heart thudding in my chest, despite me telling my body to calm the fuck down. But it was the sound of the secret door swinging open that had my heart freezing. Oh god, they've found Elena. I was just getting ready to roll out from under the bed and confront them, when Klaus spoke again.
"You believe me now?" he asked. He didn't sound like he had just discovered that the doppelganger was still alive. So hopefully he hadn't gone inside the room, just pointed at it, like he was some great discovered and had found something amazing. Like the dick he was.
While something was happening down by the secret room, footsteps came back in my direction. I glanced to the side to see a pair of boots. I knew that they weren't Stefan's, which meant that they could only be Klaus'…
I watched with wide eyes, holding my breath, as he approached the bed. My heart squeezed in my chest as he sat down. Every creak of the bed had my heart squeezing further. He was so close to me. And I was so fucking terrified. Despite my bravado, Klaus scared me shitless. And I really didn't want him to find me.
"Look what I found," Stefan's voice rang out across the room and I near enough died. He was giving up my sister. He was giving her to Klaus. Oh fuck, what do I do? What do I do?!
Klaus stood up and I desperately tried to make my body move. To make him stop, to drag him away from my twin. But I just couldn't do it. My fear was warring with my desire to save my sister. Just move, Alexa, just move.
There was a clink, sounding like glass knocking against glass, and Stefan's voice rang out again, "1918. Single malt."
It took me a moment to realise what was happening. Stefan wasn't giving up Elena. He was showing Klaus booze. Oh my god, I was going to kill him next time I saw him. He was so fucking dead for scaring me like that.
"My favourite," Klaus sounded like he was smiling and I was itching to smack it off his face. Now that I wasn't terrified for my sister's life, I was able to be angry again. "Let's go and find someone to pair it with."
It wasn't until the door closed behind them that I was finally able to breathe again.
XXX
Once I was sure that the coast was clear, I wiggled out from under the bed and raced over to the hidden room. Despite knowing and hearing that Stefan had kept Elena's existence a secret, I just couldn't believe it until I saw her. My hand shook as I frantically opened the door. The moment I saw my sister's face, I pulled her forward into a hug.
Ellie was trembling slightly, gripping me tight as she buried her face in my shoulder. I rubbed her back as the tension in my body finally eased. Ellie was really safe. Stefan didn't give her up. I stroked her hair before moving her over to the table. I settled her down on a seat, before wrapping my arm around her shoulders and pulling her close again. Ellie wrapped her arms around my waist, resting her head against me.
I pulled my phone out of my back pocket, and scrolled through my contacts for a certain name. The moment I found Damon's name, I pressed call. I ran my fingers through my twin's hair, while I waited for him to pick up.
"Alexa, what happened?" Damon answered almost immediately, a worried tone to his voice. Just the sound of it had me relaxing. It was insane how he made me feel that everything was going to be okay. But I loved it. It was just what I needed and I was not going to give that up.
"Everyone's favourite dick just made an appearance, with your baby bro in tow," I sighed, reminding myself that everything was fine as my heart tried to run away again. "They didn't find us, although Stefan did see Elena. Where are you?"
"Nearby," my boyfriend answered, worry hidden in his tone. "Are you alright?"
"Uh, a bit shaken up, not gonna lie," I pulled my sister closer. "You managed to track down any answers yet?"
"Almost, I'll be back soon," it was only because I knew the vampire so well that I could hear the reluctance in his voice. I could tell that he wanted to come back now, but he would then just have to leave again to get the answers that we needed.
"Okay, Day, just… be safe, year?"
"You too."
I sighed as I hung up. I really wanted to beg him to come back, but I didn't want to make it anymore difficult for him than it already was. So I tucked my phone back into my pocket and focused back on my sister. Her grip on me was tight and I knew that seeing Stefan had shaken her. Despite it being something that she had desired for so long, it wasn't something that she was preparing for.
"Hey, Ellie, how you doing?" I asked softly, running my hand through her hair.
"I saw him, Lexa," my twin mumbled into my stomach. "He was right there. I could have reached out and touched him. I just… I can't believe it. It's been so long since I saw him, and it felt like nothing had changed."
"He protected you from Klaus again," I agreed with a sigh. "How did he look? Were there heart eyes being exchanged?"
"Alexa," I could tell that my sister was rolling her eyes at me. "Be serious."
"But Ellie," I tugged gently on her hair. "If I'm serious too, then what will we do? Neither of us will be laughing. Or seeing the bright side."
"And what's that?"
"That Stefan is alive and well. And isn't obeying Klaus' every word. He kept you hidden, so we have a chance to bring him home."
"I didn't really think of that," Ellie admitted softly, biting her lip before pulling back to look at me. "You really think that we can?"
"I mean, it kinda has to be his choice, unless you're able to go stabbing him with vervain again," I shrugged as I settled down onto a chair next to her. "But yeah, I think we can do it."
A determined look formed on my sister's face, "Pass me that bag. Ric gave me some vervain darts before we left. I can use one of those if he doesn't want to come."
I shook my head, "I hope Stefan hasn't forgotten how stubborn you are. Otherwise you might be forced to use one of those."
Elena rolled her eyes at me as she dug through her bag, "You know, I'm not as stubborn as you make me out to be."
I snorted, "Ellie, you are like the definition of stubborn. Especially if you are told that you're not allowed to do something. Then you're stubborn on steroids."
"I seem to remember that benefitting you several times," my sister shot me a wry smile.
I shook my head and laughed, "Well yeah, I'm to take advantage of it if I can. I ain't stupid."
"Previous experience does speak otherwise, my hot-headed sister."
"Just because I don't always think before I do," I protested before pouting. "You do that too, you know. In fact, it's gotten even worse since a certain Salvatore brother came into our loves."
I wiggled my eyebrows at my twin, enjoying the dirty look that she gave me, "You're just as bad with Damon."
"Yeah, but I have the training to back up my recklessness. And I don't sass back unless I know that I have backup."
Elena laughed loudly, "Alexa, you tried to fight Klaus without knowing that you had vampire backup on the way. He kicked your ass."
I grumbled petulantly. I hated the fact that I got my ass kicked in that fight. The only good thing was that Ric didn't die because of it.
"Those were extenuating circumstances," I crossed my arms. "And I nearly had him."
"Jenna describes it differently," Ellie raised an eyebrow at me and I stuck my tongue out at her.
"It doesn't matter because I've had more training since them," I snorted, picking at my nails. "I'm more badass now."
"Your training going well then?" Ellie looked genuinely interested and I shrugged.
"Yeah, it is. It's fun too. Damon makes it interesting," I couldn't help but blush at the knowing look that my sister shot me.
"I bet he does."
"Oh shush."
XXX
To keep her mind occupied, Elena went through the contents of her bag. She checked the vervain darts and the stakes that Ric had given her. I just watched her, content to keep my sister in my sight. We stayed that way, waiting for Damon to come back. I knew that Ellie was getting impatient with how long that it was taking. She wanted him to get back so that she could go after Stefan. But I knew that we needed the answers that Damon was searching for.
It wasn't until we heard footsteps outside that we moved. My sister grabbed my arm and dragged me to the side. She waited by the entrance to the kitchen, a vervain dart clutched tightly in her hand. I stood behind her, a stake in my hand. I wasn't too happy with my position, but I knew that Ellie wouldn't let me go in front of her.
The door creaked open and Ellie let out a sigh of relief, "Finally! Alexa called you an hour ago!"
Well, it definitely was Klaus returning. So I tucked the stake into my back pocket and made my appearance. Uncaring of my sister's presence, I walked forward and wrapped my vampire in a hug.
"Find what you needed?" I mumbled into Damon's chest as he wrapped an arm around me. With the other, he threw a bag onto the bed. He hummed into my hair, his hand gently stroking my hip. Now that he was here, I felt so much more relaxed. He just made everything feel better.
"Make yourself presentable," my vampire called over to my sister, pointing at the bag that he had brought with him. "I know where Stefan's going to be tonight."
With that said, he walked over to the sofa, taking me with him. He sat down and I immediately curled into his side. Despite pretending otherwise, Klaus' arrival had really shaken me. It proved that he still scared the shit out of me. Which was really annoying as how as I supposed to kill him if he scared the living daylights out of me?
"Alexa told you that we were practically discovered by Klaus and you're worried about what I'm wearing?" Ellie sound incredulous and I knew that if she kept pushing, there would be an argument. And I just didn't have the energy to deal with that.
Damon's body was tense as he replied flippantly, "I had an hour to realize what a bad idea it was to leave the two of you here alone, process it, and move on." His grip on me tightened slightly as he asked, "Are you okay?"
Luckily, Elena accepted the peace offering, "Yeah, I'm fine. It's just… seeing Stefan was a shock."
"Okay, good," my vampire nodded before glancing down at me. "Alexa?"
"You know me, I'm always fine," I gave him a strained smile and he took the hint. He would check in on me later, when I didn't have to worry about being strong for my twin. It was something that he didn't particularly like. He thought that I shouldn't have to be strong to protect Elena from my feelings. But it was something that I had been doing for so long, that it would take a bit of time to break the habit.
He gave me an unimpressed look before glancing over at my sister, "Get dressed. You're all road-trippy and gross. You need to be able to persuade Stefan to do what you want."
The sound of her boyfriend's name got Ellie moving. She went to grab the bag before turning to head in the direction of the bathroom. It wasn't until she reached the doorway that she paused and turned around, "You know where he's going to be, right?"
"Yes, with Klaus," Damon spat the hybrid's name out through gritted teeth. "So I'll distract Klaus and you and Elena deal with Stefan."
"Stefan won't listen if I'm there," I spoke up, shaking my head. "He needs to have all his focus on Elena for this to work. He'll just be distracted if I'm there. I'll distract Klaus with you."
"Alexa, no that's too dangerous," my sister protested before my boyfriend could.
I sighed and rolled my eyes, "I'll be fine. He'll be too focused on dealing with the bigger threat, which just so happens to be Damon. Which means that I might be able to get a lucky shot in."
Damon gave me a look saying that he would argue with me once Elena was out the room, "Either way, Elena, you're only going to have about five minutes tops before that hybrid freak rips my heart out. So please, tell me that you can do this."
Ellie nodded sharply, a determined look on her face, "I can do this."
With that said, she turned on her heel and disappeared into the bathroom. The moment my sister was gone, Damon swung me around so that I was sat on his lap, facing him. He had a grumpy look on his face as he stared me down, "Ally, you can't go in there. It's too dangerous."
"I'll be fine," I reached out to cup his face. "I'll stay out of the way as much as possible. I just… I need to be able to watch your back, Day. I can't let you face him alone."
"I don't want you to get hurt," Damon admitted softly, and the look on his face had me leaning forward. I rested my forehead against his.
"I promise, I won't get hurt," I whispered as my vampire pulled my body closer. "Let me help you."
Damon looked me in the eye, searching for something. I showed how genuine I was in my desire to help him, my need to help him. He must have found something as he sighed before nodding, "Fine, but you do as I say. If I tell you to run, then you run."
"I promise," I smiled gently before leaning in for a kiss. Damon tangled his hand in my hair as he eagerly returned it.
XXX
I lurked by the side of the building while Damon lured his brother outside. Night had fallen and I shivered slightly in the cool night air. It was mostly due to the tension in the air. This was our one chance. I honestly didn't know if we would get another opportunity to bring Stefan home if this one failed.
Ellie waited in the carpark, ready to confront her boyfriend. She was wearing the dress that Damon had picked out, and I had to say, he had good taste. He knew what suited my sister and what Stefan would like.
I had wanted to wait with her, to make sure that she was okay. But I knew that she had to be alone when Stefan arrived to speak with her. So I just gave her a thumbs up, and prayed that she would be okay.
Movement caught my eye and I glanced to the side to see Damon walking out of the club. Now that he was here, it was only a matter of time before Stefan made his grand entrance. And what an entrance it was. He appeared in a flash, pushing my vampire against a nearby car. He held Damon by the collar, growling at him. I took a step forward but Damon held out his hand, letting me know that it was okay. Stefan wouldn't hurt his brother, even if he was pissed off to be seeing him.
"What is wrong with you?!" the younger vampire spat, sounding truly angry. I wanted to speak up, but I knew that Damon had the situation handled. And, not gonna lie, I had never seen Stefan this angry. It was kind of unnerving. Stefan was never angry. Yeah he got all growly, but he never acted showed his anger. Not that I had seen anyway.
"What is wrong with you?" Damon retorted, shoving Stefan off of him. The younger vampire let him go easily, clearly not putting in any effort to keep Damon pinned down. My vampire straightened out his shirt before rolling his eyes. "You threaten Alexa one day; you save my life the next. What are you, good, bad? Pick one!"
"Klaus almost saw Elena today," you could hear the fear buried in Stefan's voice, hiding underneath the anger. Clearly he still cared for her. Which was good, because if he still loved her, then he would come home for her. We hadn't lost the younger vampire yet. "And I know that Alexa was there too. You have to get them out of Chicago, Damon."
Well, at least he included me in that. Stefan had always had a tiny problem of forgetting to include me when it came to rescuing. Of course, that was probably because Damon normally took charge of looking after me. But still, it was nice to be included.
My vampire rolled his eyes again, "You think that I haven't tried? Your girlfriend is as stubborn as they come. And Alexa won't abandon her sister. Neither of them are going anywhere until they have you checked into vampire rehab and on the mend. Trust me on that."
Stefan growled again, throwing his arms up in the air, "Elena is the key to everything. Klaus can't know that she's alive."
Oh hello deep feeling of unease. Haven't felt you in a while. I knew that this would be bad. I had hoped that Klaus would leave Elena alone now that he was a hybrid. There was no need for him to chase after her again. But since the universe apparently hated me, I should have known that it wouldn't be that easy.
"What are you talking about?" Damon asked, sounding as uneasy as I felt. He glanced over at me before looking back at his brother. His eyes were as comforting as they could be. He knew the effect that Stefan's words would have had on me.
"She was supposed to die in the sacrifice and she didn't," the younger vampire explained angrily. "Now Klaus can't create any new hybrids. His witch is seconds away from figuring that out. Tell Elena to go home and forget about me. Drag her out of town in you need to."
My vampire stared at his brother, a considering look on his face. It was a tempting idea. Elena was in more danger than I thought. If he couldn't create hybrids because my sister was still breathing, then he would do anything to make that change. But how could I get my sister to leave now? She was so close to Stefan; she wouldn't give up now. There was nothing on this planet that would make her leave without Stefan.
Eventually, Damon just sighed and glanced to the side, "Tell her yourself."
The moment Stefan saw my sister, he froze. It was kind of cute really. You could see the longing warring with frustration on his face. All he wanted was for my sister to be safe. But he had to realise that as long as thought she could bring him home, Elena wouldn't give up. She would keep fighting and chasing. No matter when he went, or how close Klaus was, Ellie would be right there.
I was so focused on the reunion in front of me, that I didn't notice my vampire standing next to me until he placed a hand on my shoulder. I glanced to the side to see him watching me with soft eyes. We knew that this was our only chance, we just had to hope that Elena would make the best of it.
"You ready to do this?" Damon asked quietly, while Stefan slowly walked over to my twin. Ellie never took her eyes off of her vampire, even as her breath hitched.
I took a deep breath before nodding, "As ready as I'll ever be."
Damon nodded before passing me a vervain dart to stick in my back pocket. His eyes scanned my face before he wrapped an arm around my shoulders and directed me into the bar behind us.
XXX
I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as I got closer to the hybrid. Klaus was sat at the bar, his back to us. I gripped onto Damon's hand, using his strength to fuel my own. My vampire glanced down at me with worried eyes, but I just nodded. I needed to do this, I needed to confront Klaus, just to prove to myself that I could.
Damon took a seat next to the hybrid dick, easing me up onto the stool next to him. I glanced around my vampire to look at Klaus. He hadn't changed. Not that I expected him to. But it just felt like he should have. He was still the same kinda cute blonde with adorable dimples. And I just wanted to smash that face in with a hammer.
"Last call," the bartender, an older black lady that just screamed powerful, called out from further down the bar. "Drink 'em up!"
Klaus swirled the glass in his hand, his blue eyes staring down into the amber liquid as he casually remarked, "I see they've opened the doors to the riff-raff now."
Damon snorted, sounding completely unphased, "Oh honey, I've been called worse."
I kept quiet, letting my vampire handle this. It was what we had agreed earlier. And if it wasn't, my fight or flight response wanted me to get the fuck out of there. Despite my desire to confront the hybrid douche, I was still scared of him.
Klaus glanced over, catching sight of me hiding behind Damon. I lasted barely a second under his gaze before my vampire moved so that he was blocking the view. I could see the tension in his body, even as he gave the hybrid a lazy smirk.
"You don't give up, do you?" Klaus remarked casually, sounding like our very presence was bothering him. I mean, it probably was. And I kinda liked that it was. Because if anyone decided to be bothered it was the asshole in front of us.
"Give me my brother back," Damon smirked, a hard edge to his voice. "And you'll never to see me again."
"And what about the lovely lady behind you?" Klaus retorted and I held my breath. "Surely she's here to get revenge for her delicious twin sister."
"You won't see her again either," my vampire nudged me further behind him, so that I was completely hidden. "Give us Stefan and we'll be gone forever."
"Well, I am torn," despite the jovial tone, there was a dangerous edge to Klaus' voice. "You see, I promised Stefan that I wouldn't let you die, but how many freebies did I really sign up for? And clearly you want to die, otherwise you wouldn't be here, so…"
"What can I say?" Damon shrugged, a snarky edge to his voice. I clutched at the back of his shirt, desperately wishing that I had let Damon talk me out of accompanying him. "I'm a thrill-seeker."
And then, in a move that I probably should have expected, and yet didn't, Klaus grabbed Damon by the throat and threw him across the room. My vampire landed heavily on a table, it collapsing under the sudden increase of weight.
I let out a cry of protest as I scrambled off of my seat, desperate to go check on my vampire. But before I could get more than a step, a strong hand caught my arm. I was spun around and came face to face with Klaus.
"Alexa, lovely to see you again," he smirked down at me, as I tugged desperately on the arm that he had captive.
"Go fuck yourself," I snarled, my fight response finally kicking in. I focused on everything that he had done to hurt the people that I cared about and fought back. I grabbed the vervain dart that I had been given earlier, and jabbed it forward. Of course, it did absolutely nothing. Klaus caught my hand before it could get anywhere near him.
The hybrid tutted, sounding like he was actually disappointed in what I did, "Now, that wasn't very clever, was it?"
He twisted my wrist until I was forced to drop the dart. I let out a groan as my wrist throbbed from the tight grip and narrowed my eyes.
"Let go of me," I ground out, refusing to let him see how much his grip was hurting me. Klaus went to answer, with something that was probably ridiculously snarky, but he glanced at something behind me. Before I could realise what was happening, he threw me to the side.
I landed heavily; my wrist trapped underneath me. I let out a low groan before pushing myself up. My wrist throbbed but I ignored it for the sight in front of me.
Klaus had Damon by the throat again. He had him lifted off of the floor, with a little cocktail stick in the other hand. He had a look of exaggerated concentration on his face as Damon let out a loud moan.
"Oh, dear, what was that?" the hybrid dick asked, holding the cocktail umbrella in the air. "I'm a bit boozy, so you'll have to forgive me if I miss your heart the first few tries."
He stabbed my vampire in the stomach, the pink of the umbrella looking ridiculous against the black of the vampire's shirt. Damon let out a grunt of pain and I made a noise of protest. My vampire looked at me, his eyes begging me to leave.
"Oh!" the dick sounded disappointed with his miss. "No, that's not it. Hmm."
He aimed and deliberately missed again, stabbing Damon high on his chest this time. I narrowed my eyes and shoved myself to my feet. Klaus had his back to me, which was fortunate as one of the legs from the broken table had rolled in my direction. I grabbed it and arched forward.
"Almost," Klaus smirked, looking like he was enjoying himself immensely. He held up the cocktail stick again, looking for the next area for him to stab Damon.
My vampire must have guessed what I was up to, as he snarked out weakly, "You want a partner in crime? Forget Stefan. I'm so much more fun."
Klaus snarled and I made my move. I held the table leg high in the air before bringing it down. I was hoping so much that this would work. But the gods really hated me tonight. I was so close to taking him out when the worst happened.
Klaus threw Damon to the side before spinning around. He grabbed he table leg and ripped it from my grasp. I let out a squeak of surprise before I was suddenly in pain. It took me a moment to realise what had happened. Klaus had backhanded me. The little bitch actually had the audacity to hit me.
I landed back on the ground, this time clutching my face. It was burning from the pain and I had to blink back tears. My cheek throbbed and I glared at the hybrid as he approached Damon. He stood in front of my boyfriend; table leg raised. I knew that he would have absolutely no hesitation in killing him.
So I decided to live up my reputation and did the most reckless thing that I could think of. I scrambled to my feet and threw myself forward so that I was standing between Klaus and Damon. I held the cocktail umbrella behind my back as I held out a hand.
"Stop it!" I yelled desperately, ignoring Damon's mutterings behind me. "You killed my sister; I will not let you kill my boyfriend!"
Klaus paused at that and it gave an unexpected savior enough time to intervene. The table leg burst into flame and I let out a shout of surprise. I staggered back, with Damon being the only thing from stopping from falling over. The hybrid grunted and threw the flaming leg away.
"Really?" he growled, glancing to the side. I followed his gaze to see the bartender standing there, an arm outstretched and an unimpressed look on her face.
"Not in my bar," she retorted, crossing her arms. "You take it outside."
The hybrid narrowed his eyes at her before returning his gaze to Damon, "You don't have to negotiate your brother's freedom. When I'm done with him, he won't want to go back."
That was the final straw in a long night. Not only had he threatened Damon, he had repeatedly stabbed him and backhanded me. He needed to pay for that, and this was my best opportunity. I darted forward and stabbed the cocktail umbrella deep into Klaus' neck. His hand shot up in surprise to clutch his neck while he looked at me with wide eyes.
I ignored the impressed look in those blue depths as I spat out, "Suck on that, asshole."
With that said, Damon finally made his move to get us the hell out of dodge. He wrapped an arm around my waist and sped us from the bar. But I didn't care. I felt elated that I had conquered my fear of him. That I had made him hurt, like he had hurt me and my loved ones so many times.
XXX
Once we were safely outside the bar, Damon pulled me to the side. He had a worried look in his eye as he reached out to gently cup my cheek. I winced at the light pressure before reaching up to grab his wrist.
"I should kill him," my vampire murmured, pulling me close and tucking my head under his chin. I rested my good cheek against his chest while gripping the back of his shirt. I knew that I should go check on my sister, make sure that she was okay and that she had Stefan with her. But I needed this. I needed the comfort that Damon was providing. And it wasn't just because I had just confronted Klaus again. And had my ass handed to me, again. He had hurt Damon, and I had been powerless to stop it.
"I'm fine, Day," I whispered, closing my eyes and allowing his familiar scent to engulf me. It was exactly what I needed to calm down, to ease the tension in my body. "I just wanna go home."
My boyfriend agreed with a quiet hum before stepping back. He gently gripped my chin with his fingers before tilting my head up. He carefully cupped my face before leaning down for a kiss. I immediately wrapped my arms around his neck to pull him closer.
Damon kissed me carefully, his lips gently moving mine, holding me like I was fragile. While I adored the passionate kisses, I found that I loved this just as much. It was sweet and tender and it warmed my heart. It made me feel safe and loved and there was just something adorable about Damon Salvatore being so careful.
When he pulled away, I tried to bring him closer again, but Damon just tucked me under his arm. I pouted but wrapped my arms around his waist, keeping as close as possible to his body. The vampire directed me towards his car, "Let's get Elena and go home."
"What about Stefan?" I asked, glancing up.
Damon's eyes were sad when he looked down at me, and I realised, Stefan wasn't coming with us. He had chosen to stay with Klaus. Oh god, this was going to break Elena. She had been fighting for him all summer. And now that she finally had him in front of her, he didn't want to come home. I hoped, I prayed, that it was because he was protecting her. That he was staying with Klaus to stop him from going after my sister. But I feared that it was the blood. Now he had given himself over to it, he didn't want to come home.
Damon's car was parked under a streetlight, and it was only because of that that I saw my twin sister curled up on the backseat. She was gripping her necklace with one hand while the other covered her face. I exchanged a sad look with Damon before climbing in the back seat. I barely had time to close the door before I had an armful of Ellie.
She wrapped her arms around me tightly, burying her face in my neck. I could feel the dampness of her skin and just knew that she had been crying. I silently cursed Stefan in my head as I ran my fingers through her hair.
"You okay, Ellie?" I asked quietly, while Damon started the car. After everything that had happened, I was more than ready to get the hell out of this city. I was even more ready to get my sitter out of this city. After her close encounter with Klaus, and her apparent abandonment by her boyfriend, Elena had been through enough.
My twin shook her head, and echoed the words that I had said earlier, "I just wanna go home."
"I know," I sighed, brushing her hair from her face. "We're on our way, now, I promise. Damon will get us there."
I glanced up to see my vampire watching us in the mirror. I twitched my lips in a mockery of a smile before focusing my attention back onto my sister. She had been so full of hope, and now all of that was gone. She had to face the fact that her boyfriend had left her. After everything that they had been through, Stefan had pulled the plug on their relationship.
"You wanna talk about it?" I offered quietly, unwilling to break the uncomfortable silence but needing my sister to know that I was there to support her. Ellie often had trouble leaning on people for support. And most of the time, I had to force her into it.
Elena shook her head, "I just want to forget all about it."
I sighed but let it go for now, "I'm here if you want to."
I waited until my sister nodded before pulling her closer. I rested my good cheek against the top of her head while I gently stroked her hair. It was something that had always soothed her, and she needed it now, more than ever.
"Did you want me to stop off somewhere for the night?" Damon offered quietly. "Or should I just keep going to Mystic Falls?"
"Just keep going," Elena mumbled and I sighed.
"Keep going for as long as you can," I said. "I can take over if you need me to."
My vampire nodded before returning his gaze to the road. He could probably sense the misery that was coming from my sister, as he kept all of his sarcastic remarks to himself. But I knew that he was also disappointed. He wanted Stefan to come home too. It wasn't just guilt motivating him, because Stefan only went with Klaus to save his brother's life. He loved his younger brother, even if he was reluctant to admit it. And now it felt like Stefan was well and truly lost to us.
I sighed and pulled my sister closer. Her grip on me was still tight, but her eyes were no longer wet with tears. But I knew that it wouldn't last. Tonight would come back to haunt my sister, in more ways than one.
XXX
We didn't get back to Mystic Falls until early the next day. Everyone was still asleep when we arrived. Ellie and I had fallen asleep on the backseat not long after we hit the highway. It was Damon gently shaking me awake that finally got me to wake up. Elena was still snoozing on my shoulder and I almost didn't have the heart to wake her up.
"Think you can carry her in for me?" I asked quietly, enjoying the peaceful look on my sister's face. "After last night, I want her to get as much sleep as possible."
"Of course," Damon agreed, carefully easing my sister into his arms. I grabbed our bags before letting us into the house. While my boyfriend took my sister upstairs, I dumped the bags by the door before going to put on the coffee pot. I knew that I wouldn't be able to get anymore sleep. So I fueled up on caffeine instead.
"There's no point in telling you to go and get some sleep, is there?" an amused voice asked from behind me. I took a deep breath before turning around. Damon was leaning against the doorframe, his arms crossed.
"Nope, that ship has sailed," I shook my head. "Ellie still asleep?"
"Yep, she's all good," my vampire confirmed, before gesturing to my busted cheek. "How's your face?"
"Painful," I rolled my eyes before filling up my mug. "But I've dealt with worse. The most annoying thing is that, when Jenna sees it, I know that she isn't going to let me out of the house for a week."
"I can always fix it for you," my sweet man offered, holding up his wrist.
I smiled and shook my head, "Nah, I'm all good, thanks for the offer though. I do appreciate it."
I placed my mug to the side before walking over to my vampire. He immediately opened his arms, allowing me to wrap myself around him. I just felt so safe in his arms, and it was feeling that I would never give up.
"I need to go see Blondie, but promise me that you'll get some rest," Damon murmured into my hair and I nodded.
"I promise," I let out a small hum as he ran his fingers through my hair, gently scratching my skin as he did so. "What's up with Caroline?"
My vampire hesitated before sighing, "She had a bad encounter with her dad. I said that I'll go check up on her."
"Give her my love, and let her know that I'll go see her later."
After a goodbye kiss, I was left alone in the kitchen. I knew that Damon had been protecting me from the truth, so I messaged Tyler, asking for the details. Of course, those details nearly made me cry. Poor Caroline had been tortured by her father, just because she was a vampire. He wanted to turn off her vampire instincts or something stupid like that.
After such a shitty time, I knew that there was one thing that I could do to make her feel better. So I searched through the cupboards, and got out everything that I needed to make brownies. I also got out a jar of chocolate fudge sauce that I had made last week. Chocolate brownie sundaes were something that Caroline adored. And while I couldn't do anything about the fact that her father tortured her, I could help her feel better through food.
Once everything was ready, and Elena was awake and ready to face the world, we made our way to Caroline's house. I had texted her mom earlier, asking her if our friend was alright for us to visit. Elena had been beside herself once she had found out what happened to Care. But it gave her something to focus on that wasn't Stefan.
Ellie rang the doorbell while I clutched the brownies and fudge sauce to my chest. It didn't take long for Caroline to appear through the window, a weary look on her face. But the moment she saw us, our friend smiled softly and opened the door.
"We come baring gifts," I held up the box and jar. "Fancy a girl's day in our PJs? Cos we brought those too."
"You guys," she smiled, tears threatening to form. "You didn't have to come."
"Care-Bear," I stepped forward so that I could rest my head against her shoulder. "We were always gonna come. You're our friend, we wanna make sure that you're okay."
The blonde didn't have anything to say to that. So she stepped to the side and let us in. While Elena got her settled back in bed, I went to the bedroom to warm up the sauce. I knew that the Forbes always had squirty cream and ice cream, so I just had to warm up the sauce and put everything together.
We spent the rest of the day just eating sundaes and watching romcoms, Caroline had movie choice for the day. Which meant a lot of films that made me want to cry, but I wasn't going to deny my friend anything.
While Elena was busy in the kitchen, putting the food for dinner into bowls, I did something that I had been meaning to do for a while. I scooted closer to my friend and grabbed her hand.
"So, Care, what does the winner of the bet get?"
"What bet?" Caroline asked, looking all innocent.
I just raised an eyebrow at her, "You know what bet."
The blonde sighed, "You mean other than unlimited bragging rights?"
"Yeah, other than that," I laughed, giving her a gentle nudge.
"I managed to negotiate so that the winner has creative license for everyone's Homecoming outfits," Care shrugged, looking like she was proud of winning that fight. "And Tyler insisted on free drinks for a month."
"Well, I hope you let me have my fun with the outfits too," I remarked casually, taking a sip from my drink as I waited for it to click in Caroline's mind. And it was so satisfying when it did. All of the worry disappeared from her face, replaced by a wide smile.
"Alexa, are you and Damon together?" she exclaimed loudly, pulling me into a hug.
"Since my birthday," I laughed, enjoying the warm hug from my friend.
"Why haven't you told anyone?" she asked, pulling back to give me a stern look. "I could have started planning the outfits already."
"Well, I kind of wanted to talk to you about it first," I sighed, tugging on her beautiful hair. "Since he's your ex, I wanted to make sure that you were genuinely okay with it first. You know, cos of the girl code and everything."
"Alexa," Caroline rolled her eyes at me. "If I had an issue with it, I would have said something ages ago."
"I know, but I just wanted to make sure. You're important to me, Care-Bear, I wanted to make sure that you were okay with it."
"Alexa, I promise you, I'm more than fine with it," Caroline smiled softly, before pulling me into another hug.
"Love you, Care," I mumbled into her shoulder as I felt another pair of arms wrap around us.
"Love you too, Alexa," my friend laughed. "I'm glad you two came today."
"I'm just glad that we could help," Ellie smiled into my shoulder. "Now, let's get this party started."
We pulled apart to see Ellie holding up a bottle of wine, a mischievous look on her face. I rolled my eyes but laughed at her. Whatever helped my loved ones.
XXX
A/N: I've never written smut before, so I hope it was okay! It was fun writing Klaus again, his interactions with Alexa are a treat! Plus we got some lovely twin moments in there too :) Thank you for the reviews, please keep them coming! I love hearing your thoughts on where the story is going and the Dalexa relationship! Hope you enjoyed xoxo