: Damon is a sweetheart, he just have to solve his issues. I'm really glad you're enjoying this story s2
ArganRose: thank you so much!!! Makes me really happy that you're enjoying Emma and the fic. Always love your comments s2
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This is a very short chapter, and does not deal specifically with any episode of the series. But I really enjoyed writing it, I think it gives a little more depth to Emma and Damon's relationship. I hope you enjoy it 3
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Miss you
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"I guess I'm lying to myself
It's just you and no one else
Lord, I won't miss you"
(Miss you – The Rolling Stones)
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After the surprise wore off, Emma squeezed Damon tighter and closed her eyes, burying her nose against his neck. They both heard the sound of a door being opened, but only Emma seemed to care enough to open her eyes quickly from the fright.
"This is a family building here, no indecency allowed in the hallways", the voice of the lady who shared the floor with Emma echoed through the halls, and the girl broke away from the vampire with red cheeks, forcing her good foot against the floor to stand. Damon rolled his eyes before turning to the lady, without, however, releasing Emma's waist. The Salvatore feigned an apology to the old lady before turning his attention back to Emma.
"Looks like you're going to have to invite me in", he spoke low, and Emma quickly widened her eyes and cracked a smile. It was stupid, but she had wanted to test that theory for a while.
The girl took the crutches that were against the door and stuck the key in the lock, turning it counterclockwise. Emma entered the apartment and used her elbow to turn on the light switch. By this time the neighbor had already gone back into her own apartment. Damon stood with one hand on his waist and an arched eyebrow by the doorframe, waiting for her to invite him in.
"Can you try to come in without my invitation?", Emma asked, and Damon smirked.
"Why? Do you want to see hit my face at an invisible barrier? Is this your revenge?"
"I just want to test if it works", she shrugged, and Damon rolled his eyes before stepping forward and colliding with an invisible barrier. Emma cracked a smile. It did work, and that meant she was safe in that apartment. Katherine, Klaus, Stefan, or any other vampire would never be able to get in without her allowing it.
"Are you going to stand there laughing or are you going to invite me in?" he complained.
"Damon, can you please come in?", Emma replied and Damon smiled gratefully before stepping forward and finally entering the apartment. The vampire closed the door behind him and began to walk through the small apartment observing everything with curiosity.
Everything was quite different from the inside. The place was small, but very cozy. So cozy that he had the impression that the place was a few degrees warmer than the building's hallway. Although he didn't know Emma completely, he could see that the whole apartment screamed her personality. Even what seemed out of place was meticulously organized, like the pile of books that was completely aligned on the floor next to the desk and the bed with many pillows, of various colors, but that matched each other.
He watched, too, as Emma hopped with her crutches to the kitchen counter and rummaged through the cupboards for something. He followed her and pulled out a stool to sit on and waited for her to gather everything she wanted and position it on the counter. Emma wasted no time and thrust a knife, a board and some garlic cloves at the vampire.
"You definitely want to get back at me" Damon grumbled.
"Really? Garlic?" she asked genuinely surprised and the vampire laughed low.
"No, I won't die or something, I just hate getting the smell on my hands", he explained, but proceeded to peel the garlic while Emma filled a pot with water. "What are we going to do?"
"Aglio e olio, it's easy to make, and I'm starving", Emma explained and Damon smirked.
"Italian", he commented.
"You don't like it?" she asked.
"Doll, I'm Italian. Does Salvatore tell you something?" the vampire joked and Emma opened her mouth in an 'o'. She had never thought of that before.
Cooking was a habit Damon had abandoned along with his humanity. When he was human, he had enjoyed going into the kitchen and watching the cooks prepare the hearty dinners his father provided for the founders of the town. Italian food was frequent, in order to keep the family's traditions and culture alive. However, becoming a vampire made the urge to cook die, after all, he didn't feel hungry for food. He did, of course, enjoy, now and then, some dish he liked. But it was not the same. It was different eating something you liked when you were craving it, when you could actually feed yourself with it.
The fact was that cooking, this very domestic task, had been in Damon's distant past, a past he hardly thought about, and when he did, he felt resentful. However, as soon as the sliced garlic went into the pot, the smell rekindled some good memories. The vampire knew that if he thought too much, he would end up getting angry that he felt so comfortable there cooking alongside Emma, so he deliberately chose to just enjoy the moment. It hadn't been an hour since the two of them had made up, he didn't want to ruin it again, as he probably would if he thought too much.
Emma had contributed to the preparation of dinner by only heating the water for the spaghetti, and the reason had nothing to do with her injured leg. Damon had taken center stage in the kitchen, complaining about the way she cut the pepper, pushing her aside to let him dose the oil, and finally pouring her a glass of bourbon to keep her quiet and out of the way. Emma rolled her eyes a few times, but felt her chest warm as she watched Damon concentrating in front of the pot, with a cloth thrown over his shoulder, as if he belonged there.
The two of them ate dinner together sitting around the kitchen counter in complete silence, except for the moans of Emma, who was starving and swore that this was the best pasta she had ever eaten in her life. And she really should stop doing that. It wasn't the first time that the noises she made while eating had boiled Damon's blood, challenging him to find out if he could make her moan in the same way in bed. Being a vampire was hell at times like that, because it was simply too easy to get aroused around her.
As soon as Emma finished eating, Damon gathered up the dishes and washed them to distract himself and make his blood calm down. The girl poured the vampire a second glass of bourbon and hopped onto the couch, sitting comfortably and carefully positioning her immobilized leg on the coffee table. Damon joined her as soon as she finished the dishes, and held out a glass.
"Thank you", she thanked him, picking up the glass. Damon sat down next to her on the small couch, much smaller than all the ones they had at Boarding House. "So..."
"So?" he asked, arching an eyebrow.
"Talk".
"About what?"
"Everything!" she replied rolling her eyes. "Why didn't you tell me about Andy?" she began, and Damon snorted.
"Andy is not my girlfriend", he replied, and Emma arched an eyebrow in disbelief. "It's complicated. I never asked her to be my girlfriend, I'm most definitely not her boyfriend. We just had sex a couple of times, and she's a reporter, she's useful, so..."
"You're really an asshole", Emma commented annoyed. "Does she know you're a vampire?"
Why did Emma have to start with the tricky question? Couldn't it be something easier? Something that the answer wasn't going to make her pissed? Damon took a deep breath. He knew he had to be honest with her, but he simply didn't want to fight with her again. So he opted for a half-truth. He would tell the truth, but not all of it.
"I compelled her not to tell anyone", he replied and saw Emma's expression harden, so, contrary to what he had initially intended, he let a lie escape his lips. There was no way he would tell her that he compelled Andy to fall for him. "I didn't mess with her head, I just convinced her not to tell anyone about me and Stefan, just to be safe. You saw how bad it is for Jenna not to know about it".
Emma stared at her hands. Damon was right. Jenna not knowing about them had only caused trouble. If Jenna had known everything, she probably wouldn't have been taken to the hospital for stabbing herself and wouldn't be so suspicious of Alaric.
"I enjoyed seeing you jealous", Damon confessed, and Emma stared at him and opened her mouth to reply. She was ready to lie that she wasn't jealous, that she was just pissed that he had hidden that he had a girlfriend, but the vampire interrupted her. "I'm usually the jealous one. It was... nice... someone feeling jealous because of me", Damon was looking at her quite seriously, and Emma felt his blue eyes penetrating her and causing a shiver to run from the base of her spine to the back of her neck. She looked away and shook her shoulders at the shiver. Damon smirked.
"You should see a therapist", Emma commented to break the mood, and Damon laughed. "I'm serious. You're terrible with dealing with feelings. But I must confess you're pretty good at talking when you want to".
"I could say the same about you", he retorted.
"I always talk", she rolled her eyes.
"No, you don't", Damon replied and Emma stared at him. He was serious, but there was nothing accusing about his tone. It was an understanding and curious tone, but not accusing. "Why compulsion bother you so much? I think since day one you told me to never compel you. And then Elijah compels you and suddenly I find you at a hospital with a broken leg".
"Thanks to Katherine, not Elijah", Emma replied.
"You were alone and crying at the road. You just ran after Elijah was killed".
"I was crying because she broke my leg, Damon", Emma replied and took a sip of her drink. Damon sighed.
"You were crying before that", the vampire replied and Emma stared at him as if he had found out something she didn't want him to find out. "Katherine told me".
"Why you talk to her?" she asked before she could think. It bothered her that Katherine had any kind of relationship with him.
"Because... The thing is: maybe you should follow the example", Damon grumbled, "I'm talking to you, isn't that what you wanted? But you need to talk to me too, Emma. If you want me to be honest with you, you need to be honest with me. This goes both w...".
"I have a fucked up mind", Emma interrupted him, staring at him. "Okay? For a long time I didn't have control over my own mind. So I don't want people messing with it anymore. I don't fucking want to not remember things, to not have control, to think that I'm crazy. So forgive me for crying like shit when I realized half my day were a complete blank and no one even noticed that I was a fucking empty vessel".
"I noticed", he replied, leaning towards her and tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. Emma's cheeks were completely red, but her eyes had no trace of tears. He could hear the strong beating of her heart, nervous and anxious that she had confessed something quite difficult to him. Damon hadn't even fully absorbed what she had said, he clung to the last part, and felt the need to assure her that he had understood. That he saw her. "From the moment you stepped in the house, I noticed".
"How?" she asked.
"You didn't ask a single absurd question all night", he joked, and she laughed softly. "I just knew, simple as that. I think I just know you enough to notice if you're compelled or not". Emma settled down on the couch and took her immobilized leg off the coffee table. She wanted to force the circulation of her blood. Damon seemed to take the movement as an indication of discomfort, because he felt the need to reassure her. "I would do everything to bring you back, you know? If the compulsion didn't wore off, I would make sure you would come back".
"It's fine, Damon", Emma replied shrugging, but a little annoyed. She doubted very much that Damon would really make a big effort to bring her back. Of course she knew he cared about her, and she knew he would try to break the compulsion. But to assume that he would do anything to get her back was an exaggeration.
"I'm telling the truth. You underestimate how much I like to torture Originals and how much I would be bored without you. Who would I spend my time with?".
"I am pretty good company indeed", Emma replied massaging the knee of her immobilized leg. Damon watched the scene and frowned.
"I could give you my blood" he suggested. Damon didn't usually give his blood to anyone. There were a few times he did, like when Caroline had been in the accident and was in danger of dying. But Emma was Emma and the idea of giving her his blood did the exact opposite of bothering her.
"Why would I drink your blood? Shouldn't it be the other way around?", Emma questioned.
"My blood would heal your leg" he explained and cracked a seductive smile. "But if you want me to drink yours, I would be very pleased to do it".
"Stop flirting, Damon," Emma complained. "And thank you for your offer, but no. With my luck, if you feed me your blood, I would just fall off the stairs and become a vampire".
"Hey" Damon complained, "are you vampirephobic now? I shouldn't never let you alone with John". Emma burst out laughing.
"I have nothing against vampires and you know it, I just don't wanna be one", she explained and held back a yawn.
"Attached to your humanity?"
"Attached to things that end. Immortality is forever", Emma replied and Damon frowned. Emma's cell phone vibrated on the table and the girl bent down to pick up the device. The vampire was quicker and picked it up and handed it to her. Damon watched as Emma's eyes widened.
"Oh my god", the girl exclaimed and he leaned closer, trying to see what was written.
"What is it?"
"Isobel just showed up at Jenna's", Emma replied as she dialed a number. The number called for long seconds until it fell into the message box. "She's not picking up", Emma complained and threw the cell phone back on the table. The girl rested her head on her hands and sighed. "What the fuck? First John, now this Isobel woman? What the hell is wrong with this family?"
"You know it's your family, right?", Damon teased.
"That's exactly why I said it", Emma replied and the vampire laughed softly. The girl looked nervous and started to gnaw the corners of her cuticles. Damon caught her hand to get her to stop.
"Hey, Stefan's there and he will let us know if something happens", Damon assured her and Emma stared at him with arched eyebrows. The vampire rolled his eyes. "Yes, he told me before I came here and I just didn't tell you because I was too busy making sure you still like me". Emma smiled and eventually yawned. "Okay, can we go to sleep now? You can't stop yawning".
"Are you sleeping here?" she asked in surprise and Damon held back from laughing.
"I can always let you fall off the stairs tomorrow if you like", he justified and Emma rolled her eyes. The girl stood up from the couch and Damon reached for her crutches. The vampire watched her reach into a drawer and pull out a sleeping dress before grabbing the backpack she had taken to Jenna's house and heading for the bathroom. Emma opened the necessaire inside her backpack and picked up the pill bottles, took two to ensure she would have a sound sleep, put on her nightgown and brushed her teeth.
Damon collected the glasses and dumped them in the sink before walking over to the bed and removing his jacket. The vampire turned off the lights on the way and left only the 'bedroom' lampshades on. With a smirk, he also removed his pants and shirt, leaving only his underwear, and lay down on the bed. Damon propped himself against the headboard and put both hands crossed behind his head. When Emma came out of the bathroom, she almost had to gather her own chin from the floor, but she disguised it fairly quickly.
"What the hell..."
"I'm not sleeping in the couch, doll. Just come over here, I don't bite... Well, I do bite, but only if you ask me. Promise", he replied with a little smile and she mimicked what he had said as if she were a child, which drew a sincere smile from him. Emma was absolutely and ridiculously funny when she did that. The girl hopped onto the bed and lay down beside him. When she lifted the covers to cover herself, she widened her eyes and stared at him.
"Are you naked?"
"Gods, no. I'm in my underwear, chill out", Damon replied. As soon as Emma pulled the covers up, the skirt of her sleeping dress rode up a bit and the vampire raised an eyebrow and smirked. "You're quite naked yourself", he teased.
"I can't wear pants because of this leg. Aren't you the person who said I looked good wearing dresses?" she asked and laid her head on the pillow, turning to him.
"Even better in sleeping dresses I must add", Damon teased, also turning to her.
"Stop flirting".
"I'll try", he replied and Emma yawned again.
"You really sleep? I thought you..."
"I'm not Edward Cullen, Emma, I told you", he replied feigning irritation and she giggled.
"I just wanted to be sure", she defended herself, still laughing.
"Your bed is comfy", Damon commented.
"I'm sure it's better than your coffin", she replied playfully and he rolled his eyes, which got another laugh out of her. "Can you turn off the lights, please?"
"Why, you don't wanna see my handsome face?"
"No, I just wanna sleep... and you don't wanna sleep because you can't sleep in a real bed because you actually sleep in a coffin covered up in sand from Trans..."
"Oh my god shut up!", Damon exclaimed laughing and leaned to the side, turning off the lampshade.
Emma believed it would be quite difficult to sleep in the company of another person, especially that person being Damon. However, she was tired and the pills were starting to take effect, so it wasn't hard to fall asleep. The vampire, on the other hand, stared at the ceiling for quite a while, glancing up and down at the sleeping girl beside him. He didn't know what it was about Emma that simply made him fell... good. During the two days they hadn't spoken, he had been restless, irritable, and consumed with guilt. Now, after completely mundane and domestic activities like cooking, sitting on the couch and lying next to her, he felt at peace.
His head was still machining, in the background, guesses about Isobel's sudden appearance at the Gilbert house, but in general, he was at peace. He realized that he hadn't even thought about Katherine during the hours he had been there in Emma's apartment and frowned. Looking again at Emma, Damon discreetly lifted the covers and looked down at the girl's immobilized leg. Why didn't she simply want to take his blood? Why was he bothered by the fact that she didn't want his blood? Why did he want to give her his blood?
The answer was quite obvious, and had nothing to do with her injured leg. Not completely. He knew that he wouldn't be so bothered by Emma not wanting his blood if she hadn't already drunk Stefan's when Rose attacked her. That was what bothered him. Emma had already taken Stefan's blood, and she didn't want to take his. And he wanted her to take his, because Damon wanted her to have something of his and wanted to stay ahead of Stefan in something. Emma was the pole and he was the damn dog. He wanted to mark his territory, he wanted Emma to be his, and only his. Because Emma was the only thing he had that Stefan didn't. And Damon didn't want to share, he didn't want to be left behind. Her walking normally again would only be a bonus.
Damon was so irritated by the direction of his thoughts that when Emma mumbled something in her sleep, the vampire unconsciously moved closer to her and hugged her possessively. Emma fell asleep with her forehead against Damon's neck, while he allowed himself to close his eyes and slept with his nose buried in her hair.