We've had a lot of good times brother
I've knows you all my life
Mixing blood and drugs and women
In your journey to the endless night
When the Bomb Drops – Primal Scream


There were moments, Stefan couldn't be sure, but he could swear Damon was up to something. Something new and troubling. He didn't know what to make of the intense gaze he sometimes found himself on the other end of.

But then he had Elena to distract him.

If there was a problem, Stefan wasn't entirely willing to acknowledge it. He was happy, or at least, closer to happy than he'd been in ages. He had a nice girl, who knew what he was, who encouraged him to be a decent human being. His brother was close by, and by the looks of it, staying around.

It wasn't perfect. Most of Elena's friends weren't exactly human anymore. They still distrusted him, but that was natural instinct, and probably for the best to keep them wary. They all saw his bout with the Ripper, and the measures Damon went to in order to pull him back.

Her guardian Alaric seemed all right. He tolerated Damon enough to drink with him regularly and survive. There was something interesting going on there, but Stefan wasn't going to worry about it until it became a problem.

He felt that way about most of his actions involving Damon lately. He was mostly okay with that. Despite Damon's implicit danger, he felt better when his big brother was nearby. It was probably fucked up, but Damon was his last line of defense before going over the edge, and anyway, having a brother around to argue with was normal. And starting over for another attempt at normal was the whole point of returning to Mystic Falls and enrolling in high school.


Stefan was awake later than usual helping Elena cram for a French test. She was in the middle of conjugating verbs and the near-silent pad of bare feet upstairs caught his ear. It was unhurried, lingering at the doorway. With Damon's usual stealth, it was strange that Stefan heard anything at all. He looked up when he heard a bump against a doorframe followed by Damon swearing softly. That was strange too. Damon wasn't known for his clumsiness; in fact vampires were generally characterized by their lack of it. But then, it was hard to keep up with how much Damon had been drinking that night. Only briefly curious why his brother didn't join them if he was awake, he looked back to Elena's notes. Damon spoke French like a poet, even in its French and Cajun dialects, so hearing Elena struggle through the language would only distress him.

Then Elena mixed up past and present tenses again and smacked the side of her head with her notebook in frustration. He glanced at his phone and realized it was 2 a.m. and they had been at it for too many hours. Ignoring the sounds upstairs, Stefan focused his attention back on teaching Elena French before morning.


It was better when the sun was up. Damon didn't know why. Poetically, he could say it was something about escaping shadows that lurked in every corner. Theoretically, he could blame the boost of Vitamin D and the odd effect of UV light interfering with his magic ring. Realistically, it was because everyone else was awake and doing something, the white noise of life and living acted as a balm for his subconscious.

He was torn between spending too much time at home and too much time not knowing what was developing between Stefan and Elena. Knowing somehow developed into actually seeing, and Damon couldn't stop himself from crashing in on them in Stefan's bed together. Occasionally. Damon reasoned with himself it was a pretty good way to make Stefan miserable every time he—well, peeked wasn't the right word. He wasn't some pervert, but caught made it seem like he wasn't aware of what he would be walking in on. Tortured himself with seeing the two of them together was probably more accurate. Seeing his little brother happy made him equally proud and sick and he wasn't getting any closer as to why.


Late one night Stefan and Elena spent an hour arguing on the front porch of the boarding house. A trivial fight about their participation in another town event. Elena was expected on the committee but Stefan wanted to skip the meetings and see a few movies. It wasn't a big deal, but she left in a huff and he knew enough to give her the night to cool off. Briefly relieved that at least the stupid argument was over he went back inside to head up to bed.

It was late. The still shadow of Damon startled him at the top of the stairs. Stefan avoided his gaze and climbed up. Annoyed at whatever snide comment his brother didn't have the chance to make, he quickly slipped past Damon without coming into contact muttering, "Do not want to hear it."

There was only silence behind him. Stefan paused at the door to his room and looked back. Damon hadn't moved. He seemed to be staring blankly into middle distance. His hair was sleep-mussed and he was only wearing low-slung sweats. Stefan's brow furrowed and he clapped his hand loudly against the doorframe. "Damon, what the hell are you doing?"

Damon blinked rapidly, stepping away from the stairs. He looked disoriented, turning quickly around and finding Stefan staring back at him wide-eyed. His alarm disappeared and his eyes narrowed. "What is your problem?" he sneered over his shoulder before he disappeared into his room, slamming the door shut behind him.

Stefan stood there another moment, debating pushing Damon for an explanation. But he knew better. He was tired and Damon wasn't the responsive type anyway. Having enough circular arguments for one night, he walked back downstairs.

He pulled his phone out and hit Elena's number.

"Hey, I'm really sorry about everything." He shot a worried glance up towards Damon's room, straining to hear any sound behind the door. He just wanted one more night of things being simple. "I'll come over now. How about I stay the night? We can talk about the meeting times. Maybe find a compromise."

He was out the door before he could hear the thump that shook the floorboards.


"Well this is a surprise. What happened to wanting a break from all things Founder's Day?" Elena asked curiously as she leaned against the open door.

Stefan glanced over his shoulder for the tenth time, for some reason, expecting his brother's shadow somewhere behind him. Seeing nothing, still, he smiled at his annoyed girlfriend.

"It's fine, I guess." He stepped forward to go inside the house but it was still blocked by Elena. "If you want me to go, I'll go whenever you want."

Smiling triumphantly, Elena let the door fall open farther to let in Stefan. "Really? I knew you'd change your mind!" She flung her arms around him.

Sure, not like everything wasn't a complete disaster the first time he participated in Founder's Day events or anything. But she didn't seem too worried about his memories associated with it, and he didn't want his past getting in the way of her present. Assenting, he half-heartedly returned the hug. "Yeah, look, let's get inside okay?" He looked back once more, scanning the yard and street in front of the house. "Something is going on with Damon and its weirding me out. I needed to get out of there."

Elena let the door close behind them and kept her hand clasped in Stefan's. "'Weirding'? Really, Renaissance man? We're making up words now?" She teased lightly, pleased to have gotten her way.

Stefan tilted his head and smiled. "Yeah we are. Maybe I can ask Ric about him."

"Uhg," Elena groaned. "Who cares? He's a freak."

The word hit him like a punch in the gut. He dropped her hand and looked away.

"I'm sorry!" Elena slapped her hands over her mouth, looking slightly ashamed. "I mean he always has something going on. It's usually not a good thing."

Brows furrowed, Stefan sighed deeply. "I don't like that word. Damon always has his reasons."

"Sure! Of course, I'm sorry." Elena tried to curl around Stefan's arm, and he let himself appreciate the fact that her tank top and shorts hugged her curves so tightly. "He's been weird around me too lately. I understand. I didn't mean to call him names."

He knew that was a lie, but it didn't matter. Elena and Damon had a strange relationship. Not many girls Damon openly threatened to kill stuck around for Stefan's sake. Her attraction to the man wasn't the best-kept secret either. Her continued friendship with his brother was a relief, because it meant Stefan could keep them both around. She was still Stefan's girl. He was going to enjoy it while he could.

Stefan let her pull him into her room and curl up on the bed. She snuggled up next to him, and he wrapped his arm around her. He was getting better at being this with her. Could hardly get enough of wrapping himself up in her world. She was the sweet breeze of fresh air he needed in his life. Being with her didn't have to be sex. It didn't have to be innocent, either.

"Not tonight though," she sighed soft and drowsy. "Just sleep with me. It's been a long night."

"Sure." He kissed the top of her head. Closed his eyes and wondered how Damon's night was going. "Whatever you want."