Thanks to AzureRoseSky and Barbara SGB, you guys are my motivation.

This is the longest chapter yet, please REVIEW!

.

.

.

.

Chapter 8

Elena.

Elena walked along the road aimlessly, not really knowing where she was going. The wind slashed her face like an icy knife, making her shudder. She hugged herself around the middle and turned up the collar of her jacket. She wished she had thought it through before she stomped out of the house.

Right now, she wished Damon had come after her. Elena was regretting how she had acted more and more with each step she took. It wasn't fair that she exploded at Damon. It wasn't his fault. If it's anyone's, it's hers. She was the one who let go when Bonnie warned her not to.

This night was turning out to be way too stressful. She couldn't believeshe actually broke up with Stefan. There was a time when she thought that nothing mattered to her more than being with him. But now she was the person that suggested they end the relationship. This spell was more troublesome than she thought it would be. Would everything go back to normal when Stefan and Bonnie come back? Would she continue her relationship with Stefan then? Or is that over forever?

Elena had been staring at her feet as she wandered around. When she looked up, she realized she was at the end of the woods. The woods never brought her any good memories, so she made for the opposite way. And that's when she heard them. Footsteps.

"Damon?" Elena asked, hoping very much it was him. But no one answered her. She looked around, yet only dark shadows of the trees caused by the moon greeted her. Cautiously, Elena picked up her pace, now wanting very much to be back at home. As soon as she started walking again, the footsteps continued. Elena stopped dead in her tracks, fear running through her as she whipped her head around, trying to catch a glimpse of whoever was following her. It couldn't be a vampire. They were much more discreet than this.

Elena decided to make a run for it, but no sooner than she took a step forward, someone grabbed her wrist and pulled her back. She screamed, but that only came out as a muffled whimper as whoever caught her clamped a hand over her mouth.

"Give me your wallet, lady." He scowled in her ear. His breath smelled like tobacco. "And you won't get hurt."

Slowly, he removed his hand from her mouth, leaving her to gasp in air.

"I don't have it on me." Elena forced in an even voice. Her eyes darted from the mugger's face to her surroundings. The place was desolated. She wondered if she could do any damage to him, but decided against it when she noticed how much bigger the mugger was than her.

"I have a gun." The mugger snarled, and Elena felt something cold and hard push against the side of her ribs. He was so close to her that she could feel his breath on her face.

She told herself to stay calm even though her whole body was shaking. "I told you," She said truthfully, hoping her voice sounded convincing, "I don't have it on me right now."

There was a pause, then the mugger lounged at her, pinning her against the tree forcefully, "Well, I'll search for it myself."

"You're going to have to back away from her."

Elena's eyes shot open at the sound of Damon's voice. In a flash, Damon was between them, standing as a human (I mean, vampire) barrier between Elena and the mugger. His eyes were narrowed dangerously as he shielded Elena behind him.

"Walk away now," He told the mugger, "and maybe I'll let you live."

The mugger, obviously dumbfounded by Damon's sudden appearance, almost fell as he scrambled to back away from him. Swearing, he fired a shot straight at Damon's chest.

Elena screamed behind him, the sound of the gunshot filling her ears.

Damon's face contorted into a look of pain as he glanced down at the wound, "Okay, now you've hurt my feelings." He growled, and in less than a second, had the mugger's head between his hands. He was just about to snap his neck when –

"Damon! Don't!" Elena yelled hurriedly, not wanting Damon to kill anyone because of her.

Damon stopped himself in the middle of the neck-twisting action upon hearing Elena's voice. Hesitantly, he let go of the man, who choked and gasped at his feet. Just when Damon straightened up, the mugger used this opportunity to raise his arm and pull the trigger again.

Damon grunted in pain as another bullet entered him, this time in his stomach. He was getting seriously annoyed with this man as he pulled him up by the collar and slammed him against the nearby tree. The mugger passed out immediately due to the force Damon put into the slam.

As soon as Damon let go of him, he slumped to the floor.

"Damon…" Elena said shakily, "A-Are you ok?"

"Yeah." Damon replied, "My jacket isn't though." He stared at the two holes in his black leather jacket, "Damn…This was my favorite."

Elena watched as Damon examined his jacket carefully. It seemed like every time she needed him, he was there. He was always there to save her, and he always acted like it was no big deal. Unable to control herself any longer, Elena closed the space between them and threw her arms around him, embracing him in a tight hug, "Thank you for coming after me, Damon." She whispered, her voice muffled.

"Elena…" Damon was a little overwhelmed by this, "As much as I appreciate you hugging me, you're pushing the bullets deeper into my skin."

Elena let go of him immediately, "Sorry!"

Damon winced as he slowly pulled both bullets out of his body. He gave it a minute to let the wounds heal. When pain eluded him, he raised his head to grin at Elena, "Okay, one more time." He opened his arms.

Elena laughed as she was pulled into his warm embrace. She breathed in his scent and inhaled deeply, wishing that time would stand still at this moment.

When Damon let go of her, she felt a small twinge of disappointment. It was just so nice to be in his arms that she didn't want to let go. She watched as Damon take off his jacket. She thought he was checking the damage done by the bullets, but instead, he wrapped it around her shoulders and said, "Now, let's get you home, hm?"

"Ok…" Elena smiled up at him, feeling much warmer in his jacket. She caught sight of the unconscious mugger by the tree, his shoulder at an odd angle, "Wait, what about him?"

"He'll live." Damon replied lazily, "He's just out."

"I think you broke his shoulder." Elena said softly.

"Yeah, well, he broke my jacket."

Damon.

Damon stayed with Elena until she finished showering and was ready for bed. The night's events had been too much for her to handle, and he was glad he ameliorated at least one of them. This spell was making her go through too much. For a moment, he actually wished for Stefan and Bonnie to break it already.

He had stopped believing in love after Katherine. For decades after decades, he had played women, not offering a single feeling. He thought he would have gone on like this forever – until he met Elena. What is it like to really love someone? Damon thought as he watched Elena brush her hair. It wasn't about being with her anymore, no. It was about wanting her to be happy in every way possible. And if Elena was happy with Stefan, he didn't want to intrude, and he definitely didn't want to ruin her relationship.

"Damon?" Elena asked with her back to him, still brushing her hair.

"Yeah?"

"Nothing. Just checking to see if you were still here."

Damon smirked, "I'm still here."

Elena came out of the bathroom wearing her pajamas to find Damon on her bed again, his ankles crossed and his hands folded in front of his chest. She didn't know what came over her as she slowly walked to him and sat down on the edge of the bed. He looked irresistible to her right now, and she wanted very much to be as close to him as possible.

Damon raised his eyebrow as he heard Elena's heartbeat going faster and faster. She stood up again, looking very awkward at the moment. He got up too, not wanting to deprive her of any more sleep. Neither of them said anything as he pulled on his now ruined jacket.

"Good night, Elena." Damon offered her another smirk and bent down slightly to kiss her forehead.

Elena twitched and raised her head to look at him the same moment he had leaned forward. Their lips met. An electric vibe went through her as she felt his warm lips. It was just how she had imagined it. She could see fireworks, and stars as every sense in her body jerked alive. She never knew she could feel so much emotion just through one kiss. But this…this wasn't just some kiss, this was a kiss with Damon, a kiss so powerful and passionate that her head began to swirl.

Damon's eyes widened with surprise as he got her lips by accident. He wanted to pull away, but his body wasn't his, and it wouldn't listen to him. Her lips were soft, delicious, and when she moved them against his lips, he had to use all his strength not to sway. This was…so different from every other kiss he had experienced. He seemed to come alive under her lips, and his arms slowly moved on their own accord to encircle her waist.

Elena moaned against his lips and deepened the kiss, her hands buried in his messy hair. She had never felt like this before. She could just kiss him forever. She could feel her heart thumping so fast that she wondered if it would break her ribs. Her body was shaking as she felt his tongue wiggle its way into her mouth.

They must have kissed for a century before they broke apart, each of them breathing heavily as they stared into each other's eyes, seeing their own reflections.

Elena's lips parted slightly as she saw the arousal in Damon's eyes. She wanted to tell him she didn't care about anything at that moment, that all she wanted right now was him, but her mouth wouldn't work. Her lips were numb from so much kissing, yet she could still feel them tingling with anticipation.

"Damon…" She whispered, momentarily forgetting how to talk properly as she arched her body into his.

But Damon backed away, his expression unreadable. "Not like this, Elena." He said quietly. "…I'll still be here when Stefan and Bonnie lift the spell."

Every word he spoke seemed to come out in slow motion. Dammit, he wanted to throw her onto the bed right now and kiss her again until she begs for more – but he couldn't. He couldn't when she's only attracted to him only because of a spell. It was cruel that while his love for her grew even deeper these days, it was still unrequited. Yes, he'd still be here when the spell was broken, but how would she feel then? His heart throbbed painfully when he thought of how she would fly into Stefan arms when free of this spell.

A step away from him, Elena looked helpless and confused. She wanted to kiss him so much that it hurt her not to. She'd give anything to feel his lips on hers again, but he was acting as if that kiss was a mistake. "Damon, I – "

Damon came forward and took her face in his hands, cutting off whatever she was planning to say. His piercing blue eyes showed so much emotion that his pupils dilated. Taking a deep breath, he caressed her face gently, not wanting to mess up her hair. "I love you." Damon said. The fist time he had said those words to her, he had compelled her to forget them, but this time he wanted her to remember it. His gazed dropped lower to her collarbone. She wasn't wearing the vervain necklace this time either.

Elena was speechless as those three words reached her ears. It was the first time he had ever said them to her, and he had said it so abruptly that she needed a moment to take it in.

"That's why I can't take advantage of you." Damon continued, "And that's why I think you should…forget about that kiss." His eyes searched hers. He didn't want to compel her, but what just happened would only make her more confused than she already was. He'd rather have her not remember the kiss than regret it later on when the spell is lift.

Elena's eyes went blank for a moment, and Damon knew the memory was forgotten. His heart felt abnormally heavy as he went for the window. It was okay, really. Even though all the intimate memories he had with Elena had became his own memories in the end, he was still glad Elena was a part of it. He would treasure those memories forgotten by her.

Elena.

Elena touched her bare collarbone. Had Damon just try to compel her to forget about their kiss?

She ran a shaky hand through her hair as she sat down on her bed. He had forgotten that she was still wearing the vervain filled earrings.

Damon.

It had been a week since Damon last visited Elena. He knew that she had no recollection whatsoever about the kiss, but he still needed some time to recover from it. Could it be that the spell had the same effect it had on him like it had on Elena? Lately, it was like his feelings for her keep getting stronger. He didn't even know it was possible to love someone as much as he loved Elena right now.

The week he spent without her seemed to pass by in slow motion. He saw her from time to time, but without her knowing about it. He watched her go to school, chatting and talking with Caroline. He watched her at The Grill, hanging out with friends. And he watched her go to sleep every night. Sometimes, he was sure she saw him, because she would stop whatever she was doing and look intently in his direction, but he was always quick to retreat. And even though she smiled a lot, the smiles didn't quite reach her eyes. He wondered if Elena, like Bonnie had said, was getting depressed and moody without seeing him.

Damon poured himself a drink and settled back onto the couch. He loved her, and he wanted her to love him back on her own will. He knew it was too much to ask. She, like Katherine, had chosen his brother. But she was nothing like Katherine, that, he knew. When he first saw her, saw her likenesses with Katherine, he wanted to play her. It was just a game. He wanted to take her away from Stefan, to punish Stefan. But over the times he had gotten to know her, and she wasn't like Katherine at all. She might have looked identical to Katherine, but she was very different in every other way. It wasn't a game anymore because he had fallen in love with her. He had fallen in love with Elena even though he swore he would never love again.

Yet she was with Stefan.

It killed him to see them together. He couldn't help wondering what it would be like if he was the one she desired. But now that she really did seem to like him, really like him, he was having second thoughts. It was because of this stupid spell that she felt like this. He had a hunch that he'd be devastated once the spell is broken. It would be like the Katherine thing all over again, except much more worse, because it's Elena this time.

The doorbell rang at that moment, disturbing his thoughts.

"Excuse me?" Asked someone at the door as whoever it was rang the doorbell again.

Damon got up. For a split second, he had thought that it was Elena, coming to see him after school. But it was clearly a man's voice outside, so he pushed that thought away.

He opened the door lazily, "Yeah?"

It was a delivery boy. And he was carrying a package, "Delivery for Mr.…" He checked his notepad, "Damon Salvatore?"

Damon stared at the box, "I didn't order anything."

The delivery boy grinned toothily, "Well, it's your address. Sign here, please."

Intrigued by this enigmatic package, Damon signed immediately. After closing the door again, he rushed to tear it open. He almost ruined the box due to his eagerness to see what was inside. When he finally ripped open the wrappings, the scent of new leather filled the air.

Damon was speechless as he pulled out a new leather jacket from the debris. It was black, and it was so new that the leather felt a little stiff. It also looked extremely like his old one, with a few changes on the collar and the sleeves. There was also a note inside. Curious, Damon picked it up. It wasn't a letter, like he had thought. There was only one word scribbled on a blank piece of paper, "Surprise."

Chuckling lowly to himself, Damon got up. He threw on the jacket and thought he looked even more dashing than usual. No one had ever done something nice for him for a long time. He had been selfish, conceited, and abominable to everyone around him for more than a century, so they loathed him. But now…here was Elena, giving him the best surprise he had ever stumbled upon. He was – what was the feeling? – oh, right, moved. He's been without this particular feeling for so long that he couldn't even remember what it was like. But now, it's all rushing back to him.

Damon smirked. He's missed her. It was time to pay a visit.