I do not own anything in this story. The CW created the universe, and I just play in it.
This is my first fanfiction. Please rate and review!
In movies, the heroine was always so graceful while falling to her death. The wind was always blowing her hair back in ways that defied gravity, her arms were always spread like eagle wings, and her face was always the portrait of serenity as she rushed to meet her maker.
Elena quickly found out that she most definitely was not in a movie.
She screamed and thrashed as she sped towards the ground. Her hair whipped around her eyes, nearly blinding her from seeing the impossibly high treetops as they whizzed by her face. Her heart was beating impossibly fast, while her brain was screaming, You're going to die!
Something crashed into her from the side, and suddenly she wasn't just speeding down, but also to the left. Elena craned her neck around to see Damon, his arms threaded around her waist, and knew that he had just slammed into her at superhuman vampire speed.
"Damon," she screamed as the border of trees sped towards them. "What are you doing?" They were nearing the edge of the forest, and soon they would be flying at impossible speeds through trees mere feet apart.
"Elena," he shouted back, struggling to be heard over the sound of the air rushing past them. "Elena, I need you to trust me. Close your eyes, okay?"
"What are you doing?" Elena thrashed and struggled to turn around, but Damon's arms held her steady.
"Elena, close your eyes!"
"Damon!"
"Damn it, Elena, just trust me!"
Elena took a deep breath, and she closed her eyes.
WHAM!
Elena's eyes flew open, but all she could see was blue, blue, and blue.
SPLASH!
Suddenly, everything went black.
Water. It was filling her nose and ears and mouth, and she couldn't breathe.
Elena thrashed to the surface, coughing and choking. The first thought that came to her mind was that she was very wet and very, very cold. Somehow, she was in the middle of a smallish lake, and everything ached. Her face felt like one big bruise and her arms and legs like sore, wet noodles, and she was pretty sure she was missing a shoe. The second thought that came to her mind was that she was alive. Oh God, she was alive. How had Damon done it?
Damon! Elena's eyes snapped open, and she quickly scanned the water, searching for any sign of him. Her eyes landed on a small black heap, huddled underneath the trunk of a fallen tree, and she began paddling in that direction. "Damon? Damon!"
Once she reached shore, she stumbled over to where he was lying, unmoving. One shoulder was clearly disjointed, the arm broken in multiple places, and his face was covered in cuts and bruises. Blood was seeping out from under his shirt, pooling on the dirt beneath him. The tree behind him looked as if it had been snapped—both the stump and the end of the tree were a jagged mess of wood and splinters.
"Oh my God, Damon." Elena's teeth chattered from the cold as she fumbled for his wrist, checking for a pulse. Get it together, Elena—he's a vampire, he won't have a pulse. "No, no, no, don't be dead, please don't be dead!" She tore open his shirt and jacket and gasped—a short branch nearly as thick as her arm had driven itself into the right side of Damon's chest, precariously near his heart. "No, no, oh God, no! Don't be dead, please don't be dead!"
She grabbed the branch, but her fingers were shaking too much to get a good grip. She blew on her hands, repositioned them on the branch, and in one swift motion ripped it out from his chest. Damon flew up, coughing blood and grimacing in pain as he moved his shattered arm. "Elena?"
"I'm fine, Damon, just sit back and take it easy." Elena helped him sit back against the fallen tree trunk. Already, blood had stopped flowing from the wound on his chest. "What happened?"
"Crashed into a tree," he said, wincing as he popped his shoulder back into place. "I didn't have much time so I threw you into the lake."
Elena turned around to look at the lake. It was tiny—the word pond would've been more appropriate—but it had been surprisingly deep. At the far end, nearer the forest, was a beautiful waterfall, framed by boulders and mossy grass. "That's the waterfall from Annora's pool."
"Well, duh." Damon unsteadily got to his feet. "Are you okay? Broken bones, concussion, anything?"
"I'm okay, Damon."
"Well, your face begs to differ." Elena touched her cheek gently, and was promptly surprised when her fingers came away bloody. "And you look pretty banged up too." Damon rolled his sleeve back and sank his fangs into his own wrist. "Here, bon appétit."
Elena gave him a look before drinking his blood. "Ugh, Damon, I can't do this. It feels wrong." She pulled away.
"Why, because of Stefan?" Damon rolled his eyes. "I thought you guys were broken up."
Elena stared at him. "No, because I'm drinking someone's blood." He gave her a half-smile but didn't say anything. "What, no snarky comeback this time?"
"Look, Elena." Damon took a step forward, so that he was inches away from her. "What you did back there, standing up to Annora…"
"Don't do this, Damon." Elena looked away. "I wanted to save your life, okay? There's nothing in the world that would've made me leave that mountain."
"You could've died. Annora was ready to rip your heart out." His voice rose with anger.
"But she didn't, did she? Can you please just drop it?"
"You risked your life, Elena! And for what? Me?"
"Don't you get it? I had to stay." Elena forced herself to look up, to meet his eyes. They were blazing with anger. "Because I love you, Damon."
Damon froze, and for a second it was like the whole world had stopped.
"I love you, Damon," Elena repeated, reaching up and resting her arms around his neck.
"And I love you too, Elena." He leaned down and kissed her. She kissed him back, feeling his tongue slip across her lips, the taste of her name in his mouth. Suddenly, he pulled back.
"But what you did up there was still very, very stupid."
"Oh, shut up," she smiled, and pulled him in for another kiss.
One chapter left! It probably won't be up for a day or two - I'm going on vacation tomorrow, and my internet connection will be a little spotty. But all cliffhangers are over, and I hope everyone's enjoyed my story! xox
