DAMON'S P.O.V.
I watched Elena sleep from where I sat at the end of the guest bed. I didn't want to leave her here alone in the dark, but I needed to sleep and I wasn't about to crawl in next to her when she was already hurting enough as it was. I hoped she wouldn't wake in the middle of the night. I caressed her cheek with a gentle finger, not wanting this moment to end where I was the one who had brought her home.
ELENA'S P.O.V.
"Goodnight Elena." I could feel Damon's lips press ever so gently against my hot cheek. "Sweet dreams." I could feel him linger next to me for a moment before the light of the hallway disappeared and I was left with the imprint of light against the infinite darkness. As soon as Damon left the room, I curled into a ball, tears already beginning to release themselves. I couldn't help feeling empty. All I wanted was to be in Damon's arms. No, wait, it was Stefan I wanted. Wasn't it? I didn't know anymore, but knowing Damon was right down the hall was a comfort; that is until the eerie loneliness of being in the dark brought on a panic attack. Without another thought, I stumbled into the hallway and crept down the hallway to stand outside of Damon's door. I was cold and scared standing there alone, but I wasn't sure what to do. Do I go in? I hadn't been invited in so it would be rude of me to barge in. I finally decided on knocking. I wrapped lightly on his oak door four times, then waited. I wasn't prepared for what I would see when the door was actually opened.
"Damon…" His name escaped my lips as I took in his shirtless upper body and the way his flannel pajama pants hung low so I could see the way legs and groin area made a chiseled V.
"Didn't anyone teach you it's rude to stare?" A smirk played across Damon's lips. "Or I should say it's rude to gawk."
DAMON'S P.O.V.
Elena stood in front of me, appearing to want access into my bedroom. "Umm…" She stood there, awkwardly shifting on her feet.
"Come in, Elena." I shifted aside so she could enter without brushing against me. She eased her way in, never having been in my room before.
"It's.. warm in here." She said, sounding surprised.
"Were you expecting a morbid coffin and blood spattered wall scene?" I chortled.
"Agh.. No?" The embarrassed look on her face was priceless.
"So what did you come for?" Elena couldn't possibly have come to tell me what I wanted to hear. She couldn't have come for me.
"I was scared…" I took note that she wouldn't meet my gaze.
I raised my eyebrows. "Of?"
"I don't know…" She sounded like a child, but it only made me want to scoop her up in my arms and protect her all the more. When she finally looked up at me, there were tears brimming in her chocolate brown eyes.
"Oh Elena," I reached out and pulled her in close. "It's ok. Shh." My feeble attempt at soothing her seemed to be working, because her sobs turned into hiccups that made her body jump in vibration against mine.
"Thank you, Damon." Her voice was muffled into my bare chest, but I heard her loud and clear. Instead of replying, I simply kept rubbing her back. I thought she would have slackened her grip on my back, but she didn't; instead her hold on me tightened and it sent an intimate high throughout my body. I bent down to pick her up, but hesitated when my fingers touched her legs. "It's ok." She assured me what I was doing was alright. She held onto my neck while I picked her up and set her on my bed. She nodded at me and I quietly shut the door to my bedroom; everything was going to be ok. We were going to be ok.