Hey. I can't believe I'm on Chapter 5 already. Trying to write Damon in character is exhausting, so I really hope I get him at least somewhat right. How are you all coping with the break until season 2? I know it's killing me! I've been watching reruns every Thursday night (Oh, the Evil Damon. I hate when they lock him up! It made him cranky. Not wise) and I've been going back through my DVR every day to watch parts of the latest episodes to get my Daily Dose of Damon. Ridiculous, isn't it? Oh well, it can't be helped. No use in trying to find a cure. September just seems so far away! Okay enough of my delirious rambling; off we go! Hope you like it!
Chapter 5: Beautiful Distraction
"You mind telling me where we're going?" Elena snapped, scowling as Damon led her by the wrist out the front door of the boarding house and over to his car.
"The merry old land of Oz, if you must know!" he replied in an exasperated tone. "Because I'm just in the mood for making a couple of munchkins into a mid-afternoon snack. Seriously, Elena? We're just going over to your house to get you some fresh clothes and pack you a suitcase. Considering that you plan on staying here during your boyfriend's…convalescence, I would imagine that you don't want to wear that same outfit for the next several days."
"Ok, fine. You're right. I don't," she grudgingly conceded. "But will Stefan be ok if we just leave him here? What if he wakes up and he's hungry or something, we can't just leave him hanging! I -"
Damon let out a weary sigh. "He won't be up anytime in the next twelve hours, Elena. There's no way he'll realize we're even gone. Don't worry your pretty little head about it. He'll be fine. Now get in the car. The sooner we leave, the sooner we'll be back. Okay?" He squeezed her wrist lightly before releasing it and walking around the front of the car to the driver's side. His words reassured her and she sank down into the old blue car, carefully closing the door so that she could avoid another overprotective lecture about the antique from Damon. Men and their cars, she mused, shaking her head to herself.
The two of them crept quietly upstairs, not wanting to submit to questioning about the past few days from Jenna. Trying to explain what was going on would only end in a garbled mess, and Elena was aware that her aunt wasn't particularly fond of Damon. She closed the door to her room behind them and turned to see Damon reclining against her headboard, fiddling with the teddy bear he seemed to always end up with every time he came to her room. She realized the irony of the situation and almost laughed; a dark, mysterious, and incredibly powerful vampire was sitting on her bed playing with a worn little teddy bear leftover from her childhood. He noticed a small smile tugging at one corner of her mouth and couldn't help smiling faintly himself; he hated to see her turning into the brooding, pensive, gloom-and-doom soul that was so similar to Stefan. It was really starting to take its toll on her, and he couldn't stand for her being so glum all the time.
Elena crouched below him at the side of the bed and pulled out a navy blue suitcase. She unzipped it and made several trips back and forth between it and her closet, dumping the first things she saw haphazardly into the suitcase. She blushed as she reached into her drawer to grab a handful of bras and underwear, avoiding Damon's eyes as she quickly deposited them into her bag and zipped it shut. She could feel his gaze on her, and she knew he was smirking, relishing her embarrassment. She hurried into the bathroom and grabbed her makeup bag, a toothbrush, a comb and a few other necessities and tucked them into a travel case. She reappeared in her doorway and tilted her head back over her shoulder, motioning for Damon to follow her back out to the car. She reached for the suitcase handle, but he beat her to it and lifted it easily off the bed, ushering her out the door.
After successfully exiting the house unnoticed, they dumped her bags in the trunk of the car and piled in. Elena noticed that the sun had finally come back out and just as Damon turned the key in the ignition, she blurted out the idea that had just crossed through her mind.
"Damon, can we put the top down? I could really use some fresh air, if it's okay with you." She glanced up at him hopefully, and he knew he couldn't refuse.
"Your wish, my command." He pressed a small red button on his left hand side and the black soft top slowly began to fold back on itself, settling in behind the passenger seat of the car.
The car was suddenly bathed in warm golden sunshine; Elena's worried mood vanished almost immediately. She leaned back in her seat and grinned, stretching like a cat. "Thanks," she turned to him and whispered, unable to wipe away the sloppy grin spreading across her face.
Unable to keep from returning the smile, he met her eyes and assured her "Anytime." He reached his arm around her and rested it on her relaxed shoulders, driving with one hand draped lazily over the wheel. Elena couldn't help but notice that when the sunlight hit Damon's eyes, they became an achingly beautiful iridescent shade of glassy blue. They were, she had to admit, breathtaking. It was moments like these, when her hair fluttered in the wind as she leaned back to soak up the sun while Damon laughed at her, that she was sure there was some part of Damon that was truly good. He wasn't the monster he pretended to be and that everyone thought he was; he was just a man who got his heart broken and didn't want to get hurt again. He covered it up by a wicked and reckless lifestyle, one that she knew he didn't really believe in deep down. Now, when his barriers were down, he was just what she needed to get away from the out-of-control whirlwind that was her life at the moment. He helped her to really live for the first time in she didn't know how long; he had a certain knack for taking her mind off of things. Elena smiled as she watched the world blur past, feeling Damon's eyes on her. All thoughts of Stefan evaporated from her mind momentarily, and she realized she could get used to this.
"Damon?"
"Mhm?" he raised his eyebrows expectantly, his eyes once again catching perfectly in the light as a half-smile graced his lips.
"You're not the worst company in the world, you know."
As Elena stepped over the threshold into the boarding house, her mind clouded over with concern once again. Dropping her bag right inside the door, she quickly made her way straight down to the cellar and half-ran to peek through the bars on the door to see if Stefan was up. Her heart sank a little when she realized he was still out cold. If Damon was right, he still had around eight hours to go. Vowing to stay up long enough to catch him awake, she mumbled a soft "See you in a little while, Stefan," and turned to go, dragging her feet slowly up the narrow staircase. She pushed the door open and took a step forward, but was suddenly inches away from a tall black figure. She cleared her throat, trying to cover up how startled she was, and tilted her head up.
"Damon, aren't you getting tired of always doing that? It doesn't bother me anymore, so there's really no use."
He rolled his eyes, not believing her one bit. "Oh, come on, Elena. You know you like it. Most women find me hard to resist from this standpoint." His lips curled upward maliciously, his eyes wickedly flashing at her.
Elena snorted, slapping Damon on the shoulder. "Well don't count on it. Most women don't have a boyfriend like Stefan to go home to. I'm lucky." She turned her back to him and went to retrieve her bag, knowing he was just trying to get a reaction out of her. Damon's jaw clenched for the tiniest second, but he quickly relaxed it.
"Ah, yes, the magnificent Saint Stefan. Nothing like a loving boyfriend who comes home to mangle you and have you for dinner every night. Can't beat that!" Damon knew he was being a little insensitive, but he was sick and tired of being compared to his brother. His younger brother, for Christ's sake! Because Stefan is just undead proof that a healthy diet of squirrels and bunnies is the key to a happy existence, Damon thought sarcastically. He made his way over to the bottle of scotch, snatching it up in one hand and taking a swig.
Elena balled her fists in frustration and stomped over to stand directly in front of Damon. "You're such a hypocrite! What you just described is exactly what you did to Caroline back when school started! To make it worse, you were completely in control of yourself when you did it, too!"
Damon took another swig and swallowed, holding up a finger. "See there, my dear Elena, is where you've got it wrong. I said loving boyfriend. When was I ever one of those?" When I was with Katherine, he thought. And we all know how THAT ended. Wretched creature couldn't be bothered to return the sentiment.
"Well at least Stefan has a heart, even if it doesn't beat!" Elena spat back at him, her eyes burning with anger.
Damon took a step back, slightly stunned. His eyes conveyed deep hurt briefly before he transformed his face into a cool, detached mask. Those words cut him like a knife; and she knew it. Elena's lower lip quivered; she didn't mean those words at all, she had just wanted to get back at him for his saying the ugly truth about Stefan out loud. He had put into words what she didn't want to admit to herself. Lashing out at him was completely unintended, and she was riddled with guilt. Damon had taken such good care of her when Stefan was flying off the handle, and he had let his guard down, trusting her. With penitent eyes, she quietly walked over to him and plied the scotch bottle from his hands, setting it down on the coffee table behind her. She stood so that she was inches from him and stared into his icy eyes, watching them soften under her gaze.
"I'm sorry," she said earnestly, and something in her voice told him she really meant it. "I didn't mean what I said at all. I'm just so tired and anxious I don't think about a word that comes out of my mouth. I have no right to be mean…and you, the past few days, you've been, you know…really helpful, and…" she trailed off, her rambling coming to a standstill and she saw such complete vulnerability in his eyes. She suddenly wrapped her arms around his shoulders and hugged him, turning her head to the side as she rested it just under his chin. She clung to him for what seemed like the longest time before looking back up at him beseechingly, hoping he forgave her. He nodded, silently communicating to her that it was alright. She rested her head back under his neck and he curled his arms around her back, gently rubbing it before reluctantly breaking the embrace, a glint returning to his eyes.
"After all, I have been called worse," he claimed, shrugging. "Some crazy chick seemed to think I was a…what was it? A 'self-serving psychopath with no redeeming qualities'? She must have been off her rocker." He smirked.
Elena couldn't help cracking a smile, playfully shoving his shoulder and rolling her eyes.
"Hey, you must be getting hungry. How about I call in some Chinese takeout? My treat." He winked and waggled his eyebrows wickedly.
She opened her mouth to protest, but her stomach suddenly let out a very long, deafening growl. Damon raised his eyebrows at her mockingly, and she blushed six shades of pink, sheepishly changing her answer to "Sounds good to me."
Ok so this is pretty much just a filler chapter, but I needed a chance to develop the relationship between Damon and Elena. Yes, I know, Elena is still being loyal to Stefan (ughh), but have no fear, she has feelings for Damon that she doesn't even know about yet. I hope I didn't bore you! Next chapter the story will definitely start rolling more, because I have to wake up Stefan (what joy is mine). So, as you can hopefully tell, this chapter was just for lighting the Delena fuse. Please please share your thoughts and REVIEW! I read every single comment and it's often the highlight of my day. Let me know what you would like to happen. Sorry this wasn't longer Thanks for staying with me and I love you guys! Feedback is love