Bonnie and I were setting up for the car wash that was supposed to raise money for our school. I was in a bikini, that Elena had practically forced on me, but I was wearing a large tee shirt over it to hide my body from my neck down to my knees. It was one of Damon's tee shirts.
"Bonnie, there is something I need to tell you," I said.
"What is it?" She asked.
"Remember the night Vicky died?" I asked. I had told her about Vicky being a vampire, and Elena, Bonnie, and I had all sat down to talk about vampires and witches. The three of us were in a new understanding now.
"Yea," Bonnie said.
"Damon thinks there are more vampires in Mystic Falls trying to open the Tomb," I said.
"I can talk to Grams and see if she has any ideas," Bonnie said. I nodded. Something in the air felt off, especially when I saw Jeremy and his new girlfriend, Anna.
"She is a vampire," I said pointing her out.
"How can you tell?" Bonnie asked.
"I don't know, ever since Damon has been drinking my blood, I have been experiencing weird feelings and sensations about supernatural things," I said. "I can't really explain it, but I can feel when you are doing magic, I can tell who is a vampire, I know that the werewolf gene runs in Tyler Lockwoods family." I sighed.
"Werewolf gene?" Bonnie asked.
"Yea, werewolves exist," I said. Bonnie shrugged and we continued to get the hoses and soap buckets set up.
"Wait, you said Damon has been drinking your blood?" Bonnie asked suddenly looking flabbergasted.
"He has been for a long time, that is why he hasn't been killing anyone, or attacking anyone," I said. "That is why the Vicky thing was such a mystery."
"That is dangerous," Bonnie said. "He could kill you."
"He won't," I said. It was completely unspoken, but Damon and I were together. I didn't want to call him my boyfriend or say we were dating because, well, that just sounded too petty and childish for what we had.
"He might hurt you," Bonnie said.
"It doesn't hurt at all," I said.
"That's not what I meant, I meant he might hurt your heart," She said.
"He really isn't a bad guy," I said. "Just...misunderstood."
"Just be careful," Bonnie said.
"I wish everyone would stop saying that." I said. "I can take care of myself." My words caught in my throat. Could I take care of myself? I hadn't been able to take care of my unborn daughter. All the blood drained from my face, I could feel it.
"Rora, are you okay?" Bonnie asked. I didn't really hear her. "Rora? Aurora! Someone, help!" Bonnie was shouting. My vision blurred and everything went black.
"She is waking up," I heard Elena's voice say.
"She took a good tumble," Bonnie said. I opened my eyes but still couldn't see clearly.
"Rora, are you all right?" Stefan's voice asked.
"Where is Damon?" I asked.
"Here," I heard his voice. I say him in the door way.
"Where am I?" I asked.
"The hospital," Bonnie said.
"Why? What have you all done to me?" I asked, panicking.
"No one has done anything," Elena said.
I sat up, trying to get out of the hospital bed.
"Let me out, I can't be here!" I said, but Stefan and Elena held me down.
"Aurora, you passed out, you have to relax, the doctors are running test now," Stefan said calmly
"Tests, what kind of tests?" I asked. "No, let go of me, I need to get out of here!"
"What is wrong, Rora?" Elena asked.
"They will do it to me again, they will take her away!" I was frantic. Damon walked forward and helped me out of the bed.
"What are you doing?" Stefan asked.
"Can't you hear her heart?" Damon asked. "If she gets any more worked up she could give herself a heart attack," He said scooping me into his arms and beginning to walk out of the hospital.
"Where are you taking her?" A nurse asked.
"Aurora Gilbert is fine, you are releasing her into my care," Damon said, his pupils growing and shrinking.
"You are free to go," The nurse said. I felt Stefan, Elena, and Bonnie all rushing to catch up to me. Damon helped me into his car and sped me to the boarding house. From there he carried me into his room and put me on his bed. I was still panicking, but I had calmed down immensely.
"Thank you," I said weakly as Damon handed me a glass of water.
"You know I would never let anything happen to you against your will," Damon said.
"I know, I just...I haven't been to a doctor or hospital since what happened, and I was thinking about it right before I blacked out," I said.
"Do you know why you blacked out?" Damon asked.
"No," I said. "I saw Jeremy's new vampire girlfriend, Anna, just before I did though.
"Anna?" Damon asked, the name seemed to spark some regognition.
"She's here to open the tomb, isn't she?" I asked.
"Yes," Damon said. I swallowed hard. "Get some rest, you are still weak. I snuggled down into the fluffy mattress and silk sheets. I imagined that Damon had entertained many women in this bed, and I sighed before drifting to sleep.
"You shouldn't have taken her away like that," Stefan's voice was saying quietly.
"She was having a panic attack," Damon said.
"What if the doctors had found something that she needed to remain in the hospital for?" Elena asked.
"There is nothing wrong with her," Damon said.
"Why was she freaking out, what did she mean that they'll take her away?" Stefan asked. It was more of a thought.
"I don't know," Elena said. Damon didn't say anything.
"You know?" Elena asked. "Tell us."
"If she hasn't told you she doesn't think you need to know, I'm not going to betray her trust," Damon said. I smiled to myself and opened my eyes.
"Lena, you can stop worrying, I am all right," I said.
"Rora, what secrets have you been keeping?" She asked.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"The doctor said that your blood work reflected some complications with a procedure that you had recently," Elena said.
"My parents forced me to get an abortion a week before I came here," I said with a heavy sigh.
"What?" Elena asked. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"I wasn't ready to talk about it," I said. "My daughter was killed inside of me and I had no choice or way of preventing it."
"Oh my gosh, I am so sorry," Elena said hugging me.
"We will let you get some rest," Stefan said motioning for Elena to follow him. I gave a small wave and then lay back down on the pillows. Damon moved to the bedside and sat next to me. I rested my head in his lap, and he stroked my hair.
"You scared me today," Damon said.
"I did no such thing," I said.
"When Bonnie called me and said you'd been rushed to the ER, yes, I was scared," Damon said.
"I'm fine though," I said. "All procedures have complications."
"Forcing you to do that, you might never be able to have kids again," Damon said.
"I don't know if I'd have them anyway," I said.
"Why not?" Damon asked. "You are far too maternal not to have kids."
"I thought vampires couldn't conceive children." I said.
"You're not a vampire," Damon said.
"You are," I said. Silence descended upon the room. I had never thought that Damon had not considered being with me in a sexual way, or for long term, but now I did, as the silence between us grew.
"I'm sorry, I thought..." I trailed off hearing Damon saying, "I didn't know you considered..."
"Considered what?" I asked, my heart clenching and unclenching. Was this when he told me he didn't know that I had considered us a couple?
"I just thought that with what happened in your past, you wouldn't want that kind of relationship," He said.
"Damon, I care about you, I care about you in a way that scares me and sometimes makes me uncomfortable, and no, I don't think I'm ready for a truly intimate relationship, but I think I will be," I said. Damon's lips curved into a subtle smile.
I licked my lips and looked at Damon from under my eyelashes.
"Don't do that," He said.
"Do what?" I asked.
"Look at me like that," He said.
"Why?" I asked.
"Because it makes it difficult for me not to seduce you now," He said.
"What makes you so sure you'd be able to seduce me?" I asked. Damon grinned as if accepting a challenge. He reached forward and touched my cheek. The blood immediately rushed into my face. From there he traced his finger down my throat and to the neck line of my hospital gown. I shivered, not from cold but from longing.
He leaned close to me, his lips brushing mine, and then he pulled back, whispering one word.
"Sleep," It was practically an order.