Chapter 21
Jessenia had no idea how long she'd been in here, but with every minute that ticked by, she was growing weaker. She currently sat up against the wall, covered from head to toe in dirt, her face tear streaked. Nightfall had come again and Jessenia was having a hard time staying awake, the pain in her stomach fading since she was used to it.
Her body was incredibly dehydrated and the only air she could get was from the barred door, which wasn't that much. With how hot it'd been lately, the heat was almost suffocating, the night providing only a little amount of relief. Jessenia had searched high and low for any way out of here, not finding any and finally just gave up, hoping somebody found her soon. Closing her eyes, Jessenia lead her head lull to the side, breathing in and out slowly, all of her strength gone.
"Are we almost there yet?" Caroline groaned, hating that she decided to wear heels today of all days.
"I don't know the exact location, it has to be around here somewhere." Bonnie stated evenly, keeping her eyes peeled and wished there was an easier spell to find someone.
"JESSENIA!" Alaric called out, forcing Meredith to stay in the car, but of course the woman was stubborn and had followed anyway.
"Jesse!" Elena called out next, flying from one side of the cemetery to the other along with Caroline, trying to cover as much ground in the cemetery as possible.
"We have to find her." Meredith was getting really worried, a slight panic setting in. "Ric, she's gotta be here somewhere."
"I know Mer, we'll find her." Alaric assured her, calling out Jessenia's name again, this time louder.
"She's a strong girl, she won't give up." Matt said confidently, walking beside them since the rest of his friends were vampires.
"I wish Stefan and Damon were here because they would know these grounds." Elena grunted, wondering if it was in the far back of the cemetery, but they had to check everywhere instead of jumping around.
Damon pulled up to the cemetery and didn't even bother cutting the ignition, jumping out and catching up with the group in no time. "Where is she?" He demanded, causing Meredith to jump out of her skin.
"She's in an old crypt somewhere in the cemetery." Bonnie answered, watching impassively as Elena rushed to Stefan's side, who didn't look too worse for the wear.
"That bitch…" Damon hissed and didn't wait for anyone to follow him, racing straight to the one of the crypts he was familiar with.
"JESSENIA!"
Her eyes slowly opened and Jessenia could've sworn she heard her name being called, coughing a little from having a desert dry throat. "Hello?" She whispered out as loud as she could, the tears instantly falling because nobody would be able to hear her.
"SENIA!"
She heard it that time. Jessenia knew that voice anywhere and there was only one person on the planet who ever called her that before. Pushing herself on her knees, Jessenia couldn't walk because of how weak she was, but she was able to crawl on her hands and knees, coughing as some dirt went up her nose.
"Here!" She rasped out in another whisper, hitting the ground in frustration and started crying. "Damon!"
Thanks to his incredible hearing ability, Damon heard that whispering and followed it, stopping at the sight of the crypt before him. "Jessenia!" He shouted, rushing down the steps and stopped at the barred door. "SHE'S OVER HERE!" He roared, seeing her face down on the concrete floor and ripped the iron door right off its hinges.
"D-Damon…" Jessenia breathed out shakily and felt her body being lifted, her head resting against a rock hard chest.
"I'm here, Senia. I got you." He whispered, walking out of the crypt and up the stairs, the cool night air rushing over them.
Elena, Caroline and Stefan arrived with Matt, Alaric and Meredith following, everyone moving as fast as they could, stopping at the sight of Damon with Jessenia in his arms. Elena buried her face in Stefan's chest while Alaric held Meredith close, Caroline and Bonnie openly crying with relief that they hadn't been too late. Damon didn't take his eyes off of Jessenia for a second, pushing her matted hair out of her face and even through the dirt, she was still the most beautiful woman he ever saw.
"Jess!" Meredith broke away from Alaric to go check on her cousin, holding her limp hand as more tears fell. "Damon, she needs medical attention immediately."
"No she doesn't."
"But…"
Damon gently laid Jessenia in the soft grass and bit into his wrist, ignoring everyone and held it up to her mouth, urging her to drink his blood. It would heal her instantly and that included hydration. Meredith didn't discourage him because she cheated with medicine by using vampire blood to heal patients, hating death. Alaric held her close while Damon worked on Jessenia, watching as the girl slowly began sucking on Damon's wrist.
"There you go, that's it." Damon crooned, running his fingers through her hair while she drank from him, slowly pulling back when he was sure she had enough in her system. "Screw the hospital, she'll be fine."
A few minutes later, Jessenia slowly opened her eyes and felt refreshed, her body no longer aching with pain. "Damon?" She slowly reached up to grab his arm, making sure he wasn't a mirage and felt more tears fall.
"Welcome back." He murmured, grabbing her hand and slowly pulled her to her feet, keeping an arm around her waist in case she wasn't fully healed yet.
"Jess." Meredith wrapped her arms tightly around her cousin's neck, squeezing. "I'm so glad you're okay!"
"So am I." She whispered, patting Meredith's back gently and looked at the other people that were there, smiling tearfully at all of them. "Thank you." It was all Jessenia could say, not able to think straight right now.
Damon started walking away back to his car when he felt Jessenia grab his hand, turning to stare down at her. So much had happened between them. He wouldn't blame her for not wanting anything to do with him, even if he did save her life. Prepared to hear anything she had to say, Damon stayed silent, the relief still coursing through him that she was alive.
"Please don't leave." Jessenia whispered, her bottom lip trembling. "If you don't want to be with me, I get it, but we can still be friends."
Damon sighed, reaching out to cup her face tenderly in his hand and could feel Elena's eyes boring into him. "I can't be your friend, Senia."
Jessenia's heart broke all over again, her eyes filling with hot tears and released his hand. "I understand…" She started walking away from him, heading back to Meredith's side, still drained.
Suddenly, Damon pulled her into his arms, not understanding what it was about this woman that mesmerized him. "Damn it." He whispered, pressing his forehead against hers and could feel the tremors rush through her body. "I want so much more with you than just friendship, Senia."
"You do?"
Damon nodded, lowering his face to hers and kissed her breathlessly, holding her tight against him. "What does that tell you?" He whispered once the kiss broke, seeing the biggest smile cross her face and kissed her again, this time lifting her in his arms, Jessenia's legs wrapping around his waist. "Wanna get out of here?"
"Yes, I need a shower and I still owe you three hours." Jessenia replied, hoping Meredith condoned this because all she wanted was to be with Damon.
"Yes you do." He turned to where they were facing everyone, a smirk on his lips. "Hope you don't mind if I steal her away for the night, Meredith. We have a lot of talking to do."
Meredith simply smiled, shaking her head. "Whatever Jess wants." She leaned against Alaric, suddenly drained from the day's events. "See you tomorrow, be safe."
"I will."
Jessenia held onto Damon as he flew to his car, setting her in the passenger seat while he walked over to slip behind the wheel, their hands instantly clasping together. She scooted across the leather seat to lean against him, wanting to be as close to Damon as possible. The whole time she was in that crypt captured, all Jessenia could think about was being back in his arms.
Once they got back to the house, Damon guided Jessenia straight to his personal bathroom, grabbing a towel on the way. He reached in to turn the sprays on, getting it to a decent temperature before turning to face her. Jessenia was staring in the huge mirror and slowly running her fingertips over her cheek where she'd cut it on a rock. Damon's blood had healed her completely, though now all Jessenia really felt was grimy, in desperate need of cleansing.
"I'll leave you to it." Damon began walking out, only to be stopped by her soft hand grabbing his again. "I'm not going anywhere, Senia."
"Don't leave." She pleaded, pulling him toward the shower and released his hand long enough to remove her top, tossing it to the side. "Join me please."
Raising a black brow, Damon wondered if she was serious and smiled when he saw absolutely no hesitation in her eyes. Reaching back, Damon pulled his short sleeve black shirt off, tossing it on top of hers in the corner. Jessenia removed her shoes, socks, bra, jeans, panties and while Damon removed his jeans, always going commando along with his socks and shoes. Together, they entered the shower and the sprays instantly washed over both of them, Damon instantly taking Jessenia in his arms as their lips met again.
Jessenia ran her hands up to cup Damon's face, her fingers moving to grip his black hair and felt her back suddenly hit the shower wall. Lifting her up with ease, Damon kept her there right under the sprays as he continued massaging her lips with his, moving down her throat. He had no desire to puncture her beautiful skin to taste her, having gotten his fill earlier on with Kassandra.
Thankfully, a few of the vampires in the area had come to take care of the women and bodies for the Salvatore brothers while they went on their quest to save Jessenia. Damon had paid them well to do it, not wanting any bodies strewn all over when he brought Jessenia back to his house. Senior in high school or not, she was the love of his life and he wasn't letting her go again without a fight.
Jessenia moaned softly, every part of her melting against him and didn't push him away because she wanted this. More than anything, she wanted Damon to be the one who finally took her innocence. Being a vampire, there was no need to worry about using protection, which was another perk being with him since Jessenia never wanted children. In fact, she hoped that sooner or later after graduating high school Damon would change her into a vampire, wanting to be with him for all eternity.
"I love you, Damon." Jessenia whispered just as he penetrated her.
Holding on for with everything she could, Jessenia bit back a cry of pain when he completely broke through her barrier. Damon nearly lost his breath at the tight feeling that surrounded him, burying his face in her neck, trying to gain control. The veins were already popping out in his face, his sclera's changing to red and fangs slipping out. He couldn't pull away now and felt Jessenia lift his face as their eyes met, her fingers running over the veins in his face.
"Don't stop." She pleaded, kissing each vein with every thrust he produced inside of her body before finally capturing his lips in a passionate kiss.
"I love you, Senia."
Three times was his absolute limit to say those words to a woman, so if this failed with Jessenia, Damon was done. He would stake himself because he didn't know if he could cope with a third heartbreak. Katherine and Elena had really put him through the ringer, he hoped Jessenia wanted him completely the way he wanted her.
~!~
"You look absolutely breathtaking, Jesse." Elena crowed happily, ready for the homecoming dance as she curled the final strands of Jessenia's hair.
"Thanks." She just hoped Damon was satisfied with how she looked, feeling like herself again after a week and a half of recuperating at the Salvatore house.
"Damon is not going to be able to take his eyes off of you." Caroline assured her, her blonde locks piled up on top of her head in what looked like a crown of gold.
"Neither are Tyler and Stefan for that matter." Jessenia winked at the girls and stood up when Elena finished with her hair, walking over to look in the full length mirror. "Wow."
Her hair was half up and half down with a small bulge in the back that had a sapphire accessory embedded. The rest of her hair had loose banana curls throughout it, hanging down her back and over her bare shoulders. She didn't have gloves on like Elena and Caroline, preferring to just stay simple as possible.
Her makeup was sapphire eyeliner with natural eye shadow and clear gloss on her lips, foundation to hide any blemishes. To finish off Elena and Caroline's masterpiece, Jessenia wore a beautiful gold sapphire necklace, the stones going all the way around and clipped in the back along with a matching bracelet and studded earrings. She was definitely going to blow Damon away, there was no doubt about that.
Walking out of Elena's bedroom, Jessenia slowly took a deep breath before descending the stairs and smiled when her eyes locked on Damon, who was waiting for her. He looked so amazing in his dark blue long sleeved shirt with the sleeves rolled up, no tie, with black dress pants, shoes and his jacket was draped over his arm. Damon had to learn how to breathe again, even though he was technically dead, at the sight of his gorgeous girlfriend.
Katherine had nothing on her.
"You look exquisite." He stated, extending his hand and smiled when she took it, pressing a soft kiss to the back of it. "Truly stunning."
Jessenia blushed, her cheeks turning a deep rosy red and kissed Damon softly, not caring if she smeared her gloss. "You don't look so bad yourself." She commented, both of them heading out of the house while Stefan followed suit with Elena, Tyler with Caroline.
Once at the dance, Damon guided Jessenia to the dance floor and began dancing, his eyes only for her. "You do realize I'm a hard man to love, right?" He asked, pressing his forehead to hers, never wanting to let her go. "It hurts to be loved by me at times."
"Let it hurt then." Jessenia simply replied, feeling Damon twirl her around before dipping her, kissing him softly. "I'm ready for anything."
The End.