Title: Causalities Of Accidental Dating

Author: skysamuelle
Author's Note: Betaed by Emmy/martinigirl15, inspired by impishdragon
Rating: PG 13ish

Timeline: Post 'Fool Me Once'

Summary: Extended version of my drabble 'Accidental First Date' that somehow morphed into a real fic. A series of accidental dates between Bonnie Bennett and Damon Salvatore stir feelings of a deeper nature than anyone would have guessed.

III

Marquis de Sade states that the only sure way to a woman's heart is along the path of torment, and as far as Damon Salvatore can tell, the libertine was right. He has tormented females of every species –plain humans, werewolves, witches, fellow vampires- and always with very pleasurable results. Insecure women have jumped for a chance to prove their worth whether he put them down, those strong ones could be drawn in with some flattery, or an open challenge to sway his indifference and they would fold easily, becoming dependent on his attention and very determined not to lose it.

Nothing is better than quality hate sex, right? And anger…anger can open doors for the fiercest among passions.

It's a shame that sometimes, exceptions cannot be avoided.

Damon Salvatore and Bonnie Bennett have no real wish to be involved in each other's lives anymore, quite the contrary.

They simply remind each other of far too many mistakes and too many pains. Yet their existences run in parallel, inevitably connected by other people's interference. His brother is one of her closest friends, for example. Her best friend is his current obsession.

Damon will concede that Bonnie has received her fair share of torment from him, although, for once, most of it was purely unintentional.

Attraction and repulsion, in his experience, have always been two faces of the same coin. He will look at Elena and he will be both enthralled and disgusted by the differences and the similarities between her and Katherine. He will feel both sympathy and resentment for the girl's devotion to his brother …and he will both admire and hate Katherine for having played him so well

Authentic feelings are rarely pure or simple. To him, at least.

This is why the straightforwardness of his interactions with Bonnie puzzles him, more often than not. He has been the guardian of her family for generations, and this pushes him to feel like he has some sort of ownership right to her. He watches her, waiting to witness her fall from grace, because adjectives like 'beautiful' and 'powerful' rarely match to 'naïve' and 'kind' for very long. She is pure and good, so it feels real when she pulls away from him. Bonnie' s dislike makes more sense than Elena's understanding, so it's natural he feels a tiny bit of attraction for the witch.

He likes that she recognizes him for what he is, it amuses him that she is so loyal and adamantly fair and caring to people who don't always deserve it (nullities like Tyler Lockwood, Caroline and Mutt come to mind).

Damon likes Bonnie because he has reasons to, and she dislikes him because she has reasons not to. Simple. Natural. Obvious. So why would he mind this status quo?

Most days, the status quo keeps him on his toes and procures occasions for verbal sparring he appreciates, but few others…

Well, there are situations where it's downright inconvenient that his little witch hates his guts.

Like when they are stuck at the same table, side to side, for dinner. Thanksgiving dinner, to be precise, and he is just there to run interference between Elena and Stefan. All his clever manipulation of Jenna to score an invitation, and he gets to sit at the opposite side of the table from his intended targets, between good old Sheriff Forbes and Bonnie, Matt's mother (who loathes him violently since he ended that meaningless fling of theirs) right in front of him.

'I know you hate me'- he tugs at her mind telepathically, asking for attention- 'But this is just cruel.'

She keeps eating and nods at something insignificant Caroline has just giggled, ignoring him for a long moment before answering in kind.

To her credit, Bonnie doesn't even try to deny she interfered with seating arrangements.

'Please. Am I supposed to feel sorry for you? You walked straight into this one. '

'So? Get a life. Aren't you tired of playing overprotective handmaiden to the fair Elena?'

'Elena and Stefan are my friends. I'm not letting you ruin this for them. '

'Has it occurred to you that if Elena didn't want me here, all she had to do was ask me not to come? '

He has a point here, and that gains him a rather pensive pause in their silent conversation. He can feel the tension running along the temporary link they have created between their minds, and that suggests to him that she is not ready to let the matter rest just yet.

'You and Elena'-Bonnie admits, more subdued- 'have in common this conviction that you can have anything and everything you can possibly desire. It doesn't work like that in real life. Nobody can have it all, no strings attached. When it comes to the real choice, you know she will take Stefan just as well anyone who has ever seen them together once knows it. You know it, and I think it's why you hold onto the chase so much. '

There's a quality to her mind's voice that is nearly… gentle, when it should have been hard. It shouldn't surprise him, because Bonnie Bennett is not the type to kick the enemy when he's down. Her recalcitrant sympathy is offensive in itself, but it's her opinion of his intentions that bothers him the most. For whatever reason, he is miffed that the little witch refuses to take him seriously, and thinks he is merely playing around pointlessly with her friend .

'I do want Elena.'

'I believe that. But I also believe that it's easier for someone like you to want someone you cannot ever truly have.'

His jaw clenches hard at that 'someone like you' delivered with something that tastes like fucking pity. He won't defend himself before a measly, lowly human girl.

Plus, the turn this mental chat is taking is far, far less entertaining than he had planned for in the beginning.

Serious conversations are so annoying and boring, especially when he doesn't have the upper hand.

'If you must talk nonsense to me, do it out loud. The Sheriff is looking weirdly at me. '

When the link between their minds snaps shut, he doesn't expect that Bonnie would be so collaborative to indulge his request. But before he can open his mouth to flatter dear Elizabeth Forbes, the brunette turns toward him and offers a random comment on Jenna's stuffed turkey.

He pretends he doesn't appreciate it and concentrates on how much prettier her chocolate locks look when they are stylishly curled and pulled up like that, to frame the caramel curve of her neck. He imagines, for a few seconds, that he could just grab her and run his fangs along that lovely arc. To nip at that soft, inviting skin before sinking his teeth in.

Damon kind of regrets that the first and only time he had tasted her, it had been in anger.