Do what we can, summer will have its flies.

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Jenna swung the door open hastily still wearing her pajamas. It was 1:00 in the morning and someone had been knocking on the door for the last ten minutes. Usually in this situation, Elena would be the only one who actually got up and answered the door or the phone, but since then, Jenna had been giving Jeremy a break and allowing him to sleep.

"What?" she mumbled, before even looking up. "Damon?" She scrunched her eyes due to the automatic porch lights.

"Hello Jenna." Damon greeted, and it didn't seem like he had been drinking.

"What do you want? It's one in the morning." She asked, her eye lids barely open.

"Is Elena around?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. Jenna moved aside and motioned for him to enter the house. He did, and Jenna guided him into the kitchen, where she poured them both a glass of water. "I know it's late," he continued, sipping from the glass. "But I really need to see her." Jenna sighed.

"She's gone Damon."

"What?" he asked, placing his cup on the counter not that gently.

"She left town, and she's not coming back until school starts again. Look, I figured she told you when she left and I'm sorry you didn't catch her, but you have to give up Damon." Jenna shrugged. "I've heard about everything from everyone. It's a small town, gossip spreads but you have to face the facts. She left because of you. I don't know the nature of your relationship but she was a mess when I found her the other day and she was cursing your name all night long." Jenna saw the slight pain in his eyes. Elena didn't need this boy, who was almost her age, chasing after her teenage niece.

Damon didn't really know what to say. He rubbed his face and sighed. "Where is she?" he finally asked.

"Gone, and she doesn't want to be found." Jenna said, watching Damon nod and leave the house. She knew that boy wasn't satisfied yet, and Damon would keep prodding until he got what he wanted. Because he was stubborn and in love.

After a very long night, Elena rolled over on her bed to meet Sam's eyes. After the party, Sam had locked up the house and walked her home. Nothing happened of course, they talked for a bit then fell asleep watching T.V on her bed. Sam squinted at the light that shone through the windows and he pulled the blanket over his head, groaning. Elena giggled and rolled over. She was only wearing panties and a sweater, but she wasn't afraid of anything happening with Sam. Although she'd just met him, she'd realized that maybe there were a few nice guys and maybe she just needed to find one. She was sick of Matt, and Stefan and Tyler and him. She just needed a nice boy, whether it be Sam, or someone else.

"Come on, lazy ass." Elena pushed at his covered body. "Get up and let me make you some breakfast."

She ended up making him chocolate chip pancakes and lemonade.

"So, what are we going to do today?" Sam asked, and she turned to face him with a smirk on her face.

"Well, it's not like there's anywhere around here to go. Want to just stay in? Maybe jump in the lake later tonight?" Elena offered, and Sam nodded, tossing her a pancake, which she caught skillfully and deposited into her mouth.

"Jeremy." Damon greeted, taking the seat across from the younger boy at a booth in the Mystic Grill.

"What do you want, Damon?" He asked, looking up from the sketch pad that he had been drawing on.

"Why do you assume that I want something?" Damon asked, taking a sip from Jeremy's glass of water.

"Because you always do. So, what's up?"

"Where's your sister?" Damon asked, raising an eyebrow. Jeremy gave him a cold look.

"I'm not telling you. Go bang someone your own age." He muttered, getting up to walk away but Damon stood in his path.

"Want to try that again?" He asked, placing one hand on Jeremy's chest.

"She wants to be alone, Damon. Leave her alone." Jeremy sighed. "Look man, I don't know what went on between you and my sister, but she'd done with you. It's over, Damon. I'm sorry." Jeremy said, walking past the older man and out the door. Damon stood there a few seconds later.

"I haven't seen her in a while, where'd the bitch go?" Damon overheard Caroline ask Bonnie, and he moved slightly closer to their table, but out of their line of vision.

"Uh, the Gilbert Lake House. Jeremy said she won't be back until the end of summer. Thank God for that." Bonnie replied sighing. Damon was out the door and in the car before he could hear another word.

"Tell me about him. Damon." Sam asked, looking over at Elena, who sat in a wool sweater and bikini bottoms on the lawn chair beside his.

"I used to date his brother, Stefan." Elena said, grimacing a little. She hadn't seen Stefan around since her and Damon's encounter that one morning, but she sensed that he was still in town. Sometimes she heard people talking about him, but it would always be hushed when she would walk by. Or maybe she was just going crazy. "Damon was always around the house, getting drunk, getting laid. There were always girls all over the house, but I was never afraid of what that influence had on Stefan, because I knew he was only interested in me. Damon is an asshole. He doesn't care about feelings because he made everyone believe he truly had none. I didn't care for him; he was just my boyfriend's older brother." Elena looked up at Sam with a hint of hurt in her eyes. He figured all of this was just hard for her to re hatch. "A couple months after Stefan and I broke up, Damon started dating Caroline, who'd been my best friend for ages. I always told her that I'd spent enough time around Damon Salvatore to know that he was bad news. He was a jerk, and always sarcastic, never took things seriously. I told him she wouldn't matter to him, she was just an object. But she continued dating him and they got pretty serious. They were in love. At the beginning of summer, Caroline always forced me to hang out with her and Damon because she wanted to be with me and Damon. My friend Bonnie always refused to be in the same room as Damon, so she would never come with. I guess I knew Damon always had a thing for me, because he was always flirty, and really witty with me, but he never acted on it. Which was weird, because Damon always acts on impulse, it's unethical but then again so is he."

Sam watched her as she described him. Sometimes she would be in her own little world, smiling about something her and Damon had done, or something he'd said. This was one of those girls who didn't fall in love easily, but always ended up with the reformed bad boy. When Elena finally stopped talking she looked over at him curiously.

"What about you, blondie? Who broke your heart?" She asked. But Sam shook his head.

"No, we're not talking about that." He got up and grabbed at her hand. "Let's go swimming." He said, smiling, and she nodded removing her sweater and waiting for him to remove all of his other clothing. She grabbed his hand and they jumped into the lake together. It was getting darker, and they swam around, splashing each other occasionally. Elena jumped on his back to try to sink him, but he whipped her around so that she was in front of his body. She giggled placing her arms around his shoulders. She leaned in but he moved back a bit.

"Elena, what about Damon?" He asked, staring into her eyes and she swore she could melt in the accent.

"What about him?" She whispered back, and her lips crashed on his eagerly.

"Elena?" The two immediately stopped and Elena turned around to look at the figure standing by the lake.

"Damon?" She asked.

Elena quickly pushed away from Sam, and swam a little closer to the shore, then she got out, forgetting about a towel. He was stiff and she could see his jaw was locked as if she'd just slapped him in the face.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, not bothering to look back as Sam, who had gotten out of the lake and moved to behind her.

"I came to get you back, but apparently you've preoccupied yourself with someone else." He shrugged.

"Damon, it's not…"

"What it looks like?" Damon finished the sentence with his voice raised. "Of course not, you were just making out with another guy. It's exactly what it looks like and that's always how it's been with you." He lowered his voice but it was still angry and husky.

"Look man…" Sam started.

"Shut up." Damon interrupted, keeping his eyes on Sam.

"No, Damon, you shut up. Listen to me. We are not together. We never have been. I was sex to you, when Caroline wasn't around you came to me and it was just a fun way to sneak around behind your girlfriend's back. But you don't know me and we never had a connection other then sex. So if you came down here to say that you want to continue to have sex with me, the answer is no. I'm fine where I am and I want to be left alone. I don't need you, or Caroline or Tyler. I have myself and that's enough for me." She let out a much needed breath and Damon looked down at her.

"You done?" He asked, and when she nodded, Damon smirked. "Good." He said, and with a quick motion, his fist connected hard with Sam's jaw and Sam stumbled back in awe.

"What the fuck has gotten into you?" she yelled, one hand reaching to Sam's waist the other trying to swat away his hands so she could see his jaw.

Damon stumbled backwards, frowning in confusion. "I… I'm… I don't know."

Sam winced in pain and Elena forced him to walk, brushing past Damon and to the house where she could get him ice. Sam sat at the kitchen table holding an ice pack to his jaw.

"Ow. That was painful." He said, as she searched around the cabinets for Advil. Elena shrugged and continued searching. "Impulsive."

"Yep, that's Damon for you." She muttered, handing Sam a couple pills and sitting on the chair beside his, turning to face him. "Look, I'm sorry you got caught in the crossfire. Damon's impulsive, he does what he wants and doesn't care who he hurts. It's just him." Elena explained.

"It's not your fault. Look, I'm going to head out. I don't want to be around for the aftermath. I know he's lurking out there. I'll just drive back to my house and you call me if you need me." Sam said, and Elena watched him get up and leave the house.

She sighed. She'd have to face Damon now, and that scared her. Damon was dangerous when he was unstable and Elena couldn't help but think he could hurt her too. She got up and opened the screen door, walking down to the docks, where Damon sat on the lawn chair. She took the seat beside him.

"I don't get you Damon." Elena said, after a long silence.

"No body does." He replied, and she looked over at him, and he turned to meet her gaze.

"You shouldn't have hurt him. He was being a good friend, Damon. He listened to me when I spoke, and he was there to talk through my complicated life."

"He was sticking his tongue down your throat." Damon said painfully. "I don't call that being a good friend."

"I kissed him first." She cleared up. Damon rolled his eyes, and she didn't have to see it to know he was doing it. "Listen, Damon…"

"No. I'm tired of listening. You listen." He cut her off bluntly. "I may not know you're entire life story, but I've been around you enough to know what you're like. To know how you deal with situations and how you act. I know that you have a big heart, and I know that I don't. But I love that about you. The sex is good, but that's not why I love you. I love you because of who you are. What you do. How you do it. I love everything about you, and I'm pretty sure you're flawless because you're beautiful and you're smart, and funny, and cute and you care. I love that you care. I don't love people, Elena. I don't even love my own fucking brother, but I'm in love with you and you can't deny that there is something there."

"Can I talk now?" She whispered after a pause. Damon nodded, not looking up at her. Somehow in their conversation, they ended up standing facing each other. Elena tilted his chin up so he could see her. "You're the biggest asshole I have every met. You're a dick. And you're selfish and impulsive. And you're mean and rude and don't care about anything. You act like nothing ever hurts you. And you say stupid things. You're never serious and you always have something sarcastic to say. You're a jerk and an ass hat, and I hate…"

"Is this going anywhere?" Damon mused.

"…How much I like you." Elena finished. "I hate that you make me feel this great. And I hate…" Elena stopped. "There's been a hole in my heart ever since my parents died, and you've filled that hole. Somehow, our meaningless sex turned into real feelings. And I'll admit, I was scared to feel for you. You're a heartbreaker, Damon. It's what you're good at. It's what you've always been good at. And I don't want to be broken hearted after all the shit I've been put through."

"I wouldn't hurt you." Damon whispered.

"How was I supposed to know that?" She asked. Another silence commenced.

"So, what do we do now?" He asked and she looked up at him dazed.

"I don't know."

okkaaaay thats chapter ten ! tell me how you liked it, i love to hear your reviews. sorry for how out of character elena may seem, and damon, but i really wanted to capture how strange their relationshop was and how they're both on two different pages.