A/N: Hey guys, hope you're enjoying my story so far. This is the chapter where Brooke and Damon meet, so I hope you'll like it. :)

Thank you to all of the people who favourited and alerted, and thankyou to abby102030405060708090, Lulu-144, britt4565, bump-in-the-night1990, GracieClaire, xxxFlameHeartxxx and lucyinthesky for reviewing!

Brooke's pov:

Today feels different.

I don't know how else to describe it, but something seems different. Good different. Like when you're expecting something incredible to happen, but you don't know why.

Shaking my head I rolled out of bed, heading into my bathroom so that I could do my usual morning routine that consisted of having a shower, getting dressed and applying my make-up. I put on my make-up slightly heavier today, applying some black eye liner, coating my eyelashes in mascara and putting on some cherry red lipstick.

Jenna needs moral support today; she's going to visit Jeremy's history teacher, and I've heard that the guy's a tool. So both me and my aunt want to look like professional, strong independent women, none of which we actually are, but we have decided to put our miserable acting skills to the test. I re-entered my room in my underwear, fishing through my wardrobe as I searched for the outfit I planned on wearing.

I put on my black pencil skirt that hugged my curves perfectly and reached just above my knees. I tucked in a short sleeved, low cut white blouse that had thin black stripes going down vertically, and picked out a large black belt and threaded it through the loop holes on my pencil skirt.

Jenna's outfit is similar to mine, except for the fact that her blouse is red. I'm just hoping that Jeremy's teacher doesn't think we're doing this for his benefit, even though we are. Hopefully our looks will score us some points.

I put on a pair of black pumps that stood at about four inches high and then began to contemplate what to do with my hair. I was planning on leaving it straight, but I needed a second opinion.

"Elena, what should I do with my hair? Leave it down or put it up?" I pulled my hair back to show her as we stood in the hallway while she mulled over the options I had given her.

"I think you should put it up but leave a few pieces stray, so you look a little more laid back." She said as she helped me with my hair. When we were finished, Jenna came rushing out of her room dressed almost identically to me.

"Brooke, Elena. What should I do with my hair?" Elena and I shared a look as we laughed. Jenna and I always seem to be on the same wave-length.

"Stunning stewardess." I said as she pulled her hair up.

"Boazy housewife." Elena said as she put her hair down. I looked at Elena weirdly for a second.

"You're feisty today." Jenna commented, having similar thoughts to me.

"I feel good! Which is rare, so I've decided to go with it. Fly free, walk on the sunshine and all that stuff."

"Yeah, I have the same kind of feeling." I stated as Jenna and I admired our appearances in the mirror. Jenna looks absolutely beautiful, as always, but I wasn't sure whether the look suited me. Jenna obviously seemed to notice the drop in my confidence.

"You look phenomenal. Much better than I do, after all, I'm the 'boazy housewife'." She air quoted with her fingers, causing me to giggle in amusement as she sent an insulted look to Elena, who just shrugged in response. I hooked my arm through Jenna's as we traipsed down the stairs while Elena followed us. Walking into the kitchen I made the three of us some coffee, sighing in delight as its scent drifted to my nose. My father always said I was addicted to caffine, as was my mother. The thought of John made me pause in my movements when I went to sit down at the breakfast table.

Even though I found the situation hilarious a few days ago, I certainly don't now. As much as I'd love to, I can't avoid my father forever. Eventually he's going to realise that I'm in Mystic Falls, and when he does all hell will break loose. I took a large gulp of my drink, trying to convince myself that by the time he does find me, he'll have calmed down considerably. It wasn't working.

"Hey, where's Jeremy?" Elena's voice pulled me away from my thoughts.

"He left early. Something about getting to wood-shop early to finish a bird house." I smiled, pleased that Jeremy was applying himself to something. My smile dropped, however, as I noticed the look on Elena's face. Jeremy doesn't take wood-shop, does he?

"There is no wood-shop, is there?" Elena replied to Jenna's question with a no and I shook my head in despair. Jeremy's spiraling down an extremely dark path, and if he doesn't stop soon he's going to be stuck there forever. The problem with Jeremy is that there's only so much you can say to him until he gets annoyed, after that he just ignores you and does his best to do the exact opposite thing you want him to do.

"As Jeremy's teacher I'm concerned, this is the third day of school and he's skipped six classes." Jenna and I leaned forward slightly. I looked at my aunt, knowing from the frown on her face that she was probably cursing at him internally.

"Mr Tanner, are you aware that Jeremy and Elena's parents died?"

"Four months ago, a great loss. A car accident. Wickery bridge if I remember correctly." I glanced at him, realising that Mr Tanner wasn't sympathetic in the slightest. I understand that the death of Miranda and Grayson didn't affect him because he didn't know them, but that doesn't give him an excuse to act like a jerk.

I subtly rolled my eyes. It's like I said to Jeremy after the animal attack on Vicki, everyone else moves on, meaning you have to too. The day Grayson and Miranda died was an emotional day for us, especially Elena and Jeremy, but for nearly everyone else around the world it was just a normal day. Maybe even a good day. Unless it's related to you, you don't really take that much notice. You here about deaths on the news constantly, but it doesn't affect you that much unless someone you know, care and love dies.

"And you're related to the family how? The mother's kid sister? And you? The father's neice?" Both Jenna and I nodded in conformation as he flipped through one of his folders and my aunt and I glanced at each other. This is not going as planned.

"Younger sister, yes." Jenna informed him while I rubbed the back of my neck nervously.

"Six classes, are you sure? I mean, that's kind of hard to do, especially within three days." I asked him, trying to down play the situation and make it seem as if it was nothing. He shook his head, sending me a knowing look.

"Not when you're on drugs." Jenna was stunned into silence, obviously having no idea that Jeremy would do something like that. I on the other hand had already noticed. Studying medicine to become a doctor at Stanford does help when looking for substance abusers, after all. The signs were blindingly obvious: the drinking; the bad attitude and blood shot eyes, are all usually symptoms of drug abuse. I could see Jenna panicking out of the corner of my eye. No doubt she thinks that this is all her fault because she hadn't realised sooner.

"It's his attempt at coping Miss Sommers, the signs are there. He's moody, withdrawn, argumentative, hung over... Are there any other relatives in the picture?" Jenna's face paled as she tried to think of something suitable to say, so I rejoined the conversation in an attempt to help out my distressed aunt. I smiled brightly as I captured his attention.

"Mr Tanner, Miss Sommers is their sole guardian. She was chosen by Grayson and Miranda to look after their children, and I know that they wouldn't have given her this responsibility if they weren't one hundred percent sure she could handle it. Besides, I'm around now, so I can help her out with Elena and Jeremy." Tanner just scoffed in response and my smile disappeared.

"Hmm. Could there be? Your father perhaps, Miss Gilbert." He rebuffed everything I had just said and brought my father into the picture. If the rebuffle didn't aggravate me, the mention of my father did.

"What are you suggesting?"

"It's an impossible job, isn't it? Raising two teens." Jenna scoffed in denial.

"It's been tough, but no. It's not." Tanner's expression turned triumphant.

"Wrong answer. It is an extremely impossible job, and anything less means you're not doing it properly." I bit the inside of my cheek so hard that I felt the taste of blood hit my tongue. How the hell would he know? Jackass...

"And with all do respect Mr Tanner, there is two of us now. We are both fully capable of looking after my two cousins, and your opinion obviously doesn't matter because no-one else has criticised my aunt's capabilities at parenting, she's actually been complimented, and I'm sure Jeremy and Elena will tell you the same." I said, trying to keep the bitterness out of my tone of voice.

"And with all do respect, Miss Gilbert, your opinion doesn't matter either."

It's official - Tanner is a jackass.

He treated me and Jenna like insubordinate children, so much in fact that I'm contemplating whether he's worse than my father, and that isn't something I do often. I clenched my fists tightly around the steering wheel as I made my way over to the grill. I'd just dropped Jenna off at home, she was planning on confronting Jeremy about drugs and school, and I really wasn't in the mood to stick around for that. Instead, I told Elena that I'd pick her up from the grill and drive her over to Stefan's. I think she said she was planning on jumping his bones or something, but I'm not sure since I wasn't really paying attention.

I pulled up outside the grill and waited for Elena to say goodbye to her friends while I pulled my hair out of its up do and ran my fingers through it. So much for having a good feeling about today.

"Hey." Elena said as she jumped into the car and buckled up her seatbelt. I began driving to Stefan's, following Elena's directions.

"What's wrong?" I sighed grudgingly.

"The meeting with Tanner didn't go well. He basically told me and Jenna that we're shitting ourselves if we think we can take care of you and your brother." She grimaced slightly.

"You just got Tannered. Everyone hates him."

"Well I should introduce him to my father, they'd get along like a house on fire." I said bitterly, before noticing the upbeat expression Elena was sporting. I decided to question her on it.

"Why are you so chipper?"

"It's nothing... Just Caroline egging me on to go and jump Stefan." She said the latter part of her sentence so quietly that I had to strain my ears to hear it; I chuckled slightly as I processed what she'd said.

"Do I need to give you the talk, Elena?" She flinched noticeably.

"No thanks, I got the talk a couple of years ago, and it was the most awkward thing I've ever experienced."

"Mine's worse, trust me. My first talk was when I was seven years old, with the grim reaper nonetheless. Consider yourself lucky." Elena's eyes widened in horror.

"Seven! And with John! That is pretty unlucky... Fine, yours is worse." I nodded in affirmation.

"Yes, it is. You really don't want to know what goes on in that man's head." We both shuddered at the thought and ended the conversation there, arriving at this big, no, gigantic house. Elena told me that it was the Salvatore Boarding house and that this was were Stefan lived.

"Okay, wish me luck." I laughed a little before jokingly giving her the thumbs up.

"Good luck! Make sure you use protection." I winked as she exited my car and walked up to the boarding house. My hands gripped the steering wheel and just as I was about to drive off, I noticed that Elena had left her purse on the back seat, with her mobile phone and other necessities in it. I sat still for a moment, contemplating whether I should just drive off or go into Stefan's house to give it to her.

I decided to go with the latter, knowing that she'd get frustrated if I left her without it. Swinging the car door open, I stepped out onto the pavement and walked down the pathway to the boarding house, holding Elena's purse in my hand.

I went to knock on the door but stopped when I noticed that it was open. Cautiously I stepped inside, my heels hitting the hard wooden floor. My eyes swept around the hallway in transfixation, completely captivated by the sheer beauty of this house. It was magnificent. The ceilings were incredibly high, there was oak hardwood flooring, dark creamy wallpaper, and the hallway looked never-ending.

Snapping out of my daze I quickly came to my senses and realised that I was being extremely rude. I cleared my throat, remembering why I'd ventured into this house in the first place.

"Elena!" I called out, but didn't get a response. She probably can't hear you. I called out her name again, only to be met with silence. I decided that I was just going to leave her purse by the door, hoping she'd find it, but I paused at the sound of an eerily familiar animal.

Caw!

I span around, startled by the noise. A crow - presumably the one from the graveyard - flew into the house while I instinctively clutched my chest at the sight. It zoomed straight past me and I turned, trying to keep the creepy bird in my line of vision, but my heart stopped when instead of seeing a crow, I came face to face with a man. A very, very attractive man.

He appeared to be around my age, maybe a couple of years older. He had dark, raven tainted hair, blue cobalt eyes that looked straight through me, making my legs feel a little weak. From what I could tell his body was slim, yet defined, toned and his black, short sleeved shirt clutched to his muscles tightly. His jaw line was sharp, as was the rest of his bone structure, and his lips... don't even get me started.

I watched as his eyes traveled down my form and I felt myself shiver involuntarily under his piercing gaze.

"I'm... I'm sorry, for barging in." I breathed out, becoming annoyed with the fact that I couldn't hide the affect this mysterious stranger had on me. He's not even muttered so much as an 'hello' and you're already turning into a pile of goo.

"The door was... open." I said, my eyes narrowing in confusion as I turned around to find the door shut firmly into place.

"You must be Brooke, right?" I nodded immediately, entranced by the sound of his voice.

"I'm Damon, Stefan's brother." He grinned at me crookedly and I felt my own lips mimic the motion. Wait, didn't Elena say that Stefan didn't have any siblings?

"I didn't know that Stefan had a brother, he didn't tell Elena."

"Well, Stefan's not one to brag. And you must be Elena." He said without turning. My attention drifted to the stairs as Elena began to walk down the steps slowly.

"Yes. And you're Damon, if I heard correctly." He smiled in response.

"Please, come. I'm sure Stefan will be along in a second." He ushered the two of us into the parlor, Elena and I gasping as we took in its beauty. I've only been in two rooms, but this already feels like my dream house.

"Wow. This is your living room?" Elena breathed out much like I had earlier.

"Living room, parlour... seventies auction. It's a little kitchy for my taste." I had no idea what he was talking about, this place was incredible. But, I guess if you live with it all of the time then you stop noticing it.

"I see why my brother's so smitten." Elena and I glanced at each other, confusion etched onto our faces.

"It's about time. For a while there I never thought he'd get over the last one... Nearly destroyed him." He said, looking solely at Elena while I once again became puzzled. Destroyed him? How?

"The last one?" Elena asked.

"Yeah. Katherine, his girlfriend... Oh. You two haven't had the awkward ex's conversation yet." Damon remarked as he saw Elena's posture go stiff.

"Nope." She said awkwardly, and the atmosphere seemed to change. All of us were just stood there with no idea what to say.

"Oops. Well I'm sure it'll come up now."

"Or maybe he didn't tell you cause he didn't want you to think he was on the rebound." I could see the wheels turning in Elena's head, trying to place the pieces of the puzzle together. From what I've heard, Stefan doesn't sound like the rebound type of guy, but a lot of what Damon was saying made sense. It would look a bit suspicious on Stefan's part.

"We all know how those relationships end. I'm sure you've broken a few hearts." He said, but this time his speech was directed at me. I cursed at myself internally as I felt my cheeks burn hot, knowing that I was blushing.

"You say it like every relationship is doomed to end."

"I'm a fatalist." His ocean blue eyes held a hint of heart-ache in them and something that looked like betrayal. I wondered how on Earth any woman on the planet would have it in their heart to leave this handsome, alluring, sexy guy in their right minds, because whoever he'd been with before certainly had.

"Hello Stefan." Damon greeted, his eyes never leaving mine. Elena turned towards the doorway immediately, and after a few moments of staring at Damon I did the same.

Stefan was stood meters away from us with an aggravated look painted onto his face.

"Elena, I didn't know you were coming over." Stefan crossed his arms over his chest and spoke in a cold, detached voice. What's his problem?

"I know, I should of called-"

"Oh don't be silly, you're welcome here anytime isn't she Stefan?" Stefan just continued to look expressionless.

"You know, I should break out the family photo albums. Or some home movies, but I have to warn you ladies, he wasn't always such a looker." All of us chuckled apart from Stefan. He lent against the door frame, looking disinterested.

"Thank you for stopping by Elena, it's nice to see you. And Brooke, is it? Nice to meet you." He directed the latter part of his sentence to me.

"Likewise, Stefan." I glanced at Damon awkwardly and he returned my look before his eyes shot back to his brother's.

"Yeah well, we should probably go. It was nice to meet you Damon."

"Great meeting you too Elena." She walked up the steps of the parlour, stopping in front of Stefan whilst I turned to face Damon.

"Goodbye Damon, it was a pleasure meeting you." He smirked slightly and stepped towards me.

"The pleasure was all mine, Brooklyn, hope I see you around." I smiled. I don't usually like it when people address me by my full name, but I loved the way it rolled off of Damon's tongue.

His hand found mine and he brought it up to his lips, pressing a tender kiss to the back of it. A bolt of electricity shot up my arm at the motion before he ever so slowly let go of my hand, causing it to fall back to my side. The spark disappeared immediately, leaving only a tingling sensation in its wake. Oh, you'll definitely be seeing me.

"Stefan." Elena said, waving a hand in front of Stefan's face as she tried to capture his attention, but he was too busy watching me and Damon interact to notice. My eyes swept over his form as I tried to work out why he was acting so weird, but I didn't have a chance to when his eyes came back to life.

His eyes flashed to Elena as he stepped to the side, allowing the two of us to walk past him. Something inside of me couldn't resist taking another look at the eldest Salvatore before we left, so I turned my head to the side, catching his blue eyes for no longer than two seconds before I walked out of the door and back to my car where Elena was waiting to be let in.

Damon's pov:

I whistled at Brooke's retreating figure. She looks absolutely ravishing in that pencil skirt. The things I could do to her...

I chuckled to myself slightly. She's even hotter than I thought she was that day in the graveyard. The light bounces off her brunette locks, her forest green eyes dazzle like twinkling stars in the night sky, her smile can light up a room, and her body looked fantastic. Not to mention she smells exquisite.

I was right; She'll be the perfect distraction until I finally get Katherine out of the tomb.

"Great gals. They've got... spunk. Not to mention both are absolutely gorgeous." I laughed slightly at the look on Stefan's face. What's his problem? Oh yeah, that's right. Me.

"You on the other hand look pooped." Stefan continued to look at me with disdain as he stepped into the parlour.

"Have you over exerted yourself again? Let me guess, hospital." I stated as he walked by me, shoving me but failing so miserably that he couldn't even knock me back a step. That's what happens when you drink puppy blood.

"Someone had to clean up your mess." Stefan spoke tiredly as he fiddled around with his daylight ring.

"Well, were you successful? Did your powers of persuasion work? Remember, if you don't feed properly none of those little tricks work right." I winked, knowing that it would irritate the hell out of him.

"How long were Elena and Brooke here?" Stefan demanded in his cut-the-crap-Damon tone as I like to call it. It did nothing to frighten me in the slightest, in fact, I have to hold back a laugh every time he uses it.

"Are you worried, Stefan? Scared we may be doomed to repeat the past? Isn't that why you play your game 'I'm a high school human'?"

"I'm not playing any game." Stefan objected, though I could see the unmistakable look of denial written in his eyes.

"Of course you are. We both know that the closest you'll ever get to humanity is when you rip it open and feed on it." I spat out the last words viciously as I came closer to him, leaning closer to his ear as I spoke the latter part of my sentence before I went to walk past him, pausing as he grabbed my arm.

"What kind of game are you playing, Damon?" Oh, you mean my diabolical master plan to rescue my beloved Katherine - who just happens to be your ex-girlfriend - from the tomb where another twenty-six incapacitated vampires currently reside? I shrugged.

"Guess you'll just have to wait and see, won't you?" Grinning slightly I pulled my arm out of his grasp and walked into my room, planning out the next phase of my plan. Tonight is the comet, after all.

Brooke's pov:

"He's on the rebound and has raging family issues." Elena was speaking about her new found love life to Jenna and I as we prepared dinner in the kitchen, chopping up some vegetables.

"Well, at least it's only an ex-girlfriend. Wait until you date a guy with mommy issues, or cheating issues... or feminine issues. You've had that, right Brooke?" I laughed as I looked up at the two of them.

"Not so much, no. I've had the cheating one, but none of the other ones you've just described." I giggled at the look on Jenna's face. She sure knows how to pick her men.

"Am I the only person in the entire world doomed to get all of the sucky guy's?" I nodded, causing her to sigh in frustration.

"What happened with the cheating issue?" Elena asked me as I finished preparing the vegetables.

"To cut a long story short, we got together, everything was going great, and then I caught him in bed with my best friend. Scratch that, former best friend." Elena and Jenna's expressions softened and Jenna rubbed my arm comfortingly. I smiled reassuringly at them. It doesn't really bother me that much anymore, it's in the past and that's where it's going to stay.

"Brooke, I'm sorry." The two apologised.

"It's okay. I'm over it, trust me. Neither of them are worth the heart-ache."

"See, you should take Brooke's advice. It's not worth the heart-ache." I heard the sound of the front door opening and my eyes dashed towards Jeremy's slouched figure.

"Jeremy," Jenna said warningly, but he didn't take any notice. He just ignored us and began a slow decent up the stairs. Elena shook her head at his behaviour as Jenna and I both followed him and stood at the bottom of the staircase.

"Jeremy, where were you?" Jenna asked sternly. Jeremy halted and turned around, the redness in his eyes very prominent. How he expected Tanner not to notice how high he's been getting, I'll never know.

"No more 'stoners ed' Jenna. I get it, you were cool once, and that's cool." Jeremy gave her the thumbs up in fake admiration before turning to walk back up the stairs. Unfortunately for me, I just couldn't let it slide. I grabbed the apple in Jenna's hands and launched it as hard as I could at his back, forcing him to stop.

"Ouch! Why Brooke, why did you do that?"

"Listen up. Quit ditching class or your grounded. No discussion." Jenna nodded in affirmation, but for some reason it made Jeremy smile, almost sleepily.

"Parental authority, I like it. It's just a shame you can't have kids, isn't it? You'd have the whole discipline thing down perfectly. Sleep tight." He resumed his walk to his room, not sparing a second glance at us as I felt something break inside of me.

It's a shame you can't have kids, isn't it?

Elena gasped and out of the corner of my eye I could see Jenna's face turn bright red. I knew she was about to do something stupid so I grabbed her hands in an attempt to stop her from dashing up the staircase after him.

"Jenna it's fine, just drop it!"

"I don't care! That was the cruelest thing he ever could have to said to you, how could he do that?" She pulled her hands out of my grasp and marched up the stairs, heading into Jeremy's room and shouting at him. Meanwhile, Elena walked over to me but I held up my hands to stop her.

"I'm just going to head to bed." She sent me a pitying look as I tried to keep myself from tearing up. The last thing I want right now is pity.

"What about dinner?"

"... I think I just lost my appetite." I ran up the stairs and into my room, slamming the door shut and falling back against it. Tears blurred my vision as I slid down the door, clutching my chest with my hands as I rocked back and forth slowly.

I know that Jeremy's annoyed with me for not being here sooner, but why did he have to bring that up, of all things?

Glistening drops of water slid down my cheeks, soaking my eyelashes with water. I'd found out a couple of years ago that it would be impossible for me to have kids. At first, it didn't really affect me. I just felt numb, like a part of me was missing. I didn't think much of it at the time because I'd felt that way ever since my mother had passed away. But having that opportunity taken away from me was what hurt me the most.

If I'm being honest, until then I'd never been sure that I even wanted kids. They'd never really been a part of the picture, mostly because without a mother figure there to guide me, I wasn't sure whether I'd be able to provide a stable home for a child.

It was only when I walked by a park one day on my way to meet up with a friend for coffee that I realised that maybe being a parent wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. Having someone there to love, cherish and protect with your life. Help out with all of their problems and give them suitable advice whenever they needed it. Making someone feel like they belong, and have a great purpose to fulfill in the world.

But then reality comes crashing down and you realise that you're never going to get the chance to do any of that, so a void inside of you starts to grow. A dark, lurid void that no matter how hard you try to forget about, never seems to go away.

"Sorry I'm late guys, do you still need help handing out the flyers?" I asked as I approached Elena and Bonnie, who were handing out flyers for the party tonight. My long brown hair was in waves as I hadn't had time to straighten it, and I'd thrown on some light foundation and mascara. I was wearing a light, baby blue - which as of yesterday suddenly seemed to be my favourite colour - tube dress that came halfway down my thigh, and a pair of wedges.

"No, we just finished. Are you okay, Brooke? You look a little tired." Bonnie remarked. I hadn't gotten much sleep last night, so I didn't possess that much energy.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Elena immediately changed the subject and I shot her a thankful look.

"So Bons, have you asked your Grams anything about the witchy stuff yet?" Witchy stuff? That must be what their weird conversation was about a few days ago.

"Yeah, you know, just the ramblings of an old woman. I still don't believe her. It's not as if the supernatural world exists right?"

"Try telling that to my father. He's obsessed with folklore and legend, he talks about it constantly. After a few years I just stopped listening to him."

"Uncle John is a little obsessed with that kind of stuff." I snorted.

"A little is an understatement. By the way, he still hasn't stopped calling me. I'm contemplating changing my number, especially after listening to one of his voice mails the other night." Elena and Bonnie stopped mid-step, obviously interesting in hearing about what he had said.

"It wasn't pretty. To cut a long story short, he basically said that I was going to regret choosing to leave Stanford when he found me, and let me tell you, he was pissed." Bonnie looked at me in concern.

"You don't think he'll... you know..." She trailed off.

"Hurt me? Not a chance. Johnathon Gilbert may be a lot of things, but there's no way he'd ever lay a hand on his only child. That much I'll give him credit for." The conversation came to an abrupt end after that, and the three of us just walked around the centre of Mystic Falls for a while, enjoying the sunshine. After half an hour or so Elena and Bonnie went off to go and get us some ice-cream, so I took a seat on a bench. I wasn't looking at anything in particular until a few kids, around the ages of five and six, ran past me, giggling with each other.

I felt that feeling come back, the feeling that makes me want to crawl back into bed and forget the world, but I knew I couldn't do that. So I averted my gaze, choosing instead to look at the ground.

Then, another feeling hit me. It wasn't like the one I felt a moment ago, it was completely different. Like I knew someone was watching me or something. A chill ran down my spine as I turned around, only to find no-one there.

The feeling disappeared instantly, and I was left unsettled and unnerved until Bonnie and Elena returned. I decided to let it go, convincing myself that I was being paranoid, as usual, and I talked to the girls for a while. We decided to just stay there until the party began since there wasn't really anything better to do.

I'd parted with the girls a while ago. Bonnie had headed of somewhere and Elena was talking to Stefan. I held my candle close to my chest as I walked around, utterly captivated by the sheer beauty around me and the comet in the sky. I found myself in a secluded spot not too far away from the party, gazing up into the sky as the comet soared through the air.

"Care to light me up?" My heart thumped around wildly at the sound of Damon's silky, seductive voice. I turned around slowly, seeing him stood a couple of meters away from me, holding an unlit candle in his hands. He was wearing dark blue, stone wash jeans and a black shirt hidden underneath his black leather jacket. The ensemble was simple, but I knew that nobody could pull it off and look as hot in at as Damon did.

It took a few seconds but my brain managed to process what Damon had said and I moved forward, lighting his candle with my own and sending him a small smile as I did so. Our hands brushed each others when I pulled away, sending the faintest of shivers up my spine.

"Thank you." He murmured as he returned my smile, his midnight blue eyes shining brightly in the moonlight. I racked my brain, trying to think of something interesting to say but Damon beat me to the punch.

"You know, that comet has been traveling through space for thousands of years." He pointed to the sky and my eyes followed the movement, looking at the comet that had not long passed by the moon.

"Did you study astronomy or something?" I cursed at myself internally. Did you study astronomy? Seriously, Brooke? Damon just chuckled, running a hand through his hair, messing it up slightly.

"Not exactly, I've just always been interested in space and time. I guess you could say this comet holds a purpose for me." The latter part of his sentence confused me, but nonetheless I found that my smile had grown even larger.

"I've always found it interesting too, though I've never really tried to learn anything about it, what with how hectic my life has been recently." He raised an eyebrow, motioning for me to continue.

"A couple of weeks ago I was at Stanford training to become a doctor, but I left it behind. It was never really what I wanted to do, it was always pushed on me, and now my father won't stop ringing me because he's trying to lure me back to Stanford. He's an A class jerk, you see." I paused, suddenly aware that I was revealing a little too much, but Damon nodded in understanding.

"My father was too. He tried pressuring me into the army even though I never agreed with it, and he always favoured Stefan over me."

"Is it still like that now?" He hesitated in his answer for a moment.

"Well, both of my parents are dead... don't look at me like that. I got over it a long time ago. I barely knew my mother, I was young when she died and my father... well, I danced on his grave." I laughed slightly at the end of his sentence. I know it sounds cruel, but I can't blame him. The truth is, I don't know whether I'd be that heart-broken if my father passed away.

"Still, it's not nice. My mother passed away too." We fell into a comfortable silence, watching the comet side by side. The brisk, cold night air hit my skin and I felt myself shiver slightly in response. I suddenly regretted my choice in clothing; it may be warm during the day, but it's freezing at night.

Damon placed his jacket onto my shoulders and I was immediately embraced by warmth. I looked up at Damon through my eyelashes, watching as he moved to stand next to me. I smiled at him gratefully.

"Thank you, Damon." He grinned slightly before winking at me as he turned to face the stars and the comet. I pulled his jacket around my form tightly, basking in the heat that radiated from it.

After standing there for God knows how long he cocked his head to the side before looking at me.

"I'm sorry, but I need to go and have a talk with my brother, he's probably up to no good." He teased. I laughed, took of his jacket and handed it to him.

"Thanks..." Damon trailed off before lifting my hand up to his lips much like he had yesterday, pressing a kiss lighter than a feather to the back of it. The sensations I felt the first time he'd done it starting shooting up and down my arm as my green eyes connected with Damon's blue ones.

"Pleasure seeing you again Brooklyn. I'll be seeing you." Then, before I knew it, he was walking back down the path I'd come from earlier and had disappeared out of my line of vision. His words rang through my head. I'll be seeing you. My mood brightened significantly, and as I began the long walk home, the only thought on my mind was of Damon Salvatore.

I entered the house, hearing a banging and clanging noise coming from Jeremy's room. Even though I wasn't on the best of terms with him, especially after last night, I had to make sure he wasn't doing anything stupid.

"Jeremy!"

"Nope, it's me. The hypocrite patrol." I walked up the stairs and went straight into Jeremy's room, watching as my aunt rummaged through Jeremy's closet.

"What are you doing in here?"

"I've become my worst nightmare. The authority figure who has to violate a fifteen year old's privacy." Jenna suddenly dashed across the other side of the room and I jumped onto Jeremy's bed, still tired from the lack of sleep from last night. Jenna let out a triumphant cheer of victory.

"Jackpot! I see the hiding places haven't gotten anymore creative." She pulled up one of Jeremy's shoes and pulled out a package containing a white substance before throwing his shoe back onto the floor.

"This is about Tanner, isn't it? Elena said that we got tannered, apparently it's a regular occurrence." She continued to search Jeremy's room for moor drugs, while I looked at the mess she had created. It looked like a bomb had landed in here - not that I was bothered. After what he said to me last night he should be glad this is all he's getting.

"I'm screwing up." I threw my arms into the air in astonishment.

"You're not screwing up Jen."

"Yes I am. You know why? Because I'm not her. She made everything look so easy! High school, marriage, having Elena and Jeremy." I looked at her tear streaked face as she desperately tried to hold it together.

"I can't do it. I'm going to say or do the wrong thing and it's only going to get worse and it's all going to be my fault!" She sat on the edge of the bed and I didn't move to comfort her, knowing she had to get this out of her system.

"It's impossible." Oh no, she is not repeating what Tanner said to us! I moved from my place on the other side of the bed over to her and wrapped my arms around her shaking form. She's doing fantastic given the circumstances, I just wish she'd see it.

"This is just the fear talking. You're a little scared, that's all... We all are." We pulled apart and she looked at my face, searching for answers. I knew she was thinking about John at this moment.

"Why don't you get some sleep, you look drained."

"Are you going to be okay?" She nodded, shooting a small smile in my direction which I returned. I patted her on the shoulder comfortingly before leaving the room and heading into mine, so tired that I couldn't even be bothered to change out of my clothes. As I fell into my slumber, for the first time in a long time, my dreams weren't going to be filled with thoughts of death, sadness or my incompetent father. Tonight, it was Damon who consumed my thoughts, his blue, cobalt eyes burning into mine.

Tonight, I knew that I was going to fall to sleep with a smile on my face, because I have no doubt in my mind that things are going to look up for us now.

A/N: How wrong is she? I won't normally post chapters this quick so it my be a couple of weeks till the next one, but I hope you enjoyed it!

Review! :)