A/N: Hello readers! Hope your all doing well, I know it's been a while but exams were hectic and I had lots of revision to do, so this chapter is extra long because of it!

Thank you to everyone who favourited and alerted, and thank you to K8YHALMAN, MoonLight415, Castiel Salvatore, givemefire and Scribbled Truth for reviewing. I just wanted to mention that criticism is always welcome and I have no problem with it whatsoever as long as you don't do it rudely, so if there's anything you want to say I have no problems with it.

Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries. Unfortunately...

Brooke's pov:

"I can't believe that Mr Tanner let you on the team! Tyler must be seething!" I tried to keep myself from flinching noticeably as the sound of Caroline's extremely high pitched voice penetrated my ear drums. It sounds like there's a whistle being blown directly down my ear every time she opens her mouth.

It's not that I dislike her. Well, I do slightly because of the way she treated Elena earlier at cheerleading practice. That wasn't cool. But like I said before, I used to be a cheerleader in high school, so I can catch Elena up to speed. Caroline can rub people the wrong way; she can appear to be a cold-hearted person who only looks out for herself, and I think that a part of her is, but it's most likely based on her insecurites. I don't think that's who she really is. She probably just wants to fit in with everyone and not be judged, but even so, that doesn't give you the right to put other people down.

"Good for you. Go for it!" I was torn away from my thoughts by Caroline's overbearing voice.

"That's what I always tell him, you have to engage, you can't just sit there and wait for life to come to you, you have to go and get it." Damon glanced at me and I felt myself drowning in his blue - ever so blue - eyes.

"Elena wasn't so lucky today. It's only because you missed summer camp. God, I don't know how you're ever going to learn the routines-"

"I'll work with her, she'll get it." Bonnie interrupted, and I took this as my moment to jump into the conversation.

"Yeah, so will I. Luckily for Elena I used to cheerlead too, so I'm sure that me and Bonnie will be able to get her up to speed. Soon enough she'll be the best cheerleader on your squad." Her smile faltered slightly.

"I could always put her in the back." I heard Caroline mutter, making me scoff lightly.

"You don't seem like the cheerleading type, neither do you Brooke." Damon commented as he looked at the two of us. I never really was if I'm being honest, I didn't enjoy it that much, but my friend desperately needed somone on her squad and I didn't want to let her down. If my mother was still alive I probably would have enjoyed it, but high school is difficult enough, going through all of the feminine and emotional changes alone. Not to mention all of the drama and emotional stuff that unfortunately goes hand in hand with high school.

I opened my mouth to answer, but Caroline beat me to the punch.

"Oh, it's just because her parents died. I mean, she's just totally going through a blah faze, she used to be way more fun!" Caroline giggled, but no-one else joined in: Damon and Elena both choked on their drinks, Bonnie gasped, Stefan fidgeted in his seat and I glared at her with disdain. How can she be so insensitive? If she wasn't Elena's friend and a minor then I'd-

"And I say that with complete sensitivity." Caroline looked at all of our faces, silencing under our uncomfortable stares.

"I'm sorry, Elena. I know what it's like to lose both of your parents, in fact, Stefan and I have watched almost every single person we've cared about die."

"We don't need to get into that right now, Damon." Stefan spoke.

"You know what, you're right Stefan, I'm sorry. The last thing I wanted to do was bring her up." Damon said remorsefully. Elena sat up straighter in her seat, interested in what Damon had accidently let slip. Katherine, Stefan's ex-girlfriend is... dead? Stefan cleared his throat, avoiding our looks while Damon's eyes became haunted for a fraction of a second. Was Katherine important to Damon too? The thought lingered in my head as the conversation continued, with me not really contributing to the discussion.

I stood up and left the room, putting the dishes from our dinner into the dishwasher since it was my turn to do the domestic chores. I heard the sound of footsteps approaching me, so I stopped what I was doing and turned around, feeling the energy in the room change.

"One more!" Damon said, entering the room. I swiveled around on my spot, turning to face him as a beaming smile made its way onto my face. Are you forgetting that he has a girlfriend again?

"Oh, thank you." I reached out my hand to take the glass from him but it slipped through my fingers. I gasped, waiting to hear the sound of it smashing into smitherines, but it never came. Damon's incredibly fast reflexes caught the glass easily before it had chance to crash to the floor. I laughed slightly in surprise as he handed it to me, in awe over how quick he could move. Damon grinned, obviously realising I was impressed, and I couldn't help but think about how cute it made him look.

"Nice save." I complimented as he placed it into my hand before he pointed at me.

"I like you. You seem to know how to have a laugh, which in this town is very difficult to find. Your cousin's nice too; she knows how to make Stefan smile so she must be special. It's been a long time since I've seen him so happy." My smile grew larger at his compliment, and his one towards Elena. He took the words right out of my mouth. Damon helped me with putting the dishes into the dishwasher while my mind flashed back to Stefan's warnings. I just can't seem to wrap my head around it.

Is there anything wrong with Damon? He's like, the living definition of perfection. I have no idea what Stefan's getting at.

I thought back to earlier when we were sat in the living room. Damon and Stefan's reactions to the mention of someone dying were eerily similar. Was Damon talking about Katherine? Is that why there's tension between the two brothers?

"Hey, about earlier, did you mean... Katherine?"

"Hmm, yeah." He leaned against the counter as I passed him a plate, watching as he stuck it into the dishwasher while I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.

"How did she die?" After a beat of silence he responded.

"A fire... A tragic fire." He averted his eyes away from mine, suddenly interested in anything other than me.

"Recently?"

"It... Seems like it was yesterday." He replied as his eyes and mine connected. I felt my features soften slightly at the look on his face.

"What was she like?" I asked timidly. I was hoping that I could find out about this mysterious woman, though I'm unsure as to why I wanted to know. Maybe it's because it sounds like she was important to Damon as well as Stefan, but it what way? She didn't date him too, right?

"She was beautiful. A lot like you in that department, though I'd say she looks more like Elena." Damon resumed his previous task as he took more plates from me and slid them into the dishwasher whilst he continued to tell me about her.

"She was very complicated and selfish, at times not very kind but at others very good." If there was any doubt in my mind about whether she'd dated Damon too, it was certainly gone now. That's probably why Damon and Stefan don't get along.

"So... Which one of you dated her first?" Damon chuckled under his breath.

"Nicely deduced." He muttered in my direction. "Ask Stefan, I'm sure his answer differs from mine." Damon closed the dishwasher, leaning against it as my eyes locked onto his once again. He sent me a look that I couldn't decipher, but whatever it was, it made something rise within me, an unbearable flash of heat that I didn't know how to describe.

I tore my eyes away from his, folding a hand towel to distract myself as I turned away from him, trying to become immersed in my task.

"So, how about you? How many ex-boyfriends have you had? I'm going to take a stab in the dark and say somewhere around the high hundreds..." I laughed at his question as he sat on the barstool next to me. High hundreds? I think he's talking about himself.

"Not exactly. I've only had two serious boyfriends. The first one was an all round jackass, and the second one I caught in bed with my best friend, so it's safe to say that I never spoke to either of them again..." I trailed off, summing up my very small - and very boring - love life. I've always been so focused on something else or haven't felt a connection with someone, so I've never really been that interested in anyone. I'm not sure I can say the same now, however...

"There's something seriously wrong with them, they have no idea what they're missing. You're beautiful." I blushed as his eyes ran down my frame while he grinned at me teasingly. The smile that was on my face moments before slowly slipped away.

"I'm sorry, about Katherine." Damon's smile also fell and he blinked a few times as he lent backwards.

"She wasn't just important to Stefan. You lost her too." I don't know how or when it happened, but somehow my hand had slowly slid over towards Damon's and my thumb had reached out to brush over his. What are you doing? I came to my senses, realising that Damon might not have liked my bold move so I quickly went to pull my hand away. I was stopped, however, when his wrapped around mine, locking me in place. We looked at each other for a moment before my eyes drifted down to our hands entertwined together loosely.

The familiar spark that I seem to get whenever I'm around Damon started to grow stronger, and bigger, and-

"Hey, need some help?" We both jumped back as if we'd been burned as my eyes flew to the doorway to see Elena and Bonnie walking through it. I nodded as Damon replied.

"Yeah, why not. Miss Gilbert, may I be excused so that I can talk to my brother?" Damon said in a southern accent as he stood up, bowing slightly. Everyone in the room laughed.

"Why of course you may, Mr Salvatore." I mimicked his accent and curtsied, smiling as Damon winked at me and left the room. I ignored the knowing look that Elena sent me, whereas Bonnie sent me an entirely different look.

"Brooke, you do realise that Caroline is interested in him right?" My smile faded at the accusing glance she sent me.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I knew exactly what it meant, but I wanted to hear her say it. It's alright for her to go around pointing the finger at everyone else when she's been the most ignorant person out of everybody tonight, even more than Caroline.

"It means that I don't think you should be flirting with Damon or going after him when he's clearly involved with somebody else. It's not fair."

"You want to know what's unfair, Bonnie? The way you've been treating Stefan. Do you know how much thought Elena put into this night trying to make you see Stefan in a different light? He's not even done anything to you, but you still decided to use every oppurtunity you could to ruin the night. Elena is your friend, and you're meant to be supportive to her." Bonnie looked at the floor, avoiding my gaze.

"Stop acting like you know everything because you obviously don't, including who I talk to and my intent with them, I'd never intentionally try to break up a relationship. But more than anything, stop being a bitch to Stefan and be there for your friend, because neither Elena or her boyfriend have done anything to deserve this kind of treatment." I felt all of the pent up frustration that's been building up over the course of the night drain from my body, and we were all just stood in the kitchen in complete silence, stealing a glance at one another now and again.

"Hey, do you guys need any help?" Caroline waltzed into the kitchen, not having sensed the tension in the air. We all nodded, relieved for the distraction and set to work cleaning up anything that we thought was dirty.

I'm not particularly bothered about Bonnie or whether she dislikes me because she isn't my friend, so she's not important to me. I noticed Elena out of the corner of my eye and knew exactly what she wanted to say. What a perfect ending to a perfect day, right? I bit my lip, hoping that Elena wasn't annoyed with me because of my outburst, but she sent me a reassuring smile which calmed me down.

We finished up and Bonnie left - thank God - while Elena and Stefan were saying goodbye in the living room. Caroline had gone to fetch her belongings so that she and Damon could leave.

In the club, party rock

Look up on your girl she on my jock

Nonstop while we hit the spot

Booty move away like she on the block (A/N: Party Rock Anthem by LMFAO if anyone wanted to know)

I heard my phone ringing in the kitchen so I rushed in to grab it, only to groan when I realised who was calling me.

Daddy dearest.

Just the person I want to talk to.

"I take it you're not a fan of whoever is calling." I whirled around to see Damon stood in the doorway with his leather jacket slung over his left shoulder.

"Not particularly." I closed my eyes for a second, but when I reopened them Damon was one foot away from me and my phone was in his hand.

"Who's the abomination?" Damon asked, referring to the name I'd given my father in my contacts list.

"My father." A smirk spread across Damon's face and I noticed it straight away. What is he-

"Brooklyn's phone, this is Damon speaking." I gasped, my eyes widening in horror as Damon answered the call. My hands reached for phone as I tried to retrieve it from him, but my attempts were useless; He was a lot taller than my five-foot four frame.

"Damon don't you dare-"

"I'm sorry, Brooke is unavailable right now so she can't take your call, would you like to leave a message?" He chuckled as I hit him, still refusing to give me my phone. He laughed loudly when I threw a sponge at him, dodging it easily.

"Who am I? I'm Brooke's boyfriend. Yeah, we've been dating for months. She didn't tell you? That's insulting." Despite myself, I giggled. I have to admit, that's pretty funny.

"Where are we? Well, we were so bored of life at Stanford, I mean, who seriously wants to get a respectable job these days? So, I convinced Brooke to drop out and now we're going on this huge road-trip around the states. Don't worry, she's in very safe hands." I gasped, moving to hit him again but stopped when a thought a occured to me. Damon's actually helping me out - if John thinks I'm on a road-trip with Damon then he won't possibly know that I'm in Mystic Falls. That's... Genius.

"Dude? Did you just seriously call me dude? Listen, old guy," I snickered, knowing that Damon must really be getting on my father's nerves. "She isn't always a walk in the park, I mean she moans constantly and never shuts up about the stupidest little things..." I sent him a look. "But she makes up for it in plenty of other ways..." I burst out into laughter. I can't believe he just said that, John must be seething!

"I'm going to take excellent care of her, you can trust me. I can provide for her and everything, I've always got business. You'd be surprised by how well the drug industry has been doing recently..." I could feel my eyes welling up with tears as I pictured my father's face.

"Don't lecture me, Stanford's bullshit. Yes it it. You know it is. Don't lie to me, of course it is. Right, well, it looks like it's time to hang up. It was nice speaking to you and don't worry, I'll send your love to your daughter. Best wishes, take care man." He hung up, smirking at me devishily. After calming myself down, I hit him on the shoulder again lightly.

"I can't believe you just said that to my dad!"

"You loved it." I let out a breathy laugh, knowing I couldn't argue with that.

"Well, I can't exactly deny that. As entertaining as that little performance was, I think it would be wise if I changed my phone number now. Anyway, what's up? Did you forget something?" I asked, looking around to see if I could find any of his belongings.

"No, just wanted to come and say goodbye." He pulled out a flower from behind his back, and I recognised as it as one of the ones from the vase in the living room. I laughed in response, raising an eyebrow knowingly as he handed it to me.

"Goodnight Brooke."

"Goodnight Damon." I smiled at his retreating figure, my eyes following his movements until he'd completely left the room. I can't put my finger on it. All I know is that there's something special about Damon that makes him stand out from the crowd, and I couldn't help but wonder if one day I'll find out. Not while he has a girlfriend though, that is out of the question.

Damon's pov:

I fell onto my bed seconds after returning to the boarding house, the taste of blood still lingering on my tonuge. While that blonde friend of Elena's may be annoying, she does have her uses.

I closed my eyes, trying to picture all of the things I loved about Katherine: her chocolate curls cascading down her chest, soft as silk. Her mischievous brown eyes and pouty lips that beg to be kissed. It's so much easier to imagine her now that Elena's around, but I was still starting to forget little things about my love. The way she smells, tastes...

That's because you've been too focused on her cousin, and that wasn't part of the plan. If you want to get to Stefan then you'll have to get to Elena, not her cousin.

I groaned as the picture of Katherine in my mind was replaced by another woman's. She had similar hair, but her eyes were completely different. They were an exotic green that knew how to draw people in. She had a small button nose, deep red lips and a smile that was so infectious that it makes everyone in the room want to smile along with her. Brooke.

Oh God, now you sound like Stefan, all whipped and cheesy. This has to end, right now.

With that thought in mind, I decided that whilst I might still toy with Brooke, Elena was now my new target. The idea felt wrong, like I was making a huge mistake by pursuing it. You are seriously losing it. I cleared my throat, trying to sort out my thoughts. This is all going to be worth it. Soon enough, you and Katherine will be riding off into the sunset, and you'll live happily ever after.

I snorted at the notion, but that didn't stop me from grinning slightly. Katherine knows how to make you feel like you belong, and this time she'll be all yours. Not Stefan's - yours.

Brooke's pov:

I woke up the next morning feeling refreshed and energised, ready to start the day with a smile on my face. I'd slept a little later than usual, but that didn't bother me as I had nothing important to do until later. It's game day, and Elena wants me to be there for moral support since it's Stefan's first game. I threw on a pair of black skinny jeans, a white tank top and a pair of red flats, before buttoning up a couple of the buttons on my on my jet black jacket.

I left my hair in loose waves, giving me an approachable, laid-back look, before putting on some foundation, a little eyeliner and lastly mascara. All set to go, I figured I'd go and talk to Jenna and then meet up with Elena at the high school.

"Hey Jenna... What's wrong?" I sauntered into the kitchen, being greeted with the sight of Jenna holding her head in her hands.

"Jeremy didn't come home last night. Again." I grimaced slightly. Actually, now that she mentions it, I haven't seen him for a couple of days.

"I know Jen, he's just acting out. Jeremy's not going to change just because we tell him to, he has to want to himself and right now, I think it's obvious that he doesn't want to." She nodded before standing up, only to begin pacing around the room.

"Hey! Stop beating youself up over this! God, I'm going to kill Tanner..." I murmered the latter part of my sentence before I continued.

"Right, where was I... Yeah, as I was saying, you aren't doing anything wrong! Like I said the other night when you were raiding Jeremy's room like a drug dog..." I saw her face lighten up a bit at my choice of words.

"Look, me and Elena are fine, you don't have to worry about either of us, we're not being immature like Jeremy. But, what I'm trying to say is that you can't keep beating yourself up over this, because honestly, you're the best parental figure I've had ever since my mother died." Jenna's head quickly snapped towards mine and I sent her a small smile.

"Brooke, you have no idea how much that means to me." I paused for a moment.

"I think I do. Kick your fat ass into gear and realise how fantastic you are. You opened up your home to me when you could have just said no, so I think that proves how much of an incredible person you really are. Now I'm going to watch Lena's boyfriend play football, are you going to be okay?" She nodded slowly before sending me a teasing grin.

"You're the one with the fat ass." I laughed.

"If that's what you need to believe to get you through the night. Bye Jen!" I exited the house, jumped into my car and began the drive to the high school. I arrived within about ten minutes, and as I stepped out of the car I groaned quietly. I forgot that Tanner is the coach. I shook off the feeling of dread and carried on walking. Never mind, you're here for Stefan and Elena anyway.

I walked onto the pitch and saw a bunch of teenagers just hanging around, mostly cheerleaders and football players, but I was surprised to see Elena not in her uniform. As I strolled up to her and Stefan I was about to ask about to ask her what was going on, but Elena had already anticipated this.

"Yes, I quit cheerleading and it feel amazing!" I was silent for a moment before letting a laugh escape. That's my Elena. My cousin excused herself from us when Caroline came over, confused as to why she wasn't in her uniform.

"So Stefan, you nervous?" He chuckled slightly.

"Just a little. I didn't know you were coming to watch."

"Well I couldn't miss my only friend's first game could I? How terrible would I look then?" We both chuckled again before Stefan's face turned serious and his eyes shifted away from mine.

"I wanted to thank you for convincing me to play, it's something that I really love to do and I wouldn't be playing if it wasn't for you. So, I hope this doesn't seem weird or anything, but as a token of my appreciation I would like to give you this." He held out a silver locket covered in unique markings and design, and it had a red stone stuck to the middle of it. I was... I didn't know how to describe how I felt. All I knew was that it was a good feeling, and I couldn't hide the smile that I was trying to suppress.

"Thank you Stefan, it's beautiful. Gosh, you can definitely be my best friend if you keep buying me gifts." He chuckled.

"Well, I also gave Elena one identical to that one so..."

"Aww, Stef! That is so sweet! Wait, now I feel bad because I haven't got you anything!" He laughed and shook his head sideways as he unclasped the necklace and I pulled my hair to the side when he offered to tie it around my neck. Inhaling, I could smell an unusual scent, almost like roses, my favourite flower.

"Is that rose I smell?"

"No, it's just a herb. And don't worry, I don't want any presents. I probably wouldn't accept it anyway and besides, you convincing me to do this is better than any materialistic thing you could have bought for me." I turned back around to face him again, smiling at him.

"Okay. Just make sure you win tonight, unless you want to be shouted at by Tanner." He nodded, grinning slightly before Elena returned.

"So, what did I miss?"

The crowd eprupted into cheers, the intensity almost shaking the ground. It was dark; the sky had changed from its formally blue, cloudless sky to a crisp, dark night. The large crowd (including me and Elena) were gathered around the football players and the cheerleaders who were stood there with large smiles on their faces, lots of them eager to be the centre of attention. I noticed that Lockwood guy staring at Stefan with envy,before turning to face me, shooting a wink in my direction.

I rolled my eyes, something I find myself doing a lot when I'm around this guy. Isn't he the one that's dating the girl Jeremy likes? Well, I don't like either of them right now, so I don't really care.

"Wait! Wait, wait wait!" I groaned and Elena laughed at the look of annoyance on my face. Tanner wants to do a speech. I'm sure that's going to be interesting.

"Lets be honest here, in the past we used to let other teams come into our town and roll right over us!" The cheerleaders began booing, causing the majority of the crowd to join in.

"But that is about to change!" The cheerleaders and the crowd's moods quickly changed and they began cheering in delight. Why would anyone cheer for what Tanner is saying?

"We have got some great new talent tonight starting on our side, and I'm going to tell you right now it has been a long time since I have seen a kid like this with hands like these. Let's give it up for Stefan Salvatore!" He pointed at Stefan and this time I joined in with the crowd's cheers. A few people patted Stefan on the back, but I wasn't surprised when that Lockwood kid - Tyler, I think his name is - started glaring at Stefan and exchanging words with Matt. Tanner continued to talk about something completely irrelavent so I stopped paying attention after a while and chose to talk to Elena instead.

"Brooke, you do think that me quiting cheerleading's a good idea right? I mean, I just don't feel it anymore, it was something me and my mom used to do and now that she's gone it doesn't feel right." I rubbed her arm soothingly. I felt exactly the same. Dancing was mine and my mother's thing, and cheerleading was only because my friend needed someone on her squad, I didn't enjoy it anymore after my mother passed away.

"I know how you feel Lena, it was exactly the same for me. I quit dancing and I only did cheerleading for my friend, but I didn't enjoy it. If you don't want to do it, don't do it. It's as simple as that." Suddenly, Elena looked startled.

"Where's Stefan going?" I looked to see Stefan walking away and I noticed a lot of the crowd doing the same. As my eyes followed the direction everyone was heading in I could see two guys on the grass having a fight. One of the guys was Tyler and the other was... Jeremy.

Elena and I rushed through the crowd to see Stefan shouting at Tyler and pushing him away from Jeremy. What the hell were they doing? Especially Jeremy, is he mad? Elena gasped and a look of fear spread across her face.

"Jeremy, no!" But it was too late. Stefan pushed Tyler out of the way and as he did so Jeremy lifted some broken glass and accidently cut Stefan's hand with it.

Oh my God.

Everyone gasped, before the crowd fell silent. How could Jeremy do this? Tanner appeared and took Tyler away while Elena and I rushed towards Jeremy.

"What the hell Jeremy!" I lashed out.

"Leave me alone, I'm fine."

"Yeah, you smell fine." I spat at him as he returned mine and Elena's glares.

"Just leave me alone, both of you!" Jeremy left the scene with his head held down, ignoring me as I called out his name. Elena quickly came to her senses and realised that Stefan was stood metres away with a bleeding hand. Jeremy, what have you done? Does he need an ambulance? I felt like smacking myself across the head. Of course he needs an ambulance, you dumbass! Did you learn anything during those three years at Stanford?

"Oh my God, you're bleeding." Elena rushed to Stefan with me hot on her heels. She reached to grab his hand, but he flinched and pulled away.

"No, it's fine."

"Is it deep? How bad is it?" Elena ignored him and opened his clenched fist, though neither of us saw what we were expecting. It was... Fine. There wasn't a scratch on him, just a little bit of dried blood.

"But, I saw it, it was-"

"He missed. It's not my blood. See, I'm fine." He wiped his hand on his jersey and held it out to me and Elena as I inspected it with my eyes. He was right; Jeremy missed. That's the only explanation, because there is no way that Stefan's wound would have closed up almost instantly. It's not scientifically possible.

"No, no I saw it, the glass cut your hand." Elena spoke with certainty laced into her voice. I thought I'd seen it too, but I started to doubt myself. It isn't possible.

"It's okay, I'm okay. It's almost kick off time alright, so umm, I'll see you after the game..." Elena nodded and he walked by the two of us in a rush, his posture extremely ridged.

"I don't understand." I looked at Elena out of the corner of my eye.

"Well, you heard him, Jeremy missed and we should be grateful. I didn't really want to have to watch Jeremy get taken away in a police car while I stitched up Stefan's hand." She opened her mouth for a second, but then closed it again.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. It just doesn't make sense. I saw Jeremy cut Stefan's hand, I swear I did."

"I thought I did too, but I must have been wrong. It's over now, and everyone's okay so... Lets go and watch your boyfriend play some football, huh?" I put on a reassuring smile, but Elena wasn't convinced.

"I'm going to go and talk to Bonnie..." Elena walked away from me whilst I snorted softly. Yeah, because the person who's convinced she's a witch is the exact person anyone should talk to when thats just happened.

Caw!

I span around, my eyes automatically searching for the source of the sound, knowing that it had came from a sinister bird that just couldn't leave me alone. I shuddered. Just go and watch the game, you're being paranoid. It's just a bird, how much harm can a bird do to you?

Stefan's pov:

"You going to be able to play?" Matt asked me as we walked back towards the changing rooms, waiting for coach Tanner to arrive.

"Oh yeah, I'm good." I assured him as I held up my hand which had healed as good as new. He nodded, while I let my mind wander for a few moments. Elena and Brooke know something's wrong, they saw it happen. You need to stop being so careless, Stefan.

"Hey, what you did back there, you had Jeremy's back," Matt said as he paused in his movements, making me do the same.

"Yeah well, he's a messed up kid, somebody's got to look out for him."

"I know. Speaking of practice, I was a dick." I shrugged as a smile appeared on my face.

"You had your reasons." I responded as I tried to dismiss what him and his friend Tyler had done yesterday. I know it wasn't Matt's fault, he was just looking out for his friend and I can understand that.

"There's no excuse. Good luck tonight, we're lucky to have you." Matt said as he held out his hand as a peace offering and I shook it with my own. It would be nice if we could be friends. The only people I have here are Elena, obviously, and Brooke, who reminds me of my friends Lexi. I'm trying to stop her from becoming a pawn in one of Damon's games, but something tells me I'm a little too late for that.

Matt walked into the changing rooms and I was left outside to stew in my own thoughts. Clap, clap, clap. It didn't take me long to realise who was making the sound. Damon.

"Isn't that nice? Stefan joins the team and makes a friend. It's all so rah rah go team yeah!" Damon spoke in a peppy voice from his place against a wall while I shook my head slowly in disappointment.

"Not tonight Damon, I'm done with you." Just go into the changing rooms and forget about him. However, as I turned around I heard him speed in front of me. and I blinked when he appeared in my line of vision.

"Nice trick with Elena. Let me guess, Vervain in the necklace. I noticed that Brooke has one similar. I'll admit, I was a bit surprised, it's been a while since anyone can resist my... Compulsion. Where'd you get it?" He smirked as he raised his eyebrow, and I mimicked his action. Does he seriously think I'm going to tell him?

"Does it matter?" I asked as I moved around him and started walking towards the building.

"Cause I could just seduce either one of them the old fashioned way. Or I could just... Eat them." I paused in my movements. I don't want Damon to hurt either of them. Elena makes me feel alive again and I really like her, could probably love her one day. And Brooke, she's my friend. She's funny, protective of her family and knows how to have fun. She's like a sister to me.

I looked at Damon, knowing that he wouldn't hurt either of them, not intentionally. Because there's a part of him that's normal, that's human.

"No. You're not going to hurt them, Damon." I said as I turned around.

"No?"

"No. Because deep down inside, there is a part of you that still feels, that still cares. I was worried that you had no humanity left inside of you, that you may have actually become the monster that you pretend to be."

"Who's pretending?" I scoffed.

"Kill me." He cocked his head to the side and smirked.

"Well, I'm tempted."

"No, you're not! You've had lifetimes to do it and yet here I am. I'm still alive and there you are, you're still haunting me after one hundred and forty-five years. Katherine is dead, and you hate me because you loved her! And you torture me, because you still do. And that my brother, that is your humanity."

"Salvatore! What the hell, we've got a game to play!" I turned around to see coach Tanner heading my way, obviously frustrated.

"If that's my humanity, then what's this?" No. Damon don't-

"Agh!"

"No!" Damon's teeth sank into Tanner's neck, draining him dry of all his blood. His eyes became lifeless, non-existant, before he fell to the floor. Damon turned to face me, smirking with blood all around his mouth, his fangs and red eyes still present.

"Anyone. Any time. Any place."

Brooke's pov:

The game went really well and Stefan's team won, not that anyone was surprised, he's a fantastic player. Elena said she was going to catch a lift with Bonnie so I walked to my car alone, thinking about a conversation Elena and I had during the game...

"Timberwolves! Timberwolves! Timberwolves!"

"Hey Lena, what's up? The game is going really well, Stefan's scored loads of tries." She smiled at me slightly, but I frowned as I noticed that it didn't reach her eyes.

"What's wrong, Elena?" She shook her head from side to side, her hair bouncing around due to the movement.

"C'mon. tell me." Elena stared at me for a moment before she looked away.

"It's Damon. He just tried to kiss me."

I don't get it. He's with Caroline and he barely talks to Elena, so why would he try to kiss her? Is it because of this rivalry he has with Stefan? Is it because of Katherine? I remember him saying that they both dated her. Was he trying to make Elena into Katherine? He's just... I can't believe him! I tried to hide my own disappointment and the slight stab to my heart as Elena told me this. It's like you always say Brooke, someone who seems perfect never is. He was never yours to begin with anyway, so you can't feel jealous.

I sighed as I passed by the changing rooms. It's a good job you found out what he's really like now before you actually started to fall for him. But, have I already started? Don't be ridiculous, you've known him for how lon-

"Hmph. Oh, I'm sorry Matt!" I accidently ran head first into Matt, almost knocking the two of us over, but fortunately I'm not that strong so we were both on our feet.

"It's okay Brooke, don't worry about it. Are you..." He trailed off and looked at something over my shoulder and began to move towards it as I slowly followed him.

"Matt what's... Oh my God." I breathed out. There was a body covered in blood, lying motionless on the ground, and if I'm not mistaken, it looked an awful lot like Tanner.

"Somebody help!" Matt yelled frantically as he burst into the changing rooms looking for help. I rushed to where Tanner was on the floor, putting my fingers onto his neck as I searched for a pulse. It's too late, he's gone. I fell backwards but Matt caught me, helping me up from the floor as some paramedics rushed onto the scene. This is another reason why I didn't want to be a doctor. I don't know if I could handle not being able to save people, having to tell their parents, children, siblings or partners that they didn't make it.

I would buckle under the pressure. There is no room for mistakes, because one slip up could cause someone's death, and I don't know if I'd be able to live with that.

Looking at Tanner now, I felt remourseful. I'd basically insulted the guy every chance I had, and now here he is, dead. Dead.

I know he didn't care much when Elena and Jeremy's parents died, but I'm not like him. And the horrific way he was killed was chilling. For some people it's just a normal day, but for Tanner's family it isn't.

"Brooke? Is that you?" I turned around and saw Stefan standing there with a questioning glance that soon morphed into realisation. I walked towards him slowly.

"Yeah, it's me. I was talking to Matt and then we found Tanner... They're saying it's an animal attack, but how could an animal get this far into town-" He cut me off by pulling me into a hug as he comfortingly stroked my back. He didn't whisper words of assurance, but he didn't need to, because him being there was more than enough. He pulled away after a few moments.

"It's okay. I know this will sound weird, but at least it was only Tanner that got hurt. We could have had a huge massacre on our hands." I thought he was exaggerating slightly. I mean, how much harm can one animal cause? Stefan's face seemed certain however, so I just let it drop, choosing instead to question him about what me and Elena thought we saw earlier.

"Elena and I... We could've sworn that we saw your hand get cut. God, this has been a really surreal night." He nodded.

"Do you need a lift home?"

"No I'm alright, I've got my car so... Thanks Stefan, I really appreciate this."

"Well, that's what best friends are for, right?" I laughed.

"Best friends already, huh? And I've known you for like what, week or so?" He chuckled at my statement as he realised I was right.

"Yeah, you're stuck with me now. I'll see you soon Brooke, get home safe." I nodded.

"You too, bye Stefan."

After the short drive home, I told Elena and Jenna exactly what had happened. They both felt the same was as I did, so we spent the majority of the night talking about it, admitting that we should've given Tanner an easier time. When it got so late we all retreated to our rooms as I tried desperately to get some sleep, but it was to no avail. I just laid there, unmoving, staring at the ceiling as I thought about how this brilliant day had turned into such a nightmare.

Stefan's pov:

Slamming my door shut I pulled at the ends of my short hair, thinking about what a mess this day had turned into. It was stupid of me to believe that Damon could change, that there was something redeeming inside of him that could right all of his wrongs.

Looks like it was me who was wrong. He's only out for himself. He's not your brother anymore, you need to accept that.

Not only are things wrong with Damon, but I've come close today. Elena almost found out about me and so did Brooke. They're not stupid, I need to be more careful otherwise both of them will find out, and it will give Damon a reason to kill them. Not to mention that they'd never look at me in the same way ever again.

Sitting down at my desk I pulled out my journal, flipping to a fresh page as I wrote down everything that I couldn't say.

I thought there was hope. That somewhere deep inside, something in Damon was still human. Normal. But I was wrong. There's nothing human left in Damon. No good, no kindness, no love. Only a monster who must be stopped, before he hurts someone. Like Elena and Brooke.

Brooke's pov:

Kisses were being feathered lightly across my neck, while a hot tongue darted out to sooth the small bites he'd previously layered across my neck. I moaned breathily as his lips moved along my jaw line slowly, ever so slowly.

He's such a tease.

But I was powerless. He knew where I loved to be touched and he always made sure that I knew he was in control. I moaned even louder as his lips hovered over mine, almost touching, but not quite. I wanted to reach up and fuse our mouths together but he pulled away, his bright blue orbs staring into my green ones as he smirked slightly, making my heart beat faster than ever.

"Tell me what you want Brooke. Tell me and I'll give it to you."

"You. I want you, Damon." He grinned, his tongue darting out to lick his bottom lip and I couldn't take it any longer. Staring at his lips I moved closer, centimeters away...

"Caw!"

Panting as my eyes flew open I looked around my room, clutching my chest. My body felt unsatisfied, not liking how I'd woken up before the dream had a chance to end.

Resting my head on the pillow again I remembered what I'd been dreaming about. More like who...

Stop it, Brooke. You know Damon's wrong for you. Forget about him. My warning seemed to go unheard, beause when I drifted off to sleep he was still there in my thoughts, waiting for me to return to my slumber. If you can't have him in reality, at least you can in fantasy.

A/N: So I hope that chapter was good guys! Thanks again to all the people who reviewed etc.

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