A/N: I'm thinking I may have to change the rating on this fic to M pretty soon, just to forewarn you guys. Don't worry, we will learn more about Julius and his backstory as this fic goes on. Hope you enjoy!

This chapter is named after the song Black Door by The Black Keys

Disclaimer: I own nothing but Julius and my words.

3 - Black Door

It was almost 10:00 at night and Matt Donovan was ready to go home. It had been a busy shift at the Grill, and he had been scheduled to leave at 6, but he needed the overtime. His boss had just given him one last task to do before clocking out, but he found himself distracted when someone slightly familiar walked through the door. The guy standing at atleast 6'2, had quite a presence and drew stares as he settled down at one of the tables. Tommy, another waiter, started to approach him but Matt intercepted him.

"I got this, Tommy," he told him and headed to the table.

Julius' hazel eyes peered up at Matt innocently as he hovered over his table. "What can I get for you?" Matt questioned without a smile.

"I'll just have a gin and tonic," Julius replied.

"Not hungry today?" Matt asked.

"Already ate," Julius said simply.

Matt hesitated for a moment, debating whether or not to question him further, then decided to get his drink first and headed off. Julius raised his eyebrows at the boy's odd behavior, but it was quickly forgotten about as his phone vibrated in his jacket pocket. He took it out and he frowned at the text message he'd received.

Leave Virginia or there will be dire consequences.

Instead of replying, he tucked his phone back in his pocket, and stroked his facial hair, deep in thought. Matt reappeared, breaking him out of his thoughts when he loudly placed his drink on the table in front of him.

"Hey, didn't I see you in here the other night talking to Bonnie?" Matt questioned.

Julius looked at him uncertainly. "Yeah," he said. "You know her?"

"Yeah, she's a friend of mine," he replied. "I'm also friends with her boyfriend." Matt said the last word very pointedly.

Julius nodded his head. "Cool. Thanks for the drink." He grabbed his gin and started to drink in a way that signaled he was done with the conversation but Matt didn't budge.

"How do you know her?"

Julius narrowed his eyes at him. "I don't know her all that well, she's just an acquaintance."

"Where did you guys go when you left?"

Julius huffed and put his drink down. "What is it with this place?" He complained. "Every time I come in here for a simple drink it's like twenty questions! Are you sure you're just her friend, mate, because you're sounding like a jealous boyfriend yourself?"

"I'm looking out for her and Jeremy," Matt argued. "I just want to make sure some foreign creep isn't trying to move in on their relationship."

"Jeez, that's rude." Julius took another sip. "You treat all the patrons this way? Or do you just have something against sexy Australians? Scared I might take all your girls?" Matt fought the urge to start cursing at him. He wasn't in a position to lose his job over some random jerk with a douchey accent and an infuriating smirk. "You have nothing to worry about, busboy. Bonnie doesn't even like me."

"Well, she's always been a smart girl," Matt quipped.

Julius grew serious. "If you were smart you would walk away right now."

Matt gave a fake half smile. "Enjoy your drink." He turned on his heel and stalked away, muttering, "Asshole", under his breath. Julius heard him loud and clear

Bonnie's entire body was stiff as Jeremy lay in between her legs, kissing on her neck. He grew increasingly frustrated as she remained unresponsive to his sexual advances. He had been very patient with her not being ready to actually have sex throughout their relationship, but they'd done just about everything else, and he was in the mood for some kind of action.

"You can at least pretend like you're into this," Jeremy complained, glaring down into Bonnie's emerald eyes.

She sighed. "I'm sorry, I am into it." She wrapped her arms around his neck and brought his lips to hers. She was kissing him half-heartedly until she felt his hand sneaking down her shorts, then she felt the urgent need to get away. She pulled her mouth from his and pushed against his broad shoulders.

"What's the problem?" He huffed.

"I'm sorry, Jer, but I have to get up," she said. "I'm just not in the mood." He exhaled loudly and flopped back onto the bed. She quickly got up and headed toward the bedroom door.

"What the hell is your problem, Bonnie!" He hurled angrily at her back. "You've been acting cold and distant for days but you keep telling me nothing is wrong! Obviously something is wrong and you need to let me know before I stop caring."

Bonnie turned to look at him incredulously. "Before you stop caring?" She reiterated. "Jeremy, you've stopped caring about me and our relationship awhile ago."

"That's not true!"

"Everything comes before me," she pointed out. "Your friends, your job, your video games. You make time for me when you want to fool around. You've been a half-ass boyfriend, and today I'm not in the mood for it."

"I love you, Bonnie," he stated, firmly. He got up from the bed and approached her. "I have never loved any girl the way I love you. I'm sorry if you feel I've been neglectful. It's just that for months after we got together I didn't see any of my friends. It was all about you. This summer I wanted to make room for other things."

"My last summer before college," Bonnie said, pointedly. "Perfect timing"

"You're right, I'm an idiot," Jeremy agreed. "Things will be different from now on. Okay, baby." Bonnie nodded uncertainly and her eyes were downcast. Jeremy lifted her chin with his finger, forcing her to look at him, and gently kissed her. Before he could get into it, Bonnie pulled away. Jeremy huffed. "You know what? I'm just going to go. You complain about me not being around enough but when I am around you're pushing me away. I'll give you some time to figure out what you really want."

"Jeremy..." Bonnie's plea went unfinished as he pushed past her and stormed out. She wouldn't chase after him. He was right, she needed to figure out some things.

Jeremy was out of the house and jumping into his truck in under a minute. He hadn't been this tempted to hit up his old supplier for some weed in a while, but as he drove the need to get high increased. The feeling was intensified when his engine started conking out on him. He quickly pulled over to the side of the road and hopped out. When he pulled up the hood of his car, it appeared as if it had been tampered with. Regardless, he wasn't getting home this way. Cursing loudly, he kicked the truck. This was not his day.

He already knew he didn't want to call Bonnie for help. She would probably just love it if he had to come crawling back five minutes after their fight. He knew Matt was working a shift at the grill, and Elena would probably just go to Damon. He thought it best to just cut out the middle man and call Damon himself. He continued studying the engine as he dialed. A car crept up beside him but he paid it no mind, even when the driver called out to him.

"Need help?"

"I'm good!" Jeremy threw back without a glance in the guy's direction.

"Are you sure?" The accented voice pressed. "I can help you out, it's no problem."

Jeremy finally looked up. "I said I'm-" He stopped mid-sentence and his mouth dropped open as he took in the sight before him. He hit the end button on his cell before the call even went through. "Whoa! Nice ride, man!"

The guy gave off a cocky grin. He was sitting pretty in his all black Mercedes Benz C350 and knew it. "Thanks. She's my baby. What's the problem here?"

"I'm not sure," Jeremy said. "She was riding fine this morning, but now..."

The guy nodded and pulled over, parking in front of Jeremy's car. He walked over and examined the engine. Jeremy listened intently as he broke down exactly what was wrong with his truck. He fished the tools necessary to fix the problem out of his own trunk. Their conversation soon turned from cars to common interests. By the end of it, Jeremy was feeling like he may have found a new friend.

Damon pulled up in front of the Bennett house, still in disbelief that he'd been pushed to this point. He was prepared for her guaranteed attitude and he had one of his own as he knocked loudly on her front door. He was impatient and knocking again before she had the chance to answer the door after the first time. Soon, she was whipping it open and glaring out at him.

"What the hell, Damon!" She exclaimed.

"Why are you being such a bitch to Elena?"

"Excuse me?"

"For a week all I've heard is how you yelled at her and you won't talk to her and she didn't mean anything by it and she just wants her friend back," Damon went on in a mocking tone. "This ridiculous catty feud you've got going on with my girl and Blondie has got to end, because if I have to hear your name one more time in my household I'm going to rip my own ears off!"

"That's not really my problem, Damon."

"It is and we're going to fix it," he declared. "Let's go."

Bonnie raised her eyebrow. "What?"

"I'm bringing you to Elena's and you guys are going to make up."

"I don't think so."

"I don't have time for this, Bonnie!"

"Then stay out of it!"

Damon was growing increasingly frustrated. "I would if Elena didn't keep crying to me about this shit!" He exclaimed. "I would like nothing more than to not be standing here talking to you! This stupid girl drama you guys are having is literally making me itch. So, either you come willingly and quietly, or you come kicking and screaming. Either way, you're coming."

Bonnie snorted. "As if you can make me do anything," she laughed. "You haven't been invited in here. You can't even get to me."

"I can make your life a living hell, Bonnie. Let's. Go."

Bonnie crossed her arms, unbudging. Damon sneered at her, wishing he could grab her by the neck and drag her out. "You know, if you just asked somebody to do something nicely for once you might get what you want," she advised.

Damon had to force his next words out of his mouth. "Will you please come out here before I start ripping this house apart." Bonnie sucked her teeth.

"You are impossible," she said before stepping out onto the porch. "You are so lucky that I've already had it in my mind to talk to her." Damon gave a forced smile.

"Thank you, Bonnie."

"Get out." Damon's tone was demanding as he pulled to a stop in front of the Gilbert house.

"Was that necessary?" Bonnie snapped. "I'm obviously going to get out." She rolled her eyes as she opened the door and climbed out of the car. She looked back at Damon who wasn't making a move. "You're not coming in?"

"No, I have things to do."

"But you were my ride over here!"

"Exactly. Bye Bye, Bon Bon." He was off before she could get another word in. She shook her head as she walked up the porch and knocked. She wasn't exactly happy about the impromptu sleepover, but she was kind of anxious to see her friend. Like it or not, she missed her.

Elena opened the door and a look of surprise took over her face. "Bonnie!" She threw her arms around the little witch. "I'm so glad to see you."

"Me too, Elena," Bonnie said, reciprocating the hug. "Can we talk?"

"Of course, come in." Elena stepped aside so she could enter. The girls went into the kitchen where Elena opened the fridge. "Want anything to drink?"

Bonnie shook her head. "I'm good," she replied. It was clear to Elena that Bonnie's excitement at being there didn't match hers. She pulled a drink out for herself then turned to Bonnie with concerned eyes. "I am so sorry for the other night, Bonnie. Caroline and I were being nosy and way too pushy and it wasn't our place to question you like that."

Bonnie nodded. "It's okay," she said. "I know you guys didn't mean any harm. I shouldn't have yelled at you. It was unfair."

"I know you didn't mean it."

"I'm not sorry for what I said, Elena," Bonnie clarified. "I'm sorry for the way I said it." Elena's brow furrowed at this statement but they both were quickly distracted by the sound of shouting coming from the living-room.

Elena rolled her eyes. "Jeremy and his new friend," she explained. "He's already sucked him into Call of Duty. They've been playing for like an hour."

"Jeremy's got a new friend?"

"Yes, and he's insanely hot."

Curiosity getting the best of her, Bonnie headed toward the living-room, Elena trailing behind her. She could see the back of their heads, controllers in hand, tapping away vehemently as Jeremy trash talked. Bonnie wasn't sure if Jeremy was still mad at her, but it would be rude to stay in his house and not even speak to him. She rounded the couch and he was smiling when he spotted her.

"Oh, hey Bonnie," he said brightly. "What are you doing here?"

"Visiting Elena," she replied. Jeremy moved back and she got a good look at his buddy. Bonnie's heart dropped into her stomach.

"This is Julius," Jeremy said, not taking his eyes from the screen. "Julius, that's my girlfriend, Bonnie." Julius grinned at Bonnie, his hazel eyes twinkling with mischief.

"What the hell are you doing here?" The words were out of Bonnie's mouth before she could stop herself. Everybody stopped and looked at her. Bonnie struggled to come up with a sensible thing to say. "S-sorry...that was rude. I...how do you guys know each other?"

"My car broke down when I left your house earlier." Jeremy was still looking at her with a raised eyebrow. "He stopped and helped me out."

"Turns out your boyfriend is a real cool guy," Julius added, holding Bonnie's intense stare. Jeremy and Elena looked between the two of them curiously.

"Do you guys know each other?" Jeremy questioned. Julius just studied Bonnie, waiting for her to answer.

She nodded. "We've met," she said, simply.

"It's a small town," Julius said with a shrug. "Once you start meeting people here, you're bound to run into them again." Bonnie was starting to feel the heat and had to make a quick exit. She whispered to Elena that she would be back, then flew out of the room. She rushed up the stairs and locked herself in the bathroom. She was pissed at Damon all over again for leaving her stranded here. She had never thought that if she ran into Julius again it would be here of all places.

She was getting more upset as she thought about it. This complete stranger had dropped into her life out of nowhere and now it seemed impossible to shake him. She had it in her right mind to just go downstairs and take him out and worry later about the questions that would come. Either way, she knew she couldn't hole up in Elena's bathroom forever and would have to face the music sooner or later. She took a deep breath then opened the bathroom door to find herself face-to-face with Julius.

"About time," he quipped in a smooth voice. "I thought you might have fallen in."

Bonnie stepped out of the bathroom, shooting daggers at him with her eyes. "I am sick and tired of you," she hissed at him through gritted teeth. "I told you I wanted you to leave."

"Why?" He asked. "Why must I leave? Who am I hurting?"

"I've told you this before, vampires cause nothing but trouble."

"I haven't caused any trouble since I've been here."

"You're causing trouble for me right now," Bonnie argued. "What do you want with Jeremy?"

"I just helped out a young man in need," he said, innocently. "Turned out he's your man. Small world."

"And you had nothing to do with his car breaking down?" Bonnie asked in an accusatory manner.

Julius smirked. "If I did, it wasn't anything that wasn't easily fixable," he half-admitted.

"I will not have you interfering with my life," she told him, glaring up at him. "This has gone on long enough. I have the power to end you, don't make me use it."

"Everything all right?"

Bonnie and Julius turned to see Elena at the top of the stairs, looking at them with concern. Bonnie quickly stepped away from him, now realizing how close they had been standing to each other.

"Yeah, I was just looking for the bathroom," Julius replied, casually. He stepped into the bathroom and smiled out at Elena. "I found it." He closed the door. He obviously didn't need to use the bathroom, as vampires didn't have that ability, and it seemed neither he knew or Elena had figured out they were of the same kind. Bonnie started heading toward the stairs.

"Bonnie," Elena's voice stopped her. She looked to the ceiling, knowing what was coming, before turning to her. "How do you know him?"

Bonnie shrugged. "I just do."

"Is that the guy from Mystic Grill?" She asked. Bonnie knew she would have to tell the truth. Matt had already seen Julius, and he could confirm that Bonnie was a liar if Elena asked him about it.

"Yes," Bonnie admitted. "I really don't know him all that well, that night was the only real conversation we've ever had. It's nothing, Elena."

"I thought you said you knew him through your dad and that his name was Adam," Elena pointed out.

"I had confused him with another guy that worked for my dad. I've met a lot of his employees," Bonnie said with a shrug. Elena shot her a look of disbelief. "Elena, you're reaching again. I'm telling you the truth, now drop it." She turned on her heel and headed down the stairs. Elena would drop the subject for now, but she just couldn't get it out of her head that neither Bonnie nor Julius were being all the way honest.

When Julius went back into the living-room, Elena, Jeremy, and Bonnie were on the couch watching TV. Bonnie was snuggled up against Jeremy who had his arm wrapped around her. It seemed they had put aside their differences for the time being. Julius laughed inside knowing that when he left Jeremy would definitely question her about how they knew each other, and she would have to stick with that horrible lie he'd heard her tell Elena in the upstairs hallway.

"Well, I should get going," he announced.

"You don't have to," Jeremy told him. Bonnie wanted to kick him. She wanted nothing more than for Julius to be away. "We were just about to watch a movie."

"Thanks but I've got somewhere to be," he responded. "But hey, you've got my number. Call me any time for a game."

"For sure." Jeremy reached out and shook his hand then turned his attention back to the TV.

"Goodbye Bonnie," Julius said, sweetly.

"Bye." Her response was short and not so sweet

He smiled and turned his attention to Elena. "It was very nice meeting you, Elena," he told her, holding out his hand. Elena stood up then shook it.

"I'll walk you out since your host obviously isn't going to do it," Elena said, pointedly. Jeremy gave a thumbs up and Elena and Julius both laughed before heading out.

"Your brother seems like a good guy," Julius said as he opened the door and stepped out into the cool night air. "He obviously takes after his lovely older sister." Elena smiled.

"Thank you, Julius," she said. "You're very charming, you know. We need more guys like you in Mystic Falls."

Julius chuckled. "I don't think I'll be sticking around for much longer," he revealed. "I haven't felt too welcome until tonight."

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that," Elena stepped out onto the porch with him, closing the front door behind her. "Did something happen with you and Bonnie? No offense but she doesn't seem to like you very much."

Julius shrugged. "I'm sure if she gets to know me she'll feel differently," he said.

"I don't know. Bonnie, can be very stubborn when she wants," Elena said. "She's gotten to know my boyfriend pretty well over the years and she still can't stand the sight of him."

"I have an idea that might make her more receptive to me," Julius stated. He placed his hand on Elena's shoulders and looked deep into her eyes. "Believe whatever she tells you. Keep telling her you think I'm a good guy." He stepped away and flashed his paper-white smile. "Boyfriend, huh? That's too bad." He turned and waltzed over to his Mercedes. Elena watched him as he drove away.

"I'm telling you, it was weird!" Elena was pacing across Damon's room, as said vampire lounged on his spectacularly large bed. "I was getting this vibe from him when we talked, and I caught him and Bonnie having this really intense conversation. Her story on how she knows him makes no sense. And I think he might have tried to compel me to believe her!" This snapped Damon to attention.

"What?" He sat up. "You think this guy's a vampire?"

"I don't know, maybe," she said. "Or maybe he just has this intense way of looking at people when he talks to them."

"Well, did you hear if he had a heartbeat?" Damon questioned.

"I didn't think to listen for one."

"Could you smell him? Did he have a human scent?"

"I smelled his cologne."

Damon exhaled. "God, you are such a rookie."

"Well, I'm sorry, Damon!" Elena exclaimed. "I'm sorry I'm not yet an expert at detecting other vampires. Maybe I'm just being paranoid, with all our past experiences."

"I'm sure Bonnie would know if he was," Damon said. "She would definitely tell us if there was another vampire around. Wouldn't she?"

Elena shrugged. "She's been very secretive lately, but I would like to think she wouldn't keep information like that from us."

"I'm going to find out for sure," Damon declared. Elena nodded and sat on the bed beside him.

"Just try to keep it cool. No violence, okay?"

"I'll do my best," Damon promised.

Julius settled onto the park bench and looked around. The park was empty as it was nighttime. Julius had at first thought it odd when Jeremy had texted him asking to meet there, but decided to go along with it. Getting closer to Jeremy meant getting closer to Bonnie which meant getting closer to finding Valerie. Despite the many life threats he'd received from the witch herself and elsewhere, he was on a mission with no plans to give it up.

As he waited he was approached by the busboy from the Mystic Grill. "Busboy!" He exclaimed. "What are you doing out here?"

"It's Matt," he said in a gruff voice. "Jeremy told me to meet him here. Since you're here too, I think we should have a man-to-man discussion."

Julius stood up to face him. "All right, discuss."

"You don't intimidate me," Matt told him bravely, looking him dead in the eye. "Let's make that clear. But there was no reason for me to approach you the way I did the other day, so I apologize for that. I should've gotten to know you before making the assumption that you were scum. I'm sorry." Julius was surprised by this. He looked the boy up and down, trying to decipher if he was being genuine, and Matt held his gaze. Julius had no desire to be his friend, but decided to humor him.

"Apology accepted."

"Cool." Matt held out his hand.

"Guess you're not so bad, Ma-AAH!" Julius had taken his hand then snatched it back with a cry of pain. As he looked at the sizzling wound on his palm Matt was pulling a wooden stake from his back pocket. When he looked up again Matt was running at him full speed.

Julius reacted fast, grabbing his arms before he could drive the stake through his heart and pushing him off. His fangs burst from his gums and his eyes were blood red, the veins surrounding them pulsing as his vampiric instinct took over. Matt looked at him with wide eyes.

"You just fucked up, Busboy." Julius sped at him and sank his teeth into his neck. Matt let out a scream as Julius sucked his blood with a vengeance. Matt couldn't fight the much stronger being off, but it was only a few seconds before Julius was staggering back, coughing up Matt's blood. He held his burning throat as the blood came up in chunks.

"Vervain," he managed to choke out as the poison ran rampant through his undead body.

"Damon," Matt said simply.

Before Julius could question what Matt was talking about, there was a pair of hands on his head, that in one quick motion, snapped his neck. Damon stood silently behind Julius and watched as his body crumpled to the ground. Matt held his bleeding neck and glared down at the vampire.

"Looks like you're the one that fucked up, asshole," he spat down at him.

"Let's get him in the car," Damon instructed, "He and I need to have a little chat."