Song: Unravel by Laura Welsh

Disclaimer: I only own my OCs. All other characters belong to The CW. No copyright infringement intended.

14 - Unravel

Bonnie couldn't stop smiling. She and Julius were riding fast, windows rolled down, the wind whipping and picking up Bonnie's hair. They'd driven all night, non-stop until they reached North Carolina. Now it was early morning and their plan was to stop somewhere and eat, get to a motel and relax, enjoy each other's company, and strategize a plan against Victoria and her coven. He wasn't showing it, but Bonnie knew Julius was itching to get Vee out of the care of those people but they couldn't rush in recklessly. They had to be careful.

Bonnie was tired and had fallen asleep a couple times during the ride. She wanted nothing more than to curl up into a comfortable bed, much like the one she'd been assigned at the boardinghouse, but Julius was doing a good job of keeping her entertained. He had the radio on full blast and was rapping quite vivaciously along with Eminem. Bonnie laughed and pulled out the new phone he'd given her and started recording him.

"What do you say to somebody you hate, or anyone trying to bring trouble your way? Wanna resolve things in a bloodier way, just study a tape of NWA!" Julius turned his head and saw she was recording him, causing her to laugh louder. Instead of being embarrassed, he continued to rap into the camera.

The phone he'd given her, to prevent anyone from tracking her down with her old one, was a serious upgrade from her last one and she'd been taking a lot of pictures of him, and a few selfies with the both of them, commenting that his profile was sculpted by the gods themselves. He could make her laugh, he could make her come, he could even make her drop everything and run away with him, like something out of a sappy romance. Already, her relationship with Julius was making everything she'd ever felt for Jeremy seem like a distant memory, and not at all serious.

"Only vampires could keep up this amount of energy on no sleep," Bonnie commented as he turned the radio down. They were pulling up to a Denny's just as Bonnie's stomach started to rumble.

"Don't worry, baby, you'll be able to lay your head down soon," he promised. "Let's get some food in you first." They climbed out of the Mercedes and rounded the car. Julius held out his hand for her and Bonnie smiled and took it. They were both wearing shades with white shirts and black jeans, and looked like two really good-looking peas in a pod. Bonnie's tight, hip-hugging jeans weren't her usual style but Julius had commented that he liked them as she was going through her closet at home, so she'd put them on. They accentuated her derrière quite nicely and he'd commented on that as well, earning himself a playful slap to the shoulder. With her body hugging top to go with it, her curves were on display, and both she and Julius looked like each other's trophies. They turned some heads as they walked into the Denny's, and Bonnie couldn't remember the last time she had made a head-turning entrance with her man on her arm. She liked the feeling.

"I can't believe Bonnie ran away with Julius." Caroline snatched the strawberry Elena was about to put into her mouth out of her hand. They were in the kitchen of the Gilbert house, as they were planning to have dinner together, and Caroline was cutting up some fruit. "The fruit salad is for after dinner." Elena huffed but didn't argue. The second Caroline turned her head she had a grape in her mouth.

"I knew she had feelings for him but I didn't think it was serious enough for her to do something like this," Elena said after swallowing said stolen grape. She pondered for a moment. "You think she's slept with him?"

"Of course she has," Caroline stated confidently. "Have you seen Julius? I'd ride him to the moon and back if I was her."

"Caroline!" Elena said with laughter in her voice.

"It's true," the blonde continued. "I know she was holding onto her virginity like a lotto ticket but I'm sure he's hit the number about five or six times already." Both girls started to giggle which instantly ceased when a stone-faced Jeremy walked in the kitchen. Caroline's eyes widened in horror and she went back to chopping. It was obvious he'd overheard them by the look on his face.

"Hey, Jer," Elena said, trying to quell the awkward moment.

"You still haven't heard from her?" He asked, seriously. Both Elena and Caroline shook their heads.

"All we can do is hope that eventually she reaches out, but I wouldn't wait around for it," Caroline told him.

"She doesn't love him," Jeremy stated.

"Oh boy," Caroline muttered to herself.

"I'm serious!" He exclaimed. "We were just together! She wouldn't jump into another relationship this quickly, that's not Bonnie. There's something else going on here. He kidnapped her and made her write those letters so we wouldn't go after her."

"I think you know better than anyone that nobody can make Bonnie do anything," Elena said.

"If you threaten her loved ones you can," Jeremy argued. "I bet that's what he did. This guy is trouble. I need to kill him and get Bonnie back."

"Jeremy! That's crazy!" Elena cried. "I don't want you killing anyone. Last time you were killing vampires all you did was dream about killing me. You were a danger. Let's not go down that road again."

"Elena, what if she's hurt?" He asked somberly.

Elena sighed and stood up to face him, placing a comforting hand on his arm. "We just have to trust that she's not," she replied in a soft voice. "If anyone can handle themselves it's Bonnie. I'm sorry, Jeremy, I know you're hurt but you have to try to move on. We all do." Jeremy huffed and pulled away from her before stalking out of the room. The vampires heard the sound of his bedroom door slamming not too long afterward. Elena turned back to Caroline who was wrapping up her freshly made fruit salad. "Let's move this somewhere else. Give him some time." Her friend agreed and they left the house, getting into Caroline's vehicle.

"You know he's not going to move on, right?" Caroline asked as she started up her car. Elena sighed and looked up at her brother's bedroom window. The blinds were open and she could see him inside, holding something in his hand that she was sure was Bonnie's letter to him. She was starting to worry.

"I know."

"Finally!"

Bonnie flopped back onto the motel bed, grateful she was finally able to lay down. Julius' back hit the bed beside her a few seconds later. Both sighed deeply and closed their eyes. There was a long moment of silence. Julius' hand rested on the pillow and he felt Bonnie interlace her fingers with his. He smiled to himself.

"I still can't believe I did this," Bonnie said, softly.

"I hope you're not having second thoughts." He turned on his side to face her, slinging his arm over her torso.

"Absolutely not." Her eyes remained closed as she spoke to him. "I think we can have a promising future together, but you have to be completely open and honest with me. You have to trust that you can open up to me."

"I have opened up to you," he stated. "I've told you things I've never told anyone."

"Everything, Julius?" Bonnie opened her eyes. "You killed April, didn't you?" Julius swore his heart stopped. Bonnie felt his body stiffen.

"Is this something we really need to talk about right now?" What a way to ruin the moment, Bonnie, he thought to himself.

"You've been careful not to ever say it but I'm very capable of putting two and two together. And you usually refer to her in the past tense, so that's a pretty big tip-off as well."

He sat up and looked worriedly into her eyes. "I'm sorry, Bonnie, I should've told you," he admitted. "I didn't want to scare you off. I was so afraid of losing you before I even had you."

"You have me, Julius," she told him. "I'm here, I'm with you. You let this eat you up everyday of your life. I can see the pain in your eyes, even when you're trying to hide it. Let me help you. Talk to me. If I were to guess, I'd say Victoria had a lot to do with what happened."

"She set me up to become a vampire and trapped me with April right after turning." he explained. "But does it really matter? I'm still the one who fed from her. I'm the one who drained her dry while she begged for her life. How in the fuck is it fair that I still get to be here and she doesn't?!"

"Julius, listen to me!" Bonnie quickly climbed on top of him, placing her hands on his face so he had to look up into her verdant eyes. "You were a brand new vampire with no control of your actions. Vampires always thirst for blood, and a newborn can't control the thirst. It takes over you. What happened to April was awful, and I'm so, so sorry that it happened but wallowing in this guilt and self-hatred for the rest of your existence isn't going to bring her back. You're all Valerie has at this point and you need to put your focus on saving her. You need to do it for her, and for April." Bonnie leaned down and placed a soft kiss to his lips. "We're going to get her back. I promise. I didn't know April, but I'm sure that this is what she would want."

Julius gazed at her admiringly for a moment. "You're the best, you know that, right?"

She leaned down and placed a soft kiss to his lips. "I try." She climbed off of him and moved off the bed.

"Where are you going?" He asked, reaching out for her.

"Nowhere," she said with a chuckle at his playful clinginess. She picked up her bag from the floor and dropped it onto the end of the bed with a thud.

"I don't know why you insisted on bringing so much shit." Julius sat up and watched her as she unzipped the hefty bag. "You don't need it. I'm going to buy you new stuff. New clothes, new shoes, anything you want."

"I appreciate that but I don't need you to buy anything for me," she said.

"I know you don't need me to but I want to," he responded. He moved down the bed toward her. "You looked good today in those shades I got you. Almost as good as you'd look driving my car." He was right in front of her, sitting on the edge of the bed and gripping her by the waist. "Or wearing one of my t-shirts." He started to lift her shirt. "Or wearing a fat diamond ring I picked out." He was kissing on her stomach and her bellybutton. It felt nice but Bonnie was distracted.

"A diamond ring?" She repeated.

"Right, I forgot. You don't want me buying you nice things," he quipped with that little smirk she used to find infuriating. "I guess I'll have to think of something else." He was smooching on her skin again but she started to pull away.

"As nice as that feels I don't want to start anything right now," she explained.

"Oh, please let me start something." He tried to pull her back but she pried his hands away, causing him to let out a frustrated growl. "Don't be a baby about it. I'm tired and I want wash away that long drive. We have time. I'm not going anywhere, Julius." She walked over to the bathroom and opened the door, flipping the light switch on. Julius glanced at her open bag and saw something sitting on top of her clothes.

"What's this?" He asked, extracting it from her bag. She looked back and saw what was in his hand.

"Oh, it's a Kindle," she responded, lightly. She walked over to him. "It's pretty cool, actually."

"Have you always had this?"

"No, Damon got it for me while I was at the boardinghouse."

Julius felt the sudden urge to hurl it out the window, but he wasn't quite sure how he would explain that. "Why? Why does he keeping buying you things?"

"Only two things, and he got it so I'd stop complaining about being bored," she explained. She studied the look on his face. "Don't overthink it."

"I'm not, I'm just curious..." He fixed his hazel eyes on her intently. "What exactly happened while you were at the boardinghouse?"

Bonnie's brow furrowed. "You mean before Victoria showed up and tried to kill everyone?" She asked and Julius felt a twinge of guilt. Bonnie saw a flash of it in his eyes. Serves him right, she thought to herself then immediately felt guilty herself for having the thought. She didn't know if Julius was implying something with the question or was genuinely just curious, but she was bothered that he felt the need to talk about this either way. "Nothing really. I stayed in the room for the most part, except the one time I went to Fell's Church with Stefan to practice some spells. I watched a lot of The Walking Dead, and I read. Damon drank bourbon. Stefan would check on me and make sure I was okay. Nothing really happened." Julius nodded. "Are we done with that now?" She grabbed him by the face and kissed him. "I don't know why we're even talking about Damon. It was your idea to leave all that behind us, remember?"

"You're right, baby. I won't ask again."

"I'm going to go take a shower."

"In a minute." He grabbed her and threw her back on the bed with him. "Lay with me for a minute. I know how tired you are." Their legs were wrapped around each other, his arm around her body,, and their faces only inches apart as their heads rested on the pillow. Bonnie had never felt so comfortable and secure, and didn't want to move anymore. Soon, they were both snoozing soundly.

Caroline and Elena entered the boardinghouse without bothering to knock. They knew Damon was home because the Camaro was parked in the driveway. Elena called out Damon's name as they walked in. He didn't reply but they came upon him in the living-room, sitting in front of the fireplace that wasn't even going, a bottle of bourbon in his hand. Elena's brow furrowed at the sight of him.

"What's up with you?" She inquired.

"Oh, just drowning away my irritation with a bottle of bourbon," he replied.

"What are you irritated about now?" Caroline asked with a tone that implied she didn't really care.

"Stefan isn't being very helpful when it comes to figuring out where Bonnie is and tracking her little witchy ass down," he explained before taking a long drink from his bottle.

"Why would we track her down?" Elena asked in confusion. Damon set his icy blue eyes on her.

"What do you mean why? He asked, his face scrunched. "To bring her ass back."

"But that's not what she wants, Damon," Elena said. "She made that very clear."

"It's not about what she wants...it's about what's best for her." Damon's speech was slightly slurred and when he got up to walk he slightly stumbled.

"Why the hell are you getting drunk?!" Elena cried, her frustration building.

"Because I can do what the fuck I want." He started toward the kitchen, throwing the empty bottle down, causing it to shatter on the floor.

"Damon! Stop!" Elena screamed.

Caroline's eyes widened. "Aaand that's my cue to go." She used her inhuman speed to swiftly exit the room. Elena's eyes didn't leave Damon as he paused then turned to face her.

"What the hell is going on with you?" She asked him, worry in her voice.

"Why am I being harassed for wanting to do the right thing for once?" He asked. "All I'm trying to do is get Bonnie back to Mystic Falls."

"Why? Why is this so important you?!"

"She's your best friend!" Damon cried. "You should want this more than anybody!"

"Of course I miss her and I'm not happy about the way she left but if she wants to be with him that's really none of our business," Elena argued. She started to approach Damon as she spoke more passionately. "I'm just trying to understand, Damon. I'm trying to understand this passion, this borderline obsession, you've had with pushing Julius out of her life since he arrived here."

"It's not about pushing him out of her life," Damon clarified. "It's been about removing him from all of our lives. He's supposed to be her boyfriend but he's been nothing but a pain in my ass. Because of him, Victoria almost killed you, and she wants to kill Bonnie. Do you really think this is someone she should be with?"

"Is that all this is?" Elena stopped in front of him. "A year ago you told me if it came down to me and Bonnie, you would gladly let her die. It came down to me and Bonnie the other night. All Victoria wanted was for you to surrender Bonnie and she would've let me go. You didn't."

"Would you really have preferred it if I did?"

"Absolutely not," she said. "But when did you start caring about what I want when it comes to my life. What's changed?" Damon was quickly sobering, due to his vampirism burning away the excessive amount of alcohol in his system, just in time for a conversation he didn't want to have.

"Not a damn thing," he said. "I will never choose the witch over you. I just tried to think of a way to keep you both around, because I thought that's what you would want! Glad to know I was wrong."

"No, that's not-"

"If it's important to you, I'll drop this whole thing," he declared. Elena didn't say anything. "I'll let her go off with him, completely vulnerable and in danger of Victoria's presumably large coven. I'll never think of her again. I won't go after her. Is that what you're asking me to do?"

"I wouldn't ask that of you, Damon," she said. The last part of her statement went unspoken. She wouldn't ask it because she shouldn't have to. He should've known.

"Then why are we having this fight?"

"I'm wondering the same thing myself," Elena stated. "I'll give you some time to figure out what your priorities are." She turned on her heel and started away.

"Elena, don't leave like this. We're not done talking!" His tone was aggressive and demanding. She didn't plan to deal with him again until he was completely sober. "Elena!" He went ignored and she stepped outside to see Caroline on the front porch.

"I'm guessing we're having dinner at my house," the blonde said, looking at her friend with concern in her blue eyes. Elena nodded somberly.

Julius and Bonnie slept much longer than they anticipated. Julius hadn't realized how exhausted he was until he was on the bed. Not just physically, but mentally. Everything that had happened over the last week would've completely drained him if it wasn't for his technically already being dead. Bonnie was in the shower and he was in the room, unpacking some of his things. He heard the water stop and the shower door being pulled open. He was going to call out and ask if she was hungry, but when he looked up the question died on his lips.

The door to the bathroom had been left slightly ajar. From Julius' position he could see into it and Bonnie had just stepped into his line of vision, completely nude. He didn't fail to be awestruck, regardless of the fact that he'd seen her body before, as she draped her dripping wet hair over her shoulder. She grabbed one of the thick, white towels hanging beside the sink and wrapped it around herself. Julius averted his gaze just as she turned around.

He pretended to be solely focused on the contents of his bag as she breezed into the room. "Boy, I really needed that," she said, stopping beside him at the foot of the bed to unzip her own bag. Her scent smacked him in the face and it was intoxicating. He felt the veins underneath his eyes start to pulse and his gums start to throb, the fangs wanting to come through. He took a deep breath to calm his instincts, and the feelings went away.

"You okay," Bonnie asked, taking notice of his unusual silence.

"I'm fine," he said, heavily. Before she could question him further, he was right behind her, his body pressed up against her back. He tenderly placed his lips to her neck, kissing it softly. Bonnie immediately stopped what she had been doing. He started kissing her skin a bit more aggressively. She closed her eyes and a soft moan escaped her. She didn't object when his hands came up and undid her towel, leaving her completely naked and still wet from her shower. He reached around and yanked her bag off the bed, ready to take her, and she turned to face him. She threw her arms around his neck and he lifted her up as she kissed him. They fell onto the bed and their tongues delved deep into each other's mouths. It was getting heavy, blood was rushing, and her scent was beginning to overwhelm him. It had been two days since he fed and it was effecting him.

He pulled out of the kiss and Bonnie looked up at him in confusion, then she saw the veins under his eyes. He waited for her to demand he get off of her but it didn't happen. She gently placed her fingers to his face. She slowly turned her head to the side, baring her neck to him. "It's okay," she assured. "It's okay, Julius. I trust you." Her words, and the sight of her pretty neck exposed to him, caused his thirst to take over. He buried his head in her neck and a small cry escaped her as his fangs pierced her skin. She held him tightly as he drank.

It was the best thing he'd ever tasted, better than the first time when she'd allowed him to drink from her wrist. His vampire mind was aching to sink his fangs further into her skin and completely devour, to drink from every sensual spot in her body, but his heart kept him in control. He was pressed up against her entrance and Bonnie felt a spike of pain as he suddenly pushed inside of her. As they'd only slept together once before, her body still hadn't completely adapted to becoming one with another. She cried out as he began to stroke, slowly extracting his fangs. He bit into his own wrist and held it to Bonnie's mouth, drops of his blood falling onto her lips. She grabbed it and suckled on it until the bite marks on her neck disappeared then she pulled away. She knew the effects a lot of vampire blood had on a human, and she didn't need it as her burning desire for this man was already so intense. So were his strokes, as he was pumped off of the fresh blood, and they were wrapped around each other so tightly it would be hard to tell one from the other if not for the contrasting complexions. Any pain Bonnie felt was soon lost in a sea of pleasure. They rolled around that bed, taking each other in different positions with a fiery passion, until they simultaneously came to a satisfying end.

"I got the bed all wet," Bonnie said with a smile as they lay beside each other, breathing heavily after draining each other's energy.

"That means I'm doing my job," Julius replied with a smirk.

"I meant from the shower," Bonnie said with a roll of the eyes.

"Sure you did, Bon, sure you did." He said, jokingly. Bonnie laughed and turned on her side to look at him. He met her eyes.

"Thank you," she said.

"For what?"

"For loving me, for making me feel like I matter."

"You do matter." He slid closer to her and looked her directly in her eyes. "You matter so much, I don't know what I would do without you at this point. I know I would never be this happy again." The corner of Bonnie's mouth lifted into a small smile. "Thank you, Bonnie. For loving me, for not holding my past against me, for accepting the fact that I have a child. For being the most amazing woman I've ever met. Don't ever leave me, okay?"

"Never. You would have to leave me."

His face grew serious. "Never."

Elena was in her room, readying herself for bed. It had been a long day, and all she wanted was to sleep and forget about all of it for a little while. Her phone rang as she pulled on the tank top she was wearing to bed, and she was a little surprised at who was calling. "Stefan?" She answered the call.

"Hey Elena," came his voice from the other end. "I haven't talked to you since last night at the Grill and I wanted to check on you. See how you're doing about this whole Bonnie thing,"

She shrugged. "I don't know. I think I'm fine about that," she said. "If Bonnie is happy than I'm happy for her."

"Damon seems to think her ability to make good decisions has been compromised," he reported. "Or that she was made to do this against her will, and the letters was just to keep us from looking for her. Your brother thinks the same thing, but he seems to be basing this off of his own emotions."

"Damon always thinks there's some kind of conspiracy or foul play," Elena replied. "He needs to learn how to let things go sometimes." She sighed. "That's more of what I'm having trouble with. I don't know what to do about Damon."

"I don't know what to tell you in that regard."

"It's just that...I've been feeling this sort of...disconnect between us lately. And it scares me." Elena was pacing as she talked.

"I'm sorry, do you want me to give you advice on your relationship with my brother?" Stefan's voice held a hint of disbelief and a tad annoyance.

Elena huffed and plopped down on the edge of her bed, her messy ponytail bouncing. "No, I'm not. That would be crazy." She brought her hand to her head, pushing her hair out of her face and letting out a heavy sigh. Stefan could hear the distress in her voice and couldn't help but feel bad. As badly as she'd hurt him, he still loved Elena, and he wanted her to be happy. "I just wanted someone to talk to. I can't really talk to Caroline because she can't be impartial when it comes to Damon, and Bonnie..."

"Is gone...and part of the reason for the disconnect?" Stefan questioningly finished for her.

Elena shook her head although he couldn't see her. "No...I don't know...no. It's Damon. This is our first summer together as a couple and we should be enjoying every second of it. It started off so amazing, we only saw each other, now there's been so many distractions and Damon isn't so focused on us...I'm sorry, Stefan, I know you don't want to hear any of this."

"It's okay, Elena," Stefan rebutted. "Are you bothered by Damon's interest in Bonnie's relationship whereas before he didn't hold any value to her life until he needed her for something?"

"I know Damon cares for Bonnie, he has for awhile," Elena said. It hadn't been too long ago that Elena had told Matt she believed Damon kind of loved Bonnie, regardless of what came out of his mouth stating otherwise. Actions spoke so much louder than words, and Elena had learned Damon, she knew his heart. He cared for the little witch, he just had never been so open about it, but there also had never been a 'Julius' in the past. "I appreciate that. I don't want my boyfriend and my best friend to hate each other. We have enough enemies on the outside, we don't need any within our group. Damon hates Julius, and I can't help but feel he wouldn't even care enough about his existence to hate him if it wasn't for Bonnie loving him. Damon could've very well killed Julius, but he didn't, and I think that's also because Bonnie loves him." There was a lot of conflicting emotions. Damon wanted Julius dead because of Bonnie's love for him, but hadn't actually killed him because he didn't want the witch to hate him forever. It seemed deep for a vampire who's only thoughts for over a century were, 'blood, sex, and Katherine', then became centered wholly around, 'Elena Gilbert'.

"You may be reading too much into this," Stefan suggested, although he himself thought he'd seen a change in Damon regarding the witch. "Damon always saw Bonnie like a weapon, and he could rely on her when it mattered. Julius came and changed all that, and took her away, not just from you but from all of us. He's bothered by that and Damon gets volatile, and a lot of times irrational, when he's bothered, but it may not go any deeper than that."

"Is that what you really believe?" Elena so badly wanted to believe this herself.

"All that matters is how you feel."

"I feel that none of it should matter now," she said. "Bonnie and Julius are gone. Bonnie made her decision and left. Victoria only cares about getting to Julius and none of us matter to him and Bonnie is somewhere else. She might chase them but I don't think she's going to feel a need to come back to Mystic Falls. Without that threat out there, no Julius, or anything else strange happening, there should be nothing stopping us from...being with each other right now." She'd almost said "being wrapped around each other" but thought that would be too much information for Stefan. He got that hint, regardless, and he hated the fact that their relationship still bothered him to a degree. "We had a fight today, and I basically told him to drop this whole Bonnie-Julius thing without actually saying it."

"Then he'll drop it," Stefan stated, simply. "Damon loves you to death, Elena. Literally. He will never choose anyone or anything over you. If he sees that this truly bothers you, he'll get his mind straight and let it go. I wouldn't stress too much if I were you."

Elena nodded in agreement to herself. "You're right, Stefan, thank you so much for this," she said. "I'm glad you called. And I'm glad you decided to come back home."

"I can't say I'll be here forever."

"Well, don't ever stay away too long," she said. "We need you around here." She paused before continuing her thought. "I need you."

Stefan knew he needed to end this conversation. "Have a good night, Elena," he told her. "Get some sleep."

"Good night, Stefan."

He hung up the phone and stared at it a moment. He wanted to smash it with his thumb but refrained. This should've never happened. He was supposed to have the ever after with Elena. But somehow, someway, she'd fallen for Damon, and now he was demoted to friend status, giving her relationship advice. And he'd given it to her, because despite what he'd told her after their break-up or what he tried to tell himself, he was still a sucker for Elena and when she needed him he was there. Period

Elena tossed her phone onto the bed and disappeared into the bathroom to brush her teeth. When she emerged six minutes later, she was startled to find Damon Salvatore sitting in her room, perched on the ledge in front of her window.

"What are you doing?" She asked him. "How long have you been here?"

"About two minutes." He got up and approached her. "I needed to see you and apologize. I acted like an ass earlier and I'm sorry." He stopped right in front of her and she breathed in his scent, her heart rate picking up. His nearness always had that effect on her, even when she wanted to be mad at him. "I just want to hold you, and be with you, and not worry about anything else." He took both of her hands and held them up, bringing her closer to him. "I love you, Elena, and don't ever think for a second anything else is as important to me as you."

Elena smiled lovingly at him, then they were kissing. Damon pulled her even closer his hands to her face as their kiss deepened. Utilizing their vampire speed, they were on the bed in a half second. Damon was on top of her, his tongue exploring her mouth, and his body was reacting as expected, but his mind started to wander. Then he made the mistake of looking up.

There was Bonnie. A smile on her young face, and a glimmer in her emerald eyes. Elena had a photo of herself with Bonnie and Caroline sitting on her nightstand right beside the bed. They didn't look any older than fifteen years old in it, and appeared to be having the time of their lives. Damon had barely taken notice of it before, definitely never while in this position, but now Bonnie was staring straight at him as Elena nibbled on his bottom lip. He paused and stared back. What the fuck was she looking at? Was he supposed to be thinking about her right now? She had been the one to run off with a guy she barely knew, not him! If she ended up dead, or hurt, or alone, that was on her. So why was she looking at him at like this? Why was she in his head while he was in bed with this girl?

"Damon? What's wrong?" Damon snapped out of his semi-insane thoughts. Had he really just been having a mental argument with a photo? He looked down at Elena who had a look of confusion on her face as he had stopped reciprocating her passion.

"Nothing." He kissed her again. "I'm where I'm supposed to be. What could be wrong?" They were kissing again. Against his own will, Damon was looking up at the picture again, then suddenly he was flipped onto his back. Elena was on him, tugging at his shirt as her lips devoured his. Despite how damn sexy the woman was, Damon was no longer feeling the moment, and Elena took notice.

"Damon!" She cried, sitting up in his lap and looking at him in frustration. "What is up with you?"

"I don't know. I don't know what's wrong with me," He was mad and confused with himself.

"You need to figure it out," she snapped. She moved off of him and flopped down on the bed, facing away from him. She threw the covers around herself and pulled them up to her chin. Damon didn't make a move to comfort her or move any closer. Tears began to well in her eyes.

"I'm sorry, Elena," was all he said.