Disclaimer: Once again, I wish I owned Ian Somerhalder. At least I own Brighton.

I went to work on edge the next day. I had to work both shifts but I appreciated the distraction. I didn't want to think about what happened to Isobel or about Damon. I just wanted to forget my troubles for a day.

"Hey. How are you?" I looked up to find Elena Gilbert staring at me worriedly.

"I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"Well, you have this scary frown set on your face."

"Oh, well, I'm fine." I wiped down the bar where I'd spilt soda earlier.

"Let me guess: guy trouble."

I sighed. If she wanted me unleash my troubles, I would. I hope she's prepared.

"It's Damon."

"Damon? Your guy trouble is about Damon? Damon Salvatore?"

"Yeah, so?"

"Brighton, you shouldn't get involved with him; he is definitely bad news."

"Well, it's kind of too late to 'not get involved'. I like him. He's amazing and sweet and stunningly handsome." My eyes glazed over as I thought about yesterday on the couch.

"And he isn't compelling you?" she asked incredulously.

"Um, no. I drink vervain tea everyday. I'm not stupid." I moved away from her.

"I don't think you're stupid. It's just that Damon has a history of compelling people and using them as playthings."

"Well, I've been someone's plaything before and I know that Damon wouldn't do that to me."

"What? You've been compelled before?"

"Yes. You haven't? I'm surprised with you dating Stefan."

"Stefan has never done anything like that to me." She huffed. "He loves me."

"Yes, but he is capable. And he is a vampire." I really didn't understand people's hate for Damon and their love for Stefan. They were both vampires.

"Yes, but Stefan's different from Damon."

"Why? They are both vampires, aren't they?"

"Yes, but Stefan drinks-"

"He drinks animal blood, yes. But that's his choice. Damon chooses to drink human blood. You hate Damon for doing what his nature calls for?"

"No, that's not what I'm saying!"

"Well then spill it because I'm sick of people assuming that Damon is some horrible monster that is going to do horrible things to me." I glared at her. "I'm a big girl. I can protect myself."

Elena sensed that the conversation was over. She stood. "I know you can protect yourself. But Brighton, you haven't known Damon as long as I have. I've seen what he's capable of. Don't trust him too easily. Make him earn it." With that she left.

I was in a pissier mood from her visit. I was tired of fighting people about Damon. But it made me wonder. Was Damon putting on a show for me or them? Was he showing me a side of him that he hasn't shown anyone before? Or was he luring me in for his own amusement? I didn't get to speculate long because the dinner rush came in.

"Brighton!"

I looked over to see Anna sitting there with a guy beside her.

"Anna, how are you?" I leaned over the bar to hug her; she accepted it better than last time.

"I'm great. I want you to meet someone." We both looked over at the guy who was watching me. "Brighton, this is Jeremy."

I smiled widely. "So this is the famous Jeremy. It's great to finally meet you." We shook hands.

"Same here. Anna tells me who saved her."

"I didn't save you!" I kind of didn't want to be known as the girl who brings people back to life; it was freaky.

"Yes, you did, the night of the fire. I actually remember all of it now."

"You do? What do you remember?" Before she began, we looked around to make sure no one could eavesdrop.

"I remember being taken from Jeremy," Jeremy reached over and took her hand. How cute. "Then I remember waking up to find John Gilbert over my body and I remember him staking me." I glanced over at Jeremy. I wondered if he knew his uncle was a psychopath. But he didn't look surprised to hear any of this. "The next thing I remember was waking up, seeing you and Damon looking at me." She chuckled. "I remember you waving at me. Then I remember moving too fast and getting sick."

"Then you threw up on Damon. It was hilarious."

"I wish I could've been there to see it." Jeremy included.

"No you don't. It was gruesome and messy. All that throw up." Damon slid onto the stool next to Anna and made a noise of disgust. "Jeremy, Anna. How are you two lovebirds?" He didn't even glance at me. Fine then.

"We're fine Damon, thank you." Anna answered him.

I went to ask a question, but Damon asked his first.

"So how's the heartbeat? Still beating?" He wagged his eyebrows. "Oh how's your diet too? Hopefully it's not liquid anymore."

"I'm good, Damon, still human."

"Thank you for that, by the way." Jeremy piped in, looking at me. "It's makes things a little less complicated." They were gazing at each other like only a couple could.

"We'll see you later Brighton."

"It was nice to meet you Jeremy."

"Nice to meet you too." They left, hand in hand. I'm glad life was easy for some people. Speaking of…

I looked over to find Damon perusing the drink menu. If he wasn't going to say anything, then I wasn't either. The silence went on for fifteen minutes and I had filled six orders before he spoke up.

"Do you know how hard it is to ignore you?"

"It seemed like it was easy for you." I was still angry at everyone and I was taking it out on him.

"Maybe I'm just good at pretending. It comes with age." He smirked.

"Oh I wouldn't know about that, since I don't know how old you are. I actually don't know much about you, besides what everyone else has told me."

He sidled into the chair directly in front of me and it made me stop what I was doing to stare at him.

"And what have the lovely people of Mystic Falls said about me? I love gossip." He winked dangerously. My hard exterior fell.

"Oh that you're just an evil, dangerous thing with a penchant for killing," I leaned over the bar to whisper into his ear flirtatiously. "And that I shouldn't trust you." I breathed into his ear when I spoke. I felt him shiver.

"Well you know what they say."

I leaned back to look into his blue eyes.

"Don't trust what other people say." He did his Eye Thing and smiled. I mean, really, his Eye Thing should be illegal!

"So should I trust what you say?"

"That's your choice. But if you wanted to get to know me, you could have just asked."

"Would you have told the truth?" I was going to make him earn my trust.

He palmed the side of my face. "I'll always tell you the truth." Then he leaned over and placed a delicate peck on my lips that gave me goose bumps.

"Okay then. Where were you born?"

"We're starting now?"

"Why not?"

He shrugged. "I was born here."

"When?"

"1840."

I gaped. "You were born in 1840? That makes you…"

"One hundred and sixty-nine."

"Wow, okay then." I giggled at my next thought.

"What are you giggling at?"

"You're a cradle robber."

He laughed at that. "I guess I am." He reached over to place my hand in his. As we talked for the next half-hour, he traced smooth circles with his fingers onto my palm. It drove me crazy.

But it had to end eventually. Our safe haven that we had found ourselves in at the bar was interrupted when my boss demanded that I get back to work. Damon waited there, watching me for the rest of my shift. Every time I glanced around to look at him, he would give me a small smile that made me feel like I was the only person in the room. Our conversation and his smiles eased my troubling thoughts about him and Isobel a lot. But I didn't know if I could ask him about her just yet. I wasn't sure if I could bear to hear the answer, for fear that what Ric said was true.

When I was about ready to leave for the right, Damon got a call. I grew concerned when his face had a pinched look. He walked over to me as I threw on my coat.

"I have this thing that I have to deal with. Are you okay to go home by yourself?"

My trust went down slightly. He couldn't tell me where he was going? "Yeah. What's wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong." He saw the concerned look on my face. "It's fine; just something at the boarding house. Call me when you get home."

I nodded and reached up to kiss him on the cheek. But he turned his head at the last second so my lips landed on his. He consumed my mouth and I let him. God, he was a good kisser. A loud whistle made him drag his lips from mine. I leaned my forehead against his to catch my breath. I looked up to find some of the wait staff standing around applauding us. I blushed and buried my head into his shoulder.

"Don't y'all have gum to scrape off tables or something?" He yelled demandingly.

They scattered and Damon held my hand as we walked to my car. We kissed once more over my open door before he ran home.

I pulled into the driveway to find Stefan waiting for me.

I strode to the door, eager to get inside. I knew why he was here. Elena probably spoke with him.

"Brighton, wait!" He grabbed my arm.

"What, Stefan?" I pulled my arm out of his grip. "I assume Elena talked to you."

"She did. I just wanted to warn you."

"About Damon. I know. Everyone I meet wants to warn me about Damon. So?"

"What?"

"What is it that you wanted to tell me?"

"I wanted to tell you to be careful. I don't want you getting hurt-"

"You don't want me getting hurt! I know! I've dated a vampire before; I know how dangerous it can be." I brought my arms up to cross them in front of me. "But I know Damon isn't going to hurt me."

Stefan nodded in agreement. "Look, Brighton, I know he isn't going to hurt you. I've seen how he is with you. But I don't want him getting hurt."

"Who was it that hurt him?" He tilted his head contemplatively.

"Why do you think he got hurt?"

"Stefan, I've looked at him; I've seen him. He got his heart stomped on before, so have I. I know what it looks like. I know what it feels like. So just tell me who she was."

Stefan sighed and sat down on the porch railing. I just stood, facing him, waiting.

"Her name was Katherine. She is the one that turned us."

I opened my mouth to speak but I didn't know what to say. One hundred and forty-five years and he is still hurt?

"She came to stay with our family in 1864. We both fell in love with her. But she used us. She drank from us and made us believe that we would each be with her forever. I didn't know at the time that I was being compelled to love her. She had compelled me to love her, to let her feed from me, and to not tell Damon or anyone else."

"What about Damon?"

He sighed again, his eyes full of pain for his brother. "For Damon, it was real. She never compelled him and for him, he really loved her. He wanted to be turned so he could be with her forever but…"

"But what?" I sat down next to him, desperate for more information about Damon's past.

"The Battle of Willow Creek." I frowned in confusion.

"What happened?"

"The founding families knew about the vampires in town. They wanted them gone for good. My father tricked me into telling him about Katherine. She was captured, along with twenty-seven other vampires. We were led to believe that they were killed when the soldiers burnt the church down, but Damon knew otherwise. He had known all along about Katherine's plan. The vampires would be kept safe in a tomb beneath the church by a spell. Damon knew about this for over a century and never told me."

"What happened to Katherine? Are they still there?"

"No. Before you arrived in town, Damon found what he needed to undo the spell that held Katherine in the tomb. But when he got down there, she wasn't there."

"She wasn't there?"

"No."

"What happened to Katherine?"

"She escaped the church before they burnt it down. She's been alive and free since 1864." I knew where this was going.

"She never contacted him?"

"Not once. His whole existence as a vampire has been spent trying to free her from the tomb so they could be together. But she's been free the entire time and she has never called him or tried to contact him. How do think that feels?"

"I can't imagine. But why did he stay?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why would Damon stay in Mystic Falls in he knew Katherine wasn't here?"

He looked thoughtful for a second. "It's mainly because of me…and partly Elena."

"Why Elena?" Now I was worried.

"Elena looks like Katherine." My eyebrows rose.

"When you say 'looks like', you mean…?"

"They could be twins."

I chuckled dryly. "That sucks."

"Yeah, I know. I'm constantly worried he is going to try and steal her from me." He looked away, rolling his eyes.

"No it's sucks because he has to watch his brother make out with a girl that happens to look like the love of his life. I mean could you imagine being around Elena, but only getting to watch her be with another guy? Could you imagine her being just out of your reach? It has to suck for him."

"But Elena is nothing like Katherine."

"Yes, but if they look as much alike as you say, then it still sucks."

Stefan thought about it and nodded his head in agreement. He understood that it was hard for Damon.

"Look Brighton, Damon may be a horrible person with a vendetta to make my life miserable for the rest of eternity but he is my brother. I don't want him to go through what he went through before."

I stood feeling tired and numb. "Look, I get it, I really do. You're just trying to protect your brother. I can't guarantee that one of us isn't going to get hurt at some point; it's kind of inevitable. But I really do like him and I think he likes me too."

Stefan stood and walked down the steps. I turned to unlock the front door when he spoke up again.

"He does, you know?"

"Hm?"

"He likes you. I think you make him happy." With that, Stefan walked into the dark and I went inside.

Reviews are like waking up next to Jenson Ackles...bliss.