A/N: Writing this chapter was utterly heartbreaking; I guess pretty soon you guys will see why. Of course, please, PLEASE review for us. :)

Chapter Six: Fool Me Once; Shame On You.

It didn't take long for Damon to fall asleep anyway. He was tired. Well, after all the day was.. a long one. First.. school, and the whole exchange of words with Elena, then home and having fun with some chick then rescuing Elena and kissing her, Stefan seeing them, then walking off and back to the house drinking. Elena coming, exchange of words, getting steamy and then Stefan coming. Whoa, he was tired and soon found himself in the dream land. He didn't really have a dream, or at least he didn't remember what it was. When the morning came Stefan was already up and sitting at the end of the bed. Damon woke up and when he saw his brother he groaned.

"Oh not you again. Do i not get to have SOME privacy even in the morning?" He rubbed his aching head.

Elena's dreams were warm and fuzzy as usual, but they weren't normally this... Well, this steamy. And it wasn't her boyfriend she was dreaming of either; but her boyfriend's brother, Damon. That realisation alone should have made up Elena's mind for her. Her dream was so graphic it made her feel slightly uneasy; given the fact she was lying with Damon in his bed. But sooner than she would've first thought, morning came and Elena's senses were soon pretty much back to normal. She knew she'd have a hang over the next morning, she would've had to. The first thing Elena heard was Damon complaining about something. Wincing, Elena's eyes flickered open and she realised her right arms was resting across his chest and her cheek was on his shoulder, she jumped a little uneasily and blinked.

"Oh, hell.. What happened last night?" she murmured, mostly to herself.

Damon eyes flickered to Elena as she woke up and spoke. Without even waiting for Stefan to say anything he spoke.

"You got drunk, I got drunk. We got hot, Stefan came, of course, picking the wrong moment as always, then he decided to ask drunk you to choose between himself and me. "He sat up and leaned against whatever was behind him.

His eyes focused on his doorframe for a second because something seemed odd about it. There was a stain on it. He narrowed his eyes before looking at Stefan.

"Did you TOUCH MY doorframe?"

Stefan frowned and looked at him. "Really? Did I touch your doorframe? How old are you, 5?" And with that Damon pouted and was ready to backfire but Stefan kept on speaking, now to Elena. "Basically, I don't want to go through the same thing again, I want you to choose."

The sides of Elena's head felt as though they were going to explode with the amount of pressure being exhorted onto the edges of her skull. God, she must've really got wasted last night and badly wasted too. The strange thing was, Elena didn't even normally drink it was a more of a spare of the moment thing. Elena listened to Damon's words but concentrated on the steady inflate and deflate of his chest. And then it all came back to her. His skin felt so smooth.. And all-too familiar, she couldn't lose that. And upon that realisation, Elena knew who she had to choose. Running a single hand through her hair, she sat up and beckoned Stefan over. After seeing him crouch next to her she frowned and took his hand in both of hers before speaking.

"Stefan, I love you. But I just can't be with you..."

Stefan kept his eyes locked on her, before sighing. Damon wasn't really registering what she was saying because in his head he had that scene played out already. He reached for the bottle of whisky that was on the floor, before hearing Stefan speak.

"So.. You choose him.? "

Damon froze, and dropped the bottle by accident. What? That was not the way he planned it out, and he .. he even got to the stage of accepting the fact that she'll choose Stefan. No. She didn't know what she was saying. He SAW how she looked at Stefan many times, he couldn't give her that.

"You're joking, right?" He looked at her, before getting out of bed and starting to put his clothes on, now avoiding her eyes. It would hurt her what he was about to say, but.. He had to. It was for the better. "It was nothing.. Last night. It was just a one night thing. I promised Stefan a lifetime of misery and I was just keeping my word."

Stefan looked at him sternly as if reading him. "Damon, don't."

Damon shook his head looking at him now. "I'm serious! She was just another girl..." And with that he grabbed his shirt off the floor and headed for the door, while putting it on. He walked through the door, before looking into the room. "Oh and by the way, I'm leaving the town. Be happy. "He grinned, before taking off.

Once away from the house, somewhere in the middle of the woods, he leaned against a tree trunk and slid down to the ground. That. Was. Hard.

No, wait, WHAT? Here was Stefan all perfect and starry-eyed over her. Here was a man who would do anything for her, be anything for her and would destroy his only chances of happiness to give her what she wanted. How could she just throw that all away? It wasn't as if she didn't love Stefan; she just couldn't be without Damon, she knew that now. Upon Stefan's reply, Elena sucked in a big gulp of air and winced. Her eyes were beginning to sting but she wouldn't let a single tear escape.

"Stefan, I.."

But her words were cut short as she heard the bottle of whisky fall to the ground and then shatter. Elena ripped her eyes away from Stefan's and rested them upon Damon Salvatore. His next words cut through her like a knife and a slice of ice slithered down her spine. She didn't say anything to him or after he'd left, she simply stared blankly at the empty space his absence had left.

Stefan looked down. "He didn't mean it, Elena." He said as a matter-of-factly.

So what, he loved her but Damon.. Well, he did THAT. Why did he have to be so god damn frustrating? It wasn't supposed to work out like that. And he wasn't supposed to run off, because that's exactly what he did. Run off.

Meanwhile, somewhere in the middle of the forest, Damon stared blankly into space. Trying hard not to think of anything, to shut his humanity out. It sucked, and he had no idea how humans lived without the ability of shutting their emotions out. Okay, what next.? He waits till Elena and possibly Stefan are out of the house. He comes back in, packs and leaves. He was a fucking coward.

And it wasn't just the empty space that Damon had left physically that she could feel.. Oh no, it went a great deal deeper than that. It was the empty place within her soul that hurt the most. Elena's eyes snapped up to Stefan's as he spoke and for a moment or two she couldn't even move, let alone speak. Then, with a sharp inhale of air she answered him as a dry smile cracked across her lips. Elena shook her head at him, ignoring the gaping hole inside of her chest.

"You're wrong, Stefan. Damon never cared; why would he?" the words came across so casually, when really they hurt like nothing on this earth.

Elena was speaking to Stefan about his brother's feelings for her? Well, wasn't that a turn out for the books.

Stefan sighed once again and got up.

"As much as I hate to say this, he does care. A bit too much, I daresay. He's under the impression that you should be with me, and therefore plans to leave the town. "He leaned against the wall and looked at her. What he was to say next took all of his will. "He loves you, Elena."

Okay. Now, how long would it take them to get out of the house, approximately? Normally, it wouldn't take that long, but today was different. Oh, it was a whole lot different, and stupid. He closed his eyes. He was still tired and his head was pulsating. Killing him. He shouldn't have drank that much. Who cares? The next time he'll drink even more.

Elena believed her words, although she didn't want to. She wished a part of Damon was still human, still capable of actual love and caring for another person other than himself. It was hard though, trying to keep her head at a time like this when all she really wanted was to break down and cry. Elena's frown deepened as she heard Stefan's explanation for his elder brother. And somehow, Elena believed him. She climbed out of the bed and glanced out of the window.

"And if that's true, then what the hell am i supposed to do about it?"

"Well, if you love him, find him and get him to believe you." Stefan stated, looking at her all this while.

Hey, he loved her but what could he do? She made her choice, and least he could do was help her be happy. Damon could do it, he can too. It surely can't be THAT bad.

"Or he'll leave the town." He added, just remembering what Damon had said.

Was he really such a coward? Would he really leave?

Damon opened his eyes after what seemed like eternity. Okay. He needed alcohol and it didn't seem he could find it anywhere in the forest, so he got up and headed for the Mystic Grill. His hands in his pockets, and the collar of his black leather jacket up. He felt... vulnerable for the first time in centuries.

Elena hadn't realised just how much Damon truly meant to her until this very moment in time. She inhaled deeply and nodded, mostly to herself. If she was to make Damon stay and to get him to admit his feelings for her then she must believe he had them herself. The kisses they'd shared hadn't just been nothing; they had been everything. And deep down, Elena knew Damon knew that. Turning, she slipped past Stefan and into the bathroom. After a few moments of freshening up, Elena padded gently back into the room and unexpectedly took his face in her hands and kissed him long and hard on the mouth. Upon releasing him, she murmured something then disappeared from his sight.

"Thank you, I love you."

Stefan just stood there frozen for a second. When she disappeared he smiled slightly, before touching his lips and then walking out of Damon's room. He stopped once outside and looked at the doorframe. What the hell was Damon on about this morning? He shrugged it off, and decided he had to go hunting.

Meanwhile Damon reached the Mystic Grill and was after ordering a few shots of whisky to numb his headache. Some women were hitting on him but he was in no mood and in result ignored them or replied rudely, which resulted in them walking away in a huff. Well, good, less problems for him. Ignorant women, they surely couldn't see he was in no mood. Of course, all they cared about was getting some attention.

"Hey sexy." He heard some woman say yet again. "Oh for fuck sake, leave me alone. I'm done. "He ordered a bottle of whisky and left the Mystic Grill.

It was pissing him off; he couldn't even have a minute for himself. A MINUTE. He headed for the woods again; it seemed it was the only place that he could be alone. Then it started to rain. Perfect.

"Thank you!" He shouted at the sky, before drinking some of the whisky and venturing down the woods. He then remembered his awesome song. And he started singing it. As loud as he possibly could. "Oh Elena, Elena! You'll bring me and Stefan to the arena! Your body's like a hyena's!" And again and again, drinking some of the whisky now and again.

Elena was still running through the woods, averting her direction occasionally as she dodged a tree or two. Yeah, she was tired, her head hurt, she was slightly hung-over and all she really wanted to do was go home, crawl into her bed and never wake up again... But, right now she knew that she couldn't. No matter what Damon said, he needed her just as much as she needed him. And at that very moment, she forgot to concentrate on where she was planting her feet and more on her thoughts. She slipped and grabbed for the nearest thing. Thankfully she'd only grazed her forearm and slightly injured her side, but it was enough. After muttering something unintelligible, she heard him. Him... Elena sprang to her feet then called out to him.

Danny+Jackie x3