A/N: All in the name once again. ^^ Apologizes about the slight U-turn, but we need to keep things interesting, don't you agree? ;o Thanks for all of your subscriptions and reviews; it means a lot to the both of us. Anywho, read and then review. :')

Chapter Seven: Once Bitten, Twice Shy.

He stopped and frowned suddenly. Someone was calling him. No, not someone. Elena.

"Elena?" He muttered to himself, before frowning even more.

Why on earth would she be in the middle of the woods calling his name when he made it clear in the house that he doesn't want her? Well, he lied, but there was no way, she could see through that. Oh, he was hallucinating. Probably. The alcohol. He looked at the bottle in his hand, but decided to follow the voice anyways. And with the use of his vampire speed he appeared in front of Elena, quite startled that she actually WAS here. Well, he had to keep up the game. He started it, now he had to end it, however hard that may be.

"What are you doing here?" He asked coldly. Damn it

Elena looked up above her at the sky. When she'd first awakened less than an hour or so ago the weather had seemed almost perfectly fine. Sunbeams had shone through the windows of Damon's bedroom and she'd even felt the warmth of the sun beat down upon her. But now, there was nothing of the sort. The happy warmth had been replace by cold breezes and harsh rain pellets and the sky was dull, grey and clouded. Elena's arm began to throb a little more at the sudden sound of his voice. Elena instantly looked at him, but flinched ever so slightly at his cold words. Be strong, Elena. And with that, she spoke.

"You know exactly why I'm here Damon and for once in your life drop the damn act, okay? I can see the real you, and it's not this."

Damon frowned for a second. What? How did she...

"What did Stefan tell you?" He asked suddenly, his voice still harsh and cold.

He wasn't 'dropping the act' so quickly. What did she want? Didn't she love Stefan? Why would she... Oh too many question, just shrug it off Damon, it won't help your headache. And it was the truth, it only made it worse. The rain wasn't helping either, but he could tell he had some influence on the weather. It reflected his mood. Somehow. Somewhere in the distance he heard a thunder. Why couldn't just Elena leave it and stop making it harder for him?

Elena couldn't quite believe she'd just said that, but she had. Oh, what was that Elena sure? If only for the smallest part of a second, Elena saw it; deep within Damon's eyes she saw a small falter in the realms of his self control. And even if it was only for a mere moment, it was enough. Enough to keep her strong enough to answer him. She shook her head, ignoring the weather and the inner ear she felt.

"It doesn't matter what Stefan said.. I know you don't want to walk away from this and i also know, as much as you hate it - you need me, Damon"

Damon frowned, and tensed. How did she know... Stefan told her, no wonder.

"You love Stefan. You should be with him." He replied after a second, his voice not as cold, but cold nevertheless.

He looked anywhere but her. Why, OH WHY was she making this so hard? Women were... the definition of FRUSTRATING. He sighed, and relaxed a little bit. What did she want from him? To be her friend? If she really insisted, he would probably stay, because he was weak and he was a coward, and an ass. But not to her anymore. Well, at the moment - yes, normally - no.

Elena's heart was pounding so hard she was afraid it would beat right outta' her chest. She was afraid.. But of what? Elena saw him look away from her and she knew the reason behind it, even if he didn't want her to. Her grazed arm had started to ache a little more as the salt water began to wash over it. And at that very moment she heard the falter in his voice and then pounced upon the opportunity. She started slowly towards him, leaving a foot in between them before speaking, softer this time.

"You know what I feel for Stefan could never compare to what we have. You said it yourself."

He looked at her, with a frown.

"You.. Still choose me.. over him, after what I've said?" Disbelief clear in his voice. "That's insanity." He stated, before leaning against a tree that happened to be behind him.

He needed support to stand right now, and it was quite ironic considering the fact that he was a vampire, thousand times stronger than Elena, who could stand by her own perfectly. Why wasn't she with Stefan? Why didn't she just.. Choose Stefan? How come she picked the arrogant psychopath instead of the good guy?

Elena's hood slipped from its position covering the top of her head and didn't even bother trying to shift it back up. She didn't care about how she looked right now; all she cared about was him. A gentle smile broke across her lips as her features continued to soften; she reached out and caressed his cheek.

"Because I am in love with you," she whispered, unaware that she was answering both his words and thoughts at the same time.

Now, he locked his eyes on hers listening to every single word she said. He was not sleeping... right? No, he couldn't be. He couldn't really help but smile lightly. She ruined all his plans, but.. He was glad she did. Slowly, he leaned down before closing his eyes and pressing his lips to hers. His arms automatically found its way around her, and he pulled her to him tightly. He didn't expect things to turn out that way, but it was a good thing she was here, and after confessing her love to him.

At the instant Damon's now vulnerable eyes locked with hers, she knew her short but defiantly meaningful confession of her love for him had broken down any barriers that still remained around his heart. The moment his lips touched hers it was like lighting a fire inside her soul that she knew would never burn out. Elena's arms wound around his neck and she pressed her body onto his; she kissed him with everything inside of her.

After what seemed like eternity, he broke the kiss and smirked. His eyes locked on hers.

"Do you think Stefan left the house yet?" He raised his eyebrow suggestively, his arms still around her, as his mind was now occupied with the thoughts Stefan would not like to see or hear for that matter.

Could he help it? No, and he wasn't about to feel guilty about it either because she chose him.

*One Month Later.*

Elena slammed her fist against the rough bark of the brown tree and let out a harsh breath of frustration. What in the hell was the matter with her today? Everyone seemed to be avoiding her like she was some sort of contagious disease that they were petrified of catching. If she was honest, it was really pissing her off. Her hand began to throb but she ignored it, whipping her satchel around her body and making her way further and further down the path towards the Salvatore boarding house. As the boarding house came into her eye line, Elena let out a large exhale of air before continuing. Slightly slower to the door; she raised her hand and knocked the wood hard.

Damon opened one of his eyes. He had been asleep, that is, until someone decided to try and break the door. That was how it sounded anyways. He got up, wearing nothing but his boxers, grabbed a glass full of scotch from his bedside table and walked out of the room. Not before, looking at his awesome doorframe, of course. He and that doorframe had been through a lot together, and he really grew fond of it. He flashed it a smile, and made his way downstairs, taking sips of his scotch on the way. Who could be as ignorant as to wake him up at ... - he looked at the grand clock in the living room - 1 p.m. someone had it coming, and he wasn't going to be nice. He opened the door, and leaned against the doorframe. This one, of course, not as cool as his own.

"Ohh! What a surprise."

Elena wasn't normally this impatient, but today was just one of those crazy days where everything and everyone around you just continued to piss you off just that little bit more. She had to calm down though, if it wasn't Stefan who answered the door, then it would be his elder and very sexy brother.(Yes, she'd just admitted Damon was sexy. Come on! EVERYONE knew that) Elena tried to inhale and exhale a little deeper. But just as she did so, the door swung open and there stood Damon in.. Well, not in much, that was for sure! She couldn't help her eyes... They wandered, from his face.. Down the line of his chest, and finally to his boxers; she gulped, wrenching her eyes from the sight ten back to his face.

"Damon," she greeted, not looking into his eyes.

He raised his eyebrow ever so slightly. Of course, she would be speechless for at least few seconds. Damon freakin' Salvatore was standing in front of her, with nothing but boxers on. If he was her, he would be staring the shit out of himself, he was that handsome. He let her admire his body for few seconds while he took another sip of the alcohol, and then she spoke.

"That's what they call me." He replied with his trademark smirk tugging at his lips.

Stefan was, of course, out hunting rabbits. How he managed to get up that early, he didn't know. He didn't even know WHEN Stefan left the house. He could hardly care though.

"Are you ready to admit that you can't resist me, or are you still denying it? Because you know if you want we can have sex on Stefan's bed and leave him a little surprise." He moved his eyebrow up suggestively.

Elena barely heard his words, her eyes seemed to have rebounded straight back to his nearly-naked body. Yes, Damon Salvatore was standing in front of her and he was nearly naked. It would've been every girl's dream - but Elena wasn't sure whether it was a dream come true or a nightmare. She was attracted to Damon, he knew that, she knew that, HELL, even Stefan knew that! But she owed it to Stefan to never give into that. She loved him, didn't she? Yes, of course she did. Those perfect planes of his chest looked so smooth; she just wanted to run her hands along every inch of him... And his boxers, well, she wasn't even going there. Finally, she found her voice, snapping her head up at Damon's suggestion - swallowing hard. She looked away from him, trying to slip past him, but finding herself wedged in between the frame and Damon.

"Damon.. Please, behave," she sighed.

The smirk never disappeared, and as she tried to brush past him, he made sure she was trapped there for a second. When she spoke, he only leaned in closer to her. His face barely an inch from hers, and no wonder she could feel his breath on her and his body pressed up against hers. His blue eyes locked on hers, as he spoke in a low, husky tone.

"Okay." It was all he said, and as quickly as he leaned in, he moved away, closed the front door shut and headed back into the living room.

How he loved teasing her. It was so much fun! Especially, what with her heart beating like crazy every time he was THAT near. Now, that was one portion of entertainment, and it helped him wake up. As he walked into the living room, he poured himself another shot of the scotch, before speaking again.

"Want some alcohol? Or are you in a rehab after what you've done last time you were drunk?" He raised his eyebrow, the smirk in place.

Elena felt her humming-bird heart skip up several notches as he leant even further into her, the inside of her mouth became slightly more moisturized as her eyes widened. She felt him at every single inch of her, his pelvis, coupled with their chests pressed against one another was hard enough... And when he began to speak, she was so afraid she was going to give into him, she had to clench her fists to stop herself from trembling. She smelt his sweet breath wash over her face, and shiver down her spine - she suppressed a shudder. On his release of her body and her heart, Elena let outta deep sigh of relief mixed with a hint of annoyance. She was supposed to be angry with him. She was angry with him. Elena rolled her eyes and walked into the room. Her arms folded hard across her chest and she watched him intently.

"You'll have to enlighten me on 'the last time I was drunk'... Because I don't drink, Damon," she replied sarcastically before continuing "And right now, you've pissed me off."

Danny+Jackie x3