Fair warning, this chapter is short but I think you'll like it. Please no complaints about the length. I'll make up for it in the next chapter but it was all too much for this update.

Chapter 13

Damon was perched on a bar stool at the Grille, drowning his thoughts in Jack Daniels. He knocked back a third shot and slid the empty glass to the bartender, signaling that he wanted one more. Even though he had drunk his body into oblivion as a vampire, his human form still had human tolerance and he was feeling a nice buzz. And he needed it. Because since Sheila had dropped the bomb that he and Bonnie were returning home, he'd had an uncomfortable feeling in his stomach that only copious amounts of alcohol could mask.

He couldn't really describe the way he felt, knowing that their happy little world was going to come crashing down. He was mad, sad, frustrated, nervous and a litany of other emotions that he didn't like feeling. It was times like this that he missed being a vampire. He wished that he could just snap someone's neck or take his hurt out on someone else. That someone else had been Bonnie once upon a time. Now he couldn't dream of hurting her.

When had that changed?

When they first arrived in their alternate world, he decided to kick back and go with the flow and have fun getting his uptight little witch to loosen up for once. And it was fun, at first. Then, it was more than that. He couldn't pinpoint the exact moment his feelings became deeper than reluctant friendship. He thought maybe it was on the Bahamas trip. Or maybe when he missed her like hell during their week apart. It didn't really matter either way. The fact was that he had fallen hard for his little bird and he couldn't imagine relinquishing what they had.

After the fourth shot, his thoughts got all jumbled and he pushed it out of his mind entirely. He hated feelings and he really hated being sad, so he drank until he didn't feel any of it.

Eventually, he stumbled his way out of the bar and had to hail a taxi because he was way too drunk to drive. He supposed that he could have tried it but he wasn't sure what happened if one died on the Other Side. He wasn't ready for real death, yet. Not before he finished exploring what he had with Bonnie.

The cab dropped him off at the boarding house and Damon managed to work his way up to his room. He expected to see Bonnie, but he didn't expect to find her packing. All her clothes were neatly folded on the bed and she was putting things away in suitcases.

"What the hell are you doing?" he blurted out.

Bonnie glanced over her shoulder at him and returned her attention to her packing.

"I didn't think you were coming back," she said with a little bite.

"What are you doing?" he asked again. He stepped inside and closed the door behind him.

"I'm going to stay with Grams."

"What the hell for?" he asked, immediately angry.

Bonnie frowned at him and sniffed in his direction. "Are you drunk?"

"As a skunk. Now answer my question."

"I don't want to argue with you, Damon. You're drunk and I'm not in the mood."

She tried to walk past him but he blocked her way.

"Why. Are. You. Leaving?" he growled, narrowing his electric blue eyes at her. Bonnie's jaw ticked and she folded her arms over her chest.

"Because. We're going back home so we might as well start acting like it."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"You know what it means," she mumbled, sliding past him and zipping up one of her bags.

"No, I'm afraid I don't. You're gonna have to spell it out for me."

Bonnie threw her head back and sighed. Damon took the opportunity to come up behind her and grab her hips. He pulled her against his body and kissed the back of her neck. She jerked away and he groaned.

"Don't do that, Bonnie," he said. "Don't pull away from me."

"What do you expect me to do?" she asked, throwing her hands up in the air. "You know what it's going to be like when we go back. Once Elena sees you, she's going to throw her arms around your neck and stick her tongue down your throat and fuck your brains out! And don't act like you won't let her because you've been pining over her like some stupid little puppy since you showed up in Mystic Falls!"

Rage filled his veins and grew exponentially thanks to the Jack Daniels.

"Oh yeah?" he shouted. "And what about you? You're not gonna take Jeremy's whiny ass back even though he treated you like shit?! You're just gonna be docile little Bonnie, letting everyone use you as a doormat. Fine, go back to him. Have horrible sex with him and paint each other's toenails like good little lesbians."

His chest huffed and puffed and he was fully prepared to engage in the type of bickering that only the two of them could do, but he noticed that Bonnie's exasperation was slowly being replaced by a small smile. Then a big smile. Then laughter.

"Lesbians?" she asked.

And just like that, he was smiling too. "Well...yeah...you know, the toenails and sleepovers and stuff."

Bonnie shook her head and sighed. "This place has really made us soft, Damon. We can't even argue like we used to."

"Good. Because I don't want to argue with you."

She put her hands on her hips and her shoulders slumped in defeat. "Then what do you want to do?" she asked softly.

"I just want to be with you."

The honesty in his voice surprised even him, but he didn't let it stop him from joining her. He pulled her hips to him again but this time, she didn't move away. He tucked some hair behind her ear and kissed her forehead. Bonnie rested her head on his chest and hugged his waist, and they hugged quietly for a while.

"What does this mean for us?" she asked in that same soft tone.

"I don't know," he admitted.

"Maybe we should just stop."

"Is that what you want?"

"No."

"Then why would we do it?"

"To keep ourselves from getting in any deeper."

Damon lifted her chin and their eyes met.

"And how deep are we right now?"

The air between them hung heavily as he waited for her to answer. She opened and closed her mouth a few times and he could see the flutter of her pulse in her neck.

"I think you know," she finally said.

"I'm afraid I don't. You're gonna have to spell it out for me," he said with a little smile as he echoed his words from earlier.

"You go first."

He encased her face with his hands and stared into her eyes so she would know how serious he was being.

"I'm in love with you," he said. He felt a weight lift from his shoulders and a warm feeling spread throughout him as he finally shared what he had been feeling for a while. Bonnie's eyes shut for a moment and she looked as if she was letting his confession wash over her. When she opened her eyes again, he asked, "are you in love with me too?"

"Yes. You know I am."

"Then forget everything else."

"We can't. They're our friends, Damon. You and Elena have so much history. So do Jeremy and I. What will do when we get back?"

"We'll worry about that when we get back," he said. She started to protest but he kissed her and her words died on his lips. When he pulled away and looked at her again, he said the first thing that bubbled up from his heart. "Marry me."

"What?" she asked, her green eyes wide.

"Marry me," he repeated, this time with more confidence.

"You're drunk."

"Yeah, so? I'm not incapacitated. I want you to marry me. You already agreed once."

"Other Side Bonnie agreed once, not me."

"Guess what, baby? You are Other Side Bonnie now."

"Listen, I know things are great between us right now and we're both feeling the pressure of having to leave, but marriage is such a big step. Marriage is forever, Damon. We can't just do something like this on a whim."

"You know yourself. You know that you would never have agreed to marry me if you didn't think I would be a suitable husband for you. Since we've been here, I've only tried to make you happy and I want to continue doing that as long as we're here. When we go back, we can act like it never happened if that's what you want to do. But in this world, you love me and I love you and we should get married and have a house full of kids and get old together and have everything we've ever wanted. So for once in your life, don't think. Just go with your heart and say you'll be my wife."

Bonnie looked at him and her face was unreadable. Damon's heart leapt into his throat and he briefly worried that the Jack had gotten the best of him. He'd always been so emotional and once liquor was added to the equation, he couldn't hold back. He was sure that Bonnie was going to shoot him down and give him a very practical list of reasons why they couldn't and shouldn't get married. But then she spoke and surprised the hell out of him.

"Okay," she breathed. "I'll be your wife."