Hey guys. A few people have asked for my tumblr information. I don't post a lot or reblog very much, but I am on there often. If you want to chat about the story or Vampire Diaries (or Scandal, my other fave), my name is j-mo115. Thanks for all the love!

Chapter 17

It happened again: another vivid, high-definition dream starring Damon Salvatore. For the past several nights, Bonnie had dreamt of him. Sometimes the dreams were sexy and explicit, other times they were sweet and cute, and still others were so loving that she awoke with an ache in her heart and a thrum between her legs for him. She didn't know how to explain the dreams, and she was sure that she didn't want to know. She also didn't want to see him and tip him off that he had been featured in her head every night and morning. So she avoided him like the plague.

Unfortunately, she was being forced to see him on a chilly November day. It was Stefan's birthday and the whole gang was getting together at an Italian restaurant to celebrate. Bonnie knew she would see Damon and she was more nervous than she should have been, mostly because she was sure she would broadcast her thoughts directly into his brain and he would tease her to death about it. She was also a little nervous that he wouldn't tease her at all. Instead, he would stare at her with those ridiculous eyes and make her melt into his arms like she almost had when he was in her room the last time.

Bonnie looked at herself in the bathroom mirror and shook her head. She couldn't believe she was having such thoughts about Damon, a guy she had tried to kill and who had tried to kill her. A guy she that she swore would be her lifelong enemy. Sure, he was sexy but she had never thought of him that way. Not until now. Not until the return from the Other Side.

Rather than delve any further into that train of thought, she combed her hair and allowed her bangs to fall over her face. She did a little touch-up of her eyeliner and smoothed her hands over her red dress. She almost stepped out of the bathroom when she looked at her reflection, but she thought back to when Damon had brushed hair off of her forehead and told her that he liked it better when he could see her face. He'd quickly covered it up with a snarky comment, but the genuineness in his voice let her know that he was being serious the first time.

So she gently combed the tufts of hair away from her eyes.

Before she could re-examine the fact that she was doing something for Damon's sake, she shook her head and exited the bathroom. Once she was in her bedroom, she headed straight for her jewelry box in search of some accessories. She found some dangly earrings with a sprig of red in them and she started to put them on when the plastic bag from the hospital caught her eye. The nurse had bagged up all the belongings she had when they found her, and Bonnie had tossed the bag on her dresser without a second look. She knew there was some jewelry in there, though, so she opened the large container and looked inside.

She pulled out a fluffy white bathrobe and smirked to herself. She had no idea why she had been wearing that, but it was comfortable and smelled nice so she tossed it onto her bed to be washed. She found a bunch of hair rollers and furrowed her eyebrows, calculating that she must have been going somewhere special if her hair was all done up. She shrugged and moved onto the sparkling necklace at the bottom of the bag. She slowly pulled it out and examined it closely. It was beautiful, but not something she had ever seen before. She wondered where she got it. If it had matched her outfit, she would have put it on. Instead, she gently laid it across her dresser to be worn another day.

Bonnie almost discarded the bag after that, but she noticed one more item inside. Her green eyes widened when she extracted a diamond ring. it looked expensive with a princess-cut diamond in the center and several smaller round diamonds surrounding it. She was no expert on rings, but it certainly looked like an engagement ring.

So why on Earth had she been wearing it?

"Bon," Jeremy called from the other side of the door. He knocked and Bonnie scrambled to hide the ring somewhere. She didn't know why she felt she needed to keep it a secret, but it just wasn't something she wanted to be questioned about, especially when she had no answers.

"Yeah, hold on," she said and she placed the ring in the top drawer of her dresser. She buried it underneath some pairs of panties and then straightened herself up before opening the door.

"Hi," she said with a bright smile.

"Hey, whoa, you look amazing!" Jeremy said with that boyish smile that she had grown to love.

"Thanks. You don't look so bad yourself."

He shrugged and said, "just trying to keep up with you. Shall we?" He offered his arm and she took it.

"Let's."

They walked out to the car and Jeremy held the door open for her. He jogged to his side and cranked up the heat before they drove in the direction of the restaurant.

"So, I'm sure you're probably tired of everyone asking you this, but how do you feel?" Jeremy asked.

"I'm fine," she said, making sure to throw in a smile. "Getting used to everything again, i guess."

"Still no memories, huh?"

"Nope, not yet."

"Eh, it's probably for the best. Being stuck anywhere with Damon for six months probably sucks ass."

Bonnie forced a laugh, even though a lick of anger flamed through her at his comment. She immediately recognized the sensation as ridiculous, considering that she had been the President and Founding Member of the Damon Salvatore Hate Club.

She steered the conversation away from Damon and they stayed on safer subjects, like school. Bonnie had decided to re-enroll in college for the spring semester, which left her a few weeks to get back into the swing of things and try to get her head on straight. Talking with Jeremy was nice and easy and made her feel normal again. He was safe, and that was why she liked him.

When they arrived at the restaurant, everyone else was already there. Bonnie greeted all her friends with smiles and hugs, purposely avoiding any eye contact with Damon. He became unavoidable, though, when he stood up and made his way over to one of the free seats to pull it out for her. To say that he was gorgeous would have been an understatement. Nobody wore an Armani suit like he did and his was tailored to the final stitch. His midnight hair was a little longer than usual, which caused the ends to curl up just a bit in a way that made him innocent, something that he definitely was not. He had a bit of stubble along his chin and jaw which totally negated that innocence. And to top it all off, he wore a red shirt underneath his suit that he'd left open to show off some of his chest.

Wow, Bonnie thought.

He smirked and she suddenly remembered that he could hear her thoughts.

Wow is right, he responded. You look stunning.

He wordlessly took her hand and kissed the back of it, and then helped her into her seat.

"I must have missed the red memo," Elena joked.

Damon took his seat directly across from Bonnie and raised an eyebrow. "Great minds..." he said. And then he winked.

And Bonnie knew she was fucked.

Having to look at his sinfully sexy body and face all night was hard enough, but having him stare at her in return and project his less-than-admirable thoughts into her head was going to drive her insane. Throughout dinner, she desperately tried to ignore him, a feat he made impossible by constantly looking at and talking to her. She tried to get him to take a hint by snuggling up to Jeremy. He'd frown but then retaliate by putting his arm around Elena or kissing the top of her forehead.

Bonnie couldn't even begin to explain the stab of jealousy she felt every time Damon touched his girlfriend. Her best friend.

All night, he tried to engage her in mental conversation, but she refused. She wasn't going to do whatever they were doing right in front of Elena, or Jeremy. When dinner ended, she really just wanted to go home and barricade herself away from him, but Caroline insisted that everyone return to the boarding house and have some drinks. Bonnie allowed herself to be persuaded to participate but she gave herself a mental limit of an hour. Once an hour hit, she was going to complain of a headache and her friends would feel so sorry for her that they would gladly release her from her partying obligations.

Almost as soon as they arrived, though, Damon started up with the mind tricks again and Bonnie excused herself to the kitchen while the other stayed in the living room. She just needed a minute to get her thoughts straight. Of course, he didn't allow that.

"We need to talk," he announced as he burst through the kitchen.

"Shh!" Bonnie said. She slapped his arm to be quiet, then pointed to her ear and outside to signify that the other vampires would be able to hear. He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms.

Fine, we'll talk this way, he said.

What do you want?

How long are you going to pretend like there's nothing going on between us?

I don't know what you're talking about.

He scoffed.

Oh really? So what were all those looks that you were giving me at dinner? And what about when you were obviously mind-blown upon seeing me?

That time, it was Bonnie's turn to roll her eyes.

Okay, you caught me. I was staring at you. You're not exactly ugly. So sue me.

Oh please! Those weren't the looks of a girl who thinks a guy is hot. Those were the looks of a girl who thinks a guy is hot and she wants to screw his brains out.

This is stupid. I'm out.

She tried to leave but he slid into her way and his face became serious.

Something happened between us, he thought. You know it, I know it, and it's time for you to admit it.

I know no such thing.

Is that so? He quirked an eyebrow and smirked. So you haven't been dreaming of me every night?

Bonnie's face grew hot.

You haven't been thinking about sexing me up constantly? he asked.

They're just dreams, Damon. They don't mean anything. I'm probably just thinking that stuff about you because i'm trying to over-compensate for my memory loss.

They're just dreams, he thought in his dry tone. Are you sure about that? You sure they're not memories?

The thought had fleetingly crossed Bonnie's mind but she never gave it a chance to become anything more than a thought. She couldn't and wouldn't allow herself to believe that she and Damon did any of the things in her dreams. They didn't talk or laugh or make love or hold each other or profess their love. There was no way.

Come on, Bonnie, he thought. You're a lot of things, but stupid isn't one of them. I know I'm not the only one that feels this pull between us. You're remembering things between us and projecting them to my brain and I know those aren't just dreams. We were together on the Other Side. Admit it.

I can't admit something I don't know.

Do you always have to be so fucking stubborn? All the evidence is looking you in the face and you're choosing to ignore it!

What would you have me do? she screamed in their silent communication. Whatever happened or didn't happen between us was in a different realm and it wasn't real! We're here now, you're with Elena, I'm with Jeremy and that's what's real.

Damon tightened his jaw and they stared at each other, neither speaking or thinking a word.

"Am I interrupting something?"

Both of them snapped their heads to a confused-looking Caroline. Damon gave her a tight smile and shook his head.

"Not at all," he said, "just a friendly conversation."

"But...neither of you were talking."

Damon blinked a few times but didn't respond. Bonnie took the opportunity to move past him.

"I'm sorry to ditch the party, Care, but I'm tired and I need some sleep. I'll see you later, okay?"

She didn't give her friend a chance to respond before she hurried out of the kitchen and into the living room where everyone else was. She gave them the same excuse as to why she needed to leave and Jeremy was more than happy to give her a ride home. Bonnie could tell that he wanted to stay with her but she asked him for a rain check. When she was safely inside her house, alone, she slid against the door and closed her eyes. She didn't know when her life had turned into such a complete mess, but if she had to guess, she'd say it was the exact day that the Salvatore brothers rolled into town.

She had only been sitting there for a few minutes when there was a knock on the door. She groaned and just knew it was Damon. She swung it open, ready to fight with him, only to find Caroline standing there.

"Hi, sorry, I know you said you're tired but I just had to ask you something." Bonnie leaned against the door and waited for the question that she already knew was coming. "If I ask you what's going on between you and Damon, will you tell me the truth?"

"Yes."

"Okay. What's going on between you and Damon?"

Bonnie sighed and offered her a pathetic smile. "I don't know, Caroline."

She moved aside so Caroline could come in, and they sat together on the couch. Caroline didn't push or even talk, she just waited for Bonnie to gather her thoughts and spill.

"I think," Bonnie started, "and when I say 'think,' I mean I'm like 99% sure, that when Damon and I were on the Other Side, we were...involved."

"Okay," Caroline said slowly.

"Ever since we got back, I've been having these thoughts about him and I guess I've been feeling some kind of way and he's feeling that same kind of way and it's a big shit show."

"And when you say 'some kind of way,' you mean you like him," she said. It wasn't a question, either.

"I don't know," Bonnie groaned. "Yes? I don't know! I get jealous when I see him with Elena. I miss him when he's not around. I think about him in ways that are completely inappropriate. So yes, I guess I like him?"

"But you can't remember what happened?"

"Technically, no. But I keep dreaming about him and if I'm honest with myself, I know they're not just dreams. They're memories."

"And what are you guys doing in these memories?"

Bonnie felt her face flush and she shook her head. "Things that I wouldn't do with anyone but a boyfriend."

Caroline's eyes raised a little but she didn't say anything.

"I could probably make myself remember," Bonnie continued. "I have my powers again and I could do a spell. But I don't want to."

"Why not?"

Bonnie looked at her friend and shrugged. "Because I'm scared of what I'll remember. I'm scared that I'll confirm that Damon and I were together and everything will be even more messed up than it already is."

"I see." Caroline turned to her best friend and took her hands. "Bon, you've been through a lot and whatever you want to do is up to you. But if the way you and and Damon were looking at each other all night is any indication, whatever you did on the Other side meant something. To both of you. And you owe it to yourself and him to find out what happened and then make an informed decision about where to go from there."

"I know you're right, Care, but there are other people to consider, too. Elena and Jeremy..."

"...are selfish. There, I said it. They're selfish. If you want to be with Damon, Elena can't be upset because she's bounced back and forth between two brothers and that's just wrong. Jeremy hasn't been the best boyfriend to you and the fact is that you and Damon were dead for six months and probably thought you were never coming back. What you did under those circumstances is not betrayal to anybody. So don't start that Bennett guilt that you're so famous for. If he makes you happy, then you should go for it. You deserve to be happy, Bon."

Bonnie looked into her friend's caring eyes and she knew she was right about everything. She did deserve to be happy and she couldn't put her life on hold for other people who didn't have the best track record of taking her feelings into consideration.

"Thanks, Care," she said with a genuine smile. "You're right."

"So you'll get your memories back?" she asked with a dimpled smile.

"Yeah. I think so."

"Good." Caroline stood and pulled Bonnie into a hug. "I want all the dirty details, too."

Bonnie laughed and promised that she would share after the dust settled. She saw Caroline out and when she was alone again, she felt lighter and freer than before. Before she could change her mind, she gathered the things she'd need for a spell. She almost started, but then she stopped. Damon deserved to remember, too, so despite the way they had left things, she pulled out her phone and texted him.

I'm going to do a spell to remember what happened. Do you want to come over?

Twenty seconds later, he knocked. Her heart fluttered and when she opened the door, she saw him standing there, looking as handsome as he had earlier in the night.

"Hey," she said.

"What brought this on?" he asked with a skeptical eyebrow.

"Caroline, actually."

"Oh?"

"Yeah."

"Hm. I didn't know she was Team Bamon." Bonnie frowned. "Bonnie + Damon? Come on, Bennett, keep up."

"You're going to make me regret this, aren't you?"

"Probably."

Bonnie rolled her eyes but took his hand and brought him inside. She instructed him to sit on the floor, cross-legged, and she did the same right across from him. She took both of his hands in hers and closed her eyes. She concentrated all her magic and power on the connection between them and she chanted the Latin words that would bring back everything she had forgotten about the last six months. A slight wind picked up in the room and the louder she chanted, the harder it blew. A strong current ran from her hands to his, but she held on until the wind stopped and everything was calm.

Neither of them moved or spoke as the memories infiltrated their minds. When Bonnie opened her eyes, Damon was staring at her in a way she had never seen before, not even when he spoke of Katherine or looked at Elena. He remembered everything. She remembered everything.

Now what in the world were they going to do about it?