A\N: Wow the response has been amazing! Thank you so much!

Do not hesitate to add suggestions and constructive criticism is appreciated.

Elena was sitting on the elegant chocolate-brown countertop now and Damon was applying some kind of liquid on a cotton pad, sometimes looking at her from the corner of his eye.

He moved closer to her and gently folded the bathrobe down to expose her shoulder and he kept himself from hissing. Sure, he wasn't exactly treating her right, but he could never hurt a woman like this in his life, yet alone a girl. At first Elena attempted to jerk away from him and tightening the robe around her protectively, and he raised his hands in mock surrender.

"Look, I just want to help," He said, his voice sincere for once. Elena suddenly felt the strange feeling that he was being honest, and without any more hesitation she let him fold down her robe again and apply the liquid on her wounds. She hissed.

"Do they hurt?"

"Sometimes," Elena admitted weakly. "But the physical pain that comes with them is nothing next to the emotional pain of when I see those marks."

His face softened as he continued to work on the other bruises on her body.

She stared at him as he handled the wounds with care, and she never thought that he was capable of being so gentle like the way he was now. He caught her staring at him and she blushed, immediately looking down. She had to admit, dressed in his plain black t-shirt and dark jeans he looked absolutely handsome, but in her heart Elena knew that he was the perfect example of dangerous beauty.

"All done," Damon said as he offered her his hand, helping her down.

"Thank you," Elena smiled a little, then turned away to grab the cotton pads he had used. However, as Damon caught a whiff of her scent in general, he was filled with the deep desire to taste her blood. Before he could even control it, his eyes turned red with lust and his fangs immediately elongated, and he could already imagine himself tearing at the girl's neck.

However as she turned back to face him, Damon had enough self control to turn away from her, taking a deep breath to calm himself and let his face return to that of a human rather of a demon.

"I got this. Go upstairs," He ordered her sternly, he knew quite well that if she stayed there he would literally eat her alive.

She obeyed immediately, feeling scared of his sudden change of temper and Damon immediately scurried off for his glass of blood.

Elena was holding her notepad in her hands, and as a wave of nostalgia washed over her she tried to blink her tears away. Reading the diary was always like a knife pressed into her heart, however the pain was the only reminder that everything she had gone through was real. Her fingers caressed the page in which there was a small photo of her family.

She closed her eyes, imagining her life when it was perfect.

"Mommy, where are we going?" The little brown-haired girl was crying took her hand and started running.

"Shh, it's going to be okay, baby. I promise. Everything will be okay."

"Jenna, she's the only child I have left. You have to protect her, Jenna-Please."

And the nine year old Elena was left crying on her Aunt's porch as the heartbroken mother pressed her lips to her daughter's cheek. "You will understand," She wept. "Sometime you will. Here, this is my necklace, Elena…take it and take care of it."

Elena woke up crying. The same dream she had been dreaming ever since she was just a child. The night that her mother took off, the night she didn't quite remember.

Elena wiped her sweaty forehead. She was almost positive that the dreams that she had been having were signs, or better, guidelines to help her remember. She didn't know what she had to remember, but for about five years Elena felt empty…Like a part of her life was missing. Like she was into some kind of coma which affected her life. She had very few memories of her perfect life; all she remembered was that one day when she was nine years old her mother came home from work very early and in a few minutes her father and young brother were on the road to a new town in Arizona, not even packing or saying goodbye to anyone.

Even though Elena was only nine years old at that time, she sensed that something was very wrong. Her mother started to become very sick and tensed all the time and then things turned worse when her brother was killed in a very mysterious way. The police never found out who was the one that stabbed the boy to death, however all Elena remembered was that after that tragic day they hit the road again and her mother fell into a deep depression and sadness.

What Elena never figured out, though, was one particular night. All she remembered were just pieces of her memory, however in her dreams she saw chains, fire and blood, and then complete darkness. Then her dream would slowly turn into that night her mother gave her to Jenna and made her promise to keep Elena safe.

Turned out Jenna was running from something too, all of them were. And Elena knew it was because of her. They went after Jenna because of her. It was always because of her and she knew it. And then when they took her to that 'orphanage'…

She wiped away the tears that were streaming freely down her cheeks as she hugged herself as if to feel comfort and protection. She just wanted someone to love her without getting killed or in trouble, like her parents and Jenna. Also, she wanted someone to just love her for her, a little human teenager, not because of her complicated life.

She started to think about Damon, then. In her heart, she felt like she knew him somewhere, however her fear and lack of trust in people, especially men, made her feel small compared to him. Elena had been toyed with her entire life and she learnt that she couldn't trust anybody or ask anyone to help her. Yet, Damon was the only man that was different. She had fallen victim of captivity before, always the bargaining chip, and it was never good.

However, she knew well that she wasn't staying with him at her own free will, and she didn't want to live like this. She had to escape from there and go somewhere, anywhere…Most of all, she wanted to protect Jenna. She had done a lot for her, more than any relative could do. Jenna helped her grow, gave her food, shelter and protection and told her what she was.

Yes, it was true. Elena's powers were what many creatures desired. She had been told that she was a doppelganger with powers-Not a witch, but the only creature like this in the world. According to Jenna, Elena could do pretty much anything against every creature that came along the way. Her blood was like holy water to the damned creatures that aimed to take her away. Jenna never got to tell her who the creatures were, because Elena was kidnapped and threatened a few hours after she had learnt her secret. All she knew was that one of them repeatedly threatened her that he would kill Jenna if she ever tried to go back, and that from that day on Jenna was almost treated like a hostage in her own home, a human slave to the dark creatures.

This brought her back to Damon-Damon threatened to harm Jenna too, and she was afraid that Damon was one of the creatures made to deliver her to the one that wants her blood served on a silver platter. She was struggling with her feelings right at that moment, mostly for two reasons: Damon didn't seem to know about her, and second because of all the creatures doing his dirty work were all cold and ruthless.

She sighed deeply, trying to calm herself down.

Damon finished three blood packs in one setting. He was feeling unexplainable hunger. From the first time he got a whiff of her amazing smell his lips ached to close on her neck and taste her delicious blood. However he refused to indulge, he knew that his needs could easily be fulfilled by a random girl around town, who wouldn't want to sleep and be bitten by Damon Salvatore? And Andie always seemed available when he wanted a distraction. As much as he hated to admit it, Damon knew that Elena wasn't the same. Elena was a rose among weeds, a rose that could blossom under his great care when he was ready to let the human side in him take control for just a little while. He couldn't use her and throw her away like he did with others, because she was special.

And by special, Damon didn't even know what he meant. Because she was truly special: Her existence was the first reason, the photocopy of his ex girlfriend. Her charm, her looks, her smell, they all played a part on his delicate vampire needs and senses. She was also special because she was unique and mysterious, filled with the deep desire to run from something…something he didn't know about yet.

He could also feel the resistance when he tried to control and compel her dreams for the first time when she was half asleep and it mysteriously didn't work. At first he thought that vervain was involved but he didn't smell any.

He wasn't going to let her go until he knew who she is. It didn't matter if it was just for curiosity or care, he just wanted to know. Any second Elena would play right into his hands like they all do, and it would be up to him to decide if Elena really was more than human.

After hours of nervous observing Elena managed to find a window which she could easily jump from if she intended to escape. She could hear Damon's snores on the couch now and she instantly realized that this could be her chance to leave this place. Nervously Elena concentrated on the height, she was experienced enough to know if it was safe or not. For once, the window lead to a small part of the back garden and even though she would need a rope. Seeing that their were no ropes around, obviously, Elena turned to the sheets on the bed tying them together in a secure knot which Jenna had told her to do in case of emergencies. It had worked before and there were larger heights, so it was supposed to work now.

Carefully Elena secured a part of the sheet so that she could easily hold on to them as she jumped on the solid ground, and with that, she ran like hell, looking back frequently to assure herself that Damon wasn't after her. She ran along the road, hoping to find a cab or a car to get out of there…She didn't even know this place.

There were no houses in the entire road, it was like deserted. It was getting cold now and she was getting breathless, and with great effort she stopped running. She was a safe distance away from the house now.

Or at least she thought.

She let out a bloodcurdling scream as Damon appeared in front of her and grabbed her in a vice-like grip.

He practically pulled her with him the entire trip to his house. Her wrists and arms were so sore of his rough fingers digging deep into her skin, and the more she struggled the more he intended to hurt her.

"I'm sorry…Stop…please…." Was all that Elena managed to say as he continued to roughly pull her with him. Most of all, she was afraid. The last time she escaped from someone and got caught, it had cost her a black out and bruises the next morning.

"You knew it wasn't going to be pretty if you disobey me, Elena," Damon spat arrogantly as he walked faster. "Why did you do it?"

"Because I don't want this!" Elena yelled, and a sudden wave of power flashed over her and she slapped him across his face, so hard that his head turned around.

She took a step back in fear when she realized what she had done and Damon growled.

"Don't ever do that again…"

Deficient, Elena's hand was about to shoot out again, but this time Damon grabbed it in an iron grip and forced her hands on her back, pinning them together tightly as they managed to get to the house.

He raced to the basement with Elena still with him and he threw her to the ground, hard.

"When you learn to behave, I'll set you free," Damon said simply, "And we will discuss your punishment for disobedience in the morning."

With that, Elena heard a low 'click' and realized she was locked in the cold basement, and his words frightened her. What was he going to do the next morning?

Elena let out a sob once more as she curled into a ball, trying to keep herself warm.

…

However itt was only a few hours later that Damon slowly entered the basement again and found the girl sleeping on the hard, cold floor. He felt guilty for once and sighing deeply, he wrapped a blanket around the girl who really was freezing. He didn't mean those words earlier, he just wanted to scare her because it angered him, her escape.

He kneeled down next to her and stroked her cold cheek lightly.

"Don't worry, Elena. I'm not going to hurt you."

With that, Damon returned to his bedroom, but not before he pulled Elena up in his arms and placed her on his own warm bed as he went downstairs for another drink.

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