Chapter 11

A birthday present to myself I updated. Sorry it's taken so long – school.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?"

"I loved you Damon!" I all but screamed at his dumbstruck face, "That is why I had to leave!"

"Elena, how the fuck is that a valid excuse? You left without a single word!" He shouted back at me.

"How is this my fault?"

"You knew how I felt about you!"

"Then why the hell did you not come after me?" The tears were now pouring down my face, "Why!"

"I did come after you!"

"What?" My voice had softened now. I leant against the car, defeated.

"I went to find you, Elena! I came after you! We may the only vampires you know, but we sure as hell are not the only ones out there." His rage seemed to have quietened down as he sunk down against the opposite wall. "You have no idea how many times I saved your ass in that city."

"You did what?"

"That man you met at the bar? Yeah, V-A-M-P-I-R-E."

"He was a good man Damon!"

"Vampires are not 'good' Elena!" My rage had started to seethe again at hearing of his interference.

"I went there to escape all of this shit! You had no right to interfere!"

With that retort Damon had leapt up from the wall and was standing over me, his hands leaning on the hood of the car, his face only inches from mine.

"You cannot escape this Elena, this is reality, and forgive me for not wanting you dead! I only interfered to save your stupid life?"

That stung. "Stupid? So now my life is stupid. Well thank you very much."

"That is not what I meant, goddammit." He slammed his fist down onto the car, causing a major dent. I sprung from my defensive crouch.

"Damon."

"You said you loved me. Past tense?" His eyes met mine, and in them I was certain that I saw hurt and pain, but I wouldn't give in.

"I am not doing this with you." I spun around on my heel and marched towards the internal door that led into the kitchen.

"Yeah, well I am!" In a split second I was trapped between the hard walls of his chest and the wooden door. "I couldn't let them hurt you." He brushed a wisp of hair that had fallen from the clasp off of my face, before crushing his lips to mine. My whole mind was telling me to shove him away, to stop this but I couldn't. His kisses grew more passionate, mine moving with his as our tongues fought for dominance. My back was pressed firmly up against the wall as his free hand trailed up the side of stomach, moving in to cup my breast. His lips broke away from mine as he began to press soft kisses down the side of my neck. The release of my lips allowed me to break out of my daydream and focus.

"Damon?"

"Yes?" His voice was deep and heated and almost made me want to pull his lips back to mine and lose myself in him.

"We have to stop."

"Why?"

"Just stop." He may have been a lot of evil things, but Damon was definitely a gentleman when the situation demanded it. He released his hold of me, but before I could say a word he was gone. The only proof that this had all taken place was the dent in the bonnet of his car, his precious car.

"Ah, shit." I kicked the side of the wall and sulked back out to the party.

Five hours and four bottles of champagne later, Care, Bonnie and I were the last ones on the dance floor. Heck, we were the last ones at the party. Matt and Rebekah had disappeared shortly after dessert, probably to enjoy a second course if you know what I mean; Carol Lockwood had been carried off by Liz and Stefan after she had tried to sing a rendition of Man! I feel like a woman on the table, and no one had seen Damon since our argument. Needless to say, it had been one hell of a night.

Bonnie, Care and I were lying on the dance floor the DJ having left earlier with the music.

"So Ele-e-na." Caroline drew my name out into four syllables, "where did you and the big evil fine ass vampire disappear to earlier?"

"Fine ass?" Asked Bonnie.

"Bon, say what you like about Damon, but that man's bum is fiiiiine!"

"Okay, okay. I am not going to agree with you, but I shall not object. So Lena, where were you?"

"Yeah, 'cause I am a bit worried as you have been drinking steadily ever since you got back from your little rendezvous."

To be honest, I was a little drunk, but most of the champagne that had been poured into my glass was downed by Caroline. "Nothing, we just talked."

"Talked? You guys were practically having eye sex! And don't think I don't know what was going on under that table, I've seen your turned on face."

"What!" I shrieked.

"Elena, we have seen you with Damon, Stefan and even Matt before, we know." Added Bonnie. My ears went read just thinking about it.

"Okay, fine. We kissed."

Both of them raised their eyebrows doubtfully.

"Ugh, the kiss was going somewhere fast. But then he asked me why I left and I said … I said that it was because I had loved him."

"What?" Was Caroline's reaction.

"And then what?" Asked Bonnie, looking more concerned.

"Well, he got angry that I hadn't told him and it turned into this big fight. He even slammed his fist into his car."

"His car? Oh god, that is bad."

"I know, and then we were just both so angry and started kissing again, but I told him to stop and then he just left."

"Oh Lena." Bonnie pulled me into her arms, while Caroline soothingly rubbed circles on my back. A few tears escaped my eyes. "Lena, I think the important question here is that do you still love him? It is Damon after all."

I couldn't help but laugh a little at Bonnie's continued disdain for the man. "I don't know. These past six years, I have managed to let go of him but then seeing him again, and when were kissing and even when we argue I just feel this pull towards him. My whole body just lights up and I cannot imagine being without him."

Caroline and Bonnie shared a knowing look over my shoulder. "I think what you need to do is figure out what you feel and tell him. And from what you are telling us, I think that you are still in love with Damon, Lena." Caroline whispered softly.

I had to face it, "I know."

"Then go and tell him!"

"But, what if …"

"Lena, go!" Bonnie joined Care in her motivation. I stood up, stumbling a bit from the champagne, before making my way up to the house.

"Shit." I cursed. I had stubbed my toe against a randomly placed chair for the sixth time as I tried to make my way to the staircase in the dark. I eventually managed to find the stairs, and gripping the banister tightly, I slowly made my way up the staircase. To anyone else, I would have appeared drunk out of my mind, but I was only being careful because I could not see a damn thing and my head was spinning a little more like a carousal now that I was on my feet.

Reaching the landing was a small victory for me. As I cheered in silence, I slowly made my way along the dark, stretched passage until I found my door, and more importantly, Damon's door directly opposite. His light was on as I could see the light escaping through the gap in the door. I tapped quietly on the door. No answer. I knocked again, a little louder. Nothing. "Damon?" After being ignored again, the guy has vampire hearing for goodness sake, I twisted the doorknob and slowly pushed it open. Damon was lying on his vast bed, still covered with dark grey silk sheets, with a book in his lap. His faced turned to look at me, expectantly, but also slightly irritated.

"What?"

"Um … I wanted to talk to you." I hardly recognised my voice, I sounded nervous and frightened.

"I think we're done with the talking, Elena."

"No." The champagne buzz, it appears, gave me a final boost of alcohol induced confidence. "We are not done." I closed the door behind me and went over to his bed. Removing the book and placing it on the night stand, I sat down on the bed, cross legged, opposite him.

Damon had been watching me with an indifferent expression, still irritated but also slightly amused, in away that only Damon could be.

"You did not let me finish. I said that I loved you. Past tense. But that is because I do not know how I feel right now. I mean, I do get all tingly when you touch me, and see fireworks when we kiss …" The champagne had gone to my head as I rambled on about how he made me feel.

"Elena, shut up. You have always used the same excuse to avoid facing your feelings and I am tired of it."

"Its not an excuse, Damon."

"It is." He had raised his voice slightly, "And if it weren't then why are you not trying to figure out you feel?"

"Because you just keep confusing me, you stupid vampire! We kiss, you ask questions, I tell you how I feel, you shout at me. God! You're like … like a teenage girl!"

"I am not a teenage girl!"

"Well you look like one with that pouty face you have there." I had crossed a line there. Damon's pout set into a grim line.

"Elena, go to bed. Go away. I'm tired."

"I'm tired." I mocked him in a girly tone, and as a reward a flicker of fire appeared in Damon's eye.

"And you're drunk."

"Am not."

"Are too. Now get out." Damon had thrown me over his shoulder and placed me outside the door before I could blink, only realising I had truly been kicked out when the door shut in my face.

"You are such a child." I stumbled back to my room. Tucking myself under the covers, I said loudly enough for him to hear, "and you are hot when you are pissed."

I closed my eyes and began counting sheep as the champagne settled in and I fell asleep. I would tell him tomorrow, somehow. Tomorrow night was the bachelorette party at the Grill, while the guys had their night here. We may be partying at different venues, but tomorrow night, we all had to be back and who knows what could happen.

I know this chapter wasn't as good, I got a bit stuck, not wanting them to 'settle down' to soon. So I am going to have fun with the next one and then start 'tying the knots'.

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