Yes, I know this is a few days later than intended and I sincerely apologize for that. On Sunday, my social media hiatus ended and I spent far too much of my day responding to all of you lovely people who sent messages welcoming me back. Then, of course, school kicked in and... well, here we are. I wish this could have gotten up sooner, but just think: now you won't have to wait as long for the next update since I plan on putting that one up on Sunday like normal :)

May 2007

"I don't know what sex appeal is. I don't think you can have sex appeal knowingly. The people who seduce me personally are the people who seem not to know they're seductive, and not to know they have sex appeal."

"Toothbrush?"

"Oh my god, Damon!"

Damon stopped his frantic pacing at her growl. He'd spent the past minute or so listing off commonly forgotten items, convinced that something was missing from her plethora of suitcases.

"People forget their toothbrush all the time, Elena."

Elena shook her head, a small smile on her face at his overly serious expression, as she crossed the room and grabbed him by the shoulders. She'd been sitting on the couch, flipping through a magazine as he'd worried holes into the carpet. "Yes, they do. But I've been packing for this for five days. I don't think I forgot a toothbrush. Besides, even if I did, I'm not going to some African village. They have drugstores." She let out a sarcastic gasp. "They even have the internet!"

Damon let out a long exhale, finally registering his error. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to play 'big brother' again. I know I promised to treat you like you can handle yourself."

Elena nodded. "Yeah, you did… But it's okay. I don't mind it right now."

Damon quirked his eyebrow. "And why is that?" She typically wanted to ring his neck anytime he came anywhere close to being overly protective.

Elena's small smile turned into a full-fledged, shit-eating grin. "Because all of your freaking out means you're gonna miss me. It's adorable."

Damon groaned as she backed away from him, dancing around in her spot. "You're gonna miss me. You're gonna miss me," she sang mockingly.

"That whole missing you thing is fading pretty quickly," Damon replied back with a growl. He couldn't keep the smile off of his face, though, at her childish giggle.

It was four in the morning and Damon had risen along with his roommate to send her off. For two and a half months, Elena would be on the opposite side of the country filming. Ironically enough, the shooting location was only a few hours away from the city they'd first met. Damon, thanks to his highly successful win, was now drowning in work at the firm and wouldn't be able to accompany her. Hell, at this point he wasn't even sure if he'd be able to visit her.

The few weeks that had passed since Elena had gotten the part had gone by in a flash. Elena was constantly in meetings for pre-production while Damon had been earning more cases thanks to his recent win. He could barely recall the last time they'd had a meal together or even been in the same room for any more than an hour. And now, realizing she was about to walk out that door and not return for the entire summer, he could feel his stomach tighten in unease.

For nearly six months, he and Elena had lived together. And only just recently had their friendship become something that was healthy rather than unbalanced. He didn't think he was going to break down without her or anything, but he knew it would be strange to wake up every morning and not hear her singing along to the radio in her bathroom or finding random items of her clothing draped over furniture in the apartment that was nowhere near her room.

Elena, on the other hand, hadn't panicked once since the new scenario had been revealed. At least, not around him. He'd always assumed she'd be the one racing all over the house, anxious about every last detail. But, now, standing in front of him with a hopeful smile on her face, she just seemed unnervingly calm.

"When does your car get here?" Katherine had arranged for a driver to pick herself and Elena up at their respective homes.

Elena sighed, pulling out her brand new cell phone, courteously gifted by the aforementioned brunette. "Ten minutes, give or take."

Damon ran his hands through his hair. He still couldn't believe this was even happening. Little Elena Gilbert, running off to the other side of the country to star in a movie. "Do you want me to make you some coffee to go?"

Elena shook her head, heading back to sit on the couch. "No. I'm going to want to sleep on the plane. We already have like fifteen things on the schedule once I get there."

Damon nodded. Since he'd already done nearly everything he could think of to help her and had double-checked every task on the list, all he could do now was sit and wait with her, soaking in whatever time they had left.

"How are you feeling?" Damon asked, breaking the silence.

A glorious smile lit up her face as she blushed. "Amazing…" She laughed, her eyes sparkling. "I mean I'm doing exactly what I came here to do. I got what I wanted."

He noticed her eyes dull slightly at her last words. "You seem uneasy."

Her smile softened slightly, but the sincerity didn't dim. "I just… it's hard to wrap your mind around it, you know? I mean… it's always been a dream, never a reality. The past few weeks have been so crazy that I've barely had time to digest it all. But now… So many people come here and spend years trying to follow all of these formulas and play into the crazy games of the industry and they can barely get a guest spot on a television show. I come here and, thanks to a chance encounter at a bar, I've got a leading role in a movie after five months. It doesn't… make sense."

Damon smiled. "Come on, Elena. Yeah, you're pretty damn lucky that all of the chips fell into place like this, but… you earned that role. It's not all luck or chance. You ended up exactly where you needed to be because you deserved it."

Elena's smile grew, and before he could fully register what was happening, she did what she did best: attack hugs. The fact that they were sitting on a couch made the angle a little awkward, but her intent was clear. Damon let out a breath as he met the embrace, his arms squeezing just the slightest bit more tightly as the reminder of her forthcoming long absence hit him again.

Elena pulled back after what felt like minutes. Her lips lifted into a small smirk as she stuck her thumb out, gently rubbing the furrow in between his brows. She pouted, her voice a full octave lower. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine."

Damon let out a light laugh, shaking his head enough to force her hand away. "I can still be your friend and worry about you. Especially when you're going to be so far away."

Elena sighed. "Fine. I'll admit that I appreciate the concern… just make sure you keep living while I'm gone."

Damon opened his mouth in retort, but then realized his response would have been slightly inappropriate given the circumstances. He'd meant to inform her that he'd actually scheduled a date for later that evening, but something told him he should keep it under wraps. It was nothing serious and, until it was, Elena didn't need to know.

He decided sarcasm was his best bet. "Oh, I'll do plenty of living. Gonna spend my evenings going over case files, watching some Leave it to Beaver reruns, having slumber parties with Alaric. Hey, maybe I'll even get real crazy and sit in a park or something."

Elena laughed, slapping his chest. "You're such an idiot."

Damon chuckled, but her previous comment had left a mark. Whether good or bad, he wasn't quite sure. He realized that, without her around, his life only consisted of his work. Besides Alaric, he had no friends here. He hadn't even spoken to his parents in over two months.

His days revolved around Elena. Prepping her for various auditions or meetings. Cooking meals to share. Coming home to relax with her after a long day. It had never been something he resented, but he suddenly realized that he wasn't quite sure what to do with himself without her around. Maybe her absence wouldn't be such a bad thing for him after all.

Elena's phone went off and she scrambled in the nearest bag to locate it. "It's Katherine," she mumbled, staring at the screen. "They're pulling into the complex gates." Her wide eyes slid up to meet his.

Damon knew, at that moment, that it was finally really hitting them. After everything they'd been through, this was the part where they'd be forced to go their separate ways, if only for a few months. Regardless, it was such a monumental change that it would cause even the toughest of hearts to feel the slightest ache.

He gave Elena credit for putting up a strong front, though. He could barely sense the shake in her confidence and knew that, to the untrained eye, it would have been unnoticeable. Damon, on the other hand, was a bit more strained.

His eyes flickered down to their laps, Elena nearly sitting in his thanks to the angle of the earlier hug. He hadn't realized his hand had fallen to her outer thigh after the embrace had ended and he definitely hadn't registered the soothing circles he'd been rubbing into her yoga pants.

After glancing back up at Elena, he saw that she'd just made the discovery as well. She made a motion to get up, but he put the slightest bit of pressure into his grip, a subtle encouragement to stay where she was.

"Look, I know you can take care of yourself. And I also know that you don't need me to be your guardian or your protector. But I will fly across the country in a heartbeat if you need me for anything. You know that, right?"

Elena took a deep breath, taken aback by the intensity of his tone. She bit her lip, nodding. "Yeah, of course."

"Alright." Damon exhaled before the next part, his hand lifting to perform his new bad habit: pushing the hair away from her face. "I also know that this whole… thing… it's going to be amazing for you. It's also going to be tough. So when you need me, I will be there, but I can promise you: there is no way in hell I'm going to let you fly back here. Because regardless of how difficult it might be and regardless of how hard you might have to work, you are going to take in every second of this opportunity. You deserve to see this through and I refuse to help you turn your back on it. Is that clear?"

Elena's eyes were wide and Damon almost thought she might argue with him. But after a few tense seconds, she finally swallowed. "Thank you, Damon."

Damon took one last look into her brown eyes just as the knock on the door came, Katherine entering just a few moments later. "Ready to go?" She asked with a tired expression.

Elena nodded, pulling away from Damon to stand. Damon followed to help her with her bags, but the driver, who had come in behind Katherine, shooed him away, lifting multiple suitcases with ease.

When everything was packed into the trunk, Damon, Elena, and Katherine were all left standing outside of the rented car in the warm, dark air. As Katherine typed out an email into her phone, Elena reached up, wrapping her arms around Damon for the last time.

"Don't worry," she whispered into his ear. "I'll miss you, too." When she pulled back, the smile on her face was the most somber one she'd shown all morning, but it was enough to reassure him that she'd be okay.

"I'll see you soon," Damon replied, stuffing his hands into his pockets as Katherine approached the car once again, opening the door for Elena to enter behind her.

"Soon," Elena repeated, her smile growing. "Can't come fast enough."

"God, I feel like such a girl," Damon groaned, eliciting a chuckle from behind him.

Alaric was perched against the counter as Damon sifted through shirt and tie combinations he'd laid out on the couch. "Having your best friend come over to help you pick out an outfit before a date? Yeah, I could see why."

Damon shot Alaric a look. "Yeah, well, I haven't dated since I was fifteen years old. Forgive me if I'm a little stressed." He threw a hanger to the side. "Besides, you seemed pretty eager to come over on the phone."

"You offered me liquor. I'm a weak, simple man."

Damon smirked, picking up a pair he'd been considering for almost fifteen minutes.

Alaric interrupted his thoughts. "You know, I can help you with the clothing thing if you'd like."

"Shoot, buddy."

"Alright: she genuinely does not give a shit what you're wearing, as long as it's expensive."

Damon's eyebrows furrowed. "And why do you say that?"

"Because she's Andie. The only time she'll be looking at that shirt is when she's figuring out how to get it off."

Damon paused in his motions, dropping the set back onto the cushions. "I don't think she's like that."

Alaric scoffed, taking another sip from his glass. "They're all like that, Damon. Especially Andie. You're not in Kansas anymore, Toto. She doesn't want the romance and the love shit. She wants the sex. Better yet, she wants to say she had sex with you."

Damon quirked his eyebrow, still not fully believing what he was hearing. "So you're telling me that I'm just going to show up tonight and, right off the bat, she'll try to fuck me?"

"Well, I mean you're going to buy her dinner first, maybe swap some witty innuendos. But I have no doubt that that's her ultimate endgame. It's how most of them operate now. At least the ones you're going to encounter. Women like Andie don't have time for relationships and, since she works in celebrity divorces, she's seen her fair share of assholes with little sense of decency. She has no interest in falling in love with you." He noticed Damon's wary expression and switched tracks. "Look, she obviously likes you, don't get me wrong. She's not just scouring the office for any available warm bodies."

"Clearly, she hasn't asked you yet," Damon mumbled, eliciting another laugh from his friend.

"Nah. She has a type and that type is someone who is a hell of a lot more put together than me."

Damon sighed, realizing that his choice of clothing wasn't as important as he'd once thought. He grabbed the shirt combination nearest to him and began changing into it. "Well, I'm just going to get through tonight and then… we'll see. I mean, she's not going to force herself on me or anything, right?"

Alaric laughed. "She's not that desperate, Damon. I mean have you seen the girl?"

Damon smirked, finishing the last of the buttons. He had finally met her in person after she'd shown up in his office a few days after the first phone call. She was quite attractive: tall, thin, with caramel skin and hair. She'd been perfectly nice, albeit quite forward with her intentions. Damon had known he was taking a risk by agreeing to dinner with her and he also wasn't naïve enough to think the rules hadn't changed in the past ten years. But the idea of him having sex with someone other than Rose after one date… it felt strange.

"Are you okay with this?" Alaric interrupted with a sly smirk. "You look like you might barf."

"Just digesting," Damon replied. "I'll be fine."

"Would this hesitation have anything to do with a certain young brunette who just flew 6 hours away?"

Damon's head shot up to give Alaric a pointed look. His neighbor just chuckled in response. "The hesitation, Ric, stems from the fact that the last, and only, woman I slept with broke my heart, not Elena."

Alaric cocked his eyebrows. "And you're still gonna tell me you haven't done anything with Elena since you got here?"

"It's the truth. Sorry to disappoint you and whatever sick fantasies you have about your neighbors."

Alaric rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah whatever. I might be the pervert neighbor, but at least I'm not the guy who hasn't had sex in over a year."

Damon crossed the room to grab his wallet and keys. "Seven months," Damon corrected. "Now, follow me out. I have a hot date to pick up."

If someone had told Damon ten months ago that by simply walking into a neighboring studying room at the nearest library, he would be dining at the newest, most expensive restaurant in Culver City less than a year later, on a date with someone other than Rose, he would have been convinced that person was certifiably insane. Yet here he was, sitting across from a stunning attorney as she ordered some dish he could barely pronounce and, according to Alaric and every other signal she'd been throwing his way that night, she was planning on sleeping with him.

And he wasn't quite sure how to feel about that.

Thankfully, the date had gone surprisingly well so far. Given his lack of expertise in the field, he'd been worried someone like Andie would practically run him over. She'd been charming and lovely the entirety of the evening, regardless of the fact that Alaric had set her up to be some sort of man-eater.

He shook himself out of his thoughts when he noticed Andie staring him down across the small table. "Alright, what's wrong?" She asked dryly, taking a sip of her wine.

Damon frowned. "What do you mean?"

"You look like you're going to puke any second."

Crap, Damon thought. Send in damage control. "Well, I guess I'm just intimidated by you. Why a beautiful woman such as yourself would ask out a guy like me… it's hard to believe."

Andie's eyes widened and Damon mentally cursed himself. Great line, Salvatore. Really dropping the panties there.

"Are you kidding me?" Andie asked in disbelief.

Damon cringed. "Sorry, I'm not great at this-"

"Not that," Andie interrupted. "I'm talking about the insecurity thing. Were you serious?"

"I…" Damon wasn't quite sure how to respond to her question. He determined honesty was the best policy. "You just seem 'out of my league,' to use a clichéd term."

Andie's jaw dropped, stunned into silence for a few seconds. "Oh my god. You actually have no clue."

"No clue about what?" Damon asked.

A mischievous smile grew on Andie's face. She leaned in, resting her forearms on the covered table. Damon felt the slight slide of her heels against his calf as she adjusted her position. "You have no idea how fucking hot you are."

Damon's mouth opened slightly. Now, he was definitely sure he had no reply… at least nothing that wouldn't make him sound like a conceited jackass. Was he completely unaware of his good looks? Of course not. He'd figured out early on as a teenager that most girls deemed him attractive, enough to shamelessly flirt with him regardless of his committed relationship. But that was in a small town. Damon wasn't too concerned with how he looked, but he also was aware that this city had a plethora of good-looking men. Women weren't exactly throwing themselves at him since he'd gotten here. He just assumed that he was somewhere in the middle of the heap now.

At Damon's awkward silence, Andie continued. "You don't realize that ninety percent of the girls in this bar hate me simply because I'm sitting next to you. God, that podunk little town probably didn't even know what to do with you."

Damon just shook his head, an uncomfortable smile crossing his face. "Okay, so I'm good looking. What does that have to do with this?"

Andie sighed. "Because when I asked you out, I was actually… nervous that you would say no. And I don't get nervous about any guy's rejection. You might be on a date with me tonight, but you could get any other woman in this bar in a heartbeat."

Damon smirked, his confidence rising thanks to her praise. "So then you're saying that you're just honored to be in my presence?" He asked teasingly.

Andie cocked an eyebrow. "Don't get too carried away there, Mr. Salvatore. I could get any guy in this bar if I wanted to. I'm just saying I'm not out of your league; I'm in it."

Damon sighed. "Well, I think we should just focus on our date instead of all of the other people we could date."

Andie placed the glass she'd been holding back down on the table. Her eyes sparkled with curiosity. "Look, here's the deal. This is never going to be a relationship. I don't do relationships. Hell, even dating is a stretch for me. Most guys bore the shit out of me, but you on the other hand… I'm interested."

Damon nodded. "Well, that's good…" he chuckled awkwardly.

Andie eyed him for a moment. "What if I helped you? You know, embrace your hotness. It would make this evening a hell of a lot more fun."

"You want to help me pick up other women?" Damon questioned. "Why?"

"Because I love a good project. It would be fun to say I created you."

Damon rolled his eyes, taking a gulp of his drink. This woman seemed hell-bent on playing a game with him and a part of him wanted to play along. Regardless of all of this time in LA, he still felt like a fish out of water. And compared to Elena's progression, he was a regular hick. He'd come on this date to move on from his past and he knew some changes had to be made. A few more drinks and he'd be much more comfortable with it. "Fine. Teach me what I need to know."

Damon had been right about the few drinks idea. After Andie had asked him various questions about his previous dating experience during dinner, she'd decided they would need to move to a bar to start the transformation process. Especially after she nearly choked on her food when he'd stated that he'd only ever been with one woman.

Although the situation was awkward in and of itself, he was having a good time. Andie was bold and forthcoming, always ready with clever commentary and her sharp wit. She didn't treat him like a naïve idiot like he assumed she would, but rather as a friend she was helping out. Damon found himself actually having a good time.

"Alright, how do you approach a woman?" Andie quizzed, taking a sip of her beer. They'd been in the nearest hotel's bar for nearly an hour.

"Confidently."

"Well, duh. I meant your stride."

"Uh… slowly?"

"Partially correct. You definitely never want to rush at a woman. That will make you look like a serial killer. But, also, don't meander. You have a goal in mind and she should know that. The whole 'accidentally bumping into you' thing doesn't make the woman feel as flattered as a guy being determined to meet her."

"Got it," Damon replied. "Now, please don't patronize me with eye contact tips next."

Andie shook her head. "I wasn't planning on it. But I do have some comments on your complimenting skills."

Damon was intrigued. "Not enough?"

"Your quantity's fine. It's the quality that's concerning. You being all 'you're the physical embodiment of everything I look for in a woman' sets off a woman's bullshit alarm immediately. You need to be more specific, realistic."

Damon scoffed. "I never said anything like that."

Andie gave him a pointed look. "You told me I was beautiful in some form or another like six different times tonight. The woman you'll be talking to don't need to hear that. They hear that shit constantly. It starts to sound like white noise. But… it doesn't mean they aren't insecure. Giving them a specific, unique compliment is what's going to intrigue them."

Damon nodded. "Alright, fine. What about phone calls?"

"What about them?"

"Is that three day rule still a thing?"

Andie let out a disbelieving laugh. "Are you serious?"

"Um… yes?"

Andie leaned in, her eyes twinkling in amusement. "I'm not teaching you how to date women. I'm teaching you how to pick them up."

"Okay," Damon replied, his eyebrows furrowed. "You're saying they won't give me their phone number?"

"Oh, they'll give you their phone number. You're just never going to use it."

Damon groaned. "Oh, come on! No way. You're not training me to be some sort of man whore who sleeps with a woman for one night and then never calls her again."

"Why not? What do you have against it?"

"Um, the fact that I'm not a dick?"

Andie rolled her eyes, taking another drink. "Look, this town is not full of women who sit in bars waiting to meet their true love. If they want to find a boyfriend, they can have their friend set them up or use a dating website." When she saw that Damon's disapproval still remained, she tried another tactic. "Fine, tell me straight up. Are you looking for a girlfriend?"

Damon let out an exhale. There was a question he'd never really considered. "I don't know. Don't I seem like the 'girlfriend' kind of guy?"

"Fuck no," Andie shot back. "Why do you think I did a spit take when you told me you were sleeping with the same woman for ten years? Damon, you're in your twenties. You're a single attorney in the second largest city in the country. You're gorgeous and you're not a pig. That makes you one of the hottest commodities on the planet. You've spent your entire life being a 'boyfriend,' being the good guy, and clearly, that didn't work out for you. What's the harm in trying out something new? If you hate it, then you stop doing it. But you have opportunities that a million men would kill for… Why would you want to waste them on girls who will just break your heart?"

Damon kept his gaze out on the bar, his stomach churning at her words. He hated his brain for thinking that what she was saying made logical sense. He also hated that a part of him was starting to want what she was offering.

As frustrating as it was, she was right. Something needed to change. If he wanted to leave everything behind, just like he'd decided when Elena had asked him to come with her to LA, he'd have to become the person this new city was calling him to be.

When Andie saw the decision in his eyes, her face lit up in a smirk. "Good. Now let's test it out." Her gaze focused on a booth near the entrance hallway. "And I think I know just the test run." Andie abruptly stood. "Come on."

Damon took a deep breath, his eyes going to where hers had been focused to see if he could figure out whom she'd selected, but she was already walking away. Damon got up, threw a few bills on the table, and followed.

But the pair bypassed every single table and booth in the place and Damon, in his surprise, nearly ran into Andie when she abruptly stopped in the private hall. Her proud smirk made Damon put two and two together fairly quickly.

"You're the test run," he mumbled.

"Good guess, cowboy." And before he could respond, Andie had her lips smashed against his, hand pulling him in by the nape of his neck. Damon ignored the slight moment of hesitation he would have had typically and instead pulled her in by the small of her back so that her body was flush to his own. He took the initiative of deepening the kiss, but she pulled back after only a few moments.

"Alright, student," Andie's voice had lowered considerably, licking her lips before she continued. "What do you do now?"

Damon met her smirk, his hand pushing the hem of her shirt upwards. He pretended to intensely consider his answer as his thumb made slow circles right above the waistline of her skirt. "Room key?"

Andie grinned. "A plus."

While sitting on the couch of his apartment, Damon's focus continued to switch between one of two things: the text he'd just received from Elena and sex. Surprisingly enough, the two were halfway related.

The text was the first piece of communication he'd received from Elena since they'd said their goodbyes a few days earlier. He'd called her once a day since then to check on her and see how things were going, but she neglected to answer every single time. It had never offended him since he knew she was probably busy, but it was still surprising, nonetheless.

He'd been restless ever since he'd come home from work that day and, when she didn't answer his call for the fourth time that week, he determined texting her might be a better option. All he'd sent was a simple "How's it going?" and her response had come back almost immediately. Clearly, the issue wasn't being away from her phone.

Everything's good. :)

And that was it. A part of him felt slightly perturbed by the text, but he couldn't pinpoint the exact reason why. Maybe it was her blasé attitude or the fact that everything was going so well. Apart from his "lesson" with Andie earlier that week, he'd done almost nothing but sulk around his apartment.

Added to his sulking, of course, was his constant preoccupation with what he'd done on Saturday night. Andie teaching him how to pick up, seduce, and then ditch women. His decision to go along with it. The fact that she'd made herself the first practice target and it had gone really, really well.

The sex was astoundingly better than he'd suspected it to be, not that he'd thought she'd be terrible or anything. Damon had thought that because he wasn't in love with Andie, it would lose some of its consuming nature, but that was far from the case. On the contrary, the fact that she was different, practically a stranger, made it all the more exciting and heightened. Unlike Rose, he didn't know exactly where to touch or to kiss to get her off. He had to wait for Andie's guidance or pleaded instruction to push her over the edge.

If there had been any doubt that Damon couldn't do casual, it was thrown out the window the second he'd left Andie in the hotel room. She even texted him "Good job ;)" once she had woken up alone. And the longing he had now wasn't for an intimate conversation or lying in bed next to a woman. It was for the lust, the passion. Like an addict, he wanted that rush of satisfaction again as he made a woman he'd only been acquainted with for a few hours scream his name.

Plus, he desperately wanted to get off again.

The irritation from Elena's text was what convinced him it was time to strike out on his own. He highly doubted Andie wanted to see him again, especially if he was the one to contact her. If he wanted sex, his best bet would be to test out what she'd taught him on another willing girl.

By the time the clock struck ten, Damon was already long gone.

His phone ringing was what woke him up and Damon practically fell off of the bed trying to silence it. Once he had the phone in his possession, he swore under his breath at whom he'd accidentally hung up on. The missed call from Elena was only second on his priority list, though, as he slowly turned to look next to him.

The woman, Jessica, only seemed to shift slightly in her sleep at the noisy interruption. Beyond that, she was dead to the world. A slightly proud smirk crossed Damon's features as he recalled that he was the reason for her exhaustion, but remembering that Elena was calling him at what would be four in the morning her time wiped it off.

Damon decided that now was as good a time as ever to leave Jessica's apartment given her deep sleep. Tensing all of his muscles, he slowly rolled out of the bed and made his way around to the other side, grabbing whatever clothes had been thrown to the ground in the process. Once dressed, he took a last look at the redhead. A small shred of sentimentality crossed his thoughts as he noticed how adorable she looked while asleep, but he shook it off. Old habits die hard.

Damon made his way out of the apartment and out onto the street that was still fairly busy. He'd been almost unnervingly successful once he'd reached the bar, the same one he and Andie had gone to. Jessica had been the first and only woman he approached once he got there and she'd been more than appreciative of his efforts to do so.

She worked at an advertising agency downtown after growing up in Southern California her entire life. She was a lot like Andie when it came to her intentions, but she actually seemed like a genuinely sweet girl. Jessica had claimed that she had work early the next morning, so she'd offered up ending their evening a little early. A part of him felt the need to tell her that he didn't usually do this sort of thing, but he knew that she'd already written him off as a one-night stand the moment he'd walked up to her. It didn't make sense to rock the boat.

The sex had been great, although it was fairly obvious that Jessica was less experienced than Andie. Maybe she was a lot like Damon, a relationship girl who was just trying to see if she could be a one-night stand girl instead. After spending some time with her, Damon was pretty sure she'd be someone's girlfriend soon enough. He, on the other hand, was still finding this "game" far too appealing.

Damon found a more quiet section of the street and leaned up against the walls of the building. He hit redial and waited for the sweet voice he'd grown to miss the past few days.

Instead, after only two rings, he was greeted with what sounded like hysterical sobbing. "Damon?!"

Instantly, Damon's senses were on high alert. "Elena? What's wrong?" His mind immediately flashed through all of the worst-case scenarios.

There were more choked cries on the other end. "Damon, I need you! Please."

"Elena," Damon replied as urgently and calmly as he could manage. "You've got to tell me what's going on."

"Just… please come get me. I can't do this! I can't…" She broke off into more sobbing.

Damon let out a long exhale, rubbing his hand over his face. A small bit of relief rushed through him as he realized she wasn't in immediate danger. "Is it work?" he asked.

"It's everything! I'm terrible at this. I'm not ready! I keep forgetting my lines and I've screwed up so many takes and… I just want to come back home! Please, Damon. Let me come home."

His chest tightened at how broken she sounded. Never in his life had he heard her this beaten down. The fact that she considered their small apartment "home," though, made a small smile creep across his face. "Elena, everything's going to be alright. Everybody makes mistakes. They know you're new at this-"

"No! I can't do this. I can't! Everyone hates me… Please, Damon. I need you."

Elena continued to cry on the other end, but he noticed it had become significantly quieter since he'd started calming her down. Damon sighed, hearing her take deep, shaky breaths. He couldn't imagine refusing her at this point. Hearing her break down over the phone kicked up those protective instincts way too much and he'd be damned if he said they weren't still highly present. He knew he'd agreed to not play "big brother," but if she was asking for his help…. Besides, regardless of his new lifestyle choices, saving the damsel in distress was still part of his basic skill set. Especially when Elena was the damsel.

"Elena, I'm going to get the next plane over there, alright? I'll do whatever it takes to be there as soon as possible, but it might take me until later tonight. Is that okay? Will you promise me you'll still go to set today?"

Elena sniffled on the other end, but he could practically feel her relief through the phone. "I'm not called to set today. I'm not back on until Friday."

"Alright, well, just try to get some sleep then. You need to rest, sweetheart. I'll email you the details as soon as I have them. Do you want me to bring you anything?"

"No, just yourself," Elena weakly mumbled. She was silent for a few seconds. "Damon, I'm really sorry."

Damon smiled. "It's fine, Elena. I told you I'd be there for you." He neglected to mention he was only planning on spending the weekend with her, afraid it would send her into another meltdown if she knew he wasn't planning to stay or take her back. "Now, get a tissue. You probably have snot all over your face.

"You suck."

So... what do we think?

I apologize for the lack of Delena in this chapter, BUT I promise I will make it up to you next time ;) I just really wanted to get inside Damon's head some more, especially since you all have expressed your concerns in the reviews. This is really marking Damon's descent into "in-character" Damon and will definitely add some more tension to the DE relationship. I'm really curious, though, to see what you all think about Damon's decision to try out a new attitude when it comes to women. I think it's a fairly realistic choice given his recent betrayal by Rose along with the constant presence of Elena and whatever frustrating feelings he has for her. Elena's life is changing pretty rapidly and Damon sort of feels like he's still the exact same guy, just with a nicer office. I hope you all find it to be a reasonable decision, even though you might not agree with it. :)

Note: I avoided the smuttier stuff with Andie and Jessica not because I refuse to write it, but because I personally don't care to write/read the sexier scenes that don't involve DE. Believe me, I'll make up for the lack of it later on ;)

Alright, so I guess I should let you guys go ahead and review. I would like to thank all of you who have recommended me on your blogs while I was away. I've seen so many of them in the past few days and it makes my heart far too happy. I really hope I don't disappoint you all. Like I said earlier, I just got back on social media so if you would like to follow me on my Tumblr, I post regularly there (the url is the same as my name here).

Next chapter, Damon goes to save Elena and I'd love to hear your theories on what you think goes down. Although, I'm hoping the chapter is an unexpected surprise... ;)