CHAPTER 5

The rest of the week goes pretty uneventful.

I would go shopping for things I needed in my house or just strolled around town during the day while Elena and Stefan were at school and then we would spend most evenings hanging out at Elena's house or at the Grill.

On Tuesday they introduced me to the rest of the group; Bonnie, Caroline, Tyler and Elena's little brother Jeremy.

I learned Tyler and Matt were best friends and they would spend most of the time playing pool with Jeremy.

They were all nice to me but I was able to detect some kind of hostility from the girls.

Over the few times we've hung out I noticed Bonnie avoiding me just as much as she did Damon and Stefan which I found strange since I barely spoke a few words to her.

Damon and Bonnie were open about their hatred towards each other while Stefan tried to act as a buffer most of the time.

Caroline, on the other hand, was a real bitch to me ever since Tyler caught me by my hips when I tripped the first night.

But I can handle her. After all, I was faced with Rosalie's bitchface almost every day for over a year and Caroline had nothing on her. So everything Caroline threw at me, I easily dodged back which earned me supportive glances from Stefan and Elena and smirks from Damon when he decided to show up, which wasn't that often. I guess they disliked her behaviour just as much as I did.

So yeah, to say I didn't feel comfortable around them would be an understatement.

But luckily, today they wouldn't be hanging out with us because everyone is super busy.

Tonight there is a party held at the Grill.

Elena told me they held one party like this a year as a graduation gift to the seniors. They still had a couple of weeks to go till the actual graduation so this party serves as an excuse for them to let loose and relax a little.

And I'm expected to dress up. Elena wants me to wear a dress. And heels.

Yeah, not such a good idea for me.

But, unfortunately, I am not allowed to skip it.

When I asked her how come I was even allowed to come when I wasn't a student at her school she said it was only necessary for me to be 18+ and that there was always a bunch of people out of town coming. That left me without an excuse.

Elena expected me fully dressed at her house around 7 so she could help me with my makeup and vice versa.

I looked forward to it. Judging by all the other times we've hung out I knew I would have fun.

And I did.

We joked around and took some photos like we did last week at dinner and even a few times throughout this week- she really took it to her heart to create memories for me and I liked it.

She didn't force me to cake a bunch of products on my face, which I am super grateful for, and in the end I looked pretty much like myself, just a little better.

My naturally long lashes are now coated in mascara and, along with some dark eyeshadow, make my eyes look even bigger. We decided against foundation and of course blush since Mother Nature took care of that for me and settled for some tinted lip balm that made my lips look fuller.

I liked it and so did Elena.

After we took care of our makeup we moved to our hair.

Elena straightened her's while I left mine in my natural long curls.

Around 8 we were fully ready and headed towards the Grill.

XXX

By the time we get there, Mystic Grill is packed and the party is in full swing.

I can see why Elena was so excited.

Everyone is in a good mood, laughing, drinking and enjoying themselves.

Elena greets a bunch of people and introduces me to them even though I forget their names almost instantly.

A little later we find Damon and Stefan ordering drinks at the bar.

Stefan and Elena immediately fall into their little love bubble which leaves me alone with Damon- as usual.

„Aren't you a little old for this shit?" I tease.

„Aren't you.." He stops mid-sentence and takes his time shamelessly ogling me.

I managed to convince Elena to let me wear a skirt instead of a dress and we settled on a tight white tank top, a flowy black skirt and strappy heels we bought last week.

I was a little insecure about wearing that but the look on Damon's face gives me a necessary ego boost.

„Aren't I what?" I raise my brow so he'd know I noticed him checking me out.

„Dazzling this evening." He states and gives me a cocky smirk.

Dazzling?! Seriously?! Of all the other words there are he uses that one? The same one I used to describe Ed..him.

Ugh, my lifted mood from before is back on the shitty level.

„What's with the face all of a sudden?" He asks me.

„Nothing.." I mumble and sit on the bar stool next to him.

„Is dazzling not good enough for you? You want me to use gorgeous, beautiful or..ravishing?" He smirks.

„No." I roll my eyes at him. „Anyways, you're not so bad yourself." I say to remove the spotlight from me. And because it is true.

„I know."

Another roll of my eyes.

„So.. What have you been up to the past week? Haven't seen you around much.." I ask.

„Why? You missed me?" He asks back.

„Nope, just wondering what was so important that you left me with the bitchgang." I give him a mock-glare.

„I didn't. You had the lovebirds with you."

„Yeah, just like I have them now. You know just as well as I do that they're of no use whatsoever when they are within a mile of each other." I accuse.

„My bad." He laughs.

„So, you gonna answer me or what?"

„I was busy."

„Doing what?"

„Research."

„Research? About what?" I ask, confused, that wasn't the answer on my list of expectations.

„About stuff." He shrugs.

„What kind of stuff?" I press.

„You, Isabella, are too nosy for your own good." He informs me.

„I know." I shrug, he's not he first person to tell me that. „But I can't help myself, I like knowing stuff.."

„Even stuff that could get you hurt?"

I laugh. „Trust me, whatever it is you're doing research on can't harm me more that the knowledge I already possess."

„Oh really?" He raises his brows.

„Yes, really." I state. „Now spill, what was it on?"

„What was what on?" He stalls.

I groan in response. „Don't be a pain, Damon. Just tell me!" I half-yell.

„Okay, okay. Calm down, dollface." He laughs. „It was on strange animal attacks in the area."

„Oh.." I didn't expect that. I mean, could it be? Vampires? Here? In such a sunny state? Surely not..

„You possess any knowledge about that kind of stuff?" He asks.

„No.. Umm, my dad was killed in one of those, but there really isn't much to tell. There was no evidence pointing in the direction of the animal.. I don't know.." I mumble.

Of course there wasn't any evidence, just like there weren't any animals. The son of a bitch of a vampire who did that was long gone before Charlie's body was even found.

„Yeah, there usually isn't much to go on." He says but it sounds like he knows more.

I wanted to ask what he knew but I wouldn't be able to press for details without revealing information on my side. The info I wasn't even supposed to have.

So I just shrug and decide to change the subject since this isn't going in the direction I preferred.

„What are you drinking?" I ask and point to his glass.

„Bourbon. Want some?" He smirks at me.

„Uh.. I shouldn't."

„Why not?"

„Cop's daughter and all.. I never had more than a few sips of beer in my life." I explain.

„Well than we're changing that tonight." He states, calls the bartender and orders a glass of bourbon for me.

„Try it. It'll taste horrible at first but it gets better." He instructs and pushes the glass towards me.

„You sure?" I ask worriedly.

„Yes. Drink up." He orders me.

„Ugh, wish me luck!" I say and smell the browny fluid. It smells horrible so I wrinkle my nose in disgust.

I take one tentative sip and spit almost a half of it out.

Damon doubles up laughing while I cough my soul out.

„This shit is strong! And fucking disgusting!" I yell at him with my now hoarse voice.

„Never said it wasn't!" He defends himself, still laughing.

„Stop that! It's not funny!" I say but I was pretty close to laughing myself.

„Yes it is and you know it!" He gives me a pointed look.

„Okay, maybe it is a little funny.." I agree and we start laughing together all over again.

I manage to drink two more glasses before I start feeling tipsy so I draw the line there. That doesn't stop Damon from ordering himself another one even though he already drank way more than I did. He was right though, the taste did get better.

For the next few hours I have a lot of fun with Damon. I realise he is a really cool guy behind the cocky bastard demeanour he puts in front of people.

„You should do that more often." I tell him.

„Do what?" He asks bewildered.

„Laugh. It's a good look on you. Stefan is the brooding brother but even he manages to squeeze in a laugh here and there." I half-joke. There is some truth behind my words, though, and we both know it.

„You should too." He says back.

„I laugh!" I defend.

„Nope. You smile, smirk and snort. That's not laughter."

„I don't have many reasons to laugh lately.." I inform him.

„Welcome to the club."

Thankfully Elena and Stefan decide to show up before the conversation gets too depressing.

„You plan on going dancing with us anytime soon? I distinctly remember you saying you would!" Elena says.

„I said no such thing!"

„Oh, yes you did!" She accuses me.

„Did not!" I tell her.

„All the alcohol obviously messed with your memory, Bella. Did you think I would forget? Remember what the conditions were for you to wear that skirt tonight?" She says smugly.

I do recall saying something within the lines of dancing.

„Oh, shit. What was I thinking? I'll die in these shoes out there.." I whine.

„Not if we find you someone who'll be happy to hold you!" She exclaims and starts looking around the Grill.

„Damn." I mumble under my breath.

Stefan looks at me apologetically. I shrug back at him. There isn't much any of us could do since I did make a promise and Elena is too excited to care about me breaking bones in these death trap heels.

„You should be ashamed of yourself for using my hatred of dresses against me!" I tell her.

„Shush! Cute guy staring at you, 4 o'clock!" She whispers.

„Mine or yours?" I say to buy myself some time, I don't really feel comfortable doing this.

„Yours Bella, just look at him!" She orders.

So I look. And he is hot!

Tall, muscular, dark hair and a drop dead smile.

When he notices me looking he motions to me with his fingers to come closer.

Elena pushes me a little bit when she notices what he did but there is one more thing I need to do before.

I turn to Damon who already has a girl between his legs, take his drink and down it completely.

Damon just smirks and winks at me, while Elena grins like a fool. Stefan can't contain the laugh either. I wink back and head through the crowd to the guy.

„Break a leg, Bellsy!" Elena yells behind me.

Luckily I don't trip on my way over and he smiles and starts walking towards me too.

But my luck doesn't last very long.

A few steps before I reach him I trip on a beer bottle before starting to fly towards the ground. I close my eyes and wait for the familiar impact. But it never comes.

I suddenly feel someone's strong arms enveloping me and when I look up I see the smiling face of the guy. I hope he'll tell me his name soon cause the guy isn't really what I want to keep calling him.

„You okay there?" He asks, still smiling.

„Yeah, thanks." I mumble.

„I'm Dean." He tells me.

„Bella. Nice to meet you." I say smiling back.

„The pleasure is all mine. I have been waiting for you to notice me for a while there." Dean informs me.

I blush.

Blush! Because of a guy! Well that's something that hasn't happened in a while.

I don't really know what to say so I just blurt out: „Umm.. Sorry?"

He laughs. „No problem. Care for a dance?"

I don't know if it is the alcohol that makes me say yes but I suddenly find myself following him to the dance floor.

We dance for a while and my feet hurt but I don't want to stop.

During the dance I learned he was 21 and that this was his 3rd time coming here with his friend, Liam, who graduated from Mystic Falls High a few years back. When he asked why he hadn't seen me before I told him how I just moved here and we laughed over some stories I shared about my road trip.

I really enjoyed myself. Dean was not only handsome but also funny as hell. The night was going so well. I laughed more than I did in the past several months and I loved the feeling.

It was the closest thing to happiness that I felt in a while.

Of course that also had something to do with the feel of Dean's hands on my body.

At the beginning he kept it pretty light. He put his hand on my hips and swayed us in tune with the music.

I told him I couldn't dance for my life and we joked about my lack of coordination that I managed to prove him before I even met him so he kept the dancing pretty simple too.

As the night progressed I found myself becoming braver. I explored his body while we danced and he did the same to mine.

He was all hard muscle and smooth skin and I loved the feeling of his warmth under my palms.

When I glanced towards the bar I saw Elena smiling warmly and giving me a thumbs up.

I snickered.

That caught Dean's attention so he asks me what was up.

„We have an audience that clearly loves the show." I say smiling up to him.

He smiles back and said: „Well, we better give them something else to twist the plot a little bit."

I feel his hands leaving my hips and cradling my face. I knew what he was going to do and I had to admit I was feeling a little insecure since the only guy I ever kissed was a vampire who didn't let any of our shared kisses get to steamy.

But the insecurities fade away as soon as I close my eyes and feel his lips gently pressing mine.

We move our lips in a steady rhythm for a few minutes until I feel his tongue licking my bottom lip asking for entrance which I happily grant him.

The feel of his warm tongue moving along with mine is the most erotic thing I felt in my life. I let him set the rhythm and soon we were moving towards the darkened corner of the diner.

The pressure of the wall behind me and the feel of Dean's hard body covering mine along with his hands roaming felt amazing.

Soon we both break apart gasping for air.

The look on his face leaves me breathless. His eyes are glazed and the huge smile that is evident on his face makes me smile in return.

So this time I take the initiative and kiss him again.

We quickly deepen the kiss and my hands soon find the hard muscles of his front body. The feel of his abs under my hands is downright perfect and I can't bring myself to stop touching him.

We explore each other's mouths and bodies for a while until someone starts yelling: „Yo D! Wrap it up, we gotta go!"

Dean groans and yells back: „Gimme a few minutes, man!"

„You've got ten! After that I'm dragging you out myself!" Liam yells back at Dean.

„Fine." Dean grumbles.

I laugh a little even though I don't really like the idea of him leaving.

„I'm sorry.." He says softly. „We live a few hours away and we came with his brother's car and need to get it back by morning.."

„No, don't apologize. I understand." I tell him.

„Would you like to walk me out?" He asks.

„Sure." I agree.

When we get outside the first thing he does is kiss me again and then he says: „Thank you for tonight. This night was the most fun one I had in a really long time."

„For me as well. You, along with a few drinks and nudges from my friends, made me realise that life's too short to be sitting around miserable. So thank you for that."

He smiles warmly. „Again, the pleasure is all mine." He repeats the same line he said when we just met.

The honk of a car and Liam's loud voice startles both of us.

„Dude, my bro is gonna kill me if we're late!"

„And what a shame would that be.." Dean mutters and winks at me.

I smile and kissed him again. I can't help myself since our time is running out. He returns the kiss with the same amount of enthusiasm and a hint of desperation.

„Oh man. I'm so dead!" Liam whines in the background.

We both laugh and break apart.

„Go. I don't want to have him on my conscious." I tell him.

„I wouldn't mind.." Dean mumbled.

„Yes, you would! Now go, shoo!" I laugh and start pushing him towards the car.

He grabs my wrists and says: „You already got enough of me, is that it?" He gives me a mock glare.

„Not even close." I say and give him a peck on the lips.

„I like you a lot, Bella. I really hope I'll get to see you again sometime." He tells me softly.

„Me too."

Dean gives me a few more pecks, hugs me and gets in the car with Liam.

When they are a few feet away, Dean gets half of his body out through the roof window of the car.

I was a little confused about what he was doing until he made the gesture of kissing both of his hands and spreading them wide while yelling: „Whoever it is that made you feel miserable even for a second isn't worth shit! You are a great girl, Bella!"

I smile and sent him a kiss back just before they round the corner and got out of sight.

I decide to stay outside for a little while and enjoy the feelings Dean brought back in me before I go back inside the Grill to face the two thousand questions Elena must already have.

I walk around aimlessly for a bit grinning like an idiot before I turn around and start walking back to the diner.

I can't help but compare this experience with the ones I had with Ed.. With Edward. His name still hurt to even think about..

Being with Edward always made me feel unworthy. Everything about him was overwhelming. His kisses always made me forget to breathe and the look on his face made my head spin.

But even though what I just had with Dean was completely different that didn't mean it was worse. I actually think it was better. There were no restrictions. No holding back. Just two people having fun without thinking about the past or the future. The only thing important was the present. And I loved the feeling of freedom it gave me.

A few minutes later I see something that makes me abruptly stop in my tracks.

In the middle of the road stands a young man.

His skin is deathly pale and he is beautiful and graceful while he progresses towards me.

But that's not what captivates my attention and sets my senses on overload.

It were his eyes that make the blood freeze in my veins.

I am faced with the familiar shade of burgundy red.

Red.

If I learned anything in my time with the Cullens it was the meaning of red eyes.

Red eyes always mean only one thing.

Run.

A/N

Here it is guys!

I know most of you would like for Della to happen as soon as possible but it is still too soon for them, don't hate me, she has to live a little!

Bella's outfit and TWO photos of Dean & Liam are posted on my profile! Dean is the one in the black leather jacket:) His real name is Mario Casas and my sister is kinda in love with him so I had to squeeze him in the story somehow :D

Summer's Back- Bella was sad in the beginning and moving away was her way of coping with the loss of both Charlie and the Cullens. The reason I didn't push it because it wouldn't do any good to the story, I want Bella to get over things that happened in her past, not dwell on them :)

A reader / vampirelove41- Yes, but later in the story :)

Feel free to follow me on Twitter, Polyvore and Tumblr! The links are posted on my profile!

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xoxo