Chapter Sixty-Two: I Won't Say I'm In Love

No chance, no way. I won't say it, no, no
It's too cliché. I won't say I'm in love
I thought my heart had learned its lesson
It feels so good when you start out
My head is screaming, get a grip, girl
Unless you're dying to cry your heart out.
No chance, now way. I won't say it, no, no
This scene won't play. I won't say I'm in love
You're way off base. I won't say it
Get off my case. I won't say it
At least out loud, I won't say I'm in love
~Hercules

A day or two later Damon walked into the kitchen to find Nilin and Stefan laughing. She was comfortably sitting on the countertop while Stefan fussed over something on the stove. Damon was slightly frightened by the scene in front of him. Both of them were smiling.

"Stefan's attempting to make me a stir-fry," Nilin explained with a laugh.

Not going so well, she mouthed at him, scrunching her nose. A grin peeked on Damon's lips as he walked closer to them.

"And here I thought the house was burning down," Damon provoked.

Nilin clicked her tongue. "Be nice, he's trying his best," she scorned.

"Well, it's the thought that counts right?" he said, poking fun at his brother.

Stefan tried his best to ignore him. "See, this is how my brother gets his kicks, Nilly," he said, while adding something into the pan. "And he wonders why no one likes him."

Nilin started to chuckle a little, covering her mouth with a hand. "You two bicker like Elena and I," she told them, looking between the brothers.

"Only difference," Damon said, crossing his arms over his chest. "You actually enjoy the company of your sibling."

"Damon," she narrowed her eyes. "No need to be rude."

"Ah, but that's one of his best qualities." Stefan said through clenched teeth.

Damon couldn't help but laugh. "Aw, Stefan, look at you trying to be all mean and jaunty. Oh, and I think you should stir that before the entire thing turns to charcoal."

Stefan finally caved. He threw his hands in defeat and stepped back from the stove. "Fine, you do it then," he said, taking the wooden spoon he was holding and shoving it in Damon's hand.

Damon smirked.

"Don't mind if I do. I, for one, know how to cook," he retorted, taking over Stefan's place. Stefan just put on his normal broody agitated look and crossed arms over his chest.

"I need to go meet Elena anyway," he excused himself. "See you later, Nilly." Stefan said with a smile, ignoring his brother's presence.

"Bye, Stefan. Oh and don't forget to remind my lovely sister about the red bag under my bed." Nilin told him.

"Will do," he said, ducking out of the room. Damon eyed Nilin questionably as he tried to salvage her meal. She swung her legs back and forth, bumping her heels on the cabinet.

"A few things I still need from the house, since I'm still on lock down here." Nilin explained.

Damon nodded, understanding. His eyes traveled down Nilly's appearance. Her hair fell carelessly to one side of her neck, exposing the hallow of her neck. She wore a loose grey t-shirt and short black shorts that left most of her long legs bare.

"Um, the stir-fry?" Nilin pointed out, with a slight giggle. Damon quickly tore his gaze away from her and back to the stove. He thought he had smelled something burning. "Am I distracting you, Mr. Salvatore?" she asked, a teasing tone in her voice.

"Very much so," he said with a smirk as he emptied the pan of charred food into the trash. There was no saving it. "You can order pizza," he suggested.

"That's okay, I didn't have much of an appetite anyway. I was just trying to entertain Stefan," Nilin explained. Again Damon shot her a look and she furthered her explanation. "He's been a little stressed with keeping an eye on Elena. Elena told me that he's constantly worried about letting her out of his sigtht. He's a wreck. Haven't you noticed?" she asked, but continued talking before Damon could answer. "Anyway, I thought I'd keep him occupied for a little. You know, have him do a few normal human things."

"Well aren't you a saint," Damon smirked. Though, it bothered him that she was so perceptive of his brother when Damon hadn't cared to notice. He probably wasn't paying attention because lately the only thing he was focused on was Nilin. "But baby brother can handle himself," he continued. "He has a girlfriend to keep him entertained."

Nilin smiled. "Yeah, but Elena treats him too much like a vampire, she does all those things for herself as if to forget the fact that he's a vampire. I thought a little mindless mundane behavior would be good for him."

Damon was momentarily stunned by her. The fact that her heart was so big and her worries extended to everyone she touched made him pause. It also made him want to build his walls higher in fear of her crashing through them.

He turned back to the mess his brother had made when he heard her shift behind him and slid off the counter. She landed on the balls of her feet with a soft thud. "Why do you do that?" she asked softly. He kept his back to her.

"Do what, beautiful?" he questioned. He heard Nilin huff in annoyance as she walked closer to him.

"Every time I show too much of some kind of emotion, you turn away and shut me out," she accused him. Damon faced her now, lifting an eyebrow.

"I do?" he smirked.

"Yes!" she exclaimed. "You're doing it right now. Why won't you let me in Damon?" He went deadly quiet and his eyes grew cold as he stared at her. "I mean, is it me?" she asked. "Because if that's the case then I'd understand but—"

"No, it's not you." Damon snapped. "Not every little bump in the road is your fault, Nilin," he said, annoyance leaking in his voice.

"Okay, then what is it?" she asked, crossing her arms over her chest. Her defiant behavior was starting to cause his control to unravel. The way her head tilted to the side, glaring at him made Damon clench his fist.

In a moment he flashed towards her. A gasp escaped Nilin's lips as her back hit the cabinet. He left her no room to move as he trapped her with his body. "Damon," she warned as her hands pushed on her chest. "Don't."

"Don't what Nilin?" he asked, bracing both his hands on the countertop on either side of her. He glared down at her, as her eyes sent signals of anger and surprise.

"Don't sabotage this, whatever this is," she said sternly.

He laughed humorlessly. "But that's what I do, isn't it Nilin?" he asked venomously. "When everything is going right, I screw it up."

Nilin's eyes turned to daggers as she tried to put some space between them, but Damon wasn't budging. "I didn't say that so stop putting words in my mouth," she retorted.

They were both silent for a moment, still fuming at one another. Then he saw a change in Nilin. Her eyes widened slightly, her shoulders dropped and her hands stopped trying to force him away.

"You're scared, aren't you?" she said in a whisper. "You're terrified to get close to me because you know there's a chance I might not be there in the future." Nilin spoke in confidence, as if she finally made a break through. Damon opened his mouth to deny it, to fight her but she shook her head.

"No, I'm right," she told him. "You loved Katherine, you gave her everything you had and she left you. She damaged you so much that you didn't think you could love anyone like that again. You're afraid to let people in, Damon, because of her. You won't let me in, because of her. And because you know I'm living on borrowed time." Her voice became just a whisper as her blue eyes engulfed him. "I'm not going anywhere, Damon. I prom—"

Unable to hear those last words, Damon stopped her mid-promise with a kiss. He couldn't believe in a promise that could be so easily broken.

The feeling of her lips on his sent jolts through his dead heart. He felt her hands slide up his chest and link behind his neck as the kiss deepened. The hunger grew in him as he kissed her jaw line, to her neck, to her collar bone.

Damon cupped her thighs and lifted her up onto the counter again. In response, Nilin wrapped her legs around Damon and used them to pull him closer to her. His hands ran down her thighs, his brain had been screaming at him the entire time to touch her skin. She was addictive, consuming, and fragile.

And for a moment, Damon was back in 1864. Back when his own blood ran through his veins and he was nothing but a human. He was alive, for just a moment in time as her kissed this girl. He wanted her, his demon wanted her. He wanted to hold on to this moment, to her, and never let go.

But she pulled back, her lips swollen from his assault and her breathing heavy. "I told you, I'm not going anywhere. If you're here, I'm here. I'm scared out of my mind and possibly insane, but I'm here." And before he had the chance to answer, Nilin attacked his lips again. He effortlessly lifted her off of the counter and began to stumble out of the kitchen. As they started to make it down the hall, never separating, they were interrupted by the front door opening.

Damon quickly pressed Nilin up against the wall, hiding them both in the shadows. "Nilly, I got your stuff," Elena's voice echoed down the hallway. They hadn't been caught, yet. Damon looked down at Nilin, who was biting her lip. Her eyes went up to him and she smiled.

Dammit, she mouthed to him in a shaky breath.

He smirked down at her and went to say something but she put a finger to his lips, silencing him. "Be right there, Elena." Nilin called. She went to duck underneath him but he hadn't had enough of her.

Damon stopped Nilin, grabbing her arm. He spun her around, pinning her to the wall again.

He kissed her once more and then pulled back with a grin on his face. Nilin shoved his chest but couldn't hide the smile probing her lips. He watched her scurry off to find Elena as she tried to straighten her hair and clothes out. His grin simply grew bigger as he sauntered the other way, up the stairwell.

Hours later, when the sun had long set, Damon was alone in his room. The house had grown quite a while ago and he figured Nilin and Stefan were asleep. He couldn't sleep though. He was too wired, too on edge. Nilin's words ran on repeat in his head, hitting him just has hard as the first time.

He could still feel the heat radiating off her and soaking into his skin. God, what was he doing? How could his control be slipping just because a girl? He was a vampire, the only use a human was to a vampire was for entertainment and nourishment. But instead of sinking his fangs into her, Nilin had sunk hers straight into him.

Damon took a gulp of his drink, finishing the contents. Frustrated, he got up and went over to his stash of alcohol he kept on the top self in his room. He was pouring himself another drink when he heard a slight timid knock on his door.

When he turned back around he saw Nilin standing in the doorway of his bedroom. "Hey," she said quietly. He starred at her confused, that's when he noticed her appearance. Her hands were gripped into fist at her sides. Her cheeks were unusually pale, and her lips seemed to tremble. Those crystal eyes of hers were wide and frightened. "Are you okay?" he asked.

Nilin tried her best attempt at a smile. "Yeah, yeah it's nothing." Her eyes shot to the floor. "Just a very vivid dream," she continued, then looked up at him. "Could I just hang out in here, I mean until you're ready to go to bed." Nilin stumbled over words. "I don't want to be alone."

Not so sure of what he should do, Damon simply nodded. "Yeah, of course," he said. She came over slowly and sat at the edge of his bed. Damon turned to grab another glass from the shelf, pouring another drink. He came over and handed the one glass to Nilin. She looked up and half smiled, before taking a sip. "Thanks."

"Want to talk about it? Your dream?" he asked pulling his desk chair over and taking a seat across from her. Nilin shook her head and took a long sip of her drink. Her nose scrunched as she swallowed.

"No," she answered quietly. "It was just a nightmare."

"Yeah, but it's got you pretty shaken up." Damon commented, leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees. He tried to capture her eyes but she kept her head down.

"I don't want to talk about it," she said sharply.

Damon held his hands up in surrender. "Alright we don't have to talk about it." He watched as Nilin kept her eyes down, gazing intently at the liquid in her glass. She was far off, somewhere else in her own head.

Damon waited for her. They were silent for some time. Nilin drained her drink before she spoke again. Still her eyes stayed fixed on her lap.

"I keep dying," she spoke up after a while. "In my dreams," she further explained. "I don't tend to die in them, and now it seems like every time I close my eyes, I'm watching my death." Nilin swallowed hard, before giving a little laugh. "Takes a toll on a girl," she grimly smirked.

With a sigh, Damon got up from the chair, pushing it out of the way, and crouched in front of Nilin. He peered up at her and removed the glass from her hands, setting it on the nightstand. "It's just dreams though, Nilin. You are perfectly safe here, I promise." Damon reassured her.

That sad smile returned as she nodded her head. Then she unexpectedly leaned forward and brushed her lips against his. The feeling it sent through his body was unexplainable. He never wanted it to end. Rising slowly and still kissing her, he pushed Nilin back on the bed as the innocent kiss turned hungry.

"Do you know what you do to me?" Damon asked against her lips and he felt Nilin smile.

"I have a clue," she breathed. He pulled back from her to stare at the human beneath him. Her hair was fanned out on the bed around her. Her lips were red, parted and still smirking at him. Her hooded blue eyes stare up at him in wonderment.

She was the most gorgeous creature he had ever seen. He wanted to kiss her again, to make her his and his alone. He wanted to feel the bliss of her skin and the taste of her lips, but he stopped himself. Nilin was exhausted and still traumatized by whatever haunted her in her dream. It wouldn't be right with her in this mind set.

Damon internally kicked himself. What was she doing to him? He's lived his life taking what he wanted, when he wanted and never glancing back when he was done. But now he was rethinking and putting someone else needs before his own?

How pathetic.

Damon sat up quickly, pulling Nilin with him in one motion and pulling the sheets of the bed down in another. With inhumanly speed he had laid Nilin down under the covers and positioned himself next to her on the bed. Her eyes were now opened wide with frantic surprise but soon turned to daggers striking at him.

"You need to sleep," he informed her.

"You need to stop telling me what to do," she retorted, but nuzzled deeper into the pillow. He smiled at her wickedly and propped his head up on his hand.

"If I don't, then who will?" he asked. Nilin rolled her eyes at him but then he saw them soften. Once more she was completely vulnerable next to him, her gaze heartbreaking.

"I don't want to go back to sleep," she shook her head slightly on the pillow. Her hand tightened around the blanket, clutching it. Damon slid his hand over to hers and laid it on top.

Nilin sat up suddenly. He thought she was going to leave, but instead she pulled her other hand from out under the blanket. The one that had been under his went to her wrist, where she paused to look at him.

"I thought you said no more compulsion," Damon said, watching her wearily.

"Not compulsion," she smiled. "Just in case I have another bad dream, you can pull me out." Then she unclasped the bracelet from around her wrist and let it slide off the bed and clatter on the floor.

"Nillin—" he started to say, but she shook her head as she slid back under the covers.

"Vampires, the best kind of dream catcher," she joked, laying her head down on the pillow.

Damon looked down at Nilin as his fingers brushed her cheek and ran through her hair. Her eyes shuttered close and she let out a content sigh. "Good night, Nilin," he said as the last strand of her consciousness was severed.

Author's Notes:

Happy Monday guys! I hope you had an amazing weekend. Here's the last part of this chapter! That makes a grand count of 62 chapters! Which is crazy… and fantastic. Only ten left!

IMPORTANT: Starting this week, I'm only updating ONCE A WEEK. Every Monday there will be a new chapter, instead of the usual Monday and Friday. This is just because holidays are coming up and so is the end of Between Two Lungs.

So that's now EVERY MONDAY that there will be an update.

Thanks you guys so much, I'll see you next week :)

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