Hey! :) Sorry for the delay. I've missed you guys a lot! Having much writer's block lately, but I've managed to get over it. I'm also working on a new fan- fiction which I'll hopefully post on Sunday. So here you go! Let me know if you like where the story is heading and I'm always looking forward to suggestions. PM me if anyone wants to pitch in some ideas or work with me. Hope you enjoy the chapter! Xoxo
Warnings : Underage relationships, swearing, mention of self harm.
"Hello." Caroline Forbes' tone was clipped.
"Hey. Um, Caroline? It's um... me," Elena cursed under her breath and buried her face behind her palm. Real smooth, Elena.
"Oh," Caroline sounded equally awkward. "Uh, what's up?"
Elena hadn't given much thought to her 'I'm so sorry you think I slept with your boyfriend' speech. She wasn't even completely sure why she had called her. It had been a split- second decision. A decision she was regretting almost instantly.
"I- I just-" Elena faltered. "I thought you should know that Tyler and I uh, it never happened. I didn't. I mean I wouldn't do that to you." Way to sound needy.
"I know. Ralf told me."
"I don't even like him. He's totally gross and-"
"Got it," Caroline snapped. "Anything else?"
Oh, had she offended her? Elena wasn't very au fait with people's feelings, but Caroline seemed to belong to a whole other class- one she clearly wasn't well acquainted with.
"He doesn't deserve you," Elena silently braced herself for the onslaught.
"Really?" Caroline spoke after a long pause. She shoots and she scores!
"In fact, I'm going to a senior exclusive party. You should totally come." Oh, really?
"Wait a minute! How did you manage to get invited to one of those?" Caroline didn't bother concealing her excitement.
"I have my connections," Elena giggled. The connection being a quarterback with gorgeous blue eyes. "You in?"
"Do you even have to ask?"
"Wear something pretty," Elena sang before she hung up.
Caroline complied. Her pink knee- length halter neck dress was the embodiment of pretty. Elena on the other hand kept it simple and sporty with a dark blue off- shoulder sweater and denim shorts.
"If I had known it was Rebekah's party," Caroline trailed off. She looked nervous and was sweating at the brow.
"Oh, come on!" Elena dragged her to the dramatically lit porch. The floor boards pulsed rhythmically that the music could be felt through their boots. "What's wrong?" Elena asked noticing Caroline nibbling on her nails.
Caroline tugged at the hem of her dress and shrugged. She looked like she was about to answer when the door swung open. A gust of cigarette smoke, blasting music and Matt's open arms greeted them.
"You made it," he said, grinning at Elena. His glittering blue eyes reflected the fairy lights in the porch. He folded her in for a hug. Elena held on for the contact to reach her hormones, but the much anticipated jolt of rush never came. Instead, she felt tiny and safe.
It lasted longer than she wanted it to and then Matt turned to nod at Caroline who looked visibly stunned.
"And you brought someone," He smiled, making Caroline turn the same shade as her dress. "Come on in."
Behind him, the dark house was crammed with people. Elena surprisingly recognised a fair lot of them. Tyler was in one corner, fooling around with a couple of girls. Drunk girls to be precise as she was certain no girl in her sober mind would stand that close to him with the exception of the blonde standing right next to her. Wow, Caroline really needed her help, didn't she?
Matt wasted no time shooting across the room toward the kitchen counter, which looked like it was doubling as a bar. "Guys, come on!"
Caroline waited for Elena to follow Matt, but instead she motioned her to go ahead.
"Elena, I think he's into you," Caroline tried to talk above the deafening music.
"No shit, Sherlock," Elena rolled her eyes. "Doesn't mean you can't have a drink with him."
Caroline stared at her for a minute and then flashed a sly smile. "Apology accepted, Gilbert," She giggled and squeezed through the crowd to join Matt.
"Join the festivities." An arm slung around Elena's waist and led her toward the dance floor. Elena could hardly make out his features until the guy leaned forward. It was Ben Mckittrick. He was also a senior and Matt's best friend. She had heard stories about him from different sources to know for a fact that he had more hard liquor than blood running in his veins and yet he managed to look like a god.
Elena liked flirting with Matt and some of the other guys, but Ben Mckittrick was in an entirely different category. You flirted with others for the sake of flirting. You flirted with Ben in the hopes of getting naked with him. He might as well wear a 'I'm highly inflammable' t- shirt.
He handed her a cup and she took it uncertainly. Would it be smart to get drunk with him? Well, how dangerous could it be? It was not a school night and Matt and Caroline were there to keep her from- well, from being Elena Gilbert. Since when did she get so responsible? Screw this! Elena took a huge swig of her drink, not once flinching at the tartness.
"What are we celebrating?" Elena put her arms around his neck and swayed to the beat.
"Rebekah's birthday," He slid his hands down to her waist to bring her closer. She didn't complain.
"Is it weird that I don't know her?"
"It's a crime. She'd Spanish inquisition your ass," Ben winked.
"Oooh," Elena teased. "I heard she has a boyfriend with a rather cute ass."
"Stefan Salvatore," He turned her around in one swift move and pulled her against his chest. "But since we're talking about asses, I'll digress." His breath tickled her ears, sending tiny shocks all the way to her toes.
Elena closed her eyes and leaned back, "Salvatore, huh?" She didn't know Damon had a brother.
"Yea," Ben brushed her curls aside and placed sloppy kisses along the curve of her neck. "This is his house."
When she opened her eyes, she realised that she was no longer wedged between the sweaty bodies in the dance floor. They had made their way to a broom closet. The music wasn't very loud in there. Ben looked completely edible in the faint light as she slowly leaned in.
His lips crashed with hers and he pushed her in, cornering her with his body, strangely reminding her of that night with Damon. Elena shook the thought away as soon as it surfaced and let the kiss consume her.
"I'd much prefer you take the hooker up, Ben."
Ben cursed, breaking the kiss. "Don't you have something else to do, Bek? Like I don't know, plot world domination?"
Elena was still recovering from the snide remark when the girl smiled at her haughtily. "I hope he's paying you enough to-"
"I'm not a hooker," Elena peeled herself off of Ben. She could already see herself setting the girl's hair on fire. She had done it once in New York. Well, she hadn't technically committed arson, but she had 'accidentally' spilt a 'Nair'tini in Sophie Lasher's hair which had more or less burnt chunks of it off.
"My bad," The girl shook her head. "Where are my manners? I'm Rebekah." She twirled a strand of her hair as she sipped the dark drink in her glass.
"Elena." The all- dreaded Rebekah didn't look as scary as Caroline had made her out to be. "I've heard a lot about you."
"Really?" Rebekah narrowed her eyes.
"All good things," Elena beamed, making Ben snort.
Rebekah glared at him and returned a smile to the witty brunette she was beginning to admire. "I'm glad."
"Happy birthday," Elena said sweetly. "Kickass party."
"Isn't it?" Rebekah nodded approvingly, "You know, you should meet my friends."
"Oh, come on!" Ben didn't seem ecstatic about Rebekah stealing away his potential one- night stand.
"I would love to," Elena agreed.
"But you were going to meet my little friend down here," Ben pointed south.
"Ew," Rebekah made a face. "Go find someone your age to defile, jerk."
"Ouch."
"Hey Ben, dude you're missing all the fun!" A couple of kids called out."The hooker's arrived!"
Ben grinned like it was Christmas morning. "That's my cue, ladies. Find me when the Ice Queen releases you?" He looked hopefully at Elena before he took off.
Rebekah shook her head disapprovingly. "Easy come, easy go."
"Wait, hooker?" Elena asked, her eyes wide.
"As much as I love Bekah, I wouldn't hesitate to Fedex your fucking ass back to Italy, baby bro." Damon growled.
Lately, Stefan was getting on his last nerve what with all the wild partying under his roof. With the exception of a frequently hung- over Ric whom he considered family, Damon was used to having the house to himself, until his brother had decided to finish senior year in Mystic Falls, which was awfully inconvenient considering he hated his guts.
"This is the Salvatore family mansion, brother," Stefan said coolly. Damon always hated how Stefan managed to keep his composure even in the most tempestuous of situations. It was like he was made of fucking stone. "Dad said I could stay as long as I wished."
"And Ickle Steffiekins always listens to what daddy says, doesn't he?" Damon spit out bitterly.
"I don't have time for your hysterics, Damon. If you have a problem with me staying, take it up with dad." Stefan smiled. Bastard. He knew how it infuriated his brother whenever he mentioned his father and yet he did it anyway. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a party to attend," Stefan simply dismissed him.
Damon kicked Mr Holier Than Thou's precious autographed guitar on his way out. That ought to have hit a nerve. Damon smirked satisfied with himself before he heard the commotion downstairs. He groaned as he leaned over the balustrade.
If those primate friends of his brother left cheap bear stains on his Persian rugs...
"She looks like she's sick!" The voice reached Damon from below the stairs but he couldn't see the girl. Funny he didn't have to. He knew and distinguished the voice even amongst the raucous sounds the party was generating.
"None of your business, is it, Gilbert?"
He was right. Elena. Damon found himself descending the stairs as if on autopilot. What was she doing here?
"Is she-" Elena gasped. "Have you drugged her?"
Caleb Lockwood stood with his arm around a frail girl about Elena's age. May be younger. She was pretty, with wavy brown hair and pale skin. Tyler and a few other guys had homed in on her and stood with Caleb, laughing and touching her face and hair.
"You have, haven't you?" Elena said, observing the confused look on the girl's face. "Are you so desperate that you've got to drug girls now?"
"Why? Are you done with Ben and looking for more?" Tyler sneered.
Elena didn't draw away at his dirty comment. Instead she put her hands on her hips, probably hoping she looked fierce, which didn't make much of a difference really, but Damon had to admit that she had spunk. "Aren't enough drugs in the world to get me near you," she smiled. A few of his friends laughed. "But maybe you can go make out with your hand over there. Shouldn't be the first time." A few others laughed.
"Stay out of it," Caleb hissed. "She's just a hooker."
"This isn't a strip club. Nobody wants to see this." Damon spoke up, his face stone hard and menacing.
"Yeah," Rebekah agreed. "It's gross." A few of her friends nodded.
Caleb glared at all of them, Elena the hardest. "Fine. None of you have to see it. Come on." He grabbed the girl's arm and jerked her away. Clumsily, she stumbled along with him, making soft whimpering noises.
"Best I could do," Damon turned to face Elena.
She stared at him, shocked. "He's just going to take her to a room. He'll do even worse things to her!"
"Elena, I don't like it either, but it's not like I can go chase him down or anything." He sighed. "I mean I could go punch him or something," He added, seeing her defeated look.
"Like you punched Tyler and Ralf?" Elena shook her head.
Damon smirked, "How'd you find out?"
"I hired Sherlock," Elena rolled her eyes. "He can't do that."
"She's a hooker. Nobody's going to stop him."
Elena looked up at him with pleading eyes. Hurt, outrage, and anger filled those otherwise soft brown orbs. "Will you?"
Damon looked at her questioningly. She was joking, right? Apparently not. Seeing her so upset and looking at him to fix things was more than he could stand.
"Hey, babe." Ben McKittrick wrapped his arm around Elena's waist. Ben McKittrick? She was with Ben McKittrick? This was an all time low even for her. He had heard Rebekah talk about him and of all the losers Elena was stupid enough to be associated with, this had to be the epitome of, well, stupid. "What's going on, dude?" He asked Damon.
Dude? Damon scoffed. Something within him clicked. "You know Elena, these things happen in parties. If you can't handle it, maybe you should go home."
Elena winced at the acid in his voice. She was having a hard time keeping up with his mood swings. His intent was clear. He wanted her to leave. At least that wasn't a first. Damon oddly felt like he was being a monumental jerk.
"Maybe I should." Elena looked down at her empty cup. She was drunk and something told her that Ben hadn't been refilling her with the punch everyone else was having.
"I'll drive, come on," Ben started leading her to the porch. Offering to drive had definitely crossed Damon's mind, but it looked like Elena was well taken care of.
"Caroline?" Elena asked, suddenly remembering.
"She's with Matt," Ben draped his jersey over her as they reached the parking lot. "She's having fun."
"That makes one of us," Elena stood next to Caroline's black Fiesta. Her thoughts were a tangled mess. One minute he was sending people to the county ER and the next- what had just happened?
"I can most definitely change that," Ben grinned suggestively.
Elena bit her lip. Damon's words came back to her. "These things happen in parties. If you can't handle it"- oh, I can handle it, alright. Watch me 'handle' it.
Ben 's Volvo was big enough to do squats. He even let her straddle his lap. Elena usually liked to be on top because it made her feel like she was in control. She could take it as far as she wanted it to go. At least that's what she thought, but Ben was controlling her movements as much as he possibly could from under her.
They shared a rather hot and passionate kiss and a few gropes before her usual panic set in. Ben went for her exposed shoulder and started placing hungered kisses as he slid down the other sleeve, letting her sweater gather at her hip.
He gasped seeing her full breasts. She looked like a Victoria's Secret model in black. Even with his track record, he had to appreciate her. Seconds passed as they stared at each other, his breaths heavy and hers, nervous although she was sure he couldn't see her cuts in the darkness.
Elena started inching away in his lap just about when Ben pulled her back. He crushed her breast with his mouth, slowly nibbling through the fabric. The shock waves she felt to her head were more of fear than pleasure. It elicited the sane, sober side of her. Oh no! Oh no, and before she could struggle out of his hold, she abruptly froze.
Ben mistook her stillness for surrender and lifted her off his lap, spreading her down on the seat as he crawled above her. Elena wanted to push him off of her, but her muscles refused to obey. She wanted to ask him to stop, only her mauled lips wouldn't make a sound except for her ragged breathing.
When Ben reached to unbutton her shorts, she started to shake slightly. Obviously if not visibly. She wasn't controlling the shivers. They were taking over her body.
"Woah, am I that good?" Ben chuckled.
It took everything to will her muscles to move. Elena didn't push him away, but she tugged away to a corner, curling up in a ball, her legs pulled up to her chest defensively.
Ben leaned forward and roughly grabbed for her legs, but not before he was all but hauled out of the car and thrown against a tree. "Dude, what the hell?" He yelled.
"Run the fuck back inside before I break both of your legs. I'm guessing a quarterback won't be of much use without them."
Elena relaxed. Damon. It looked like Ben had taken his advice because he was nowhere to be seen.
When he ducked inside the car, she truly breathed. He was saving her for the millionth time and it somehow felt like it was bound to happen. Like he was fated to show up.
"Naked damsel in distress," Damon climbed in. "I'm sensing a pattern here."
Elena let out a weak giggle. She couldn't believe she was laughing considering how scared she was mere seconds ago. "These things happen in parties," she quoted him.
Damon stared at her with a dangerous glint in his eyes. He didn't have to say anything to convey that he was angry and disappointed. But then something in his face changed. Had it been any other guy, Elena would've said he was checking her out. Damon though looked like he was assessing her like he always did. Studying her face. Her body.
Elena felt a hot flush spread over her. The look in his face was doing more than Ben's kisses ever had. She wondered what it would feel like if he came any closer. If he touched her and- damn! Damon's eyes were struggling hard to latch on to hers and she smiled. "See something you like?"
Damon's jaw almost dropped at the provocative tone in her voice. This was seriously messed up. Or was it? He reluctantly held out her sweater, his eyes gracing her body.
Elena took it. "How did you find me? Still running errands for Ric?"
"Stop talking," he snapped, leaning down so that they were at eye level. "Do you understand how incredibly stupid you have to be to get yourself in this kind of situation?"
Elena stared at him defiantly. "I get in this kind of situation all the time. No big deal." She hated being treated like a child. Especially by him.
He looked disgusted. "Don't you have any respect? You make yourself look cheap! You live up to what a lot of people already think about you and it reflects on-"
"Ric?" Elena asked incredulously. Was he honestly going to drag Ric into this? "Is this what this is about? You're afraid I'll ruin his reputation?" There had been a small part of her that had hoped that Damon wasn't just lashing out at her for Ric but because he genuinely cared. Well, hope breeds eternal misery, doesn't it?
"Go home," His voice hardened. "If you can manage it without throwing yourself at the next person you see."
"Oh, spare the subtlety. You might as well call me a slut."
"I hear the stories those guys tell. I've heard stories about you."
She wanted to yell that it wasn't his business what she did with her body but why did she feel as cheap as he had implied she was? She hated feeling that way. She hated how inferior he always managed to make her feel. She blinked back tears, "You can go to hell."
Poor Elena. She clearly has intimacy issues and yet keeps throwing herself at losers. But why? Do you think Damon could've been a little more sensitive? A little angst never hurts though right? Let me know! Cheers :)