Damon had never felt so scared.
Not when his mother died. Not when Katherine was taken by the council. Not when he was dying by refusing to drink blood and finish the transition. Not when he brought Elena back from the quarry not knowing if she would wake up, vampire, human or at all. Not when he was dying from the werewolf bite.
And in those situations he took quite the scare.
He had finally decided to check his phone and frowned at seeing several messages from Bonnie. If it was Bella or Elena, it would be okay, they constantly called and worried about what he was doing, well, who he was killing or tormenting. But Bonnie never contacted him. He didn't even know she had his number. That added to the fact she had called Jeremy several times too; that Caroline and Bella had also tried to call him sent him on alert.
Katherine would still need information on Mikael so he left Jeremy with her. Whatever was going on back in Mystic Falls, Jeremy probably shouldn't be involved. It was one less person to worry about. He had his ring and drank vervain. Katherine wouldn't be so stupid and kill someone she might need later.
He drove top speed, wondering if it was something with Bella. It had been two days since he talked to her and although he was always worried, Katherine distracted him, telling him what she found out about Klaus' weaknesses.
He remembered Elena mentioning something about a high school prank so he went there first. Since a lot of people called, they should be together.
He walked around the closed school, looking for someone or something. For a prank night it was pretty empty. He found Bonnie, gathering grimoires and candles from Alaric's classroom.
"Hey, what's up?" he asked looking around.
He noticed the honey on the knob, the glue gun by the drawers and the rat traps on the floor. Ric would be so happy.
"Where the hell were you?" she snapped almost crying when she saw him.
"What?"
"Klaus was here!" Damon tensed at her words. "He took Elena, and he turned Tyler into an hybrid…"
"Where is Bella?" Damon immediately asked. If Klaus found Elena, he would be pissed at Bella for hiding her.
"I-I don't know… I didn't find any of them. Elena, Stefan, Bella…" she cried.
"Dammit" Damon grumbled turning away.
He walked to the opposite end of the corridor he came from, and looked around all the lockers. Some had big indentations and as he took a closer look he noticed scratch marks. A human's nail wouldn't be able to do that to the metal without leaving blood… What the hell had happened?
He followed the marks and indentations and soon the trail ended but he got something different. The scent of blood, a familiar scent.
He ran, following the scent and the sight made him stop dead in his tracks.
Bella was lying in a corner, in a pool of her own blood, not breathing. He couldn't hear her heartbeat. He ran to her and fell on the pool of blood running his hands down her cold arms. She had a deep cut that was still bleeding. He bit his wrist, silent praying he wasn't too late. He pressed his wrist to her mouth but she didn't move at all, the blood simply poured into her mouth.
"No, no, no" he cried. "You've promised me"
He pressed both palms above her chest bone and pressed down. Air wheezed out of her lungs, but that was it. He continued compressing, in a fast rhythm, and only stopped to give her mouth-to-mouth. He heard footsteps and didn't think twice.
"Bonnie!" he screamed.
He heard the footsteps accelerate and come to a halt close to them. Bonnie looked at the scene with wide eyes. Damon was completely desperate doing CPR on Bella. It didn't seem to work.
"Call 911" he said.
She hesitated. How would they explain to the paramedics what happened? What would be the story?
But she realized it was Bella, and quickly called 911, her eyes not leaving Damon's face. She couldn't bring herself to look down at Bella again and the fact that there were tears streaming down his face was too shocking for her to tear her eyes away.
"Come on" he choked out continuing with CPR. "Get her bag"
"What?" Bonnie mumbled.
"Her bag, dammit!" he snapped.
Bonnie ran as fast as she could to Ric's classroom and as she ran back with Bella's bag she looked inside. She found a box that remembered her of those her paternal grandma had with medication and the blood-sugar testing device. She opened as she crouched next to Damon and frowned at the syringes.
"We shouldn't do anything, the ambulance is coming any minute..." she said.
Damon ignored her, taking one of the prepared syringes and injected on Bella's arm. He waited a moment, but nothing happened, so he resumed CPR.
"Damon" Bonnie cried quietly. "She's…"
"Don't" he growled and pushed his bloody wrist to Bella's lips again. "Come on, Bella, please"
They barely noticed the sound of sirens and Bonnie only realized had arrived when Liz Forbes pulled her away so the paramedics could pass. It took a bit of work, but Liz was able to get Damon out of the way as the paramedics worked on Bella. Damon stared as they cracked her throat open since they weren't being able to intubate, they used defibrillator and when they were almost giving up, she came back. She didn't do anything, but Damon was relieved to just hear her heart beating, even if it was weak and slow. The paramedics rushed to get her on a stretcher, worried about getting her to the hospital before she crashed again.
"What happened?" Liz asked Damon as they followed the paramedics.
"I'll explain" Bonnie said giving Damon a nod. "Go with her"
He nodded absent-mindedly and got in the back of the ambulance with the paramedic. He watched as they gave her drugs and wrote down information, and it all seemed to be so fast to him he was having trouble understanding. He needed to get rid of the paramedics and any witness so he could give her some of his blood. She didn't need all those drugs and that horrible tube, she just needed a bit of blood.
"I don't want to be changed"
He remembered her words just as the ambulance stopped outside the hospital. What if he gave her his blood and something happened? Klaus was in town, she had some kind of heart-condition… She would hate him forever.
But she would have forever. It was a small chance that she died and started transitioning. He wouldn't leave her side, nothing would happen to her. And in the worst case, she could still choose to feed or not to feed and complete the transition.
Unfortunately, all that happened seemed to have slowed him down. He was being pushed away from the trauma room so the doctors could work and he had lost the opportunity to give her blood. He watched through the window what was happening, but the crowd of doctors wouldn't let him catch a glimpse of her angelic face.
He stood there for a few minutes, and soon Bonnie, Liz, Caroline, Matt and Tyler joined him.
"I've called Dr. Cullen" Bonnie said. "I got the number on her phone, he's getting a flight right now, will be here in a few hours"
"Elena is in the hospital too" Liz informed him quietly.
He nodded.
"Damon, are you listening?" Caroline asked worriedly.
"What?" he snapped.
"Elena a couple of floors above us" she said.
"So?" he glanced at her and then his eyes went back to Bella. "She'll be fine"
"Klaus admitted her for blood donation, we have to get her out of here" Bonnie said.
"Can't you do anything without me?" he snapped at her and she looked at him with wide eyes. "If he tries to stop you, say we found Mikael and he's coming"
She frowned confusedly but Damon had already turned back to watch the trauma room, clearly no answer would be given.
"We're gonna get Elena, then" Tyler said tugging on Caroline's arm.
Caroline hesitated before turning and leaving the image of chaos that was that trauma room.
Suddenly Bella's heart sped, it beat too fast and the doctors started worrying she would crash again. Damon stepped forward, ready to go into that room, doctors be damned.
A whimper was heard, her eyes snapped open and Bella tried to pull at the tube on her throat. The doctors held her down and took off the tube. She choked and was breathing heavy, but Damon smiled. He leaned his forehead against the glass, taking a deep breath. She was alive. Liz rubbed his back comfortingly and he shot her a smile.
Liz smiled back just because that would be the first, genuine smile she had seen Damon wear since she met him. His eyes shone with relief and happiness and what was left from the tears he had shed.
But his heart broke all over again as Bella screamed at the top of her lungs, struggling against the hands holding her down.
"Sir, you cannot be in here…"
"Bella, Bella" I heard, whispered in my ear. "Shh, baby"
I screamed again, the pain was unbearable. It burned, there was fire on me.
I felt a soft caress on my face while people talked about sedatives. My eyes snapped open again and I gasped for air. Damon was frowning down at me and I grabbed his hand on my shoulder. I felt like my skin was melting and the simplest, softest touch was ripping it from the flesh.
"You'll be alright, sweetheart" Damon whispered squeezing my hand.
I felt a syringe on my arm and became dizzy. My eyes fluttered closed, but the pain was still there.
I blinked a couple of times to adjust to the light and turned my head to the side, the light was making my eyes hurt. The sight was familiar, I was in a hospital. I saw Damon was sitting in the couch in the corner, books surrounding him and typing in a laptop. I remembered when James almost killed me and Edward stayed in the hospital room with me. I tried to move, to sit, but my body hurt. I groaned and it got Damon's attention. He tossed the laptop aside and ran to help me.
"Are you alright? What can I do?" he asked pulling the hair out of my sweaty forehead.
"What happened?" I croaked looking around, "Where's Elena? Stefan…"
"She's okay… She's just outside, waiting for you to wake up"
I nodded weakly and looked at the IV and the horrible hospital gown.
I was alive.
"What… Why am I here?" I asked frowning at him.
"I found you and the paramedics resuscitated you…" he said giving me a weak smile. "A miracle, everyone's saying"
I tried to sit up again and with his help, I was able to, but even then I was still uncomfortable.
"My throat" I mumbled touching the bandage on my neck.
"They had to intubate you, but you stopped having trouble to breathe"
"I wasn't supposed to be alive" I whispered in awe.
"I told you I wouldn't let you die on me" he smiled.
"I… My chest, my back… they hurt" I said. "It's itching"
He hesitated and sat on the edge of bed, lacing our fingers together.
"It's the burns"
"Burns?" I squeaked.
"You'll see later" he kissed my forehead, his lips lingered and he leaned his forehead against mine. "Forgive me… I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have left you"
"You couldn't have known he was in town"
"I still shouldn't have left"
I nodded and tugged on his hand. With difficulty I moved aside and he laid in the small bed with me. I put my head against his shoulder and relaxed.
"I feel tired" I whispered.
"Sleep" he said quietly his fingers tightening around mine. "I'll be here"
"Okay" I breathed before falling asleep.
"Bella" Elena cried entering the room.
I smiled weakly at her and she hugged me, carefully. She sat on the edge of the bed, wiping her tears.
"Damon finally left so I had to run in here before anyone could… The nurses don't let more than a person in" she said with a teary smile.
"Who else is there?" I asked.
"Bonnie, Care, Ty, Matt, Jeremy, Sheriff Forbes, Ric and the Cullens"
"The Cullens are here?" I asked surprised.
"Yeah, Bonnie called Carlisle, he's your physician"
"Oh"
"How do you feel?" she asked worriedly.
"I'm good… I guess. I feel tired, drained" I mumbled.
"Bonnie is looking through her grimoires and yours to see if she finds anything on that weird tattoo… Did you and Damon get anything?"
"Tattoo?" I frowned.
"Oh, he didn't tell you" she mumbled awkwardly.
"What tattoo?" I asked panicking.
"When you came into the ER you were screaming about something burning… They found nothing but a tattoo on your back"
I tried to get up, but Elena gently pushed me back against the pillows.
"Bella, calm down, you'll see for yourself, later… Just rest, okay? I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything"
"Yes, you shouldn't"
I turned and saw Damon standing in the doorway, glaring at Elena. He walked in, and she stepped aside so he could put the tray with food I had asked him to get on my lap.
"What the hell? I have a tattoo?"
"It's nothing for you to worry about now" he said gently.
"You said it were burns!"
"Bella, calm down" he asked.
"If a tattoo, marks appear out of nowhere it can be a bad sign! I might be cursed!" I screeched.
Carlisle sneaked in the room, closing the door and got to the other side of the bed, patting my shoulder.
"Bella, you shouldn't be stressing yourself… I will have to sedate you if you don't calm down" he said.
"But…"
"No buts, you need to rest" he said sternly and looked at Damon and Elena. "Maybe you should just wait outside"
Elena turned to leave but Damon didn't move.
"You'll have to drag me out" he said angrily.
"It's for Bella's wellbeing" Carlisle insisted. "Just for some time"
"I'm right here" I snapped not enjoying people talking like I wasn't there.
I grabbed the fork on the tray, my stomach was growling with the sight of food in front of me. Damon sighed and after kissing my forehead with a promise to be back soon he left. Carlisle checked my vitals and adjusted the drugs' dosage.
"Spill it" I said playing with the fruit salad.
"What?" he asked smiling.
"We both know this is weird. I shouldn't be even alive. I am, but… I feel like an attack is coming any second. I feel drained, tired, weak"
"I fear it might be a burst of energy" he said sadly.
"What?"
"Some critical patients have a burst of energy before getting worse…"
"And dying" I finished frowning. "So, what? Should I use the little time I have to say goodbye?"
"Bella…"
"Should I?" I asked with tears filling my eyes.
"Perhaps" he sighed.
I had to convince Elena to tell the people waiting outside my room to go to school. It was the first day of senior year and I didn't want them to miss it. She told me Stefan had passed by the hospital, announced he would be staying to keep an eye on Elena for Klaus. After the Original witch said the problem was that the Petrova doppelganger being alive, Klaus had took a shot on doing the opposite. The witch hated him and tried to trick him, without Elena's blood he couldn't create hybrids. So, basically she was a very useful human blood bag. She updated me on Tyler and Matt too. Apparently, Matt was alright, seemed a bit shaken by all that happened, but assured everyone he was fine. Tyler was acting a bit weird, a bit too excited considering all that happened the previous night. Damon still refused to leave, but at least Carlisle let other people in. Esme and Edward checked on me, but the nurse ushered them out.
"Show me" I asked Damon.
He sighed and grabbed his phone from his pocket. He showed me a picture. I knew it was me, but I just couldn't recognize it. The back of the person in the photo was inked almost completely. An intricate celtic design filled my back, with a triquetra right in the middle, from where three protrusions expanded, one down my back ending on my lower back, and the other two to my sides. It looked a bit like twisted wings almost. The design of the protrusions gave a sense of motion. It was beautiful, but I didn't want it there.
"Do you know what it means? We've only found speculations on the internet and the grimoires aren't of much help" he said nodding to the laptop and books on the couch.
"Yeah" I mumbled.
"So?" he pressed.
"The triquetra in the middle, it can mean spirit, mind and body, birth, life and death or power, intellect and love" I whispered. "It has a lot of different meanings, but those are the more accurate… The triskelion, the protrusions, mean past, present and future, the sense of motion means progress, revolution, moving forward" I pointed out the elements. "But since inside of each there are symbols for earth, water and air… Respectively they mean creation, preservation and destruction"
"What about fire? Your powers come from it" he asked frowning.
"The trisquelion look like flames, so in this case… It would mean the fire contains all that, I guess" I shrugged.
"Alright, and what does all of that mean?"
I looked at him and back at the image.
"It means… the ending. Moving forward, advancing to another stage… the protrusion of the triquetra that means body is aligned with the triskelion protrusion of air – destruction… The Underworld, where spirits live" I swallowed hard. "To me, it seems like… a sign of death"
Damon of course freaked out, refusing to accept that after everything, after coming back for the third time, I was going to die. At least he let me check the marks myself in the mirror on the bathroom. The itching on my chest came from the burns the defibrillator left. The side protrusions of the triskelion ended on my ribs. Looking closer you could see it wasn't a tattoo, it didn't look like one. The skin was still soft and smooth, like the marks were natural, part of me.
Elena was making plans on how to take Stefan out, into rehab and to fight Klaus' compulsion. But she needed Damon's help. He had been adamant on not leaving me alone in the hospital, but I told him to go, I would be resting, and the Cullens were still in the hospital, I wouldn't be alone. It took almost an hour to convince him to go to the bonfire and help Elena, and he had promised to be back in less than an hour.
As soon as he left, I relaxed against the pillows and waited for something.
Edward came in after knocking and smiled at me.
"I look like crap, I know" I smiled.
"You look beautiful, Bella"
"Liar" I chuckled.
"There's someone who wants to see you" he said.
I gave him a questioning look but then the door opened again and Jake stormed in to hug me. I chuckled with tears in my eyes and took comfort in his warmth.
"You told me you were fine" he said pulling back. "You should have told me"
"For what?"
"So I could be here. Helping searching for a cure"
"There is no cure, Jake" I said tiredly. "I'm gonna die"
"Don't say that, Bells" he said frowning. "What would we do without you?"
"Stop worrying, maybe" I said jokingly.
"The joker of the year" he teased. "Embry is here too, he's with Bonnie researching"
"You all need to stop hoping for something. This was the third time I've died, Jake" I said. "No one can die so many times and keep coming back. You can't fight the spirits, and Bonnie has broken the connection by bringing Jeremy back, so… It's over"
AN: The image of the triskelion, the 'tattoo', is on the Polyvore set for last chapter.
The links to the site I used to research the meaning of those symbols are on my profile. The information in this chapter is not accurate, but if you want to check out the real meaning... It's really cool, I recommend :)
Thanks for the amazing reviews!
xoxo Luuh