A/N: As promised yesterday, here is chapter 17. Reviews are love.

Klaus sat at the bar at the Grill that night, nursing a glass of scotch, when Damon came up to him.

"What are you doing here?" Damon asked him.

"Caroline wanted some girl time with Bonnie."

"Yeah, but I thought –"

"Damon, she's not going to be able to hurt herself with Bonnie, right? Besides that, Bonnie knows that Caroline's a cutter, and I know that she won't leave her alone."

Damon sat down at the bar beside Klaus, "Is she like Elena?"

"What does that even mean?"

"It means that I know how tight Elena is with your family. I know that your mother thinks of her as her own child."

Klaus smiled, "Elena's been around as long as Caroline. We've built up this trust with her. She only wants Caroline's best interest and happiness. I mean, I don't know her as well as my brothers do, mostly because I've been overseas a lot and they live here all the time."

"And what about Bonnie?"

"Bonnie is nothing like Elena. I mean, we've met her a couple of times, and she's always really nice, and she knows a little bit about what Caroline went through in the system, but she doesn't know everything."

"Bonnie is a good person, Damon," Kol piped up from in back of the bar. "But Caroline told me that you call her judgey."

"I do. Bonnie and I never really got along."

"It's because she didn't approve of your man whoring ways," came a voice from behind him, and Klaus looked back and Matt and Jeremy. "You know how she feels about that kind of stuff."

Jeremy stuck his hand out to Klaus, "We've never been properly introduced. I'm Jeremy Gilbert."

"Elena's brother?"

He nodded, "Yes. Every time Elena or I have been at your mother's house, you've been away."

"Jeremy and I are mates," Kol said, speaking to Klaus.

"You have friends, Kol?" Klaus asked, rather rudely. Kol just laughed.

"You're staying at my house, right? Do you know for how long?" Jeremy asked.

Klaus shook his head, "I don't know. I think that Mother is staying at Caroline's shop for a couple more days."

He stayed at the Grill and chatted with Jeremy, Damon, Matt and Kol for a couple of hours before looking at the clock on the wall. It read ten o'clock.

"I've really got to go check in with Caroline," Klaus said, setting some money down on the bar. He went back to the house, went inside and laughed softly at what he saw.

Caroline was asleep on the couch. Not just that, but her head was at one end, her arm was hanging off the couch, one leg was up over the back of it and the other leg was twisted around. It had to be the most uncomfortable sleeping position Klaus had ever witnessed. He went over and straightened her out a little, knowing that he wouldn't be able to wake her up. Caroline slept like the dead. She was a really heavy sleeper, and the only things that ever woke her up were loud noises – and they had to be extremely loud, like fire alarm loud – and her nightmares. After straightening her out, he stood back for a moment and watched her sleep.

"She fell asleep not even halfway into the first movie," a voice came from behind him. He looked behind him and saw Bonnie. "She must've been exhausted."

"You know she ran into Tyler yesterday," Klaus said after a moment. "She's been a little out of it since then."

Bonnie nodded, "The douchebag seems to have some kind of hold over her. She told me about running into him, and I just wish there was a way that I could help her out. Caroline's been through a lot. Granted, I don't know all of it, but part of me wonders if I'd be able to handle all of it."

Klaus was silent, so Bonnie continued, "I really admire her, you know? She's been through all that shit, but she manages to put on a brave face and face the world. She doesn't wallow in self-pity. In fact, if you don't know Caroline very well, you wouldn't know anything was wrong."

"She's good at hiding stuff like that. But, then again, she's always had to. In a world where nobody cares about you and they want to see you fail, you have to be able to pick yourself back up again. Nobody else is going to do it for you."

Bonnie nodded, "I know. And that fact is pretty freaking sad."

-x-

Bonnie and Caroline met Elena for breakfast at the Grill the next morning. Elena had just slid into the booth when she looked at Caroline, "You need to call Damon."

"I just saw him yesterday," Caroline said. The waitress came and got their order and then Caroline said, "What's wrong?"

"He's worried about you. Going in and finding you the way he did kinda fucked up his mind, Care. He's not used to seeing people like that, especially people he loves."

"Damon doesn't love me," Caroline said.

"I don't know if he does or not, Care, but you're special to him," Elena answered. "I mean, he cares for you very much. Are you going to sit there and tell me he doesn't mean anything to you?"

"He means something to me, Elena," Caroline said. "He really does. It's like…he's perfect."

Elena giggled, "Damon is definitely not perfect, Care."

"I mean, he's patient, and honest, and treats me with respect. He acts like I'm the most important person he's ever met, and he never rushes me or pushes me into things. I mean something to him. He also makes me feel beautiful, which is something I've never felt about myself before. He's amazing."

"I never thought I'd ever hear someone say such things about Damon," Bonnie said. Elena nodded in agreement.

The waitress brought their food and Elena said, "I really think you ought to tell Damon how you feel."

"I can't," Caroline said, taking a bite of her pancakes. "When you tell someone that kind of stuff, you –"

"Give them ammunition to hurt you with," Elena and Bonnie finished for her in unison.

"Right," Caroline said. "I just…I can't take a chance."

"I've been telling you since you and Damon started dating, Care," Elena said, taking a sip of her coffee, "put a little trust in him. I know you've been hurt, but you trust me, don't you?"

"Of course I do. With my life."

"I've known Damon Salvatore for a long time, since Stefan and I were kids. In fact, our parents were friends, remember? Damon's like a big brother to me. Not only that, but Damon would've never let you in this far if he was just going to let you fall. You mean more to him than anybody has in a really long time. He feels something for you, and Damon's never been heartless."

"Huh," Caroline laughed. Elena and Bonnie looked at her like she was crazy.

"Oh, you just reminded me of Rose," Caroline commented, taking a bite of bacon. "She said the very same thing a few days ago."

"Well, it's true. Damon has never been heartless. He won't intentionally hurt someone, or even set them up to fall. He would never do that."

Caroline made a face.

"Well, anyway, I trust Damon not to hurt you. I trust Damon Salvatore with my life. Can you trust me on my judgment call?"

Caroline nodded, "I'll try."

"Really?"

"Yes," Caroline said. "I'm going to try to put a little trust in him. It's going to be hard, but I'm going to try."

-x-

Before Caroline left Mystic Falls the next afternoon, she stopped by the boarding house. When Damon answered the door, she grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and kissed him. He was surprised for a moment but then reciprocated the kiss. His tongue slid across her bottom lip, silently asking for access, and she opened her mouth, granting it to him. He wrapped one arm around her waist, resting his hand on the small of her back. Caroline sighed contentedly; she could easily stand here and make out with him all afternoon. However, she needed to get back to Richmond. She really didn't want to, but she broke the kiss anyway.

"What was that for?" Damon asked her.

"I felt like it," Caroline said, shrugging.

"Come in," Damon said, stepping aside. "You're letting the cold air in."

"You act like it's the middle of winter. It's only September," Caroline said, but came inside anyway. "I can't stay long. Nik wants to get home, and I don't have my car so I have to ride with him. I just wanted to see you before I left town."

"I appreciate it," Damon said honestly.

"Look, I don't know when the next time I am going to be able to see you is, but Mother is having a little get together next weekend. Elijah finished the case he was working on and he and Rose are going home next Sunday. Mother wants to do a dinner party on Saturday night, and I'd love it if you'd come with me. I mean, Mother would like it too – she adores you, you know."

"I'd love to," Damon said. "What time?"

"Six. I also wanted to tell you, Damon, that Elena and Bonnie and I had breakfast at the Grill yesterday, and…" she paused, trying to figure out how to tell him what she was feeling. "I just want you to know that you mean a great deal to me. I…I care about you a lot. You're perfect."

At this, Damon scoffed, "Caroline, I'm the furthest thing from perfect there is."

"You treat me well. I mean, you're patient, and honest, and treat me with respect. You act like I'm the most important person you've ever met, and never rush me or push me into things. I can tell that you care about me. And, the best of all, you make me feel beautiful. You make me feel like I'm worth it and that I'm wanted, and sexy, and when I'm around you, I feel better about myself."

Damon wasn't sure what to say to that, so he just said, "You deserve it, Caroline. You are beautiful, you know that? You're the most stunning thing I've seen in a long time."

Caroline smiled weakly, "I bet you tell every girl that."

"Not in a really long time."

Caroline threw her arms around Damon's neck. He hugged her back, savoring the moment. After a few moments, which felt way too soon, in Damon's opinion, she pulled away. He saw that she had a stray tear on her cheek.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

"I'm fine," she said, wiping away the tear with the back of her hand. "I just really don't want to go. But I've got to. I'll see you next weekend, okay? Come to my house on Friday and you can spend the weekend with me."

Damon nodded, "Sure."

She turned to leave, but then turned back, "And since I know he won't ask, Kol needs Saturday night off. Mother would really like him to be at that party, too. You think you could find a replacement for him that night?"

Damon nodded, "Yeah, I'll try."

Caroline nodded and left. When he was sure she was gone, Damon went into the parlor and poured himself a glass of bourbon. He sat down in a chair and just watched the fire. He was trying to figure out what he felt for Caroline. Like she did, he felt a strong pull towards her. He wanted to spend more time with her, and this living two hours apart thing didn't help any. He knew it was going to be difficult, but they'd survive. The problem was that he wanted to spend every waking moment with her, talking to her, feeling her. He couldn't do that and focus on the things that needed to get done as well. That's when he pulled his phone out and called Matt.

"Hey Boss," Matt said, answering his phone on the first ring. "What's going on?"

"Can you tend bar on Saturday night?" Damon asked, drinking the rest of the bourbon that was in his glass. "Caroline's family is having a party and her mother wants me and Kol there. Or is managing the bar and the restaurant too much for you to handle?"

"No, it's fine. Not a big deal, I promise you."

"Okay, good," Damon said, sighing. "I'm coming in in a bit and so I'll talk to you later?"

"Sure."

Damon wasn't sure how long he had been staring at the fire when he heard someone come in.

"Damon, what're you doing?" Elena asked. "Where's Caroline?"

"She went home," he said to her. "She had things to do."

"I know," Elena said softly. "I was actually just wondering." She went over and sat on the couch that was near Damon, "So…do you want to talk about it?"

"About what?" he asked her.

"C'mon Damon, we've known each other a long time," Elena started. "Don't bullshit me. Something's wrong – I can tell – and I'm not going to go away without you telling me what it is."

"Everybody's taken advantage of her, Elena," Damon almost whispered. "They've treated her like shit. They've made her feel like she isn't worth anything. She's really beautiful, you know? But she doesn't believe it. How is it that I'm the one who makes her okay with herself? I've fucked up more than anybody I've ever met. How am I the good guy in all of this?"

"You care about her, Damon," Elena said, watching him carefully. "Caroline's been hurt over and over again. She has a hard time trusting people. Did she tell you something today?"

Damon nodded, telling Elena what Caroline had said. It was practically the same thing that Caroline had told Elena and Bonnie at breakfast yesterday. Elena watched Damon as he repeated, "How am I the good guy in all of this?"

"She's special, Damon –"

"Exactly!" he said, his voice rising. "She's something special. How can nobody else see that? She's an amazing woman. How could that family abuse her the way they did? How could that bitch of a case worker tell her that she was unadoptable?" Damon stood up and started pacing, which was something that he didn't do often. "How could Tyler hurt her like he did?"

"Caroline was dealt a bad hand, Damon," Elena said, trying to comfort him. "She was. All those people who hurt her were just bad people who set her up to fail. She did something that nobody expected, though. She survived. And Caroline's got a fire about her – she doesn't bend to societal norms. She doesn't do what's expected of her. She's a strong, independent woman. But she would've never been like this if all that shit hadn't happened to her."

There was silence. Damon was pacing, and Elena was wondering what was going through his head. She had known Damon a long time, since they had both grown up in Mystic Falls, and the Gilberts and the Salvatores had been good friends, and most of the time she could get a pretty good read on his emotions. This, however, was not one of those times.

"What are you thinking, Damon?"

"I hate that she's hurt so much. I hate the fact that she can't trust anyone. I just…ugh!" He picked up a glass and threw it in the fire. "Everything she's been through makes me want to hunt down those fuckers and just end them – all of them. I don't understand how Caroline's brothers haven't done anything about them."

"Caroline wouldn't want them to," Elena said, and Damon knew she was right. "That'd just be something else that those douchebags robbed her of. I'm sure Elijah explained that to you."

Damon ran a hand through his hair, "I bet you Elijah's pretty pissed with me right now."

"Why?"

"Because I left Caroline alone. I knew she was a cutter – I knew it – and yet, I let her go. If I hadn't gotten there in time…" his voice trailed off. "God, Elena, she would've hurt herself. And it would've been my fault."

"Listen to me, Damon," Elena said, standing. She went over and took him by the shoulders. "It wasn't your fault. Her temptation to cut was too great – I didn't think about it, either. Tyler fucked with her mind. Caroline has this amazing ability to not let anybody know what she's feeling or thinking. She hides it all because people could use it to their advantage. She will never let anybody know that they hurt her. She won't give them the satisfaction. You know it and so do I."

"Maybe," he said reluctantly. "I hate this, Elena. I hate all the hurt she's ever had."

Elena nodded, "Yeah, me too. Me too."

-x-

"Did you have a good time?" Esther asked Caroline as she picked at her pasta. Caroline had insisted on taking Esther to dinner since they hadn't had much mother/daughter time and so now they were sitting in a booth at Maria's. "I mean, you got to see your friends, right?"

Caroline nodded, "Yeah. I got to see them. I spent the first night with Damon and Elena, and then I went over to Bonnie's and we watched movies. Well, she watched movies. I kind of fell asleep in the middle of The Notebook."

"That's one of your favorites."

Caroline nodded again, "I know. I was just really worn out."

"Care," Esther said after a moment, "I've been talking with Elijah and Niklaus, and I think- well, we, really – think that you should go to anger management. They've got that support group for people who cut at the hospital, and –"

"I'm not crazy," Caroline interrupted.

"I don't think you are," Esther answered. Something that Caroline loved about her mother was the fact that she had the most patience out of anybody that she'd ever met. "I just think you'd been hit with a lot of things all at once. I think it'd be good for you, sweetheart."

"In case Nik didn't inform you, I didn't cut myself. I couldn't."

"I know that, too," Esther said, remembering the conversation she had with Elijah when he told her that very same thing. "But I worry about you, Caroline. It's a mother's prerogative to worry about her children, you know."

Caroline nodded, "I know."

"Just promise me you'll go once. Just once. That way you can know if it's something that you want to do. It couldn't hurt, you know. A lot of those people have some of the same issues you do."

"My issues set me apart from everybody, Mother," Caroline said after a moment. "I'm sick and tired of people looking at me like I'm different. I'm not any different than anybody else."

"Your experiences make you who you are, Care," Esther said, taking a bite of her lasagna. "You can probably agree with me on that." She paused for a moment as Caroline nodded. "The way people have treated you your entire life is not excusable. You've been hurt, and you can admit that. But there's more to it than that. I mean, Elena has never treated you differently, has she?"

"No, but –"

"No buts, Caroline. Not everybody treats you abnormally. Elena is your best friend, and she's practically my daughter. She cares for you a lot. She's helped you with so much in your life."

"Elena's different, Mother. She's always been there for me, even when nobody else was. When I was beaten, broken and bruised in the Jones' household, she never left me – not once. If it hadn't been for her, my case worker wouldn't have taken me out of that house. I owe my whole life to her, you know."

"I know that, and I know that you trust Elena with everything you've got," Esther answered. "But, Caroline, Elena is not the only good person in this world. The others are there, they're just…a little harder to find. Just because you haven't found them yet, doesn't mean they don't exist. No, it means that you just have to look a little harder for them. But they're there, I can promise you that."