Chapter 12

Damon couldn't sleep. He tried to but his lips were still tingling from that surprise kiss from Bonnie. On top of that, he was aggravated with himself for being so affected by a little peck on the lips. He tossed and turned on the sofa but once he finally quieted the thoughts about Bonnie, his vampire hearing picked up on the chatter coming from inside the house. He heard everyone talking about their plans for Lily and the heretics and when it became obvious that he wasn't going to get any sleep, he crept out the library and grabbed a bottle of bourbon. He tiptoed out of the house while everyone else was gathered in the kitchen, and then he fired up his Camaro and drove off.

He didn't have a particular destination in mind, and he ended up on the edge of the woods. He took his bourbon with him as he meandered through the trees, sipping a little here and there. He stopped when he got to the Salvatore crypt. After a few short seconds of internal debate, he walked inside and saw the coffin where Elena rested. The polished wood had a glow to it, courtesy of the protection spell. Damon ran his hand along the smooth surface and then sat down next to it. He just stared for a while, drinking as he did so.

"Fancy meeting you here," he finally said. He smirked a little at the silence, and then he sighed and rested his head against the coffin. "You've been gone a long time. Did you know that? It's been, like, eight months or something. Eight months." He shook his head in disbelief.

"I've stayed out of trouble. Mostly. You'd be happy to know that aside from my initial downward spiral, I haven't killed anyone or done anything too cringeworthy. My crazy ass mother is causing some trouble, though. I guess the apples don't fall too far from the tree."

He drank and sighed and let silence fill up the crypt before he spoke again.

"Stefan is fine. He's chasing Blondie around like a lost baby. Caroline is her usual self. Matt is exactly the same as you left him: useless." He snorted at his own joke and tried not to notice the one person that he didn't list. He ran his finger around the rim of his bottle. "I don't even know why I'm here. It's not like I can see you or talk to you for real."

He could practically hear Stefan's preachy voice telling him that he knew exactly why he was there and to stop being a chicken and come clean.

"Okay, fine," he groaned. "I do know why I'm here, but I don't think you're gonna like it. It's about Bonnie."

Damon moved so that his back was pressed against the wall and he was looking at the coffin, trying his hardest to imagine Elena's face when he broke the news to her.

"She's fine. I mean, there's nothing wrong with her. Nothing's happened, yet. It's just..." He looked at the bourbon bottle and stalled before he found the courage to admit his feelings to his comatose girlfriend. "I like her," he said quietly. Once the words left his mouth, he looked up and stared at the coffin. "I like her as more than a friend."

There was some part of him that expected Elena to pop up and give him that brokenhearted look that she did so well. He expected her to cry and yell and ask him how he could betray her with her own best friend. Of course, none of that happened. Elena didn't wake up and Damon was still there, confessing to empty space.

"I don't know when it happened," he said. "I mean, I guess I realized it a few weeks ago but maybe the feelings have been there for a while. I don't know. It's not like it happened while I was with you or anything. I still love you, of course. You're it for me, you know?" When she didn't respond, Damon sighed and pressed his head back. "This is so screwed up. I don't even want to like her. It's like she just...crawled under my skin or something. I want to be with her all the time. I want to know everything about her. And I definitely don't want her to be with anyone else. She joked about sleeping with Donovan and I swear I wanted to snap his neck. Just the thought of it..." He made a choking motion with his hands and then chuckled at himself.

"Look at me," he said quietly. "You haven't even been gone for a year and I'm ready to pounce on your best friend. What am I supposed to do, Elena? Tell me something. Give me some kind of sign."

When nothing happened, Damon drank some more of his bourbon and sat quietly for a couple of hours. When the bourbon was all gone, he picked himself up and dusted himself off. He touched the coffin reverently and closed the door to the crypt. He drove back home, intent on taking a shower and trying to clear his head of all the cluttered, confusing thoughts. He heard a flurry of activity in the house but he ignored it all. He slipped into his bedroom and started disrobing once the door shut. He toed off his boots and his shirt hit the floor right as he entered his bathroom. His fingers were about to unzip his pants when he stopped in his tracks because the object of his affections was soaking in his bathtub like she owned it.

It was obvious that Bonnie hadn't heard him come in, because she didn't move a muscle. Her hair was pushed back from her forehead, encased in a headband. Her eyes were closed and her body was submerged under a thick lining of bubbles. Her brightly-colored toes poked out on the other end and Damon could see the water shimmering off of her smooth brown skin. His mind immediately jumped to the fact that she was naked, in his tub, only a few feet away. He licked his lips and decided to make his presence known before his urges got the best of him and he jumped into the tub with her.

"I don't recall ordering a naked lady," he said.

Bonnie jumped and her eyes sprang open when she heard his voice. He sported a smug smile and she smiled shyly.

"Sorry," she said. "I went to the library to ask if it was okay but you weren't there."

"So you just helped yourself to my tub?" he asked as he walked towards her.

"I called, but when you didn't answer, I figured you wouldn't care."

His blue eyes trailed once again from her face to her toes. "Well, the price of admission is that you have to move some of those bubbles and let me see what you're working with."

He meant it, but he said it jokingly because that's what she expected from him: lewd jokes and silliness. He wondered how freaked out she would have been if she knew he was serious.

"Ha, ha," she said dryly. He sat down on the floor next to the tub, with his head at the same end as her feet. "Where'd you go?"

"Driving," he said with a shrug. "Needed to clear my head."

She raised an eyebrow. "Something bothering you?"

"Nothing for you to worry about." He reached into the water and gently took one of her feet. He pressed his thumb into her skin and tried not to get too aroused when she groaned. "What's the plan for Lily?"

He listened at first, while she explained that the group consensus was to split up and try to take on Lily and her heretics in small groups, rather than a big bloody battle that might leave some, if not all, of them dead. They were going to do a locator spell first to figure out where the witchpires liked to gather and how they could catch them off-guard and alone. Damon nodded and mm hm'ed every now and then, even when his attention veered from the conversation and focused more on the awesome foot massage he was giving her.

He gently dug his fingers into the soft flesh of her foot, causing her interrupt her talking with the occasional grunt or "that feels good." He got on his knees and used both hands on one foot, before switching to the other. He wasn't a foot guy, per se, but he appreciated that Bonnie's were soft and dainty and cute. He traced his fingers down her heel and then encircled her ankle. He made sure to look at her while she spoke, before he walked his fingers down her leg. He encountered nothing but perfectly smooth, supple skin and all he could think about was how much he wanted to slide his hand all the way down and touch her in the middle of her legs.

Even as she spoke, he could picture what she looked like down there. The image assaulted him fiercely. Knowing that it was right there, ripe for the taking and nude and probably delicious, made him want to dive his head under the water and have a taste to satisfy his curiosity.

"Damon?" Bonnie asked.

He snapped out his thoughts and realized that he was holding her leg a little tightly, so he softened his grip.

"What do you think about that?" she asked.

He blinked a few times, trying to recall whatever the hell she wanted him to answer.

"What was the question?"

She smiled softly and tilted her head to the side. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, sorry. I was thinking about something."

"You want to share?"

He contemplated telling her that his mind had been preoccupied with thoughts of hoisting her hips out of the water and eating her out until she fainted, but he figured he might not be able to play that off as a joke.

"Just ready to get this bitch off our backs, once and for all," he said, referring to Lily.

"Me too."

"Great." He hopped up and turned around before she could see the front of his pants. "Then dry yourself off and let's get to work."

Damon left her in the bathroom and he returned to his bedroom. He plopped face-down on the bed and tried not to listen, even though every sound of her cleaning and scrubbing her body was played out with his super-hearing as though he was right there next to her. When she stood up and the water droplets dripped from her body, he buried his head underneath a pillow to keep from sneaking a look, even though the image he conjured up in his head was probably just as nice as the real thing. He heard her wrap the towel around her body and her bare feet padded into his bedroom.

The scent of jasmine and honey permeated the room as she took her sweet time putting some clothes on. He gritted his teeth as he heard the towel drop. She slid some panties up her legs, followed by jeans. He tried to block out the rest of the sounds and it felt like hours before she actually left the room. As soon as she closed the door, he jumped up and locked it. He stripped out of his clothes in record time and started up a cold shower, but it did nothing to soothe the raging boner he was sporting. He knew there was no point in trying to ignore it, so he pushed the guilt aside and gripped his shaft. A groan escaped his lips and as he worked himself up and down, images of Bonnie standing naked in his bedroom were the fuel for his fire. He worked his hand around the head a few times but he wouldn't let himself come. He got close so many times but he kept pushing it off until he could play out the fantasy in his head.

If he'd had the balls, he would have jumped off the bed right after Bonnie dropped her towel. He would have taken her hands and kept her from putting those damn panties on. She would have looked at him crazily, for sure. She probably would have yelled at him out of anger and humiliation, but he would have shut her up with a kiss. In his mind, she would have kissed him back like she was just as hungry for it as he was. He would have picked her up and carried her to the bed and fucked her hard and loud so everyone in the house could hear.

The thought of her screams and pleas made Damon jack himself harder and faster until he was standing on his toes with one hand braced against the wall. He breathed heavily and when the feeling built up in his body, he finally let himself come. He threw his head back and groaned loudly, calling Bonnie's name a couple of times as he shot off into the spray of the shower. He shivered a little and slumped, letting the water wash over him. He felt a mixture of relief and guilt, but at least he'd gotten it out of the way and he could try to focus for the upcoming fight.

After a thorough cleaning, he got out of the shower and dressed. He went downstairs, where everyone else was already huddled and talking strategy in the living room. He immediately noticed that Caroline and Stefan were smirking at him, while Abby was shooting a deadly glare his way. Everybody else seemed busy with plans and didn't even acknowledge his presence.

"What the hell are you smiling about?" he asked Caroline and Stefan.

"Nothing," Stefan said, but he was practically grinning.

"It's not nothing. You two are snickering at me and Bonnie's mom is looking like she might jump over here and behead me."

"Let's just say that maybe the next time you're having a session in the shower, you might not want to say anyone's name," Caroline said. And she was smiling so hard that she looked insane.

Damon's eyes jerked to Abby again, who raised an eyebrow in agreement, and for the first time in a while, he felt the burning sensation of embarrassment in his cheeks. At least Bonnie hadn't heard it. She was standing in between several other Bennetts, nodding and listening while they stood over a large map of Mystic Falls that was sprawled out along the table.

"So if we do the locator spell using Damon's or Stefan's blood, we should be able to find Lily and by extension, the rest of the Heretics, since they were all changed with her blood," Lucy said.

"I didn't think that's how it worked," Stefan piped up.

"Typically, it's not," Bonnie said. "But we've got a lot of powerful magic in this room, so we should be able to finagle something. So who's going to be our volunteer?" Her eyes landed on Damon and she smiled.

"I suppose I can," he said as he sauntered over to her. He made a show of biting into his wrist, and then he let his blood fall onto the map. Immediately, the blood travelled to a spot on the map. Bonnie held up her hands and said some words, which cause the blood to splinter off into several different areas on the map, showing where Lily and the witchpires were dispersed.

"Okay, there we have it," Lucy said. "Let's split up and do this."

"Someone should stay here," Abby said. "To monitor where they go and let us know their locations."

"The quarterback," Damon said. "He's the only useless human in the bunch."

"Damon," both Caroline and Bonnie admonished.

"It's okay," Matt said. "I'll stay. I know that calling me a useless human is actually Damon's way of saying that he doesn't want me to die, so thanks Damon. Love you, too, man."

The girls snickered and Damon rolled his eyes. He almost came up with a response, but he stopped when they all heard a familiar voice behind them.

"You guys should really do something about locking your door."

All heads turned to the sound of the voice, and jaws fell when they saw Ric standing there, armed to the teeth with vampire-killing paraphernalia.

"Ric?" Damon asked in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"It appears some vamp-witch freaks are tearing up my town. Vamp-witch freaks killed my wife. And my twins. So I'm out of retirement." He started tossing guns and stakes and other devices to people. "Load up."

Damon tried not to grin too much at having his old buddy back in action. Instead, he directed traffic and doled out weapons to everyone, including Matt. They all exchanged phone numbers and promised to do updates every half hour. They split up into teams, with Damon and Ric together, and once they all got outside and into cars, Damon called Bonnie aside.

"Hey," he said, right before she got into the car with Abby and Lucy. He eyed them warily and frowned. "You gonna be okay with them?"

"Yeah, I think so. Two Bennett witches and a Bennett vampire. We're good."

He was unconvinced. "What if something happens?"

She cocked her head to the side and smiled in amusement. "What if it does?"

"Are they gonna know how to protect you?"

"I don't know. Maybe they won't. But even if they don't, thanks to you, I know how to protect myself." She touched his arm reassuringly and turned to leave, but he took her hand and stopped her.

"Just in case," he said, and then he bit into his wrist and offered it to her.

"Damon..."

"Take it."

"No."

"Why not?"

"You know why not. I don't want to be a vampire."

"Well would you rather be dead? Because if something happens during this shit show and you get hurt, there's no coming back. I'm pretty sure you've worn out all your 'get out of Purgatory free' cards."

"I'll be okay," she promised. "I'm strong. My mom and Lucy are strong, too. I'm in good hands, promise."

There was a part of him that itched to tell her about his new feelings for her, in case he never got the chance to. But he didn't. He just pulled her into a tight hug and kissed her forehead.

"Text me every five minutes," he said.

"No," she laughed.

"Fine. Every ten. Or I'll come looking for you."

"You know, if it weren't so insane, I'd think your worrying was kind of cute."

"Hey, Bon-Bon," Lucy yelled out of the window. "Quit flirting and let's go!"

Damon growled in her direction but Bonnie nodded. She gave Damon one more hug and walked back to the car. He watched until she was safely inside, and then he returned to his own vehicle, where Alaric was drinking from a flask while seated in the backseat. Damon raised an eyebrow.

"Don't judge," Ric said.

And they were off.

Their destination was the north outskirts of the Mystic Falls forest, not too far from where Damon had been earlier in the day. Night had fallen and after Damon parked, he turned off his car and headlights and dug around his glove compartment for his binoculars. He handed a pair to Ric, who snorted.

"Seriously?"

Damon responded by peering through his own binoculars, and he silently held out his hand for Ric's flask. They took turns drinking in the silence until Damon broke the ice.

"So how are you? Really?"

"I'm breathing," was Ric's gruff response. "Pretty sure my blood alcohol content is constantly near 100%, but I haven't passed out yet so I'll take that as a win." He glanced at Damon. "What's up with you?"

"Same old, same old. Trying to kill my psycho mother and her friends. A typical day in Mystic Falls."

"Mm."

The conversation didn't flow easily like it once had between the two of them, but Damon was happy to have Ric back anyway, even in his current state. He caught him up on the happenings with their group of friends, but just like he had done with Elena, he didn't mention Bonnie. Ric said nothing about the lack of mention, but it weighed on Damon like an elephant. As much as he didn't want to tell anyone what was going on with him, he also really wanted to get it off his chest to a living, breathing person. Even a barely living, breathing person like Ric. If for no other reason than for Ric to bring him back to Earth and remind him about Elena and tell him that Bonnie was way too good for him.

"So there is something else," Damon ventured slowly, trying to work up the courage to tell his friend. Ric only quirked an eyebrow. "I may have developed a small, completely loneliness-based crush on Bonnie."

Damon expected some kind of big reaction, but all Ric did was grunt.

"That's it? That's all you have to say? I just confessed to liking my girlfriend's best friend and all I get from you is a grunt?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. Was this the part where I was supposed to clutch my pearls in surprise? Here, let me try again." Ric's eyes widened and he gasped dramatically as he held his chest. "You like Bonnie? You mean all those years of teasing her and coming up with nicknames like Judgey and Witchy and Bon-Bon and Bonfire weren't just some type of foreplay? You mean that little display outside of the house where you tried to offer her your blood and where you acted like a worried boyfriend wasn't your pathetic attempt at confessing your love right before going into battle? I am truly shocked, Damon."

He smirked and drank from his flask again, while Damon blinked a few times and frowned.

"You're a lot more of a dick than I remember."

"Have you told her how you feel?"

"Obviously not."

"Why?"

"A lot of reasons, duh. Like Elena, for one."

"Elena's gone. She's gone for the foreseeable future. I would think that you of all people know about the pitfalls of waiting a lifetime for someone to come back. It didn't exactly work out with Katherine, did it?" Damon's sour face was the only answer he needed. "Look, man, take it from a guy who's lived and died too many times and lost way more people than one person should. If you like Bonnie, go for it."

It sounded so simple, but Damon knew that it wasn't. There was so much to consider, even beyond the Elena element. Bonnie was his best friend, and he didn't want to lose her.

"What if she doesn't feel the same way?" he asked quietly.

Ric countered with, "and what if she does?"

Those words lingered in the air as they fell into silence again. Both of their phones rang a few minutes later, with messages that several blips on the map were showing up right in their vicinity. The others had been called to join them, and it was time to fight.

So with weapons in hand, they got out of the car and marched into the forest like warriors on a mission. Ric took a stake shooter and a few vervain bombs while Damon had guns loaded with wooden bullets. They split up at a clearing and waited until the the telltale signs of feet crunching on the ground brought them out of hiding. Damon shot first, hitting and wounding one of the witchpires. From there, everything was a blur. More of them came out of the woodwork but Damon and Ric worked together like a well-oiled machine, shooting and killing whatever got in their paths.

"Run!" Ric yelled when he tossed a vervain bomb that hit at least three heretics at once. While they were down, he staked all three of them in their hearts.

A heretic raced by Damon but he turned on his vamp speed and caught the guy. He grabbed him by the collar and fought through an aneurysm long enough to punch his way through the guy's chest and grab his heart.

"Say good night, buddy," he said.

"Damon, no!"

Damon stopped and turned to see his mother behind him, her head extended in a plea for him to stop.

"Do not kill him."

"Oh, Mother, unfortunately, I have to. And you're next."

He moved to take the heart out again, but Lily stopped him cold when she said, "he can bring back Elena!"

Damon froze and slowly looked at her again. "What?"

"Edgar knows how to undo the spell that put Elena in her coma. He can bring her back, but you must let him live."

He looked at Edgar, who nodded emphatically in agreement with Lily. A million thoughts raced through his mind, but all he could think about was how long he had wanted Elena back. He had the chance to do it, but he wouldn't if it meant hurting Bonnie.

"What about Bonnie?" he asked.

"She will live," Lily said as she took measured steps towards her son. "At least, she would survive the process of waking Elena. I still intend to use her for my purposes, though, Damon. I will be immortal. It's a fair trade, isn't it? I give you Elena and you give me Bonnie."

"Damon!" he heard Stefan shout from somewhere in the forest. "Where are you? Are you okay?"

"Your friends are coming," Lily said. "Now's the time to make your decision."

He knew he had only precious seconds to make up his mind, and he looked at Edgar and squeezed the heretic's heart.

"If I let you live, you'll bring her back?" he asked.

"Yes, I swear," Edgar said.

With that, Damon let him go and the witchpire sped off into the night. Damon turned to his mother, who was smiling brightly. Her smile dropped like a ton of bricks when he reached into her chest and grabbed her heart.

"Goodbye, Mother," was his only warning before he ripped the organ out of her chest and she fell dead onto the forest ground. He was still holding her heart when Stefan finally found him. His younger brother's face flashed with hurt, but Stefan steeled himself and nodded. "I'm sorry, brother," Damon said. "It had to be done."

"I know."

He tossed the heart like a piece of trash. "Are the rest of them dead?"

"Mostly. But we do have a problem." Damon could tell from the pensive look on Stefan's face that he wasn't going to like the news. "It's Bonnie. She's hurt. And it's bad."