A/N: You guys are already amazing but it would be even more amazing if you checked out my new Bamon fic, Echoes. It's strictly Bamon, I promise. Until then, I hope you all enjoy this update!

Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries or its characters. This is intended for entertainment purposes only.

Chapter 4 - The Other Salvatore

Bonnie pulled into the student parking lot to her usual spot the next day to find Stefan lounging against his tiny sports car, waiting for her. He cited a need of her face to be the first he saw that morning as the reason, for he wanted the rest of the day to go well. They embraced, he placed a soft kiss to her forehead, but didn't make a move to her lips, and they started off the school day together.

They didn't speak on the kiss the night before. Bonnie debated bringing it up, but didn't want to demand the "what are we?" conversation too soon. The classes they spent apart, flirty text messages were exchanged. In History class it was announced their next project required a partner and they immediately claimed each other, no hesitation.

"Careful, Stefan," Caroline warned after class. "You steal my best friend, I'll take you down."

Stefan inquired about making weekend plans but Bonnie had to unwillingly decline. "I'm going out of town with my dad to visit his sister," she explained as he walked her to her Prius. "She's in the hospital, been sick for months. He wants to say his goodbye before it's too late."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"But we can get together on Sunday," she said. "Get started on the History project. Presenting in Tanner's class is hell. Anything less than perfect and he'll rip us to shreds in front of the entire class. Elena and I learned the hard way last year when we went to Tyler's party instead of completing our speeches."

"We'll do fine, Stefan promised. "We can meet at my place. 2:00?"

"Sounds good," Bonnie confirmed. Stefan stepped closer to her.

"I know we haven't talked about last night," he started. "I want you to know that, I really do like you, and it meant something to me."

Bonnie raised her brow. "Shut it, Salvatore, and kiss me," she demanded. He didn't need to be told twice. They were kissing again, and once again, Bonnie's heart went racing. She could do this all day.

The sound of whooping and hollering reminded them they weren't alone and they pulled away from each other. A group of jocks and cheerleaders, that included Tyler, Elena, and a silent Matt, were nearby gawking at them. Stefan and Bonnie chuckled and shook their heads in slight embarrassment.

"I'll see you Sunday," he opened her car door for her. "Have a safe trip."

The Salvatore boardinghouse sat atop a large, sprawling, well-kept property. Bonnie had only drove by in the past years, but had never been on the property itself, let alone inside the mansion. As her small legs guided her up the lawn toward the front door, she admired the place. It was well-know that the Salvatores, like the Lockwoods, had money which usually came with being a part of a Mystic Falls Founding family. If Zach or his older brother Giuseppe, had ever had daughters, she'd be a shoo-in for Miss Mystic Falls.

Bonnie had arrived about ten minutes early for she and Stefan's study session. Deciding against waiting in the car, she decided to go to the door and just apologize for her early arrival. She knocked on the large, wooden door but no one came. She knocked a second time but heard nothing from within. Figuring he must not yet be home and she'd text him from the car, turned and started back to the porch steps. Then the door opened behind her. She turned back to see a young man of about twenty-five or twenty-six, was looking out at her.

"Can I help you?"

"Hi, my name is Bonnie," she said quickly, approaching the door. "I'm here to see Stefan. We're working on a History project together. I'm a little early but I can come back if he isn't home yet."

"Ah...you must be the Bonnie." He opened the door wider. He extended his hand. "I'm Damon, Stefan's older brother." Bonnie gave his hand a firm shake. He'd only briefly mentioned his brother before and Bonnie hadn't thought much about what he'd looked like.

Stefan was very broad but Damon was just a bit leaner. In stark contrast to Stefan's caramel hair, Damon's was on inky black, and his eyes a striking ocean blue color. He was ridiculously good-looking, a trait that seemed common in all the Salvatore men.

Damon stepped back. "You can come in. He should be back in a minute."

Bonnie thought a moment. "Uh...yeah, sure. Thanks." She stepped into the house. Damon gave her only just enough room so she had to brush up against him as she passed him and she got a whiff of his cologne. She could feel his eyes glued to her as she strolled down the foyer, taking in her surroundings.

"Beautiful home," she complimented.

"Thank you," Damon replied, as he shut the door. "Pretty soon it'll just be me and Stefan."

"Is Zach Salvatore leaving town?" Bonnie asked curiously.

"He's supposed to be getting married, wants to move and start a family. Some crap like that."

"You don't seem too thrilled."

"Well, I'm definitely not interested in him having any kids running around here," he said, honestly. "This is a kid-free zone." He approached the wet bar, picking up a tumbler and a bottle of bourbon. "Want a drink?"

"Oh, I'm underage...and it's 2:00 in the afternoon."

"Don't judge," Damon responded with a smirk. "Even Stefan likes the occasional drink...ing binge."

"Excuse me?"

"So, what is it you guys are supposed to be doing today?" He questioned.

"History project," she responded with a furrowed brow. "We're study partners.

"Study partners, right," he said with a smirk. "Last study partner Stefan had, I walked in on them studying the horizontal tango."

"And what does that mean?" Bonnie snapped. She was finding herself becoming increasingly frustrated with the elder Salvatore. Was he messing with her? Trying to make her as uncomfortable as possible. Either way she didn't like it and was starting to not like him.

"Nothing. I'm sure you guys will...get a lot done." He gave her a wink before sipping his bourbon.

"I don't know what you're implying but-"

"Bonnie?"

Both Bonnie and Damon turned at the voice to see Stefan in the archway, seemingly confused about the scene he'd come home to. Bonnie's hardened expression melted into a smile. "Stefan! You're back." She approached him and they embraced, Stefan not relinquishing his glare on Damon.

"Was he bothering you?" He asked, plainly.

"Whoa, why would you assume I'm the one bothering her?" Damon asked, defensively.

"Because, unlike you, my girlfriend doesn't take pride in being a dick to people she doesn't even know," Stefan said, slinking his arm possessively around Bonnie's shoulders.

"You've got it all wrong, brother," Damon said, his blue eyes landing on Bonnie. "I'm sure we'll be great friends. Isn't that right, Bonnie?"

"Come on." Stefan turned and steered Bonnie away.

"He's a piece of work," she commented under her breath.

"You have no idea."

He waited until they were in his bedroom with the door closed before speaking again. "I'm sorry about my brother," he said. "He enjoys making people uncomfortable."

"I noticed but I can handle him," Bonnie reassured. "You never talk about him." She looked around his room.

"We haven't always gotten along," he replied. "I guess you can say we're working on it now." Bonnie turned and beamed at him. "What?"

"You know what you did right?"

"No."

She approached him and wrapped her arms around his neck, looking up at him with bright green eyes. "You called me your girlfriend."

"Oh, about that..." he joked.

"No take backsies, Salvatore. You're stuck with me."

He smiled down at her. "That goes both ways, Bennett." Then he was kissing her. It was the kiss that solidified their new relationship. They melted into it, Stefan holding her tightly, his hand wrapped in her curls. Bonnie didn't want it to ever stop. Their kiss intensified, then Bonnie suddenly felt herself being picked up. They were falling back onto the large bed, mouths engulfing each other. The heat was palpable. Bonnie's heart started racing even more when Stefan's hand started to travel.

"Wait...wait," she pulled out of the kiss, causing Stefan's brow to furrow.

"What's wrong?"

"It's getting too hot in here," she said, sitting up. She gently rubbed a bit of her lipgloss from the corner of his mouth. "As much as I love kissing you, that's not what I'm here for."

Stefan sighed, sitting up, the disappointment etched in his face. "Fine, I guess we can start on Tanner's dumb project."

"Your brother told me you're good for this," Bonnie revealed. His face scrunched at the mention of his sibling. "Getting a girl to your room under the guise of studying, next thing you know she's on her back."

Stefan groaned. "We've established that my brother's an ass, why would you listen to him?"

"Are you saying that's never happened?"

"I don't know what you want me to say, Bonnie," he responded with a frustrated shake of the head. "I'm not a virgin, I'm not going to pretend I am, and there's nothing I can do about that now."

"How many?"

"Are you serious?"

"How many girls?"

"It doesn't matter," he said. "None of them matter because their my past. I'm with you now. You're my future." Bonnie couldn't help but crack a smile.

"I'm sorry, I don't mean to sound jealous," she said. "I'm not. I just want to be sure that this is real for you. I've never been with anyone before...ever."

"You mean this is your first relationship?"

"No, that's not what I mean."

Stefan's eyes lit up with understanding. He placed his hand around the back of her neck and guided her toward him, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead. "I can be patient, Bonnie. We can take it as slow as you feel the need. You're worth the wait." Bonnie smiled up at him. I made the right choice, she thought to herself.

"Thank you Stefan," she picked up her bag and pulled her History book from her backpack. "Ok. Playtime is over."

Bonnie hardly drove the Prius to school anymore. Every morning, Stefan pulled up in front of her house in his expensive convertible, ready to take his lady to school, prompting her father to question. "Who's that boy?" one morning after peeking out the window and spotting him out there.

"A friend," Bonnie quickly replied before rushing out of the house. Stefan insisted on coming to the door but Bonnie negated this, saying she wasn't ready for her dad to meet him yet. She'd even sworn her Grams to secrecy, claiming she would tell him when she was ready.

Bonnie and Stefan were easily Mystic High's most notable couple, dethroning Matt and Elena. The football games were twice as fun now, as Stefan was consistently kicking ass on the field, helping the team win more games than ever, and Bonnie cheered her ass off from the sidelines.

Needless to say, the two were attached at the the hip. Stefan was around so much he became ingrained in her crew, and Matt's unwarranted grudge against him slowly but surely melted away. They had a couple double dates with Matt and Elena and actually managed to have fun, although it was clear Matt and Elena's relationship was weakening as Bonnie and Stefan's was strengthening.

"I'm worried for them," Bonnie expressed to Stefan one day, as they sat nestled under a large oak tree on the MFH lawn, a spot they referred to as Oakland. They frequented Oakland during their free period on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and any other times they could escape. They would talk about their day thus far, get some studying done, snack, and steal kisses when no authority figures were watching. It was the highlight of the day for Bonnie. "They've had rough patches before, but never like this. It seems like everything becomes a fight now, and Elena's not the type to fight. I don't know how much longer she's going to put up with this."

"I'm sure they'll work it out," Stefan offered. "She told me she really wants to be with him, he's just making it a lot hard with his jealous ways."

Bonnie's faces scrunched. "She told you that?" She asked in a surprised tone. "When did she talk to you about this?"

"Yesterday in English class."

"Hm." Bonnie nodded. Matt and Stefan were cool, but Stefan and Elena had seemed to develop an actual friendship over the past few months. She knew they sometimes sat together in English, one of the few classes they didn't share with Bonnie. It only made sense their conversations would eventually turn to something other than school, football, and Bonnie.

"Why'd you say it like that?" Stefan inquired.

"Say what?"

"Hmm," he repeated in his best imitation of her. "Do you have a problem with Elena talking to me about it?"

"Of course not, I just didn't know she trusted you like that."

"People tend to talk to me about their personal lives," he expressed. "They say I have a trusting face." That Bonnie could agree with.

"I just feel bad for Matt," she said. "He loves Elena so much, he would be so lost without her."

Not too long after that, a sullen Matt cornered Bonnie outside of the girls' locker room after cheer practice. "I don't know what to do about Elena," he said in a forlorn tone. "I feel like we're falling apart."

"If you want the relationship to work you have to express that to her," Bonnie offered, giving him a comforting rub on the shoulder. "Instead of arguing about everything you guys should try talking things out."

"You're right, I just..." he sucked in a deep breath. "I don't know if she wants to make it work anymore. I can feel her slipping away." Bonnie really felt for Matt. He didn't know his father, had an absentee mother, a wild child sister he could hardly control. Elena had always been the one shining light in his life, and now that light was dimming.

This all prompted Caroline to throw a barbecue. Elena's parents were out-of-town, but her Aunt Jenna was staying at the house and was down for it and agreed to let them have it at Elena's. Caroline's goal was to just have a fun drama-free day.

By this time, everyone had learned that Caroline had shockingly and quite randomly been hooking up with Damon Salvatore. He'd dropped her off at cheer practice one day, in his vintage blue Camaro, shooting a devilish smirk Bonnie's way before peeling off. Care had bounced out of the car, appearing freshly boinked with a hickie the size of a quarter on her neck, which she was attempting to cover with a scarf, and gave a sly smile to Bonnie as well. "I got the other brother, hope you don't mind," she'd quipped before starting practice.

Apparently the two had ran into each other at the Grill one night and it was lust at first sight. Care claimed she'd gotten the best sex of her life that night, completely ignoring the fact that she too young for him and that sleeping with a man three hours after you meet him doesn't always set the foundation for a long-term relationship. Especially a man like Damon.

He happened to show up to the barbecue and when he and Bonnie found themselves momentarily alone in the kitchen she decided to give him a fair warning.

"Listen here, ingrate," she started in on him, brandishing the large, wooden spoon she'd been using to toss the salad. "I see what you're doing with Caroline and if you dare hurt her I will end you!"

"Put the spoon down, Judgy, before you hurt yourself," he quipped, using the nickname he'd donned her with one night after she'd admonished him once hearing stories of his womanizing past. He was being too braggy about running through a sorority and causing the house to fall apart. "Aren't you concerned Caroline might hurt me? What about my feelings?"

"You have to have a heart to have feelings," Bonnie responded, poking him in the chest with the spoon.

"Ouch," he feigned physical pain. "You can relax, all right. We're just having fun, Caroline knows what this is."

"Are you sure because she's going around town calling you her boyfriend?"

Damon's face scrunched. "I never once told her I was her boyfriend."

"It's Caroline, you don't need to say it," Bonnie educated him. "You've been taking her all over town in that car, and sleeping with her nearly every night, what is she supposed to think?"

"Is that what she told you?" Damon snorted. "Look, I call the girl when I'm bored. We hang out, she gives me head, nothing more, nothing less. How about you worry about your own relationship?"

"Why should I be worried about my relationship?"

"You won't have to if you keep your nose out of other people's business and in your own," he said. "Keep your eyes open on the right people, Bon Bon." He moved past her, bumping shoulders as she went and left the kitchen. Bonnie rolled her eyes and followed him out. She found Stefan and Elena by the stairs, sipping stolen beer and cackling about some inside joke unheard by Bonnie.

"Well, don't you two look cozy," Damon quipped as he passed by them, shooting a look back at Bonnie that she didn't like.

"Hey," Stefan said with a smile as she approached. "You okay?'

"Fine," she said then looked to Elena. "Where's Matt?"

"His sister called and he left to go get her," Elena explained. "It sounded like she's gotten herself into some more trouble. He said he'll be back as soon as he can, though."

"Come on guys!" A bubbly Caroline called to them from the living-room. Stefan slowly got up from the step.

"I don't like your brother," Bonnie informed him.

Stefan sighed and wrapped his arm around her. "I know," he patted her shoulder. "I know you don't."

Aside from a few instances of Damon openly flirting with Jenna in front of Caroline, effectively deflating her bubble, the rest of the night went smoothly. Bonnie knew part of Damon's dickish behavior may have been due to what she told him in the kitchen earlier. When she'd tried to warn Caroline against taking her fling with Damon in any way seriously, she'd nearly chewed her head off, so maybe the girl needed to see for herself where Damon's interests lie. It was in sex and sex alone. Not dating, and sure as hell not a relationship.

Caroline managed to be distracted by the good times. They ate, listened to music, played Charades and a hilarious round of Pictionary, and a bit of Just Dance on Kinect. Bonnie managing to outdance everyone on that one. Matt never returned but Elena hardly noticed nor cared.

Around Bonnie and Stefan's four month anniversary, she decided to bring her father out of the dark and have him meet Stefan. On one of the rare weekends he was actually home for dinner, Bonnie invited Stefan over. Grams was also in attendance, which helped both Stefan and Bonnie feel more comfortable about the situation, as Stefan had a great relationship with Grams. Rudy Hopkins was being a hard ass at first, but by the end of the night the two were laughing and yucking it up about sports.

"I think you won him over," Bonnie reported as she walked him to the door.

"I hope so," he said with a sigh. "If he hated me, it could come between us, and I can't have that."

"Nothing's coming between us," Bonnie assured before giving him a long, soft kiss.

Later that night, as Bonnie was settling into bed, her phone started buzzing with a text notification. It was Stefan. 'What are you doing?'

'Getting ready for bed,' Bonnie texted back.

'I miss you.'

Bonnie couldn't help but smile. They'd just seen each other three hours ago and already he was pining for her company. 'I miss you too baby. I wish you could be here with me.'

'So do I.' Then a moment later. 'Look out your window.'

Confused, Bonnie slid out of bed and went over to her window. Opening the blinds she looked down and her eyes widened at the sight of Stefan standing on her lawn, looking up at her. As quietly as she could, she slid the window open and leaned out.

"What are you doing down there crazy?!" She reprimanded in a loud whisper.

"I couldn't stand to be away from you tonight."

"If my father wakes up-"

"He won't. I won't make a sound," he promised.

Bonnie sighed. "Fine, come around to the back door." After checking that her father was sound asleep, she crept down the stairs and quietly opened the door. She motioned for Stefan to be quiet as he entered, then took him by the hand and led him upstairs to her bedroom.

"I can't believe you," she said as she closed the door. "This is what you do after all that work you put in to get my father to like you."

"Spending another minute with you is worth breaking his trust," he said before embracing her. They stayed like that for a long moment, Bonnie enveloped in his warmth, comfortably pressed to his hard chest.

"Are you going to spend the night with me," she inquired.

"If you'll let me," he responded. She wanted nothing more. They'd taken naps together at the boardinghouse, but had never spent an entire night together. Zach, who was to be finally moving away with his future wife by the end of the month, had implemented a no-girls in the bedroom after 10pm rule, a rule that applied to neither he nor Damon. Despite the fact that Stefan was as sexy as the day was long, and he'd made it known he would make love to her the moment she was ready, Bonnie had managed to hold on to her virtue. She wasn't sure how much longer she was going to hold out.

"Hands off Salvatore," she warned as they approached the bed.

"I'll be on my best behavior." He tilted his head to the side, checking out her large posterior in her boy shorts. "At least I'll try." He kicked off his shoes, stripped off his hoodie and made himself at home on her bed. Bonnie switched off the light and snuggled up beside him.

"Thank you, Stefan," she said softly.

"For what."

"For being the amazing guy you are," she elaborated. And she fell asleep in his arms.