A/N: I meant to answer some of your questions I got in reviews and DMs last update but forgot in my haste to post. Yes, I will be updating Enemy, Outsider, and Thief (the new chapter of Outsider is nearly done). As for Renegade, I'll give it my best shot but I'm not making any promises. Again this fic is ALL HUMAN, no supernatural/paranormal elements whatsoever. To the reader who asked if this is a Bamon or Stefonnie story, it's neither. This is a Bonnie story, with MULTIPLE Bonnie ships throughout, which means if there is anyone you've ever even briefly imagined her with you'll probably see it in some form during this story, and some characters that probably never even crossed your mind to have interact with Bonnie, lol. Anyways, on to the update. Please don't curse me out too badly after reading. A writer's gotta do what a writer's gotta do...

Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries, it belongs to The CW. This is intended for entertainment purposes only.

Chapter 5 - Suspicious Behavior

Stefan accidentally left his hoodie at her home and she wore it to school on Monday. Observing that it looked better on her than him, he allowed her to keep it, and she wore it frequently. Their sleep-overs became more frequent as well. Bonnie got caught creeping out of his room one morning.

"We wouldn't be breaking house rules, now would we?" Damon asked with a devilish smirk.

Bonnie huffed. "Sorry, we thought the rules left when Zach did."

"Right, which is why you're sneaking out," Damon sniped, sarcastically. "Only rule I have, Bon Bon, wrap it up, because I'm not going to be taking care of any broody, judgy babies." Bonnie rolled her eyes as he stalked away. She wasn't going to bother telling him she and Stefan weren't having sex yet. He wouldn't believe her anyway.

One night, after Aaron Teller's house party, things did get friskier between the two of them than usual. After being dropped off at the boardinghouse by the designated driver, Bonnie and Stefan toppled onto Stefan's bed, making out very aggressively. Although not drunk, both had alcohol in their system and a burning desire for each other's hot bodies.

Their hands were everywhere, but Bonnie's delicate fingers seemed to be lingering more on a certain hardened area of his body than anywhere else. "You want to see it?" Stefan asked in a rough whisper. She didn't answer, just looked at him expectantly. Stefan took the hint and slowly unzipped his pants, allowing his erection to spring free.

She just stared for a moment. She had felt it through his clothes before, but had never laid eyes on it and there was more of it than she expected. "Touch it," Stefan instructed. She complied, lightly running her fingers up and down his enlarged rod.

"Like this?" She asked in a soft whisper.

"That's good," he responded gruffly.

"How about this?" She continued and Stefan groaned. Her small hand was soon fully wrapped around him, and Stefan knew if she kept at it he would burst. He cursed to himself as she played with him, stroked him, becoming more comfortable and familiar with the most intimate part of him.

"What if I-" Before Bonnie could finish her sexy inquiry, the door was being thrown open. Bonnie shrieked and both scrambled to cover up Stefan's exposed parts.

"Whoops, didn't know you were home," said Damon.

"What the hell are you doing?" Stefan shouted angrily.

"A bottle of my bourbon is missing," he explained. "I came to get it back."

"No one has your nasty ass bourbon!" Stefan yelled. "Get out!" Stefan groaned in frustration and fell back on the bed once his brother closed the door.

"Why didn't you lock the door?" Bonnie chastised.

"I thought I had." He knew the mood was ruined and he would probably be rounding no more bases that night. "I'm so sorry, babe. I'm sorry my brother's a fucking idiot."

"It's fine." Bonnie lay back as well. "Things might have gone a little too far if he hadn't interrupted. Let's just go to sleep." Bonnie suggested, snuggling up next to him. This made Stefan groan even more internally. Aside from the first fifteen years of his life, he'd never gone this long without getting laid, and it seemed like everything Bonnie said and did lately turned him on. He knew she was worth the wait, but who knew the wait would be this excruciating.

The next morning Bonnie awoke to a raging headache."Please, baby, I need Advil," she pleaded to Stefan.

"I'm so sorry but I'm out," he said. "I'll run to the store right now and get you some, okay?"

"Okay," Bonnie said gratefully. He quickly dressed.

"I'll be right back," he promised, giving her a kiss on the forehead. The door was open, and Damon was walking by at this moment. He peered in curiously.

"What's up with Judgy?" He inquired as Stefan stepped into the hall.

"She's not feeling well so please, please don't bother her," Stefan said firmly.

"Moi?" Damon feigned innocence. "I would never." Stefan gave him an annoyed look before turning away and making a swift exit. Damon leaned on the doorframe and looked in on his brother's girlfriend.

"Party a little too hard last night."

"It's just a headache, not a hangover," Bonnie responded in a bothered tone. She groaned as Damon entered the room and approached her. "Please Damon you're only going to make it worse." He ignored her and perched himself on the edge of the bed.

"You know, there was this tea my mom used to make for me and Stefan whenever we got sick," Damon revealed. "I called it Lily's Potion. No matter what the affliction, headache, cold, stomachache, it worked 99% of the time."

"Are you telling me this because you have some or..."

"I can make some appear," he offered. "But there's a condition."

Bonnie rolled her eyes. "Of course there is."

"We call a truce," he said. "Start over. We didn't get off on the best foot, but who knows, Bon Bon, maybe we can be the best of friends."

"I'd rather die of a migraine."

"Ouch."

While Damon went off to brew some of this tea for her, despite the fact she hadn't quite agreed to his terms, she took a look around Stefan's room. She'd had the sinking realization she'd left her charger at home and her cellphone battery had long been in the red. She and Stefan had the same phone but she had no idea where he kept his charger. Scooting over to his side of the bed, she pulled open the drawer. She did spot the charger, along with an array of other things. One thing that immediately stood out was a photo of a young woman and two small boys. Bonnie had never been a snoop but curiosity got the best of her and she picked up the photo to get a closer look.

The woman was strikingly beautiful, with long dark hair, and brilliant blue eyes, eyes that matched those of the elder Salvatore brother. She was sitting in a chair, and beside her with his hand on her shoulder, was a handsome boy of about nine or ten, and in her lap was an adorable toddler. Bonnie smiled as the boy was definitely Damon and the small child was undoubtedly Stefan. The photo was clearly taken during happier times, when their mother was still a part of their life. She placed the photo back in the drawer, next to a small jewelry box.

Bonnie knew she should just grab the charger and close the drawer but the peek into Stefan's life was too tempting. She didn't take the jewelry box out, but opened the top to see a necklace with a silver engraved emblem lying on the velvet, when she was quickly distracted by something else. She had spotted the corner of another picture poking out from under one of Stefan's favorite books, The Alchemist. She pulled it out and saw it was a picture of a teenage girl she didn't recognize. She was ridiculously beautiful, with long, curly, golden blond hair, and wide blue eyes. She was smiling brightly, an almost flirty twinkle in her eyes as she looked not into the camera but past it, to the person holding it.

"That would be the Katherine von Swartzschild." The sudden sound of Damon's voice entering the room startled Bonnie. "Stefan's first love and and first heartbreak." He seemed unperturbed to catch her snooping as he sat her steaming cup of tea on the nightstand and settled down beside her on the bed.

"Are you serious?" Bonnie asked, incredulously. "This is Katherine." Damon nodded. "Why does he still have this picture?"

"Who ever knows with Stefan," Damon said with a shrug. "I distinctly remember him throwing all of her stuff into the fireplace and watching it burn. I guess this one just...slipped through the cracks." Bonnie made a face. "You have nothing to worry about."

"Who said I was worried?"

"Those big, green anime eyes betray you, Judgy," he responded. "Drink the tea before it gets cold." Bonnie put the picture down and did as she was told, blowing on the steaming liquid before taking a sip. She experienced an immediate warm, soothing feeling as she drank.

"This is really good," she stated, impressed. She peered at Damon over her teacup then sighed deeply before setting it aside. "It's just...she's the complete opposite of me. If that's his type, what is he even doing with me?"

Damon rolled his eyes. "I took you to be a lot of things but never insecure."

"Damon, I'm a 5'3, dark-haired, Black girl. she's the opposite on every count. I'm not insecure, I'm confused."

"The Salvatore men don't have a type," Damon explained. "We just love women. My Uncle Zach was with this hot Japanese chick for like ten years, now he just married that gorgeous Black girl from the Channel 8 News. I've had my fair share of every type of woman, and Stefan...Stefan tried to have this phase where he used girls for one thing, but it's not him. He's a romantic. Yes, Katherine was hot, and she had a nice body, and she spoke with this cute German accent that even made me wanna..." Damon trailed off at the look on Bonnie's face. "My point is none of that mattered, she made Stefan miserable. He would never go back to her, if anything that picture just reminds him of how much better he's doing since he left her. You may get on every, single nerve I have but I see how annoyingly happy you make my brother. And you're not an evil bitch. That alone makes you an upgrade from Katherine."

"I think you just accidentally complimented me, Damon."

Damon smirked. "Don't get used to it. Now, finish your tea."

When Stefan returned, Bonnie was propped up on the bed with his down pillows, texting on her phone, and the color returned to her cheeks. The difference from when he'd left was apparent. "This isn't the sight I was expecting," he said, sitting beside her.

"Damon gave me something he called Lily's Potion," she revealed. "It's starting to kick in, my head isn't throbbing as much, What took you so long?"

"I actually ran into Elena and Jenna at the drug store," he revealed as he pulled the tylenol from the bag. "We got to talking and I lost track of time. Sorry, babe."

"I guess you're forgiven."

"Elena wants us to meet at the Grill tonight," he revealed. "You, me, Caroline, Matt possibly Tyler."

Bonnie nodded. "Sounds fun." Stefan then noticed his charger on the bed and his nightstand drawer half open. Bonnie followed his eye line and knew there was no choice but to confess. "Yeah, I looked in your nightstand. My phone was about to die." Stefan nodded but didn't say anything. "You don't mind, do you?"

"A little bit," he said. "But only because there was one thing I didn't want you to see yet and now I'm pretty sure you have." Bonnie assumed he was speaking of Katherine's photo and was about to tell him he had nothing to worry about, she wasn't angry he'd kept it, but he stuck his hand into the drawer and instead pulled out the jewelry box containing the necklace she'd peeked at earlier.

Bonnie sighed. "I did see it. I'm so sorry, Stefan, I wasn't trying to look through your things -"

"It's okay, he said, cutting her off. "This is just something I've had for awhile, it's kind of a family heirloom. I've never given it to anyone but I decided I wanted you to have it."

"Oh, Stefan..."

"I was going to wait until our six month anniversary but I think might be even better," he declared.

"I'm sorry I ruined your surprise."

"It's fine, babe," he said with a smile. "Would you wear this for me, Bonnie?"

"It's beautiful, hon. Of course I'll wear it."

His smile widened as she turned her back to him. She moved her hair to the side as he gently placed the unique piece of jewelry around her neck, clasping it in the back. He squeezed her shoulder and she turned back toward him.

"I swear your too good to me sometimes," she said before their lips met in a deep kiss.

Bonnie didn't make it to the Grill that night. The headache had gone, as Damon had promised, only to be replaced by the flu later in the day, and she was unwillingly stuck in bed. Her Grams came to her house to nurse her back to health. She shot Elena a text letting her know there was no way she could make it, while on the phone advising Stefan against coming to see her, afraid of getting him sick as well.

Caroline called and revealed that she had to cancel on Elena as well, due to her father making a sudden reappearance and stirring up trouble in the Forbes house, and that she knew Elena and Matt had had a huge fight and he wouldn't be going.

"Poor Elena, her whole night fell apart," Bonnie said.

"It's okay, we'll reschedule," Care offered. "Maybe without the guys. Make it a girls' night, get her mind off Matt for awhile."

As Bonnie was growing increasingly tired after sucking down some more of Grams chicken and rice soup, she texted Stefan. 'What are you doing?'

'At the Grill, getting some food,' was the answer she got two minutes later.

'I don't know if I'm going to make it to school tomorrow.'

'I'm sorry babe. I'll come see you after I'm out'.

'OK, miss you.'

'Miss you too.'

She put the phone down and was soon sleeping soundly. She was still coughing and sneezing when she awoke the next morning and knew getting up for school really wasn't an option.

Caroline got the notification that Bonnie would be a no-show as she entered the large, bricked building. She greeted Elena by her locker, they talked about what they could actually remember from the party, and Caroline inquired about the rest of her weekend.

"Aside from the party I didn't do much this weekend," Elena shared as she pulled her books from her locker. "How is everything with your mom and dad?"

Caroline sighed. "His sudden interest in being in my life is irking the hell out of my mom but he doesn't care. They keep picking fights with each other and driving me up the wall, but he isn't going away."

As they discussed her family problems Matt came up to them. "Hey Care," he greeted. "Is it okay if I steal Elena for a second?"

"Sure," Caroline agreed and departed from the tense duo. She started off toward her first class when fellow cheerleader and MF High shit-starter, Tiki Jones, and Amy Bradley flanked her sides.

"So, what's the tea Care Bear?" Tiki questioned. "Matt and Elena, back together?"

"They never broke up, nosies," Caroline replied.

"You sure about that?" Amy asked.

"Why are you asking?"

"What about Bonnie and Stefan?" Tiki went on. "Has the odd couple called it quits?"

"You guys sound like the paparazzi," Caroline said with a roll of her eyes. "If you concentrated on practicing cheers as much as you do nosing into other people's business, maybe I could actually put you on the front line."

"Don't be mad at us because your friends are trifling," Tiki snapped. "Or maybe everyone in your little group is just really, really close."

"At least that's how it looked at the Grill last night," Amy added.

"We weren't at the Grill last night," Caroline said.

"Stefan and Elena were," Amy revealed.

"No Matt, no Bonnie. Just the two of them," Tiki added.

"So...what? Did you see something?"

Tiki and Amy smirked at each other, feeling empowered with information. "Oh, it's not like they were touching or anything." Tiki reported. "They played it cool."

"But we've seen Elena in action before," Amy continued. "She was giving him her fuck-me eyes."

"And he was returning the favor." Both girls flipped their hair and strutted away, feeling accomplished. Caroline looked back at Elena, who was walking away from an upset-looking Matt. When she entered her first class she spotted Stefan in his usual spot, in the middle row. He caught her eyes and gave her a small smile and waved. She settled down one seat over from him and debated within herself for a moment. She finally decided to speak up.

"Stefan, I need to ask you some-" She started.

"Hey guys!" She was interrupted by Elena quickly approaching them, appearing much more cheerful than she had moments ago. She sat between Caroline and Stefan and Care's question died on her lips.

Later on in the day, Caroline was walking to History class when she spotted Stefan and Elena by the restrooms. They appeared to be having a casual conversation but Care zeroed in when the conversation came to a close and they shook hands. As their fingers parted she was sure she saw the corner of a small, folded piece of paper now enclosed in Elena's fist. Stefan stalked away and Elena disappeared into the bathroom. Caroline quickly followed her.

"Hey Care," Elena said as she gussied up in the mirror. Caroline stood with her arms crossed. "What's up?"

"I saw that," Caroline declared firmly.

"Saw what?"

"You and Stefan a second ago."

"We were talking," Elena looked at her like she was crazy.

"He passed you a note!"

"I don't know what you're talking about, Care."

"Are you really going to stand there and lie to me?"

"What's going on with you?" Elena asked, facing her. "Are you suggesting that something is going on with Stefan and I? Do you really thinks I would do that to Bonnie...or Matt?"

Caroline felt a twinge of guilt for feeling such a way about her friend, if only for just a moment. "No...of course not. It's just that...Amy and Tiki saw you guys at the Grill last night."

"Since when do you trust a thing that comes out of those girls' mouths?" Elena asked incredulously. "Look, everyone had cancelled on me so I was kind of bummed but I was still hungry so I went up there to grab some food for myself. I ran into Stefan, neither of us had anything else to do, so we sat down and ate. 90% of the time we were talking about Bonnie." Caroline sighed. "We're friends, Care. We're just good friends."

"I know. It's just that everyone knows how he used to feel about you."

"That was months ago," Elena replied. "He had a small crush that lasted a split second, now he's totally and completely into Bonnie. I have enough of my own relationship drama to deal with without adding another guy into the equation."

"You're right. Sorry for going all cuckoo bananas on you."

"It's okay," she said. "It's all innocent, I promise."

Bonnie was still in bed, watching New Girl reruns when Elena, Caroline, and Stefan dropped by to visit her. They all piled on her bed, despite her protests, checking her temperature and treating her like a sick child.

"I love your necklace," Elena complimented, taking the end of it in her hand to admire it up close.

"Thanks. Stefan gave it to me. Anything happen in school today?" Bonnie inquired.

Elena shrugged. "No, same ol'. Tanner was an ass to everyone, we all fell asleep in Johnson's class."

"Just Elena actually," Stefan spoke up. "She was snoring and talking in her sleep. We woke her up and there was drool all over face. It was really gross actually."

"Shut up!" Elena demanded, playfully slapping him on the shoulder.

"It wasn't the same without you, Bon," Caroline declared.

"I hope one of you brought white rice," Grams said loudly as she entered the room. "I'm out and I need it for Bonnie's soup."

"I can run to the store and grab some, Miss Sheila," Stefan offered.

"I would love that, Stefan, thank you." Sheila said, smiling broadly at him.

"I can go with you," Elena volunteered. "I know the exact rice Grams likes to use."

"Sure," Stefan agreed with a nod.

"Wait!" Caroline cried out, causing everyone to pause and look at her curiously. "I'm sure Stefan can find it on his own. Why don't you stay here with us so we can catch up on the day's girl talk?"

Bonnie raised her brow. "We can do that when they get back. Go on you guys."

The pair started to head out. "Are you sure you don't want me to go instead?" Caroline called after them. "It's really not a problem."

"We're fine, Caroline," Elena called back.

"What's with you?" Bonnie asked her friend after her Grams exited the room.

"Maybe I am being crazy," Caroline said, blowing through her lips. "It's just that..."

"Spit it out, Care."

"Stefan and Elena seem to be getting really close lately."

Bonnie shrugged. "So. They're friends, I think it's great."

"Did you know they ended up having dinner at the Grill last night? She questioned. "Without any of us?"

"No."

"Stefan didn't tell you."

"No, but I'm sure he was going to today," she said quickly. "What are you getting at, Care? I'm friends with Matt, we've had meals together without Elena. He's been in my house without Elena."

"But she always knew about it beforehand, right?" Caroline pressed. Bonnie exhaled loudly. "Look, I wouldn't think of anything of it but I saw them talking today at school and Stefan passed her a note. They tried to be sneaky about it. Elena told me I was crazy but I know what I saw."

Bonnie mulled this over for a moment. "I'm sure it was nothing," she concluded. "Matt and I used to always pass each other notes freshman year."

"That was when you were fourteen years old and you were writing about Tanner's gross nose hair! It's not the same anymore!"

"It was innocent."

"Bonnie-"

"Caroline!" Bonnie exclaimed. "I know Stefan, okay. He wouldn't do that to me! He wouldn't do anything to hurt me. Neither would Elena. Things are getting more serious between him and I. As a matter of fact..." Bonnie looked out into the hall to be sure Grams was nowhere within earshot. "Something happened between us this weekend." Caroline's eyes widened. "Well, almost happened."

"What? What did you do you little slut?"

Bonnie chuckled. "Not everything, but more than we've done before." She sighed wistfully. "I really think he's the one, Care. I think he's the one I want to give myself to."

Care's mouth dropped. "Really? You want to lose your virginity to Stefan?"

"I'm not saying it's going to happen tomorrow, but when it does I want it to be with him."

"All I can say is make sure that you're really ready, and that's he's the one that should receive that honor," Caroline advised. "Because it is an honor. The last thing I would want is for you to have regrets."

"I won't," Bonnie said, confidently. "I love him."

"Really?" She nodded. "Does he know that?"

"I haven't said it to him yet, but it's true," she said. "I know Stefan. He's my best friend. He's not like these other guys. He won't hurt me."

Later that evening, the girls were gone and Bonnie and Stefan lounged on her bed watching How I Met Your Mother. Bonnie, who was propped up at the head of the bed, was more so watching than Stefan, who was lying by her feet texting on his phone. Bonnie had just eaten another bowl of her Grams' soup, complete with the correct brand of rice that Stefan and Elena had returned with, and was starting to feel like herself again, but she was getting a bit huffy. Stefan wasn't being his usual attentive self, seemingly interested more in his phone than conversing with her. She sucked her teeth loudly.

"What's wrong with you?" Stefan asked, finally looking at her.

"Who the hell are you texting?" She snapped. "You've been completely ignoring my presence because you're glued to that damn phone. Give it to me!" She reached out to snatch it from him but he yanked it out of reach.

"What are you doing?"

"Are you talking to a girl?"

"What?"

"Is it Elena?"

Stefan's face scrunched. "Why would you think it's Elena?"

"I don't know, you guys are like besties now," she pointed out. "Care said she saw you passing Elena a note at school today."

"Well Caroline's crazy," he said in an annoyed tone. "Why are you acting like this Bonnie? You sound like a jealous girlfriend and you've never been jealous. It's one of the things I love about you."

"All I'm doing is asking questions."

"You tried to snatch my phone out of my hand like you lost your sense."

"Well, shit, Stefan what am I supposed to think? You're acting all distant! You're never like this."

"What do you want me to do?!" He cried. "I'm not going to be hugging and kissing all over you while you're sick."

"You said you didn't care!"

"I don't but I'm not going to smear your sick germs all over myself," he said. "I'm here, aren't I? You wanted me and I'm here with you. Just you. Look, I love you so fucking much but I am not okay with you creating problems where there are none."

"You...what?" Bonnie sucked in a breath, not sure she heard right.

"I..." Stefan trailed off then spoke again with confidence. "You heard me. I love you."

"You do?"

Stefan moved toward her, bringing his face just inches from hers. "Yes, I love you. Are you going to yell at me about that too?"

"Maybe but only because I love you too," she said. Stefan gave her a hard kiss. "Wait, what about my sick germs?"

"Worth it," Stefan declared and started kissing her again. Bonnie giggled as they fell back against the bed, wrapped in each other's arms.

A/N: So, yeah, I used Katherine from the books rather than the tv show. This fic is all human, so doppelgangers wouldn't fit into this universe. Reviews are love (yes, I know a lot of you are angry right now and I'm sorry)! Until next time...