Now's Your Chance

Summary: AH – Bonnie and Damon have been friends since childhood, but she's been carefully guarding the deeper feelings she's developed for him. When she finally decides to tell him, it may already be too late.

Song Inspiration: Fireworks – First Aid Kit

I could've sworn, I saw fireworks
From your house, last night
As the lights flickered and they failed
I had it all figured out

Why do I do this to myself every time?
I know the way it ends
Before it's even begun
I am the only one
At the finish line

…

One Year Ago:

Bonnie trembled as she stood outside the school. Why didn't she bring a jacket? The thin material of her gown left her back and shoulders bare and did nothing to ward off the chill in the air. This was supposed to be a milestone…one of the most memorable experiences of her entire high school life, and yet she couldn't wait for it to be over. She let out a sign of relief when she saw the familiar Camaro pull up to her on the sidewalk, and Damon was quick to get out and meet her.

Concern was written all over his face as he approached, slipping off his jacket and swinging it over her shoulders. "Hey…I came as soon as I could; are you okay?" He rubbed her arms soothingly, searching her tear-stained face for any indication that she wasn't.

She nodded, barely able to meet his eyes. "Yeah, I'm okay. Nothing actually…happened." She swallowed painfully as the flashes of the last hour assaulted her mind.

He expelled a deep breath through clenched teeth. "I'll be right back."

"Damon…" she warned, but it was no use. His eyes were wild and determined.

He handed her the keys. "Get in the car." He moved around her, but she grabbed his arm. "Bonnie…get in the car." He asserted in a low and deadly voice, before he climbed the steps and threw open the front doors. She watched from inside the car, anxiously, biting her thumbnail.

It wasn't long before he was storming out the door, a group of students swarming the halls behind him. He hopped in the car, resting his hands on the steering wheel. His knuckles were busted and bloody and she closed her eyes knowing that her prom date was not left in good shape. "Damon…"

His hands flexed tightly around the wheel. "He's not going to touch you again. I promise you." He turned to look at her, and brushed a fallen lock of her hair out of her face. "I'm glad you called; I don't even want to think…" he shook his head. "Let's just get you home, okay?"

"I'm supposed to be staying at Caroline's tonight…don't really want to explain to my dad why I'm not." She said, her gaze dropping to her lap.

He nodded, putting the car in drive with a reassuring smile. "Okay."

She knew they were heading back to the boarding house before they got to the end of the street. It was her home away from home, and Damon knew she'd be comfortable there. She basically had her own room since she was ten years old. Damon was two years older than her, but their mothers were close which meant they spent many play dates in each others company since birth. Even as they got older, Damon never let their age difference deter him from including her in his plans or cramp his style. They were pretty much inseparable. Things slowly started to change, however, once he went off to college. He was living on campus for the most part and started making new friends, and their time together became less and less, but he was always there for her and tonight was no exception.

Bonnie had called him in tears from the girls' bathroom of the school after her prom date - star quarterback Ben McKittrick, pulled her into an empty classroom, drunk and determined to get what he believed he was entitled to; the implication that came with the night of prom. He pinned her to the desk, his hands roughly pushing her dress up her legs, his mouth sloppily moving over her face and neck; after a lengthy struggle, she managed to push him off her and run into the bathroom. Damon was usually her first call for everything; even though the gym was full of school faculty and her friends, she called Damon.

They settled into the parlor room, and she pulled Damon's jacket tighter around her shoulders as she stared deeply into the fire. He handed her a glass with an ounce of amber liquid and her lip curled up even as she grabbed it from him. "It'll help settle your nerves." He chuckled as he crouched down in front of her. "Are you sure you're okay?"

She took a hesitant sip as she nodded. "Yeah…it's just-" She rolled her eyes at herself feeling silly for being so trivial. "This was supposed to be a big night, you know? I was supposed to spend it with my friends, laughing, celebrating and…I didn't even get to enjoy the first dance with him before..." She mumbled. "It's stupid…"

Damon stood holding out his hand with a lopsided smirk. "Well…my dance card's open." She canted her head with an indulgent smile. "I'm a better dancer than McKittrick anyway. Come on, Bennett."

With a small shake of her head, she shrugged out of the jacket, placed her hand in his and let him lead her to the center of the room. "There isn't any music."

His eyes lit up spiritedly. "I could sing."

"Please don't." She laughed, placing a hand on his shoulder as his arm slipped around her waist. "This night doesn't need to get any worse than it already is." This teasing banter was easy between them; something they had perfected over the years.

He feigned an offended frown. "Ouch." He swayed them gently, as he looked down at her with a bit more of a serious look. "It's getting better now though, right?"

She nodded gratefully. "Yeah, it is..." Tears filled her eyes, and she rested her head on his shoulder to hide them. "Thank you for coming to get me. I'm sure you had plans that didn't involve a fist fight and a crying girl on your shoulder." She tried to joke, but it came out sullenly.

He smiled, resting his chin above her head. "Are you kidding? This has been the highlight of my weekend. Also, and this goes without saying…you look beautiful tonight. Even with the crying." He noticed when he pulled up; the strapless rose gold gown with the intricate beading around the bodice, her hair falling in loose waves over one shoulder, but the look on her face was enough to grab his attention.

Bonnie laughed as she pulled back to look up at him with a watery gaze. "I'm a mess." She admitted.

He chuckled, using his thumb to gently wipe away her tears. "True. But still beautiful."

.

Present:

That was the moment; that was the moment when Bonnie stopped looking at Damon as the boy next door and started seeing him as a man…a man that she could have feelings for. And that's what she had to live with for the last year, every day. It never changed their friendship, in fact, they were closer than ever now that they were both at Whitmore, but internally it ate Bonnie alive. She dated, mostly in an effort to get over whatever she felt for Damon. It never lasted; either she wasn't into it, or they let her down somehow. But there was always someone there to pick up the pieces…

She heard a knock at her dorm door, and a second later Damon entered flopping himself on her bed resting his head in her lap as she was studying. "Hey Bon-bon." He grabbed her stuffed bear and rested it on his chest, playing with the arms.

"Hey…" She drawled, looking down at him. "You shouldn't just walk in you know."

He smirked with a careless shrug. "I knocked."

"What if I was indecent?" she closed her text book.

He tilted his head back to look up at her. "Then I guess I would have been in for a show." Damon chuckled, when her response was to push him off her lap. He sat up reluctantly and faced her indulgent scowl, but there was a ghost of a smile there letting him know she wasn't really mad. "Come on, Bennett…nothing I haven't seen before."

Her mouth dropped open. "The last time you saw anything we were in diapers." She laughed, hitting him with her pillow. "Don't be gross."

He caught it easily. "Gross? Some women would call me charming."

She narrowed her gaze at him with a tilt of her head as she got off the bed. "Some?"

"I'll have you know I won Whitmore's most eligible bachelor!" he defended, his eyes following her as she moved around the room to put her books back on her desk.

Bonnie laughed. "Yeah, and you had to spend your date with Alexis Shaw who is pretty much the most annoying woman on the face of the planet. Not to mention she's been obsessed with you since 7th grade so…" She glanced at him over her shoulder her nose scrunching facetiously. "Did you really win?" She loved this. The teasing, the back and forth…it was a fun game for them and it lit her up inside. She would shoot out a jab and he would flip it and spit it back to her. Bonnie would plaster on a plastic smile, and Damon would hit her with his flashing blue eyes.

He rolled his eyes. "She was the worst…not my best moment." He grumbled. He hopped to his feet, and came to stand beside her still holding her bear. "So…guess what we're doing tonight." He raised his brows, that smirk that somehow turned her insides to mush prominent on his face.

Bonnie had to pull her gaze away to fiddle with things on her desk to hide the blush. "Uh, I think it's safe to assume it will involve alcohol?"

"The guys at Zeta house are throwing a mixer." Bonnie shot him a skeptical look and he raised his hands. "I need a date." He knew that frat parties weren't really her scene, but he knew that once she got there, she always ended up having a great time.

"And something tells me you won't have a problem finding one." She mumbled.

He rolled his eyes. "Not one I actually like." He shot her a lopsided smirk.

"I'll think about it." Drinking was probably not the best idea around him right now. As it was, Bonnie was having to hold her tongue to keep from saying things she knew she shouldn't and when she drank there was zero filter.

"Oh come on, Bon! You know I won't have any fun unless you're there." He put the bear in front of his face, bringing its paws together in a pleading gesture. "Please?" He begged using Ms. Cuddles' voice that he made up when he was seven. He peaked around it with one eye open to see her reaction and was pleased to see the beginning of her uncontrollable laughter. "Please Bon-bon…do it for Damon."

She burst out laughing, and grabbed Ms. Cuddles throwing her on the bed. "Okay, okay! But only 'cause Ms. Cuddles said." She pointed a finger at him, and he grabbed her hand in both of his bringing it to his lips.

"Thank you! You'll have fun, I promise." He vowed with a happy smile. She slowly pulled her hand away and tucked her hair behind her ear. He did things like that often, and it never bothered her before because that's just how he was, but now it felt like his kiss burned right through her skin. How could she say no to him? He'd pin her with those baby blues or flash a smile like that, and she would literally do anything he asked. "Come by around eight. Love you." He kissed her forehead and headed for the door. "And don't bail on me this time." He called over his shoulder.

The second the door click behind him, she plopped into the desk chair as if she suddenly lost all will power to hold herself up. Ugh, this is torture! She dropped her head to the desk surface, with a dramatic sigh. It felt like so much work just to hide how she was truly feeling. The last thing she wanted was for it to weird him out and have it put a strain on their friendship, because Bonnie valued that over all others. She was willing to pretend like he was just her sexless male friend if it meant preserving the relationship they built. And she had done a good job at not only hiding it from Damon, but all of their friends too. The only exception was Caroline, who found out at Bonnie's nineteenth birthday party two months ago.

They were all in the kitchen of Bonnie's house, and Damon was heavily animated describing a fond memory from their childhood; she had fallen in the river, and Damon had to jump in and pull her back to shore; something that Bonnie should have found embarrassing if it wasn't for how happy he was to tell it. He always liked playing the hero. Bonnie was watching him and Caroline was watching her…and it all clicked.

At the end of the day, Bonnie came through the door of her dorm, dropping her bag and plopping on the bed happy for her classes to finally be over for the day. Caroline popped her head out of the bathroom with a smile. "Hey! How was class?"

"Fine…long." She shot a glance at her friend curiously. "Going somewhere?"

Caroline came to stand in the doorway, with a towel wrapped around her and her wet hair falling around her shoulders. "Yeah, the Zeta party, we can go together!" She turned to go back into the bathroom, putting lotion on her face and arms. "You're coming right?"

Bonnie sighed following her friend and taking her place in the doorway. "I don't know…I told Damon I was, but I think I might just stay in."

The blonde met her eyes in the mirror. "When are you going to stop making excuses and just tell him how you feel? Seriously?" Bonnie loved that about Caroline. No bullshit, straight to the point, but it also meant she couldn't get off the hook that easily.

"Right…" Bonnie scoffed. "Because it's that easy."

Caroline held her stare. "Yes, it is. Look, Damon has known you longer than any one of us, and regardless of whether or not he feels the same way, it's not going to change the fact that you are his best friend. But you holding this in is killing you…sometimes you just have to take a leap of faith." She finished as she started applying her make up.

She couldn't disagree with her there, but her lips twisted contemplatively. "And if that leap lands me right on my ass?"

The blonde turned with a reassuring smile. "Then at least you can say you took the chance."

…

It was almost nine o'clock when Bonnie and Caroline got to the Zeta Sigma house. She debated back and forth with herself for an hours before she finally decided to tag along with Caroline. She picked out an army green dress with a v neck and a cropped black leather jacket, and topped it with knee high black suede boots. Her hair fell in loose beachy waves just skimming her shoulders.

As they entered the house, it was clear that this was more than just a small mixer; it was a full-blown college party. She shook her head with an ironic laugh as they moved through the house, pushing passed people just to get through the foyer.

"Oh, there's Tyler!" Caroline yelled over the music. "I'll find you later?"

Bonnie nodded as Caroline darted off in the direction of her boyfriend, leaving Bonnie to wander around. She finally found Damon in the kitchen with a group of some of his friends doing shots at the island. He spotted her and she threw him a little wave as he came around to wrap her up in a hug.

"You made it!" Her feet barely touched the ground, and she was so close to him she could smell the manly scent of his cologne and shampoo. "I thought you were gonna stand me up." He joked as he pulled away.

Bonnie saw the lazy smile on his face and judging by that and his warm hands resting on her shoulders, he'd had a fair share of those shots; he was quiet handsy when he was drinking. "Are you drunk already?" She laughed in amusement.

He raised his finger and his thumb, holding them an inch from each other. "A little bit."

Bonnie joined in on the shots; laughing and joking with his friends until they slowly dispersed to mingle, leaving the two of them to get lost in conversation for the next hour.

"I miss you, Bonnie." He said with a nostalgic smile.

She shot him a narrow glance, her hazy eyes showing her tipsiness. "You just saw me today."

"No, I miss this…" he waved a finger between them. "The one on one, the long talks, just you and me like old times. I feel like lately…you've been pulling back." He admitted, his eyes piercing right through her imploringly.

Bonnie found herself getting lost in them for a second and pulled her gaze away to look down into her drink cup. "I'm not pulling back." She denied quietly. But she was…it was too hard to be around him as often as he used to be. She didn't trust herself falling asleep next to him after their movie marathons, and she couldn't bear the thought of him talking her ear off about a new girl he was dating; it was easier to keep him at arm's length.

"Yeah, you are…" he let out a concerned sigh. "Did I do something to piss you off? I know you women like to let us figure this stuff out on our own, but can I at least get a hint?" he joked with a chuckle.

Biting her lip to hide her embarrassment, she glanced up at him. "No…you didn't do anything. I've just had a lot on my mind with classes and-and…" she took a deep breath and blinked rapidly as she tried to come up with a justifiable response.

Then Caroline swooped in, intent on stealing her away for some dancing. As the blonde grabbed her arm, Damon swung an arm around Bonnie's shoulders and playfully pulled her closer.

"Hey! You are cutting into quality Bonnie time here." He scolded.

Caroline shot him a drunken wink. "I promise I'll give her right back."

Bonnie shrugged her shoulders, and slipped out of Damon's grasp and he watched her go with a look in his eyes she hadn't seen before. She chalked it up to the many shots and let her friend whisk her away.

Caroline leaned in as she linked arms with her. "You were panicking."

"He totally caught me off guard." Bonnie agreed. "Since when do I get all stammery around Damon?"

Caroline handed her the drink in her hand. "Here, drink. You need to loosen up, Bon."

They danced around, laughing and throwing their hair about to the upbeat club song, and Bonnie glanced up to find Damon watching them from the doorway.

"Go talk to him." Caroline urged.

Bonnie nodded, and as she walked over, she bumped into someone. "Oh, sorry!" But when she saw who it was, she stumbled back. "Ben…"

He broke out into a creepy grin. "Hey! Look who it is!" His eyes raked up and down her body. "Looking good, Bennett."

"Excuse me." Bonnie tried to push passed him but he grabbed her arm. "Let go of me." She hissed in a trembling voice.

"Hey, easy…I just wanted to talk." Only seconds later he went stumbling backwards as Damon shoved him hard.

"I thought we had a talk about what would happen if you ever put hands on her again? Do I need to remind you of that conversation? I vaguely recall it ended up with you breaking your face on my fists." He ground out standing in front of Bonnie and towering over Ben.

"And in swoops the knight in shining armor." He drew the attention of half of the party, and people started to crowd around. "Is she giving it to you yet, Damon? Or are you still in the friend zone with the rest of us?" he taunted. Damon swung a punch that hit Ben square across the jaw, and he fell to the ground, touching his face gingerly with a drunken laugh. "I'll take that as a yes."

Damon stood over him, staring down at him with a wide-eyed seething glare. "Get out. If I see you near her again, I will break your throwing arm." He stormed off, grabbing a full bottle of whiskey from the table on the way.

Bonnie watched him go, wondering what the hell had just happened. She hadn't seen him this violent before, although she did know he was capable of it; it was a side of him he generally held back around her. As she was about to follow him, her friends came over to see if she was okay, as Stefan and a couple others picked up Ben and tossed him out the front door. By the time she got away, Damon was nowhere to be found. Getting concerned, she decided to check upstairs in his room, and was relieved to see him there, sitting on his bed with his back to her, facing the window. The moonlight created a silhouette of his frame, and she admired him for a moment before walking in and sitting beside him.

"Hey…" His shoulders were hunched and the half empty bottle dangled between his finger tips. "How's your hand?"

He glanced at her then back down to his hand. "Don't even feel it." He mumbled, flexing his fingers.

Bonnie pulled the bottle from his grasp and put it on the ground as she cradled his bruised hand. "Must be all the booze." She joked, but he didn't laugh. "Damon, I'm okay…"

"I know. I just saw the look on your face when he touched you and I snapped." He met her gaze finally, and even though she could see the drunken glaze of his eyes, the sincerity was there. "You know I'd never let anyone hurt you. You know how much I love you, right?"

Bonnie smiled; it stung about as much as it warmed her heart. "Of course…you're my best friend. I love you too." Her voice caught in her throat, wishing she could show him just how much she meant that.

He let out a deep sigh, pulling his hand out of hers and running it over his face. "Think I'm gonna call it a night." He mumbled, falling back onto his pillows.

Bonnie nodded, and stood. "Okay. I think I'm gonna head out anyways." She pulled his shoes off for him and brought his legs up on the bed.

He grabbed her wrist gently. "Stay. Just lay here with me?"

The air got sucked out of her lungs. "Sure." Slipping out of her boots and jacket, she lay down beside him looking at his profile as he closed his eyes.

"Goodnight, Bon." He whispered sleepily.

She gazed up at him longingly. "Goodnight."

…

Early the next morning, Bonnie slipped out from under his arm, that was draped possessively over her waist. It felt amazing to be so close to him, but it was also dangerous territory. Brushing the hair off his forehead, she placed a delicate kiss there, and collected her boots and jacket before tip toeing out of the room.

She didn't see much of him after that. Over the next couple weeks, they exchanged texts, and he'd occasionally pop by as he usually did but his attitude was tense and repressed. When she questioned him on it, he would brush it off and force a smile saying that finals had him stressed out. Bonnie knew better than to push him on it, knowing that he'd eventually come around. But finals came and went, and still he was distant.

There was an anxious pit in her stomach, and every time she tried to reach out to him, he made some excuse as to why he couldn't see her. So that's why she was standing outside of the Salvatore boarding house, ready to clear the air once and for all. It was the big summer starter party Damon and Stefan threw every year, and Bonnie thought that it was the perfect opportunity to finally tell him how she felt; new beginnings.

She didn't bother knocking, and entered the house to see it in full swing and she eagerly sought him out. One of his friends pointed her in the direction of the backyard, and the smile dropped from her face once she made it out there.

People were laughing and swimming in the pool, music was playing and lots of girls in bikinis were dancing around, but what really stung was seeing Damon sitting in one of the lounge chairs, with Elena Gilbert on his lap giggling as he whispered in her ear. He raised to his feet and swung her over his shoulder, earning a shriek from her as he walked them to the pool. She screamed as he threw her in and jumped in after her.

The pit in her stomach rose and clenched in her throat. Is this why he didn't have time for her? She tried not to cry as she turned and rushed back into the house.

Damon just caught sight of her as she was leaving, and frowned to himself before Elena popped out of the water to splash him.

…

It was a couple hours later when Stefan walked into the study for a brief moment of peace from the chaos. He tolerated the parties for Damon's sake, but sometimes he craved the alone time.

"Sorry…" he heard the slurred mumble from the couch. Bonnie looked over the backrest making her presence known. "I was gonna leave, but someone blocked me in."

Stefan smiled, coming around to sit beside her. "Hey, Bon. I didn't know you were here." He noticed her intoxicated state and raised his brows amused. "Are you drunk?"

"Yup." She nodded. "I raided your bourbon stash…shh." She lazily put a finger to her lips and giggled.

Stefan chuckled. "That's Damon's stash, but I'm sure he won't mind."

Bonnie held up a hand. "Can we not…talk about Damon?"

He reeled back in surprise. "You guys fighting or something?" Then it dawned on him. "Is this about Elena?" Bonnie glanced at him sharply. "I'm guessing he didn't tell you about that…and you had to find out first hand. I'm sorry."

She huffed a sarcastic laugh. "He doesn't owe me anything."

"Maybe not…but seeing someone you love with someone else is never easy." She eyed him nervously. "Yeah, I know. That's what happens when you watch the people around you…you pick up on things. Like how when he looks at you, you light up. Or when he speaks, he has your full attention, no matter what's going on around you."

Bonnie swiped at the tear that fell, and dropped her gaze to her lap. "He doesn't know, does he?"

Stefan sighed, resting his elbows on his knees and rubbing his palms together. "No…but you should tell him."

She scoffed. "I was going to…but what's the point now? Have you seen them together? Could have sworn I saw fireworks." She grumbled sourly.

"Yeah, I saw." He mumbled back sullenly, dropping his head.

She watched him sympathetically. "You like her, don't you?"

Stefan nodded. "I guess I should take my own advice, even if she doesn't feel the same way."

"I'm sorry." Bonnie leaned into him, resting her head on his shoulder, and he wrapped an arm around her in comfort. They were never as close as she and Damon were, but she'd known him just as long, and Stefan was more like a brother than anything.

"What's going on in here?" Damon sauntered in, dressed in jeans and a t-shirt but his hair still wet from the pool. He eyed his brother with a hard glare.

Bonnie sat up, wiping her eyes, and Stefan moved his arm. "Nothing…" She got to her feet, and straightened her shirt.

"Doesn't look like nothing." He snipped back, keeping his gaze on his brother. He turned to Bonnie, his gaze softening as he stepped towards her. "You okay…are you crying?"

She avoided his curious stare. "I'm fine. I'm going to go." Damon caught her when she stumbled.

"I don't think you should be driving…" He noticed her wobble on her feet. "Go up to my room, I'll be up in a minute."

She made her way up the stairs, using the railing to help herself up, and Damon turned to his brother. "What the hell did I just walk in on, Stef?"

Stefan stood exasperated with his brother's accusation. "Nothing happened, she was upset and I was comforting her. It wasn't a big deal."

"And since when are you and Bonnie so close?"

Stefan rolled his eyes. "I've known her just as long as you have, Damon. And why do you care what happens between Bonnie and I? She's your friend, I'm your brother…I'd think if something were to happen, you'd be supportive." Stefan of course had no intentions of starting anything with Bonnie, but he found it curious how defensive Damon was being.

Damon stalked towards him. "Well, you thought wrong. She's off limits, do you hear me? She's not your next fling or a drunken hook up. I promised her that I'd never let anyone hurt her…and that includes you."

Stefan scoffed. "Does that include you too?" Damon frowned, cocking his head. Stefan pointed up the stairs. "Why don't you ask her why she was crying and tell me again who's more capable of hurting her." The younger Salvatore stormed off, leaving Damon to think over his words.

Taking the stairs two at a time, Damon made his way up to his room and found Bonnie lying on the center of the bed. He walked into the adjoining bathroom, bring her back a glass of water and sitting on the edge of the mattress.

"How you feeling?" She sat up slowly, taking the water he offered her.

"I've been better. Thanks." She took a long sip, and placed the glass on the nightstand.

He waited for a few moments for her to say something, and when she didn't, he questioned her gently. "Do you want to tell me why you were drunk and crying in the study?"

"Not really." She answered honestly. "How long have you and Elena been a thing?"

Damon frowned, taken aback by the random question. "Its new."

She nodded. "I guess that explains why you've been too busy to see me."

"That's not-"

"It's fine. You don't owe me an explanation or anything." Bonnie forced a smile, meeting his gaze. "Elena's great." She wouldn't consider her a best friend, but they all hung out in the same crowd, and Elena was always really sweet to her.

He watched her intently. "Soo…me and Elena doesn't bother you? Nothing's really happened, and it's not serious or anything but I know she's your friend. I wouldn't want it to be weird for you." He uttered awkwardly.

She shook her head, tucking her hair behind her ear and dropped her gaze again. "No, no…she's good for you. You look happy." Why did she do this to herself? Her mind was telling her to say one thing but her mouth said another.

His jaw set tensely. "You're sure? You're completely okay with this?" his tone was sharp and incredulous as he stood suddenly.

Bonnie blinked. "Yeah…wait, why are you getting mad at me right now?"

"Because I know you're lying to me, Bon! I know your tells; you can't look me in the face, you play with your hair and your voice goes up a couple octaves." Damon took in a deep breath. "Why were you crying earlier?" he asked again, but this time it came out as more of a demand. Bonnie only held his stare with a look telling him she wasn't going to answer. "Okay, fine. Do you know why I started seeing Elena? I got tired of waiting, Bonnie! I got tired of trying to prove to you that I can take care of you – that after all these years, and all the guys that have let you down, I haven't. I got tired of letting you brush me off every time I grabbed your hand, or tried to hold you." He let out a shaky breath. "I got tired of just being your best friend."

She was shocked into silence, staring at him with wide stunned eyes like a deer in headlights. "How did I miss that?" She asked quietly to herself.

Damon threw his arms up as he paced the floor. "I don't know! I've only been throwing signs at you for the last two years!"

She clamored off the bed. "Two years?!"

"I thought maybe you'd come around; maybe one day you'd see me the same way, but when I told you I loved you that night you just…brushed it off and I – I just couldn't do it anymore. So, I gave up trying…" He explained in a passionate burst.

Bonnie took a calming breath as she slowly walked towards him. "I saw you with her…by the pool…that's why I was crying." Bonnie dropped her head feeling exhausted and like she wanted to crawl in a hole. "I was jealous, and hurt and it's my fault because I had so many chances to tell you…but I was scared." Her eyes swung up slowly, gauging his reaction.

Damon reached up to swipe the tear that slipped down her cheek. "You don't ever have to be scared with me, Bonnie." He sucked in a breath, licking his lips with anxious anticipation. "So…now's your chance." He said softly.

"I…have feelings for you, Damon." She expressed slowly.

There was a ghost of a smile on his lips. "You do?"

Bonnie nodded. "Things started to change for me on Prom night…after everything that happened, you still managed to give me the night I deserved."

Damon's eyes flitted over her face as he brushed the hair behind her ear. "Things changed for me long before that. I love you, Bonnie, and if you aren't there yet-"

"Oh, I'm there." A happy huff of laughter bubbled in her throat. "I love you too." She watched as he slowly leaned down, at an agonizing pace, his fingers tilting her chin up so his lips could meet his. Their first kiss wasn't hurried or frantic…it was a slow burn that consumed them both; a build up of years of repressed feelings pouring into each other.

Damon pulled away before it went too far. They were feet away from his bed, and he didn't was to rush things with her. He rested his forehead on hers. "I have wanted to do that for a long time." He chuckled and she nodded in agreement. "Are we doing this? Please tell me we're doing this."

"We are…I can't believe this is happening." She whispered with a beaming smile.

"I can. I think a part of me always knew that we'd end up together." He admitted. "I just hoped you'd clue in sooner." He teased. Bonnie slapped his chest playfully, and he grabbed her hand bringing it to his lips. "I'm not letting you go now; you know that right?"

Bonnie linked her hands around his neck. "Good." She crushed her lips to his again, and this time it was needy and eager; Damon's arms snaked around her back holding her tightly to him. They forgot about the party downstairs, and spent the rest of the night cuddled up in his room, with snacks and movies that they didn't watch, too consumed with this new part of their relationship. It wasn't sexual…there was plenty of time for that, but they bonded on a far deeper level as they finally succumbed to their feelings. So, as they lay next to each other staring into each others eyes, Bonnie felt it.

Fireworks.

…

AN: I've been working on this one for a while, and FINALLY got it finished, lol. Hope you enjoyed it! Thanks - Vanessa