A/N: Just a quick note to say a big thank you to those of you who knew that I had been in the hospital for a couple of days and sent me kind and adorable messages! I'm okay, now. In pain, but okay. lol

Anyway, I love you guys for favoriting, following and most importantly reviewing this story! Are you ready for some different point of views this time? Happy reading!

Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries or any of its characters. This is a work of fiction written for entertainment purposes, but the original characters and original storylines present in "My Paper Heart" are my own work.

DAMON'S POV

I was on my second bourbon since Maya left. I wouldn't admit it out loud to anyone, but I was actually worried about her. Sure, the girl was tough- and everything but defenseless. But that was pretty much like anyone else in our little gang.

The difference with Maya was that she was emotionally tough, too. The only moments you could witness some of her emotions were when she was with Elena. Maya usually wasn't able to keep her defenses up when it came to her. And I couldn't really blame her for that. Elena had that effect on people, especially on the most guarded ones. I would know.

But even though Elena seemed to be her only weakness, I knew better than that. Her thick walls, brave face and witty comments were the defenses she built up to fight against life. Probably even before she lost her parents. But I knew that underneath all of her tough act was a big, vulnerable, sensitive heart. And I was afraid that Katherine would crush it.

I snapped suddenly out my thoughts. Speak of the devil.

Katherine pushed the door open and walked toward the bar, but I didn't acknowledge her presence. Until she put a hand on the back of the barstool next to me.

"This seat is taken," I drawled, not bothering to look at her while sipping on my drink. She stopped for a second, then deliberately sat down, a provocative look on her face. I kept my eyes on the back of the bar but clenched my jaw tightly. She clicked her fingers at the waiter and ordered herself a drink like everyone was at Miss Katherine's service. The woman had been there for barely two minutes, and I already wanted to rip her throat out.

"Ease up, Damon," she said smoothly. "I'm only here to enjoy a nice drink. No reason to not be civilized."

I took another sip of my bourbon, purposely ignoring her.

"How is your foot, by the way?" she suddenly asked in a light tone, obviously enjoying herself. I groaned through my teeth.

"Why are you still here, Katherine?" I finally gave her a harsh look that had been coming to her all night.

"I have some… interests keeping me in town," she dodged, taking a sip of her scotch gracefully.

"Is that how you call it?"

"Is that the moment when you put on your shining armor to defend your girlfriend?" she mimicked me, but with a clearly amused undertone in her voice. I narrowed my eyes and shot her an angry look.

"She's not my girlfriend."

"Oh Damon… I can't believe you're still going after girls who are not available. I thought you would have learned your lesson by now…" she patronized in a soft tone.

"Don't flatter yourself. She's not into you," I shot back dryly, with a cruel smirk at the corner of my lips.

"I wasn't talking about me…" she trailed off suggestively, mystery shining in her eyes. "But available or not, you do realize she's gay, right?"

"So much for the secret…" I raised the glass to my mouth, a knowing grin on my lips. She narrowed her eyes slightly at me.

"Hmm… so she talks about me," she deduced, a satisfied smile plastered on her face.

"Of course she talks about you. You're making her life miserable! And since we're friends, she tells me everything," I shot back cockily.

"If you say so…" she trailed off suggestively, which, coupled with her previous comment, made me extremely suspicious.

She was so good at those little mind games, but I wasn't going to fall for it right now.

"Stay away from Maya, Katherine. If you touch just a single hair on her head, I will rip your heart out!" I growled in a warning tone, glaring at her threateningly.

"So many threats upon me…" she said playfully, waving her fingers for emphasis. "You should give the girl more credit, you know. She's tough," she stated with an amused smile on her lips. "I've been outrageously flirting with her for a week now and she still hasn't surrendered to my sexiness. It took you barely two days..."

"And we all know how much you love breaking your toys…" I shot back dryly, with a fake grin plastered on my face.

"Aaaw, are we jealous?" Despite her impish tone, I could tell from her cold stare that I had hit a weak spot, and I fully intended to enjoy it.

"I wasn't talking about me exclusively… Stefan and Mason are the only ones I can think of right now, but I'm sure there's more," I answered, my voice dripping with sarcasm. Her smile dropped instantly and her features hardened.

"Believe it or not, Damon, but I'm serious about this." She drank down the rest of her scotch in one gulp and slid off the barstool elegantly. Then, she leaned closer to my ear.

"Besides, you should be flattered… since she looks exactly like you," she purred mischievously, trailing her finger languidly along my shoulder before making her way out of the Grill. I kept myself from breaking my glass between my fingers. Damn, this woman knew how to push all of my buttons.

MAYA'S POV

I hadn't see Katherine since after I left Damon at the Grill. Not even the entire next day. I highly doubted that the reason I gave her for not sleeping with her had gotten the best out of her determination. So not stalking me was really unusual of her, considering her behavior since she had come back in town.

The couple of times it happened before- thanks to Caroline, or Stefan and Damon- I had been beyond relieved to avoid her. But I realized that I didn't feel reliefwhen I noticed her absence this time. The fact that I was regularly surprised that she wasn't showing up through the day eventually mortified me. I was forced to admit to myself that, maybe, just maybe, I missed her a little bit.

But her absence had actually been a good thing. I had been able to focus and spend the afternoon grocery shopping for our girls' night with Elena, Caroline and Bonnie. The plan was to meet at Elena's house and wallow ourselves in junk food while babbling about everything and nothing.

They were still walking on eggshells with me because of my outburst the previous day in the restrooms, so none of them brought the Katherine subject up and I was grateful for that. We actually had a lot of fun. Laughing, chatting about foolish things, playing around and eating way too much. I had been aware all night that it could actually had been the perfect opportunity for me to announce them that I was gay, but there was one thing I quickly learned when I moved in Mystic Falls. Always enjoy the little nice moments to the fullest when you possibly can, because there will always be dramas coming around the corner. So I decided to enjoy the night and wait a little longer before dropping the bomb on them.

I went back to my house at 2am after Caroline imposed a group hug upon us. I dragged myself upstairs and got prepared to go to bed. When I slid myself under the covers, I finally admitted to myself that I had totally chickened out with the girls earlier. I should have told them. But I didn't want to ruin it since we were actually having a really fun night, and that was something that hadn't happened to any of us for way too long. I promised to myself that I would tell them the very next day. While replaying the evening in my head, I drifted off to sleep with a smile on my lips.

KATHERINE'S POV

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Lucy asked me. I could see the judgment in her eyes, and it annoyed me to say the least.

"I'm always sure of what I want, Bennett… now, light your candles and work your magic," I ordered her, waving my fingers boringly.

"And what I am looking for, exactly?"

"Anything."

"I will need you to be more specific than that, Kat…" she insisted, a little amused smile on her lips.

"Fine!" I rolled my eyes in mock annoyance. "Look for anything out of the ordinary. If she's supernatural, find out what kind she is… And if there's a spell cast upon her."

"Anything else?" she asked, raising a sarcastic eyebrow at me. I shot her a warning side glance.

"Okay. But it will take time," she informed me in a resigned tone. She sat down on the floor, surrounded by dozens of candles and closed her eyes. She chanted in her gibberish for what seemed hours and I was starting to pace impatiently, drumming my fingers against my arm.

She finally stopped and opened her eyes swiftly.

"So?" I questioned eagerly.

"It's not working…"

"What do you mean it's not working? Don't tell me you've lost your powers, because then, you will no longer be of use to me…" I drawled in a threatening tone.

"No, it's nothing like that," she started to explain. She seemed to be really baffled about what happened, since she didn't even notice my intimidation. "It's… I don't know. Like I can't get inside her head," she almost whispered with a deep puzzled look in her eyes.

"Then keep trying!" I commanded, a deadly serious expression on my face. She gave me an annoyed but meaningful glance.

"Who is this girl?" she suddenly asked, her voice full of curiosity.

"None of your business. What is your business on the other hand is getting inside her head, so keep trying," I warned icily, burning holes into her skull.

"I don't think it's going to change anything," she said carefully. "I already tried several times- and failed every time."

"Stop thinking and try again. And this time, you better put all of your powers in it…" She held my gaze for a couple of seconds before finally surrendering.

I clenched my jaw with impatience as she closed her eyes again.