On the Tip of My Tongue – Part I

Summary: AH – Prequel to 'Why You Gotta Be So Cold?' Bonnie is a young girl on her family's ranch, and Damon, a young, orphaned ranch hand becomes the love of her life. For Perspective, it starts with Damon at sixteen and Bonnie at fifteen.

Song Inspiration: Hate to be Lame – Lizzy McAlpine

…

It's always on the tip of my tongue
But I stop myself from saying it
Tell myself it's not the right time or something dumb
But then you kiss me like you do
And we're right back where we started from

Hate to admit but it might be true
Hate to admit but I think you knew
Hate to be lame but I might love you

…

Bonnie watched him ride with her father with a smile on her face. He'd grown so much in the couple years she'd known him. She had always thought he was cute, but now…he was handsome. The hard work on the ranch had put muscle on his body and he had sprouted almost a foot in the last year. He was made to be on horse; the way Phantom moved with him as if they were one entity, letting Damon lead him through the pastures at breakneck speed.

She straightened as they trotted over and she couldn't stop the giddy smile when he tipped his hat to her with a boyish grin. "Hey cowboy!" She greeted him as she usually did. "I think he likes you." She stated running her hand up and down Phantom's nose. He was still a colt, only three years old, and her dad had said it was about time Damon have a horse to call his own. They spent the whole morning bonding, and she could tell that her dad was enjoying this just as much as Damon was.

"I like him too." Damon swung off the horse, and together they walked him and her father's horse into the stables which Rudy headed to the bunkhouse. "Did your dad tell you? He said Phantom's mine now. My own horse!" She smiled at how excited he was. "I've never had anything that belonged to me except the clothes on my back." He scoffed turning to her with an elated grin as he led Phantom into his stall and locking it shut.

I could belong to you. She thought herself thinking dreamily, then she snapped out of it, glancing away nervously to hide her blush. "Well, we like having you around."

He canted his head, trying to catch her eyes with a knowing smirk on his face. "We? Or you?" He wasn't blind to her obvious crush on him, and he'd be lying if he wasn't crushing on her too.

Bonnie glanced up at him with a wide stare. "What? I mean, well-"

He laughed at her panicked stammering. "It's okay, you can admit it." He tipped the rip of her hat up affectionately to catch her green eyes. "I like having you around too, Bon-Bon."

His teasing made her stubborn and she crossed her arms, shrugging nonchalantly. "You're alright. Kind of a know it all." She started walking back out of the barn leaving him stunned for a second.

Damon jogged a few steps to catch up to her. "Oh I'm a know it all? I think you have that backwards."

She stopped and turned to him, letting her mouth fall open appalled. He found it adorable. "Excuse me?"

He dodged the punch she aimed at his shoulder with a laugh. "It's okay, I think it's cute how smart you are. You're gonna go places one day, Bon."

She blushed at the compliment, ducking her head slightly. "Nah…I like it here. I don't think I'll ever leave."

"Good." He said sincerely. "This place wouldn't be the same without you." Rudy called out to him from the bunkhouse. "Duty calls. See you later?"

"What's later?" She asked curiously.

"Guess you have to show up to find out." He winked. "Dusk. At the barn." Rudy called out again. "Will you be there?" he rushed out walking backwards away from her.

"Count on it." He broke out in a boyish grin before running off towards her dad, who had a stern expression on his face. She bounced on her toes in excitement before running back up to the main house. That boy brought out feelings in her that she didn't think she'd feel at her age. Some times she would dream that one day she'd marry him; that they would live here on her daddy's ranch and live happily ever after. But she knew it wouldn't be long before another girl would catch his eye, like the girls she went to school with; in their flirty short skirts and their long pretty hair, all seductive and tempting. Bonnie knew she'd never be able to compete with that. She was unbearably shy at times and would rather spend her time helping on the ranch than shop in the malls.

…

"What's the hurry, Bonnie-Bee?" her dad asked as she quickly collected her plate after dinner and washed it.

She cast a quick glance outside; the sun was already starting to go down. "I thought I'd go for a ride before the sun went down."

"Don't lie to me Bonnie." He countered firmly and Bonnie's shoulders slumped. "You're going to meet that boy, aren't you."

She laughed in disbelief. "That boy? Daddy, it's Damon. He's my friend."

"It's more than that." He rose from his seat, bringing hit plate into the kitchen and dropping it in the sink before turning to her. "You like him…but he's not for you Bonnie."

She couldn't believe the words he was saying. This was Damon; a boy he raised and loved. Her bottom lip trembled. "Why would you say that?"

He softened. "I care about Damon. I want what's best for him, just like I want what's best for you. But boys like him aren't the kind you fall for and end up living happily ever after." He felt bad for the dejected look on his daughter's face. "I'm sorry, baby girl. I just don't want you to get hurt. Ranch hands come and go; onto bigger and better things, trust me I've seen it. One day he will too." He kissed her forehead sympathetically before leaving her in the kitchen with her thoughts.

She never thought about it that way. He was right. She'd seen it too, and as much as Damon claimed to like it here, he wouldn't stay forever. With a heavy sigh, Bonnie cleaned up and headed upstairs for a bath.

It was an hour later when she walked back into her room, drying her hair in a towel, enveloped in her fluffy pale-yellow robe. She gasped when she glanced up to see Damon pop his head through the window with a mischievous grin. She quickly shut and locked the door behind her before glaring at him. "Are you crazy? My dad would kill you and me if he knew you were in my room." She tossed her hair towel in the hamper, letting her wet hair fall free in a waterfall of slick curls.

He eyes darted around the window frame. "Well technically I'm not in your room, am I?" he reasoned cheekily.

Bonnie rolled her eyes and walked over, crossing her arms. "Very clever. What are you even doing here?"

"You didn't show up tonight. I was just checkin' in on you." He answered genuinely.

She was stunned quiet for a moment. "Um…yeah, sorry. My dad kinda put the kibosh on that." She admitted embarrassedly. "He still thinks I'm this ten-year-old girl that can't be out past 9pm." Bonnie added with an awkward chuckle.

Damon looked disappointed. "Or maybe it's who you're out with."

"I don't think my dad likes the idea of me hanging out with any boy period." She joked, but the disappointment was still clear on his face. "My dad loves you. You're like the son he never had. He just…" she paused, searching for the words.

"He just doesn't want me dating his teenage daughter." He finished, catching Bonnie's look of surprise. "What, like you didn't know?" he chuckled humbly. "What did you think tonight was all about, Bon?"

"You wanna date me?" She questioned breathlessly, with a dreamy smile.

"Bon…you've had me wrapped around your finger since the day I met you. I thought that was obvious." He was now amused by her reaction. "I thought you felt the same…"

"Well yeah…" she laughed bashfully, her cheeks tinging red as she ducked her head. "Of course I like you, Damon."

His lips pulled in a happy smile. "Well, come on then." He nodded out the window.

"What? Now?" Bonnie exclaimed.

"Well, you don't want my big extravagant gesture to go to waste, do you?" he teased. "Come on, get dressed, I'll wait for you."

She shouldn't. If her dad ever found out he'd ground her for life. But she wasn't one to ever disobey him, so he'd forgive her this one time, right? "Five minutes." She pulled the curtains shut and rushed around her room slipping into a pair of jeans and tugging a sweater over her head. She slipped into her converse, and stopped when she passed the mirror on her vanity to apply a bit of lip gloss. She took a calming breath allowing herself a moment to gush over what was waiting for her. Never would she have thought that Damon Salvatore would feel like this about her. She always figured they banter was just the teasing of two friends, but this was everything she could have hoped for.

Even if she did get in trouble…it would be worth it.

When she was ready, Damon helped her sneak out her bedroom window, carefully helping her down the trellis along the side of the house, and grabbed her hand to lead her around the perimeter to the barn. He pulled open the door and gestured for her to go in with a nod of his head, and relished in her gasp when she saw the picnic he'd set up and the portable dvd player queued up with A Walk to Remember, a movie she only recalled mentioning was her favorite once in the time she knew him.

It was the beginning of something amazing between them; they laughed, they joked, and at the end of the night he kissed her before helping her back up to her window. Bonnie was riding that high until the next morning when she bounced down the stairs, ready for the day.

But when she walked to the bunkhouse, expecting to catch sight of him, he wasn't there. "Hey…" she asked Bobby, one of the ranch hands as he secured the saddle on his horse. "Have you seen Damon around?"

He grinned. "Oh, you didn't hear? Your pops drove him up to the Stix Ranch at the crack of dawn. That boy's about to spend the next six months training with the best riders and cattle herders in Wyoming." He missed her disappointment, going back to his duties.

She was livid. Her father knew she cared about him, yet she'd send him off behind her back? She was torn between wanting to cry and wanting to scream. Instead, she made her way back to the barn, wanting to find comfort in the place she shared with him, and right where they were last night was a note with her name on it.

She snatched it up eagerly and smiled.

I'll come back for you. – D

…

AN: Sorry it took me so long to come back to these stories. I have a bunch I've started and I'm trying to add to them a bit at a time. This one was the most complete and I will be back for a part 2 and maybe a part 3. Hoe you enjoyed! - Vanessa