Damon was moving back and forth between the counter and the stove. Due to his brother's ingenious idea of having a dinner party, the Salvatore brothers had been in the kitchen all day preparing the 5-course meal they had planned for their impending guests. The night's menu consists of watermelon carpaccio, a vegetable salad with vinaigrette, crab-stuffed ravioli with truffles, roasted potatoes with creamy pork tenderloin and garlic green beans, and cannoli cheesecake for dessert. If Damon Salvatore was going to have a dinner party, then it was going to be one to remember. With dessert done and resting in the refrigerator, the brothers divided the menu and got to work.
"Brother, you're doing that wrong." Damon looked over at Stefan, who was watching him work.
"No, I'm not; I know what I'm doing." Damon retorted. He knew what he was doing; he has made raviolis before. Granted, it had been a while since the last time he made them, but Damon wasn't going to tell his brother that.
"No, you don't." Stefan corrected his brother, who he was now standing next to, reaching for the ravioli in said brother's hand.
"Stop it; I know what I'm doing." Damon swatted Stefan's hand away. Damon sent him a pointed look, telling him to go back to his station.
"Okay fine." Raising his hands in surrender, Stefan steps backwards. "But if those taste bad, I'm blaming you."
"They're not going to taste bad. I've made them before." Damon defended. Damon had been in the kitchen for a few hours already, making the raviolis from scratch. When he and Stefan made the trip to the grocery store to purchase the ingredients for tonight's dinner and had run into the Gilbert family and Alaric, Baby Gilbert had made the comment to just buy the packaged raviolis. Damon had to stop himself from killing Jeremy for that comment. He could feel his undead, decayed soul withering at the thought. Surely his grandmother would have risen from the grave if he ever did such a thing. His grandmother had taught him how to make raviolis when he was a small boy. Being of noble birth, she had no need to cook; however, she had learned as a way to keep herself occupied as her duties were transferred over to his mother. To spend time with her, Damon would sneak away from his lessons to help her cook or bake whatever she had decided to make that day. She had passed from illness before Stefan was born, and Damon would forever treasure those memories of her.
However, it appears Jeremy wasn't the only Gilbert who wasn't incredibly bright, as Elena giggled how she had never seen them at the grocery store before. Like, um, hello vampire. Stefan and he hardly ever ate human food, even much less cooked it, and if they did, well, he wasn't a plebeian. Damon would normally pay to have his groceries, and all other essential items delivered.
"I think Someone is here?" Damon didn't even bother to look up from his work to answer his brother. "That should be Ric. He said he would swing by early to help set up. I think Caroline should be here soon as well. You know how she likes bossing people around." As if on cue, Ric walked through the front door with what sounds like a ton of bags. "We're in here, Ric." Damon calls out. A few seconds later, Alaric is walking into the kitchen door with what appeared to be board games.
"Hey! It's just Jenna and me for right now. Elena said she would come over later with Jeremy and Bonnie." Ric began to unpack the bags of board games and other miscellaneous items they brought. "Here you go, buddy. This is for you." Ric sets down a bottle of wine and bourbon next to Damon, who thanks him before turning back to his raviolis. About 10 minutes later, Caroline and Liz come barging in through the front door. Well, Caroline was barging, and Liz walked through like a civilized human being. "Liz, so glad you could make it," he said, greeting his friend.
"Hi sheriff." Stefan waved from where he was standing. Why is he always just standing around? Liz greets Stefan before addressing Damon. "Yes, well, I had to meet the girl who has apparently stolen the heart of the one Damon Salvatore." Damon whirls around to stare at his friend with an incredulous look. "Stolen my heart? Liz, come on. Why would you think, much less say such a ridiculous thing?" Liz raised her hands in defense with a shrug of her shoulders. Damon realized it was one of her police tactics when she's trying to defuse an intense situation. She will play the role of ignorance and innocence to appear harmless and at ease.
"I'm just repeating what Caroline told me," She defended. Damon rolled his eyes. "Caroline is the last person you should be taking factual information from," he argued as the gossip queen strolled into the kitchen. She was obviously listening to their conversation. "Mom don't listen to him. He's lying. He was completely dumbstruck." She sat on one of the stools in front of the island. "His mouth was open and everything."
"It was not! And I was not dumbstruck." Damon couldn't believe what he was hearing. The thought itself was absurd. However, Caroline thought otherwise.
"Oh, you so were," she retorted. Before Damon could respond, Jenna walked through the kitchen entryway.
"Oh, do tell. I want to hear all about Damon fumbling and falling over himself like a little schoolboy. Who is this girl?" she jested.
"Her name is Felicity, or as he likes to call her Felicita." Caroline makes a gesture with her hands, emphasizing Felicitia. She was too invested in the recent turn of events and his relationship with Felicity.
"That's her name." He exclaimed.
"Well, at least it is in Italian, which you haven't spoken since we were humans." Damon turned to stare at his brother with a look that screamed, 'Whose side are you on?' Stefan could do nothing but shrug at his brother. Caroline continued to talk before anyone could say anything else. "Anyways, He couldn't stop staring at her." She tells Jenna before looking back at Damon, "When Stefan called your name, I honestly thought you were going to murder him."
"Sorry, buddy, but she's not wrong." Ric patted Damon's shoulder in solemn acceptance. Damon was speechless, completely applauding at the conversation happening before him. The group poked fun at Damon's denial. After all, what are friends for?
The group eventually left the brothers alone to go finish setting up the games, table, and drinks. Caroline decided the silverware and tablecloth were not appropriate for a dinner party and took it upon herself to decorate the dining room. While Jenna and Ric organize the entertainment activities for after dinner. Damon finishes stuffing the raviolis, and all that was left was to boil them. Liz moved around the island to assist the brothers in finishing dinner. "Mom don't help him. You're his guest," declared Caroline as she walked back into the kitchen.
"I'm being polite, Caroline." Liz said, correcting her daughter.
"Yeah, Caroline." Damon smirks, knowing how much it irritates her. Caroline scoffs and glares at him. "Oh, very mature of you. Don't they teach you how to be a gentleman in your time period?"
"Please. I'm always a gentleman." Damon smirked wickedly. "To ladies." A look of astonishment plastered itself onto Caroline's face. "What is that supposed to mean?"
Before the argument could go any further, Elena could be heard arriving with Jeremy and Bonnie along with a couple of strays. The teenagers proceeded to walk into the house like they owned the place. Damon can hear Bonnie and Jeremy talking, "See, I told you we weren't late." She tells him before Jeremy points out that she still took forever to get ready.
"Hey. Sorry we are late," greets Elena as she walks over to hug Stefan. Jenna asks Elena what took so long as they were supposed to help set up.
"I think the more important question is who invited the lost boy and his dog," Damon asked, indicating to Matt and Tyler. Stefan quickly scolded his brother before Elena vehemently claimed that she did. Of course she did! Damon throws her a look before informing Liz he was going to freshen up.
Damon went upstairs to quickly shower. A little while later, he emerges from his bedroom personal lavatory and begins to get dressed. As he puts on the finishing touches to his outfit, he hears the sound of a car engine coming up the driveway. A strange sensation ran through him, and Damon finds himself nervous about the evening. He didn't know what to expect or how to react. He hoped all would go well tonight. Slowly, he walked out of his bedroom to look out of the upstairs hall front window that peered over the front lawn. Damon watches as their guests get out of the car, one by one. Then he sees her. Her blonde hair was shining in the dimming sunlight, and he only had one thought.
She is here!
Disclaimer: I do not own anything. This story is intended for entertainment purposes only. I am not making any profit from this story. All rights and ownership reserved belong to its rightful owners, respectively.