xXx

Two trembling hands clasped the firm mahogany headboard of a newly made bed. Damon Salvatore. Damon Salvatore. Elena still couldn't wrap her head around the fact that the job she had just accepted included her dashing and ever-confident ex-boyfriend.

He was the guy she used to dream about, used to write about, used to kiss, used to crave… The guy whose heart she'd broken. The guy who'd get her fired the minute he'd realize she was the girl they had hired as his trainee.

Her knuckles were turning white bit by bit. She tried to loosen her grip again, to let go. Breathe. She had been trying for ten years now: to let it go, but there was no lettering go. There was no forgetting him. Damon Salvatore. Damon Salvatore. 'Forever and always, til kingdom come'. Oh how little those words had truly meant once she had passed the tender age of fifteen.

And now here she was, in an elegant yet compact one-bedroom apartment in the middle of the city. Graduated. Intelligent. Beautiful. Likable. She was an accomplished young woman in all ways that mattered. Her parents were proud. Proud of her degree, proud of her living alone, proud of the life she had created for herself and at times so was she. Proud.

It was a good feeling, a feeling that made it all worth it. All the late nights, the isolation, the secret collection of used tissues clogging up the last drawer of her nightstand.

Yet whenever her eyes would take in the four champagne coloured walls that made up her safe haven, she couldn't seem to get past the large and prominent mirror, lining the back of her bedroom door.

At times all she did was stare. Stare at her own reflection. Stare far ahead into the distance. The past. The future. Because this was it. These were the days she'd been dreaming of when she was in high school, when she and her friends had been so very convinced that the best had yet to come. This was that best part, this was supposed to be the time of her life…

Yet somewhere along the way, her heart had stopped skipping a beat. The radiant and fearless girl Damon had managed to unleash was no more, for Damon had been the one who had told her all those years ago that she couldn't just wait the days out. She had to live instead of simply being alive. But now Damon was no longer lurking in the shadows to remind her of his views on 'living'.

Furthermore, she hadn't taken his advice to heart, not irrevocably, not ever since she had walked away. Instead, she had spent her days doing what she was told, what was expected of her… Eventually it had landed her a wonderful apartment. A lonely wonderful apartment, though. Life was passing her by, leaving a void, a pit in her stomach.

She was twenty-five now. Her friends were starting to settle down, to have kids, to build a life. And that part of life was still completely missing for Elena. She was nobody's mom, no one's true love… Some days that realization had the power to unhinge her. It would start with a small thought in the back of her mind, but spread out beneath her skin like wildfire, right until her insecurities got the best of her, swallowing her whole. What if I'm never falling in love again, what if I won't ever crave or long or tremble with passion?

Happy thoughts Elena, she urged herself, dragging her eyes away from the mirror. More positive thinking, more joy. The apartment was beautiful, so was the furniture, the view... It all radiated class and accomplishment. She should be happy. She ought to be happy. So with a bright new Colgate smile plastered slightly forced upon her face, she straightened her skirt and the rest of her attire. She was in control again, ready to face the music.

She was ready. She would dazzle them. They would be impressed by her capability. Because who was she kidding? She was an accomplished young woman. She was strong, beautiful and intelligent. Those honours on her picture perfect resume, didn't get handed to just anyone. So that wistful and insecure part of her had to be pushed aside, locked up in the bottom drawer of her nightstand.

Some more lip gloss, a hint of mascara. Smile. Colgate smile. Yes. Perfect. Ready to face the music. Ready to face Damon Salvatore.

xXx

Ten years earlier

A tan and slender body rose from the water. Elena instantly got goose bumps as the cold air tantalized her skin. She started to tremble, the temperature had been so much better in the pool.

Elena had never been the kind of girl that overly enjoyed water amusement parks. At age 15 she wasn't particularly fond of public pools. Even if she could pretend that kids never pied in the water and all visitors thoroughly showered and scrubbed before dipping their toes in, she still had to deal with the whistling pubescent boys - that and their very vocal appreciation of her new bikini.

"Hey. Pssst… Elena? Over here…" a familiar voice caught her attention. A shiver travelled down her spine.

There it was: the reason she was enduring the whole nightmare in the first place. Damon.

Her darling eighteen year old boyfriend had gently coaxed her into going on the daytrip with her friends, just so he could steal a moment or two with her while they weren't looking. And they were always looking.

Warm fingers enveloped her hand and began dragging her towards the tower in the middle of the subtropical park.

"Oooh no," she protested instantly, "I'm not going down the slide, it goes way too fast and then I can't breathe and when I plunge into the water my top always shifts and-"

"Relax, Elena," Damon interrupted, "Do something new, have some fun, some excitement. You know life is for living, right? Not just being alive."

"But Damon-" Elena whined.

It was no use, not even a minute later they were already climbing the wet staircase that led to the highest waterslide, a giant green tube.

"Damon, my friends will know I'm missing! I told them I was going to the lockers, they'll be worried if I stay away for too long," Elena argued.

"Then you better hurry up." Warm breath tickled the nape of her neck, causing her stomach to flutter.

There was almost no queue at the top. It was lunchtime and most people were stuffing themselves full of greasy burgers and fries. And diet coke of course. Always diet coke because somehow that makes the big difference.

The small light above the entrance of the tube flickered green and the group of boys in front of them all disappeared one by one. "Go on," Damon urged. "Sit down and hold the bar on top until it's your turn."

Reluctantly Elena took place, slightly uncomfortable as she took in the darkness ahead, mentally preparing herself. Then the light changed again and Damon pushed her slightly, giving her a head start.

"Damon no, I'm not-"

Well ready or not, she was past the point of no return as the water swirled her forcibly from side to side. The voices of the guys before her boomed through the dark tube and for a moment Elena couldn't seem to remember how she could have ever agreed to any of it. Then she felt two strong arms envelope her from behind. Damon. She was pressed against a warm, muscled torso, away from the wind, away from the cold. And as Damon, all of Damon, enveloped her in his embrace, she relaxed.

"It's against the rules to take the ride together unless you're travelling with childr-"

Two warm lips found her neck, distracting her. With Damon's head resting on her shoulder and his thumb daring to skim some barely covered skin, Elena was officially rendered short on words.

"Mmmm," she murmured slightly.

"That's right," Damon grinned.

"You know you're corrupting me, right?" Elena mused.

"Always…" Damon promised.

"Hey! That wasn't a-"

SPLASH! They were already in the water, out in the great big world where they weren't supposed to be together, or to touch.

Little trinkets of water were flying everywhere as Damon shook the wetness out of his hair and opened his eyes. He could easily be part of a classic romantic movie. His stellar girlfriend however, was already heading for the exit. He wouldn't be fast enough to reach her in time so he caught her with his eyes instead. Two blue oceans, deeper and purer than the diluted water they were swimming in, pleaded with her to notice those two lips of his, curled downwards into a pout. Not yet, he pleaded silently.

Please, you know I can't, her eyes whispered as she tilted her head wistfully. Tonight, she mouthed eventually, as a compromise.

The woods? Damon mouthed back in question.

Elena nodded and her blue-eyed Salvatore smiled.

Then she kissed the palm of her hand and blew it his way, making sure that no one else noticed. Damon's eyes glistened. The twinkle in her eyes, the hint of a shy smile still present on her face. She was the picture of perfection and innocence. And she loved him. Him of all people. It made him proud, made him want to be better. Better for her. Better because she'd never ask him to change. He couldn't help the smile lighting up his features. She loved him. His Elena.

Forever and always, til kingdom come.

xXx

Present day

"Sophie eat your breakfast," Damon ordered firmly, taking a sip from his cup of hot coffee.

"But Tiger's not eating," his five year old pride and joy promptly argued.

Tiger. Damon did his very best not to roll his eyes.

Tiger was the annoying little kitten his sister had bought Sophie for her fifth birthday, the day before. The inquisitive nine-week-old animal had kept him up all night with some very bothersome yapping and meowing.

"Sweetheart, that thing is afraid of his silly mouse toy, you cannot be calling him Tiger," Damon told his little girl evenly.

"But his name is Tiger! You can't change someone's name daddy!" Sophie insisted.

"Fine. But eat your cereals before they get all mushy, Princess," Damon conceded, leaving the table to go look for a foldable shopping box he could convert into a makeshift cage. Damn his sister for not thinking things through! The little animal had no place to stay during the day and leaving it all alone to do its business all over the leather couch was definitely not an option.

"What will Tiger do today?" Damon heard his five-year-old inquire from afar.

"Sleeping, eating and pooping," Damon retorted swiftly.

"Why?" Sophie wondered.

"Because."

"But why?"

"Because that's what little kittens do sweetheart. What do you want on your sandwich for lunch?" Damon asked instead.

"Chocolate sprinkles!" Sophie instantly requested.

"Then chocolate sprinkles it is," her father drew with a smile, preparing lunch and boxing it up with two biscuits and some apple juice.

Half an hour later Damon had put Tiger in the plastic shopping box, which was now covered by a large glass picture frame.

"Come on Soph, put in a little more effort please," he urged, trying to coax his daughter's foot into the new brown winter boots he had bought her a few days earlier.

"But I want the pink ones," Sophie whined with a pout.

"Princess, the pink shoes are for summer. When it rains you'll get your toes all wet and you'll catch a cold. Please put your foot in and stop stalling, or we'll be late," Damon insisted, holding her gaze to make sure she got the message.

"If I put them on, can I go say bye to Tiger?" his little girl tried to bargain.

"Fine. Real quick," Damon surrendered, zipping the tiny boots up. Sophie instantly ran off towards the kitchen counter where her little friend was meowing loudly and ruefully.

"Daddy, he's hurting!" Sophie exclaimed, looking up at her father with doe eyes.

"He's not sweetheart, he's just not used to the house yet. Yesterday he was still hanging around with his brothers and sisters. It'll take time, but don't worry, he'll be ok," Damon tried to sooth her, already walking out of the room to shrug on his jacket.

The sound of glass breaking reached his ears before his daughter's surprised shriek did. When he turned around, the frame that had rested atop the makeshift cage, lay shattered and scattered across the tiles. Thank God Sophie was wearing shoes.

Amidst the shards of glass stood his baffled, shaken girl, holding onto her stuffed animal with trembling hands. She eyed him warily, eyes teary and started to sob only a second later.

Damon rapidly made his way through the mess, ignoring the escaping kitten and picked up his daughter, cradling her against his chest. "It's ok sweetheart," Damon shushed the startled toddler, swaying gently to calm her down. "It was just the noise. It's all fine now," he comforted her, shifting Sophie over to his hip to reach for Tiger with his free hand.

"What happened?" Damon questioned, setting Sophie on the counter and placing Tiger back inside his box, covered with a few firm placemats and some random things on top of it now.

"You said Tiger missed his family and I wanted to give him Olaf," Sophie sobbed, still holding onto the disfigured Disney snowman she carried around lately.

Damon wiped her tears away with his thumb, eying her lovingly. Sophie had a habit of bringing the people she loved her stuffed animals whenever she wanted to comfort them. He himself was no exception to that rule, luckily none of his colleagues had ever seen the Winnie The Pooh Sophie repeatedly stuffed inside his briefcase.

"Fine, Tiger can have Olaf," Damon retreated quickly, wanting to finally leave for work.

"Wait," Sophie stopped him when he reached out to take away the snowman. "Do you think Tiger misses his mommy?" Sophie wondered all of a sudden.

Her father's body tensed but he hid it quickly. "I don't know, Sweety," he replied truthfully. "I don't speak cat."

"I think he does," Sophie informed him. "I want Tiger in school. Miss Judith will made him smile!" she insisted, lighting up, referring to the fact that her kindergarten teacher always knew what to do when the kids in her class missed their mothers.

"Tiger can't come sweetheart, pets don't belong in class," Damon insisted.

Tiger meowed again, drawing it out, long and ruefully.

"Do you miss your mommy?" Sophie asked. The cat simply kept meowing.

"Come on Soph, we really have to go now," her father urged.

"It's ok," Sophie told the kitten, "My mommy left me too," she informed her new friend. "But no one ever put me in a box," she added on a second note.

Damon couldn't figure out if the little girl understood the power those words held over him or if her comment had been strictly coincidental, but at nine sharp, Damon Salvatore confidently strolled into the office - half an hour late - wearing his trademark black button down, now embellished with a tiny ginger kitten catching a ride on his left shoulder.

"Are you for real?" Jessica asked when he passed the reception desk.

"Nope," Damon swiftly replied, with a popping p.

"Is that a cat?" Tyler inquired perplexed.

"No, it's a dog Lockwood. A fifty pound Rottweiler," he insisted, rolling his eyes at the idiotic comment.

"Salvatore. Office. Now." Ric's voice boomed trough paper-thin walls as he noticed his most charming manager roaming the hallways.

Damon swerved and made a slide to the left, dodging the mail cart before slipping into his boss's office and settling soundly into the chair before the desk. Tiger hissed and the plush hairs on his back instantly rose.

"Do I even want to know?" Ric questioned, quirking an eyebrow.

"Nope," Damon responded quickly, tilting his head.

"Do you have a solution for when you're taking a meeting?" Ric asked next.

"Double nope," his employee of the month contributed proudly.

"Damon," Ric sighed, letting his head fall back against the chair in aggravation.

"Yeah Ric," Damon responded, mimicking his boss's pose.

"You can't bring your cat to work man," Ric informed him, shaking his head.

"Mmm," Damon murmured. "So is this you firing the best negotiator on your team or are you not quite ready to bankrupt the company yet?" Damon inquired confidently.

"Asshole," Ric scolded his best friend, still shaking his head.

"That's what I thought," Damon concluded with a small nod, holding onto Tiger while he stood up again. "Glad we had this talk, boss," he drew sweetly, his voice laced with Salvatore sarcasm.

"Wait!" Ric interjected quickly. "We're not done."

"We're not?" Damon inquired, one foot already out the door.

"Your trainee is coming in today, that's actually what I wanted to discuss with you," Alaric explained.

"You mean the fleshly graduated newbie I'm supposed to teach all my dirty tricks to in order to bust your profit," Damon taunted.

"More like the gorgeous and intelligent young woman that's going to replace you if you keep up this attitude," Ric threatened.

"Can't you give her to Lockwood? I don't need an inexperienced little girl following me around like a lost puppy, I already have a cat," Damon flashed his eyes, pointing at Tiger to prove his point.

"Lockwood wasn't the one requesting a lighter workload, buddy," Ric informed him, his voice softer, carrying a meaningful undercurrent now.

Damon's demeanour changed as Ric altered the rules of their game.

"You know I can't-" Damon started out defensively.

"I know," Ric interrupted, trying to calm him down, "And I respect that," he continued. "But that does mean that you need an extra hand, someone to pitch in when needed. Look Damon, I can't keep giving you these privileges" he explained softly.

"At some point people are going to ask questions and it wouldn't be fair towards the others. If you don't want anyone to know, then you can't expect their understanding or compassion," Ric explained tentatively. "No one at work is aware you're doing the single-parent–thing at home, buddy."

"What I can do, however, is burden you with a trainee. A highly intelligent young woman who so happens to have a very flexible timetable," Ric told him, eying him meaningfully. "No weekends for you anymore, and a back-up for whenever you're suddenly needed elsewhere…" Ric's voice trailed off.

Damon nodded. "Ok," he replied simply, absentmindedly plucking Tiger off his shoulder and putting the acrophobic kitten in his lap. "At what time should I be expecting my puppy?"

"In half an hour," his boss informed him.

"Great," Damon offered. "I'll set up an extra desk in my office then," he muttered, begrudgingly, yet significantly more pliable than before.

"Good boy," Ric teased. Damon simply rolled his eyes before strolling out and into his own office.

xXx

Two knocks signalized a visitor by the door. Actually they didn't, the two and a half minutes of insistent pacing already had.

Damon had been watching the coming and retreating shadow amused. His linen blinds were closed, so he couldn't make out more than a shape, but she was nervous, he knew she was. And somehow that thrilled the mischievous part of him, just a bit. He'd always been more of a bad boy.

"Come in," Damon spoke, trying to keep his voice as even as possible and void of the sudden excitement he was feeling.

He heard an unmistakable sharp intake of breath coming from the other side of the door, right before it opened just a few inches and the young woman who'd been bracing herself came into sight.

No. God no.

Damon's breath seemed to get caught in his throat. Elena wasn't doing any better, hesitantly shuffling inside with her eyes cast down. It took Damon a moment to recover himself. She looked so much like-, so very much like-, Damon opened the folder that lay on top of his desk, looking down at the black cursive name written neatly in the upper right corner.

Elena Gilbert.

No, was the only word reverberating through this thoughts. No, no, no, no, no. Did I mention no?

"Excuse me for a moment," he murmured, grabbing the file from his desk and heading out quickly.

No.

xXx

Shot through the heart
And you're to blame
Darling, you give love a bad name...