Reading Between the Lines

This takes place at the end of Miss Mystic Falls, but I've branched it off into my own storyline. All events that take place after Episode 1x19 will not be brought into play, except for possibly a few details here and there, i.e. the story about Stefan and Damon turning in Blood Brothers.

Ch. 1 Out of Control

Elena slammed into the wall of the sturdy old boarding house, trying to shrink back into the wood as Stefan closed in on her, trapping her with his arms and pounding the wall with his fists. Elena felt the entire structure tremble beneath her and her eyes grew wide with fear as she peered into Stefan's crazed, bloodthirsty ones; they had darkened and grown bloodshot and the veins surrounding his eyelids grew pronounced. Elena knew all too well what that meant, and her heart dropped down into her stomach as she realized Stefan was being consumed by the human blood he was full of and craved at the same time. A tear coursed down her cheek as she painfully thought of how she had initiated his fall from grace herself; she had no one else to blame for her thoughtless attempt to heal her boyfriend. This time she had done more harm than good, and she was powerless to stop the snowballing consequences.

Fear returned to the forefront of her emotions as Stefan let out a raucous snarl. Elena gasped and attempted once more to soothe him by talking him out of his fury.

"Stefan. Stefan…STEFAN. Look at me, right here. This monster, this isn't you! I know you Stefan, I trust you! You won't hurt me, I know you won't. You have to keep fighting; I know you can do it! Fight this through. Please! For me, Stefan."

Elena pleaded with him as she searched his eyes, looking for the faintest trace of the compassionate vampire she thought she knew. All she found there was a ravaged, black turmoil of hunger and rage. The instant he returned her gaze, something in him snapped. His arm pulled back and released like a tightly coiled spring, slamming her shoulder into the wall. All of the air whooshed out of Elena as she felt a stabbing pain travel through her shoulder blade. She felt her elbow and wrist crack against the unforgiving wood as Stefan pinned it down, holding her in a steel grip as he reached up to her neck and forcefully yanked her vervain necklace from her throat and hurled it across the room. Elena struggled against him, trying to break free from his impossible hold on her. She raised her free hand and tried to push against his chest, but he caught it in midair and curled his fingers tightly around it until he heard several cracking noises. She cried out involuntarily at the pain and he slapped her across the jaw so fast she never saw a fist fly. Elena whimpered as she felt searing pain spread from her earlobe to her chin. As if the sound fed his internal fire, he shoved his knuckles into the soft spot just below her ribs. She gasped and doubled over, sliding to the floor. Stefan stood back, the monster in him coldly observing his handiwork. After all, something as superior as a vampire shouldn't have to take so much flack from a weak human nuisance, he mused. Feeling empowered, he strode over to the window and in one quick, lithe motion, he disappeared into the night.

After a moment of shocked silence, the floodgates opened. Elena sobbed uncontrollably; wiping away her tears caused too much pain. After what seemed like hours, she regained a little control of herself and began to assess the damages: four of the fingers on her left hand were broken, her back, right wrist, right elbow and stomach were all throbbing in pain. She realized with dread that there was going to be severe bruising when she woke up in the morning, if she was actually capable of falling asleep. She gingerly stroked her jaw line, flinching when her fingers traced over a swollen lump a few inches from her chin. Clearing her head, she realized that she had no idea where Damon was. There was no way she was letting him see her like this. Even after all that he'd done, she couldn't bring herself to rat out Stefan and have Damon go after him. She couldn't risk Stefan being killed, or Damon either, for that matter. After dancing with him earlier, she internally shuddered at the thought of his striking blue eyes never putting her own deep brown ones under that intense gaze again.

Hoping to avoid Damon, Elena quietly limped down the stairs. She stepped out into the den and sighed with relief; Damon was nowhere in sight. She carefully made her way to the car and sank down into the driver's seat. Only when she reached for her keys did she realize that with four broken fingers and a battered wrist, there was no way she could grasp the wheel and drive without killing herself or someone else. Letting out a shaky sigh, she got back out of her car and trudged back into the boarding house. Weighing her options, she decided that taking a shower was the best method of staying out of Damon's sight. He may be obnoxious and have no respect for personal space, she thought, but he was enough of a gentleman to give her some privacy in cases like these. Painstakingly, Elena crept back up the staircase and quickly retrieved a towel from the linen closet and a t-shirt and pair of boxers from Stefan's drawer. Shuffling into the spacious bathroom, she turned the water in the shower to steaming hot and removed her clothes as quickly as her injuries would allow. She sighed with relief as the water surrounded her when she stepped under the welcoming spray.

Washing herself proved to be a challenge; her broken hand hung limply at her side while she shampooed her hair with her slightly less damaged right hand. She winced when she knocked her bruised elbow against the tile wall in the process. While rinsing her hair, she tried to think of an explanation for her current state for Damon, if she happened to run in to him. She knew it would have to be a good one, for she had learned from experience that it's hard to avoid someone while staying in their own house, especially if that someone were a vampire. Since it seemed the most plausible explanation, she chose to go with the story that she had slipped while getting out of the shower. Convinced she was believable, Elena turned the lever with her good hand, shutting off the water. As she put on Stefan's clothes, a wave of sorrow washed over, hitting her like a tsunami. How could it have come to this? She thought. How could someone who said he loved me, who would do anything to protect me, be the one who hurt me the most? She felt tears pooling in her eyes, and she did nothing to stop them from spilling over and forming trails down her cheeks. After a few minutes, she realized she had a splitting headache and went back downstairs to steal some of Damon's scotch, hoping it would help her to fall sleep quickly. She needed to escape from this nightmarish reality as soon as possible. With her good hand, she grabbed the bottle and poured the drink into a crystal tumbler. She scrunched her eyes shut, preparing herself for the burning sensation she was about to feel when she downed the scotch.

"You know, you really shouldn't drink alone, Elena. It's not healthy."

Startled beyond reason, Elena sucked in her breath and the tumbler slipped from her fingers, shattering with a tinkling crash the second it hit the floor. Her heart beating wildly in her chest, Elena slowly turned around to meet the intense, faintly amused, and other-worldly blue-eyed gaze of Damon Salvatore.

Sorry if Stefan seems too OOC. In this story, when he ran away after being discovered with Amber, I have him robbing the blood bank again and binging on human blood. My apologies to all you Stefan devotees out there. Damon is my favorite, so you can count on this story being major Delena. Let me know what you think/what you do or don't want to happen. I'm open to anything. If I get a good response, I'll try to update faster! First Ever FanFic. Feedback is Love! Delena forever