Never Means Forever

I struggled against the weight, pushing my hands against the chest of the man holding me. “Aria, stop.” My hands fell limp as I stared at my captor. “It’s me, Damon.” I closed my eyes for a second, opening them slowly. My mouth dropped open, and I tilted my head in wonder.

“What are you doing here? Stefan said you weren’t going to come here,” I asked, stupidly. I knew very well that Damon lived to make Stefan’s life miserable. I couldn’t stop looking at Damon. His blue, piercing eyes that I remembered so well bore into me.

“I missed you,” he said, a smirk on his face. His arms tightened around my waist.

“That’s a lie,” I said, crossly, picking at a loose thread from his white t-shirt. “You and I both know it.”

“Okay, so you’re not the only reason I’m here. Stefan’s here, too. We need to catch up on our brother bonding time,” he said, in his deep, low voice. I folded my arms across my chest, first forcing Damon’s hold off my body. “Aria, please don’t tell Stefan I’m here. You know I like surprises.” I rolled my eyes, and continued walking, knowing that Damon would follow me.

“Don’t hurt people, Damon. Everyone here is so wonderful. Please, don’t,” I whispered, shoving my hands into the pockets of my jacket. “I won’t be able to take it anymore.” Damon took a hold of my arm, turning me to face him.

“You know I like feeding on people,” his brooding voice washed over me, causing shivers to run down my spine. I sighed, ruffling my hair with one hand.

“Please don’t,” I said, my voice soft. Damon let me go, permitting me to continue my trek to the Grill. By the time I got to the Grill, Matt was waiting for me, sipping at cup of coffee. I went straight to the bar. “Alex, a shot of tequila, please,” I asked, a feeble smile on my face. Alex knew me and he knew that I was only 17, but he still gave me alcohol when I asked for some because I never abused the privilege. I grabbed it, sitting next to Matt. “Hey, Mattie.”

“Rough day, Aria?” he asked, frowning at me. I nodded, drinking the shot, gasping as the liquid burned my throat.

“Don’t worry, Mattie. I won’t drink a lot, I promise.” Matt sighed, ordering a coffee for me. “Matt! You don’t have to!” Matt shook his head, smiling at him, taking another sip of his coffee.

“This Stefan guy…what is he like?” Matt asked, watching me intensely. I shrugged

“Are you asking me this because of Elena?” I asked, a knowing smirk on my face. “Okay, well…he’s really sweet. And he’ll take care of Elena, if that’s what you’re worried about. He gives his relationships his all. Wait…did they already start dating?” I asked. “Ugh, this is what happens when you’re sick and you’re cut off from everything!” I took the coffee that came for me, and took a long sip.

“Aria, its fine, relax.” I pouted. Matt laughed. “Come on, Are. Please don’t pull that. You know I crack every time you play that.” I relaxed my face.

“That’s the point. Come on; let’s play pool before my shift.”

xoxo

I watched as Stefan and Elena interacted. They were perfect for each other, and I hadn’t seen Stefan ever that happy. She was nothing like Katherine and for that I was grateful. In the year I knew Stefan, I figured out everything about him. By chance, I ran into Damon, who like his bloodsucking self decided he needed a snack. Enter Stefan, who saved me. But even through all of that, I became friends with Damon, no matter how cruel he was. I don’t know how it happened, but it did.

He used to use me as his personal blood bank. The thing was, I would rather him use me for blood than kill an innocent person for theirs. So I consented, even though Stefan thought it was a horrible idea. At least he never hurt me.

“You knew Damon followed me here, didn’t you?” Stefan asked, appearing next to me. I shook my head, carrying a tray full of dirty plates. I didn’t answer him. I took off my apron.

“Alex, I’m heading out,” I said, ignoring Stefan’s brooding gaze. I put my apron in my bag, clocking out of my shift. Stefan followed me outside. “Oh, just come off it, Stefan. I know he loves torturing you. He loves torturing everybody. If you want, I’ll talk to him.”

“I’m not gonna listen,” I heard, a slight chuckle in Damon’s voice.

Those boys. Vampires. Whatever. They were worse than cats and dogs. And every time I was around them, I was caught in the middle of their stupid little arguments. I sighed, not wanting to get in the middle of their fight, and started walking home; slightly wishing I brought my car instead of walking. “Guys, I’m not getting into this okay?”

“Let me at least give you a ride,” Stefan said, making me stop. I groaned. He smiled at me, motioning to his car. “Come on, Aria.” Damon looked at me, his arms across his chest.

“I’m sorry, Damon,” I said, getting into the passenger seat. He smirked it off, but I knew he was slightly annoyed with me and with Stefan.

“Wait, Aria,” I turned to Damon, worry clouding my face. His tone was soft. Way soft. Like something was bothering him. I sighed, opening the door and stepping out.

“What’s going on, Damon?” He shrugged, looking away from me. He always did this. Every time I tried to be there for him, he just pushed me further and further away, which made me want to know even more. “Fine. I’m gong with Stefan. Don’t stop me again.” I made a face, getting into the car for a second time.

“Are you really gonna choose him over me?” he asked, a frown on his lips. I stopped, my hand on the door handle. My mouth dropped open. He crossed his arms, a smirk taking the place of the frown. He knew he’d push a button with the comment he made, but that didn’t stop him.

“Are you really gonna ask me that?” I mocked, angrily. He nodded like I thought he would and I got out of the car, this time really walking away, hoping that neither of them would come after me.

I arrived at my apartment, slamming the door behind me, frustrated. I couldn’t believe that Damon had the nerve to ask me that, but when I really thought about it, I shouldn’t have been so pissed off about it. But he hadn’t done that to me in so long, that him reverting back to the cold behavior he had in the very beginning. Before everything.

I turned on my iHome, putting my Relax play list on. The music bounced off the walls as I grabbed a Monster to drink with my snack before starting my homework. Even the simplest problems in my math homework didn’t make sense. It was all because of Damon and Stefan. Mostly Damon, but still.

After about an hour of excruciating pre-cal problems that I had to make up for the three days I missed, I finally gave up, leaving my books in the kitchen and going into my room. After changing into a pair of black short shorts and a plain blue strappy tank top, I buried myself into my bed, but not before turning the TV on. The screen read ‘Two Animal Attacks In Mystic Falls’. Damon did this. I knew he did. The fury I had earlier resurfaced, but this time, it was at least 10 times stronger. I closed my eyes, trying to calm myself down.

I awoke the next morning, and turned over in my bed, to meet a pair of blue eyes. ”Boo.” I screamed, tumbling out of my bed, my head hitting the floor. I put my hand to my chest, standing up, glaring at Damon.

“What are you doing here? And how did you find me?” I bit my lip. “You know what don’t answer that. Just get out.” Damon stayed where he was. “I said get out, Damon.” He wouldn’t even blink. He just stood there, a smirk on his features. “Fine. Stay here. I have to go to school…” Then, realization dawned on me. “Oh, no. Oh, no. Crap,” I muttered to myself. I groaned, making my way to the bathroom to take a shower after throwing a pillow at Damon’s face. He appeared at the door.

“Skip school,” he ordered.

“What?” I raised my eyebrows.

“Skip school,” he repeated. I shook my head vigorously. “Come on, Raya, you used to skip school all the time with me.” Surprised, I tried to push my way past him. I hadn’t heard anyone call me Raya in such a long time.

“Fuck you, Damon,” I spat, shoving him away from the door.

“Gladly. When and where?” he said, a big smile forming on his face. I burst out laughing, in spite of myself. “Now, that’s the Aria I remember.”

“You wish,” I said to him, finally getting past him and through the door of the bathroom. I shut the door with my foot, locking it behind me. I stripped down, peeling my clothes off of my body, the articles of clothing falling to the tiled ground. As I turned on the shower and stepped into the warm water, I heard the door creak open, softly. “Damon Salvatore, get out of here!” I yelled, turning off the water.

“Fine…but you’re still skipping school with me.”

“Damon!” I shouted before turning the water back on. I finished showering a short ten minutes later. Wrapping a towel around me, I went to the sink to brush my teeth, and realized that I left my clothes in my room. I poked my head out of the bathroom, hoping that Damon wasn’t looking so I could get my clothes. To my luck, he wasn’t…too bad I forgot about his hearing. He turned just as I grabbed my clothes. I let out another scream, dropping my clothes, as Damon chuckled quietly to himself. “Turn around, you jerk.” I picked up the jeans and t-shirt, scrambling back into the bathroom to quickly change.