Always and Forever

Coming Clean:

~Aurelia's pov~

Luckily, Cassandra complies with Stefan and I to get into the car. Whatever Elena said must've really gotten under Cassie's skin for Stefan not being able to hold her back. "You wanna talk about what happened back there?" She ignores me. "Cassandra, you risked everything tonight." I think she knows that already though, but sometimes you need to hear it out loud. "I didn't need you to hold me back like some untame wolf."

I scoff at her arrogance. "Cass, Elena isn't worth putting us in danger, we have to be cautious." She rolls her eyes at my choice of name, but right now she is acting like a Cass. Suddenly, Stefan stops his car "What is he doing?" There was no reason to stop in the middle of the woods. "You know, it wouldn't kill you to be a little nicer to Stefan." I ignore Cassandra. "He's tried so many times to make an effort with you."

Before I could respond, there was a scream coming from the opposite way we just came from. "Let's go." Cassandra, Stefan, and I quickly follow where the noise came from. When the three of us got to the scene, I notice Vicki holding onto her neck. "What happened?" Stefan walks over to Vicki first. "Stefan-" Cassandra stops Stefan once she notices Vicki's bleeding from her neck. "Hey, Vicki."

As I approach her, she seems to be a bit erratic. I mean, something did just bite her. "I'm going to help you." I bite into my wrist, and try to give her some of my blood, but she tries to push me off. "You're going to die if you don't let me help you, Vicki."

She finally gives in. "Now, you're going to forget that this happened." I look her in the eyes. "You're gonna go back to the party, hang out with you friends, and go home with Matt." She nods before walking off. "Now, let's get going." The ride to the Salvatore house is silent. Neither of us felt like being social. I wasn't in the mood to rehash old drama, nor was Cassandra in the mood to talk about what happened with Elena at the Bonfire. I park Cassie's car behind Stefan's. When I look over at Cassie, she's knocked out.

Stefan gets out of the car at the same time as me. "She's asleep." Honestly, I don't feel like carrying her. "I'll grab her, just get her things." I open the passenger door to collect her things. "The front door's open, you can just go in and drop her things on the couch." I hesitate for a moment before going into the house. The thought of running into Damon gives me a queasy feeling. There's a time and a place, and certainly it wasn't the time. Once I drop Cassie's belongings on the couch, I hear someone clear their throat. "It's good to see you again, Aurelia."

I almost freeze up when I hear Damon's voice. " It's a shame we couldn't talk earlier." When I look at him, I notice his white shirt and Leather jacket, along with the faint smell of bourbon that pairs with his cologne. "That was you, the jerk who spilt bourbon all over me?" He simply nods. "As I mentioned earlier, it was a mistake." We both take a small step towards each other. "Nice move with Vicki Donovan at the Bonfire." My tone is laced with sarcasm. "What prompted you to do that?" A childish grin falls onto his lips. "No motive, just hungry." There certainly is a motive, he just keeps his cards close. "I'm gonna take Cassandra upstairs,thanks for the help tonight."

Cassie's words from earlier start to replay in my mind. "Anytime." I smile back at Stefan. "I'm gonna head out." As I start to walk away, I feel Damon hold my arm back. When I turn around, the cold exterior he had earlier was gone. The kind ocean blue eyes I once remember were looking back at me. "Mind staying for a nightcap?" I hesitate for a moment, knowing that staying means talking about our past. "If it includes bourbon, no." I know that back in the day bourbon was the only alcoholic drink the Salvatores carried, so I assume nothing has changed. "Well, seems like you're out of luck."

Damon pulls out a bottle of Carménère from his cabinet. "Do you want a wine glass, or does it matter?" He holds up a rocks glass. "I'll take a wine glass if it means you have to go to the kitchen." Damon playfully rolls his eyes. "Lucky for you, I'm a terrible hostess." He pours my glass of wine in a rocks glass. "Oh, how you've changed Mr.Salvatore." "I could say the same for you, Ms.Grey." Damon hands me the glass of carménère before sitting on the sofa. "I assume you want an explanation." Damon nods. "I didn't mean to just up and leave you."