Wayward Heart: Book 1

Part 20

Damon sat on his bed next to Emma. He used a wet cloth to wash his blood from her face, he used extra precaution as he pulled Emma's shirt off to clean her stab wound. As he washed the blood away he couldn't find any sign of where she had been wounded, the magic had already healed it. He pulled a clean shirt out of a near by drawer and gently put it on her before laying her back down, her muddy shoes were put neatly in a corner to be cleaned off later. Content that Emma was at least slightly more comfortable, Damon took her hand again and pressed it against his cheek, prepared to wait as long as he needed to for her to wake up.

A sudden gasp broke the silence just before Emma sat up in a clear panic, her eyes darting every which way to find the danger her body had put her on alert for. Damon grabbed her with both of his hands, holding her in place before she could run.

"Emma, you're okay," he tried to console her, "you're okay."

Emma looked straight into Damon's eyes, he saw that her eyes were a bright shade of orange, but after a moment they faded back to her dark amber brown. Her breathing was still labored as if her lungs were trying to make up for the hours of breath that they had missed.

"I-I-," Emma tried to speak, but she had tears in her eyes and couldn't seem to form the correct words.

"Shh, I know," Damon pulled her close and held her tightly in his arms, glad to be able to feel her warmth, the sound of her heart beating again was music to his ears.

"I died," Emma was trying to put the pieces together in her head, "Stefan killed me. Am I a vampire now?"

Damon couldn't help but let out a soft chuckle, "No, no, you're still you."

Emma breathed a sigh of relief, "So my ring then?"

As Damon loosened his hold on her, she looked down at her ring, the gem was missing, on the bed where she had been laying were shards of orange.

"Em, I'm so sorry," Damon began his apology, "I have so much to be sorry for. I-"

Emma interrupted Damon by grabbing onto him and pulling him into her, she pressed her lips against his and held him there, refusing to let him go. Damon felt how insanely strong she suddenly seemed, but he chose to ignore it for the moment. His hands tangled in her hair and the kiss deepened. When their lips finally broke apart they kept their foreheads rested on each others.

"We have to talk about something," Damon began.

"Later Damon," Emma closed her eyes and tightened her grip, "I don't care right now."

"This isn't a later conversation."

Emma pulled back slightly and looked at Damon, she opened her mouth to say something sarcastic, but the look of worry and sincerity on his face stopped her.

"You need Katie's ring."

"This is definitely a later conversation Damon."

"Let's go downstairs, Elijah is here and he says he can explain everything to us."

"What is there to explain? I died, the ring brought me back."

"Emma, for once, will you please just listen."

The tone in Damon's voice as well as the stern look he was giving her made Emma start to pay attention. Damon stood and offered his hand out to Emma, she took it with only the slightest hesitation, and he led her out of the room and down the stairs.

Emma crossed her arms when she saw Dean and Alaric sitting quietly, both of them staring at the fireplace and lost in their own thoughts.

"Being a little melodramatic don't you think?" She asked sarcastically.