Save me from myself (Damon Salvatore)

Chapter 9: Kill me now, please!

        Mom took the letter from my hands and read it out loud, then looked at me with puppy eyes.

         "Aww, this is so romantic! I'm starting to like this guy, even though I have no idea who he is." she began to giggle.

         "Please, just stop!" I replied irritated, then grabbed the letter willing to tear it into small pieces, but my cell phone started to ring and the poem escaped unharmed.

         "Hello! Who is this?" I asked the person who called me, still annoyed about the letter.

         "Hi, Maddy! It's Jeremy. I hope I'm not bothering you." Jeremy replied a little worried about the way I greeted him.

         "Oh… Hi, Jeremy! Of course you're not disturbing. I told you to call me whenever you fell like talking." I replied as I was walking to my room, trying to prevent mom from listening to our conversation.

         "Would you like to go out for a walk? It won't take long, I promise." he said kindly.

         "Sure, I'll be ready in 20 minutes." I replied on a friendly tone.

         "Great! I'll pick you up in 20 minutes then." he said with a smile and then he hung up.

         I left my cell phone on the nightstand and looked for some comfortable clothes to wear. I picked out a pair of gray jeans and a floral shirt that matched my espadrilles, then I got dressed and went back to the kitchen to tell mom I was leaving.

         "Are you going on a date?" mom asked giggling and batting her eyelashes. "Is he the guy who wrote the poem?" she continued to question me.

         "No, I'm not going on a date. He's just a student from school. He's going through a rough time and he needs someone to talk to. And no, he didn't write the letter." I cut her off on a serious tone.

         "Oh, ok..." she replied a little disappointed, then took a sit on the couch and started to solve the crossword from the magazine.

         I said goodbye to her and stepped outside to meet Jeremy. He was sitting on the staircase with his headphones on, listening to loud music. He didn't hear me when I called his name, so he shuddered when I touched his left shoulder.

         "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." I said with a smile.

         Jeremy stood up, took off his headphones and gave me a quick hug, then replied on a cheerful voice: "Thank you for coming! You're a very good friend."

         I flashed him a short smile, then asked on a friendly tone: "So what do you want to do?"

         "Since hanging out at the cemetery is not an option, we can go to the Grill and get something to drink while we talk." he replied, scratching his head and I laughed.

         "Fine, let's go to the Grill, but this time stay away from trouble." I warned him, still laughing a little.

         Fifteen minutes later we arrived at the Grill and we ordered a glass of lemonade for me and a cup of coffee for Jeremy, then we played some pool and I won two games out of three.

         "That's not fair! You let me win... again." I said looking at Jeremy and he started to laugh.

         "I didn't let you win. I simply suck at this game." he chuckled.

         We ordered another round of drinks and we took a seat at a table, then we started to talk about school and I promised to help him write his Economics Essay. We also talked a little bit about our families and he told me that his favorite hobby was sketching.

         Just when I was about to go to the ladies' room, Damon walked inside the bar and he headed straight for our table.

         "Hi, Maddy! Can we talk?" he asked me with a brittle smile, completely ignoring Jeremy.

         At that point I thought it wasn't a good idea to go to the ladies' room and leave those two guys alone. For my surprise, Jeremy gave him a dark glare, but he didn't say a word to Damon.

         "Do you mind if I talk to him for a few minutes?" I asked looking Jeremy in the eyes.

         "No, it's ok. I'll be waiting at the bar table." he replied and then walked away from me and Damon.

         "Let's talk outside. This place is too crowded and noisy." I said looking at Damon, then I walked out of the bar and he followed me.

         "At the beginning I didn't picture you as the romantic type." I said a little sarcastically and he gave me a questioning look.

         "What are you talking about?" he asked me, still surprised about my remark.

         "Well, first the roses, then the lake and now a love poem?" I asked with my arms crossed together around my chest.

         "I still have no idea what are you talking about. I didn't send you any poem." he replied on a serious tone.

         "I don't believe you!" I said visibly annoyed about his denial.

         "Look, as much as I'd enjoy taking credit for it, I didn't write the poem." Damon replied with a smirk. "But I know who might have." he continued on a cheerful tone.

         "Is that so?" I stared at him with a raised eyebrow.

         "Isn't it obvious?" he answered my question with another question and I gave him a dark look, but he continued: "Come on, we both know that Elena's little brother has a crush on you."

         "You have to be kidding me..." I replied sarcastically, rolling my eyes and avoiding his glance. "This conversation is ending right now." I added slightly annoyed, then went inside the Grill.

         "The worst blind is the one who doesn't want to see." I heard Damon shouting from behind.

         I completely ignored him and walked at the bar table to talk to Jeremy. He easily noticed that the conversation I had with Damon really ruined my good mood, so he offered to walk me home and I accepted.

         When I got home, mom was cooking dinner. As soon as I stepped inside the apartment, the delicious smell dragged me into the kitchen. She was cooking lasagna, stake with my favorite herb sauce and pancakes.

         "Hi, Maddy! How was your walk?" she asked kindly.

         "It was fine. What's with all the food?" I asked really surprised.

         "Oh, did I forget to mention that I invited Kyle over for dinner?" she asked scratching her head.

         I rolled my eyes, then walked out of the kitchen and went straight to my room. I slammed the door, then I threw myself on the bed and sat there for a while with my eyes closed. A few moments later I heard the doorbell rang and the only thought that crossed my mind at the time was 'God, kill me now, please!'