There's a buzz in the air. It's constant and light is brighter than normal. You roll over in bed and see someone left the window open. You could have sworn you closed it last night when you came in but you might have missed it with how exhausted you were.
Your boyfriend broke up with you for another girl and the bottle seemed like a better friend than talking it out with Caroline. She'd only ask questions until you confessed you were not fine. Admittedly, you wouldn't be feeling the stabbing pain in your head if you had only gone to her in the first place.
Today would be better you told yourself. You wouldn't mope around town today and you wouldn't be looking for your ex-boyfriend begging for an explanation. Today would be different. You would be different.
As you walk out of the house with a small bag slung across your shoulder you notice something else is off. There was a stillness in the air. Silence. No birds chirped. Clouds were rolling in. The temperature dropped. There in the middle of the street a man was waltzing up to you with a knowing smirk. Did you know him?
He was only a few paces away now and your feet were glue on the sidewalk. His smirk grew into a grin as he held his hand out to introduce himself.
"Hi. I don't know if you remember me but we met last night. I'm Damon." He spoke but he seemed to be saying more with his eyes. You seem to remember those eyes yesterday, but you cannot place the face.
"Y/N. Nice to officially meet you." Today would be different.
"You still obsessing over that boyfriend of yours or can I buy you a drink?" You look at him confused. Did you talk about him last night to a beautiful stranger? What was with the word obsessed?
"Maybe a rain check? The world is still spinning from last night." You smile.
"Right. How about a hangover cure instead?" Something in the way he said cure didn't sit right with you.
"If that's your way of saying breakfast than I'm all in. We could meet at the Grill. You can even get your drink there." You try to redirect the conversation away from whatever his hangover cure was.
"A girl that speaks my language," he looks you up and down, "I accept. The Grill it is." He walks toward a nice car across the street. You assume he'll meet you there but instead he gestures for you to get in. He even holds open the door for you. You think how your ex-boyfriend never did that for you when you were dating.
On the ride you cannot help to notice a peculiar smell. Was it metal? Metal never has that strong of a stench but yet it wafts in the air. You push the thought aside but another thought arises suddenly. What are the chances that he happened to park on your street and get out of the car the moment you walk out of the house? You suddenly don't know if you can trust the man driving you to the Grill.
You breathe a sigh of relief when he pulls into a parking spot near the Grill. He's not a serial killer you thought. He comes around to your side and opens the door. When you get out of the car he gives you a confident side look before hooking his arm with yours. You don't question it. In fact, you embrace it.
Walking into the Grill on Damon's arm you see every head turn. Weird. Maybe you did something weird last night. No. You then notice it is not every person but it's your ex-boyfriend and his friends. He seems angry. You brush it off and try to enjoy the company who is escorting you through the bar and restaurant.
You hear whistling from the group of boys and your head quickly falls so that your gaze can only see your shoes.
"Is that him?" Damon asks. You only manage a nod. "Want him to see what he's missing?" He spun you quick to his chest forcing you to look up. He wore confidence for clothes. In his eyes he was saying "well, do you?"
Again you manage a nod. You're not quite there on his level of confidence but with his help you knew you could get there. He looks over at your boyfriend before grabbing your waist and passionately kissing you. Instead of whistling you're hearing muttering between the guys. You deepen the kiss and even Damon is surprised by you going further. He accepts it and goes along with it.
When you both part from each other your breathing slows from such a passionate kiss. As much as you want to take it deeper with Damon you become shy again. Your cheeks turn red and now you're not sure you should've allowed him to kiss you because now he'll be your next obsession.
"So I guess this means you kind of like me, huh?" His eyes toy with mine.
You push him playfully. "No! You're the one that kissed me."
"Ah Sweetheart you're the one that went deeper. At least take some of the blame for that kiss." He chuckled.
"Fine. Damon. I went deeper, but only to REALLY sell it to that perv over there." I point my thumb at my ex-boyfriend.
"Ah, okay, that's the story we're going with?" He holds his hands up in defeat but he's toying with me again. He walks away and up to the bar.
You smile at him and then realize you never found a table. You find one in a corner near the kitchen. You liked that it was secluded so that you could figure out this Damon guy. There were still sirens going off in the back of your head that something was off about him. Was it danger? You couldn't tell anymore after that kiss you guys shared.
Damon finally located you after getting his drink. From the looks of it he got bourbon. He swirled it around once he sat down and never took his eyes of you. His bright blue eyes made it feel like he could read your mind.
You finally ask, "What is it?" You laugh as you ask it.
"Nothing." He responds.
"You usually stare when there is nothing?" You couldn't quite place it but your words seemed to hold confidence.
"In fact I do." He stood up and sat on the bench next to me with an arm caressing my shoulder.
"You see because this world is full of complexities and you are not one of them. You aren't her and that makes this date all the better. Because," he tightens his grip on you, "at the end of this night you will be a nice little present for my little brother. He'll fall for you. I get the girl and all of my problems disappear."
"What?" You're scared now.
"Oh no sweetie. You'll be fine. You won't remember I told you any of this. No. You'll
be excited to see him, my little brother that is." You felt dazed after those words. Not out of shock but you literally couldn't remember what he had just said and now your heart was racing because you were going to meet someone soon. What the heck was wrong with you?
You both get up and make your way towards the door. It's not night yet but you know life as you know it will be different. You will be different.
