It was a dark night, as Damon lay in the middle of a road waiting for someone to come along. It was how he got his food. And that's when he heard a voice; Her voice.
After Elena Gilbert hung up and put her cell phone away, she looked up to see a guy; a stranger.
"Katherine," Damon greeted, though she smelled human.
"No. I'm Elena."
"I'm sorry. I must be mistaken. You just really remind me of someone."
"I get that a lot."
"So what are you doing out here alone?"
"Ex-boyfriend problems. I'm waiting for my parents."
"You shouldn't be out here alone."
"Why? Nothing bad ever happens here."
"By the way, I'm Damon."
"So Damon, what are you doing out here alone?"
"The usual."
"Like?"
"Looking for what I want."
"Well, I wish I knew what I wanted. My parents have it all planned out."
"You want what everyone else wants."
"So Damon, the mysterious stranger who has all the answers, what do I want?"
"You want adventure, mystery, and maybe a little danger. I want you to get everything you want. But now, I can't have people knowing I'm in town yet."
"I won't tell anyone. I promise."
He was surprised that Elena wouldn't tell anyone. The humans he had met in the past had been talkative. And they always told one another everything. But not this girl. He felt that she was telling the truth. He didn't have to compel her to forget that they had met.
"Good night, Elena."
"Good night, Damon."
As Damon walked away, he felt drawn to her and didn't know why. But he kept walking until he reached the shadows of the darkness. And from that darkness, he watched as Elena got into the car with her parents. Then he watched as her father drove away in the car towards the Whickery Bridge. There was silence from them until her parents asked her how the party had gone. She went into talking about her fight with her ex-boyfriend, Matt. But he didn't hear her mention him. And that's when he knew that he could trust her.
It was a beautiful day as Elena Gilbert headed home. She felt alone these days. Her parents were dead, but Damon Salvatore had saved her life. Now her and Jeremy's guardian was their Aunt Jenna.
When Elena got home, it was early evening. Her Aunt Jenna was home as usual.
"How was school?" Aunt Jenna called from the kitchen when she heard the front door close.
"Good," Elena called back, before heading up the stairs to her room.
Once in her room, Elena put her bag on the floor by her desk, before going to check on her younger and only brother, Jeremy. He was having a hard time with their parents' deaths. It had been last summer, but it was hard. Now her brother mostly got home late and stayed in his room. She didn't know what he did all that time. She and Aunt Jenna didn't know what was wrong.
She knocked on her brother's closed door, which was right next to her own bedroom.
"Jeremy?" she called through the closed door.
"Go away, Elena."
"Can I come in?"
"Go away."
"Jeremy, you know we can talk about this is you need to. Right?"
"I know, Elena."
"Okay. I'll see you later then."
With that, she went back to her room to do her homework.
After they had dinner, Jeremy stayed in his room for the rest of the evening as usual. Elena stayed downstairs with Aunt Jenna for a little bit, though. They both knew Jeremy needed help. They just didn't know what to do.
Later, Elena went to her room and closed her door for privacy. She walked over to her desk and sat down in her chair, before she got a pen from her pen holder on her desk. Then she opened her right top drawer of her desk and took out her journal. She closed the drawer and opened her diary on her desk. Then she started to write, as thoughts came to her. She did this every night. It was her own personal therapy. She had done this since last summer.
Dear Journal,
Jeremy is acting strange. He doesn't come out of his room except for class and to eat, and he skips class and if failing his classes. He has developed an attitude towards everyone and he's withdrawn. All I know is this. He needs some kind of help. If he doesn't stop this, I don't know what will happen. I think he's still grieving for mom and dad. This might be his way of calling out for help and dealing with it. But it's not the way to go. I'm still grieving too, but I'm not acting like a stranger. Instead, I'm coping by writing all of this down. Speaking of stranger, I wonder where Damon is...I haven't seen him since last summer when he saved my life. If it wasn't for Damon, I'd be dead. Where is he? I miss him.
