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"I TALKED TO CAROLINE," Damon swishes the bourbon in his glass around, not sparing Rose a glance as she joined him in the living room. "She said Tyler was all locked up."
"So, it was Jules, the other werewolf. The one who attacked you." She says it like a question, but it's simply a confirmation as she sits down on the other side of the couch Damon's on.
Damon winces, but reaches behind him and hands her her own glass. "Yeah, I'm sorry. I picked a fight with her. She was coming after me."
Rose shrugs as he pours her drink. "All's well that ends well,"
"You all healed?"
"Yeah," She looks at him, borderline confusedly. "Seems that way."
"Rose, uh," He hesitates, hoping she can't hear the lie in his voice. "I'm happy the legend was fake. Maybe it was all just some werewolf defense thing to stop vampires from wiping them out."
She grins, oblivious to his thinly veiled hostility. "Lucky me," Rose shifts, adjusting her position on the couch. She clears her throat softly, garnering Damon's attention lazily. "I'm going to stay and help you."
Damon narrows his eyes at Rose, his disbelief and confusion weaved into the twist of his frown. "Help me do what?"
"Whatever it is you're planning with the Originals," She's overly confident, a clear overcompensation of her fear and something they're both aware of in the moment. She poses as a threat to him now that she's made it known she's aware of where his loyalties lie, and he could disregard her allying herself to him and get rid of her once and for all.
"Really," Damon smirks slightly, tilting his head as he searches her gaze for any dishonesty. "Why?"
She shrugs, letting out a somewhat shaky sigh. "Because I like you. I believe in friendship. I happen to have a vacancy in that department, and I don't think you're particularly overflowing with applications at the moment."
He raises an eyebrow at her, a humorous look taking over his previously solemn one. "Just friends? I am a married man, after all."
"I admire your loyalty, Damon." She responds, her brows twitching with a million unasked questions about his words.
He hums, satisfied with her answers. "You're making the best decision, Rose." Damon reaches over, clapping his hand down on her shoulder, causing her to groan as a sudden pain pulses through her shoulder and down her arm.
She tugs at the fabric of her robe and pulls it off her shoulder, revealing the previously healed bite bubbling up like poison underneath her skin. She looks at Damon in utter shock, only to find that there's not a single modicum of surprise on his face.
