Home

Chapter 25

He stares at me for several minutes, in silence. As if he's trying to decide am I really here or not, as if this is the recurring dream he has been having for quite some time now and he's trying to separate this situation from the one in his head.

He reaches out for me and when he touches my hand, when he feels my trembling skin on his fingertips, he looks genuinely surprised. But he's quick in his reaction. His fingers wrap all the way around my wrist and he pulls me inside. Everything happens so soon and the only thing I'm aware of is the door closing with a loud thump and my pulse on the tips of his fingers. I can't see anything, the hallway is too dark - it always has been in his fathers house. But I can feel fresh air on my back and his energy at my front, pressing at my chest, harder and harder with each passing second, with each mouse-like step. And the next thing I know I'm pressed against a cold hardwood wall, his chest against mine.

I can see his slow, careful movements in the dark - he's raising his hands. He puts his palms against my face, his skin is rough and soft at the same time. I lean into his palm, thinking this is where I want to fall asleep every night, this is where I feel most at peace, most like myself.

His thumb brushes against my jaw, caressing me, but I feel like that movement was not planned or voluntary - it's a reflex. It's something he has always done to me for as long as I can remember. I can see him clearly, even before we were an item, when he was wiping the tears from my face because of the reasons I can't remember anymore, he would put his palm on my cheek and caress my jaw with his thumb. He starts leaning in, slowly, as if he's giving me plenty of time to back away if this is not what I came for, but I don't stop him and his lips finally meet mine. He kisses me softly, barely moving his lips, but resting them on top of mine. It's a feeling, it's a moment, like when you're standing on a beach and your feet are sinking into hot sand and you don't want to move from that place.

I kiss him back. I stand on my toes, pushing myself up, my back grazing the wall, and my arms go around his neck so I can cling on to him, like a monkey. Our lips start moving to the same rhythm and he pulls me closer to him. His arms go around me and detach me from the wall and I can't say I'm too sorry, even though that wall had its purposes when it comes to maintaining my balance. But I would much rather find my balance in his arms.

My fingertips are pressed against the back of his neck and as our kiss deepens my fingers start traveling up, up, up towards his hair, until they're completely buried in his halo.

He has ruined me for life, I realize. Matt was as much of a problem as every other guy after him would be and eventually I would get tired of explaining it's not their fault, it's mine. Because none of them would kiss me with the whole universe hiding behind their lips like Stefan does. He's the only one who can make me see the stars and flashbacks into the past, who can make me feel as if I'm traveling through time while standing in one place, fighting for breath. He has ruined me for all the other men out there and no one could ever compare to him.

When I kiss him, I can see my future so clearly, and it's been a long time since I could do that, because these last couple of years everything's been foggy.

He lifts me from the floor, or at least I think he does, because this feeling of being high from the ground could be one of the side affects of his kisses. I know it's real once I struggle to wrap my legs around him because of my tight skirt, but I manage it somehow. Bonnie's going to murder me if it rips.

He detaches his lips from mine and lowers them on my neck and for a moment there I want to scream. I want to scream as he carries me away from the dark.

XXXX

STEFAN'S POV

I don't know why kitchen is the first room in the house I can think of, but that's where I carry her off to. Maybe because it's the closest to the hallway and I'm too impatient.