Damon had ignored me all week and with valid reason.

I had lied, well, withheld the truth and everyone else but him seemed to know. I understand where he's coming from but it would be nice to actually explain everything to him.

The book I was currently reading laid open, abandoned on my lap, my attention fully on Damon who sat across the room having some random conversation with Cassidy.

"He'll come around," Stefan spoke from behind me.

"I don't think he will," I sighed, "I should have told him. I'm not even sure why I didn't. I guess I just...I don't know. Everything was already complicated without throwing an abusive ex into the mix. He was supposed to stay gone, but he just keeps coming back."

Stefan moved around the couch and sat down next to me, "What do you think he's planning?"

I closed my book and placed it on the table in front of us, "I have no idea." I stood up from the couch and grabbed my bag, "I'll be back."

"Where are you going?" Cassidy asked.

"To go fill Tyler and Caroline in," I shrugged, making my way to the door.

"You can't go out right now," Damon pointed out.

I rolled my eyes and opened the door before looking back at everyone, "I can and I am. I'll see you guys later."

I pulled out my phone once I was in my car and dialed Carolina's number

"I have to tell you guys something," I explained and they exchanged a look I couldn't quite identify. "Scott is back and he-"

"We know," Caroline interrupted.

"You...know?" I inquired and I was sure I looked just as confused as I felt. 

"He was here earlier," Tyler informed, "He had a lot to say."

"About what?" I asked. My mind was spinning. They looked fine. They were alive. So what the hell was he going for?

"About you," he answered.

My eyes widened, "Whatever he said, it-"

"Relax," Caroline shook her head, "We don't believe him. He may think we do, but we don't."

"I have to go," I sighed, "But you guys need to be careful. He knows all of you and everyone is at risk. Nobody can get hurt because of me."

Caroline frowned but nodded and I walked away.

"Hey, Evelyn," I turned around to find Tyler following after me. "Are you going to be okay?"

I nodded with a smile, "Yeah, I'm going to be fine." Before I could talk myself out of it, I pulled him into a hug, "Thank you," I whispered in his ear, "For everything."

He smiled as we pulled away from each other, "Anytime."

I exited the Grill with one goal. No matter what, it was Scott who would lose. He's not winning this time.

An arm slipped out of the alleyway and pulled me in, "You really do have all the boys wrapped around your finger," Scott sneered. He stood in front of me, close enough that I was forced to press myself against the wall to avoid touching him, "You belong to me."

"I don't belong to anyone," I spat back, "Get over yourself, Scott." I pushed him away from me, sending him into the wall across me. He fell to the floor and I walked over to him, crouching down so he could hear me, "Stay away from me and stay the hell away from my friends. Next time, I won't hesitate to kill you."

-

"Damon, just talk to me," I begged from the frame of his door, "Please."

"I have every right to be angry," Damon shouted in exasperation, "If you had told me, I could have-"

"You could have what?" I raised an eyebrow, "Gone after him? Killed him? That's exactly why I didn't tell you! I didn't want him dead, I wanted him gone. If I had told you, you would have killed him or at least tried too. You're right, you can be angry but you don't get to be angry at me for not telling you, you can be angry, but there is no need for it to be at me."

"I'm not angry at you," he exhaled, shaking his head. "I'm angry at the situation. I'm angry that I didn't know. But I'm not angry at you."

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner," I apologized again, "I wanted to put it behind me. I needed to put it behind me."

He wrapped his arms around me and I rested my head on his chest, pulling him closer to me, "Everything will be okay."

I looked up at him with a frown, "You have to promise you won't go after him. No matter what. He won't hesitate to kill you."

"I'm going to keep you safe," he replied, "If that means going after him, I will."

"Damon, please."

He looked reluctant, and I couldn't blame him, "I promise."

"Thank you," I smiled gently before hugging him again. My voice was a whisper now, "Thank you."

-

My head was pounding as I took in my surroundings. Where the hell am I?

My eyes adjusted to the lighting in the room and I noticed a figure sitting a decent length away from me, "It's nice of you to join me, Eve."

"It's my pleasure," I smiled fairly but that only made my head hurt more. I grimaced before shifting in my seat. My hands were tied behind my back and my wrists burned. Vervain.

"Don't you know kidnapping is no way to a girl's heart?" I commented as I tried to yank the vervain soaked ropes off but failed miserably. How did I end up here?

"Don't you know snarky comments are no way to keep yourself alive?" he countered.

I sent him the sweetest smile I could muster before focusing on the issue at hand. How the hell was I supposed to get out of here?

He knelt down in front of her, a smirk on his face. "Still as feisty as I remember." I narrowed my eyes at this. What is he up to? He grabbed my chin tightly, forcing my head from side to side before kissing me. 

I tried to pull away but failed. I extended my vampire teeth before biting his lip, piercing a hole through.

He pulled away with a hiss. "Bitch," he spat, blood splattering my face.

"Try it again and it'll be a lot worse than a little hole."

-

"Where's Evie?" Elena asked as she shut the door to the Salvatore house.

"On her way to you," Stefan stated.

"We really need to work on telling each other when we need to see each other," Elena sighed before pulling out her phone and calling her sister.

It rang multiple times before going to voicemail, "You've reached Evelyn. Well, not really. Anyway, sorry if it's important but go ahead and leave a message at the beep and I'll get back to you whenever I feel like it." Then there was a beep. 

Elena frowned and looked at her phone screen, "She always answers. I didn't even know she had a voicemail set up."

"She's probably just driving," Stefan pointed out.

"She didn't take the car, she would have walked."

Stefan frowned, "We can go check your house. Maybe she's there and her phone just died."

"Maybe who's where?" Damon asked, emerging from the other room.

"No one," Elena answered quickly, "We'll be back later."

Damon narrowed his eyes at the girl but said nothing. Whatever she was hiding from him, he would figure it out eventually. He always did.

Stefan and Elena left as soon and Damon returned to whatever it was that he did to occupy his time. They pulled up to the Gilbert house and Elena ran inside immediately.

"Evelyn!" she shouted into the house. Jeremy sat up on the couch and turned to face his sister as Stefan joined her, "Is she here?"

"No," Jeremy frowned, "I thought she was at the Salvatore's." He stood up from the couch, anxiety coursing through his veins, "Is she not there?"

Elena placed her hand on her forehead and started pacing back and forth, trying to figure out where her sister could be. She stopped in front of Stefan who looked worried, "Do you think he took her?"

"I-" he began but shook his head, "I don't know. She could be anywhere."

"I'll call Matt and see if she's at the Grill," Jeremy stated and pulled out his phone before moving into the other room.

Elena nodded, "I'll call Caroline." She frowned slightly, "You should call Damon."

"Is that really a good idea?" Stefan asked, "I mean she may be fine and he might overreact."

"He should know."

Stefan let out a sigh and nodded. She was right. He pulled out his phone and called his brother, stepping outside as to not interfere with the other calls.

After two rings, he answered, "Hello, brother."

"Damon," Stefan stated, his voice urgent, "You should get over here."

"And why would I do that?"

"Because…" Stefan trailed off, not sure how to explain it, "It's Evelyn, okay? Just come over and we'll figure it out."

There was silence on the other end before the line clicked. Stefan let out a sigh and moved to open the door when there was a light woosh behind him. He turned around to see his brother standing there.

The two of them entered the home to find Jeremy and Elena standing with each other. They turned to the Salvatore's and shook their heads.

"That's what I thought," Stefan exhaled.

"So what's the next step?" Elena asked.

"We find the prick and kill him," Damon stated.

"The priority is Evelyn, we focus on getting her back and go from there," Stefan countered.

"I think he's right," Elena responded, "I know Scott, at least more than you two do. He was persistent and would do anything to prove he's right and to get what he wants. If he really is here for Evelyn, and she truly is with him then there isn't much time. He'll leave with her as soon as he gets the chance, if killing him is what we need to do to stop him…"

"Then we kill him," Jeremy finished. "No questions asked because you're right Stefan, she is the priority and we do whatever it takes to bring her back home. And that means killing the asshole."

Stefan ran a hand over his face, "Alright, so we have a goal. What's the plan?"

-

"Just because we didn't get her back today doesn't mean we won't be getting her back," Elena pointed out as they sat in the Grill.

Damon had one to many drinks and was laughing, a glass of bourbon in hand, "Grow up, Elena. She's gone. The sooner you accept that the better." Stefan stepped between the two and Damon scowled. "Sorry, hero hair, this time you can't save her," he commented before pushing his brother out of the way.

Stefan stepped back and whispered something in Elena's ear. She glanced behind Damon and nodded in agreement with whatever he just told her.

Damon stumbled out of the Grill after dropping off his glass at the bar. He turned around when the door opened again, expecting his brother but came face to face with a man he'd never met, "Do you need something?"

"I think you need to calm down," the man pointed out.

"You do, do you?" Damon inquired before the man lunged at him. The Salvatore pulled something out of his jacket and rammed it into his chest as Stefan and Elena emerged. Damon twisted the stake and whispered in the man's ear, "Enjoy hell."

He then let the body drop and looked up at the two who stood in front of him. He dusted his hands off, "That's one down. Who's next?"

-

I remember how he got me now and I felt like an idiot when I realized it. I was walking to my house from the Salvatore's house when him and his little helpers ambushed me and used vervain as though it were chloroform. I was smarter than that but I didn't think he would be out looking for me. I let my guard down.

He was barking orders that I couldn't comprehend into his phone before he hung up and stalked over to where I was still tied to the chair.

"That boyfriend of yours…" he tsked, "Very angry and very stupid."

I felt my face flush, "What?"

"I don't do well with people who get in my way Evelyn, you know this."

"What the hell did you do to him Scott?" I shouted in anger, pulling against the rope, causing it to fray.

"Don't worry," Scott responded, "He'll be dead by the time you get there."

"Get where?" I shouted once more, snapping the rope in half and easily pinning him to the wall by his throat. His minions that were in the room with them were ready to attack but he shook his head.

"The boarding house," he answered, "But as I said…"

I didn't hear anything else before throwing him to the ground and vamp-speeding as fast as I could, back to the boarding house.

I rushed into the house not prepared for what I would be walking in on. Damon was in trouble, that's all that I needed to know.

As soon as I entered, I saw Damon fighting one of the vamps and losing. He had blood dripping down his chin and I'm pretty sure his leg was broken.

A vamp came up behind him, ready to stab him in the heart. I rushed over and blocked the path, the stake entering my chest in one fowl swoop.

Damon had killed the vamp he was previously fighting and the other had run away.

I gasped at the impact, I knew what I was doing but I was still shocked. I tasted copper in my mouth and knew it was a lost cause.

"No, no, no, no," Damon said from behind me, catching me before I hit the floor.

He fell down with me, resting me in his lap. He quickly pulled the stake out but it was useless.

"Damon…" I began, a single tear slipping down my cheek, "It's okay."

"No, you can't die," he shook his, "Why would you do that? It was supposed to be."

"Everything will be okay," I choked out, looking up at the beautiful creature I had fallen in love with, "I promise."

"You aren't dying, not today," Damon demanded as he continued to try and remove splinters from my heart.

"Damon…" I whispered weakly, "Please."

He stopped and held me on his lap, smiling weakly at me.

"Do me a favor?" I spoke softly, trying not to exert too much energy.

"Anything," he responded.

"Tell Elena and Jeremy that I love them and that they are going to be just fine." I laughed ironically, remembering the letter I wrote. It felt like a lifetime ago. I coughed more blood and he placed his hand on the side of my face. "Tell Caroline to relax every once in a while so she can truly live. Well, at least as much as a dead person can live. Tell Bonnie that she doesn't have to help everyone all the time. Tell Matt he needs to put less pressure on himself. Tell Tyler...tell him that I'm sorry for everything I put him through. And tell Stefan to stop brooding so much, it's not good for his complexion." It took 

Damon laughed at that, a tear dripping off his face onto my chest.

"Oh no," I said, shaking my head slighty, "Don't cry. Please don't cry. Remember, even when I'm gone, I'll be with you...always."

Damon tried to smile but couldn't bring himself to do it.

"I love you."

"I love you too," he said, his forehead now touching mine.

"Take care of them?" I asked and he nodded. "Kiss me."

"What?" he asked, perplexed by the request.

"I want that to be the last thing I remember."

He nodded before leaning down and kissing me.

I now stood above us. Watching as Damon clutched on to my body and cried. I wanted to comfort him and tell him everything would be okay. But I can't and won't ever be able to again.