Giggling, Bonnie tripped on her way down the stairs, her foot coming right out of her high-heeled shoe.
"Here you go, Cinderel a," Zander said, picking up the shoe and kneeling in front of her. He helped slip her foot back into it, his fingers warm and steady against her instep.
Bonnie gave a mock curtsy, muffling her laughter. "Thank you, m'lord," she said flirtatiously.
She felt fabulous, so sil y and happy. It was almost as if she was drunk, but she'd only had a few sips of beer. No, she was drunk. Drunk on Zander, on his kisses, his gentle hands, and his big blue eyes. She took his hand, and he smiled down at her, that long slow smile, and Bonnie just absolutely quivered.
"Seems like the party's wrapping up," she said, as they hit the first floor. It was real y getting late, almost two o'clock. There were only a few groups of hard-core partiers left: a bunch of frat boys by the keg, some theater-department girls dancing with great wide swoops of their arms, a couple sitting hand in hand at the bottom of the stairs in deep conversation. Meredith, Stefan, Samantha, and Matt had disappeared, and if Elena had ever shown up, she had left, too. Zander's friends had gone, or been kicked out.
"Good-bye, good-bye," Bonnie caroled to the few people who remained. She hadn't real y gotten a chance to talk to any of them, but they al looked perfectly nice. Maybe next time she went to a party, she'd stay longer and real y bond with people she hadn't met before.
Look at al the new friends her friends had made on campus. Bonnie gave a special wave to a couple of people she'd seen Matt with lately - a shortish guy whose name she thought was Ethan and that girl with the dark curls and dimples. Not freshmen. She loved everyone tonight, but they deserved it most, because they had seen what a wonderful guy Matt was. They waved back at her, a little hesitantly, and the girl smiled, her dimples deepening.
"They seem real y nice," Bonnie told Zander, and he glanced back at them as he opened the door.
"Hmmm," he said noncommittal y, and the look in his eyes, just for a minute, made Bonnie shiver.
"Aren't they?" she said nervously. Zander looked away from them, back toward her, and his warm bril iant smile spread across his face. Bonnie relaxed; the coldness she'd seen in Zander's eyes must have been just a trick of the light.
"Of course they are, Bonnie," he said. "I just got distracted for a sec." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pul ing her close, and dropped a kiss on the top of her head. She sighed contentedly, cuddling up against his side.
They walked together companionably for a while. "Look at the stars," Bonnie said softly. The night was clear and the stars hung bright in the sky. "It's because it's starting to get colder at night that we can see them so Well." Zander didn't answer, only made a hmming sound deep in his throat again, and Bonnie glanced up at him through her eyelashes. "Do you want to get breakfast with me in the morning?" she asked. "On Sundays, the cafeteria does make-your-own waffles, with lots of different toppings. Delicious."
Zander was staring off into the distance with that same half-listening expression he had the last time they walked across campus together. "Zander?" Bonnie asked cautiously, and he frowned down at her, biting his lip thoughtful y.
"Sorry," he said. He took his arm off of Bonnie's shoulders and backed away a few steps, smiling stiffly. His whole body was tense, as if he was about to take off running.
"Zander?" she asked again, confused.
"I forgot something," Zander said, avoiding her eyes. "I have to go back to the party."
"Oh. I'l come with you," Bonnie offered.
"No, that's okay." Zander was shifting from foot to foot, glancing over Bonnie's shoulders as if, suddenly, he'd rather be anywhere than with her. Abruptly, he surged forward and kissed her awkwardly, their teeth knocking together, and then he stepped backward and turned, walking in the other direction. His strides lengthened, and soon he was running away from her, disappearing into the night. Again. He didn't look back.
Bonnie, suddenly alone, shivered and looked around, peering into the darkness on al sides. She had been so happy a minute ago, and now she felt cold and dismayed, as if she had been hit with a splash of freezing cold water.
"You have got to be kidding me," she said aloud.
Elena was shaking so hard that Damon was afraid she might just shake herself apart. He wrapped his arms around her comfortingly, and she glanced up at him without real y seeming to see him, her eyes glassy.
"Stefan..." she moaned softly, and Damon had to fight down a sharp stab of irritation. So Stefan was overreacting.
What else was new? Damon was here, Damon was with her and supporting her, and Elena needed to realize that.
He was tempted to grab Elena firmly by the chin and make her real y look at him.
In the old days, he would have done just that. Hel , in the old days, he would have sent a blast of Power at Elena until she was docile in his hands, until she didn't even remember Stefan's name. His canines prickled longingly just thinking of it. Her blood was like wine.
Not that expecting Elena to give in to his Power meekly had ever worked particularly Well, he admitted to himself, his mouth curling into a smile.
But he wasn't like that anymore. And he didn't want her that way. He was trying so hard, although he hated to admit it even to himself, to be worthy of Elena. To be worthy of Stefan, even, if it came right down to it. It had been comforting to final y have his baby brother looking at him with something other than hatred and disgust.
Well, that was over. The tentative truce, the beginnings of friendship, the brotherhood, whatever it had been between him and Stefan, was gone.
"Come on, princess," he murmured to Elena, helping her up the stairs toward her door. "Just a little farther." He couldn't be sorry they kissed. She was so beautiful, so alive and vibrant in his arms. And she tasted so good.
And he loved her, he did, as far as his hard heart was capable of it. His mouth curled again, and he could taste his own bitterness. Elena was never going to be his, was she? Even when Stefan turned his back on her, the self-righteous idiot, he was al she thought about. Damon's free hand, the one that wasn't cupping Elena's shoulder protectively, tightened into a fist.
They'd reached Elena's room, and Damon fished in her purse for her keys, unlocking the door for her.
"Damon," she said, turning in the doorway to look him straight in the eyes for the first time since before Stefan caught them kissing. She looked pale stil , but resolute, her mouth a straight line. "Damon, it was a mistake." Damon's heart dropped like a stone, but he held her gaze. "I know," he said, his voice steady. "Everything wil work out in the end, princess, you'l see." He forced his lips to turn up in a reassuring, supportive smile. The smile of a friend.
Then Elena was gone, the door to her room shutting firmly behind her.
Damon spun in his tracks, cursing, and kicked at the wal behind him. It cracked, and he kicked it again with a sour satisfaction at the feeling of the plaster splitting.
There was a muted grumbling coming from behind the other doors on the floor, and Damon could hear footsteps approaching, someone coming to investigate the noise. If he had to deal with anyone now, he'd probably kil him. That wouldn't be a good idea, no matter how much he might enjoy it for the moment, not with Elena right here.
Launching himself toward an open hal window, Damon smoothly transitioned to a crow in midair. It was a relief to stretch his wings, to pick up the rhythm of flying and feel the breeze against his feathers, lifting and supporting him. He flew through the window with a few strong beats of his wings and flung himself out into the night. Catching the wind, he soared recklessly high despite the darkness of the night. He needed the rush of the wind against his body, needed the distraction.