I will always choose you || Damon Salvatore

Chapter 1 - The Beginning

The Beginning:

(Y/n) looked up from her book and up towards the sky; it was starting to rain. She closed it and shoved it into her backpack, along with everything else that was in it. She didn't have a coat, and naturally, she didn't care to be sat outside in the same spot whilst it rained heavily. So, she stood up and crossed her arms after placing her backpack on her back, and began walking through the town square of Mystic Falls. This was the next town over her home town. The one that she had decided to leave behind for good. She faintly knew her way around the town, she would sometimes spend the day here with her friends before things got complicated. Because of how heavy the rain was, everyone had run inside in order to get out of the rain, likely to grab a warm drink but (Y/n) didn't really have that option. She possessed no money whatsoever, only the contents of her backpack, however, that only consisted of a few items of clothing and a few books. She shoved as much as she could into it before she ran out of what was once her home, desperate to get away from it all. All she had ever known her entire life was pain and anger, the familiar sounds of her parents yelling at her for not being good enough, for not being like her older sister Melissa; the perfect child. Them criticising every small thing that she did, every time she didn't get an A in class. These were things that she knew too well. It upset her to think of all the times that she'd rushed home to tell them something, but they had shut her down or made her shut up because Melissa had something more important to say; usually that she was engaged to a new guy. Her whole life (Y/n) had been completely alone and therefore was desperate to get away from it all.

That is what she had finally managed to do; escape. Her parents had started fighting about (Y/n)'s school report, and (Y/n) knew that it wouldn't be long until they took it out on her, reminding her that she was nothing like Melissa, and she knew that she just couldn't live that way anymore. As the fight got more intense, was pushed over the edge and packed her things before leaving without a word to either of her parents. What hurt the most is that it would probably be days before either of them or her sister, noticed that she was missing, maybe even more, although it wouldn't have surprised her if they never noticed at all. Even she and her friends had grown distant; they were all living their own lives now, and (Y/n)wasn't one to ruin that for any of them.

The rain grew heavier as she walked through the town. She wasn't sure where she was going, so she allowed her feet to take her to the next destination. (Y/n) moved a strand of wet hair from her face as she walked past the numerous coffee shops and diners, gazing inside as they were bustled with people all cosy and warm, sipping their coffees, and eating their food. (Y/n) wondered if anyone would notice her walking past, outside in the pouring rain, shivering due to a lack of a coat or jacket but as she suspected, nobody looked up or offered her a warm drink; so she continued to walk. She wondered what she had done wrong, or who she'd pissed off in a past life, to deserve the one that she had now. She was too busy wondering, and trying to get the wet hair from her eyes to see that she was about to walk into someone; and little did she know the impact that this person would have in the long run.

****

Damon Salvatore, one of the most mysterious men in the entirety of Mystic Falls, walked down the street and back towards his house; the Salvatore Mansion. He was wearing his usual black leather jacket and a pair of jeans matched with a loose shirt; his usual attire. He gave a small smile and he looked around the empty street. Empty. Just the way that he liked it. He couldn't help but think that his hating people was ironic because, technically, he needed them to survive. He ran his hand through his now wet, slicked back, jet black hair. Part of him wished that it rained more often, that way he wouldn't have to deal with people every day. He could emphasise how much he truly hated people. Again, ironic.

However, Damon was too busy marvelling at the emptiness that engulfed him and reminiscing about his life before he returned back to the town Mystic Falls, that he didn't notice that he and a girl were about to collide with one another.

"I'm so sorry!" The girl apologised immediately as Damon held out his hand in order to try and steady her as she was clearly shaken. All the time, she kept her head down, preventing Damon from seeing her face. "That was partly my fault." He replied. "Are you alright?" The girl that stood in front of him was soaking wet and freezing cold. She merely nodded her head in reply before she spoke quietly; "Yeah, I'm alright. I'm sorry again." Damon had been on this earth long enough to know that she was lying to him right now. She tried to walk away but delicately, Damon stopped her by placing his index finger underneath her chin, and lifted her head up so that her eyes met his. The first thing he noticed about them, besides the fact that they were piercing blue like those of a porcelain doll, was that they were red and puffy; she'd been crying. "You're not alright, are you?" He asked, clearly already knowing the answer to his question. She gave a small shake of her head. "No." She gave a small and awkward laugh as more tears formed in the corners of her eyes. Damon looked at the backpack that sat on her back. "Did you run away or something?"

"I'm not going back." The girl replied firmly.

"I'm not going to make you," Damon told her as he looked up at the clouds in the sky. "Look, the rain isn't going to stop anytime soon. I only live down there." He pointed down the street. "Why don't you come in and dry off. You'll get ill out here in the freezing cold." The girl looked at him, clearly confused as to why he was offering his help to her. "You don't even know me." She reminded him. "So? That doesn't mean I can't help you."

"I don't even know you." She added

"I'm Damon. Damon Salvatore." He told her as they continued to stand together in the rain; it only seemed to get heavier. The girl looked at him and gave a smile. "I'm (Y/n). (Y/n) (Y/L/n)." She bit her bottom lip, this was the first time that she was allowing herself to open up to someone in a long time, and Damon knew this feeling all too well. Hell, he was the king of hiding his feelings.

"Well, (Y/n) (Y/L/n), will you take up my offer now that we've been properly acquainted?" (Y/n) smiled at him, freezing in the rain. "Okay." She said, finally, before Damon held out his arm for her to take, like in the novels that she'd read as an escape from the real world. She took Damon's arm as he led her up the street towards his house.

Damon didn't have to worry about his seemingly perfect brother being at home since his brother had become somewhat of a ripper and run off to the middle of nowhere to live out his life as a bloodthirsty killer. It appeared that Stefan wouldn't be returning anytime soon so Damon didn't have anything to worry about; and he didn't have to worry about Stefan ripping (Y/n) apart, limb by limb.

"I've never seen you around here before," Damon said as they walked in the rain.

"I'm not from Mystic Falls," (Y/n) told him.

"What the hell are you doing here?" He smiled.

****

When they walked through the front door, (Y/n) looked around. She was grateful to be out of the rain, and the cold, but she still couldn't understand why this stranger had wanted to help her in the first place. No-one had really noticed her before, let alone offered to help her and the last thing that she wanted to do was waste his time. "Take a seat," Damon said, holding out his hand so that his finger was pointing at the living room, where two sofas sat in front of a large fireplace. "Make yourself at home. I'll get you something to drink." He told her as she continued to marvel at the size of the fireplace, imagining how warm it could get, especially in the winter. The house that she was in was big, unlike anything that she had ever seen before.

When Damon returned he placed the drink in her hands; it was warm. (Y/n) held it close to her body in order to warm herself up. "So," Damon said, as he lit the fireplace, making (Y/n)'s eyes light up before he took a seat in front of her. "Do you want to talk about it?" He asked her, and his voice was filled with genuine care and concern. As (Y/n) debated it, he continued. "I know what it's like to feel like the whole world is against you; to feel completely and utterly alone." At that moment, (Y/n) didn't feel misunderstood anymore and she knew for certain that she was no longer alone.