You Are My Life

Anger and Apologies

Damon walked into the parlor. "Stefan, what exactly did Elena say?"

"We kissed." Mallorie swallowed hard as she moved toward the boys. "After you left us in the square, we kissed. Right now, I don't care if you hate us for it. I'm tired. I'm soaking wet. And all I want to do is shower and go lay in bed. Is that too much to ask for?"

"No." Damon looked at his brother before ushering Mallorie out of the room. "Let's get you settled."

Though she didn't need him to, Damon led Mallorie up the stairs. Once they reached the room she normally stayed in, Damon set her bag down and closed the door. He hung her dress up near the fireplace and began working on starting the fire. Mallorie walked over and began pulling everything she needed out of her bag. Damon's hand touched her wrist.

"I'm sorry." The water in his eyes threatened to spill over.

Mallorie stared into the unlit fireplace. "Maybe it's best if we don't talk about this."

There was a long pause. Mallorie could feel his eyes on her, searching for an answer, but she refused to meet his gaze.

"Yeah, you're probably right." Damon's hand slipped off her wrist.

He knelt down again. Mallorie closed her eyes and steadied her breathing. With everything in her hands, she walked to the bathroom. As she exited the room, she noticed Stefan at the top of the stairs. They exchanged an awkward glance before they both went their separate directions.

After her shower, Damon was gone. A fire crackled behind the fire screen in front of the fireplace. Mallorie dug her sketchbook out of her bag. She climbed into bed and began to work on a piece.

*****

Mallorie woke with a start to her alarm going off. It took her a minute to figure out where she left it last night. When she finally found it under one of the pillows, she turned it off. The early morning light streamed through one of the windows. With a stretch, Mallorie rose from the bed. She scooped up her sketchbook and placed it in her bag.

After digging her curling iron out of her bag, she sat down in front of the full-length mirror and began to use it in her hair. When she decided each layer looked alright, she applied some hair spray. Once she finished, the overwhelming urge to pee overcame her. She poked her head out the door and didn't see either of the boys on the landing. The coast was clear to leave.

As Mallorie reached for the handle of the bathroom door, it began to turn. She froze as the door swung open in front of her. A shirtless Damon almost collided with her. His hair was tousled and wet from his shower. Mallorie had to stop herself from drooling.

"Sorry." Mallorie jumped back from him.

Damon moved to walk around her, but Mallorie went in the same direction. This continued for a few seconds before Damon grabbed her shoulders.

"Go right." He stared at her for a moment then smirked.

Mallorie stepped to her right and Damon moved around her. Before Mallorie entered the bathroom, she turned to face him. He walked back to his room. Guilt crept in from last night's interaction. She should apologize.

"Damon!" Mallorie called.

"Yeah?" He spun around to face her.

Mallorie chewed her bottom lip. "What time are we leaving?"

"I was thinking about a half-hour." Damon shrugged.

"Sounds good." Mallorie closed the door and smacked her forehead. "You're an idiot."