♤ [1] An Everlasting Death - The Vampire Diaries

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"It's strange what desire will make foolish people do"

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MY STOMACH lays exposed in front of Damon like an open wound. I can feel everything, with every movement causing each sliver to poke deeper into my skin.

"They're going to pay," he growls.

''Don't get ahead of yourself, brother. We barely made it out; I'm not going back again. At least not now," I say.

"Since when do you not want revenge?" He seems baffled by the idea.

"Would you please hurry up and pull them out. Quit stalling," I sigh, immediately regretting it as he plucks out the deepest chard.

My back arches in pain but I can't help it. I try as hard as I can not to move as it only evokes more pain but at the same time each sliver removed makes my body jolt. I just grit my teeth and hiss, helpless.

"Sorry," Damon says. "You said to quit stalling."

I glare at him in response while staying still, gripping the couch as he pulls out all the shards. Each time he pulls one out, I can feel my stomach closing up, healing. Just as I think it's almost over, I glance down at my stomach to see it still matted with blood, resembling more of a cactus than of an actual human body part.

"UGH" I growl in frustration just as Stefan and James enter the house.

"What's going on?" Stefan asks.

"Just some brother sister bonding," I hiss, my stomach on fire.

"Doesn't bloody look like it," James says in his familiar British accent.

Stefan stands over Damon's shoulder, frowning as he inspects my stomach. "Did you at least offer her alcohol?" he asks Damon.

I let out a laugh before holding up a blood bag I've been sipping on. "We're almost done," Damon says. He has a crease in his forehead as he concentrates.

"How's Caroline?" I ask, trying to distract myself.

"She's pretty good; a little rattled but all good thanks to you. She told me you took most of the hits." Stefan narrows his eyes at me. "Is that true?"

"Yeah, well that's what friends are for," I say. I glance around the room for James, but he's disappeared. I find myself disappointed in his absence, partly because I wish to confront him about that voice in my head.

Stefan goes to call Elena, leaving just Damon and I in the living room. I sip on the blood bag until it's dry, letting the night's events sink into my brain. Then I'm brought back to yesterday.

"Damon?"

"Yeah?"

I feel immense sadness inflating my chest. "I'm sorry about Rose. I was the one to end it, but she asked me to. I only thought it was right."

He avoids eye contact. "It's fine. I only knew her for like three days," he shrugs.

I frown at his insecurity. "But you loved her, or at least liked her. I could tell."

He sets down the tweezers and looks at me. "You did the right thing Blair, and I forgive you. There wasn't a cure anyways and you saved her a lot of pain."

Despite his words of assurance, I still feel guilty. "Don't you at least wish you got to say goodbye?"

"Not like that," he murmurs quietly.