Final Chapter

It greatly breaks his heart but Damon had no other option but to do it. As long as he is a part of her life, she will be continuously haunted by the shadows that hound him.

He will never let that happen. Rainie doesn't deserve it.

She deserves a life of security, free from the chaos and death that his existence brings.

So even though it hurts so much that he had to erase his existence from the life and memory of the only woman that mattered to him so much, he must do it if he truly loves her.

Even though it is painful, he's immortal and he had an endless lifetime ahead of him that he can spend in moving on while she will return to her normal where she will continue her life not knowing him.

"Listen to me, Rainie." Damon couldn't almost breathe as he Compelled her. "You never knew anyone named Damon. He never been part of your life, you've never seen him, you've never knew that he existed…You never loved him."

Rainie closed her eyes and Damon could sense that the Compulsion had already taken effect. Once he opened her eyes again, everything that she knew about him will be vanquished. Every touch, every kiss, all of it…Gone.

Tears uncontrollably escaped his eyes as he released her. Turning away and never looking back, Damon feels like his heart is being ripped apart by each step that he make away from her. Everything in him shouts to turn back and return to her arms. But his reason that continuously desire to remain her safe refrain him from doing so. His will to keep her away from the lunacy that he brings overpowered his desire to be with her.

"Where are you going, Damon?" Rainie said, forcing him to cease his advance and turn to her with a stunned expression. "You're just going to leave me after saying that you loved me?"

"How did you?" Damon mumbled in disbelief.

"It won't work, Damon," Rainie said, closing towards him until they're toe to toe, meeting eye to eye, gazes locked at each other. "It will never work…Ever."

Damon cupped her face, still staring at her with great shock. "Why?" he frowned. "How?"

"Katherine." The name that always answer everything. "She did something called Compulsion to me so that I will always resist you every time you do the same thing to me."

"What?" She was Compelled. Compelled to resist his Compulsion. And it even worked. He never even thought that something like that could be possible. And moreover, it baffles him that Katherine did such a thing?

She smiled. "It's a long story, but it all started the day before I moved to your place, when Katherine broke in into our compound."

Damon placed his hands on her shoulders, slightly squeezing them. "What happened back then?" he demanded, his mind hungry for answers.

Rainie glanced down and hesitated a bit. "She told me everything."


One Month earlier…

"Who are you!?" Rainie exclaimed to the unknown woman who showed off on her front door, raising the vase in her hand once more.

Her lips twisted into a smile. "That's not important at the moment," she said, pulling someone from her side.

Rainie's eyes widened in panic realizing that it was Jane and the beautiful woman had had her hands clutched on her neck.

"What's important is that if you don't invite me in, your friend her will go bye-bye," she said, positioning her hands in twisting Jane's neck.

Rainie's panic doubled. Jane is in big trouble. However, she found it weird that the Jane who always cried at the first sign of danger is not resisting from her hold or even reacting a bit from the fact that her life is in danger.

Her face is apathetic. Blank. Unmoving like a statue.

Like she's been drugged or something.

"3 seconds," she said, slowly moving Jane's neck back and forth.

"What?" Her head spun, confused of what she's going to do. Jane's life is in great danger, but something inside her is telling her to not invite this woman in, like it tells her that something more sinister will happen if she does.

"One…" She gripped Jane's neck harder.

Oh God, what am I going to do? Let her in. Don't let her in. The two thoughts are at war in her head.

"Two…"

She's about to break her neck!

"Three!"

"Okay! Come in!"

The moment that she spoke the words, she pushed Jane towards her. Throwing the vase to her side that breaks into hundreds in pieces, she caught Jane with her arms and body.

"Jane, are you okay?" she asked Jane who just stared at her dreamily before losing consciousness.

"Don't worry, she's fine." The unknown woman said as she walked passed her.

Supporting Jane, Rainie followed her as she went towards the living room where she rested her faultless body on the couch.

"Do you have something to drink here?" she asked casually.

Placing Jane on the other couch distant from the woman who almost killed her best friend, "Who the hell are you!?" she exclaimed angrily

"Katherine," she said. "A friend of Damon."

Rainie gaped. Looking at her, she had the feature and stature that can degrade a lot of women's self esteem. And she's acquainted to Damon. Rainie was immediately stung by insecurity. "Damon is not here! So please, get out!"

"Oh no, I'm not here for Damon. I'm here for you."

Horror filled Rainie. He once heard stories from her friends about crappy women that hunts their ex-lovers' new girlfriends. But if she's here for that, she's making a big mistake. She's not Damon's girlfriend. Damn! She doesn't even know him for an entire day. "What do you want from me?"

"Nothing," she straightened up and inched closer to her. "But on the other hand, I can't say the same thing for Damon. He appears to be kind of attached to you."

Rainie stepped back, trembling. "So?"

Katherine moved around her, encircling her, "So…I'm here to check if you're ready or not."

She frowned. "Ready for what?"

In a movement that her eyes could not follow, Katherine was immediately in front of her, her hand clutched on her chin. "Ready to enter our world."

Rainie's eyes widened in fear, she could not absorb a bit of what had just happened. What had just Katherine had done.

Katherine leveled her gaze to meet hers. "As you can see, I'm not quite part of the ordinary and…so is Damon. So I was thinking that if he's going to welcome someone again in our little dirty world, I must ensure that she's ready."

Rainie could not understand any single word that Katherine is talking about. But whatever it is, she's certain that it's up to no good. "What are you?" she asked slowly.

Katherine released her and seated back to the couch. "I'll answer your questions, but that will all depends on your answer."

"What do you mean?"

"Tell me Raine, do you like Damon?"

Rainie went silent. Of course she does. Who would not like someone as sweet and as passionate as Damon Salvatore?

"Because he likes you…a lot."

"I guess so…I mean Damon is a nice person and he's…"

"…good in bed," Katherine inserted.

Rainie's cheeks reddened, embarrassed. That's not exactly what she's going to say, but in all honesty, that's what she thought. "Yeah, good in bed."

"Well it's pretty obvious on the time that the two of you had spent in bed," she said. "And ohhh…let's not forget the other areas of your house."

Rainie would have crawled under the nearest couch. She had never felt so embarrassed and exposed in her entire life. She felt naked before her. How dare her to tamper her privacy, especially in her sex life. Her nose flared, "Why don't you just get directly to the point?"

Katherine plucked her lips. "I believe your answer is good enough. So okay, let's talk."


"She told me what she is, what you are, about your past, about you and her, Stefan, Rose…Elena. What you've been through."

Damon dropped his forehead to her. "God, I wish you didn't."

"No, I'm glad now that I know."

"How can you say that?"

Her bottom lip trembled. "I would never want you to deal with all of it alone."

He gripped her shoulders. Brows drawn, he rasped, "My God, I love you."

"If you do, then why are you trying to leave me?"

"I'm just being smart, cold, logical. I don't want to plague you with the misery of my life."

However, that's not what she wanted. "I'd rather have bad times with you than to live in peace alone."

Damon cupped her face and kissed her so gently. "I never thought that you'll say that."

"I'm used in crazy things anyway. They attach to me like I'm some kind of a trace spot. That's what brought you to me."

"So what else happened that night?"

"Katherine Compelled me to forget everything and I will only remember any of it if I receive a Compulsion from you."

"I find it hard to believe that Katherine had plotted all of these just for my welfare. I still think that she's up to something."

"Yes, she is. And that's to ensure that you'll be happy with me."

Damon frowned, unconvinced. "Why would she do that?"

"Because she cared for you. Even though it's being surfaced by her deceit and cruelty, she truly cares for you."

He shook his head. "I'm not convinced. I think she's just doing this to get her hands on the location of the White Oak Tree that is in Tim's possession."

"She already got it."

"What!?"

"You heard me. She already got the information about the Tree long before we met. And to be honest, she could have left this place at any time that she desires but she didn't. Not until she fixed everything for you…and me."


"You have to give the woman some credit, Damon." Rainie said. "She's not that all bad at all."

Damon looked pass Rainie's shoulder, towards the alley where Katherine had disappeared. "I have to go."

"Where are you going?"

"I just have some things that I need to settle with her."

Damon instructed Rainie to return to Jane and Tim before he left her to follow Katherine. It had been a great miracle that after all that had been said and done, she's still his and her feelings for him and his to her are still unmoved. And if only he's human with a normal life that is not plagued by the world of the supernatural, he would be dedicating his time, love, and life to her.

But he isn't and at the moment, there are a lot of things that are going on inside his head that only Katherine can answer. Luckily, she hadn't gone that far yet and he was able to catch up with her. "Katherine." He called to her as she walked towards another dark alley.

Katherine ceased her advance and whirled around to face him, smiling she said, "How did it go?"

Damon reduced the gap between them. "Why did you do this? Rainie told me everything but I'm not buying it not unless I heard it directly from you."

"I thought you hate listening to anything that I say?"

"Well, I'm making an exemption today, so start talking."

"Humanity is a vampire's greatest weakness. No matter how easy it is to turn it off, it keeps trying to fight its way back in. Sometimes I let it."

Damon frowned. "What does that supposed to mean?"

"That's exactly what I told Stefan when he asked me why I preferred your life over my vengeance to Klaus."

His eyes widened.

Katherine smiled. "We have all the chance back then to end him. I have the chance to get rid of him once and for all. But I didn't. I choose you over that. A concrete proof that my humanity is still bothering me and it apply to you."

Damon snorted. Somehow, he still finds it hard to believe especially that it came directly from the deceiving lips of Katherine.

She cupped a corner of his face with her palm, "Damon, I might never have loved you but it doesn't mean that I never care. I do, somehow. In my own way." She leaned up on her tiptoes to kiss him lightly in the cheek.

"Where are you going?" he asked as she resumes her departure.

"Home," she looked back slightly through her shoulder. "I still have a lot of unfinished business to do."

"You're going to fight again?"

"I have no choice. My grudge will never be quenched if I don't end this. I don't want to continue spending my life like that especially that I'm an immortal and there's an eternity ahead of me."

"Then I'm going with you."

Katherine faced her again carrying are staggered expression. "What?"

"I'll fight again, alongside with you, alongside with my brother."

"You can't do that."

"Why not?"

"How about your girl?"

"There's no future for us if things remains the same. I must fix my life first before I start to build a new one with her."

"You know that you might not be able to return," she reminded him. "Are you willing to take that chance?"

"If I can't establish a life that she deserves then she's better off without me."

Katherine sighed. "Shall we go now then, or are you going to say goodbye first."

"I can't see her. I might not be able to leave if I do."

"Then we better get going, it's long trip from here to Mystic Falls."

Damon closed his eyes and then looked back, gazing gloomily towards where he left Rainie. He doesn't know if it's right to leave her, but he also knows that it's not also right to stay with her if he's troubled and broken. At least he must be able to offer to her what she deserves.


Arms crossed on her chest, her mind race as she pace back and forth in her room

He's still not Home.

It's already pass midnight but Damon still hadn't gone back and it's making her so worried. What could have happened that causes him this much delay? If he's just going to talk with Katherine then he should have been back by now.

Suddenly, her gaze diverted towards the table where she kept her make-ups and perfumes.

Rainie staggered back, sitting to her bed. Tears started to abandon her eyes. It was as if she'd been gutted. He's gone and he might not come back.

She forced herself to straighten up her shaking legs and moved closer to her table where she picked the small bottle containing Katherine's blood.


*"What's this?" Rainie asked as Katherine handed over to her a small bottle containing red fluids.

"My blood," she said.

Ewww! "What I'm gonna do with it?"

"Rainie, there's a huge chance that if things ends up according to my plan, Damon might follow me and leave you. So I'm making an insurance."

Rainie scowled. "What do you mean Damon will leave me, and what's this plan of yours anyway?"

Katherine wrinkled her nose. "You'll know it later. But right now, here's what you're going to do. If all of these are over and Damon never returned, you can use this." She indicated her blood.

She stared at it in bewilderment.

"Humans don't turn into vampires by just a mere bite. That's just a Hollywood myth. For humans to turn, they must die 24 hours after they drink a vampire's blood."

Her face lightened up in understanding. However, she's still greatly baffled on her intention.

"If you want to follow Damon, use it. You can become a huge ally to us with lesser liabilities unlike that damsel in distress descendant of mine. But if not, you can keep it and wait for him. I just can't assure how long you'll have to wait."

"But if things go well, why would he leave?"

"Silly humane reason, he got heaps of it."

Rainie held the bottle tighter. She's not sure if her decision of agreeing to all of these will sustain her any good or if she can trust Katherine. All that she knows is she must do it.

She must do it for Damon.

To a Stranger that she values.

"And…" Katherine raised her finger and took something from her jacket. "I'm also leaving this to you."

A Ring. What's this now?"

"It's a Lapis Lazuli. It allows the vampire that wore it to walk under the sun. You will also need it in case you choose to follow him."*


Rainie wiped her tears with the back of her hand as she stared on Katherine's blood, opting what to do.

To drink it or not? And if she does, she must also deal with the consequences of her turning. Katherine told her that her first days aren't going to be easy. She might endanger herself in the process, not to mention she might also kill a lot of people just to sustain herself with a significant amount of human blood within the next 24 hours of her transition.

Rainie exhaled forcefully. If she do this, nothing will ever be normal again. Right now, she had the choice to return back to the life that she has before Damon became a part of it. A life that she dictates with no complications as grave as what Damon brings.

But is that truly what she wants? Would that make her happy?

The answer is obvious.

No.

She can no longer have a life without Damon. He is her life now. And even though he's the worst man that she can fell in love with, she'd rather deal with the lunacy that he brings that to live her life without her.

And right now, he needs her more than ever.

Opening her jewelry box, she took the Lapis Lazuli that Katherine left for her and placed it on her finger. Picking up her phone, she dialed Jane's number. After three rings, Jane answered. "Hey Rain, what's up?"

"Uhmm," she breathed. "Nothing much, I just called to say that I'm going somewhere out of town sooner, so we might not see each other for a while."

"What!?" Jane exclaimed. "Where are you going?"

"On a very important trip."

"What kind of a trip is that and why so sudden?"

"I don't know. I'm not sure too. All I know is that I must do it."

"Rainie if this is about me and your boyfriend, I'm so…"

"No, it's not about that. But it still has something to do with him."

Jane sighed. "Do you really like that guy that much?"

Her term was an understatement. And to be honest, any other possible terms are all understatement. "I love him, Jane. I love him so much."

"Oh God," Jane breathed deeply. "You're going to come back, right?"

"Of course," she chuckled. "After all, how can you survive without me?"

Jane also laughed. "Isn't that supposed to be my line?"

A tear slid on her cheek. "I will miss you, best."

"I will miss you too," Jane sniffed. "You take care of yourself."

"Always, best. Always."

Rainie clicked the phone shut and twisted the cork of the bottle containing Katherine's blood.

Gathering up all the courage that she possessed, she drank its entire content. The taste was so wrong but the after effect was ecstatic, soothing. Like it's replenishing her, mending her.

She wiped the remaining stains of blood on her mouth. The initial process is over. She only had 24 hours.

Have to find a safe way to die.


3 Months Later…

"Gloomed again."

Damon growled at the sound of Stefan's voice from behind.

"You know what, this is very unlike you," he said, placing one of the two glasses of whiskey that he carries on the table in front of him.

Damon straightened up and took the glass before he rested his back again to the couch. "It's none of your business," he told Stefan before taking a sip on the liquor.

Leaning against the bookshelf, Stefan eyed on him expressively like he can read his thought. "Tell me, what happened to you while you were gone that you ended up becoming this sentimental. When he glared at him, he added. "…and moody too."

He raised his glass to his brother, "Life. And I didn't grab it."

"Why not?"

"Because I can't give something in return."

"Is that so or is it just what you believe?"

He shrugged, taking another gulp of his drink. "Does it matter? This or that, the outcomes are all the same."

"Then why don't you just accept the outcome and deal with it. And fix it if necessary."

"That's easier to be said than done."

Stefan laughed darkly. "And since when did things become easy for us?"

His brother has a point. "Never, I guess."

He chuckled. "Piece of advise, stop sulking. It'll just get nowhere."

"Yeah, right," he groaned and drunk the entire content of his glass.

By then, the doorbell rang. "I'll get it," Stefan volunteered and get to the door.

A minute later he returned, and he wasn't alone. There's feminine silhouette behind him.

"Someone's looking for you," Stefan informed him.

"Who?" he asked nonchalantly.

The silhouette moved from behind Stefan, revealing herself to him.

Damon breath almost ceases when he gain his first sight of on the woman that had been concealing herself behind Stefan. His mind raced and his heart pondered with overwhelming emotions. Slowly, he forced himself to stand. Blinking, he made certain that his eyes are not playing tricks with him.

"Hi Damon," Rainie grinned, flashing her white teeth.

"Rainie?" he breathed.

Her beautiful face twisted into a smile. "Aren't you going to hug an old friend?"

Disbelief still filled him. For months ever since he left her, not even once that she left his mind. Day and night, every hour, every minute, he dreamed nothing except to find a way to return to her, to be with her again. But now, she's here. Just a few steps away from him. "Wh-what are doing here?"

Her smile widened. "I'm here to have bad times with you, Damon Salvatore. Permanently."

END