Home Is Where The Heart Is Who: Bella and Future!Damon Where: Bella's house When: December 6 (2018)
"Seriously. You've got to see this place. It's insane." Shifting gears, she eased the clutch, pressed on the gas, and the car smoothly accelerated as Bella sped through the streets of downtown Los Angeles. The sleek, silver roadster was incredibly aerodynamic and there was little resistance as she maneuvered the sharp turns and yellow lights as calmly as if she were taking a leisurely Sunday drive through the country. The stereo was tuned to an oldies station that actually blared hits from the '90s and early 2000s. It was loud enough to be distracting, but not so loud that she couldn't be heard over it. "The master bathroom alone is...ridiculous. I can't believe I live in a place like this. It's so...so...not me." Or was it? Did she even know who she was anymore? She couldn't deny that even though she was largely amused by the extravagance of the bedroom she'd woken up in a couple of days ago, it was still...nicer than being homeless. She had...things. Possessions. Material worth. She wasn't just relying on the charity of others. Believe it or not, that had been an issue for her...in the past.
The vampire admitted silently to himself that Bella had him all intrigued about her...mansion? It sounded like a mansion from the way she was describing it and, well...Damon was a little curious to see how this other Bella lived. He chuckled, leaning toward her over the space that separated the seats and pressed his lips to her temple. The vampire's breath tickled her ear slightly as he murmured, "Knowing you, I'm sure there's something of you-you in that place."
"Like my body?" Bella laughed, looking away from the street to flash him a grin. "I don't know," she said with a little shrug as she turned her attention back to the road, beckoned by the sound of a blaring car horn that she largely ignored as she seamlessly switched lanes and hung a left turn across a lane of rapidly oncoming traffic. "It makes me wonder if I know who I am at all. If I'll ever get my memories back. And, if I do, whether or not I'll still be me." All heavy questions.
At the left turn, Damon's arm shot out to balance himself and while for the most part was unconcerned about getting into an accident. The vampire was 98% sure he'd survive, however, he'd really like to avoid the unpleasantness of an accident considering what he was.
Once Bella completed the turn, Damon reached out to push a lock of her hair behind her ear, a smile on his face, "Sure you will, but with a mix of the other you, too. Trick is finding a balance."
The Slayer took a few more turns until they'd reached a particularly swanky area within Beverly Hills and, once she'd pulled on the main neighborhood boulevard, the traffic subsided substantially. She even slowed...a little. "Yeah...but will you still love me when I'm a balance?" She hazarded another glance at him, more than a little concern shining in her eyes. "I, uh...I mean, there's got to be a reason you never tried to get with me before, right?" She tried to smile, but it was a valid point. Then again, from what she'd seen so far...the Bella she'd been before her impromptu vay-cay in the past...wasn't exactly the type of girl Damon would go for. He liked refined things and quiet nights at home, reading Poe and playing the piano and waltzing around the kitchen. She...wore short dresses, wild makeup, and rolled around with strange guys in videos that...did very little to showcase any actual musical talent she might have had.
Damon made a face at the idea of hooking up with Popstar!Bella, turning his gaze to his Bella, "Sorry, a little too much Popstar celebrity for my taste." Not to mention, even if he had ended up with the celebrity version of Bella, there'd be the whole complicated issue that the media would eventually pick up on; Damon was never seen during the day. Celebrity status wasn't a particularly friendly aspect for a vampire.
"Yeah." Inhaling deeply, she turned on to the narrow, winding road that traveled uphill and, about halfway through, she slowed and pulled into a gated driveway. At the gates, she flicked the remote on her keychain and the wrought iron swung aside, remaining open only until the car had passed through and then quickly swinging back into place. There were also cameras in place to monitor that no one else got through, the feed being transmitted to a guard station off the grounds. The driveway wound its way upwards to the main house, which was set far back off of the street. She pulled in front of the three-story, modern looking home and got out. "Home sweet home," she said with a roll of her eyes as she rounded the back of the Spyder and met Damon, her heels clicking against the cobblestones that paved the front courtyard. As soon as she opened the front door, Stephen (she really hadn't actually figured out what he did around the house other than park her car and retrieve it when she wanted to leave) emerged and she heard the rev of the engine as he drove it to the back garage. Inside, everything looked sleek, open and airy, done in gleaming marble and warm, rich earth tones. In a way, it was a far cry from the flashy, bright popstar image she seemed to portray, from what she'd seen, to the media.
Perhaps Damon would need to rethink his perception of the Popstar based on her taste in interior decoration. This was almost what he'd imagined when Bella had described to him what she thought when the vampire had asked her Thanksgiving night, If you could go anywhere, where would you go? Granted, it didn't exactly have the smell of sea salt, but he did spot a pool outside. The vampire let out an impressed whistle, "Wow..."
Bella's gaze slid to him and then she shook her head slowly. She was still smarting, a little bit, by his complete dismissal of her...what...alter ego? But it was nothing more than she'd figured. The house, though? Yeah. It was impressive...if completely over the top. "I haven't even explored the whole thing." Obviously. She'd been with him more often than not, and even when not, it was only to grab provisions or to pick up groceries to restock his kitchen. "Basically all I've seen is the bedroom, my bathroom, and the most perfect closet ever. Oh, and the Hall of Fame." She didn't explain that one, but it did make her laugh.
"You have a Hall of Fame?" Damon asked dubiously, coming up to Bella to wrap an around her waist. His gaze roamed around the room again, his thoughts sliding back to Thanksgiving. The vampire's gaze returned to her and Damon murmured, "This is almost like..." He didn't finish, wondering if Bella was thinking the same thing he was.
"Oh, I so have a Hall of Fame," she grinned, winking at him as she pulled him further inside, into the living room with its wall of windows that overlooked the pool outside, the large glass enclosed fire pit in the center of the room and, to the sides, two tall glass-paneled water wall fountains. The whole place was designed with the soft glow of recessed and hidden lighting effects created an aura around the use of the elements - stone, water and fire - which made her wonder if hr popstar self was either some secret spiritual guru...or if, maybe, there was some other kind of power or use to be found in surrounding herself with the four elements. (Air was kind of a given, right?) "Almost like what?" she asked, caught up in her own thoughts as she tugged his hand and led him upstairs toward her bedroom.
Damon let her lead him around the place, answering, "Like that night we first celebrated my birthday together. Do you remember?" Belatedly, it occurred to him that of course she would remember. For her it only happened last week, not years ago. The vampire pressed on, "I asked if you could go anywhere, where would you go?" Damon gently pulled on her hand to halt her so that he could pull her into a kiss, "This place...sort of reminds me of what you described."
Her footsteps slowed to s atop upon the stairs and she turned to face him, head cocked, a little smile on her lips when he asked if she remembered. "You think?" Bella looked around, her smile dimming somewhat. "Maybe..." she allowed, "but...." She shook her head slowly. "I don't think so. I mean, I don't think this is the place. Like, maybe, in some ways. I suppose. But...." She seemed to be searching for the right words before she looked back to him. "It's great, right? Gorgeous. Top of the line. But it's empty. It's...cold. It's not...happy." She asked him that, too. That night. If he was happy. Exhaling softly, she squeezed his hand and climbed the rest of the way up to the second floor, though she drew to a stop at the entrance of the hallway that led to her bedroom. And why? Because there was a one-woman, blonde blockade standing in her way. "Mel," Bella smiled, though it didn't reach her eyes.
"Good evening, Bella. I've taken the liberty of organizing your messages according to greatest priority. You have a one o'clock luncheon with Harvey and Reggie tomorrow to discuss the album drop and your schedule of interviews for the next month. Reggie has also snagged you a shoot with Rolling Stone for February's cover and they want you to meet with their stylist ASAP. You have a dinner engagement this Saturday with Jeanine and Robert. There are various phone calls for you to return. Nate called from Paris and says he'll see you Wednesday night." At that, the blonde's cool gaze flickered momentarily toward Damon. "And Patience McConnell stopped by to see you, but I advised her that you were not in."
The vampire arched a brow at the entire scene until the mention of a "Nate" made everything screech to a halt for Damon. He didn't know what possessed him, but his amused gaze didn't leave Melissa's as the vampire stepped up beside Bella, snaking an arm almost possessively around the junction where her neck and shoulder met. Pulling her close, Damon made it look like he was pressing a kiss to her temple when in actuality, he whispered so that only Bella could hear him, "...Nate?" Seriously? Who was the jealous one in this relationship again?
Bella was categorically ignoring everything Melissa had to say - until she felt the shift in Damon's demeanor and the heavy weight of his possessive arm settled around her neck. She wanted to laugh. Really. But she didn't. She kept her expression composed and nodded through everything, though she did take a deeper breath when she heard Patience had been by. She really needed to announce her comeback, she supposed. When the blonde was done, she smiled serenely. "Melissa, this is a friend of mine, Damon Braddock. Damon, this is...Melissa. She runs my life." Looking as pleasant as ever, she reached up to take Damon's hand and edged around her assistant. "Oh, and Mel? if you would, please call...Nate, was it?...back and advise him I'm booked up for...the next several weeks."
It was only once she'd turned her back to the blonde that she giggled and shot Damon a teasing look. "Hell if I know." She shrugged playfully, but then motioned to the wall of platinum records and the case that displayed her AMAs and GMAs for all to see. Or, well, those who traveled back to her personal quarters. "See? Told ya. Hall of Fame. My fame. Apparently." She shook her head at that.
Again, the vampire arched a brow at the display. His expression was stoic at first, which filtered into thoughtfulness as Damon began to wonder if her career path was inevitable. Skylar was a musician, Pat was a musician, and while the vampire himself wasn't a musician in the sense that Bella's parents were...Damon had taught her how to play the piano for many years.
Damon couldn't help but feel a little bit of pride at the numerous awards on display. Granted, they weren't for her talent with the piano, but they did represent her musical talent in a physical way. The vampire turned to her, a smile growing on his face and he leaned in to press his lips against hers, pulling back eventually to say, "I'm proud of you."
She looked at him dubiously, not sure she believed him, but merely shook her head. "I'm not. I want to duck my head and hide. Actually...I just want to hide. Fame...isn't all it's cracked up to be." Not when you had people following you around the grocery store, taking note of what you bought and ambushing you with cameras in the parking lot. She was ninety percent sure Mel had tipped off someone the last time she'd gone out, so she was no longer telling the woman where she went. She led him down the hall, to the double doors at the very end, and opened them, guiding him down the long foyer and into the large room. "So...this is...you know...where the 'magic' happens." She giggled and let go of his hand. "Think it's all fairly self-explanatory. Sitting area. Bed. Balcony that overlooks the pool. But seriously. You've got to see the clothes. If you thought I was bad when I wanted you to take me shopping...? This'll blow your mind."
Damon had to laugh at the excessiveness of the bed alone. You could park the Audi on that bed and still have enough room to sleep on it. Okay...slight exaggeration, but the vampire couldn't help it. The bed was pretty massive for a bed. He looked dubiously at Bella and followed her toward another set of double doors.
Bella would have agreed - the bed was a little much, considering she was barely 5'4" and all of about a hundred and fifteen pounds. She could toss and turn all night and never fall off the side. But...at the same time...for a few seconds before she'd realized something was horribly wrong? It had slept like a dream.
Opening up the doors to her closet, she expected to hear a choir of heavenly angels sing. In her head, maybe she did. The bright glow illuminated pair after pair of shimmering, shiny stilettos, boots, and a wardrobe that would rival any designer boutique. "Isn't it wonderful?" she sighed.
If Damon thought the bed was extravagant, then the closet was downright excessive. Again, he laughed, only because the amount of clothes just screamed...Bella.
"No. Really." Turning to face him, she looked at him...and was practically glowing. "Tell me this isn't the most beautiful thing you've ever seen. It's...it's...perfection. It's amazing and awe-inspiring and...do you realize, I lost count at seventy-five pairs of shoes?!?"
This only made the vampire laugh harder. At one point, Damon needed to sit down in one of the chairs, yes there were CHAIRS in the closet.
"Stop!" Even as she ordered him to stop laughing, the Slayer giggled again. "I'm being serious." She tried to give him her serious face...but it didn't work so well. "This one room...is freakin' amazing. Like, really. I'm glad to be back in my time just because of this closet." Her laughter faded slowly and her smile turned...a little more private...as she moved to him, pushed him against the plush back of the upholstered chair, and climbed into his lap. The entire concept of 'personal space' was lost on them.
Sporadic fits of giggles came from the vampire as Bella commanded him to stop laughing, even with her "serious face" and her explanation of her love of this house-sized closet. However, his amusement flipped like a lightswitch when the Slayer pushed him against the back of the chair and climbed into his lap. Damon's hazel gaze turned dark, eyes trailing upward along her body until they reached her own amber gaze. His hands slid along the arms of the chair until they met the softer flesh of Bella's shoulders, moving along the slight protrusion of her shoulderblades as his hands moved downward along her back. He leaned into a bit, lips meeting hers.
Bella sighed into his kiss and relaxed against him, her fingers teasing the ends of his hair as she clasped her hands loosely behind his neck. Pulling away playfully from his kiss, she rested her forehead against his and smiled. "You know...this place is pretty big. You could always...maybe...like...move in or something. I think I have enough pocket change lying around to get it fitted for some...heavy drapes."
Damon searched her gaze, touched by her not-so-subtle hint. A soft laugh came from the vampire and a thumb absently drew a half circle repeatedly along the side of her waist. His voice was just as soft when he said, "Move in...really?" The small smile that had curved his lips turned mockingly serious as he added, "I refuse to move in unless you have a waffle iron in your kitchen."
"Why?" she demanded, laughter dancing in her gaze, "Did you throw yours out? I mean, we really don't need two. Right? His and hers? Doesn't really count in this sitch." Still, she pressed a quick, light kiss to his lips. "I know we've only really known each other for, like, two months...well, and only been...together...for, like, a month and a half?" She paused...and her smile formed a dimple in her cheek. "Okay. Longer for you. But...I don't know. Being with you just feels right. Something's always been pulling me to you. Who knows. Maybe it's Fate or something. So why fight it?"
The vampire pressed a finger to her lips in case she had anything else to say, his smile returning. Curling his fingers around the back of her neck, Damon pulled her into another kiss before he answered, "...Yes." There was no denying that there was some special bond, connection, what have you, between Bella and Damon. That much was plain considering that both times she had slipped through time, she found him.
Her eyes widened when he shushed her with his finger - she might have been offended, if he hadn't given her an answer. At least...she thought it was an answer. Leaning back, she arched a brow, almost incredulous. "Yes?" Did she really doubt he'd take her seriously? "Yes, like...like you'll move in and it'll be you and me, us, and this'll be...our house and...our bed and...well...you'll have to find room for your own closet, you can't have mine, but...I'll get to wake up next to you every morning and...and we can get rid of that snippy blonde bitch?"
He laughed, nodding and replied, "Yes," During all her pauses, placing a quick, yet soft kiss to her cheek, the corner of her mouth, and her chin. Damon mockingly pouted about the closet, "...Not even one itty bitty section of your closet?" Note how he said her closet, before he said, "Yes," to waking up next to her every morning, and laughed into her neck after pressing a kiss there when Bella mentioned getting rid of, what was her name...Melissa?
Sitting back on his lap, she beamed happily - as if she'd obviously been very productive in her endeavors - and then arched a brow again. "When?" Bouncing a little in her excitement, she seemed much like a little girl. "Tonight? Tomorrow night? How much stuff do you have, anyway? How long do you think it'll take to pack? It's not like you have to bring everything immediately. You should - no, you can't spend the night tonight." Not with the sunlight that came in through her windows. That would suck. "Okay. We'll...we'll get things set up here so that you don't die. And then you can move in."
Bella looked like a kid in a candy store his answers. It was cute. Damon sat up a little straighter in the chair and waggled his brows at her, "I could stay tonight...I'd just have to leave before daylight." The vampire chuckled, dragging his hands through her hair fondly, gently pulling to expose Bella's neck. He started at the hollow of her throat and placed tiny little kisses along her neck until he reached the point of her pulse. Damon pulled back before he was tempted to do more and possibly get caught by Bella's assistant. It'd be a tad tricky to explain his strange visage and possibly any visible blood.
"Leave?" Bella echoed and the look on her face said it all. I don't think so! So that would have been a no on the staying there tonight. Didn't mean...they couldn't stay for a while. And the closet seemed the perfect area. What kind of nosy person would walk into someone's closet just to give them another message about people no one cared about at all? Hm. Gee. Three guesses. The feel of his mouth on her neck made her pulse leap and, briefly, Bella wondered if he'd bite her again. Would he ask this time? Or was her "permission" like a free pass? Would he even hesitate? Well...obviously he would...for whatever reason. When he pulled back, she exhaled softly. "You know...since it's dark outside...we should take advantage and go for a swim. I know you didn't bring a suit, but...I won't tell if you don't."