Everything felt wrong from the moment you woke up. The world was too sharp, too loud, every tiny sound cutting through your skull like glass, while the light pushing through the curtains burned your eyes almost instantly. Your body felt feverish and freezing at the same time, veins throbbing painfully beneath your skin, your head aching so badly it made you nauseous. But underneath all of it there was something worse — hunger. Not normal hunger. Something hollow and violent tearing through you from the inside with every passing second.

Thank God Damon was there when it started.

He knew immediately what was happening. Transition. The moment your body stopped belonging to you unless you fed. It showed in the way he watched you — calm only on the surface, tense underneath, alert, like he already knew exactly what was coming next.

Your gums suddenly throbbed with pain.

A sharp pressure spread through your jaw before your fangs pushed out on their own, scraping painfully against swollen skin and sending another wave of pain through your mouth. The itching beneath your skin became unbearable, almost maddening.

“Shh… easy,” Damon said quietly, stepping closer, trying to calm you down, but it wasn’t working. Your breathing became uneven, your hands trembling while the hunger tightened harder and harder around your body.

Then he reached for a shard of glass sitting on the shelf.

Before you could react, he dragged it across his own palm.

The scent of blood hit you instantly.

Warm. Fresh.

Your body reacted faster than your mind. You immediately covered your mouth and turned away sharply, horrified by how badly you wanted it, but Damon caught your wrist before you could move farther and pulled you back against him.

He would rather let you feed from him than from some random animal at the side of the road… or a person.

For a moment you only stared at him, breathing hard, your eyes fixed on the blood slowly running down his hand while he held you close enough for you to hear his heartbeat.

Finally, he tilted his head slightly and looked straight into your eyes with that dangerously calm expression.

“Quick… before I change my mind.”