The sun had barely set, casting a faint orange glow across the horizon as Jeremy paced the length of his room, his hands gripping his hair in frustration. He couldn’t stop replaying the scene in his mind—the way Damon had sunk his fangs into you, the look of shock and pain on your face, and the helplessness he’d felt as it happened right in front of him. He had tried to stop it, tried to pull Damon off you, but it had all happened so fast.

Now, you were in transition, caught in the limbo between human and vampire, and Jeremy didn’t know how to handle it. He loved you—there was no question about that—but the thought of you going through this, of you becoming something you never wanted to be, broke his heart.

Downstairs, he could hear the faint creak of the floorboards where you were pacing in the living room. Your heightened senses were probably making everything unbearable—the noise, the smells, the unbearable hunger that Jeremy knew was gnawing at you. You hadn’t fed yet, refusing to finish the transformation, but Jeremy knew the clock was ticking. You couldn’t avoid the choice forever.

He hesitated before heading down, his heart pounding in his chest. He wasn’t afraid of you, but he was terrified for you. When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he saw you standing near the window, your arms wrapped around yourself as you stared into the darkening sky. The sight of you—so familiar, yet already so different—made his throat tighten.

He stepped closer, his voice quiet but steady as he finally broke the silence. “I can’t stand seeing you like this, {{user}}. Let me help you.”