Note: This whole thing is inspired by a song I love with the same title by the band Vast. Go figure.

Pretty When You Cry

I didn't wanna hurt you

But you're pretty when you cry

What an asshole.

Bonnie ground her teeth together as she turned on her heel and stormed away from Damon Salvatore, who was probably smirking after her still. Her eyes stung with the embarrassing promise of tears but she drew in a hard breath, squared her shoulders and marched on. The minute she was out of the Grille she sped up some more and made a beeline for her car. All the while his words rang in her head.

"The sad thing is that you think you're talented enough not to have to practice."

"Fuck you Damon." She'd hissed back.

"And have you write another song about me? No thanks Taylor Swift."

Her engine roared to life of her rental Prius and she screeched out of the parking bay and off into the setting sun. She ended up where she and god and everyone else knew she would – Stefan's house. He was the only reason she was even here to begin with. By the time she'd killed the engine and stepped out of the car he was at his front door, arms crossed, expression telling her he was ready for her scolding.

"Damon just texted." He explained as she ascended the stairs and hugged him. She was mad, but not that mad. Not at him anyways.

"I'm going to kill him," she vowed as she side stepped in and made her way to the den where she uncorked her favourite bottle of bourbon and after fleeting consideration, set the tumbler aside and gulped down a mouthful.

"That bad?" Stefan asked, coming to sit next to her.

"You tell me," Bonnie sighed, tucking her legs under her as she turned to him, "I come back to sing at the first Pride Parade in Mystic Falls for my best friend, mid-tour mind you and of course I just happen to bump into his dickhead brother, otherwise known as the ex-boyfriend from hell who's built an entire career in A&R off of a rumour he started that my debut album was an homage to his penis." Stefan's brows rose in silence as she swallowed another mouthful of alcohol and grimaced as it burned its way down to her stomach.

"I didn't even know he'd be here." Stefan admitted, "He hasn't come home to visit in months." Bonnie rolled her eyes unsurprised, she knew exactly where he'd been the last few months – lodged up his own arse that's where.

"Of course not, him and what's-her-face have been too busy with that asinine talent show in Hollywood. God knows who thought he'd be a good judge of anything." She griped.

"He loved you once." Stefan countered slyly, earning a glare.

"Did he?" Bonnie quirked a brow, "I seem to remember there being copious amounts of neglect, he said she said and angry sex and not a lot of hand holding and all that other shit you write about in those darling novels of yours." Stefan smiled faintly at the last comment but stretched his arm out behind her. "I'm not wallowing, I'm just…disappointed. I thought he'd let it alone after all these years but no, I'm destined to hate him until the day I die."

"That's a bit dramatic." Stefan noted with a cheeky grin.

"Says the boy who insists on picking his outfits a day before he wears them in case it's the last thing he's ever seen in." She stared at him drolly as he shrugged demurely in response.

"I want to make a fashion statement en route to the afterlife, sue me." He laughed. "Besides, I have a reputation to uphold."

"If this is the part of the conversation where you try and talk me into a make-over you're out of luck." She poked a finger at him. "It's bad enough my manager is up my behind trying to get new material out of me, I cannot deal with you trying to tease my hair again."

"It's not my fault I ended up just pissing it off –"

"I had a lightning bolt instead of a fringe for two days Stefan. Two days."

"Speaking of two days," his face lit up and she relented, "When's your band getting here and when do you guys want to check out the PA system and do sound check?"

"I'd say the afternoon before or the morning of," Bonnie took another swig and handed it to him, "We're pretty flexible with that kind of thing, besides, I trust you. If you've organised this I know it's going to go off without a hitch." He smirked into the mouth of the bottle before taking a sip and handing it back. "Are you making dinner or am I?"

"I wish you still lived with me," he said wistfully, "Those were the golden years."

"The mornings are quieter without your Whitney Houston impressions, that's for sure."

"It was the only way to wake you up, you know I prefer –"

"Prince," she finished for him, "I know. I don't know why you don't just move in with me." He pulled a face. "Plenty of people to photograph you in LA."

"What's the weather like?" He pondered.

"Nothing your overuse of hairspray can't withstand." She chuckled. "How about this, we order in and binge watch something lame from the CW and you can do one hair style on me."

"But –"

"One." His shoulders sagged with a dramatic sigh and he leaned back with a pout. There go his plans of convincing her that her oversized sweaters should be burned and replaced with something from this era.

"One of these days you're going to be sorry you didn't let me fuss over you more often."

"Why, are your arms gonna fall off from you fussing over yourself so much?" A wink.

"Funny girl you are, now go make me dinner." He shooed her off and she side-eyed him but stood to her feet, snatched the bourbon away from him when he reached for it and stuck her tongue out at him over her shoulder before shimmying off to the kitchen.

Later that night while Stefan had his head thrown back snoring the song of the whale people, she went into her room of the house and picked up her guitar. As much as she wanted to move on from Damon's snide commentary she really wanted to shut him up – for good. And ironically, there was only one way she knew how. It must have been five in the morning when a blanket-wrapped mussy Stefan Salvatore leant up against the threshold of the doorway with a groggy smile. Bonnie was strumming softly on her guitar, holding a trilling twirling note before hunching over and scribbling something down.

"It sounds good." He yawned.

"Wait til you really hear it." She pointed her pen at the lyrics she'd scrawled out on the pages next to her.

"Oh dear, are we in the midst of an Adele moment?"

"If she had a love-child with Radiohead maybe." He tilted his head to the side curiously but nodded all the same. If there was one thing Bonnie was good at, it was her music.

"When are they getting here?" He wondered, another yawn stretching his mouth despite his effort to fight it off. Her eyes bugged a bit and she checked her phone, tossing the guitar aside when she realised the day she had ahead of her.

"They should be at the airport around six," She pushed her long hair over her shoulder and out of her face and squared her shoulders. "Coffee?"

Caleb, Pogue and Lafayette were exhausted by the time they landed in the tumble-weed town of Mystic Falls. Lafayette had his sunglasses on his face the moment Pogue nudged him awake. Scowling at the long-haired blonde boy, Lafayette clicked his tongue at the glare coming in through the windows as he grabbed his carry-on bag. Caleb was already awake, staring solemnly out of the window, like the sullen bass guitarist he was.

Bonnie was there to greet her with some guy next to her they'd never seen before. Bonnie as usual, was clad in high waisted denim shorts and a crop top insulting something or other. Her hair was mussed and she had a tray of coffee in hand.

"God bless your rotten soul." Lafayette said with a flourish, kissing her cheek and grabbing a foam cup and inhaling the smell longingly.

"Hey 'Faye," Bonnie laughed as she held out the coffee to the two other boys who hugged and pecked her cheek before the three turned to face Stefan curiously.

"New boyfriend?" Pogue wondered, but Lafayette shook his head.

"Old boyfriend?" Caleb chimed in, but Lafayette still shook his head.

"Idiots," Lafayette sighed, "It's her best friend that we're staying at; look how sleep-deprived he is, she's only been with him a day and she's already sucked his soul clean from him." The other two had an 'oh' expression before raising their cups at Stefan in understanding. "I stayed at her house once for a week," Lafayette went on, talking to Stefan now, "When I left I could still hear her complaining."

"Lived with her for three years," Stefan said nodding, "I have dreams about it." Lafayette shuddered as the two walked off leaving Pogue, Caleb and Bonnie behind without a care.

"We better keep up," Bonnie realised, "Stefan drove us here."

The rest of the morning was spent goofing off and trying to recreate the melody Bonnie'd made on her guitar with the song she was working on.

"I want a lot of synthesiser," She nodded as she watched Lafayette fiddle here and there until a sound came out that she didn't wince at, "Buh, buh, buh-buh, yeah, like that." They'd claimed the den as a makeshift practice space, minus Pogue's drum kit, he'd said 'thank you' to Stefan and immediately thrown himself face down on the guest bed.

"I can't tell where your lust ends and where your love begins." She sang. She tapped her finger in the air as she imagined the high hat falling in line. Grinning at Caleb as he plugged in his bass guitar and fell in line with the melody they'd been building. Stefan stood aside, marvelling at the process unravelling in front of him. "It builds, builds, builds and then I want this loud like –" Lafayette pressed a few keys as she strummed and she nodded at the sound, "Yeah, something like that, and then –" she broke off as she listened to the song in her head.

"I didn't wanna fuck you baby, I didn't wanna fuck you, I didn't wanna fuck you but you're pretty when you're mine. I didn't really love you baby, I didn't really love you, I didn't really love you but I'm pretty when I lie."

She held up her hand and they stopped and she looked between the two of them.

"I like it," Lafayette flicked the tail end of the scarf he had on his head over his shoulder, "It's very sexy, but also like a slap in the face. It's a sexy slap in the face." Bonnie frowned. "Like if I was going let anyone harm this money-maker it would have to be Henry Cavill."

"You are so problematic." Bonnie laughed, turning to Caleb. "Too angry?"

"Just angry enough, I think we should have me and 'Faye doing some backing vocals and layer this shit with some reverb and give it a kind of Queen of the Damned feel."

"Yes!" Bonnie nodded excitedly, "I like that." They all turned to Stefan who stood upright when he realised he had the room's attention.

"It is like a sexy slap in the face." Stefan said, "But I'm the last person you should ask about music."

"You have ears and you put up with Bonnie," Lafayette interjected, "That means you're a good listener." She threw her guitar pick at his head and missed horribly, earning a smug wink in return. "It's true though."

"Okay, who's hungry?" She called out, lifting her guitar up and over her head as Pogue walked in shirtless, yawning as he pushed his hair out of his face. Both Lafayette and Stefan turned to look at him. But where Lafayette looked heavenward for the blonde boy's shame, Stefan could admit to liking the sight of him.

"Starved." Pogue grinned as he closed the space between him and Bonnie, "Who do I have to bend over to get a pizza around here?"

"Lord –" Lafayette shook his head. Bonnie grabbed the shirt Pogue had in his hand and waved it in front of his face.

"Put your shirt on," She said and he huffed but acquiesced, "And you realise you don't get paid for sex in pizza right?"

"In your world maybe."

" – Actual trash –" Lafayette muttered.

"We could go to the Grille." Stefan piped up, mouth snapping shut when everyone turned to look at him. They were so in sync it was kind of creepy. "If that's okay with Bonnie of course."

"Why wouldn't it be okay with her?" Caleb asked as he shut his guitar case and stood up.

"No reason," Bonnie cut in as Stefan opened his mouth, "It's cause we ate there last night." Pogue and Caleb looked at her as if to say 'so?'.

"Liar," Lafayette tilted his head at her and narrowed his eyes, "I know this because you posted a photo of Stefan over here snoring with his mouth wide open and the caption was 'I wonder if he'll get mad if I drop a meat ball in his mouth' which by the way no he wouldn't cause he'd probably choke to death plus he's wearing the same shirt today and I'd know your overcooked meatballs a mile away." Stefan scowled down at his shirt – he knew he'd forgotten something this morning. "Who's at the Grille that we're avoiding?"

"No one," Bonnie insisted, "Which is why we're all going there right now." She turned on her heel and made her way outside. Lafayette looked at Stefan who looked torn between waiting for them to leave so he could lock up and going after Bonnie. Or more importantly, changing his shirt.

"It's Damon." Stefan said, hoping he knew enough, if he didn't, Stefan wasn't about to explain. Lafayette's dark skin flushed and his nostrils flared before he pursed his lips and nodded.

"I knew I was going to end up killing someone someday." Stefan stilled. He couldn't tell if Lafayette was being serious or not.

"Uh, he's uh, kind of my brother." Stefan said. Lafayette looked at him askance.

"I'll let you bury the body then." With that, he walked out into the daylight.

When they got to the Grille, Bonnie had braced herself for impact. But, no Damon. Letting out a long sigh of relief, she fell into a more relaxed pace as she walked in and chose a booth after waving at Matt Donovan, the manager and long-time friend.

"So what's good here?" Pogue grumbled as he flipped through the menu without even reading any of it.

"Well it's all covered in cheese and deep fried, so take your pick." Bonnie said as she flicked a sugar packet at him.

"What's the deal with you and this Damon person?" Caleb asked as he sat beside her, Stefan's eyes cut to her as well as he sat on the other end of her. Lafayette dropped his menu as he sat across from them and pulled a face at Pogue who was poking at him.

"Can we not talk about this right now?" Bonnie groaned.

"Wait isn't this the guy who does A&R for Sony?" Caleb pressed, "The one who blew your solo career to shreds."

"Remember that thing I told you to work on?" Bonnie turned to him, annoyed.

"Tact?" He asked and she pressed her lips into an unamused smile.

"Tact." The band murmured all at once.

"Sorry, I'm just curious and you never talk about it." Caleb shrugged.

"Because it's not important anymore and unlike him I don't have to keep bringing it up to stay relevant."

"I love it when she gets feisty." Lafayette fanned himself with the menu and grinned. "Makes for some good music."

"What can I get you folks?" The waiter was all smiles and sunshine, notepad at the ready.

"Burgers," Pogue said determinedly, "At least two. With cheese. Curly fries and a soda so big I can swim in it."

"I want waffles," Lafayette decided, "With bacon, bring some syrup along too and a pitcher of lemonade…I just know I'll never get enough of it."

"A pitcher of soda," Pogue gasped, "I want a pitcher of soda."

"For you three?" The waiter asked.

"Milkshakes," Bonnie and Stefan said at the same time and he smiled as he continued their usual order, "Oreo for her, chocolate for me. A pepperoni pizza and a small plate of fries and…" he looked at her and she nodded, "Chicken wings too, yeah, a few of those." Everyone turned to Caleb.

"I'll uh…Give me margarita pizza –"

"Boo –"

"And a glass of water for now thank you –"

"Lame ass –"

"Leave him alone."

When their food came they were all in a heated debate on the best movie of all time and Bonnie was glad to see that Stefan was getting along so well with everyone. She didn't know why she was nervous, if they could all put up with one another, adding Stefan to the mix was a walk in the park.

"Pee time." Bonnie announced, tickling Stefan's side until he got up so she could move out of the booth. "Don't kill anyone while I'm gone." She pointed a finger at them and walked off. As she stepped into the bathroom she let out another relieved sigh, maybe this trip wouldn't be so bad after all. She got to see Stefan again, perform in her home town, she had a new song in the works –

"Uh, harder." She froze as she heard the muted sounds of scuffling feet, kissing and well…sex. "Harder, Damon." Good lord, no. As she spun around to make for the door it swung open and hit her in the head.

"Fuck!" Bonnie yelped, seeing stars and stumbling backwards. Before the other person could grab at her she felt her back fall against an unlocked cubicle door. And of course, she had to topple onto none other than a naked Damon Salvatore and some screaming nobody. "…Just, kill me." She groaned.

A/N: I don't know where this came from honestly, but I kind of like it. If it shouldn't be a one-shot, you should let me know. Mmmkaybai XO