'The Vampire Diaries' Ian Somerhalder: 'Love makes you stupid'

'The Vampire Diaries' Ian Somerhalder: 'Love makes you stupid'

On the Sept. 9 Season 2 premiere of "The Vampire Diaries," the Salvatore brothers find themselves in a familiar situation.

They're once again fighting over a woman. In 1864, Damon (Ian Somerhalder) and Stefan (Paul Wesley) were torn apart by their mutual obsession with Katherine (Nina Dobrev). Now, despite having 150 years to learn from their mistakes, they've both fallen for the less lethal (but equally gorgeous) Elena.

"Love makes you stupid," Somerhalder tells me, by way of explanation, during Zap2it's exclusive visit to the show's Atlanta set. "Just like wars, famine, the BP oil spill, we have the attention spans of a mosquito, and we don't remember what made us unhappy in history."

Dobrev says that despite Elena's involuntary thoughts about Damon, she still loves Stefan. "It's always been Stefan," she tells me. If that's the case, Damon might be in for some serious heartbreak... again.

"It may be harder the second time around by virtue of the fact that you already know what it feels like for this to happen to you," Somerhalder muses. "When you're in love for the first time it's the most unbelievable feeling, and the second time you get your heart broken you become a little more guarded. You become a little more sensible about how you throw your emotions around. But here's the kicker... you do it again, and you do it again, and you do it again."

This may be good news for all of the fans hoping to see Damon and Elena hook up this season. No matter how often they hurt each other, human nature (and vampire nature) could lead them to forgive the unforgivable.

Of course, the same could be said for Damon and Katherine.

Heartbreak is an experience that we can all relate to, but most of us don't have to suffer its consequences for 150 years. After finally allowing himself to open up to someone again, if Damon is rejected, things could get bloody. "He's either going to shut down or explode," Somerhalder says, grinning dangerously. "And I welcome either one."

For more of Ian's thoughts on falling in and out of love, watch my video from our chat at the set of the Lockwood mansion. (Apologies for the shaky camerawork and occasional background noise - stealing a quiet moment was nearly impossible on such a busy day!)