"When it's all said and done, there's nothing more important than the bond of family." Elena Gilbert reflected as she lay on her side in her bed staring into Damon Salvatore's crystal blue eyes.
Damon lay on his side facing Elena, staring into her chocolate, brown eyes. He never expected to have such a heart to heart conversation with Elena when he came to her room after his day of bonding with Stefan.
"Really? You should tell that to my brother." For now it appeared that Stefan was on their side in wanting to kill Klaus, he just wasn't too sure of Stefan's reason for it. Did Stefan really want to be free of his humanity as he'd told Damon?
Elena turned out the light. He expected her to say, "good night, Damon," his cue to leave. He waited, but she never said it. What she said instead surprised him.
"I think you're going to be the one to save Stefan from himself. It won't be because he loves me, but it'll be because he loves you."
He pondered her words. He'd always claimed that he and Stefan had an unbreakable bond. Even though sometimes they hated each other or fought, when it came down to it they would always have each others back.
Elena's eyes closed. "Can I tell you the rest tomorrow?" she asked, her voice faint as she started to drift off to sleep.
"Sure," he answered her softly.
She opened her eyes briefly and nodded. Within seconds she had fallen asleep.
He lay there for a few moments just watching her in wonder. She hadn't yelled at him for screwing up her plans to help Stefan. She didn't ask him to get off the bed or even to leave. Could it be she actually trusted him? She must the way she'd fallen asleep with him next to her. She trusted him to watch over her and protect her. She seemed to feel safe around him.
He wanted nothing more than to stay with her. It seemed she was offering an open invitation for him to stay, but what if he was wrong and she merely expected him to leave when she fell asleep?
Quietly and very carefully so as not to wake her, he rolled off the bed. He stood looking down at her. What a difference a year made. One year ago he barely knew Elena. He'd felt curiously drawn to her, this beautiful, human girl. He'd entered her room to watch her sleep. She'd been unaware of his presence then. Just as before, Damon couldn't resist reaching out to touch her. He ran his finger lightly down her cheek and brushed the hair from her face.
"Goodnight, Elena." He whispered. Before he could stop himself, he bent down to place a feathery kiss on her forehead.
He started to climb out the window then paused, taking a moment for one last look. Elena hadn't stirred. She looked peaceful, her lips curved into a slight smile.
What could she be dreaming? Being reunited with Stefan? Even though he'd teased her about dreaming of him, he hardly dared believe that she actually would after all the pain he'd caused her and all the danger he'd brought into her life.
Damon jumped, landing perfectly, like a cat, on the ground below. He turned to look back up at her window, the curtains fluttering in the night breeze. He stood perfectly still, eyes closed, concentrating. He could hear her breathing, the gentle inhale and exhale of air. He didn't figure she was in any danger right now, but he just couldn't leave. He'd promised her that he would never leave her again.
Walking over to the porch, Damon leaned against the wall near Elena's bedroom window. He would stay there all night, just to be sure she was safe.
The porch light turned off. Instantly, Damon's senses were on high alert. He listened, and heard the sound of footsteps inside the house and then the sound of a chair being moved, followed by soft swearing. Damon relaxed, grinning. Alaric was up for a midnight snack, no doubt. He looked at his watch, correction, a three o'clock snack. He shrank further into the shadows. Best not to let Ric know of his presence there.
He was startled by a bloodcurdling scream.
Elena! In less than a second, Damon had leaped up to Elena's bedroom. He rushed to her bedside where she was thrashing violently, still screaming.
"Stefan!" She screamed.
Hearing her screaming his brother's name was a dagger to his heart. Stefan. Of course. It was always Stefan.
Damon tried to stop her thrashing. "Elena! You're dreaming!"
She sat up, gasping, clutching at her throat. She looked around wildly and saw him standing there beside her bed. "Damon?"
"Elena, are you all right?" Alaric had rushed up the stairs when he'd heard her scream. He noticed Damon and frowned. "Damon, what are you doing here?"
Before Damon could answer, Elena, still breathing heavily, nodded towards Damon. "'It's ok."
Alaric looked dubious. "You're sure?"
She nodded. "Yes, I want him to stay."
Damon could hardly believe his ears. She wanted him to stay?
Alaric shot Damon a look of warning before he turned to leave. He looked at Elena, "If you need anything-"
"Thanks, Ric." Elena managed a wan smile at him before her gaze turned to Damon.
He held her gaze, staring at her in concern.
"Well, I can see I'm not wanted." Alaric said, leaving without another word.
Elena was trembling. Damon sat on the bed beside her. "You want to talk abut it?"
She shook her head. She looked at him with eyes haunted from the nightmare.
"It's ok." He reached out to touch her arm.
Elena looked down at his hand on her arm and back up at him. Her lip quivered. "Stefan-" she began, tears shimmering in her eyes. "He hurt me, Damon." Unconsciously, her hand went to her neck.
She didn't need to tell him any more. Instinctively he knew she hadn't just been having a nightmare. She'd been remembering the night Stefan attacked her at the school; the night he hadn't been there to protect her.
A tear slid down her face. "Damon-" her voice broke.
He pulled her towards him and wrapped his arms around her. She had been holding everything in, putting up a bold front, but he knew better. The dam broke. A flood of tears overwhelmed her and she finally gave in to the wracking sobs she had held back for so long. Her face was pressed against his shoulder and her tears soaked through his shirt, but he didn't mind. All he wanted was to comfort her, to make everything better. If only he could.
"You, ok?" he asked after a few minutes. She had grown quiet, the storm of emotions finally quelled.
She nodded, not looking at him, her head still resting against his shoulder.
He continued to hold her, silently. He had no words to give her. He could promise her that everything would be all right, but it would be an empty promise. His encounter with Mikael had proven that. He'd been betting that Stefan would never let him die, but what if he'd been wrong? He'd be dead now, then how could he protect Elena? Anything could happen. The only thing he could promise was that he would do everything in his power to keep her safe.
She yawned.
He looked down at her to see her eyes were closed. She needed rest. Perhaps he should leave so that she could sleep. "I should go." He started to pull away from her.
"Damon, please stay with me."
Her words thrilled his heart. He didn't have to guess what she wanted. She made it clear. He could hardly believe it. She actually wanted him to stay. "Sure." He stood up and held the covers for her to slide back into bed and covered her. He went around to the other side of the bed and lay down on top of the covers, after placing Teddy between them.
Elena lay on her side facing him again. She looked him in the eyes and gave him a tentative smile. "Goodnight, Damon."
"Goodnight, Elena."
Damon woke to feel heaviness on his chest. He glanced down surprised to see Elena curled up against him, her head resting over his heart. Sometime during the night she had moved closer to him.
Her eyes opened. This time Elena didn't scream when she saw him. She didn't roll her eyes or yell at him to leave. This time when she looked at him she looked relieved, as if she feared he wouldn't be there when she woke up.
"Morning." He smiled at her.
"Good morning, Damon," Elena answered, with a suddenly shy smile. She rolled away from him and headed for the bathroom.
Yes, this day would be a good one, because of Elena, because she would always be a part of his life no matter what happened and together they'd find a way to save Stefan because there was nothing more important than the bond of family.