"I can't do this anymore, Elena." His voice was sad, but resigned. It hurt him, the truth, but it had to be said, however vaguely. Knowing exactly what he was saying and what it all meant, he continued "Not anymore."

The following silence was strange, a soft sad thing, as Elena recognized the meaning of Stefan's quiet words, as a final statement. She felt tired, tired of all the scenes made each day, the thick dramatics, like she just wanted to give up for herself, and fall asleep for a long while. This was the end, and though it was mutual and she knew everything he had said about her, him and Damon was true, she still could not suppress the lump in her throat as she ended what was once and epic love. She brokenly murmured "I know." Stefan sighed and looked out into the road. Elena sat still, hugging her knees with her head turned to Stefan. She looked at the profile of his face, refusing to shed a single tear until her new ex had gone home and she was inside, alone. They stayed like that for what was only a minute, that sped by even in the tensity. Finally he looked back at Elena, eyebrows knit together on an otherwise blank lifeless face. "I guess I should go then hmm?" He asked rhetorically, and swung his head to face his feet. He put his hands on his knees and got to his feet. Watching him walk away, she couldn't resist just saying his name once. She said it plainly, monotone just to see him turn around. He turned his head, pressing his lips together and just said "I'll be fine." And with that he sped away from the Gilbert house. And away from Elena.

The next morning Elena got up at 4 AM and took her diary out. She stared at it for a while and smirked "I'd better not" She thought almost chuckling in spite of herself "Better to wait until...what? Until I'm sane?...Until later, how about that." Pulling off her covers was a good first step she decided. She swung her legs over her bedside and walked to her dresser, her eyes adapted easily to the dark of the night, something she liked at least about being a vampire. She took out a pair of dark blue jeans and a purple boat-neck shirt, along with her unmentionables and went into the bathroom. She turned on the shower, stripping her pajamas and stepping into the water. She went through the following motions of her average morning routine robotically. Too awake to sit still, she went out the door with her black zip up fleece around her torso, and her diary in her hands.

"Dear Diary...

I'm back at my parents gravestone, writing. It's around 4:45 in the morning and I should be fast asleep

But I woke up. Now I guess I'm here. I guess I need to bring up, that Stefan and I-"

She paused to think of what she needed to write. Only then did she will herself to think of Stefan. She laid her head down on the grass beside the grave and began to softly cry. If she didn't cry for the end of their relationship, what did that say about her?

She wept there for about 10 minutes, glad to have her amplified emotions let out, and over with, (at least to the extremes) before she picked the book back up and finished the entry. She was about to call Bonnie, but she always had her phone on vibrate, and it was only 5. Still, she had to talk, and speed-dialed Caroline. It ringed four times, a beep interrupting the fifth, followed by a half awake

"Hello?" she asked.

"Hi, Caroline" Elena said nervously. There was a pause followed by a friendly sigh on Caroline's end of the line.

"I'm assuming friend emergency?" She prompted.

So Elena told her the whole thing. From her uncovered feelings for Damon to the breakup she knew Caroline could never support. Caroline stayed silent through all of it until Elena said "The thing is Care, I feel fine. I'm sad of course anyone would be but I feel like it's for the best. At least for now we aren't fitting together" Saying it out loud was a shock to even Elena.

"...For the best?" Caroline finally asked

"Um..yes."

"Elena, why is it that you're awake at this hour if you are fine?" Caroline's tone was innocent.

"Well" Elena said slowly "I guess I thought I wanted to be alone."

Caroline giggled quietly and shortly "Ironic that you called me then."

"I had to cry a little I suppose." Elena replied bluntly "Get it out of my system"

"I know...Elena where are you?"

"Um, I'm at the.." If she said graveyard, Caroline would think something else was wrong, when it was really just her spot, so she lied a little white lie "I'm at the park." and ran across town to a park bench by some oak trees.

"Well I'm coming over there" Caroline stated.

"Oh..Care, don't bother yourself, now I feel guilty." Elena stuttered

"Oh no you don't Gilbert, stay right where you are. We still need to talk about Damon!" She smiled and closed her phone. Leaving Elena with her last word Damon.

Caroline showed up 10 minutes later with a mellow smileon her face, talking before she sat down. "Elena, Elena, Elena" She sighed " What are we gonna do about this."

They talked for half an hour about the later pageant, the obstacles of Caroline's upcoming date with Klaus, they spoke of Stefan and Connor and professor Shane and April and Tyler and Hayley. It was good to talk to Caroline again, even for a short time. They agreed sadly about Stefan, compromising with a "maybe someday" to keep Caroline happy and didn't want drama there. The sunrise came, putting them on hold. People were starting to come out, early morning joggers, just two or three. For the tenth time Caroline urged "What about Damon?"
Elena knew she might as well say it, no matter what it made her it was the truth.

"Caroline, now I am a vampire, you know everything with the magnification of emotion and all that, but I've always felt like I do have some sort of feelings for Damon. Something was there before I was a vampire" Her voice was growing louder, more passionate if only by so much "I have feelings for Damon, stronger, multiplied by ten. And Stefan...I feel like there's a part of me that will always love him, - you know the fairytale - but I just don't feel anything anymore. It's me, I don't fit him anymore, I've changed..."

Caroline waited

"Something's changed between Damon and me."

~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~

Thank you for reading, you're so sweet, I mean it. Please let me know if you think I should keep going. (And if you were depending on it, there will be much more Damon in the next chapter) TY! :* r&r? - That'd be cool.