A/N: Hello everybody! Okay, this one is a little different to most of my other one-shots, because it doesn't actually fit in with the episode after it. I usually try and make my one-shots do that. That's why this one isn't going in the 'Closer' collection. But, I've always wanted to do a birthday shot and this was the perfect opportunity!

So, this was (kind of) requested by vanagonne. She gave me the idea with her suggestion, and I ad libbed a bit with it. So, this is about Elena coming back to Damon after her phone call to Stefan and finding the room an absolute mess, thanks to Damon's raging.

Credit where credit's due; vanagonne came up with the idea!

Disclaimer; I own nothing you recognise.

Apologies for any spelling and/or grammar mistakes.

The room was a mess.

Elena looked around, stepping over splintered wood and smashed glass, scraps of paper floating up from the floor as her feet passed over them. Her eyes widened, surveying the room as though it were a bombsite.

"Damon?" She called, but recieved no reply. Her heart jack-hammered in her chest. Oh, God, she thought, what if something's happened to him? "Damon!"

Still, no reply reached her ears. The house was eerily quiet, the party disbanded hours earlier. She briefly wondered if that's where the mess came from, but her mind refused to believe it. It was a feeble excuse.

She backed out of the room and checked the rest of the house, but there were no signs of destruction in any other place. The hallways were incredibly clean, for a house whose walls had been bursting at the seams with partying high-schoolers. Elena passed a cracked Solo cup on the floor as she neared the main room and sighed. That's more like it. She was about to call out to Damon again but paused, mouth open, when a jazz-like tune floated down the hall and a deep voice reached her ears;

You're jokin', your jokin, I can't believe my eyes,

You're jokin' me, you gotta be, this can't be the right guy.

He's ancient, he's ugly, I don't know which is worse!

I might just split a seam now, if I don't die laughing first!

Brow furrowed, she hurried into the living room and paused, sighing, at the sight. Damon was lying on the couch, a near-empty bottle resting on his chest, his thumbs tapping against the glass. Elena's shoulders sagged in relief.

"Damon." She said, an odd mix of soft yet stern. He twisted his head and looked at her through glazed eyes.

"You raang?" He replied, His voice slurred.

"How much have you had to drink?" She demanded, crossing her arms and tapping her foot. Damon picked up the bottle and shook it, watching the amber liquid jostle around in the bottom.

"Not nearly enough."

Elena rubbed her eyes with her fingers. What am I going to do with him? She crossed the room and stood before him with a raised brow. He smiled up at her.

"t's good." He said. Elena frowned at him, waiting for him to elaborate. He didn't.

"What's good?" She asked finally. Damon gestured to the tv, which was blaring out the jazzy tune.

"Good film. How have I never seen this before?" He looked at her questioningly, as though his life depended on this answer. Elena couldn't help but smile a little. Drunk Damon was endearing. Elena shrugged and sat down by his feet, ringing her hands together in her lap.

"T's funny." He slurred. She looked over at him, but his eyes were no longer focused on the television. He was looking at her with an intense blue gaze.

"You went home." He said, confusion clouding his features. "And now you're back." Elena nodded, and Damon raised his brows at her. "Why?"

Elena opened her mouth to tell him about Stefan's phone call, but decided it could wait until morning.

"No reason." She said. "Can't I just come for a visit?"

Damon shook his head at her, and she felt her chest tighten.

"You're mad at me." He replied, sitting up and fiddling with the label on the bottle. Elena looked away, then, eyes trained on her feet. Damon looked up at her with wide blue eyes. "I don't want you to be mad."

"Then you shouldn't have said what you said." Elena said stubbornly. Damon's eyes widened further, then narrowed.

"I shouldn't have been honest?" He snapped. Elena flinched. This drunk Damon, she didn't like. "What was I supposed to do? Lie? Tell you Stefan's being dragged around, that he has nothing to do with it? Tell you that my baby brother's a saint like you choose to believe just so you won't get hurt?"

"You should have told me you were tracking him in the first place!" Elena exploded, raising her arms up in indignation. Damon watched her with a passive glance.

"And then what?" He asked calmly. Elena opened her mouth to respond, but closed it when she realised he wasn't done. "In the end you would have still found a reason to be mad at me. You always do. No matter what I do, I never come out on top, so why bother trying?"

Damon looked back down at his bottle then, tipping it up and pouring some of the liquid into his mouth. Elena wanted to tell him he was wrong, wanted to tell him to stop being so melodramatic, but the more she thought it through, the more she realised he was right. She did always find a reason to be angry at him, especially as of late, with Stefan not around. And it hit her with a force that knocked the air out of her lungs just why she was doing it. Because I don't want to have to blame Stefan.

Her eyes widened, disbelieving. And then she slumped back against the couch, Damon's gaze following her.

"I'm sorry." She said finally, looking up at him with an earnest gaze. Because she was. It was Damon's turn to widen his eyes, and he nodded at her, letting her know he accepted her apology. He turned his gaze back to the bottle in his hand, wanting to tell her about Andie, about what Stefan had done and why he had been so angry. But they were okay, for now, and he didn't want to say anything that would ruin that. She'll find out tomorrow anyway, he thought, knowing her death would make the news.

Elena's hand came towards him, and he unconsciously handed the bottle to her. She took a swig from it and handed it back, wincing at the burn against the back of her throat. Damon gave her a lop-sided smirk.

"That's twice in one night you've stolen my drink."

Elena gave a small smile back, and replied;

"You have the best alcohol."

They sat in silence for a minute after that. Elena pulled her phone out from her pocket and sighed. 11:53. Her birthday was almost over.

"Seven minutes." Damon said in a sing-song voice, smiling gently at her. She smiled back, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"Some eighteenth." She whispered, slipping her phone away and sitting back, bringing her hands over her eyes.

"It's not over yet." Damon said suddenly, pulling her up from the couch with her hand. "I got you one more present."

"Damon..." Elena trailed behind him as he jogged down the hall, tugging her along. "I told you not to get me anything."

"Tough." He said simply, dragging her upstairs and to his bedroom.

He paused in the doorway, glancing at the wreckage. Elena looked up at him.

"What happened?" She asked softly, and Damon shrugged.

"I might have...lost my tempter after you left."

She felt suddenly very guilty. And then she was jerked forwards and Damon was leading her through the shrapnel and over to the window, where he opened the top drawer of his dresser and rummaged through the clothing. Elena raised a brow.

"You kept my present in your underwear drawer?" She questioned. Again, Damon shrugged at her. After another minute of searching, he gave a triumphant 'a-ha!' and pulled a paper-thin package from the back corner, holding it out to her. She took it with a questioning glance, and Damon folded his arms, swaying a little on his feet.

"Open it." He said, and his voice had that slur in it. Elena smiled. He was back to fun drunk Damon.

Elena pulled the strings on the package and unwrapped the paper carefully, finding an eighteenth birthday card inside. She looked up at Damon and smiled, opening the card. Something fell from it as she did, and she bent to catch it while reading the note inside.

Elena,

Happy Birthday, I hope you have a wonderful day. You deserve it.

Love always,

Damon.

P.S, I found this the other day and I thought you'd like to have it.

Elena looked down at the item she'd picked up and her breath caught in her throat. It was a photograph of her and Stefan, in the living room of the boarding house. The pair were sitting curled up together, looking at one another, smiles lighting up their faces. It brought tears to her eyes to see, and she looked up at Damon, words lost on her tongue.

"Th-thank you." She whispered finally, standing and clutching the two items close to her chest. Damon waved a hand as though it were nothing.

"I know you don't need any reminders of how much you guys love each other, but...I found it and..." He trailed off there, leaving the words hanging.

And inside, his heart was breaking.

He'd wanted to be cliché and give her a picture of the two of them together, caught in a bittersweet moment that showed just how much they cared for each other. The problem was, he had no pictures of them together. And then he'd come across that one, and realised that she would appreciate it far more than she would have appreciated a memory with him.

It hurt to admit it, but there was no point in denying it. And looking at her now, with tears glistening in her eyes and a soft smile on her face, he knew he'd done the right thing. No matter how much he wished he hadn't. She appeared lost in a world of her own, her eyes staring unseeing at the photograph, and Damon looked at the clock to see it was one minute to midnight. He sighed and looked down at her.

"Happy birthday, Elena." He murmured, leaning over and giving her a soft kiss on the cheek. He smiled against her skin when she leaned a little into the touch, then pulled away. She was still staring, dazed, at the picture.

With a sigh, Damon left her there, stumbling from the room on wobbly legs, reaching the bar and pouring himself yet another drink.

A/N: Done! It's kind of cute and a little bittersweet. Please drop me a review and let me know what you think!

P.S, brownie points to anyone who knows the movie the song came from ;)

Thanks in advance.

Much love,

Someone x