Disclaimer - I don't own The Vampire Diaries.

Hey guys! So I know I should be focussing on other stories...but I wrote this in like half an hour so it didn't take up too much time. It's a one-shot.

This is what I think should have happened at the end of Season 3...I hate the actual ending (and I think all Stelena fans will agree with me considering what's happening in Season 4 right now) so I wrote my own!

I hope you guys enjoy, I love The Vampire Diaries...almost as much as I love Twilight! Almost.

Hold Your Breath

Elena's POV

I dialled a very familiar number, and held my phone to my face.

"Let me guess, calling to see if the Grim Reaper's paid a visit?" Damon's witty voice rang through the phone.

I tried to stop my voice from shaking...what am I about to do? Oh yeah, break his heart. I'm a horrible person.

"How are you feeling? Are there any symptoms?" No matter what, I still care about him.

"Not yet. But I'm sure we'll have a laugh when we find out that Klaus is a big, fat liar." Always the optimist.

"Yeah, I'm - I'm sure we will." Despite my best efforts, my voice cracked slightly.

"Hey, where are you?" Oh no. No better time than the present, I guess.

"Matt's taking me home." I braced myself for his reaction.

"To Stefan." Yes - I mean, not just him...but he's a big part of it.

"Not just to Stefan, Damon. To Tyler, to Caroline." What am I saying, he knows it's mostly about Stefan...

"Ah, I know, I get it. So, since I'm possibly a dead man," Don't say that... "can I ask you a question?" Depends on what it is.

"Yeah, of course." What did I just say? Gah.

"If it was just down to him and me and you had to make a choice who got the goodbye, who would it be?" I gulped, blinking back tears. If he really was going to die, I don't want us to end on a bad note...I won't really answer his question...but I won't lie either.

"I love him, Damon." Be careful what you say here Elena. "He came into my life at a time when I needed someone and I fell for him instantly. No matter what I feel for you, I – I never unfell for him." There. That's nice and between-the-lines-y.

"Yeah, I get it. Stefan, it's always gonna be Stefan." Well, yes...but I'm not going to say that.

"I can't think about always. All I can think about is right now. And I care about you, Damon, which is why I have to let you go." My tears finally spilled over, trailing down my cheeks. I really do care about him. "I mean, maybe if you and I had met first..." Now, that is a lie...whoops.

"Yeah, maybe." he said thoughtfully. I wonder what he's thinking about. I got a sudden surge of confidence.

"You're gonna be fine. You hear me. You're gonna be okay and I'm gonna see you soon." I seriously hope so. I need him to know how much I care about him.

"Real soon. Goodbye Elena." I heard the dial tone before I could even repeat his farewell.

"Are you okay?" Matt smiled, and patted my knee.

"Yeah, I know I'm making the right decision." I said confidently, smiling weakly back at him. He pulled his hand back and placed it back on the steering wheel.

Suddenly, my phone buzzed. The caller ID read 'Caroline'.

"Hey, anything happening at your end?" I crossed my fingers.

She sniffed loudly, I could tell she was crying. "He's gone, Elena." she cried. "Tyler's gone!"

"No," my voice cracked. "I'm so sorry." I refrained from crying, I didn't want to let on to the fact that Matt's friend just died.

"Why did it have to be Klaus, Elena?" she asked quietly.

"I don't know, Care." I said, sadly.

"Have you heard from Damon?" she sniffed again.

"Yeah, um, he feels fine."

"So, Klaus lied. That's good." her voiced cracked and she started sobbing violently. "Why did Klaus have to turn Tyler?"

"I don't know." A single tear rolled down my cheek, but I quickly wiped it away.

"Anyway," she said, her voice quiet and hoarse. "I'll see you when you get back, okay? I'll call you if I hear anything."

"You too, Care."

She whispered a farewell, and I hung up.

"What now?" Matt asked, relatively cheerfully.

I burst into tears. "It's Tyler, he um... he's..." I didn't have to say anything more.

"Damn it." he started pounding his fist against the dashboard, his seat: anything he could reach. "Damn it, damn it, damn it!"

"Matt, Matt! No. Stop it!" I pleaded.

"This isn't how our lives were supposed to be, Elena." he looked at me, tears in his eyes.

"I know," I choked. "But it is." I cleared my throat. "And there's nothing we can do about it."

Matt shook his head, sniffing.

I placed my hand on his cheek, stroking it softly. "I'm so sorry, Matt." I whispered.

He smiled weakly, but other than that, didn't respond.

"Anyway," I said, confidently. "I need to call Stefan, but my phone is dying."

Matt pulled out his phone, and handed it over. "Here. Use mine."

I noticed that we were just pulling on to Wickory Bridge. Great. "Thanks." I dragged my eyes to the road ahead. Rebekah was standing confidently in the middle of the road. "Matt, look out!" I screeched.

Matt turned the steering wheel violently, and we swerved to the side. I screamed...the car kept going...right over the edge of the bridge.

My stomach rose to my throat as we fell. I was still screaming. Not again. No, it can't happen again! Stefan isn't here to save me this time...or Matt. No...please!

The car landed in the water with a huge splash, and we started sinking rapidly. The car started to fill up with water. I breathed deeply, trying to get as much air into my lungs as possible for when there was no oxygen available.

The car was filling up more quickly than last time.

Last time...there shouldn't be a last time! There shouldn't be a second time! No normal person gets driven off a bridge twice! TWICE. Well, I'm not a normal person...I'm a Doppelganger...but that's not important right now.

I looked over at Matt, he was unconscious. I started panicking even more. I shook him violently, trying to get him to wake. Even though, if Matt did wake up he would most probably take a deep breath...that wouldn't be good.

Suddenly the air I was breathing turned to water, so I held my breath. I carried on shaking Matt, willing him to wake up.

I gave up, and started pounding at the windows...but that didn't work last time either. I went back to Matt, screaming at him, which, of course, used up some of my air supply.

Just then, Stefan's shocked face appeared next to him, having ripped the door off. My heart jumped! Yes!

He reached for me, panic all over his beautiful face. I shook my head, pointing to Matt. He ignored me, and carried on trying to pull me out the car. I pulled back, protesting, and pointed at Matt, pleading him with my eyes. He shook his head, and pointed to me. I rolled my eyes, and pointed to my wrist. Gesturing that we were running out of time. I waved him off, held my nose, pulled my knees up and buried my head in them.

I felt movement beside me. I looked up and saw that Matt was gone. I waited and waited. My heart pounding in my ears, begging me to breathe. I ignored it, although I won't be able to hold on that for much longer.

I felt a hand tugging on my arm, and looked up to see Stefan pulling me out of the car. I could feel myself losing consciousness. He wrapped me in his arms, my head tucked in his arm pit. He placed his feet firmly on the floor (I was peeking around Stefan's arm) and bent his knees. What the hell is he doing? I'm dying over here!

Suddenly, he jumped and we rocketed out of the water, much like he did with the Ferris wheel, we soared through the air and he landed on the bridge confidently.

I gasped, my lungs relishing the feeling. I breathed deeply, almost hyperventilating. Still with me in his arms, he sat down and pulled me close to him.

He pulled away to look at me. "Baby, are you okay?"

My chest hurt with all the deep breathing I was doing. "Yeah," I coughed, in between breaths.

He breathed out in relief. "You're safe now, Elena."

He held me close until my heart rate slowed to a normal pace. I pulled away, and looked him in the eye. "I chose you." I whispered.

"What?" he said, confused.

"I had the choice to come back to Mystic Falls to see you, or carry on and go to Damon...I told Matt to take me home." I admitted.

He grinned. "I love you."

"I love you too." I roughly pulled his lips to mine, he didn't protest.

Suddenly, a thought occurred to me. "Matt!" I screamed, pulling back.

"Baby, I love you. But when we're making out, I'd appreciate it if you didn't call out other guys' names." he teased.

"Yeah, yeah, that's nice." I shushed him. "Where's Matt?!"

"Caroline ran him to the hospital. When I came looking for you, she wanted to come with me...thank God she did."

"I know right." I smiled and pulled him back in for a quick kiss. "We need to go and see if he's okay."

"Got it." Stefan grinned. He stood up and held out his hand. I quickly rung my hair out so it wouldn't drip. I grabbed his hand, he pulled me up, and we ran off the bridge in the direction of the hospital.

I hope you guys liked it, no matter whether you're Stelena or Delena fans. STELENA ALL THE WAY. I love Paul Wesley...Ian Somerhalder? No.

Just to clear things up, in this Elena does NOT turn into a vampire, and she chooses Stefan. Oh, and Matt lives.

Please review and favourite. I love you guys!

Loads of love,

Cassie

xxx