a/n: this is NOT a continuing oneshot for One Kiss. It is actually a oneshot that I started two years ago...yes, 2 years ago. It was part of the tvdmixing exchange and I meant to have it done forever ago, but I have been a serious slacker since. To make things even worse, I forgot who had this original prompt :( but, nevertheless, it's here!

ONE LAST KISS

New Year's Eve: 2019

Damon sat on the edge of the couch, his nose buried in his favorite book. Elena sat with her back against the other arm of the same couch, her legs stretched out before her, feet in Damon's lap. Instead of a book, she was taking in the latest celebrity news from one of the top selling magazines. She didn't even know which one she had grabbed from the store a few days earlier.

That was their everyday routine and had been for nearly a decade. They had gone from a life of people buzzing around them like flies with danger at every turn to quiet afternoons of reading and sitting around. Every possible threat that had come after them in the past was gone now that Katherine was dead. Now they had infinite amounts of time and needed something to do with it. They had talked about travel, but somehow neither one of them could settle on a place. Everywhere she suggested, she knew Damon didn't want to go back to. So instead of doing anything, they settled in and did nothing.

Normally they had music on, but today that had decided to stoke a fire, the crackling sound of the logs burning filled the room with a pleasant ambience. A still bare Christmas tree stood in the corner of the parlor room near the fireplace. Usually they decorated, but this year, neither one of them had felt like doing that. Christmas had come and gone and the only thing they had done this year was bring a tree inside. It would be the next thing they put in the fireplace. Elena glanced at it as well as the fire to see if it needed more wood yet and then at Damon, a feeling of unease stirring inside her.

Damon felt her glance at him, but tried his best to ignore it. He knew something was off between them, but neither one of them wanted to have the conversation that was needed. Instead, he kept himself buried in his book. The thing was nearly falling apart, but he refused to buy a new copy until it actually did. It was a book from when he was human and he read it at least three times a year. It was the one thing that had remained constant in his life.

Both of them breathed a sigh of relief as the front door opened and Jeremy walked in with Bonnie. They were both holding hands, a wide smile on both of their faces. "You two are so boring," Jeremy said as he saw them in their usual places.

Elena gave a dry smile as she took in his aging appearance as well as Bonnie's. Had she still been a witch, she would look as old as Elena, but now that she was the anchor, she was essentially human and was doomed to age like one. "Sorry," she muttered and set the magazine down on the cushion between her and Damon before swinging her legs over the side to face the couple as they took seats across from the couch.

"To what do we owe this visit?" Damon asked, putting his book down carefully on the coffee table.

"We just wanted to see what you were doing tonight," Bonnie said, offering a small smile.

"No plans," Elena answered.

"Told you," Jeremy muttered, earning a glare from the other three people in the room.

Bonnie rolled her eyes and looked at Elena. "Well, we're going to the party at the Grill. Matt promised to make it spectacular with free booze," she added, looking at Damon for the last part who smiled back at her in turn. "We just wanted to make sure that you were coming."

"You could have just texted me," Elena said.

Jeremy and Bonnie exchanged a look and Elena saw the way her eyes flickered to the bare Christmas tree in the corner before they locked with hers again. "Well, we didn't see you at Christmas and we wanted to celebrate with you at least once this season. Please? For me?"

Elena smiled softly and nodded. "We'll be there."

"Thank you," she said and stood up, pulling Jeremy with her. "Now, we have to go home and get a few things Matt asked for along the way. See you in a few hours," she said and the couple waved goodbye before leaving Damon and Elena alone once again.

Elena's eyes went back to the tree and she sighed heavily. "Why didn't we decorate the tree this year?"

"In case you haven't noticed, I haven't ever decorated a tree, nor have I done so once in my life," Damon quipped. He saw the withdraw in her eyes and immediately regretted the words.

She sighed even more heavily and turned to look at him. "We need to talk."

"I know," he replied, his voice soft, but heavy.

"I want next year to be different."

He nodded in agreement. "As do I. Just name a place and we'll go. Anywhere in the world. I mean it this time."

Elena stared at him for a minute before shaking her head. "I-" her voice faltered and she cleared her throat. "I mean really different, Damon. I've been thinking about this for awhile and I think... I think I need some alone time."

Damon stared at her for a long moment before nodding slightly.

Elena continued, taking his silence to mean that he wasn't angry. "I love you, you know I do, but I've just been thinking about the last few years and I need a change. You've been there for me since we met. It might have taken us a long time to get to where we are, but we made it and I feel safe with you. Too safe."

Damon reached out and took her hands in his, giving hers a squeeze of reassurance as she went on.

"When I met you, I had just lost my parents and shortly after that I lost many more people I loved. Then one thing after another kept coming our way and we beat each threat together, but one day the threats stopped coming and we didn't know what to do next. This past year I've been thinking about what I would have done with my life had none of this happened and I have come up with nothing every time. I don't know myself without you and I think that in order for me to keep us alive, I need to find that out."

Damon smiled slightly and pulled her to him. He brushed his hand across her cheek before leaning in and capturing his lips with hers. "We have eternity, Elena. If a few years, hell, a few decades, is what you need to find yourself, then go ahead. It took me almost two centuries to figure my shit out and I do not want to be what holds you back."

Elena breathed a sigh of relief and a single tear shed from the corner of her eye, one that Damon deftly wiped away. "I'm going to leave Mystic Falls before midnight."

"What about the party?" he asked.

"They'll understand," she said and closed her eyes before leaning into him, taking time to capture this moment in her mind. "Twenty years," she whispered.

"If that's what you want," he said.

She nodded and stood up, drawing him with her. She led him to the fireplace and faced him as she did the first time they truly kissed, the first time she told him she loved him and meant it. She stared him right in the eyes, her arms around his neck. "In twenty years we'll meet here on New Year's Eve. Right here."

Damon placed his hands on her waist and smiled down at her. He didn't like the idea of her not being around every day, but he knew it was the only way for her to be truly happy. They did have eternity together and what was twenty years when you had forever? "See you in twenty," he breathed and leaned in to kiss her.

He could taste her tears in the kiss and it took all he could not to snap her neck and lock her in the cellar so she could never leave. However, even as he kissed her, he felt her retreat and by the time he opened his eyes, she was gone, the ghost of her kiss on his lips as he stared at the spot she had vacated.

Christmas Eve: 2039

Damon pulled his head away from the human he was feeding from, his blood stained lips stretching into a smile as he met the blazing green eyes of the red head across from him. "See, you can totally feed without making a mess," he said, letting the human fall to the ground with a thud.

The girl returned his grin and sped forward before leaning down to inspect the marks on the human. "But leaving a mess really sends a message, don't you think?"

"Yes, I agree, it sends a message," Damon replied as she got back to her feet and slid her arms around him. "But I don't like what it has to say."

She smirked and stood up on her toes to place her lips on his. She felt him stiffen and pulled back. "What is it?"

"Kaleigh," he began and she pouted.

"That tone of voice never bodes well," she muttered, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Look, I'm not saying that I don't like what we have going, but-"

"But you have to go."

He gave a curt nod.

"I thought we were spending the rest of the year together?"

"I never said that," he replied and took a step back from her. "There's somewhere I need to be."

Her green eyes shot daggers at him. "You mean there's someone you need to be with."

"Yes."

It was the harsh tone of voice that made her see that he was completely serious, yet there was a look to his face that made him like he wasn't saying this to hurt her. "How long will you be gone?"

"I don't know," he replied. "I might never see you again, I might seek you out in a week's time. It depends on how my meeting goes."

"Well I'm not going to wait for you."

"Nor should you."

She tipped her head to the side and gave a light smile. "This someone... You promised them you would meet them, didn't you?"

He nodded.

"That's my Damon."

"Just do me a favor and keep your messages to yourself and maybe one day I'll be able to find you instead of rumors of the girl who said too much."

She smiled and nodded. "I promise," she said and stepped forward to kiss him goodbye, but was greeted by a rush of air as he left her sight.

Elena watched her target from across the room. The girl was walking amongst the crowd, taking things from people's pockets, purses, and strollers without having anyone notice her. Anyone except for Elena. A smile tugged at her lips as she decided that this would be her Christmas Eve meal this year.

It brought her back to twenty years ago when she had first gotten to a new city. She had no idea what to do or how to behave so she did what she knew she could do; hunt. It turned out that she had a knack for hunting criminals of any nature. There were plenty of murderers, thieves, kidnappers, and other criminals dead because of her. Wherever she traveled to, she kept herself busy by making friends and trying to make the world a better place, one criminal at a time.

As she began to move towards the short haired girl currently taking a wallet from an elderly woman's handbag, a hand touched Elena's arm, breaking her concentration. "Elena?" came a familiar voice.

Elena turned and saw blonde hair and blue eyes clouding her vision. "Caroline?" she breathed in disbelief. She closed her eyes and shook her head, but it was real. Her best friend since childhood was standing in front of her, just as young as they day that last saw each other twenty years ago. The only difference now was that her hair was short and straight instead of long and curled. "Oh my god, Caroline!" she exclaimed and threw her arms around her friend.

"I can't believe it's really you!"

"Well, it's not like it would be Katherine," Elena muttered and they both laughed awkwardly as they broke apart.

"What are you doing in Prague? Where's Damon?"

The mention of his name brought up a feeling of unease. She was excited to see him again, but uneasy about what that was going to mean for them. "I'm just getting out and seeing the world."

Caroline's smile died and her eyes went wide. "And Damon...?"

Elena shrugged. "I don't know, I haven't seen him in awhile."

Elena cringed as she heard another familiar voice, this time in the form of a chuckle. "Really? The elder Salvatore has let you out of his sight and unprotected?"

"Klaus," she stated and looked at Caroline with disbelief once again.

Caroline blushed faintly and nodded as she took Klaus' hand in her own. "I left Mystic Falls and found myself in Louisiana. Klaus had reestablished himself and one thing led to another and..."

"I promised to show her the world, so here I am, doing just that."

Elena shook her head and ran a hand through her brown curls. "Wow, I don't know what to say to that."

Caroline grabbed Elena's hand with her free one and smiled widely. "Well, we're together now. Why don't we spend some time catching up? This is going to be the best holiday in awhile!"

Elena smiled, but shook her head. "I actually have somewhere I need to be on New Year's."

"At least spend tonight with me then," Caroline pleaded.

Elena nodded, unable to deny those big doe eyes, begging her to say yes. "Alright, just for tonight," she said and followed the unlikely couple so that they could catch up on the last two decades.

New Year's Eve; 2039

Damon entered the Salvatore Manor in Mystic Falls for the first time in twenty years. His nose twitched as the scent of two decades worth of dust hit his vampire enhanced sense of smell. He hadn't done anything when he had left and had instructed the people he left behind to use this place at their leisure, but not to live there. It seemed as though they had done just that. He didn't smell any rotting food, but it didn't feel as though anyone had been here in a very long time.

He had gotten here early to tidy up before his and Elena's reunion. No matter what the outcome of this was, the thought of her made him feel much different than he thought he would. Katherine had left him and his world had turned upside down and hardened him. Elena had softened him up, made him a better person, and yet, when she left him, he didn't feel as though he would crumble. He felt stronger, as if knowing that just because she had left didn't mean she was gone.

That brought a faint trace of a smile to his face and he set off cleaning up the manor with a renewed sense of urgency.

Elena had the taxi drop her off at the spot where her house used to be. Since she had burned it down after losing her emotions, it had been rebuilt by someone who bought the property. The house where hers used to be was different in every way, but Elena closed her eyes and brought the memory of her house to the front of her mind. When she opened her eyes again, she had to wipe water away from her cheeks before turning towards the town square.

With each step she took, she went through a different memory. Upon coming here she had decided that with or without Damon, this would be the very last time she ever stepped foot in this town. She had already buried everyone she knew, some more than once, and regardless of when the ones still living actually died, she would not be coming back. With that in mind, she made her way to the cemetery to find both sets of parents she had come to know in her youth.

She visited her birth parents first, sitting by their graves in silence as time passed around her. As the dark began to settle, she moved to the parents that had raised her. Once again, she sat in silence as she stared at their names. "I love you," she whispered before getting to her feet. The time had come to make her way to the Boarding House to see Damon.

With a few hours of the year left, Damon's eyes shot towards the door as he heard it open and sure enough, he was greeted with the sight of Elena walking into the foyer. She looked exactly as he remembered her and judging from the look on her face, she was having the same reaction to his familiarity. They wasted no time in crossing the room and throwing themselves into one another's arms. His lips descended on hers harshly, kissing her with such a fierce intensity that she kissed. Her fingers dug into his side in effort to pull him close and he responded in kind. Elena was the one to end the kiss by abruptly moving her head to the side, but otherwise she stayed where she was.

"I missed you," she whispered.

"Understatement of the century," he returned and smiled as she laughed softly.

After a long time, they let go of each other at the same time as if they had the same thought. Elena reached down and laced her fingers with his before leading him to the couch. He sat first and drew her into his lap. She laid her head on his chest and closed her eyes, a smile on her lips. "So, how have you been?" she asked.

"It's been like it was before I met you."

"Is that good?" she asked, not really knowing what she expected to feel from the answer.

"It was different," he answered and it left with a sense of unease. She wasn't sure how she felt about it. "What about you?"

A rush of excitement filled Elena at the thought of telling him what she had been doing and the things she had learned along the way, coupled with the people she had met. "The first place I went was New York City. I thought about Chicago, but I remembered the last time I was there and decided I never wanted to go back. My first night there I was walking down the street wondering what I was supposed to do when I saw a guy following a young girl. People go the same way all the time, but this was a hunter stalking his prey. I followed him and stopped him before he hurt her. I made him tell me about his past crimes and beg for mercy before I killed him." Elena licked her lips a little at the memory. "It was then that I realized I wanted to hunt the hunters. I'm the predator and prey that steps out of line need to be reminded of what they are."

Damon smirked at that; it was something he had done himself for a time when he was a new vampire, but the desire to feed for fun had gotten in the way and stalking a target for that long had taken up entirely too much time. However, he listened as Elena recounted her top hunts from the past two decades. She kept jumping from one story to the next before saying something that made him do a double take.

"I'm sorry, you ran into who and Caroline?"

"Klaus. On Christmas Eve in Prague. Apparently he's settled back into his reign of New Orleans and when Caroline entered his life again, they decided they wanted more."

"I thought she was all about Tyler?"

Elena shrugged. "I guess people grow apart." Damon smiled, but Elena saw the light dim in his eyes as she said that. She cleared her throat and looked at him. "What about you? Did you meet anyone worth mentioning?"

He gave a slight nod. "There's a girl named Kaleigh. I remember her from when I was new. We met briefly in Dublin before I was run out by an Irish vampire gang." Mentioning Kaleigh stirred something in him and it worried him; he shouldn't be feeling that way when Elena was in his arms, but from the look on her face, Damon could tell that Elena was having a similar experience of her own.

"I'm glad you found someone to keep you company."

"It was nice getting to know someone who has no idea what a doppleganger is, has never met an Original, and doesn't know Stefan exists."

At the mention of his younger brother's name, everything changed.

Elena got to her feet and began to pace in front of the fireplace as she had done exactly twenty years ago. "I think it's time to have the conversation we were too scared to have before."

"I agree."

"The whole time I was gone, I couldn't wait to tell you about all the things I had experienced. I was seeing the world for the first time and I was alone. I didn't have anyone to talk to. It forced me to go out of my comfort zone and make new friends. Granted, I've never had trouble with doing that before, but it was different somehow. I either made friends or I lived in solitude. It allowed me to see parts of the world I never knew existed." She stopped moving and stared down at the floor. "And then one day it hit me; I couldn't wait to tell you about what happened, but I didn't miss you being there. I've never felt more guilty about anything in my life as I did for having that thought cross my mind."

Damon shook his head. "Don't feel guilty," he said, hoping to assure her with the words that he was going to say rather than hurt her. "When Katherine left, my world came crashing down around me. I pushed my brother away and I made myself dead inside in order to survive. Then you came along and broke through that exterior I worked so hard to build. Then you told me you were leaving and instead of breaking down at the thought of being without you, I accepted it and moved on without so much as a second thought. Sure, I missed you like crazy and I never stopped loving you, but let's be real, we were boring together."

Elena looked up and he saw the tears glistening in her eyes and gliding down her olive cheeks. "Yeah we were."

"A part of that was because we started at the worst time in our lives. People were trying to kill everyone around us and succeeding for the most part. I loved you more than I should have and I will never love anyone like I love you, but that kind of love will only destroy us in the long run."

Elena nodded. "Once the chaos stopped, so did we." She wiped at her eyes and smiled for a quick second. "I was ready to become my own person for the first time and I couldn't do that with you by my side. You would have reminded me of all that I lost and I couldn't handle that." Her eyes went wide and she shook her head wildly. "I didn't mean that, I-"

He smiled at her. "I know you didn't think I was holding you back. I understand, Elena, I do. You helped me realize what kind of man I was; what kind of man I am and I will always be grateful for that."

"So what now?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"What do you want, Elena? We've had twenty years by ourselves. Two decades for you to be strong enough to tell me what you really want."

Elena took a deep breath and looked him straight in the eye. "I want this to be our final goodbye."

Damon got to his feet then and made his way to her. He reached out to cup her face and she put her hand on top of his. "Then we better make it count."

Elena closed her eyes to savor the feeling as Damon's lips fell tenderly on hers. She moved to wrap her arms around him, her fingers clutching at his shirt out of need. His hands pushed back so that his fingers could sink into her hair. Their bodies molded against each other perfectly as they always had. Their mouths moved in perfect harmony, both of them reveling in the ease they felt in each other's arms. The familiarity was overwhelming and made the sense of urgency in the air thicken.

Damon was determined not to make their last time fly by. If this was truly the last time they were going to be together in this regard, he wanted to make everything count; every touch, every kiss, every breath. With that thought in mind, he began to slow the kiss down and she caught on, her grip on his shirt lessening. His hands slid down her back until they reached the hem of her shirt. She moaned into their kiss as his fingertips brushed the small of her back.

She broke the kiss only long enough for him to remove her shirt. When her lips returned to his, his hands went to her bra and unclasped it. He withdrew from her kiss, moving his lips across the side of her face, down her neck, and in between her breasts. She sighed and slid her hand through his hair as his mouth closed over one of her nipples. Elena bit her bottom lip as one of his hands came up to cup her other breast, the thumb gingerly going over her hardening peak.

Damon released her for a second to kneel before her, his lips trailing down the taught stomach of hers. He reached up and undid her pants, slowly pushing them off of her hips. He let the material pool at her feet before doing the same action with the small piece of fabric she chose to wear as underwear. She stepped out of them and he pushed the clothes away. Now that she was completely bare before him she trembled with anticipation.

He looked up at her and grinned. In the blink of an eye she went from standing to laying on her back on the floor in front of the roaring fire. He was hovering over her, but already making his way to his favorite part of her, nestled between her thighs. He nudged them apart and moved his face closer to the prize.

Elena bit her lip and tilted her head back as she waited for what she knew was going to happen. He started by kissing her inner thighs, dragging his tongue up the sensitive skin and teasing her with proximity. When she moaned out of frustration, he went for it, burying his face in the apex of Elena's thighs.

His tongue swept through the slit, stopping at the small bundle of nerves. He began to flick it and then brought his hand up to slide his finger inside of her. Elena's hips rose ever so slightly at that. Her hands came up to fondle her own breasts as Damon continued to please her in the way he always did best. It might have been the time gap or knowing that this would be the last time, but Elena was sure he was pulling out every trick he could and it was working; quickly.

Damon timed the work of his fingers and his tongue perfectly and knew that it was bringing her closer quickly if the tightening of her walls around his fingers was any indication. "Damon..." she moaned. He groaned as she came for him, the warmth of her fluids coating his mouth as she gushed around his fingers. He continued until the last of her orgasm subsided.

Elena waited until he was sitting on his knees before using her vampire speed to pull him over her. She clawed at his shirt until it came off. She then went for his pants, pushing them just off of his hips before reversing their positions with her speed. He was now laying bare underneath her. She smiled at him before leaning down and taking his erect member into her mouth.

Damon's eyes fluttered as sheer pleasure overcame him. Her tongue flattened around the underside of his cock, allowing her to take him as far as she possibly could. The feel of her hand around his balls made everything more intense. He knew she wouldn't go until he came; she loved it when he lost control inside of her, but the feel of his cock going in and out of her mouth in tandem with her hands doing their thing would make it a close call.

"Elena..." he uttered in name knowing he was close.

She immediately pulled away only to straddle him. She lowered herself onto his cock and began to ride him, her hands slapping down on his chest to steady herself. His hands went up to rest on her hips, his nails digging into her skin to urge her on. "Damon..." The sound of his name in her breathy tone was all it took for both of them to come in unison.

She tightened around him and milked him through both of their orgasms. Just as she was coming down from her high, he flipped them so she was on her back again. Her legs bent at the knee and rose so she could lock her ankles behind his back. He leaned down and kissed her hard as he pumped himself in and out of her.

They continued to launch each other into oblivion until neither one of them could handle it anymore. When it was over, they lay at each other's side in silence. After awhile, Elena moved away from him and began to redress. Damon did the same and stopped as he saw the clock over the mantle. There was only five minutes until midnight.

"You're really leaving," he whispered.

She nodded, tears gathering in her eyes. "I never thought I would either."

"I love you, Elena. I always have and I always will."

"I love you too, Damon," she said and wrapped her arms around him.

After a long, tight hug, she pulled back far enough to press her lips against his again. Every raw emotion the two of them were experiencing were funneled into that kiss. Every emotion they had felt over their time apart was there as well. Elena knew that once she stopped the kiss she was gone; she knew Damon knew that as well. As the kiss slowed down, tears streamed down both their cheeks.

It was time.

The second before the clock struck midnight, she was gone.

And just like that, it was over; the final goodbye wrapped up in one last kiss.