A/N: I wrote this in an hour or so, so please forgive me if it's a bit rushed. This is a missing scene from 3x11 "Our Town" - I hated the fact they never showed how Damon picked up Elena after the whole horrifying experience with Stefan. I consciously avoided describing the scene on the porch that followed, because I'm sure everyone has their own opinion on how it should be interpreted, and I don't want to mess it up :) I also ask you to excuse me if there should be any minor mistakes related to the plot of 3x11 - I watched it live online with terrible interruptions every other minute so I might have missed something important. Hope you enjoy the reading and thanks for stopping by :)

Dedication: to Giulia who also wanted to see this scene :)

Disclaimer: I don't own TVD, and don't believe I would be a good owner :)

Edition: thanks a lot to all the reviewers, and in particular to kayla1193, who offered this way out with Elena having two phones. Due to my internet I missed how Stefan threw hers out, but after all, she had to contact Damon somehow %)

Edition 2: 2/11/2012 the story was reuploaded.

Special thanks to CreepingMuse, my amazing beta reader. It's a pleasure to work and talk with you :)

Elena watched the car disappear into the night, angry tears blurring her gaze. She wasn't in danger anymore, she wasn't afraid, but that wasn't the point. She cried because everything had caught up with her. All her denial, all her hope he would be back at least half the way he'd been, all the expectations that she'd let grow too high – now she was paying the price for them.

She smelled the humid air, and shivered as cold night air was almost tangible on her skin. Elena suddenly realized that she was standing in the middle of a deserted road where it was unlikely that a car would appear and deliver her to Mystic Falls. Her Stefan-related fear eventually gave way to another fear – being there alone, defenseless, human and fragile. She was an easy target. She couldn't stop crying, but she had to do something. So she turned to habit. A nice habit.

She grabbed her phone from the pocket and dialed one of the recently used numbers. She could quote it by heart, the sequence of digits that connected her with her safety, her shelter…her home.

He answered immediately, as if he'd been waiting for her call. Of course he was. He had always been.

"Damon…" her voice was shaky and barely audible, but she knew he could hear everything.

"Elena, are you okay?" his voice was full of concern, and it made Elena cry harder. Soothing always had the opposite effect on her. "Where are you?"

"No, I'm not." She couldn't ever lie to him. Not anymore. "Wickery Bridge." she sobbed.

"Hey, hey," he said. She could barely breathe from the combination of pain and tenderness overwhelming her. "I'm on my way. Five minutes and I'll be there." His voice grew more distant as he switched to loudspeaker and she heard the familiar noise of a speeding car. Only this one wasn't speeding towards her death. "Elena? Are you there?"

"Yes" she whispered, relieved. He was coming. "My battery's nearly empty so don't freak out if…"

The phone died before she could finish and she was glad he'd gotten the message. Still sobbing, Elena squatted and shivered again, soothed by the thought he'd be there soon. She wasn't done crying at all – that night was decidedly one of the most horrible nights in her life. But she had to be strong – she needed to be strong for Damon. Seeing her like this because of Stefan would be bad enough for him. She'd promised him they would survive this. Now she had to fulfill her own promise.

When she saw a familiar car getting closer, her heart went wild with joy. Here he was, her savior. Her Salvatore.

The car stopped, and before she had time to blink, Damon was standing near the car, hesitant to approach. She understood at once that he didn't want to scare her, so she closed the distance on her own and stopped before him. After a long moment of what looked like inner struggle, Damon just took her hands in his and silently pressed them to his chest.

"Thank you" she whispered, and Damon couldn't but notice that her voice was still shaky and her eyes watery.

"You don't have to be strong for me." he said in a very serious tone, hypnotizing her with his eyes, and Elena wondered if he could read her mind. "If you need to cry, you can cry."

"No." she shook her head. "I don't want to cry. If I break down, I'm not sure I can ever be fixed again"

"Do you want to talk about it?"

She didn't really. But she knew she wouldn't be able to keep it from him anyway.

"Sure." She freed her hands a bit awkwardly, walked to the car and before she closed her door he was inside. "You drive, I'll talk."

"Okay," he said.

Damon didn't interrupt once. One could think he had no reaction at all, but Elena noticed that he was holding the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles were white. She, on the other hand, felt wondrously better. Her pain turned into anger, and then dissipated, thanks to the familiar presence beside her.

He looked at her to make sure she was better, and that look went straight to her heart, filling it in a way that was new and familiar. It was scary. It was fascinating.

Elena felt she had to get out of the car immediately. Damon's hypnotizing gaze was too intense, too inviting, but she needed it – and it scared her. She sighed, relieved, when she saw her house ahead of them. Even his timing was perfect. He was more perfect than she could bear at the moment.

She smiled at him.

"Bye," she said.

"Mind if I walk with you to the front door?"

And of course, Damon couldn't make it easy for her to get away.

"No, it's fine." She wondered idly if she knew that her casual tone was a lie.

In a moment he opened her door and closed it once she was out of the car.

Let's go, she thought with a slight smile, starting to walk to her house with a tingle of anticipation. Something was going to happen. Of course.

As afraid as she was of facing her feelings, as hard as it was to be so close to him and so far away at the same time, Elena knew she was willing to accept it. She knew Damon would never hurt her now – he would treat her feelings with care.

I trust you, her smile said.