It was silent. Vacantly silent. No sound of music or a computer coming from the other room. No feet moving. No one walking into the conjoined bathroom. Nothing.

Jeremy was gone, and the reality of it was hitting Elena hard. She couldn't remember the last time his room had been so silent. Perhaps when he had been little and caught pneumonia, and had to stay in the hospital for a few days… but she had known he would be back soon.

Now, he wasn't just in the hospital a few blocks away. He was all the way in Denver, staying with their mother's old friend, Trish, and her family.

His bedroom was empty other than his bed and desk with its chair. Everything else he had taken with him.

Jeremy was gone, and Elena had never felt more alone in her life.

Wrapping her arms tightly around herself, she sat on her bed and let a few tears fall. Her head jerked up when there was a knock on her door. "Yes?" she asked, sniffing and quickly wiping away her tears.

Alaric opened the door and peaked inside. "Are you okay here for a while? I'm supposed to go check in with the hospital…"

"Oh! Yeah, I'm fine. Go ahead."

Alaric frowned when she sniffed again and quickly looked away from him. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. I just… I miss Jer."

"You did what was best for him, Elena. He'll be safe this way."

"I know. I know that." She looked up at him. "That doesn't mean I don't miss him."

Alaric gave her a small smile. "It will get easier, Elena. If it makes you feel any better, I miss him too. I think everyone does."

She smiled in thanks.

"I'll be back in a bit, alright?"

"Sure."

Alaric walked out of her room and shut the door behind him.

Elena gave a shaky sigh and stood up, walking over to her window. It was a clear night, and the stars were shining brightly in the sky above the trees. Ever since Klaus had come to town, Elena had wondered how they still managed to shine so brightly. After all the distruction and agony, they still were somehow a symbol of hope. And hope was something that, no matter how hard he may try, Klaus could never take away from her.

While she gazed out at the stars, something below on the lawn caught her eye. When she looked down, all she saw was a blur of movement, and then nothing. A shiver ran down her spine in fear. Who could it have possibly…?

"Elena?"

"Ah!" she gasped in shock, whirling around, half expecting Klaus himself to be standing there with a burlap sack and a needle, ready to steal more of her blood.

But it was only Damon, standing before her, looking worried.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you…"

She breathed a shaky sigh of relief. "No. No, it's okay."

He stepped closer to her. "Are you alright? I ran into Ric outside, and he said you were upset about Jeremy…"

She gave him a small smile. "You don't have to worry about me, Damon…"

"Yes, I do, Elena. You need to tell people about what upsets you. Keeping it bottled up inside… well, you do that and you'll end up like me; acting like a jackass for 150 years because you don't want to talk about how you feel."

"That was different; you didn't have anyone to talk to."

"Maybe. But you do. You have Ric, and Bonnie, and Caroline… and you have me. Whatever you need; say the word and it's yours."

She smiled. "Thank you. That means a lot."

He sat on her bed and patted the spot beside him. "Why don't we put my offer into action? Tell me about Jeremy."

She sighed and sat beside him, putting her head on his shoulder. He wrapped an arm around her, drawing her closer. "I miss him, Damon. I didn't think I would miss him this much… I know it's what's best for him, but I still wish I had my little brother here."

Damon sighed. "I can sympathise. Believe me."

She looked up at him. "What about you? Do you want to talk?"

He shrugged.

"Damon," Elena said, "You just finished telling me that it's not good to keep things bottled up…"

"I know, I know… I want to talk about it; I just don't know what to say."

She took the hand that was wrapped around her and leaned into him. "Say whatever you want to say. I'm here to listen."

Damon gave a small laugh. "How did this become about me? I thought I came over here to check on you…"

"Damon." Elena said, and he sighed.

"Alright… I guess I miss my brother, too. I have to admit, I like certain things better the way they are now… but I feel like all of this is my fault."

She frowned, looking up at him. "Your fault? How is any of this your fault?"

"Stefan got into this mess with Klaus because of me in the first place, to pay for my cure. It's my fault he was with him, which automatically makes me to blame for his emotions being turned off, and all of the havoc he's wreaking now because of it. If I had just died…"

"Don't say that." Elena snapped. "Don't ever say that. None of this is your fault. Stefan's decisions are exactly that; Stefan's decisions. You didn't ask him to do this for you. It was his choice. You didn't tell him to be Klaus's minion, or to steal the coffins. None of this is your fault, Damon, and it certainly wouldn't be any better around her if you had died. One way or another, Klaus would have gotten Stefan on his side. Honestly, I'd rather it be because he saved you, rather than for a different reason."

He gave her a small smile and tucked her hair behind her ear. "Thank you."

She smiled. "It's the truth."

Suddenly, an idea seemed to flash in Damon's eyes. "Do you want to go somewhere? With me?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Where?"

He smiled. "Yes or no?"

"It depends on where we're going."

"I'll take that as a yes?"

She smiled at him, and he grinned.

"Come on."