Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries. The series and books belong to their rightful owners.

Hey guys so I know it took some time, and now that I've decided to turn this into a one-shot, hopefully that'll be the end of it. It being my little hiatus mood. Or whatever.

Hope you like it!

Falling in love doesn't know gravity. It happens in a blink of an eye. One moment, your heart is your own, next it belongs to someone, that you never intended to give it to. Without transition, without transplantation.

"Ahhhhh," Elena found herself gasping. The desperation for air growing for each breath she unsuccessfully tried to take.

Adjusting her position to an automatic sit, hoping it would help her breathe properly, Elena yelped. The small sting in her back had grown to agony as it travelled up Elena's arms, to her neck, and down her legs. Wrapping itself like a blanket around her. Elena collapsed backwards, down to where she had originally been lying.

Only this time, she felt a pair of muscular arms catch her, griping her underarms and pulling Elena back up. The mysterious warm hands roamed up her arms, gently stroking and squeezing every inch of Elena's flesh it could find. The hands finally came to a rest on her shoulders, before pulling her in for a longing hug. She felt as a pair of soft lips brushed against her cheek as the strangers arms held her tighter for a second or two.

"Oh, Elena. I'm so sorry!" The stranger spoke, clearly a man, she thought.

St-Stef-Stefan? Yes, that was it. Stefan. The name rung some sort of bell in her mind, like a game show buzzer, it just clicked.

"You have no idea how worried I've been, and oh my gosh, Elena! I'm sorry! Do you think you can forgive me? I know I don't deserve it, but please, Elena..." The man continued, Stefan, was his name.

But why would he need her forgiveness? What was wrong? Why couldn't she see anything? What was going on? Elena thought alarmed. Why didn't she have any memory of what had happened to her?

At that, her head snapped up, memories flashing through her thoughts, like someone was fast-forwarding through a movie. "..Which is why I can't be selfish with you, and why you can't know this.."Another man told her.

His voice was different from Stefan's, more calm and husky, rather than Stefan's brooding tone. It rang like a melody, although the pain gushing through the man's voice was clear. Yet, it still had a slight chill to it. Sending a cold shiver down Elena's back.

"D-D-Da", Elena stuttered. Finally opening her eyes to reveal an amber gaze staring back at her, the pain her words had caused evident in his eyes.

Through them, all of her previous memories came running back to her as the movie went into fast forward once again… Stefan, Katherine, Caroline, Bonnie, Jeremy and Damon… The man from the dream? The memory? What was it?

A shocked gasp slipped through Elena's lips as more memories flooded her thoughts. A kiss between the two, Damon and her, Stefan had bitten her? But... Vampires... They were the Salvatore brothers, the vampires. And Elena, was the doppelganger.

"I just have to say something..."Damon's voice continued, as he held Elena's necklace firmly in his hands.

"Why do you have to say it with my necklace?"She'd retorted. All eyes on the necklace, but what was so special about a damn necklace?

"Oh God…" Elena mumbled quietly to herself, remembering the vervain stashed within the necklace's barriers...

"Because what I'm about to say is probably the most selfish thing I've ever said in my life..."Damon continued, interrupting her thoughts. His eyes burned with the emotion she'd done everything to avoid between the two of them, love.

Soon, darkness encased slim frame as reality began to flutter into the emptiness.

"I love you, Elena..." Damon spoke, a single tear rolling down the perfect skin of his cheek as a look of devastation caressed his Adonis features as he walked towards her with the necklace firm in his hands.

Alarmed, Elena opened her eyes again. Only this time, she found herself laying spread across some plain cotton sheets in an abnormally comfortable bed.

"Elena?" A familiar voice said, Caroline, she thought. Nodding slowly, Elena placed her palms on the sheet, pushing herself up into a sitting position.

"Mmm?" Elena asked, still drowsy from her nap. Nap? Elena questioned herself. She didn't remember going to bed. Hell, she didn't even remember driving back home from the hospital.

A loud thrashing sound broke her train of thoughts, followed by the harsh thump to her frame as Caroline came flying towards Elena, forcing her into a tight hug before pulling away to look at her friend.

"I'm so glad you're okay! I mean, duhh, you're a vampire… Well not quite yet, but you know what I mean. Stefan said that he wasn't sure that he'd done it right. Although, I guess it was Meredith who actually did it. So he must of meant the other part, the kil-never mind that! I'm just glad you're okay! I'm not sure what I would've done if you weren't." Caroline's voice shrieked with joy as she sat cross legged on the bed.

Shaking her head, Elena let out and exasperated sigh. Caroline was her best friend, and Elena really did love her to the moon and back, but it was way too early for this.

"Caroline," Elena said, shaking her head confused. "Slow down... What do you mean vampire? Care, I'm not a vampire! And what's this about Meredith? What happened?"

Stretching her hands above her head, Elena yawned. As she turned her head to look at Caroline, she noticed the delicate frown possessing her friend's usually cheerful features. Frowning too, she quirked a concerned brow before leaning in for another affectionate hug. "What's wrong?"

Rubbing soothing circles on her best friends back, Caroline smiled a genuinely sad smile before withdrawing her arm from Elena's back, only to place both of them on each of her shoulders as she moved her face further away from Elena's as to get a better look at her. "Elena..." Caroline said, the frown reappearing on her forehead. "You were in an accident..."

"… You and Matt drove off Wickery Bridge." Pausing, Caroline gave her friend some time to think it all over, knowing the pain that stupid bridge caused Elena from past experiences.

"It was all Rebekah's fault, and Elena," lifting a dainty finger, Caroline gently placed under Elena's chin, capturing her gaze with within her own.

"But we're going to get her Elena, okay? She's going to pay…" Caroline nodded reassuringly, a small smile creeping at her lips, still not quite sure of Elena's emotional state.

Shocked, Elena's mouth formed a silent 'O'. She was in an accident? What had happened? Rebekah must've done something, she trusted her friend. That bitch always had a bad temper, especially when it came to Elena, but, why?

Elena understood she was disliked, and Rebekah had tried to kill her under several occasions, but she'd long ago figured out that killing her was Rebekah's leverage. So what caused her to cross that line this time?

Frowning, Elena shrugged off her previous questions and met Caroline's bright green hues with her chocolate one's. Judging by the sincerity glimmering through her orbs, Elena understood it was serious.

"I don't understand." She finally said with a confused shake of her head.

With a slight nod of her head, Caroline continued to explain. Though knowing her friend for as long as she had, she knew it would be hard to get Elena out of her state of denial, particularly after she finished telling her the whole truth.

"When you were in hospital earlier that day, you had a brain bleed. Meredith didn't want to worry Jeremy, so she told him it was nothing. Just a concussion."

Eying Elena seriously, Caroline chewed on her inner cheek whilst words escaped her mouth with caution. "So she injected you with some vampire blood. Damon's blood… Later that night, that blonde bitch drove you off that damned bridged. Elena, Stefan went to save the two of you after getting some creepy phone call from Rebekah. And as he was saving you... But Elena Matt was in the car..."

Taking a soothing breath, Caroline took Elena's hand in her own. "You told him to save Matt, and he didn't at first. But you were so intent of saving Matt first, he had no other choice but to oblige."

Giving Elena's hand a squeeze, she entwined their slim digits in a comforting gesture. Mouthing a silent "I'm here," to Elena, Caroline squeezed their entwined fingers again, signalling that she understood. That she wouldn't leave. That she wasn't alone.

"Elena, you're in transition."

"What?" Elena practically yelped. No, no, no, no, no, no! She can't be! No! Her, Elena Gilbert, a vampire? No, no! Please no! She can't be in transition! She just can't! Not after everything that she'd went through to avoid it. Not after everything Stefan and Damon did to avoid it.

"No..."

"Elena..." Caroline began, her face furrowed with pain. She hated seeing Elena like this. Like a mess, but with her determination to get Elena out of her denial phase, she took a breath for courage and spoke again.

"I know this is hard, and I know you don't want to talk about it, but we have to sooner or later. And before we begin, I want you to know that I'm here through all of it. You're not alone, and you never will be." Her voice echoing a determined reminder to stay strong as Caroline extended drew Elena in for another comforting hug.

Smiling weakly, Elena pulled away from Caroline's warm embrace.

Shaking her head faintly, Elena drew her in shoulders a quiet shrug before whispering, "I'm sorry," so softly that if there had been any other humans in the room, it would've been inaudible.

Climbing back off the bed, Elena ran for it. She ran as fast as she could, as far as she could. Knowing her vampire friend could catch up to her in a second.

Releasing a puffed sigh, Elena came to a stop at the end of the street.

Certain, now that Caroline wasn't going to follow her. She smiled powerlessly up into the sky. Thanking God that Caroline knew exactly when she wanted to be left alone.

Continuing her endless quest, Elena walked wherever her feet took her. Or in this case, wherever she felt safe.

After walking for a little longer than 20 minutes, Elena came to a rest at her destination.

The graveyard where her parents were buried.

Taking a deep breath, in a feeble attempt to sooth herself, Elena snuck her tongue out to dampen her crisping lips before she began walking.

At the sight of their shared headstone, Elena finally released it all. The tears, the screams and above all, the pain.

Smiling sourly, she crouched down next to the worn down rock that had come to mean so much to her.

"Hey mom, dad," Elena spoke with a light sniff.

"So I guess I should tell you..." Sighing deeply, Elena wiped the tears from her cheeks with her sleeve before continuing. "I'm a vampire. Or at least I'm about to be." The weak smile returning to Elena's features as more tears began to slide down her cheeks.

"And I hate it." Releasing a miserable laugh, she shook her head, another set of tears escaping her eyes as the laughter grew into an uncontrollable degree.

"Damn you're in overdrive," another voice spoke from behind her brunette silhouette.

"Damon," Elena mumbled in between her giggles. The laughter slowly dying down at the reality of the situation.

Grimacing, Damon walked towards her, drawing her up in a simple hug. A hug told her everything that words couldn't. His forgiveness for everything that Elena had done to him. All the heartache, all the screaming, and all the pain. Above all, her pain. At this precise moment.

A hug that simply bound them together, in more ways than either of them could comprehend. A hug that spoke it all. A hug, that somehow soothed Elena in ways, she had yet to discover.

"It's going to be okay," he said. Extending a hand to stroke Elena's puffy cheek, wiping away the falling tears.

"How?" She questioned and for the first time Elena allowed herself feel, to lean into Damon's caresses. Rather than avoid them at all costs.

Curving his lips in an adoring smile, Damon replied. "Because it always is."

Arching a mocking brow, he narrowed his gaze upon the brunette beauty. "Do you believe me?" Smirking at her, Elena spread her lips in a tearful smile in response.

"I believe you." She spoke, full heartedly. Shaking her head as Damon turned both of them to leave.

"But there's something that we have to do first," a cheeky smile caressing her lips.

Breathing a sigh, Elena knew that the road ahead was going to be hell. Though, she took comfort in the fact that she had him to help her through it, support her, love her... Forever.

"And what's that?" Damon returned with the same amount of cheekiness. A spark of curiosity framing his face.

"Seal it with a kiss," Elena spoke.

The unspoken choice of her words leaving him no other option but to wrap his arms around her beauteous frame and kiss her. A foolish grin possessing his lips.

Smiling into the kiss as well, Elena sighed blissfully. Having found the true reason needed for her existence.

Damon freakin' Salvatore.

HOLY CRAP GUYS! I DID IT! My first published fanfic! It's a one-shot, I know. BUT STILL. YAY.

I'm not sure how this ended up in third person, I'm just so tired I guess that's just what happened. So if you didn't like it like this, not to worry. I'll be exploring all my options in the future.

Now, I'm not promising anything... But I have a few ideas for another story. Something a lot longer than a one-shot.

Criticism is always welcome, but know there is a fine line between critics and bullies. Please people I've seen what's happened to other authors.

PLEASE REVIEW AND LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK!

Lots of huggies!

Katie