Today was the day.

The smile was almost stuck on my face as I climbed the staircase. Our time together had to mean something. I just knew it. I mean, why else would he propose? He cared about me just as much as I cared about him, right? I began to play with the beautiful diamond on my wedding finger.

Making it to his- I mean OUR bedroom, I found myself frozen with nerves I covered my mouth to stop the nervous giggles from coming out. I was going to tell him yes. He and I would be married and -

"Damon!"

My eyes widened as I heard a hushed female almost gleefully say my boyfriend's name. Hell - my fiance's name. My doubts of his true feelings for me sprang up and every dark thought of filleting the bitch and the bastard.

Before I could even think another hate filled thought, my hand was on the knob pushing the door open open. My heart plummeted to the floor. I tried to turn my gaze from the caught lovers tangled in the sheets to the floor covered in their clothes.

"Gwen!"

"Baby Doll?"

Elena Pierce and Damon Salvatore were tangled in the black silk sheets I was just in this very morning. My skin felt so dirty. I can't believe she was in the bed I was sharing. I felt myself fill with a need. Of what, I wasn't so sure on. I began to count in my head, focusing on the numbers while the burn of the loathing raised.

One.

I moved toward my drawers in the dresser after grabbing my bag from the closet. I tried not to think of how recently I just put these clothes here. There wasn't that much…

Two.

Hasty movement was heard behind me but I refused to see the horrified looks on their faces. At least they both had the decency to look a little guilty. My chest felt hollow and I just wanted to get out of there. I needed to rid myself of this place.

"Gwen, I am so sorry." Elena's pathetic whine came from my right and turned me by my shoulder.

"Get off me!" I wheezed out. I guess having my heart crushed made it hard for me to breathe, let alone yell. My glare fixed on Elena's oh so perfect whorish face.

"Please don't tell Stefan, I will- I will tell him- when it's the right time," she pleaded with me. Her doe brown eyes pleaded with my own dull brown eyes.

My expression grew to disgust. My eyes turn to Damon, the blue eyed flawed man with such a sarcastic side, whom I found so humorous and whose heart I thought I held. It turns out he never gave me his while he crushed mine like I was nothing.

Everything was piling high and soon I snapped. Red filled my vision as my throat began to hurt. I had been yelling.

"Who do you think you are? You selfish bitch! You don't deserve anyone! And You!" I pull the ring off my finger and flung it at him, missing him by a mile away. "You are not boyfriend material let alone husband material. You are not even a brother material since you so willingly slept with his wife!"

"Hey, it's not like that," Elena's pathetic huff brought my attention back to her. "We're going through a rough patch and Damon was helping me."

The stupidity, the pure stupidity and bullshit coming from her, had left me stunned and breathless.

"You selfish bitch. You just have to have e-everything don't you?" My breath caught and I began to stumble on my words. I need to get out of here. I knew it would be seconds till I had a complete breakdown.

Elena's eyes flashed with rage and she lost control of her arms. She pushed me into the dresser.

"I said don't touch me!" I flung my arm back and swung my fist right into her nose.

Crunch. Pain. Blood. The first time I had ever hit someone.

Damon held his lover on the floor as she cried into his arms. I grabbed my bag with my good hand and ran out of there. The pain from my hand was a great distraction from the hollow feeling in my chest. Surprisingly I can feel the pounding of my heart but it's now like a stabbing feeling.

"Gwendoline?"

Oh God, I can't look at him. I keep my steady pace going down the stairs and turn my now tear streaming face away from his view. I need to leave.

"Hey, Hey," he caught up and genuine worry filled his voice, "What was all that yelling? Are you okay? What's going on?"

Stefan grabbed my arm and turned me around, I snapped and shrugged him off.

"I caught your whore of a wife with your bastard of a brother fucking upstairs."

Venom and bitterness in my voice made the walls around the sweet Stefan shoot up. A denial was on his lips but I wasn't going to let him try.

"You don't believe me, then go take a look for yourself," I scoff and I hurried down the stairs with my possessions. The need became very clear in that moment: to run far away from this place.

An hour or so later, I could still picture them deer eyed and wearing nothing but those black silk sheets. Another shot of burning liquid to shake the image from my mind as I focused on the screen before me that sat on the wooden table.

"Another round?" the waitress chirped from next to me, startling me. It would have made me jump but in my current state and a few drinks in already, I just didn't care.

"Um…" I took a deep breath, sighing as a cloud of depression settled over me, the anger having long gone.

"Make that two," a deep flat voice droned behind me before he took a seat in front of me. "I believe we need more drinks."

His smile was forced and his green eyes were dull from pain. The waitress scurried away without anyone noticing before the guilt settled in my stomach like a stone. I tilted the screen down to look Stefan in the eyes. "I'm sorry...with how I said that-" I shook my head and wetness forming in my eyes for the hundredth time in the past hour.

"Don't be. There's been signs, I was just denying it because... well...she was the love of my life..," he said sullen as his shoulders sunk further.

"My epic love.." Our voices held the same bitterness and spoken at the same time with such dry humor that when our eyes met a laugh bubbled up and my alcohol red cheeks went redder from embarrassment.

His eyes filled with a twinkle of curiousness and something I just couldn't read. "I'm sorry," I waved my hand and turned to look at my laptop. "It's just, I'm looking back and thinking...maybe he wasn't."

Soon our drinks were placed in front of us. A shot each, plus a bourbon (for him) and a long island iced tea (for me). I looked away from the flight plans and grabbed my shot.

"You know it's all the little things that add up..." I bring the shot to my lips, voice filled with sorrow.

"Here's to change." With grace and speed, he downed his shot down and I couldn't help as my eyes follow his adam's apple as he swallowed the burning liquid. "Ah, cause change is the only thing you can guarantee is real."

Huh...sad yet wise…

"Cheers to that," The cold liquid burns as it slides smoothly down my esophagus and fills my body completely with a carefree vibe.

I can say goodbye to this town.

"So what are your plans? I want to make sure you're alright before I take off." The green eyed gentlemen leans into the table, his arms resting on the surface, with his drink in hand, already a few swallows in.

"Plane to ...anywhere really," I half heartedly shrug and look at him for a long minute, sizing him up with my head tilted to one side.

"What? Did I say something wrong?" Stefan tilts his own head to the side, playfully mocking me with such dryness it almost seemed like the bitterness of our ruined evenings came through. Among the other ruined things in our lives.

"Oh no. It's just you always do that."

"Do what?" He sighed and took a sip of the amber drink. His eyes filled with a memory that he almost seemed lost in. His next question was filled with such bitterness, I could feel a haunting chill run down my arms. "Do I worry too much about other people?"

I was not expecting that. Where did that come from? I give him a small nod but confusion is read clearly upon my face. To which he seethed out, "You know I could be a bit boring sometimes or even a little too focus other people's problems and not my own. Or the fact that I always have to fix problems.." He downed his drink with an unchecked rage and signaled for another. "I don't know how she could think I stopped caring about her or was trying to fix her. What we were going through.." he muttered in despair into the empty glass in his hands.

I took a sip of my tall drink and without thought said, "You're quite refreshing, kind of opposite of boring." I looked back to the flights to California, the alcohol swimming in my system. "She didn't care. She would not see and she'll say anything to cover the fact that she cheated on you, Stefan. It doesn't matter what she's accusing you of, whether it be bullshit or not, because she's the one that had the affair. She's in the wrong but in her mind, Elena is never in the wrong." Sarcasm drip from my tone with such bitterness that my mouth went dry and embarrassment filled me again as I looked into the eyes of the man who was so blinded by her that they had married. Were married for about two years before things started to come into the light.

Dread filled me to the brim and I was about to burst into tears or would have if not for the fact I was buzzed. Riding the alcohol train with the no-fucks-given enterprize.

"You should move on," is what came tumbling out of my mouth instead of the usual apology that I knew always came out of my mouth. I was a weak person. A shy girl who saw the good in everyone. Including one guy I didn't want to think of at the moment-

I took a drink, to get out of my head for a bit.

"What?" Surprise filtered across Stefan's face and his short laugh caught my attention, dragging me from the darker thoughts of my brain. "Go with you on this crazy trip..to California of all places?" he snuck a look at the screen and drank greedily at the amber liquid.

"And what's so wrong with going to the surfing state, huh?" I jested and a small drunk giggle came out. "Afraid of the sun, vampire boy?" I smirk into my glass and take a sip as his face crinkles in amusement.

"Vampire boy?" his smile, mixed with his airy laugh, made my night. "Nah, I just think getting out of this dreary state will do me some good. So why not tag along with a friend?"

He shrugs and hold up his glass in a cheers motion.

"Fine..." I tap the side of my glass against his with a soft clink. "But I call the window seat."