A/N: Okay, I wasn't too happy about 5x22 either. So I wrote this three-chapter mini-story. The other two chapters will be uploaded as soon as I edit them. This is how I think Elena and Damon's good-bye scene should have went.

In the woods, Elena found Bonnie. Unknown to her, Damon was standing near her. He had been unable to cross back to the real world. "Bonnie, we have to find them. We have to start the spell again." She said.

"We can't. That was our one shot." Bonnie told her.

"But Damon's on the Other Side! We have to…" Elena began.

"Elena," Bonnie looked at her friend sadly. "It's too late."

Tears filled Elena's eyes instantly. No, no, no. This cannot be happening. She thought.

Damon and Bonnie looked at each other. She nodded. "He's here." Bonnie told Elena. "You can say goodbye." Damon watched as Bonnie walked deeper into the forest. He stepped closer to Elena, even though she still couldn't see him.

Elena collapsed against the wall, sitting on the stone floor alone. She couldn't make herself stop crying, she was just in too much pain. After everything they had been through together, she couldn't believe she had lost him.

Damon looked at her. It was killing him inside, knowing he wouldn't be able to come back. While he didn't fully understand why he couldn't return to land of the living, he knew that this could be their last moment together. It really, really sucked that she couldn't see him.

"Please, don't leave me." She had said it so quietly he almost didn't hear her. He crouched down in front of her. He felt her tears touch his hand.

"I don't have choice, baby."

Suddenly, Elena jerked her head up. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. "D-Damon?"

Damon looked at her, not understanding why she looked surprised. "Can you see me?"

Elena reached her hand out to touch him, afraid that it was just an illusion. She gasped when she felt his hand against hers. "How…how is this possible?"

"I don't know." Damon told her. Then he remembered what Tessa had told him months ago. "Love bends the rules of possible."

Elena smiled, glad she could see him again. She quickly frowned again, realizing he was still dead. "But you're still a ghost. You're still going to disappear when the Other Side does." She said. New tears formed in her eyes.

"Hey, it'll be okay." Damon said. "This won't be good-bye forever, because I know I will find a way back to you." He took her hand again. "No matter what it takes."

Elena knew what he was saying was true. Their love was strong, and if they were able to have this conversation, anything was possible. She knew deep down, that she would see him again. "I'll wait for you. No matter what happens next, I will find you again, whether if it's here or in the afterlife."

"Hopefully we'll both be alive the next time we meet." Damon said. "Well, alive-ish anyway." Elena smiled slightly, wiping a tear away. "Until then, I want you to know this. You are by far the greatest thing that ever happened to me in my 173 years on this earth. That I get to die, knowing that I was loved. And not just by anyone. By you, Elena Gilbert. It's the epitome of a fulfilled life."

Elena smiled, tears still in her eyes. She was happy, knowing they would meet again. "Thank you. Until I met you, I'd forgotten how to really live. You taught me how to live again, helped me find what my life had missing."

"It's never going to get any better than this." He sighed.

"You said it yourself. It's not good-bye forever. We'll meet again." Elena said, feeling slightly better about their situation.

"I love you, Elena."

"I love you, too." She touched his shoulders, leaned up, and kissed him. He kissed her back, lightly. After a couple seconds, they pulled away.

"We'll find a way." He told her. He walked out of the room. Elena quickly brushed her tears away just as Alaric showed up.

"Everything will be okay." He told her.

"I know." Elena said. She got to her feet. He put a hand on her shoulder in comfort.

Just then, they both heard Jeremy screaming for Bonnie.

A/N: I might work on another Fanfic set after 5x22, but I'm not sure if I'll go through with it or not. But enough about me, what did you think of this chapter? Please review.