Post 2x11

Stefan/Elena

**In rewatching the first half of the season and reading some very good fanfiction over the holidays (the stelena stories are growing!) I was inspired to write this. Short, yes, but sometimes the little moments can speak volumes**

Disclaimer: TVD book rights belong to LJ Smith, TV rights to Kevin Williamson and

Julie Plec. I'm only allowed to play in their world =)

The breakup was never meant to be permanent...if not for anything, fate simply wouldn't allow it. She and Stefan were drawn together, their stories forever intertwined. But with each development of her new reality- the one he brought into her life, the one filled with the supernaturals and elements unthinkable- she had felt trapped, confined. Space was needed, to clear her head, to think through things. Feeling selfish was new for her- than again, she mused, love was selfish. Putting one person before everyone else, above people you did love as well, just not as much? It was new to her.

New and frightening.

She didn't know how to satisfy both parts of her conscience: the selfless, protective part that put others before herself, the part of her that sought to live magnanimously, and the part that simply wanted to run away with Stefan, run from reality. But the latter would possibly condemn her family, Damon, Caroline, Bonnie...and now Tyler was involved...

She couldn't let it happen.

And so she did the only thing she thought would help clear her head, to allow her to better see the situation clearly. And the whole time, she was simply fighting with herself. She knew it wasn't the solution, that staying apart had been a ruse and wasn't meant to be anything more. She had irrationally assumed breaking up with Stefan would allow her mind to better focus on what was suppose to be her main focus, what once, in a pre-Stefan time, would have been: the protection of her family.

The minute she had heard he was in the tomb, and Bonnie had the moonstone, her first thought wasn't, Destroy the moonstone. Nullify the spell. Go about the actions that will protect your loved ones, the way you should!' No. Her mind had gone to Stefan, protecting him, doing whatever it would take for him.

It was in that moment she accepted the fact that love was selfish. Love was doing whatever it would take to protect that one person, because their hurt would be your hurt, and vice versa. That cleared her head; her kamikaze mission, something she thought would protect, would only inflict an unbearable amount of pain onto Stefan. She couldn't let that happen. And that realization was what had given her the nerve to negotiate with Elijah. He wanted to win her as the prize, he'd play the game by her rules.

Bonnie's spell still confining her to her house, her thoughts running wild, her heart and body wanting to see Stefan more than she wanted to admit to herself, seeing his figure in the reflection of the window nearly broke her heart.

"Elena. Hey."

The smile, the one she loved and rarely go to see, spread across his face. Her system flooded through with shock; she had hoped but hadn't expected Elijah to follow through. Running toward him, holding him again, she felt complete. Gazing into his eyes, drinking him in, safe...

'Screw the breakup,' she thought, kissing him. 'If this is being selfish, than damn it, I'm the most selfish bitch out there.'

His kisses were urgent, passionate; the voice in the back of her mind reminded her he had probably spent the past 24 hours dealing with Katherine. But he wasn't with her anymore, he was here, in her harms, where he belonged. And she felt like an idiot for trying to convince herself otherwise.

"Hey."

For it was a hello, a greeting to the part of her that was ready to jump into to love, to deal with the consequences and the guilt and just live. He pushed her back to her bed; she didn't object. Despite life's circumstances that had made her mature and grow up much more quickly than any teenager should, she was still one at heart, with her gorgeous boyfriend kissing her, wanting her to show her how much he had missed her. She wanted to reciprocate.

Pushing away from him long enough to shut the door and silently ask Jeremy to keep Jenna occupied, she did just that. And later, laying in his arms, whispering "I'm sorry" before sleeping dreamlessly for the first time since the kidnapping, all seemed right.

Enjoy it, brother, Damon thought, his sensitive hearing picking up the couple's exchanges as he drove away. Surprisingly, he meant it: he was going home to Rose, to a peaceful Mystic Falls, at least for the night. Nothing stays calm in this town for long.

FIN