I do not own TVD. Though I wish I have Stefan all for myself. Or his car at least. *smirk

Just to be clear, the time was October 2011 and when the season finale ended.

Elena's POV

It's Sunday, mid-October, and I had the most peaceful and relaxing dream since Stefan left. I remember the night when Katherine dropped off the cure for werewolf bite to Damon.

"He's paying for this. He gave himself over to Klaus. I wouldn't expect him anytime soon." Katherine said

"What do you mean 'he gave himself over'?" I said

"He just…sacrificed everything to save his brother, including you. It's a good thing you have Damon to keep you company. Goodbye, Elena."

And then she said something that made me shudder, "Oh, it's okay to love them both. I did."

She hit me in the spot of my heart that refuse to accept that I like Damon. That I care for him more than before. And that time, she wasn't lying. I never saw Stefan ever again.

I'm always having nightmares of him. In one nightmare, he was being chased by a pack werewolf and all of them lunged at him a once. I cannot do anything else besides watching him die as hours go by. I cannot give him the cure that Katherine gave because in my dream, the bottle is already empty. And then I always wake up sweaty and barely concentrate on anything throughout the day. Hours turned to days and days turned into months. I'm slowly losing hope of seeing him again, of being able to touch him again… Where are you Stefan?

Damon started tracking Stefan ever since he got better. He's in England now, hunting down Klaus in hopes of bringing back Stefan to me.

"Elena, I will find Stefan. I owe him that, at least. I cannot promise you that he'll be perfect shape. I might hurt him in the process of bringing him back. But I can assure you that I will not kill him." Damon said to me the morning he left Mystic Falls. "I will call you every night at 9pm, Mystic Falls time to check if you're okay. Call me anytime if problem occurs. I won't hesitate to come back temporarily." He added

"I'm not a helpless baby, Damon. I'll ask Bonnie or Caroline for help if something comes up. But thank you. Take care." I replied while watching him stuff his bags in his 1967 Chevy Camaro

I watched him go that day and waved my hand while he went away from my house, the Salvatore Boarding House. Alaric didn't mind that I'm staying in this house as of this moment. He's our guardian now; he took the responsibility of taking care of Jeremy and me three months ago. And up until today, I stayed here in Stefan's bedroom. His scent is still in his pillows, but very faint. It's the only thing that kept me going since he was gone, the only thing that kept my heart to break into shreds.

As time went by, I did fix his room. I cleaned his laundry, change his bed sheets, fix the books in his table, and read almost his diaries in the cabinet. Maybe he will kill me for reading his diaries when he comes back. But I don't care. I learned more about Stefan when I read it. I can't imagine the pain he went through every time he has to leave a town he settled in. People started talking about him not aging, or because ever since he came into a town, more deaths occurred. It was probably Damon but he couldn't care less. He just left every single town without a word. Not staying for more than 8 years. I wonder if this will happen in time, here in Mystic Falls. I want to ask him so many questions. Of course, in his diaries, he had some relationships to other girls. That's what I want to talk about when he comes back. Well, that and other things… Lexi was also in his diaries. He mentioned that they went to this Bon Jovi Concert during his birthday in 1987 and he went wild. I smiled as I read that entry. I miss him already.

True enough, Damon called every night at 9pm, checking on me. He talks to me in a very sarcastic way and updates me that he still hasn't found Stefan. Klaus leave an untraceable track so it's quite hard, he says. I thank him for his efforts. I had slumber parties with Bonnie and Caroline over the summer. I couldn't care less about the other parties happening in Mystic Falls, so I didn't attend. Except when both of them have to drag me into one of those and I just whine.

School just started a month ago. But my nightmares started that time and they get worse every night. I don't tell it to Damon but I can sense that he knows I'm not myself these days. I always tell it Bonnie since she's a witch and to see if she can help me interpret it.

And then Friday night, I had the most vivid dream I had of Stefan. I was sleeping in his bed, the sheets beside me were all messy like someone just left. Then I heard Stefan whispered, "Don't come looking for me, love. It's dangerous. Tell Damon to stop tracking me, for his own good. I love you, Elena. No matter how far apart we are, always remember that my heart will always belong to you. Goodbye, my love." And then he kissed me and left.

Saturday morning, I woke up and heard the sound of the door opening and closing, fast. Though I can see the dawn coming through the window, I expect no one to stop by this early. I left Stefan's bed and walk downstairs. As I walk, I heard my steps squeaking the wooden floor. I expected Damon coming home, since he mentioned he might come back to see how things are going. But instead, I saw someone sitting in the couch, wearing a black leather jacket and a navy blue v-neck shirt with some blood on it. I stopped my tracks as I recognized who it is. I imagined him coming back and I say things to him like 'What the hell Stefan? I was so damn worried about you! Where have you been? I demand an explanation on why you haven't even called or texted me!' but instead I felt my throat become dry and couldn't say anything. And then he turned his face towards me. I could see more pain than before in his beautiful green eyes. I noticed that his hair was kind of tousled and thicker than before but his face is still the same, never aging. And then he spoke to me and I shuddered since I haven't heard his voice in ages…

"Hello, Elena."

And that's when my dream started.

First fan-fic. Sorry if there are wrong grammars. Comments and reviews are well appreciated. Thanks!

-Scarlet