Author's Note: First of all, thank you so much for the lovely comments on my other one-shot. I hadn't written fanfic in years, so it was definitely scary to try my hand at it again. It gave me a taste for more, so I decided to fill another prompt. This is a one-shot written for the damon & elena holiday (author2author) exchange 2016 (on LiveJournal) based on seethegoodinyou's prompt. Hope you'll enjoy :-)
Disclaimer: This short story is based on characters created by L.J. Smith as portrayed in the TV show created by Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec. All rights belong to their respective owners.
A STORY OF SNOW, ICE AND HOT CHOCOLATE
Elena Gilbert squinted, trying to make out the road ahead of her in between the steady stream of falling snowflakes. Driving conditions were terrible, and she should know better. After all, slick roads were the reason she was here in the first place. But her parents were counting on her, and she'd be damned if they had to come home from the hospital to an undecorated house. It was all up to her now.
When she'd gone to visit her parents at Mystic Falls Memorial, her mother had told her to forget about decorations, but even as she'd said they could just get a small plastic tree for the table, Elena had seen the disappointment in her eyes. Her parents were being discharged on Christmas Eve, giving Elena just two days to get everything in order. Jeremy weren't flying in until tomorrow night, so he wouldn't be of much help.
It had been eerie, coming home to an empty house that was usually so full of life, and the first night there, she'd cried herself to sleep. At least her parents were all right. They had a couple of broken bones, but nothing that wouldn't heal with time. They'd been lucky.
Despite her mother's reassurances that it wasn't a big deal if they didn't have all the usual things for the holiday, Elena had found her mother's notebook, detailing all the preparations for this year's celebrations. Today, she was ticking 'Tree' off the list.
She'd found the business card for Salvatore Tree Farm tucked into her mother's notebook and assumed that was where she had intended to get their tree this year. Elena recognized the name, of course. The Salvatores were one of the founding families of Mystic Falls, and in the past, they had owned all the logging mills in the state. They were obviously still good with wood. As she pulled into the road leading up to the Salvatore estate, she wondered who was running the business. When she was little, Zack Salvatore had been the eldest Salvatore left in town, and she didn't remember him selling trees to anyone. She couldn't imagine Stefan or Damon, Zack's nephews, wanting anything to do with a family business.
She'd only met Stefan and Damon Salvatore on a few occasions, mostly over the holidays when their father visited his brother and they all went to the Mystic Falls Christmas Fair, the Mystic Falls Winter Formal, The Founders' Christmas Ball, The Mystic Falls Boxing Day Charity Auction, and The Founders' New Year's Eve Ball. Mystic Falls had a lot of parties around this time of year.
She'd always had a bit of a crush on Damon, but she'd never told him. Instead, she'd stood by, watching, as he danced with one girl after another, making them all blush and giggle and swoon. Sometimes, she'd danced with Matt Donovan, just so she could be out on the dance floor and get close enough to catch a whiff of Damon's cologne, or maybe even accidently brush up against him.
Pathetic.
She pulled into the parking lot of the tree farm and noted that there were a lot more people than there were trees by the shed that seemed to work as a shop. Typical.
Elena zipped up her jacket as she stepped out of the car. Even though it was snowing, there was a chill in the air. The snowfall wasn't as heavy anymore and the snow that had come down would probably stay for a while.
She spotted Caroline Forbes and Rebekah Mikaelson having a tug-o-war over a particularly bushy tree and decided now was not the best time to say hi to her old classmates and former cheerleader teammates. Instead, she veered right to the 'Cut Your Own Tree' booth.
Tyler Lockwood was just heading into the woods with his uncle Mason and a chainsaw. Elena inwardly cursed Jeremy for booking the last possible flight out of L.A. It wouldn't have hurt to have another set of arms – and muscles – to help with the carrying. Elena knew how to work a chainsaw, but she hadn't brought one back home from Canada, so she had her fingers crossed she could borrow one.
"Next!"
Elena stepped forward and smiled at the short brunette manning the booth. "Hi, I'm-"
"Elena!" the girl exclaimed, her eyes wide. "It's been, like, forever since I saw you! How's Jer?"
Elena frowned, trying to place the girl, and then it hit her. "April? Wow, you look… all grown up."
April Young laughed. "Yeah, I'm the one doing the babysitting these days. How've you been? How's Brock?"
"Challenging," Elena said, thinking about her last semester. "And cold," she added with a chuckle, "kinda like it is here."
"Yeah, some weather, huh? So, um, did you want a tree?"
"If you have any left. And I could use a chainsaw, too, if you have one I could borrow?"
"Oh." April bit her lip and looked over her shoulder. "Afraid not. But someone could probably help you…"
"That's okay. An axe will have to do."
April squirmed. "Well, actually-"
"We don't make it a habit of handing out dangerous weapons to anyone who asks," a man's voice cut in and April gasped as Damon Salvatore himself came over to them.
"I wasn't going to-" April rushed to explain, but Damon cut her off with a hand on her shoulder.
"Why don't you take the next one in line? I'll sort Miss Gilbert out."
Elena followed him over to the back of the shed where he picked up an axe and a small timber carrier.
"Stefan has the chainsaw; he's out getting more trees for the lot. We're running low."
"I could tell," Elena said, thinking of the ferocious look on Caroline's face moments ago. "Are you sure you have time to-"
Damon attached the timber carrier to a hook on his belt. "Well, I can't very well let little red riding hood out into the woods all alone, can I? I saw the Lockwoods heading out earlier."
"What are you even-" Elena started, but trailed off as Damon's impossibly blue eyes seemed to fix on something over her head. She reached up and felt her knitted beanie there. Oh, right. A red one. "I think I have more to fear from ravens than wolves," she muttered and side-stepped him, heading for the path leading into the woods. She could hear Damon's chuckle from behind, but then he was beside her, the timber carrier clinking against his leg as he walked.
They walked in silence for a while; just long enough for Elena to remember all the missed opportunities of the past, and that pesky little crush that didn't seem to have completely evaporated over the years. Strange, that.
"So, I hear you live in Canada these days," Damon said, breaking the silence. "What's that like?"
"It's good. Nice and safe. And Brock University is great."
"What do you study?"
"Ecology and Sustainable Energy."
"And you have no problem cutting down trees?"
Elena looked over at him to see if he was trying to provoke her, but his expression was neutral. "You plant new ones, don't you?"
"Every year."
"And if you left all the trees you grow in place, they would struggle to grow properly, having to compete for soil nutrients and sunlight with the other trees, right?"
"They would indeed."
"So, no, I don't have a problem with it. It'd be worse if you cut them all down and built a mall or something."
"Good answer."
Elena couldn't help it; she felt the warmth of his praise all the way to her toes. And they were freezing at this point.
"What about you? Do you live here now?"
"Since March of this year. Dad passed away and left his shares in Salvatore Holding Group to Stefan and me. Salvatore Tree Farm was one of the group's holdings, so when Uncle Zack announced he was moving to Florida with his girlfriend, I agreed to take over operations and see if the business is worth keeping."
"I take it you don't do a lot of business eleven months out of the year?"
"We grow all sorts of trees here, including trees yielding fruit and nuts and trees used for craft fibers. There's always something to sell."
"So you run all these different companies from here now?"
"Well, we have boards and managers to do the heavy lifting, so to speak, so right now I'm only really hands-on with Salvatore Tree Farm. And the Town Council."
"Really? You're on the Council with my dad?"
"Yup. He's always talking about you, you know. Makes me wish I'd gotten to know you back when you still lived here."
"Oh." Elena's cheeks heated despite the cold. "I'm sure he's exaggerating."
"Hey, how are your parents doing? I heard about the accident. That bridge should be closed during bad weather. I've already talked to Mayor Lockwood about it."
"Thank you. And they're fine. They're both going to be released from the hospital the day after tomorrow. I want the house to look perfect by then."
"Do you need some help with getting the tree set up? I'd be happy to help."
"Oh, no, I couldn't ask you to do that…"
"You're not. I'm offering. Grayson and Miranda are good people, and they'd do the same thing for any one of their neighbors."
"I guess…"
"It's settled, then. You pick out the tree you want and I'll bring it over when we close up for the night."
"Um… okay. Thank you."
A dozen thoughts were running through her mind even as she accepted his generous offer, the predominant one being that she was going to be alone in her house with Damon Salvatore tonight. Oh, boy, she desperately needed to tidy up. And maybe take a shower.
Elena peered out the window, hoping to see headlights pulling into the driveway. The snow had started falling again and she was worried that Damon was putting himself at risk delivering her tree. It was already past nine o'clock and she could see the lights on in the neighbors' windows. Her house felt emptier than ever by comparison.
She'd dragged out the boxes of ornaments and lights from the storage space, and spent the better part of the evening trying to detangle the lights and organize the ornaments by size and color. She'd started a fire in the fireplace so that the house at least felt a bit cozier, and hung the stockings. She'd hung decorations and placed little ceramic Santas here and there, changed the table cloth to her mother's favorite red one and scattered candles around the kitchen and living room. She'd baked bread and cookies and bought the turkey. Still, there was a gaping hole in the living room where the spruce was supposed to be.
She was just about to go check on her latest batch of cookies when a flatbed truck pulled up at the curb. Seeing that it was Damon, she grabbed her jacket and boots to help with the carrying, but when she opened the door, he had already managed to wrangle the spruce off the flatbed and up the pathway.
"Hey, wait, I can help," she called out to him, and hurried to meet him.
"No, it's-" Damon started, but then the ground gave out from under her and she fell on her butt on the icy pathway, "slippery. Elena, are you all right?" he asked, hurrying over to help her up.
"Ow." She rubbed at her right butt cheek as he pulled her up.
"Nothing broken?" Damon asked.
"Just my spirit." Elena sighed.
"We'll see about that," Damon said with a chuckle and picked her up bridal-style.
Elena started to protest that she could walk on her own, but he was already carrying her over the threshold and before she knew it she was deposited on the couch in front of the fireplace.
"One sec," Damon said and disappeared outside again. When he returned, he had the tree with him. He brushed the snow off in the doorway before closing the door. "Man, it's really coming down out there."
"Thank you again for bringing the tree over," Elena said, trying to get back up to help him. "Can I get you some hot chocolate and some freshly baked cookies?"
"That sounds amazing, but-" Damon said and walked over, applying gentle pressure on her shoulders, "you should sit and rest for a while. You can tell me where you want the tree and I'll set it up."
"No, I-"
"Elena. Please, I want to help."
Elena bit her lip and considered her options. Maybe a few minutes would help with the pain. "Okay. Thank you. Would you mind taking the cookies out of the oven? If I leave them in there any longer, they'll burn."
"Sure thing. This way?" Damon asked, hiking his thumb in the general direction of the kitchen.
"Yes. Oven mitts are by the stove."
"I'm on it," he said and seconds later, she could hear the over door open and smelled the vanilla wafting from the cookies.
She expected him to return straight away, but then she heard rattling in the kitchen. Moments later, he carried over a plate of cookies and a glass of milk.
"Here you go, Miss Gilbert. Now, let's talk placement…"
Damon didn't just set up the tree, he insisted on decorating it, too. Elena sat like a queen on her throne of throw pillows and blankets and directed him. Once the last of the ornaments had been hung, Damon flopped down on the couch beside her.
"There. All done."
"Exhausted?" Elena asked, unable to hold back a grin as he slumped against the back of the couch, his eyes closed.
"Mm-hm."
"Thank you so much, Damon. I can't believe you did that."
"All part of the service," he mumbled.
"Somehow, I don't think that's true. Or else you're severely underpaid."
"Wanna make it up to me?"
Elena felt her cheeks flare. Was he flirting with her? After all this time, pining for him to notice her… She swallowed before she spoke, but her words still came out breathless. "What did you have in mind?"
His eyes opened then and he turned his head to look at her. "I could go for that hot chocolate now. And a cookie."
Elena blinked. Oh. Right. Of course. How silly of her to think-
"But there's something I wouldn't mind trying first," he said and reached into his pocket. When he held out a partially crushed twig of mistletoe, Elena's hope soared again.
"What's that?"
He gave the twig a shake. "If this thing still works."
She opened her mouth to reply with some sassy remark she hadn't yet thought of and he took the opportunity to kiss her instead. When he pulled back, he had a big grin on his face.
"I guess it does."
It took her a moment to catch his meaning, what with her brain being fried and all, but once she did, she rolled her eyes and pushed at his shoulder.
"I'm going to get that hot chocolate going."
"I'll help."
Elena couldn't hide her smile. "You're just all kinds of helpful, aren't you?"
"What can I say? I'm easy like that."
Elena rolled her eyes in amusement and headed into the kitchen. As they stood side by side, preparing their cups of hot chocolate, she felt her heart beat faster and her hands grow sweaty. She'd let all those past opportunities pass her by, and now Damon Salvatore was standing in her kitchen. If she passed on this one, too, she probably wouldn't get another chance.
"Um… Damon?" she said softly, slowly stirring her cup.
"Yeah?"
"You know the Christmas Ball the Fells host every year?"
"Yes."
"Are you going?"
"I usually do."
"Right. Are you going with someone?"
"Elena…"
She turned her head to look at him even though she was pretty sure he'd be able to read all her insecurities right there on her face. "Yes?"
"Are you asking me to the ball?"
"Um… yes."
"Then ask."
Elena took a deep breath, which came out in a shudder, and braced herself. "Damon, would you like to go to the Christmas Ball with me?"
"I don't know… it's a little short notice…"
"Oh. I see…" Elena said, turning away, humiliated. Even as Damon turned her around to face him, she wouldn't look him in the eyes.
"Of course I want to go with you, Elena. I'd been planning to ask you ever since your father said you were coming home for Christmas."
"Really?" She looked up at him, scared to hope.
"Yes. After everything I've heard about you, how could I resist getting to know you better?"
"So you don't make it a habit of bringing women trees and decorating them?"
Damon laughed. "Not really, no. Only for the special ones."
"And how many would that be? I mean, like a ballpark number."
"Counting today? One."
Elena couldn't believe what she was hearing, but then Damon pulled her close and kissed her again, making him believe it. When he pulled back, she couldn't speak above a whisper.
"You forgot the mistletoe."
"Did I?" Damon said, raising his eyebrows in feigned surprise. "Huh. I guess its power is more far-reaching than you'd think. Or maybe I just like kissing you."
"Hm. I can handle that." Elena smiled up at him and raised herself up on her tippy-toes to press her lips against his.
As his arms went around her, Elena dropped the twig of mistletoe she'd been holding onto to boost her confidence. She didn't need it anymore.