A/N: Before you read this:

This is not so much of a story as part of a story. The rest of it, however, will remain unwritten.

It came from a question: "If Elena accidentally pushed Damon so far away that he broke, what would she do?"

The 'who, how, why' is irrelevant. I wanted to explore the 'after' of the dilemma.

Commentary on a Consuming Love

- Begin-

All Damon knew was pain. It shot through his body, heart and stomach bursting apart, into a thousand blood-soaked pieces. He fell to his knees. His heart. It hurt. So much. So much more than anything that had come before. His stomach churned, and he threw up.

Afterwards, still on his knees, he curled up into a ball. Lay on the floor. Shivering.

And all alone.

"NOOOOO." She screamed. Her heart broke. Shattered. Elena's eyes darkened, blind fury crossing her face.

"You made me hurt him."

"No, Elena. You did that all on your own."

One moment, the foe stood smirking. The next, the foe fell. Neck snapped and a stake in the heart for good measure. Dead before the crumpling body hit the floor.

Elena stood, heaving, face pulled back in a frightening snarl.

She would kill for him.

She found him.

He had returned, dragged himself more like, home. She appeared in his room. His back was to her.

She did not say a word. His voice was a harsh whisper.

"Why the hell are you here?"

She did not reply. He did not turn to face her.

"Damon…I…"

He recoiled.

"Leave." It was a guttural tone.

"No. I want to-"

"I don't care what you want."

Now he turned to face her. Rage and pain and sorrow all crossed his face.

"Haven't you done enough, already? I am not your toy. I was Katherine's, a long time ago. I thought you were the one to teach me that, to help me out. I refuse to be yours!"

"I would do anything for you!" Elena shouted furiously. "I made a mistake, and I'm sorry! You want me to-"

"ENOUGH." He roared. Eyes blazing, he turned from her, heads tearing at his hair. He didn't touch her. "You fucked with me long enough. It's over. I'm done with this. Done with you!"

He was broken.

Elena stood stock-still. She'd broken him. All her life, she tried to work things out for the best: Jenna, Jeremy, Bonnie, Matt, Caroline, Stefan… She tried to be the caretaker, the sensible, strong one.

But she'd broken the one she most cared about. Broken beyond repair.

There was nothing she could do.

Wordless tears rolled down her face.

A swoosh of the curtains told him she had gone.

And the rest of his composure collapsed. Hoarse sobs came from his arms, where his head was buried.

Three weeks.

She does not give up. She formulates a plan. A plan to show him what he meant to her. She is desperate. Sits on the street corner. It was all her fault. A man walks past. She gets an idea.

He turns the switch back on. Turns it back on with a vengeance. Lots of girls, lots of blood, no booze though. Doesn't want the blood thirst dulled in any way. Curiously, he doesn't kill them.

One month.

She's waiting for him. She's got gifts.

It's a city far away from Mystic Falls. But she found him anyway. She can always find him.

He blinks. The wounds are still raw.

"What the fucking hell are you doing here, Elena?"

"Proving to you that I mean what I say," she says grimly.

There are five people behind her. One is dead.

One is in Elena's arms. She snaps his neck. Damon twitches.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" He demands.

Elena's face is tear-stained.

"I broke you, Damon."

"I broke you, and you loved me, and I can never make that up." She shudders.

Keeps speaking.

"So, I'll break me too. I'll break me as much as I broke you. Then we'll be the same."

She moves to the next person.

But before her hands can make the twisting motion, they are stopped by other hands.

"Elena," breathes the voice from behind her, "Elena, what are you doing?"

"I can't ever make it up to you." She sobs. "So much was done to you, and you were, are, still so strong, and I want to try and prove to you that you don't have to be alone."

"Elena," Damon's face is mournful. "Elena, don't do that."

"No. I want to. I want to prove it to you."

"Prove what?"

"That I love you."

A jolt.

Damon's hands fall away in shock, and quick as a flash, Elena's hands twist and another body falls.

"No! Elena, stop it!"

Damon slams into her, away from the humans. He pins her to the floor.

"Elena, stop it!" He repeats urgently.

He pauses. Continues. His voice is raspy, but he talks to her anyway.

"I'd rather be broken a thousand times over than see you like this."

"I need you to believe me!" She tries to throw him off.

"I do!" Damon shouts. "I believe you."

Elena quivers.

"You love me." He said. "The fact that you'd do this to yourself…" His voice breaks.

Elena stops struggling. She closes her eyes. "Now I don't believe you. You just want me to stop. Then you'll leave."

"Elena, look at me."

Taking one hand off of her arm and turning her face towards his, Damon says it again.

She looks.

"I believe you. Please. Don't kill yourself, your humanity, for me. I'm not worth it. I sold my soul to the devil for someone a long time ago. I don't want you to do the same."

She opens her mouth to speak, but Damon covers it.

"No, I'm not done." He says firmly.

"You hurt me. Fine. Once, out of how many times? Elena, you saved me. I don't think you realize all that you've done for me. So many times. You didn't break me; I was already broken. For so many years. You saved me, and the healing is what hurts. I recognize that, finally."

He looks at her. She looks at him.

"You've got power over me. I could live without you, I think," He continues frankly, "But it's a bleak future, and cold and I've got enough self-preservation to not want that. But I'm willing to do it, to save you. I don't want you broken."

Elena breathes out. A long, long breath.

"I'm not willing to do it."

They've never been ones to lie to each other.

Damon lets her go now, slowly. Stands up. They're not touching, but near to it.

"I love you."

Elena's eyes glaze over in shock. "Still? After everything?"

"Yes."

She can't believe it. This man is prepared to give his heart to her over and over again. What had she ever done to deserve this? It was a miracle.

"And I believe you," Damon says, "So I want us to stay together."

Elena stands up, to stand with him. "Okay."

Damon glances at the bodies. Elena sees him.

"I don't regret it."

Damon looks at her sharply.

"I mean, I regret their deaths. I always will now, I guess." Elena says, resigned. "But it helped you to believe me."

She contemplates this.

"We're not healthy." She tells him.

"We're vampires." He replies. "You have to leave your home, family, friends…"

"Your relationship with Stefan is irreparable." She counters.

They both flinch.

There is one thing Damon and Elena each care about most.

There is a silence.

"We keep hurting each other." Elena murmurs.

"I know Stefan. You know Stefan. He's a better person than either of us. Someday, it might not be for a long, long time, but someday, he'll forgive us." Damon reassures her.

Elena's voice is sad, but her voice does not quaver. "We have a long time."

They face each other. He takes her face in his hands. She clutches his shirt. He angles his face down, and she lifts hers up. Their lips meet. A promise.

"We have forever." He says.

A/N: Furthur points about this story:

This was supposed to be an exploration into a darker side of Delena. It's supposed to be twisted.

I'm a Delena shipper, but the way I wrote them in this story? I don't really approve of.

I wanted to see if Elena can have just as a twisted sense of love as Damon did for Katherine.

Oh, if you couldn't tell, Elena is a vampire at this point in the story. :)

Ciara's fanfiction 'Maybe Someday Love' is an inspiration to this story. A story with a similar situation, but with a nicer premise.

The choppy is a stylistic, experimental choice.

I'm not continuing with this story.

I hope you enjoyed it. :)

And I love reviews.

And many thanks to Kristybabe from the TVD Discussion Forum for beta-ing this!