A/N: Basically, this got removed by admins because of the smut, which is ridiculous because there are far more explicit fics than mine on here. First time I've had one of my fics removed! I've deleted some of it, so fingers crossed it won't be removed again! This is the first thing I've posted since September, so please go easy on me! I'm not too sure about the little bit at the end, let me know what you guys think! Rated M for Lemon, Adult Languge/Content. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own the Vampire Diaries or any of it's Characters.

** "I hated him with a passion so deep, sometimes it felt like love." **

~What If?~

The first time he opened up to her was a totally irrelevant Monday morning. He could hear her shuffling around upstairs, getting all of her things ready for school. She had spent the night with Stefan, something she had begun to do more and more regularly.

"Good Morning," she greeted him cheerfully when she stepped into the lounge. They'd been getting along well for a few weeks because she'd finally gotten over her initial distaste for him. He'd proven himself worthy, after saving her life multiple times.

"Morning," he replied with a slight nod of his head. He watched her as she pulled on her crimson winter coat and black knitted scarf. "You're awfully cheerful."

"You'll see why soon enough."

He didn't push further, she obviously wasn't going to tell him yet. She grabbed her bag and headed towards the door, but he was in front of her before she could reach for the doorknob.

"I have some bad news. Katherine's in town," he told her, cutting to the chase. He didn't want to skirt around the issue, the sooner she knew the better. He was surprised at how well she took the news, he expected her to get upset and curse, instead her eyes filled with worry and she frowned softly. "Are you okay?" She whispered gently, placing her arm on his shoulder. He sure wasn't expecting that.

"Of course I am," he scoffed, avoiding eye contact.

"You know you can talk to me, right? Everyone needs a friend to talk to sometimes, even the big, bad Damon Salvatore," she sighed, a small smile tugging at her lips.

"Go to school, Elena. I'll be fine." When he saw her raise her eyebrow sceptically and fold her arms, he knew she wouldn't go until he spoke to her.

"Look, it sucks that she's here, I really don't want to see the bitch. But there really isn't much I can do about it," He said with a nonchalant shrug, trying to convey how much he didn't care, but she knew better.

What if I told you who I really was?
What if I let you in on my charade?

"We could always just stake the slut?" Elena suggested, surprising him. Elena rarely cursed, she always reserved it for moments when she was passionate about something.

"She's strong, Elena. Don't give her a reason to kill you," he advised. Her courage was admirable, but against Katherine Pierce… Elena wouldn't stand a chance. It was times like these that she made him nervous, because her bravery could often lead to stupid, suicidal missions, and they all had enough on their hands with Stefan's recently discovered blood issues. Damon was spending enough time worrying about Stefan losing control and hurting Elena, he didn't need to worry about Katherine draining her as well.

"Fine, tell Stefan I'll see him in history," she sighed, then walked out of the house. His eyes lingered on the door a few seconds longer than they should have, and it was the sound of Stefan's footsteps that snapped him out of it. "Did Elena leave already?" He asked, grabbing his shoes from where he'd left them in the foyer yesterday.

"Yep, she said she'll see you at cheerleading practice, and she asked me to remind you not to forget your pom-pons this week," he said, leaning against the wall and smirking.

"Ha, very funny," Stefan muttered. When Stefan stood back up after putting on his shoes, Damon managed to get a look at his face for the first time all morning and instantly realised why Elena was so chipper. She'd obviously used eyeliner to change the shape of Stefan's eyebrows to make them look like a permanent frown, aka broody Stefan. He couldn't help the amused chuckle that escaped his mouth, and when Stefan raised an eyebrow questioningly he simply said, "You know what, Stef? Elena's too fun for you."

What if I told you
what was really going on?
No more masks and no more parts to play

The second time he opened up to her was completely different. It wasn't about his past, it was about them. The first sign that there even was a 'them'.

"What are you doing?"

Elena yelped out in surprise and spun around quickly, shooting him a glare. "Are you crazy? Don't ever sneak up on me like that again!"

Damon just chuckled and shrugged, before curiously looking at what she was doing. "Stefan really won't appreciate you tearing his room apart," he said jokingly, masking his inquisitive eyes.

"I left something here last night."

Damon watched her frantically lift the mattress off the bed, amused at the annoyed huff that passed her lips. He decided to put her out of her misery, and reached into his back pocket and then dangled the item on his forefinger in front of him. "Any chance it's these that you're looking for?"

Elena turned around abruptly, her cheeks flaming red when she saw what was in his hand. She snatched the red lace panties from him, shoving them into her bag as fast as her human arms would allow her to.

"Where did you find them?" She asked, totally embarrassed. She knew it was ridiculous to feel so humiliated by the situation, after all it was just her panties, but for some reason she felt exposed, and strangely there was a part of her that didn't want him knowing that she slept with Stefan.

"They weren't exactly hidden, thrown haphazardly onto Stefan's desk," he chuckled, but she could see it wasn't a genuine laugh. Something flashed in his eyes, but she couldn't make out what it was, he covered it in an instant.

There's so much I want to say
But I'm so scared to give away
Every little secret that I hide behind
Would you see me differently?
And would that be such a bad thing?
I wonder what it would be like
If I told you

She was sure she'd gone crazy, because there was simply no way she would ever say the words that then came out of her mouth when she had a sane mindset. "Does that bother you?"

The question caught Damon off guard, Elena usually shied away from this type of conversation. She wasn't stupid, she knew he had feelings for her, but she always found it too awkward to talk about and knowing she couldn't reciprocate those feelings made her feel horrendously guilty.

"Why would it? I can have sex whenever I want," he said dismissively, but he made sure to do that eye thing that she secretly liked.

"You know that isn't what I meant," she said softly, fighting the temptation to put her hand on his arm in that comforting way she always did.

"Elena…" he tried warning her, desperately attempting to refrain from making eye contact with her. This was dangerous territory they were encroaching on, this kind of conversation could change things for them. They'd been getting on incredibly well as of late, they even regarded each other as friends now, and he didn't want to ruin that by letting his feelings get in the way of everything.

"I don't want you to feel like you can't talk to me about it, I want to help."

He couldn't restrain himself anymore. She was pushing him, so she couldn't blame him for being brutally honest. "You want to help? Be honest with me." His response took her by surprise, she didn't know what to say or do. So she did the one thing she was best at. She ran.

What if I told you
That it's just a front?
To hide the insecurities I have

The next time Damon opened up to Elena, it was a mutual thing. She and Stefan had recently broken up, and she'd isolated herself from everybody for days.

"Hey, pouty face." Elena knew he'd be here sooner or later, he always checked up on her when nobody had heard from her.

"Hey," she murmured, not moving from her window seat. Her journal was perched on her lap, and Damon could see even from ten feet away that she'd written a lot. That was always a bad sign with Elena.

"You're alive. Good to know." He decided teasing was the best way to go, he knew she didn't like to receive sympathy from anybody.

"Unfortunately," she muttered, violently scribbling something into her journal. He hated it when she was like this, it was like she lost her flame. She was usually a go-getter who tried not to get brought down by anything, and she was easily the strongest person Damon knew.

"Lose the teen angst. You're upset, understandably, but there's no need to feel suicidal," he said, flopping down onto her bed and grabbing her teddy bear

"I'm not upset, I'm annoyed," she huffed, applying more pressure to the pen.

"Care to explain?"

"How am I supposed to leave the house? My best friend simply thinks I'm the bitch who broke Stefan's heart, because apparently nobody heard that it was a mutual thing," she snapped, the pen now ripping through the pages.

What if I told you
That I'm not as strong
As I like to make believe I am?

"Relax. Nobody thinks that," he said gently, moving to sit beside her and pulling her feet onto his lap

"The text messages on my phone beg to differ," she sighed, chucking the almost ruined journal onto the floor. He was never the person that people went to for support, but with Elena it was different, she told him everything because he always stood by her like a best friend should, something which Caroline clearly didn't agree with.

"Well, screw them all then. If they're going to judge you without even hearing you out, then they aren't worth worrying about," he murmured softly, pulling her onto his lap. Her arms locked securely around his neck, and she buried her face into the crook of it.

"Are you okay?" She asked, taking him by surprise. Only Elena would take interest in someone else's feelings whilst she was being comforted.

"Sure, why wouldn't I be?" He was creating soothing patterns on her lower back, making her shiver for reasons she couldn't understand.

"I know Stefan's been giving you a hard time lately."

"No big deal, brother's fight all the time. Especially when one makes a move on his brother's girl," he said, looking at her pointedly. She was beyond humiliated when a blush spread onto her cheeks. Of course Damon made it worse, flashing that signature smirk and winking at her.

There's so much I want to say
But I'm so scared to give away
Every little secret that I hide behind
Would you see me differently?
And would that be such a bad thing
I wonder what it would be like
If I told you

The next time they opened up to each other was by far the most significant. The tension between them had been building for months, and Damon was a ticking time bomb. Of course Elena was never one to back down from a fight.

"Seriously, are you crazy?"

"No, I'm realistic! There's nothing holding me here anymore, I want to leave," she hissed, slamming her fist on the wooden drawers that were to her right.

"Well, you can't. Because there is something holding you here, his name is Jeremy! And do you honestly think I'm going to let you leave either?" he snapped, invading her personal space. He was looking down at her with raging eyes, showing he wasn't going to back down.

"Oh, please," she scoffed. "Jeremy's so wrapped up in Bonnie, he won't care. And you'd be better off without me here. All I do is hurt you! I don't want to do that anymore," she sighed, getting quiet towards the end of her little rant.

"That's not the point."

"Of course it is! I've already broken Stefan's heart, he can barely look at me! I don't want you to end up hating me like that, I wouldn't be able to stand it," she said, softly placing her hands onto his chest. She needed him to understand that it was in everyone's best interest. She was a danger magnet, rotten to the core. She was incapable of making anybody happy. His eyes softened, and he pulled her towards him.

"I could never hate you, Elena," he whispered, tracing small circles on her hip.

"I've hurt you so much though." She sounded so broken; he felt his heart sink a little bit. "You'll never look at me the way you used to." Her voice held total conviction.

"Used to?" His asked, astonished. "I'll always look at you like you're the most beautiful thing on this planet, because to me you are!" He put his forehead to hers, staring into those great big doe eyes that made him weak at the knees. He was head over heels in love with her, and he was hopeless to do anything about it.

"Oh," she choked out, pressing herself impossibly close to him. She needed to feel him, to make sure it was all real. He didn't hate her… he still loved her, which was good because she was falling so deeply in love with him she was scared.

He could tell this beautiful woman anything. He'd tried to build his walls so high that nobody would possibly be able to climb them, but Elena had come along with her compassionate and stubborn ways, and brick by brick she had taken down his walls. He'd never let her leave, because she was just too important.

There's so much I want to say
But I'm so scared to give away
Every little secret that I hide behind
Oh would you see me differently?
And would that be such a bad thing
I wonder what it would be like
If I told you

He threw her on the bed, needing to be close to her right now. She was wildly clawing at his chest, ripping the buttons off his shirt and tearing it open. He loved to see her so carefree. She shoved his shirt over his shoulder, uncaringly tossing it to the floor. Deciding to follow suit, he grabbed the hem of her dark green tank top and yanked it over her head, immediately reaching for the button on her jeans afterward. He quickly popped the denim open, and gently pulled the jeans off of her toned legs, leaving her clad in a pair of innocent blue lace panties and a matching strapless bra.

"You're so beautiful," he whispered in awe, staring at every trace of skin he could. He grazed his thumb gently across her upper thigh, memorizing the perfection of the moment.

"Damon," she whimpered desperately, grabbing hold of the waistband of his jeans and shoving at them urgently. She desperately needed to feel all of him.

They continued to undress each other, and explored each new bit of exposed skin. Damon had never felt so much joy in undressing someone, but being with Elena felt new and the connection they had made everything that much more meaningful.

When he finally pushed into her, everything surrounding them seized to exist. It was just Damon and Elena, nothing else mattered. She pulled him closer, wrapping her legs tightly around his hips and arching herself into him. "More, Damon," she gasped, pressing her lips softy against his neck. He increased his speed, thrusting into her at a steady rhythm that left her panting and clawing at his back, begging for more.

"What do you want, Elena?" He asked, bending forward and pulling her nipple into his mouth. She cried out as he swirled his tongue around her rosy flesh, then gently grazed over it with his fang.

"I want you, all of you," she whimpered, threading her fingers through his hair. The man and the vampire, she thought.

It was as though he read her mind, because the next thing she felt were his razor sharp fangs sinking into the smooth skin of her neck. She moaned loudly, the mixture of pain and pleasure almost too intense for her to handle. She took him with her when she fell over the edge, making him groan whilst she took everything he had to give. He collapsed on top of her, knowing his weight didn't bother her when she let out a content sigh and started playing with his hair. He placed loving kisses around her navel, a silent thank you.

He couldn't seem to stop looking at her in awe; he truly was mesmerized by this woman. Before her, he'd never felt love like this, and he didn't think he ever would. He'd long accepted the fact that he would spend eternity alone, and then enters Elena… a true beauty inside and out who manages to change everything he's ever believed in. She had quite literally turned his world upside down, but he couldn't care less because she, Elena Gilbert, had chosen him!

What if I told you
What if I told you
What would it be like
What would it be like
If I told you?

After that amazing night, he spent every single day that followed opening up to her. He stopped shutting her out and they were always completely honest with each other. Once Elena had graduated, her friends began to leave Mystic Falls. Even Stefan disappeared, leaving nothing more than a small letter for Elena, briefly apologizing and taking responsibility for the downfall of their relationship and almost giving Damon and Elena his blessing. Bonnie decided to take Folklore classes at Duke, and Caroline went to New York to start an internship at Balenciaga and take classes at NYU. Elena stayed in contact with both of her friends, especially Caroline since she and Damon often went to New York together. They couldn't leave Mystic Falls altogether though, because Elena was Jeremy's guardian and he still had a whole year left of high school before he graduated. It didn't matter though, because they were happy, for the first time in what seemed like forever.

Oh what if I told you
Oh I wonder what it would be like
If I told you

A/N: Thank you for reading! Sorry for brief smut, but I don't want this to get removed again!

Song: What if I told you? - Jason Walker

Reviews Appreciated!

- Mia.