Elena stared blankly at the shiny diamond ring on her left hand and made up her mind. If Stefan was going to leave for a celebratory "week with old friends" - who knew Stefan actually had friends? - in Italy, well then, Elena was going to have a special week of her own, too. Ever since she and Stefan had gotten engaged, this desire had been itching at her, and darn it, she was just going to do it.

Elena Gilbert was going to party.

The problem was, she wasn't all that sure how to party. Life for the past several years had consisted of supernatural catastrophe after another, making her existence an exciting but also very, very serious one. Lately all she knew how to do was brood, and she feared she was turning into Stefan's twin. She loved him and was getting ready to pledge her life to him but she didn't want to be him.

She was ready to reawaken the fun, adventurous side of her that hadn't been seen in… well, awhile. But exactly how was she going to do this? And more importantly, who with?

There was always Bonnie. But the type of fun Elena wanted probably was too much for her delicate flower of a friend to handle. Meredith, maybe? Nah, she'd just stare at Elena like she was crazy. Plus, Alaric was in town this month and there was no stealing her away from his side. How about Matt? Probably not, the supernatural catastrophes had aged him prematurely and he was off in college anyway. That left Elena with… Caroline. That was not an option for more than one reason.

For a moment Elena despaired, thinking her party week was DOA, but then the most obviously perfect person for the job popped into her head and she could have slapped herself for not thinking of him first. Who knew how to live it up better than Damon Salvatore?

A month ago the idea would have seemed impossible. Damon had taken the news of the engagement a little more than slightly bad and disappeared for awhile. But he had returned, and things were getting back to normal. He was even going to be Stefan's best man, and he appeared to have accepted defeat in the race to win Elena's heart. He moved out of the boarding house and into his own place, and he and Elena were back to being friends. Elena was overjoyed. In some ways he was her best friend, more than even Bonnie and Meredith, joined on an entirely other level due to their overwhelming similarities.

Of course, spending a week alone (and probably mostly drunk) with Damon would most likely not make Stefan happy, no matter how platonic Damon seemed these days. So, as her first act of rebellion against Old Serious Elena, New Fun Elena decided to not tell Stefan. Gasp.

She positively tingled with satisfaction and knew she needed this even more than she previously thought.

But first, she needed to make sure her partner in crime was up for the job.

From her bed Elena reached over to her nightstand and grabbed her phone, her hands almost shaking in pure excitement as she scrolled through her contacts. When she got to the only "D" in her phone she pressed dial and couldn't get the smile off her face.

He answered after one ring. "Go for Damon," came the familiar cocky voice.

She rolled her eyes at his version of "hello". "Damon!" Her voice came out loud and very squeaky.

"Elena!" he shouted back, her girlish scream a bit startling. "Why are we shouting?"

"Because! Okay, I have an idea. And I think you're going to love it."

"Really? Does it involve you naked?" he quipped, enjoying the sound of her responding laugh. He knew that she understood the suggestive jokes would never end, no matter who she was marrying.

"No, sorry. You know how Stefan is in Italy this week with his friends for some kind of long bachelor party or something?"

"Stefan has friends? O-M-G, no way!"

Elena laughed and then continued. "Anyway, I figured that if he gets a week of fun then I do too. I mean I haven't had fun in like years and I don't want to forget how to and turn into a boring old married lady."

"A week of fun? Where do I fit into this, 'cause trust me, if I'm involved, you will have be naked at some point."

"Oh, Damon, stop! I want to get trashed. I want to be irresponsible and stupid. I want to just be crazy for once in my life, you know? And I love my other friends but they aren't exactly the get-crazy types." Elena imagined Bonnie drunk and giggled at the thought.

"And what does my dear little brother think of this?" Damon inquired.

"Well, I haven't told him. That's kinda the point. Irresponsible and stupid, remember?"

"Well, well!" Damon mused, "I think I'm going to like this version of Elena a lot."

"So I take that as a yes?"

"Please, you have to ask? If you're being drunk and stupid, I'm there. Who knows what might happen!"

"Perfect! Oh my gosh, Damon, you have no idea how much I need this. I think I might need a whole month instead of a week," she sighed.

"Sure I have an idea of how much you need it, you are engaged to Stefan after all," he shuddered. "What do you two do for fun, anyway? Discuss your feelings during long soul-searching walks on the beach?"

"Uh… yeah, pretty much," Elena chuckled.

"Eek. Well anyways, where am I taking you for the week?"

"Don't people usually go to Vegas to act stupid?"

Damon laughed. "Ah, Vegas. Yes, I've had my fair share of experiences that happened there and are staying there. I will call the airline and pick you up in 15, little miss mid-life crisis."

"Okay. I'm so excited I could explode!" Elena exclaimed before clicking her phone shut. She packed in a hurry and let her friends know through text that she was leaving for the week and not to tell Stefan for super top secret reasons. She knew Bonnie and Mer wouldn't question anything super top secret.

When the red Ferrari pulled up outside the boarding house, Elena all but ran to it.

Vegas here I come!