Elena looked distressed at her watch as she stepped through the door and stopped in front of the reception desk inside Peterson's law firm. The lobby was pretty big. Not too fancy, but still decent. She had never heard of the place before, it hadn't been easy to find. Due to a lot of traffic, she'd had to park her car four blocks away and she'd been forced to run all the way back to make it in time.

She was late. Five minutes before her shift ended, more customers hade walked into the café. Michael had asked her to stay for another ten minutes.
Ten minutes quickly turned into twenty-five minutes. As always.

Elena walked up to the woman sitting behind the counter. Her grey hair was set up in a tight knot and somehow it matched her purple dress.
She looked nice and Elena relaxed. She smiled as she stopped in front of her. When the lady ignored her presence, she cleared her throat.

With a bored expression the old woman looked up at her. "Yes?"

"I'm Elena Gilbert."

"And how may I help you?" She asked in a monotone voice and continued to stare at computer screen. She was obviously very bored and if nothing else, annoyed about Elena's presence.

With a simple motion, she pulled out the letter from her purse. Elena handed it to the woman who quietly eyed the text.

She nodded, more serious than before. "The Riley case."

Elena frowned. "Who's Riley?"

The woman returned her letter, not answering her question.

Elena felt confused. "Excuse me, but who's Riley?"

The secretary moved her eyes and glared at Elena. "Aren't you here to discuss Riley?"

Elena shrugged. "I don't even know who Riley is. I don't even know a someone who knows someone who knows a Riley."

The secretary snorted in response. "Good luck." She rolled her eyes and turned back to her computer.

Elena nodded in frustration. "Do you get paid for being nice to your clients?" She turned around.

"I'm actually a tremendous asset to this company."

"I'm sure." Elena shook her head and walked over to one of the sofas and sat down.

She sighed and closed her eyes.

She'd been very stressed the past week. She'd been working late at the café for several days in a row. Jeremy had barely been home and had spent the most part out of his free time with Anna. However, Elena couldn't blame him. He needed to have some fun. Moreover, Anna was a great influence on him. His grades looked good and he seemed to do well too. He wasn't as sad and depressed anymore.

Her eyes wandered nervously through the room. Who's Riley? Concern started to sneak up on her.

The double doors on the other side of the room was swung open and a man in his late forties walked over to the sulky woman behind the desk. This time the woman smiled charmingly. Elena shook her head with irritation as the old secretary giggled and blushed.

"Glenda, have Miss Gilbert arrived yet?" The man asked.

"I'm right here." Elena rose from her seat and walked over to the man.

"Hello, I'm Michael." He shook her hand and smiled politely as they walked into his office. "Did you have any trouble finding the office?"

"No, not at all. However, it was a lot of people at work, so I was afraid I'd be late."

"It's okay. I had some paperwork to deal with before you came. Please, take a seat."

Michael motioned for her to sit down in front of his desk, which was filled with paper and a variety of folders and pencils.
His office wasn't big, but it was stylish and elegantly furnished. It had a classy atmosphere.

Michael sat down behind his desk and looked at Elena. "So, Miss Gilbert, do you have any thoughts about why you are here?"

She folded her hands in her lap. "I honestly don't know why I'm here."

"My apologies." He answered. "There's nothing you need to worry about. You just have to make a decision."

"Pardon me." Elena crossed her legs. "But what kind of decision?"

Michael folded his hands and looked at her before he spoke. "How much did you know about your mother's family?" He leaned back in his chair. "Did you know her relatives?""

"No." Elena frowned. "I never got the chance." She felt her heart ache. "My mother didn't have a big family. I never met my grandparents. My mother was their only child."

Michael nodded. "Did you know that your grandmother had a brother?"

"No." She shook her head. "I didn't know that." She wondered what this meeting was about.

"He raised a daughter. She passed away two weeks ago."

Elena stared in shock at the man before her. "What does that have to do with me?"

Michael leaned over the desk and picked up a folder full of papers. "She lived alone. She was forty-five years of age and decided to do an in vitro fertilization. With a lot of luck and good doctors... she got pregnant."

Elena swallowed back the lump in her throat. "She gave birth?"

"Yes." Michael smiled softly. "She gave birth to a daughter."

"That's wonderful." She mumbled.

"Two weeks ago, they got into a car accident." Michael lowered his eyes. He was still holding the folder in his hands.

Elena sat quiet, staring ahead, as if trying to put the pieces of her fried brain back together again.

"Riley was in the back seat. She survived."

She gasped and put her hands over her mouth in an attempt to be quiet. She felt nauseous.

"Since you're the only..." Michael paused, searching her eyes. "...only distant relative she had left and knew about, the custody of Riley Matthewson will go to you."

"This is absurd. Is this a joke?" Elena gaped, dropping her jaw to the floor. "I didn't even know her." She rose from her chair. "I'm sorry sir, but this is–"

"I understand that this is a lot of information to absorb and digest." He said calmly.

She snorted sarcastically.

"But the child needs a home."

"You don't understand." Elena looked at him and sat down in her chair again. "I'm not mother material."

"You've taken care of your little brother."

"There's a difference. I can't have two teenagers in the same apartment." Just the thought of it caused panic to grow inside her.

"Riley is only eight months."

"That's even worse." She burst out. "I can't take care of a child, let alone a baby." Elena stood up and walked towards the door.

"Miss Gilbert. Please, sit down and listen to what I have to say before you leave."

Elena let her hand fall from the handle and turned around. "Mr. Peterson. It's not that I don't want to help..."

He looked at her. "Then what's the problem?"

"I wouldn't be able to give her what she needs. I work full time at a cafe. I live in an apartment on the eighth floor. I'm nineteen years old." She said in desperation. "She needs a mother and a father."

"She needs someone to love her."

"I can't give her that."

"Then she'll end up in foster care."

"What do you mean?" Elena narrowed her eyes. She didn't like the sound of that. Foster care. She'd heard really bad stories about kids that had to move in with a broken family. They got forced to become a part of a family where abuse was natural. That wasn't a good option.

"She'll probably end up with a foster family."

"But then she might end up with anybody."

He nodded, choosing his words carefully. "Someone who's considered qualified, of course. But these things take time."

Elena pulled a hand over her face. "I'm still a little shocked."

"I understand." Michael searched her eyes. "Why don't you come back tomorrow? You can take her home for the weekend."

She widened her eyes. "And then what?"

"Return on Monday afternoon, with a decision."

Elena took a deep breath. She was overwhelmed. She could only nod in response.

"You shouldn't feel any pressure. We certainly don't want to force anyone to become a parent."

"It's a little too late for that." She said, biting her bottom lip.

"You can refuse to take care of her. You disclaim any right as custodian, and then she ends up in the system."

"That's not an option." Elena looked back at him. "What time tomorrow?"

"Will you go with me tomorrow?" She sipped her tea.

"Sure." Jeremy sat down beside her. "We'll face this as a family."

"What do babies need?" Elena shook her head, pulling a hand through her long hair. She doesn't know. She is too young to know.

"I have no idea. We'll go to the store tomorrow morning." Jeremy looked at her with a small smile. "Okay?"

"That sounds good." Elena sighed and smiled at him. "We have to pick her up at four."

"All right. I'll go to the café after school." Jeremy rose from the couch. "For how long will she stay with us?"

"I don't know, Jeremy." She shrugged her shoulders. "A couple of days. Let's just take it one day at a time."

He nodded. "I'm going to bed. Don't stay up too long."

Elena raised her eyebrows. "I'm the parent."

"I know." He rolled his eyes. "But you look so tired."

She yawned. "I've worked a lot."

"Well, you're never home."

"I'm sorry, Jeremy. But it's extra money, which we need."

He huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. "Tell Mason's that he has to pay his part of the rent. You're paying for everything. Mason's just enjoying it."

"Jeremy." Elena tilted her head. "That's not true."

She didn't want to have this conversation with her brother. Jeremy got so heated when they discussed Mason.

"No?" He raised his eyebrows. "Elena, he's an ass. He's not even working."

She put down her cup of tea on the table in front of the couch. She sighed and shook her head. "Mason has a job."

Her brother snorted. "If he tried to do his job properly for once, he would have no problem with helping us financially."

"He has gone through a difficult time. He's been very stressed."

"You are having a difficult time." His brown eyes had become darker now. "He is a jerk."

"Jeremy, that's enough." Elena rose from the couch and folded the blanket and put it back down on the black cushions.

"Have you told Mason about Riley?"

"No, not yet." She replied. "I haven't been able to reach him on his phone."

"I wonder why." He muttered.

Elena rolled her eyes. "I'll tell him when he gets home."

"Good." Jeremy let out a laugh. "Then maybe we can finally get rid of him."

"What are you talking about?" She frowned and crossed her arms.

Jeremy let out a laugh. "He's gonna freak out."

"You talk as if he hate kids."

Jeremy stopped smiling. "It's the truth."

"He doesn't hate kids." She exclaimed.

"Oh, he does."

Elena took a few steps forward. "Let's just... stop fighting. It gives me a stomach ache."

"Your abdominal pain comes from all the stress. You know that. You'll get bleeding ulcers in your stomach if you don't slow down."

"You're exaggerating." Elena said. "It's just acid reflux or something.."

"Are you sure?" Jeremy looked at her. "I don't want you to be in pain–"

"Jeremy." She stopped him with a soft voice. "I'm okay. I just need to sleep." Elena could feel how tired she was and how her eyelids began to feel heavy.

"Do you promise?"

"I promise." She replied. "Good night, Jer."

"I know you're worried about tomorrow, but we'll get through this."

Elena smiled softly at her little brother. "You and me, Jer."

"You and me, sis."

Elena woke up when a man stumbled inside her room. She sat up and yawned.
She glanced at the clock on the nightstand. It was very late. Elena rubbed her eyes. "Mason?"

"Hey baby." He replied. "I had to finish some small things at work. I didn't know it would take all night."

"Really?" She lay down on her pillow when he started to undress himself.

He shrugged at her questioning gaze. She wanted to ask if his secretary had been working late but kept her mouth shut. She didn't feel like getting into an argument with him right now. She just wanted to go back to sleep. Elena closed her eyes as he crawled into bed, trying to grab her body, kissing her neck. She should tell him about Riley. The sooner she tells him, the better she will feel. Elena knows that he isn't fond of children. But fond of - is not the same as hating someone.

Twenty minutes later, Mason stared at her with big eyes. "You're kidding?"

Elena lay down. "I wish I was." She mumbled into his chest.

"I mean.." Mason let out a laugh. "You're not mother material."

Elena lifted her head from his chest to look at him. "Excuse me?"

"Babe." Mason chuckled. "Forget it, it was just a joke."

"No, seriously." Elena sat up and leaned against the headboard. She looked offended at him. "What do you mean when you say that I am not mother material?"

"Let it go."

"Just tell me."

He shrugged and rolled his eyes in annoyance. "You're just not the type."

Elena raised her eyebrows. "What type?"

"You're just not the type of person who should have kids."

She could feel a sting of sorrow in her chest. "Why not?"

"Well, you're immature and..." He paused and looked at her. "I'm sorry, baby...I just can't picture you as a mother."

She nodded. "Okay." Elena lay back down and sighed. His words felt like a punch in the face.

"You're not mad, are you?" He asked gently with a grin on his face.

"No."

His hands started moving over her body and she could feel how anger started to bubble inside her.

"Mason, don't." She gritted her teeth. "I'm tired." After their earlier conversation, she felt no desire to spread her legs.

"I need you."

His voice annoyed her and she could feel her headache grow. He needed her? She needs him. She has just found out that a distant relative died two weeks ago and that she will become legal guardian to a child she has never even met. She needs him to keep his arms around her. She needs him to hold her, caress her hair and let her cry. She needs to hear him say that he's there for her. That she doesn't need to remain strong all the time, because he is there to lift her up.

She tried to turned around when he slipped his hand inside her pajama pants and started stroking her soft womb. Elena tried to remove his hand before he pulled of her tank top.

"Babe." he panted, aroused. He pressed himself against her and she could feel his member create a horniness within her. Creating a lust that never got satisfied, a need that never left her body, a need for sex that never got satisfied.

Mason pulled off her pajama pants and licked his fingers. He stroked his fingers across her center in order to moisturize her folds. His fingers moved in and out of her. Elena moved her hips, hoping that he would bend his fingers and give her what she had demanded since the day they had slept with each other for the first time. An orgasm. She'd been with Mason for nearly two years and not once had he gone over the line in order to give her indescribable pleasure. His way of giving her oral sex was okay. He was a bit rough though and didn't really know how much pressure he could give her little bundle of nerves before she had to bite her lip to keep herself from crying.

He quickly removed his fingers and climbed on top of her. Elena spread her legs as usual. She stroked herself for a brief second, then Mason thrust into her. She whimpered. Although their sex life wasn't the best, it was still nice to be filled with a penis.

Mason began to move in and out of her. He had no rhythm and was moving uncontrollably. He was panting and Elena lay still on her back. It felt good. It always felt good. But it wasn't enough, for her. It never had been and never would be. He came three minutes later and shot his load across her breasts.

"Damn, that was incredible."

Elena nodded and murmured quietly in response. Her body felt hot and bothered. Her vagina was pounding from the short enjoyment. She felt out of place. Her body was unsatisfied and she felt uncomfortable. Elena ran a hand through her hair and put it up in a high ponytail. She didn't want to get cum throughout her whole hair. Mason leaned forward and placed a kiss on her cheek.

"Where are you going?" He asked, when she reached for her robe.

She didn't want to run around naked in the apartment. She had no desire to kill her own brother.

"I'll just take a quick shower."

Mason didn't answer, so she opened the door and tiptoed out into the living room. Jeremy's room was at the other end of the apertment. She didn't have to sneak, her brother was a heavy slumberer, but she slipped quietly through the kitchen anyway.

She locked the door. Their bathroom wasn't large and spacious. It was actually quite small. They had no bathtub, but a functioning shower. The walls were bright, with turquoise patterns on one side. She took off her robe and put it in the laundry basket. Mason's cum had almost dried on her breasts.

As she stepped into the shower she thought about Riley. What did she look like? What would happen once Elena picked her up at Peterson's Law? She let the hot water fall down over her as she felt herself starting to hyperventilate. Her panic attacks had hit her more often recently. Elena leaned against the wall, trying to calm herself down. Her heart was rushing so fast and she could feel how tears overtook her.

"It's just a panic attack." She told herself. "You're not gonna die. The chest pain will go away, you just need to calm down."

She tried to take deep breaths and murmured quietly to herself. What would happen to her life now? Would she suddenly become a young mother to a child she didn't even know? Elena sighed. She was nineteen years old and didn't even know what she wanted to do with her own life. Of course, she had thought about going back to school, but it was almost impossible while Jeremy was still studying.

She had always wanted to be an author. Write about feelings and emotionalmeetings between two lovers. However, it was just a dream and would probably never become a reality. Elena enjoyed working at the cafe. Mrs. Lockwood was a good manager. A little too enthusiastic at times, but beyond that, she was very nice. Her life was about to change and she didn't know whether she was ready for it or not.

Elena had fallen asleep on the couch after she had showered the night before. She felt sore. It was probably because she had been lying on the couch in a very bad position. Mason woke her up in the morning before he went to work. That was when she realized that she was late for her own job. He hadn't wanted to wake her because she looked so relaxed. Elena had just forced Jeremy out of bed, when Mason walked out the door.

Jeremy showed up at the café after school. He'd studied while Elena served customers that streamed in and out the door. Mrs. Lockwood had given her permission to leave earlier, even though she found out at extremely short notice. Elena had heartily thanked her.

Once inside the store called the BabyLand, Elena and Jeremy had felt confused and disoriented. They'd got lost among all the shelves with strollers and car seats. Thankfully, an older woman from the staff had walked up to them and asked if they needed any help. They had nodded.

It felt good to spend some time with her little brother. He was always busy and she was constantly working. Elena had offered Mason to come with them to the store, but he'd declined directly. She'd felt a little disappointed at his answer. If she was about to take a major step and bring home a eight month old baby girl, she wouldn't have said no to some backup or support. It was a good thing that Jeremy never hesitated to go with her.

Elena was busy, placing all their bags from the store in the trunk when she heard Jeremy yell from the back seat of the car. " Bloody hell!"

"What is wrong?" She closed the trunk.

"How the hell do you fasten the child seat?" Her brother grumbled.

Despite the situation, Elena smiled. "Do you want me to help you?"

"Yes." He sighed, frustrated. "It's impossible."

"Are you ready to meet Riley?" Michael smiled at them when he led Elena and Jeremy to his office.

The secretary, Glenda, hadn't even greeted Elena when she'd stepped into the lobby. Michael opened the door to his office and lead them into the room. Elena's heart raced in her chest. This was it. Her life was about to change. She was nervous about her own reaction, but Jeremy stepped in front of her and took the first step.

An older woman rose to her feet, walking towards them. She held a baby girl in her arms. The child had dark hair, it wasn't long, but her little curls were clearly visible. Her eyes were as blue as the sea. Her lips were cherry-colored and she was wearing a light blue little dress and a pair of white leggings. She was beautiful.

"I'm Linda." The woman smiled softly. "And this..." She motioned for the little human in her arms. "This is Riley."

Elena took a deep breath. "Riley." She whispered and stared at the child. The black hair and crystal blue eyes were so incredible beautiful.

She watched Jeremy walk up to them. Riley looked at him with wide eyes. "Can I hold her?" He asked.

Linda nodded. "Of course."

With a hitching breath caught in her throat, Elena stared at her brother as he gently lifted Riley from Linda.

"Hi Riley." Elena could see him swallow hard as Riley wrapped her tiny fingers around his pinky. "She's so tiny." He mumbled as he held her in his arms.

Elena felt herself moving towards her brother. She leaned over his shoulder and gently stroked her fingers over Riley's cheek.

Michael cleared his throat. "Let's go through some infromation and then you can take her home."

The two siblings turned their eyes from Riley and sat down in front of the desk. When Jeremy sat down in his chair, Riley started to scream and cry. He glanced nervously at Elena. He seemed petrified, worried that any kind of movement would cause the baby in his arms to scream even higher.

"I think I have her pacifier here somewhere." Linda said in the background.

"Here." Elena turned in her seat. "Jer, let me take her." She said quietly and Jeremy pushed Riley into his sister's arms.

Elena leaned back in her chair, pressing Riley against her body. The baby leaned her head against Elena's shoulder and grabbed her hair. She rubbed Riley's back and a few minutes later she fell asleep. Her soft cheek was pressed against Elena's shoulder.

She earnestly hoped that Jeremy had heard or understood something out of the information they got, because when she sat there with Riley asleep on her chest, small breaths tickling her neck, tiny hands grabbing at her shirt, she couldn't bring herself to feel anything other than warmth. The sound of the relaxed breathing reminded her that this would become her reality.

She wasn't ready. But she would certainly try.

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We'll get to meet Damon in the next chapter!