It was Jo and Alric's big day. Stefan Salvatore knew he should be happy for his friends, but there was a blonde sitting a few seats down clouding all his thoughts. Caroline Forbes, his best friend, had barely spoken to him since they flipped their humanity back on three weeks ago.
The silence between them was laying heavily on his mind; after all, they had been growing closer before everything went dark. She hadn't mentioned it to anyone, but he knew she felt guilty for threatening Sarah and hurting innocent people. He could tell by the look she gave him every time they were in a room together, right before she made an excuse to leave.
Everyone took their seats and the ceremony began. Alaric smiled as Jo walked down the aisle. When they said their vows the love between them showed brightly. At that moment Stefan looked over at Caroline, who was wiping a single tear from her cheek as Alaric kissed his bride.
Stefan sat on the sidelines as Jo and Alaric shared their first dance. Other couples join in and his eyes searched for her blonde curls. When he found her she took his breath away. She was standing alone off to the side, and he took this as a perfect opportunity. He snuck up next to her and she gave him that look, but he spoke before she could get away.
"Dance with me?" he held out his hand.
"Stefan, I…" she took a step back, but he grabbed her hand.
"I'm not taking no for an answer." he insisted.
She simply nodded as he led her onto the dance floor. He wrapped her in his arms as they swayed to the music.
"You know you're wearing my favorite color." he whispered, looking down at her.
Caroline blushed remembering the day she had grilled him for information.
"What are you thinking about?" he asked, but she remained silent. "Caroline, please you're driving me crazy." he begged.
"How can you even look at me?" she finally asked. "I forced you to turn it off. I was suppose to be your sober sponsor. I promised you I wouldn't let you lose control and I'm the reason you did." tears were beginning to form in her eyes. "I killed someone, I almost killed Sarah, I-."
"Stop." he interrupted her. "I don't blame you. That side of you, it's not who you are. Trust me, I know. I want you to leave all of that in the past. At least for now, because I am standing in front of a beautiful girl and all I can think about is kissing her."
Stefan leaned in, watching her for any cues to stop. Slowly their lips met and he could feel her giving in. When they broke apart, a small smile appeared on her lips.
"I love you, Caroline." he took her hands. "I want to make you a promise, a vow, that we will get through this. We will get through anything, together. I'm not leaving you."