I'm writing a new story! I have major writers block with my other stories and I've had ideas with this one. I hope you all enjoy!

Damon stared at the TV as they began playing the familiar song. "Excuse me," the waitress smiled and handed him the whiskey he had ordered. "Can I get you anything else sir?" he shook his head and smiled at her before turning his attention back to the TV. Just as he began to think that he could get over her something like this would happen.

"And that was the new single from Elena Gilbert. It looks like she'll be back in her home town this weekend for her finale show of this tour. If you're in the Mystic Falls area be sure to check it out!"

Damon shook his head and finished his drinks. "Looks like I'll be paying baby brother a visit after all," he said to himself as he set a twenty down on the table and headed out the door. He knew he shouldn't, but he couldn't help it. He knew that no matter what he did, he would always love her; he had to go to the show and hopefully somehow get her back.

After packing a few things, Damon hopped in his car and drove down the familiar highway to Mystic Falls. Once he arrived he opened the door to his childhood home and looked around. Everything was the same as it had been when he left.

"I didn't expect to see you anytime soon." Damon spun around on his heel and smiled at his brother.

"Don't pretend you're not happy I'm here," he smirked and hugged Stefan.

"I'm happy you're here Damon. Just curious as to why you're here."

"Can't I just come home and see my baby brother?"

"It's been almost a year Damon. I'm thinking that this return has something to do with the concert this weekend." Stefan watched as his brother poured himself a glass of bourbon and shrug slightly. "Damon… You remember what happened last time you saw each other right? I think it would be better for you to just stay away."

"And I think it would be better if you stayed out of my business. But yes, I remember what happened when we last spoke, but I would still like to see her perform."

"Just be careful with her Damon. Elena's been through a lot since you two broke up. The last thing she needs is you breaking her heart all over again."

"Me break her heart? You really don't know what happened that night, do you?"

"I think its best I don't know anything. I have to go, I have plans. Don't do anything stupid."

Damon watched as his brother walked out the door and threw his glass into the fire. He hadn't realized how much he really needed Elena until he began talking about her. He tossed his stuff on his bed and pulled out his phone. "I'm in town. Meet me at The Grill."

"Ineed to go shopping
these shoes are all wrong.
Just look in my closet
not a thing to put on
I wonder how these jeans make me look from behind.
Things that never cross a man's mind"

Damon stopped when he heard the voice coming from the back room of The Grill. Nobody ever went back there anymore, yet he heard someone in there singing.

"Let's turn off the TV
Now can't we just talk
Lets lay here and cuddle
Till we both drift off
If we don't make love
That'll be just fine
Things that never cross a man's mind."

He walked towards the room slowly and smirked whoever this girl is, she's good. He pushed the door open a crack so he could see inside. The lights were horrible. He watched the girl standing in front of a band and smiled. She was stunning. He couldn't help his lingering eyes. Once the song finished; Damon clapped, unable to stop himself.

The girl jumped and turned around, her face red of embarrassment. "Wh-what are you doing here?"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude. I was on my way to The Grill and heard you're voice." He stopped for a moment and watched her look down. "You're amazing. You're voice… it's beautiful. Anyway, I'll let you continue. I just thought you should know." He smiled and turned around again.

"Wait," her small voice stopped him in his tracks. "You really think we're that good?"

Damon turned to face her again and nodded. "I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it."

Another blushed crept onto her face and she smiled brightly. "Thank you… I'm Elena."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Elena." Damon smirked and took her hand in his, bringing it up to his lips as he placed a soft kiss to the top of it. "I'm Damon."

"Damon Salvatore. I never thought I'd see you in this town again."

"Ric! I never thought I'd be back in this town." Damon turned and smirked at his best friend.

"What brings you back here? You sore you'd never come back after the whole incident with Elena. Wait…" Alaric set is glass down and stared at his friend. "That's why you're here… Elena's going to be back in town and you wanted to see her."

"Can't hide anything from you." He smirked.

"Just, be careful. Okay? Elena's dealing with a lot."

Damon groaned and shook his head. "Why does everyone keep saying that?"

Alaric looked down before continuing. "You stay away from all news where she's concerned. That's why you don't know… Damon," he turned towards his friend again and sighed. "Her father died about a week ago days ago."

Damon's heart stopped and he began to shake his head. "That can't be…" He closed his eyes and forced himself not to cry. "Grayson's dead?"

Elena stared out the window of her hotel room. She couldn't believe that in a little over a week she would be back home in Mystic Falls. She smiled and walked over to the couch, relaxing immediately. She looked down at her notebook where she began to write her new song. She closed her eyes and held the book tight against her.

"Elena? Your mom is on the phone."

Reaching out, the young women handed Elena the phone and left the room. "Mom, hi."

"Elena, baby… I need you to come home."

"I'll be home in like a week."

"Elena please," Miranda's voice broke on the other end and Elena froze.

"Mom, what's wrong? What happened?" Her heart was hammering in her chest as her mind raced through all the possible scenarios.

"It's your father… Elena, he's… he's gone." The tears came instantly as she heard her mother sobbing on the other side.

"I'm on my way."

As Elena sat on the plane back to Mystic Falls, she felt the tears silently falling. How could this have happened? As Elena sat there, she slowly began writing her next song.

"Mom!" Elena called as she ran into her house. When she saw her mother sitting on the couch, she ran to her and hugged her tightly. "Oh mom…" Her heart broke as she saw her mom. She looked so broken.

Neither one of them said anymore as they sat there and looked through the pictures of the man the bother loved more than anything.

"Elena, it's time for the funeral." Elena looked up and saw her brother standing in the doorway of her room.

Nodding softly she walked over to him and hugged him. "I don't know if I can do this Jer."

"Dad was so proud of you," he whispered. "This would mean everything to him."

Elena looked up at Jeremy and smiled weakly. "Let's get this over with."

As they walked up to the casket, Elena glanced around the place and couldn't help the small smile on her lips. She recognized all the people there. They were all there for her dad.

She sat down and listened to everyone get up and speak about Grayson. None of the speeches seemed personal to her. They all sounded rehearsed. After the next person finished, Elena stood up. She took a deep breath and looked at her brother, hoping that would give her the strength to get through this.

"Hi," she whispered meekly. "I don't know what to say right now, honestly. I never really thought about this. For the first time in a long time I think I'm at a loss for words. I feel like it was yesterday when I was sitting with my dad writing my first song. He was the one person to always pushing me to follow my dreams. He was my best friend, my hero and my inspiration. Knowing that I won't see him again kills me. I still don't want to believe it. I keep thinking that I'm going to walk into my parents' house and that my dad will be sitting on the couch watching some sports game."

Elena closed her eyes and took a deep breath before she continued. "My dad was everything to me. He was the one that I could talk to about everything. My life will never be the same now. I feel like a piece of me is missing, and I'll never be able to get that peace back. I… I wrote a song. And I want to play it for everyone."

Everyone watched as the few people in Elena's band set up the instruments needed. Elena looked down as she heard the music begin and took the microphone off the stand.

"I came by today to see you
Oh I had to let you know
If I knew the last time that I held you was the last time,
I'd have held you and never let go
Oh it's kept me awake night wonderin'
Lie in the dark, just asking "why?"
I've always been told you won't be called home until it's your time.
I guess Heaven was needing a hero
Somebody just like you
Brave enough to stand up for what you believe and follow it though
When I try to make it make sense in my mind
The only conclusion I come to
Is that Heaven was needing a hero like you"

Elena felt the tears sliding down her cheeks as she looked up at where her family was sitting. Jeremy gave her a small nod, encouraging her to continue. Her mother's head was down as she silently cried. Her aunt Jenna's arm was around her shoulders, and she gave Elena a small smile.

"I remember the last time I saw you
Oh you held your head up proud
I laughed inside when I saw how you were, standing out in the crowd
You're such a part of who I am
Now that part will just be void
No matter how much I need you now
Heaven needed you more
'Cause Heaven was needing a hero
Somebody just like you
Brave enough to stand up for what you believe and follow it though
When I try to make it make sense in my mind
he only conclusion I come to
Is that Heaven was needing a hero like you
Yes, Heaven was needing a hero...that's you."

Smiling weakly, Elena put the mic down and sat down next to Jeremy. As the man walked back up on the stage, Elena blanked out everything he was saying. She knew they put her last to speak because of the song and now she just wanted this to be done so she could go home.

"I'd like to say something, if that's okay." Elena was pulled out of her thoughts as she heard the voice. That was the voice she never thought she'd hear again. She looked back quickly and she was suddenly staring into those ocean blue eyes. The man up front nodded and Elena watched as the man that she'd missed so many nights made his way to the stand. What was he doing here? How did he know about her dad?

"I don't know how anything I say is going to top that. Grayson was a great man. He was more of a father to me then my own father was. He didn't like me at first. I don't blame him. Anyone that knows him well, knew why he felt the way he did. But after a while I must have grown on him, because he treated me like a son. I remember going to a baseball game with him. That's something I never got to do with my dad and it meant more to me then I can ever express. Grayson's pride and joy was his kids. I remember the look on his face when Elena got signed. He was so proud of her and when she left to go on tour? Let's just say he was upset to see him baby girl leaving. Grayson was such an inspiration to me and I can never thank him enough for everything he did for me. He will always be in our hearts and I know that he's watching down on us all now. We will always love him and he will be missed."

Damon stepped away from the stand and walked off the stage slowly. When everything finished Elena looked around for him, though he was nowhere to be seen. Her heart ached as she searched for the man she'd tried too hard to forget.

...

When Elena awoke the next morning she couldn't move. She stared up at the ceiling for a long time before finally forcing herself to get up. Damon was in town and she needed to see him again. Something inside her told her she needed to. She called Alaric and after arguing with him, he finally gave in and gave her his number.

Elena stared at her phone for a long time before finally calling. "Of course," she mumbled as it went to voice mail "Hi Damon, its Elena. I was hoping that maybe you could meet me for lunch today. I wanted to thank you personally for what you said about my dad. Anyway, if you're interested I'll be at The Grill at noon. I hope you can make it." She hung up and looked at the clock. She had 2 hours to get ready and pull herself together.

Once she arrived at The Grill, Elena sat in the booth she and Damon always sat in when they came here together. She looked around but couldn't see him. Maybe he decided not to come. Glancing at her watch she sighed, it was quarter after 12 and he still wasn't here. Looking down, Elena picked up her bag when she heard his voice.

"You're leaving? I thought you wanted to see me."

Elena looked up at shook her head seeing that damn smirk on his face. "I didn't think you were going to show up."

"I'm sorry," he said as he sat down across from her. "I wasn't sure if I was going to come until last moment."

"I understand. I'm glad you did though. How are you? How's everyone?"

Damon shrugged. "Mom left my dad. I can't remember the last time I saw her so happy. Stefan seems like he's doing good. Me? I'm alive."

Elena smiled as she watched him. "I'm glad your mom is happy. She deserves it. I'm proud of her for finally leaving him."

"Why didn't you want me to come here Elena?"

"When I saw you yesterday, I was in complete shock. I never thought I would see you again, Damon. After what happened I'm surprised you came to the funeral. I looked for you afterwards, but you were gone. What you said about my dad… He loved you. He thought of you like a son." She stopped when she noticed his eyes tearing up.

"I should go," he stood up quickly. "It was nice seeing you Elena."

"Wait!" Elena moved so she was in front of Damon again and handed him two tickets. "Here, for my show. Bring a date if you'd like. I just… I really hope you can make it."

Damon looked down at the tickets in his hand and nodded before turning and walking out the door. He knew it after seeing her. He was still completely in love with her.

So what'd you think? Like it? Or should I just stop now? Reviews make my life. ;)