AN: Hi all. As some of you who follow my other stories may know, my family has recently lost a member and it's been pretty hard as it's around the holidays. I had noted on many of my stories that I will not be updating before the new year, and for those stories I am not. However, through this difficult time, I have found a new inspiration and though I have far too many IP stories to even be contemplating writing a new one, I cannot resist. So, here it is. I know some of you may be upset by the fact that I have not updated and instead started this story. First, I must say I wholeheartedly understand. However, I have really been wanting to do this idea for a while and even moreso recently. again, I plan on finishing my stories, but for now as I deal with the loss, I want to continue to write, but not throw myself into an already complex story. I would rather start fresh as I have done with this story. Please forgive me, and to those who are excited for a new story or who are new readers, here you go! Sorry for the rambling! Best wishes and hope you all like it!

Here we go!

Xoxo

SYNOPSIS~

22 year-old wedding planner Elena Gilbert has successfully distanced herself from the idea of any romantic relationship ever since her parents died when she was in high school. But after a one-night-stand at a party that she doesn't remember, Elena soon finds herself facing an unexpected consequence of her actions. And on the same day, she meets the handsome Damon Salvatore, who may just be the one man who will be her happily ever after. If she allows him to be.

(The premise of this story is very loosely based on the films "Knocked Up" & "The Back-Up Plan".)

DISCLAIMER~ I OWN NOTHING BUT THE STORYLINE. THE CHARACTERS BELONG TO L.J. SMITH & THE CW.

"To fear love is to fear life, and those who fear life are already three parts dead." ~ Bertrand Russell

~*One*~

May 2013

The sound of a bang willed Elena Gilbert to wake. Her chocolate eyes widened, and were greeted with a white ceiling. As she came to, the fuzziness of her surroundings soon turned into a crystal clear view. However, that didn't make her surroundings any less foreign. Immediately, Elena sat up, too occupied to notice the sharp pain in her neck.

Hang on.

What happened?

Why had she been sleeping in a stranger's home? She didn't know if that bothered her the worst, or the fact that she had no indication of who the stranger was.

"Hello?"

She didn't know what had promoted her to speak. Perhaps it was her semi-conscious mind that had slipped up. However, she didn't regret it as she did want to know where the hell she was.

When no answer came, she slowly and carefully made to get to her feet, which had been slightly sore from whatever. As she stood on her feet, she had observed the fact that the occupant of the house had definitely had some money to their name. Marble everywhere, and where there was not marble, there was silver and gold.

Deciding not to dwell around in possibility of getting caught. Elena quietly made her way to the large mahogany door and when the handle squeaked, she felt her heart plunge into her throat. Luckily, nothing happened, so she quickly slid out the crack that she had created, and shot the door behind her softer than a feather.

Once the warm Virginia morning air struck her, Elena sighed with relief. She had no idea what had happened, or why she was at that house in the first place; but as she brought her wrist watch into her view, she had realized that there was no time to dwell on the subject as there were more important matters to be dealt with. So as Elena began to hasten her steps down the fine cement steps, she tugged the black rubber band from her wrist and wrapped it around her hair in effort to make herself semi-presentable; she had no time to run home and pamper up. Caroline would have a field day lecturing her about that. So Elena checked her watch once more, which read 10:30, and decided to run to the shop.

As she entered the wedding planner store that she had co-owned with her best friends Caroline Forbes and Bonnie Bennett, Elena got a whiff of jasmine, which was also her favorite scent. She herself had chosen the aroma for the shop. Bonnie and Caroline each had been given a similar privilege. Bonnie chose the name, Lylas Wedding Planner, while Caroline chose the layout of the store. They really had one killer shop. As Caroline's mother co-owned a bridal shop, they always had stock of dresses for potential customers to try on. Bonnie designed cakes, so they had samples of her work out for customers to sample and select from. Elena created the sample book which contained photos from previous weddings that they had planned, as well as reviews of their service on a couple of iPads in the consultation office. However, despite the fact that each of them had brought something to the table with their own specialties, they all performed the same task that was planning a dream wedding.

"Elena, thank god."

As she turned around, the sound of her employee Vanessa registered, and she wore a look of distress.

"Hey, Vanessa." Elena smiled warmly. "What's up?"

Immediately Vanessa scoffed tiredly. "What isn't up?" She spread her fist out and revealed a finger as she named off her dilemmas. "So far I've had five calls from five very upset brides about wedding cake and catering issues, Hayley didn't order enough bouquets for the samplers, our website's down, oh, and Caroline's off today of all days."

"Why'd Caroline take today off? She's our fixer." Elena wondered as she took a peppermint from their candy tray at the register. Caroline was the organized one who would snap her fingers and soon everything would be fixed.

"She didn't say." Vanessa frowned sadly. "I'm sure she'd come in if she knew we were in crisis mode."

Elena shook her head. "No, she can take a personal day. She owns one third of this store, anyway. How can I help?"

As Elena offered her assistance, Vanessa held her hands up. "You're the boss."

"I'll take care of the phone calls." Elena decided as she set her purse and leather jacket on the chair behind the register.

"Oh!" Vanessa squeaked, causing Elena to nearly fall off of her seat. "I forgot to ask: How was the party?"

When Elena heard the last word of Vanessa's question, she glanced up in confusion.

"Party?"

"You know, the town founder thingy? You go every year as your family's rep?"

Elena would've responded, but her mind was being over-flooded with realization. The Town Founding Families Gathering. She had went alone, as none of her friends were members of the founding families. Well, Caroline had been, but she had denied her rights immediately after turning 18. Even though it had disappointed her mother, Caroline had managed to repair their relationship.

Immediately, blurred memories flashed past her like a landscape would on a car ride. Dancing. Socializing. Lights. Drinking.

"Well?"

Elena snapped her head back upward. Vanessa was looking at her excitedly. What was the big deal? It was just a party.

"It was alright." Elena said honestly. It clearly wasn't that great, or she would've easily remembered the night. Yet surely the drinking didn't help in that department.

"Elena!"

As Matt Donovan, their trusted friend and employee called, Elena sighed. Ever since high school, when they had briefly dated up until the death of her parents, Matt had been in love with her, hanging on her every word and flirting with her every chance he got. Every boyfriend that she had, Matt treated them as if they were his and Elena's worst enemy. He was the first to offer her a shoulder to cry on after break ups, and the last person to ever give her a tainted thought. Now for the past month, he had been a man on a mission: successfully ask her out. So almost every time he talked to her, he was proposing dinner and a movie. Now matter how many times she had told him that she wasn't interested in dating friends or co-workers.

"I'll be right back," Elena frowned, her stomach filling with nerves. She had never liked him asking her out because she didn't like to reject him. Even though she knew he didn't mean to ice her out, he always found a way to make her feel worse about it.

"Did you need something?" Elena asked when she saw Matt's lean and muscular figure in the storage room. He was on his toes reaching upward, holding into something.

"Yeah, this box nearly fell. Can you help me push it back before it crushes my brain?"

Elena nodded as she broke into a run to support the box.

"What..were...you...doing?" She huffed as the weight of the box fell on her breath.

"I was trying to see what this new shipment was. But as you know, the damn box nearly killed me before I could do so." He sighed in defeat.

"Should we push now?" Elena asked, desperately needing to be let go of the physical pressure of the cardboard container.

Matt nodded. "Ready?" He asked as Elena braced herself as she nodded.

"Go."

Together, she and Matt heaved the box upward, and when she felt nothing but air, Elena let out a weighted sigh of relief.

"Thanks." Matt smiled as he rubbed his hands together.

"No problem." Elena ran her hand through her hair. She wanted to get out of there. The two of them were alone, and that gave Matt the perfect opportunity to make a move.

"You and I," he said. "We make a pretty good team, don't we?"

Elena smiled as she giggled, trying to ignore the shadow of suspicion as she digested his words. "We sure do."

Matt smiled, and Elena observed those blue eyes lighten up like a child's on Christmas Day.

"Maybe we could make a pretty good team bowling together this weekend?"

And there it is.

"Matt," Elena sighed as she closed her eyes. She couldn't see the hope that surely lingered in his eyes. She should've left when she had the chance. She has no one to blame but herself. "You know I'm not interested in a relationship right now. Especially with my employee." As she looked into sad blue eyes, Elena forced herself to look away.

As Elena turned toward the entrance, Matt called after her, stopping in her tracks.

"What if I wasn't your employee?"

Elena turned on her heel, searching her mind for any response to stall, or let him down easily.

"Are you saying that you're quitting?"

Matt shot Elena a look as he rolled his eyes. "You know what I'm getting at."

Elena sighed. No more stalling.

"You're still one of my best friends, Matt. And don't threaten to de-friend yourself."

Before he could respond Elena rushed out the door to make her calls.

After a long six hour shift of calling shippers and dealing with the Internet and a few guilt trips down memory lane circa de Matt, Elena found herself heading over to Caroline's. She had always made a habit of walking home with Caroline after work, but today was different. Elena found herself enjoying the view of the ocean as she strolled along the sidewalk. It had always been one of her favorite things to do since she was little. Her parents took her and her little brother Jeremy down to the shore nearly everyday as they had lived just off the coast. However, when her parents had passed away, Elena found herself unable to do so without them. What should've been a happy memory had been temporarily painted as a sad one. When she had suddenly decided to talk to a grief counselor, she had been encouraged to continue to enjoy what she had done with her parents, rather than turn it into a reminder of their passing.

As Caroline's beach house came into view, she stepped up the wooden stairs and rang the doorbell. Caroline had lived at the same house with her mother for as long as Elena could remember. Her dad had left when she was six, and it was in high school when Caroline's mother had told her that her father was gay. The two of them took it hard, but the truth had allowed Caroline to want to repair her relationship with her father.

"Elena?"

The screen door swung open, revealing Caroline's tabby, Pickles, who ran out the door. Elena would've run after him, but Caroline had raised Pickles as an indoor and outdoor cat. However, she regretted doing so whenever Pickles had hauled in his game.

"What are you doing here?" Caroline asked as she moved aside to allow Elena entry.

"Oh, I was in the neighborhood," Elena sighed as she crossed her arms. "Just thought I'd drop by to find out why you didn't show up at work."

When she rounded on her heel, Elena saw instead of guilt on Caroline's face, distress.

"What's wrong?" Elena frowned as she narrowed her eyes. Something was up with Caroline. She knew it. She just didn't know what.

Caroline sighed heavily as if the weight of the universe was on her shoulders and plopped down on the couch. "My basement flooded this morning, and all of the clothes that were down there are at the dry cleaners. They don't know how much is salvageable."

"Oh, my god." Elena gasped as she clamped her hand to her mouth. "That's awful. Why didn't you tell Vanessa? I would've ran over and helped."

"Thanks, but there wasn't anything that you could've done." Caroline sighed. "I was pretty much on the phone with insurance all morning. Then I was too frustrated to have any company."

"Oh," Elena nodded in understanding. She really wouldn't have known what to do if she had come over. Caroline's insurance took care of most of it.

"It's fine. I need to run to the mall for some new clothes." Caroline said as she shot up from the couch. "Coming?"

Deciding to drop the subject, Elena nodded as she too climbed off of the couch as Caroline grabbed her keys.

Deciding to drop the subject, Elena too climbed off of the couch as Caroline grabbed her keys.

Elena was busy examining herself in the mirror of Forever 21. Caroline had been trying on the entire store while Elena just found a dress to her liking. Not too short, low-cut or tight. And not dark colored. Just a simple pink ruffle top attached to a black lace skirt. The only thing that had bothered her was the fact that her breasts were a bit tender and sore.

"God, my boobs are sore," Elena murmured to herself as she examined herself I'm the mirror. Hell, come to think of it, they also looked... bigger. Noticeably bigger.

"Is the dress too tight?" Caroline asked, startling Elena. She didn't think she'd said that loud.

"No, that's why I like it." Elena said. "But they just are sore for some reason."

"So, how was the party?"

"Oh, fine." Elena replied. She didn't want to get into the subject. She didn't even remember the party.

Suddenly, a fitting room door slammed, and Elena jumped, startled. Caroline appeared behind her in the mirror, and Elena tried not to notice her due to her bewildered look.

"'Fine.'" She sputtered. "That's all you're gonna give me?"

Elena rolled her eyes. "That's all there is."

"What? No hot guy, no sweaty kissing?" Caroline giggled as she made out with the air.

"Not that I can remember. I just remember drinking and lights."

"How do you not remember an entire night?" Caroline squeaked as she placed her hands on her hips.

"By getting drunk."

"I should've gone." Caroline shook her head in regret. "Then at least one of us would've known whether you hooked up with some super sexy guy or graffitied all over Meredith Fell's living room."

"You couldn't have gone . You practically turned in your ticket to the Founder's Events after high school."

"Well, well. Look who's decided to come into my office."

As the smooth accented voice disrupted their conversation, Elena saw Caroline roll her eyes.

Suddenly, Caroline whipped around, a fierce look in her blue eyes.

"Your office?" She scoffed. "You don't own the store, Klaus, as much as I'm sure you'd like to."

Elena suddenly felt as if she was intruding on their conversation. For the last few years, ever since they had met, Klaus Mikaelson had been courting Caroline to her immense displeasure. He seemed to think that annoying and obsessiveness was the way to her heart.

"Come now, love." Klaus said softly as he tilted his head to the side. Caroline scoffed again. Elena knew she had hated that Klaus called her that. "No need to be rude."

"Oh, yes, there is. I'm engaged, Klaus, and frankly, your flirty comments and creepy stalker tendencies are now considered inappropriate."

Elena would've cared that Klaus looked like he'd had the rug pulled out from under him, but she was far to stunned by Caroline's first two words.

"You're engaged?" She squeaked as she pulled Caroline's arm.

"Ow!" Caroline cried as she turned to face Elena, who was now dragging her away. "Watch it!"

Elena stopped once they were out of earshot, turning on Caroline as she shook her head. "Spill." Elena demanded.

"I was going to tell you-" Caroline began gently.

"But you didn't." Elena said.

"I was waiting for Bonnie to come in from North Carolina. I wanted to tell you both at the same time."

Elena immediately felt guilty for making Caroline feel bad about not telling her sooner. Without hesitation she released her grip on Caroline's wrist.

"Oh." Elena said. "I'm sorry, I didn't know-"

"It's not your fault." Caroline shook her head. "If the same thing happened to you, I'd want to know, too."

Elena exchanged a smile with Caroline.

"So, is Lylas planning your special day, or are you cheating on us and calling an agency?"

At Elena's words, Caroline scoffed playfully. "Are you kidding? My best friends and I are planning it."

Elena smiled. "Happy to be of service."

A few seconds of silence passed, and Elena snuck a glance behind Caroline, looking for Klaus, who was nowhere to be seen.

"How did he do it?" She wondered,

"Do what?" Caroline's eyes widened slightly.

"Propose. How did he do it?" Elena pressed.

"Oh," Caroline sighed with what seemed to be relief, and Elena suddenly suspected what Caroline had thought she meant.

"It was so romantic," She gushed. "The other night, when I went over to his house to watch a movie, he totally surprised me with my favorite."

"Breakfast At Tiffany's?" Elena raised her eyebrows, and Caroline nodded excitedly. "I thought he didn't do chick flicks."

"I know! I guess he wanted it to be as romantic as possible." Caroline shrugged blissfully. "Anyway, so while we were watching the movie, at the part where Holly and Paul are in the cab and he's telling her he loves her, Tyler paused the movie, which of course annoyed me. That's the best part, right? Anyway, after I kind of spazzed out, he told me to close my eyes, which took some convincing, and when I finally did, he put some small box in my palm, and I opened it, and the ring was in there. Oh, god. Elena, I still get goosebumps from thinking about it."

"Wow," Elena breathed. She never suspected Tyler of pulling something as romantic as that, but then again, it was a marriage proposal.

"Caroline, that's so sweet," she smiled.

"I know!" Caroline squealed as she shoved her left hand into Elena's face. "Wanna see?"

"Of course!" Elena nodded enthusiastically as she took Caroline's hand. The ring was absolutely gorgeous. Silver wrapped around her ring finger, and a small flower-like diamond sat perched atop.

"It's beautiful," Elena said as she let go of Caroline's hand.

"It is," Caroline agreed in awe.

Suddenly, the sound of a romantic ballad rang out, and Caroline pulled out her phone. "Hello?"

Elena stood there as she watched Caroline's face change from curiosity to a look of love.

"Yeah, I just need to pay. I'll see you soon."

Elena straightened up as Caroline hung up. "I don't even need to ask who. The look on your face says everything."

"Haha," Caroline said in mockery.

"Nice ringtone." Elena complimented. "What song is that?"

"Thanks. It's "Two is Better Than One" by Boys Like Girls. It's Tyler and my song, the first we danced to." She blushed. "I'd like to dance to it at my wedding."

"Well, you're a wedding planner." Elena shrugged. "You have the power." She giggled along with Caroline.

"So, I have to go. Do you need a ride?"

Elena shook her head. "I'll walk home. I like walking."

Caroline shot her a look of uncertainty. "Are you sure?"

Elena didn't hesitant to nod. "Yes. Go to Tyler."

"Thanks!" Caroline smiled as she pulled Elena in for a hug.

"Care...can't...breathe..." She muffled, and immediately, Caroline pulled away.

"Sorry!" She giggled.

"It's fine." Elena waved dismissively. "See you."

"Bye!" Caroline called as she left the store.

Elena suddenly stood alone in the store, and deciding she should go before she bought more than she needed, she walked out of the shop.

As she walked along the streets, Elena suddenly began to feel hungry. And as if the heavens were reading her mind, Elena saw the local bakery, Mystic Baked Goods up the street. Suddenly, her mouth began to water as she hastened her steps. As she approached the shop, she noticed the dense crowd and debated whether or not to try for a table. Eventually, her stomach won, and Elena made her way into the shop.

The familiar bell sound chimed as Elena entered. It was literally a zoo. She would've revoked her decision had it not been for the rich and delicious aroma of the fresh baked foods. As she moved to stand in line, Elena noticed that the line wasn't bad; There were just no tables, and Elena realized that most people took their food to go at places like this.

Once she was next in line, Elena shuffled through her purse in search for her wallet. When she was called, she had money in hand and order in mind.

"Hello, beautiful," the cashier greeted, and Elena felt her cheeks burn as she smiled. "What can I get for you?"

"Um, can I get two cinnamon bagels and a medium hot chocolate?"

"Certainly." He nodded. "That'll be three fifty-six."

Elena held out her credit card toward Brady, who examined it. "Cool photo."

Elena looked up at him. "What?"

"Your card."

Elena remembered the photo of a white rose that she had personalized for her card.

"Thanks." She smiled.

"I didn't know you could do this." He said in fascination as he fetched her receipt.

"Yeah, it's cool." She nodded as she took the paper and from him. "Sign here, please,"

Elena reached into the small pot for a pen and scribbled her signature on the small paper and handed it back to Brady. "Here's your card and receipt, and your order number is 13."

"Thank you." Elena smiled as she collected her stuff from him.

Elena made her way to the pick-up counter, where her order was already waiting for her. Once her hands were full, she scanned the shop for a table, and just when she decided to take her order to go, she spotted a vacant table and didn't hesitate to grab it. As she weaved her way through the crowd, she grew more and more nervous that someone would grab it before she got there. At last, she was no longer caught in the crowd, and Elena let a sigh of relief out when she set her bag and drink on the table and plopped I the seat.

Only she wasn't alone as someone else had sat across from her.

And when Elena looked up at the face of the stranger, she felt the oxygen being knocked out of her.

Bright and intense cobalt blue eyes stared at her, slightly hidden behind tousled, jet-black hair. Perfect sculptured lips teased her own, and Elena was brought back to the real world as he cleared his throat. Thank god he had decided to speak, or she may have never stopped staring at him.

It was absolutely impossible to be that beautiful.

"Excuse me," he said with a hint of coldness which shocked Elena. "But this is my table."

What the hell?

"Sorry to disappoint," Elena scoffed. "But the tables aren't owned nor do they have a name on them."

"Listen, sweetheart." He chuckled menacingly. "Do you have any idea how long I have been waiting for a table in this commotion?"

"No, I can't say that I do." Elena shook her head as the stranger's eyes turned angry. Perhaps he didn't like her attitude. Well, he can stuff it. There were no dibs on tables.

"Maybe you should've been quicker."

When the stranger's expression darkened to near scary, Elena willed herself not to be intimidated.

"Well, it's been at least twenty minutes." He snarled. "And I was here first. Restaurant and table-wise."

You've got to be kidding.

"What are you, six?" Elena blinked in disgust. The justification was absolutely absurd and irrational. "That's not a deciding factor!"

"Well, I saw this table first and I'm not leaving it." He said with determination.
She didn't want to eat her breakfast in front of anyone, let alone this conceded and rude stranger. Sure he was absolutely gorgeous, but that was no excuse for his behavior.

"Fine." Elena scoffed as she gathered her things angrily. She wasn't one to let the other person win, but her food was getting cold and she wasn't about to let Mr. Immature ruin her meal or her day.

"Where are you going?" He asked to Elena's surprise.

"I'm getting out of here so I can eat my food sans you." She snapped as she slid her jacket on. She was acting ridiculous, she knew, but she couldn't stand to see this asshole as long as he looked like that.

"Wait-"

"Leave me alone!" Elena snapped as she made her way to the exit. When the fresh air hit her face, she let out the breath that she was unaware she was holding. She didn't know why she had reacted so extreme, but she knew she had done the right thing. Deciding to let that incident go, Elena wandered over to a vacant park bench and sat down as she pulled out her iced bagels and drank her lukewarm hot chocolate alone.

AN: Well, hope you liked it! Review for more! They're greatly appreciated and strongly motivate updates! :)

PS: Feel free to check out my other stories! They're all DE!

PPS: Follow me on Twitter, EverbloomMist13!

~*Songs that were mentioned or that inspired this chapter*~

THEME: Terrified / Katharine McPhee & Jason Reeves

We Radiate / Goldfrapp

Two Is Better Than One / Boys Like Girls