Later that evening, he had taken her back to the boarding house. They fell silent, neither of them really saying much. They both had missed the dance; having their discussion to go through. Elena would look over at him, trying to hide her feelings towards him, but he was smarter than that. She'd tense up, and it didn't take much convincing on his part to make her squeal.
"I'm in love with you, Damon," she said, finally blurting it out, biting her lip as she dropped her gaze, trying to regain any dignity she had left. "I broke up with Stefan for you."
He looked back over at her, biting his lip before closing his eyes, shaking his head. "No. No there's no way. You couldn't have... not for... not for me," he managed out, his hands trembling as his gaze became soft, almost worrisome. "I don't deserve you, Elena. I never have and I never will," he said, his hands moving to hold her face, searching for something of a cruel joke on her features. He couldn't find it, and he dropped his hands, swallowing hard as he looked back at her, closing his eyes once. He opened them a few moments later, before looking back at her, feeling the tears threaten in his eyes. "M-me?" He asked, his voice a whisper.
Elena looked back over at him, before nodding. "Yes, Damon. You." She looked back over towards him, swallowing hard as she wondered what he was thinking. Was he mad? Was he hurt? There was no way he was hurt, was there? She felt guilty all of a sudden, looking away from him. "I'm.. I'm sorry. I just.. I didn't want to lie anymore," she said, giving a shrug of her shoulders. "It wasn't fair. Not to him, to you," she whispered, her eyes looking up at him again. "Talk to me, Damon. Please?"
He looked down, walking over towards the couch as he sat down. He closed his eyes, shaking his head over and over again. This wasn't him, this wasn't her. This.. this wasn't right? But it hurt. It hurt and there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it. That he wanted to do about it. He looked up at her, ignoring the tears that were already falling. He scoffed inwardly at his fathers voice in his head, telling him that a man shouldn't cry. And his mother, telling him that when a girl protested her love for a man, that he should accept it, because he knew that it was true. That'd it was the hardest thing she would ever have to admit to herself, and to him. He looked back at her, before giving a nod. "What changed?" He asked, daring to know the answer.
Elena looked over at him, moving to sit next to him on the couch. "It's always been there, Damon," she started, her voice soft as she looked at him. "I fought it for so long, and after my transition... it only made things harder. My feelings for you kept growing, and when you saved me that night," she whispered, looking down as she moved her hands to hold his. "When you saved me, it made things clear. That I couldn't keep doing this. Not when I felt something stronger for you." She felt Damon run his thumb against her hand, softening her. He was confused, and all he wanted was to tell her that he didn't deserve this. That he wasn't worthy of her love. He nodded once, before looking over towards the door. They were late for their dance. The one that they always attended. Their tradition.
"Do you wanna get out of here?" He asked, looking back at her as he cleared his throat, knowing that she'd seen him cry for the first, and last time. She nodded back at him, before standing up and following him out of the room, her hand interlaced with his own.
Once they were inside, he excused himself to go change out of his suit, and she followed, changing into a more casual dress. She took her hair out of it's braid, letting her hair fall in it's usual fashion. She walked out to see him lighting a fire, looking up at her as he did the first time. His eyes were full of want and desire, just like they were that first night they met. The first spark was there, and she moved her eyes away, trying to deny it yet again.
He looked over at her, holding out his hand. "We missed our dance," he said quietly. "Care to join me, Ms. Gilbert," he smirked, his eyes on her.
She looked back, before giving a smile. "It is tradition, after all," she said with a smile.
They stood away from each other, before putting their palms out, never touching as they carefully danced, the positions familiar from the year before. She kept her eyes on him, her eyes doing the smiling she needed. He kept his eyes on her, never leaving as he finally took her hand, pulling her close to him as he placed his free hand on her hip. She moved her hand to his waist, before watching as he took her other hand. She looked back at him, keeping their steps careful, yet so easy to them. They had done this dance before, except this time it was more intimate, like it mattered. He looked over towards her, giving her a small smile. "For the record, I love you too," he whispered, leaning down to gently kiss her cheek, his lips lingering for just a moment before he pulled away, looking back at her.
Elena felt as he kissed her cheek, and it felt like every inch of her body was on fire. She gave a smile, before nodding. "I love you, Damon," she whispered, pressing her lips against his own once, her kiss gentle and soft. There was passion behind it, and he knew it. They both knew that there was no hiding it anymore. What this was, what they felt; it was real. He kissed her back, stopping their dance as he brought both hands to hold her face as they kissed, her lips moving alongside his as they stood there, finally giving into each others feelings without consequences. He moved his hands from her face to her hips again, bringing her closer to him as he moved his hips against hers. She matched his movements, grinding against him as she pulled away, giving him a look. She pressed his lips to hers again, closing her eyes before he felt his lips move to her neck, sucking and nipping against her skin. She breathed out, tilting her neck towards him as she let him continue. He moved his hands to grip into her thighs, before he had her moved against the bed and under him, looking back towards her with a small smile. He kissed her again and she gripped onto his shoulders, wanting more of what he was giving her. He moved his shaky hands to move against the buttons of her dress, unfastening each with a sudden slowness. This wasn't just a fuck for him, and she needed to know that. This... this was him, completely and utterly in love with her.
She moved her hands against his shirt, aching to reach out and touch him. "Damon.." she breathed out, arching her back against his hands.
He moved to take off his own shirt, before pulling her dress off, kissing her again before kissing down towards her stomach, taking his time as he worshiped inch by glorious inch of her olive skin. She closed her eyes, letting out a moan as he moved his lips against her, moving her hands against his chest, trying to get more out of him. He unclasped her bra, letting it fall as he moved his lips towards her breasts, kissing and sucking against her nipple, before moving to the other as he moved his lips lower, keeping his moments slow as he tried to build her up. She arched her back, letting out another moan as she moved his hands to his hair, tangling her fingers into his dark locks. He moved his hands to pull off her underwear in a swift motion, and he knew Elena was already wet. He ran a finger through her folds, affirming his assumption. "You're so wet, Elena," he whispered, kissing her leg softly as he looked back towards her. She nodded, her hands moving towards his pants as she unbuttoned them, pushing them down to prove her point. She needed him now, in every sense of the word. "Just for you," she whispered.
He took his pants off, his boxers falling suit as he kissed her passionately once, moving his hands to gather in her hair as he sucked and moved his lips against her own, closing his eyes as a groan fell from the back of her throat. He was already hard for her, and she could easily see that. She had seen him naked before, but now? Now it was something she wanted to see. Something she thought about in her dreams over and over again, though she wouldn't dare to admit it. He moved his hands to move down her body, kissing her again as he lined up with her entrance, before he pushed inside of her, his movements slow as he let her adjust.
She cried out, not because of pain, but because of the pleasure. How much this felt like her first time. She gave him a nod, kissing him again before moving her hips to meet with his own. She was already desperate for more, and every kiss, every touch; it all felt so new to her. How this should've been her first time and how she wouldn't want to have it with anyone else except for Damon.
He moved his lips to her neck, starting to pick up his pace as he moved in and out of her, his movements slow as he concentrated on hitting her in all the right spots. Nothing else mattered except for Elena, and making her feel loved; matching her love with his own. He let out a groan and a hiss, closing his eyes as they moved against each other. She would cry out, a curse word here, his name there. They spent the evening like this, just kissing and touching and making love; doing what they should've a long time ago. He had her crying out for the first time after a while, and as soon as she came, he followed, closing his eyes as he moaned out her name. He had pictured this in his head a million times, but nothing would ever amount to the real thing. To this moment that they had right her. They spent the night like this, and he knew that she was worth it. That everything he had put up with over the years, to losing his best friend to Katherine stabbing him in the back, everything he had done was for Elena; nothing more, and sure as hell nothing less.