Tell me no lies
Disclaimer: The characters and other things from The Vampire Diaries don't belong to me. Credit goes to the rightful owners.
Elena stared at reflection on the bathroom mirror, trying but failing miserably to wipe the wide grin on her face. She gave up and smiled, loving how her skin still remembered Stefan's touch. But when she looked again at her face in the mirror, she noticed something in her eyes that she did not expect and could not place. Was it regret? Was it guilt? She was happy Stefan was out—right? Elena shook her head and blinked it away, choosing to savor the victory of freeing Stefan and the hope that maybe they could all survive whatever the future held.
Distracted, Elena walked into her bedroom, gasping when she noticed someone else was there, sitting by the windowsill, head bowed and hands clasped tightly together in front of him.
"Damon!" Elena said with one hand on her chest, trying to catch her breath, guilt washing over her as she realized that a small part of her was happy to see him, "Will it hurt you to knock or wait in the living room like a normal person?"
Damon looked up with a fierce expression, the effort of trying to control his emotions apparent. "Elena, did anyone not tell you that there's a policy not to negotiate with terrorists?"
"What are you talking about, Damon?" Elena asked, honestly confused as she watched him stand up without making any move to come closer
"I would have figured out a way to get Stefan out—making a deal with Elijah was totally unnecessary, Elena." Damon said angrily, "You can't trust him."
"And what, I should trust you?" Elena countered, "You…who had the brilliant idea to seal me inside my own house, that when Elijah found a way inside I realized I had no way of getting out? I think you should tell me what the hell you were thinking!"
Damon's mouth fell open in surprise, unable to speak for a few seconds. He took a step closer to her before responding, letting out an exasperated sigh as he did, "Fine, I admit I did not see that one coming. But it's not my fault your aunt remains blissfully ignorant of the supernatural creatures running rampant in this town. It's not my fault she invites the most unfortunate guests to your house."
"Elena," Damon said tiredly, "you just volunteered to become the bait. Do you know the odds of the bait surviving something like this? Slim to none, Elena. You either end up in the hospital with severe internal bleeding or six feet under."
"I don't care," Elena said stubbornly, "It doesn't matter to me."
"Then you're selfish, Elena," Damon spat out furiously, "Have you even, just for one second, considered what will happen if we lose you? Do you think your brother can survive that? Elena, he's lost your parents, Vicki and Anna. He wanted to shut down so badly he wanted to become a vampire, Elena. He wanted to die. Are you willing to risk that again?"
"I know, Damon, I was there—for everything. I even watched you kill him," Elena countered, her eyes blazing with anger at the memory as she changed the direction of their conversation.
"And I regret that," Damon said evenly, his voice thick with emotion, "and I'm going to spend the rest of my cursed existence trying to make that right even if it's close to impossible. But that promise doesn't cover mourning your untimely demise and it doesn't change the problem we have now—your little deal with the devil is binding. Elijah won't have it any other way."
"I said the words that pushed you over the edge." Elena said in a faraway voice, ignoring his attempt to reverse her diversion, "If I'm gone, then you'll stop falling and maybe you'll end up a better man for it."
"My actions, my guilt—all mine, Elena," Damon said shaking his head, "My world might revolve around you but that doesn't mean every stupid thing I do is on you. I was wrong. A broken heart doesn't excuse anything."
"Even if I told you I lied?" Elena whispered, looking away from Damon, unwilling to let him see how tears threatened to spill.
Damon's lips were drawn in a thin line, his jaw clenched tightly as he took another step towards her, using his finger to force her to look at him, "You can tell me a thousand lies but I still won't wish you dead and gone. It doesn't change how much I—we need you to stay alive."
He smiled at her, releasing her from his touch, "Stop changing the topic, Elena. It's not going to work."
"I'm not taking it back, Damon," Elena said insistently, "I've said it once and I'll say it again—I won't give up trying to save the people I love. And right now, that deal is the best shot we've got at getting through this."
"Stand around, do nothing, wait for Klaus to sniff you out and then cross our fingers that Elijah will get close enough to rip his heart out before someone suddenly decides that breaking the curse is more important and bleeds you out over that moonstone?" Damon said incredulously, "I have a better chance of making you fall in love with me than that plan actually working. It's out of the question, considering we don't even know what this is. Elena, that deal is as good as broken the second I figure out a way to kill Elijah for good."
"No," Elena said crossing her arms in front of her, "We do this my way."
"Your way is a dead end, Elena—literally," Damon said rolling his eyes, "Can you not give me another reason to hate Stefan and make his life miserable for another hundred odd years? Believe me, if anything happens to you, I'll pin it on him. If he weren't such an idiot, he wouldn't have gotten stuck in that tomb, you wouldn't have had to negotiate with Elijah, and the list goes on. I'll make sure to remind him everyday how his stupidity cost him the love of his life and then some."
Elena frowned and remained silent, unwilling to give in. Damon sighed, "Do you know how close I am to wishing I'd gotten stuck in that tomb instead of Stefan? Just so you would have been less desperate and less inclined to bargain with Elijah."
"What makes you think I wouldn't do everything in my power to get you out?" Elena asked, breaking her silence.
Damon shrugged, "I don't know. At best, I'm a complication in your life and on really bad days I tend to drive you insane. Why rush liberating me when quality time with Katherine counts as punishment for all the wrong I've done?"
"With your temper and Katherine's innate ability to push the right buttons to set you off, I would have looked for Elijah if I knew he had that offer on the table," Elena said shaking her head, "You won't last an hour in that tomb without tearing her heart out or your own for that matter."
Elena sighed, "Damon, when will you realize that all this is as much for you as it is for everyone else that matters in my life? I don't want to be saved. I'm no longer the girl on the road, trapped inside a car wreck like a damsel in distress. These are my choices and I'm seeing them through."
Damon looked at her with resignation, shaking his head as he willed the ache to remain at bay, his gaze drifting to the pendant on her neck, "I never should have given that back to you, so I can make you forget…take you and just run away from here. I should have taken the chance to steal this life away so I can give you the normal one you deserve."
"But you can't…and you won't." Elena said, taking off the vervain necklace and placing it on her bed, "Because you're not selfish…not with me."
"What makes you so sure?" Damon asked quietly, staring at the necklace that she took off.
"Come on, Damon," Elena said, "Did you think that after knowing I lost the necklace at that mansion, I'd just walk around vervain free?"
She nodded her head towards the teacup by her desk and then reached down to her ankle, pulling down her socks and revealing an anklet similar to Jeremy's bracelet.
Elena smiled at him as her vision blurred with unshed tears, as his confession replayed in her mind, "It's time for you to go, Damon."
Damon picked up the necklace and put it around her neck, kissing her on the forehead before pulling away, "If you really do remember then you know why the second I walk out of here I'm going after Elijah...and that this is goodbye for now."
Elena put a hand on his arm, keeping him from walking away, "No…Damon, don't. Please. Just stay."
Damon swallowed the lump in his throat as he pulled off Elena's hand, "I love you, Elena. Don't forget that."
And just like before, in the blink of an eye, he was gone.