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Just a note, this chapter takes place a year later (:

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TWO

Elena was making her way to her room at the on-campus hostel and was pleasantly surprised to find a box and an envelope. Elena Gilbert, it said. Smiling to herself, she went in and closed the door behind her before tearing into the letter. She knew exactly whose handwriting it was.

Dearest Elena,

You seem to be so stressed out lately and between your schedule and mine, I haven't seen you in almost 2 weeks. I miss you, Lena. Keep next week free, okay? We'll go have fun – it is term break after all. But until I get to see you again, hope what's inside the box cheer you up since I'm can't be there to do it myself (project meeting with Tyler, Bonnie & Caroline).

Thinking of you,

Matt

Placing the letter down on her bed, Elena sat as she opened the box. There, inside of it was a treat galore! All her favourite chocolates were inside and he had even gone to the trouble to bake her favourite double chocolate chip cookies. Grinning like a fool, she unwrapped the cookies and ate them quickly. She didn't want to risk leaving them lying around and Stefan, Bonnie, Caroline or whoever who came into her room would no doubt finish them all – it was that good.

Somehow, he knew how to cheer her up and make the worst of it go away. They had been dating for almost three months now and Elena was very grateful to him for taking it slow. For some reason, she'd found that she could trust him. Maybe because she felt safe around him. She did like Matt a lot – how could she not? He was so thoughtful, sweet and kind. And he was always there. Unlike everyone else around her, he knew about Damon and that alone made her feel like she didn't have to be careful around him because he simply knew her and accepted her for who she was. Not that Stefan, Bonnie or Caroline wouldn't accept her, but they would worry and try and talk her through it or out of it. With Matt, though, he simply accepted and that made her adore him even more.

Just then, there was a knock on her door. Opening it, she saw Stefan and it seemed like her day just got better.

"Stefan!"

She hugged him tightly before letting him into the room.

Stefan raised an eyebrow, "Someone sure is cheery today."

Elena laughed and sat on the bed beside Stefan, "I wasn't. Not until I saw this." She showed Stefan the letter and the box and grinned. "Since I ate all the cookies I'm perfectly happy to share the rest with you."

Rolling his eyes, Stefan unwrapped a chocolate bar. "You could always ask Matt to bake more. He'd be more than happy to."

"Hey!" Stefan exclaimed as he rubbed his arm from where Elena had smacked him.

"I will not take advantage of him."

"Who said anything about taking advantage? How come you guys aren't like official yet or something?"

Elena shrugged, "I told you, Stefan. He asked me once before but I'd thought that it wasn't time yet and I do want to take things slow. Don't want to rush anything, you know?" And that was when she'd told him. She was afraid to fall in love again and she was afraid to get her heart broken. She wanted to be sure that she wasn't rushing into it. But Elena wondered if the part of her that was pulling back was because she was hoping that Damon would come back to her. Come back and tell her that he loved her and that Katherine was a mistake.

Something must have passed over her face for Stefan asked, "Lena, you okay?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I am. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Okay..." Not quite convinced but letting it go, Stefan continued, "As I was saying, I think three months is not rushing into things. Are you afraid 'cause you've never been together with someone? Matt's in the same football team as I am. I know him personally and he really is a great guy."

Elena nodded, "I know. I don't know why I'm hesitating either. Anyway, how're things with Caroline? I've been so busy I haven't met her to catch up. Or bonnie."

She saw his face light up as he filled her in and Elena smiled. Stefan and Caroline had been dating for a month before officially getting together and it had been almost half a year since then and it looked like everything was going by great. Elena loved how they were always so happy together. Seeing them so happy made her happy.

"Anyway, I was thinking of going for a short holiday with Caroline. Term break's only in a couple of days. What are you and Matt doing? Going back to Mystic Falls?"

Maybe she was paranoid but there was something about the way he said 'Mystic Falls' that got her back up. "We haven't exactly planned anything yet. If nothing's up, I just might go back to visit Jenna and Jeremy. Why?"

Stefan shifted uncomfortably. He didn't know why it was so hard for him to tell her. There was nothing they couldn't tell one another but after the party last year, he couldn't explain why he had this feeling that there was something he didn't know about. Something between his best friend and his brother.

When Stefan hesitated, Elena began to get more anxious, "What is it, Stefan? Is it Jeremy? Did he get into some trouble and called you?" It wasn't the first time and if it was, Elena couldn't say that she was surprised. He had gotten into a fight once and didn't want any of them to know and as a last resort, had called Stefan to pick him up. Jeremy had been high and fought with some guy over a girl at a party. And it was Stefan who had helped Jeremy get clean and although it was over a year ago, Elena was still worried.

Knowing what she was thinking, Stefan said quickly, "No, no. There's nothing wrong with Jeremy. There's nothing wrong with anyone. It's good news actually. Damon had called me earlier today to tell me that he had proposed to Katherine."

Suddenly, it had felt like the world had stood still and spun. And Elena felt so cold all of a sudden. Damon had proposed to Katherine. She had thought that she was just beginning to get used to seeing them both together, beginning to get used to the twang in her heart every time she did. But nothing in the world could've prepared her for this.

"Damon had what?"

Stefan had barely heart her whispered question. She had gone so pale that he was nervous. What happened? He didn't know what to do.

"He proposed. Are you okay, Lena? You've gone so pale."

Elena yanked herself back and focused on Stefan even as she forced a smile, "Yeah, of course I am. Why wouldn't I be? It is good news. Congratulate Damon for me, will you?"

Before Stefan could respond, Elena got to her feet abruptly. "Sorry, Stef, I forgot that I was supposed to meet Bonnie. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

And she had all but shoved him out of the room and shut the door in his face. Stunned, Stefan stood on the other side not quite understanding what just took place. Wasn't Matt at a project meeting with Bonnie and Caroline? So how...? Shaking his head, Stefan shrugged. Maybe Elena had gotten mixed up.

"Lena?" Stefan knocked softly. After five minutes with no response, he assumed that she was in the showers and left.

On the other side of the door, Elena looked out of the window that overlooked the school compound. Damon had proposed to Katherine. Her heart squeezed painfully but Elena refused to cry. Just how many times could Damon break her heart? Three times now, if anyone was counting. People always say that the third time's the charm. Maybe this was the time she could finally get over him. Closing her eyes, Elena willed the tears back and took a deep breath. No, she would not cry. She was done crying over him. What good did it do? At the end of the day, the fact of the matter was that he had moved on. He's engaged for Christ's sake, Elena thought. And she hoped that that was the cue her heart needed in order for her to get over him. She needed to.

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