Author's Note: So, I'm going to clear a couple of things up before I get into chapter 3.

First off, this is NOT a Bamon love story, nor will it turn into one. I love them as friends, but I can't write them as anything more than friends. I'm sorry if the last chapters made it seem to some that they had something more than a best friendship. I promise they are only friends in this story.

Secondly, Bonnie, Matt, and Alaric all have families and I will be introducing them to you all in a couple of chapters, but mentions of some of them will be made in this chapter.

Thirdly, I haven't watch TVD faithfully since season 6 because I took a teaching job so I will not be having Caroline's twins in this story. I know I would not write them in well and I do not want to make things up about them that completely change how they are in the show. So, Caroline does not have any kids, will not be pregnant like she was in the show, and is still with Stefan… temporarily. ;)

Lastly, I am not a Stefan hater. I love the sweet guy, I just love his older brother an infinite number of times more. He did seem like a jerk in the last chapter, but that was just his guilt eating at him which made him say insensitive things to his brother.

So with all of that cleared up, I will now be posting chapter 3 (: Just a side note: I am horrible at thinking up spells for Bonnie to say or do, so this chapter is starting off right after she performed the spell/rictual/witchy magic. Hope you enjoy. Leave me reviews on what you do and do not like (: xoxo ~ Rebecca

Chapter 3 – Time Stands Still

~After Bonnie's Spell~

The Boarding House

Bonnie had just finished chanting, when all of a sudden, all of the candles that she had lit around Elena's coffin, went out, leaving them in complete darkness. Bonnie listened for a moment before she spoke quietly, "Someone turn on a lamp." Her voice sounded strained from the magic that she used to complete the spell, but she hid it as best as she could from all of her friends. No other spell that she had tried to perform had ever made her feel this weak and exhausted. "Maybe that meant that it was actually powerful enough to work this time," she thought as she stumbled over to the coffin.

In a flash Caroline, who was standing beside Stefan in a corner, was by Bonnie's side, holding her steady so she would not fall. "Bonnie, maybe you should take a seat, you look like you're about to faint." She had watched the witch the moment the spell was over, and she could tell that this time was different for Bonnie. It took more out of her than any other one that she had performed, and Caroline was worried it might have been too much. As she observed her more closely, her frown became deeper, Bonnie looked like she had aged a couple years just in these past few hours of using her magic. "God, Bonnie, how much of a risk did you just take?" Caroline whispered to her friend. She hated that they had to use Bonnie and her magic everytime they found another spell to try. She wished that there was another way, besides Bonnie's magic, to get Elena to wake up.

"I'm fine, Care," Bonnie murmured weakly, as she clung to Caroline's arm to keep her balance. She knew that Caroline did not believe her, but she could not admit just how feeble and weak that spell had left her. This moment was not about her; it was about Elena. She felt so guilty about having a somewhat happy life, when her best friend was lying asleep in a coffin, missing out on her own happiness, and her own life. "It's not fair Caroline," Bonnie whispered sadly, "she's one of my best friends, and unless these spells work then I won't ever see her alive again."

Caroline sighed as she listened to Bonnie confess her feelings. "I know Bonnie… I know it's harder on you than on me, because eventually when Elena does wake up, I'll get to see her again. But I can't stand seeing you like this. Elena wouldn't want you to kill yourself trying to wake her up." Caroline pleaded with her, as she turned her eyes down to see Elena's face in the coffin. "She want you to be happy, Bon. She wouldn't want you to spend all this time away from your family just trying to wake her up. They need you, Bonnie. Your husband and your daughters need you." She spoke to her gently as she took her eyes off Elena and turned them on Bonnie.

Bonnie sniffled softly as she shook her head roughly. "I know she wouldn't want this for me, but this is something that I need to, or at least try to do." She sighed with a heavy heart as she gave her blonde friend a sad smile. "I love my family dearly Care, and they all know that. They also know, that when we lost Elena, I lost a part of my family that night. I know that my family has never met Elena, but they still understand why I have to do this. I'm not just doing this for Elena, I'm doing this for me. I want my family to know Elena, and I want Elena to meet my family while I'm still alive." Bonnie's voice held a firmness to it, that she knew would let Caroline know that she was done with this discussion.

Caroline bit her tongue from speaking her mind because she knew her words would only anger her friend. Instead, she turned to Matt who had just joined them in front of the coffin. "So, how long should it take before she wakes up?" Matt asked, as he tried to keep the doubtfulness that was in his thoughts from creeping into his voice. He wanted to believe that she would wake up this time, he really did, it's just that when you see the spells fail so many times you start to lose hope.

As Bonnie turned to face Matt, she noticed that Stefan had also joined them. She didn't have to wonder where Damon was, waiting around Elena's coffin never really was his thing. He was probably out on the porch drinking a glass of bourbon with his favorite drinking buddy, Ric. She smiled at the thought, some friendships never change. Breaking out of her own thoughts, she looked up at Matt and answered his question, "Uh.., I don't really know, Matt. These spell books rarely come with a time chart on them. But, I'm sure she will be waking up in no time." She tried to make her voice sound as hopeful and strong as she wished she felt, but one glance from Stefan and she knew he saw right through her lie. Sometimes she couldn't stand how well he could read people.

Matt nodded slowly before he met Bonnie's eyes with an apologetic look on his face. "You know I would stay and wait with all of you if I could…"

Bonnie immediately shook his head and held up one of her hands to cut off the rest of his sentence. "Matt, go home. We understand, and you really should be home with your sick child tonight. He needs his dad." She gave him the best reassuring smile that she could muster up and said, "One of us will call you if…I mean when, she wakes up." She swallowed the lump in her throat as she corrected her choice of words. This spell had to work, it just had to.

"Hey where did Ric go off to?" Stefan asked, finally noticing that he was not with them in the living room.

"He just left. Said something about his wife needing him home tonight, or she'd kick his ass out of the house." Damon chuckled lightly as he stood in the doorway. He walked over to the coffin and sighed as he gazed down at Elena's face, her eyes still closed. Forcing himself to tear his eyes off of her, he looked around the coffin at his friends, his only family left on this earth. He smiled grimly and shook his head. "It's going to work this time, you'll all see."

5 hours later

Stefan walked over to Damon, and he placed his hand on his brother's shoulder. "Damon, it's been over 5 hours since Bonnie completed the spell." He looked down at Elena as she lay, just like she's been since they put her there twenty years ago. "It didn't work," He spoke out sadly. He looked over at Bonnie and Caroline who both had fallen asleep on the couch a little over an hour ago. "I'm going to take them both home, they're exhausted. I'll probably be out hunting for a while after that, so don't wait up." He turned to look back at Damon and noticed his bloodshot eyes. "You should get some blood in you and go to sleep. I'm sorry Damon, I truly am." He squeezed his shoulder before letting go and walking over to where Bonnie and Caroline were on the couch.

Damon never took his eyes off of Elena's face, even when he heard the door shut, letting him know that he was left all alone. "I don't understand," he mumbled brokenly and reached his hand down into the coffin so he could brush his fingers over Elena's cheek. She still showed no signs of waking up, and the hope that Damon had fought so hard to hold onto, was finally vanishing. "Why won't you wake up?" He sighed sadly and he removed his hand from Elena's cheek. He forced out a small smile, even though his heart was breaking even more than he thought possible. "It's okay baby, we'll just have to find another way to wake you up." He walked away from her coffin leaving the lid open, he could not force himself to close her in there again, not tonight.

The clock on Damon's bedside table read 2A.M., but he still could not make himself go to sleep. He could not stop thinking about how they had failed, again. Maybe his brother was right, maybe they never were going to be able to wake her up. Frustrated with himself, he tosses and turns for a few more minutes until he cannot handle it anymore. He gets out of bed and angrily starts to throw his furniture against his bedroom walls. His dresser, his chair, his lamps, anything that would shatter against the wall, he threw.

"Damon..?"

Damon dropped his table that he was about to throw and spun around as soon as he heard her voice. It couldn't be. Too much time had passed since the spell had been performed. But there she stood, awake and staring at him with her beautiful doe-like eyes. Time stood still in that moment, and all Damon could do was stare right back at the woman standing in his doorway.

Closing Comments: So? What did you think? Did you think that the spell would fail again and Elena would stay asleep? I hope you all enjoyed it. I'm going to try to post a new chapter twice a week, sometimes I might be able to get up three, but I'll at least promise two a week. Thanks for reading. Let me know what you thinks gonna happen in the next chapter. :)