Sorry it took me so long to finally get this written, but I was in a bit of a slump. However, I've finished it and this is the last chapter of the Epilogue, so enjoy!


I'd hoped to be able to sleep in Christmas morning, but unsurprisingly it was a hopeless dream. Right at the crack of dawn, Elena and I were woken up to Mia crawling into bed between us, poorly attempting to muffle her excited giggles.

"Santa came!" She loudly whispered, making Elena groan.

"Baby, it's too early," my wife hoarsely told her. "The sun's not even out."

"But Santa brought our presents!" She pressed then turned to me. "There's so many, Damon! I think he got me everything on my list!"

I pulled her into my arms and squeezed her tightly, fighting against her delighted squirming, "Go back to sleep for another hour, okay?"

"But Santa!"

"Santa's presents can wait another hour," Elena sighed into her pillow. "Can you lay down with us and be quiet so the baby and I can get some more sleep?"

"Is Maxy awake?" She wondered. "I saw presents for him too!"

"Well, he's awake now," Elena muttered, turning onto her back and placing a hand on her belly. Mia managed to wriggle out of my embrace to press her ear against her belly.

"I don't hear anything," she argued, but a moment later she jumped back from one of my son's famous kicks. "He kicked me!" She complained.

"You woke him up!" Elena chuckled.

"Alex is awake too!" Mia huffed.

"But he didn't come into our room," I pointed out.

"That's because he's at Grandma's waking her up!" She proudly told us.

Of course he is. I can't wait until they're teenagers for the sole reason of them sleeping in.

I sighed, "Alright, we're coming."

Mia launched herself off the bed and landed with a loud thud before we could hear her running towards the living room. Elena turned and buried her face in my neck, "Don't make me get up."

I smiled and kissed her forehead, "Sleep in a bit more. I'll make them wait to unwrap the gifts you got them until you're up. They can do everyone else's first."

"Thank you," she mumbled, already snuggling back into the blankets.

I reluctantly crawled out of bed and pulled on a pair of sweats and a t-shirt. I found Mia in the living room surrounding by a stack of her own presents that she'd already separated from the others. There was another pile beginning to take shape I guessed belonged to Alex, and the rest were still untouched under the tree.

Making a bee line for the kitchen, I started a pot of coffee. Elena was still pissed she couldn't have any, but there's only a few more days before she's home free. At least I hope so. Max sure is taking his time in there.

By the time I have a mug filled, Alex was back with Mom and Stefan in tow. I could tell neither of them were too happy about the time, but they didn't put up a fuss and instead followed the smell of coffee.

"Elena still asleep?" Mom wondered.

"For a little longer," I confirmed.

The kids spent a couple more minutes sorting each and every gift into piles according to who they were for before we gave them the go ahead to open anything that wasn't from Elena.

Every Christmas, I think that two children couldn't possibly open dozens of gifts any faster. And every year, I'm proven wrong. Before I'm finished with my first mug of coffee, the floor is covered in shredded wrapping paper and discarded plastic packaging. All the hours Elena, Mom, and I spent wrapping all for it to be ruined in minutes.

By the time Alex had batteries in a remote control truck and Mia had three new dolls already unpackaged, I could hear Elena rummaging around in the kitchen. She probably couldn't fall back asleep with all of the racket everyone was making.

Seconds later, she plopped down next to me on the couch with a small plate filled with assorted Christmas cookies. That was likely the only thing that could possibly keep her in a good mood, so I wisely didn't say anything about it.

"Why does Elena get to eat cookies for breakfast?" Alex complained.

I raised a brow, "Are you nine months pregnant?"

He pouted and Elena chuckled, "Okay, you guys can open the rest of your presents now."

They tore through those even faster than the first.

With my arm around Elena's shoulders, I softly ask in her ear, "You and Max doing okay?"

She leaned into the crook of my neck and closed her eyes, "Mm, yeah. He was kicking up a storm and it was hurting pretty bad, but I think he went back to sleep."

I left a lingering kiss on her forehead, "Not much longer now."

"Can you open his gifts?" She sleepily asked. "I'm too tired."

I fought a smile and called Mia over to help. With her opening skills everything will be unwrapped in no time.

She and Alex both made Max a drawing to go in his nursery. It was his name with a bunch of crudely drawn animals and odd shapes here and there. They also each decided to donate one of their stuffed animals for him to have. Mia gave us her well-worn puppy and Alex gave us a green dinosaur.

The rest of the gifts from Mom and I were mostly clothes and toys—the nursery was already well-stocked with diapers, baby wipes, lotion, formula, and anything else that Max would need. Elena had a blast decorating it; the walls were painted a pale gray-blue and all of the furniture was a warm oak color. Little bears, deer, squirrels, and other woodland creatures decorated the room. I had little say in what it looked like since my wife had been four months pregnant when we got around to setting everything up, but she did a great job. For the past month she's been in there 'nesting,' as the nurse called it. Apparently expecting mothers go through this phase when the due date gets closer where they feel like everything needs to be perfect. Elena's been cleaning the nursery like crazy and rearranging everything. I think she's washed all of Max's clothes about eight times now. No matter how times I tell her that they're clean, she won't listen.

But with the holidays now here, she hasn't been as frantic about it. I can't tell if it's because she's busy with the holidays or if it's because Max is about to enter this world and her body has finally acknowledged that she's done everything she can.

I really hope it's the latter. If I find her refolding onesies one more time, I think I'm going to have to confiscate them from her or lock her out of the room.

Mia and Alex are so busy with their new toys that I have to literally pry them away just to eat breakfast. You'd think french toast would be enough motivation for two kids to come eat, but you'd be wrong.

Stefan even tried his hand at parenting them. It was simultaneously hilarious and disappointing. Neither kid knew how to react to him being a parental figure. He told them to go sit down at the table, but they both just stared at him like he was a stranger trying to tell them no. It meant nothing to them.

Alex was a little more complacent; after Stefan repeated himself, he begrudgingly went to the table and pouted in his chair. Mia, well, I had to forcibly carry her into the kitchen. She screamed for all of ten seconds before she realized that I put chocolate chips on her french toast and then she was all too eager to eat.

Maybe Stefan being back wouldn't be so bad. It would be an uphill battle for sure, but having someone else to help out when Elena and I are sleep deprived new parents would be nice. Assuming he didn't give up again and could actually get his kids to listen to him.

Stefan offered to clean up after breakfast so I let him. Elena said she was going to try to catch a few more minutes of sleep and then disappeared down the hallway. Mom and I were back in the living room with the kids, attempting to clean up the packaging tornado that they left in their wake. I stepped on metal twist-ties about four times and cursed through every stabbing pain. Then I stepped on a Barbie shoe which was no better. At least Alex's toys didn't have tiny removable parts. Well, except for the Legos. Which I also stepped on. And it sucked.

When Stefan was back to help them with opening more packages, I wandered towards the bedrooms and wasn't at all surprised when Elena wasn't in ours. No, instead of sleeping like she should be, she was back in the nursery, just standing there looking around like there was something she forgot.

"There isn't possibly one more thing you could do in here to make it more perfect," I told her.

She turned around and said, "No, I know, it's just…do you think we should bring my breast pump to the hospital? I know they have formula just in case, but what if he won't breastfeed? We can bottle feed him, but I'd feel better if it was my breast milk instead of formula."

"We did pack the breast pump, babe," I chuckled. "Four weeks ago, when you insisted on getting the hospital bag ready."

"We did?" She winced. "Oh, I guess I forgot. Well, what about his little boots? It's going to be freezing outside and I don't want him getting cold."

"In the twenty seconds it'll take to go from the front door to the car? I think he'll be alright."

Elena sighed, "I'm doing it again, aren't I?"

I set my hands on her belly and grinned, "Just a little."

"I'm getting impatient," she complained, dropping her forehead onto my chest. As much as I loved the look of her pregnant, I couldn't wait until she'd fit seamlessly against my body again.

"We all are," I kissed the top of her head. "But we are ready. More than ready. We have everything he could possibly need and then some. Every imaginable onesie size is in that closet and one of each is in the bag. We are ready."

She nodded then said, "Okay. I'm gonna go get some more cookies while I don't have to care about my weight."

She pulled away and headed towards the door, but she paused in the door frame and pressed her hands to her stomach.

Then she looked down at her legs and I noticed her pajama pants were wet.

She looked at me with wide eyes, "I, uh, think my water just broke."


Mia won the bet. She said that Max would come the day after Christmas. Mom and Alex both said Christmas day, I said New Year's eve, and Elena said anytime next year.

But on December 26th at 8:03 am, Elena gave birth to Maxwell James Salvatore. He weighed 8 pounds, six ounces, and he had a full head of dark hair with all ten fingers and toes.

He was perfect.

I knew that labor could last for hours, but I had no idea that it could go on for nearly an entire day. Despite Elena's water breaking, official contractions hadn't started for another couple hours. The hospital kept her admitted though because the amniotic sac had burst. For almost the entire day, we were waiting in her room while contractions slowly began and got closer together. Her cervix was dilating slower than a snail's pace, which frustrated both of us.

We both just wanted to meet our son.

But finally at three in the morning, her contractions grew close enough that they could give her the epidural and she could start pushing.

Just like we all guessed, Max took his sweet time coming into this world. Elena's uterus must really have been cozy because he was stubborn. But finally, Elena was able to squeeze him out.

Of course, she damn near broke my hand in the process, but it was worth it.

She was so worried about everything for nothing; max was absolutely perfect. He only cried for a few minutes after being born and them promptly latched on to Elena's nipple and started feeding like he'd done it a thousand times before. I could tell she was proud of him even if it was a natural instinct.

We both cried so many tears.

Now, as Elena slept a few feet away, I sat on the little couch with Max in my arms just staring at his chubby face. I wanted him to open his eyes so I could see if they would be my blue ones or Elena's brown ones. I also read that most babies are born with dark blue eyes and they change colors within the first three years, but if they were my blue, I knew they wouldn't change.

There was a soft knock on the door and I looked up to see the whole gang waiting with balloons, flowers, and stuffed animals. I rolled my eyes. Like he needed more presents.

I held a finger to my lips to tell them to be quiet for Elena as they came in. Mom hurried over to meet her third grandchild and she was already crying.

"He looks just like you, baby," she cooed in a soft whisper.

"Congratulations, brother," Stefan grinned and lightly clapped me on the shoulder. Despite our differences, I was too happy to care right now.

"Thanks, Stef."

"Do you need anything?" Mom fretted.

I smiled a little and said, "Elena will probably be hungry when she wakes up. If you could find a vending machine I'd appreciate it."

She nodded, "I'll search the left side, Stefan, you take right."

They both left the room, leaving Alex and Mia behind to meet their cousin. I sat back down on the couch and they climbed up on either side of me to look down at his little face. He managed to free one of his hands from the blanket and he had it tucked under his chin as he slept.

"This is Max, guys."

"He's so little," Alex commented quietly.

"Can I hold him?" Mia asked.

"You have to be very careful," I explained to her. "Sit still and make sure you hold his head." I knelt on the ground and gently placed Max on her lap so his head was leaning against her arm for support. She beamed down at him and softly giggled.

"He's heavy!"

"He's not made of plastic like your baby dolls," I playfully teased her.

She brought her free hand up to touch his pudgy cheek while Alex leaned over to get a better look.

"Does he do anything but sleep?"

"He eats and poops," I grinned.

His face scrunched up, "That's not fun. When can we play with him?"

"Not for a while. He's still a baby. You'll have to wait a couple years."

"He's holding my hand!" Mia gasped. Max's little fingers were tightening around hers. He had a good, strong grip when he wasn't sleeping, which meant he was waking up and would probably want to be fed. It had been a few hours since his last meal so that seemed about right.

Elena's tired voice sounded from behind me, "So what do you think of him?"

"He's fat!" Mia giggled.

"You were fat when you were a baby," I told her.

"Nuh-uh!"

"Yeah-huh!"

Max opened his mouth for a big yawn and a whimper escaped with it, which led to fussing and eventually crying, so I set him in Elena's arms so she could feed him.

"Make sure you use the other boob this time so you're not uneven," I teased her, earning a glare. However, she as I said and switched breasts, which made me laugh.

Mom and Stefan returned with pretty much the whole damn vending machine and they set everything down on Elena's tray table. Mom gushed, "Elena, honey, he's so perfect. I'm so proud of you two kids."

"Thanks, Lily," she groggily said.

Stefan spoke up, "I know we only just met, but you're gonna be a great mom. Anyone can see how much you love my brother and now my nephew."

She smiled warmly and told him, "I know you think everything is screwed up right now, Stefan, but if you really try this time, you're gonna be a great dad too. It's never too late to try."

He smiled wryly, "I hope you're right."

"Of course she's right," I chipped in. "She's Elena Salvatore. She's always right."

Stefan chuckled and sent me a grateful look. With Max's arrival, I was feeling a little more forgiving. With our help, I know Stefan will pick things up quickly. He was a fast learner when we were kids and parenting is second nature. He also got to skip the not-so-cute part of changing diapers and cleaning vomit. He'll figure things out in no time.

When Max spit Elena's nipple out, she covered her chest back up and everybody took turns holding him. Now that he had a full belly, he was happy and quiet. Mom fell in love with him over and over each time he grabbed her finger or made a little gurgling noise. Stefan commented that he was bringing back some great memories of Mia and Alex's births. Caroline came by too and promised that Max would always be dressed in the cutest outfits, courtesy of her own designs. She was going to venture into the fashion world by using our son as a guinea pig, but as long as she wasn't putting him in ridiculous costumes, I didn't really care. Elena also said that she texted Bonnie and she was going to fly up after the holidays to meet Max.

It took hours, but eventually everyone went home and Elena and I were left to admire the little boy we made. I sat next to her on the bed and Max was between us, in a combination of both our arms.

"I'm thinking we should make Caroline his godmother," I said, surprising Elena. Caroline and I don't always see eye to eye and we bicker like siblings, but she's been a good friend to us.

"You do realize that she'll kidnap him every chance she gets if we do, right?" She laughed. "And don't even get me started on the matching outfits you know she'll make."

I shrugged, "I'm sure we'll want a break every now and then. You know, to work on baby number two."

Elena rolled her eyes, "Let's get my body through baby number one before we even think about that. Do you know what a horror show I look like down there?"

I grinned evilly, "Actually, I do. I watched it happen. It was horrible."

"Ass," she slapped my shoulder. I kissed her temple and the moodiness disappeared from her eyes. She looked down at Max and said, "Let's make Stefan his godfather."

I stilled for a second because I hadn't even considered that. I know what Stefan said about being here for good, but I don't him abandoning my son too.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"If we don't give him a chance, we'll never know."

I sighed, "Okay, but if he leaves again, he's officially not the godfather. I'll make Alex the godfather."

She shot me a look, "Because an eight year old can take care of a baby."

"At least he'd be there," I grumbled.

"No, none of that," she warned me. "You have to give him a chance, so stop it with the jabs and pokes. He feels bad enough without you making it worse."

I groaned and dropped my head back against the pillow, "Fine."

"That's the spirit," she deadpanned.

"Sorry, but you know that once you break my trust, it's not easy to get it back without a damn good excuse."

"I know," she said while leaning her head on my shoulder. "That's why I'm just asking you to try."

"Deal," I agreed, resting my cheek on her head. "We did make a pretty good baby."

She hummed in agreement then said, "He could have been a little speedier, but we did."

"The first kid is usually the longest labor," I pointed out.

She pouted, "How many more of these things do you really want?"

"Not that many more," I chuckled. "Just enough until we get a girl."

"I can get on board with that."

"What if takes three more kids?"

"Then as soon as we get that girl you're getting a vasectomy."

I winced, "Ow, why me?"

"Would you rather never have sex again?"

"I guess not," I grumbled. "But you have to ice my balls the entire time."

She rolled her eyes, "Poor baby. One little snip meanwhile I'm tearing from my V to my A with every birth."

"You didn't want the C-section," I pointed out.

"Who wants a big-ass scar on their stomach?" She snapped. "Besides, it's not the same. I don't get to watch it happen."

"You did so amazing, baby," I told her with a kiss on her forehead.

"I couldn't have done it without you."

"All I did was sit there like an idiot!" I chuckled. "You did all of the hard work."

"Alright, Daddy, whatever you say."

"Hey Elena?"

"Hm?"

"I love you."

She looked up at me with those big brown doe eyes that made me fall in love with her to start with and smiled tenderly, "I love you, too."


Thank you all for reading this story and all of your wonderful reviews! They really did motivate me to finish the epilogue. I hope you liked reading this story as much as I liked writing it! Follow me for more stories! I plan on posting more once I finish writing them. I'm also still looking for a Beta reader if anybody's interested. Just PM me!