Author's note: Thanks for all the lovely reviews :)

Intruder

Elena was cowering in the corner of her bedroom, as far away as she could get from her door with the rattling doorknob. She was down in the kitchen when she suddenly felt like she was being watched. Jenna and Jeremy were nowhere to be seen. From the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of a dark silhouette outside the window above the kitchen sink. Her hands started to shake as she walked out of the kitchen to the stairs as normally as possible. When she got to the stairs, she started running, hearing glass break somewhere downstairs as the intruder forced his way into her home.

Her breath quickened as her heart hammered in her ears. She ran straight to Jeremy's room only to discover he wasn't home. She was just about to call Jenna when she heard footfalls on the stair, slowly coming closer, climbing up the stairs. Running through the bathroom she shared with her brother, Elena entered her room, starting to panic. The stranger in her home was coming for her. Why else would he watch her through the window and come slowly up the stairs if she wasn't his target. If he were a thief, wouldn't he have waited till the house was empty?

Elena locked the bathroom door and her bedroom door. She looked around for something to defend herself. There wasn't much in her room. Breathe. Call Stefan. He'll come. You just have to manage until he gets here. Elena looked around for her phone. Her small moment of calm left her as she realized that she had left it downstairs. She could hear the footsteps slowly coming nearer. Elena could feel the panic bubbling up to the surface quickly, as she darted around her room looking for something, anything that could help her. She grabbed her chair and wedged it under her door handle. She ran to her window and looked down. There was no way she could climb down or jump without severely injuring herself.

The footsteps stopped. Elena slowly turned around. She could see a shadow of the man's feet through the small space between the floor and door. She walked slowly backward, getting as far away from the entrance to her bedroom, praying that he won't hear her. One of her steps hit a loose floorboard, loudly creaking, breaking the silence. That was all it took. The doorknob started to rattle as the man started to break into her room. Elena ran backward, and slid down to the floor, her breathing getting louder as the tears started to leak out of her eyes. She grabbed a wooden hanger and clutched on it, the sound of the knob shaking and the intruder pounding into her door.

Elena closed her eyes. She heard a loud crash and tumble. She opened her eyes, barely breathing, listening to the silence that descended. The clock ticked. She looked up at her door as she heard a click and saw the handle turn. The door flew open and tall figure was suddenly in front of her. Elena screamed, a piercing bloodcurdling scream of terror and shut her eyes. She felt hands grab hr arms and she began to struggle, squirming and screaming, as the man in front of her held onto her with an iron strong grip.

"Elena! Elena!" she heard a voice calling to her, "Shhh-shh-shh! Calm down! It's me! It's Damon!" Elena stopped thrashing and looked up. Damon looked down at her, relieved.

"Damon?" she asked, relief flooding through her. Her words came tumbling out, "There was a man! Someone! He's in the house! H-he was trying to get into my room, a-and—"

"Shh-shh," Damon soothed. "It's okay now. You're alright." Damon wiped the tear streaks on her cheeks and smoothed her hair before pulling her close. "You're safe."

Elena clung to him for what seem liked forever, letting herself calm down. Damon smoothed her hair.

"Damon?" Elena asked, moving her face away from his chest and looking up at him. They stared at each other. It was like her room disappeared. Everything around her seemed to fade out as she looked at him through her dark wet lashes. Damon leaned down bringing his face closer to hers, his lips barely two inches away from hers…

Elena gasped! Opening her eyes, she sat up in her bed. The sun was shining through her window and hitting the foot of her bed, warming up her toes. Elena ran her fingers through her hair and looked around her room. She could hear the sink running in her washroom where Jeremy was brushing his teeth; the sound of dishes clinking downstairs in the kitchen. She looked at her clock. It was 9am on Saturday morning, the day of the Miss Mystic Falls gala. Elena let out a deep breath before reaching for her journal, hidden behind the picture frame that hung above her bed.

Last night…I dreamed of Damon Salvatore…