"Elena, you're not trying to tell me you and Damon haven't had sex, you two can't keep your eyes off each other!" Bonnie exclaimed as she, Caroline, and I shared dinner at the grill one Friday afternoon.

My cheeks turned red, "We've only been dating for a couple of weeks, it's not like I'm going to wait till marriage, but we still are taking it slow."

"Girl, you need to get on that. Literally. And then report back with details because if I was gonna cheat on Stefan with anyone it would be Damon," Caroline revealed.

Bonnie and I bursted out in giggles. I was the first to recover, "Caroline! That's an awful thing to say!"

"It's not like I'm actually going to cheat on Stefan, but everyone in this town knows Damon is equivalent to a greek god. He's absolutely gorgeous!" She defended herself.

I rolled my eyes and took a sip of my drink. "Anyway, Damon and I will do the dirty when we're ready."

My phone started ringing and I looked down to see the name Damon pop up. "Speak of the devil, excuse me for two seconds," I exited myself from the table to talk privately.

"Hey, what's up?" I answered.

"Babe," he slurred. I sighed, he was drunk. News leaks were happening about speculations on the failed mission. More and more reporters started calling the house and asking for interviews, which were always declined. Damon wasn't dealing with the publicity well. Strangers approached him about what they thought happened. Some would say nice things, thanking him for his service. That wasn't what bothered him. There were people who would get a hold of his number to say cruel things to him, accusing him of killing his teammates. I don't know what happened when he was in Afghanistan, but I was sure that Damon would never purposely put his friends in danger or 'kill them'.

The worst thing people would say is that he was exaggerating his story or making it up. That infuriated me the most because if they stepped in his shoes for one fucking day they would see the visible and mental scars that were left from war.

"Where are you?" I asked, knowing that I would have to go pick him up.

"Home," he answered. I heard Stefan in the background arguing with Damon.

"Is everything okay?"

Before he could answer, I heard more fighting and then the phone went silent. I thought the conversation had ended until I heard Stefan's voice, "Hi Elena, it's Stefan. I know you're at dinner so I'm apologizing for Damon. He is having a bad day."

I knew what bad days were, enough to know that 'bad' was an understatement. What were said to be Damon's good days still were rough. Bad was horrible. As in he usually didn't get out of bed. If he did, he was either extremely irritated and angry all day or plagued by flashbacks and nightmares. His bad days were horrible because no matter what any of us tried to do to help, they never got any better. He was stuck in his own personal hell.

"What happened?" I asked, knowing that if he was getting wasted at home then something specific must have triggered it.

"Ever since he came back from therapy he's been in a horrible mood. I asked him what they were talking about to get him so worked up, but he didn't tell me much," he explained.

"Well, I'll stop by after dinner to check up on him," I promised. Stefan did so much for his brother, I knew that dealing with Damon drunk the entire night wasn't at the top of his priorities.

"Thank you, Elena. Again, I'm so sorry about this."

"Don't apologize, it's not your fault. I'll be over soon," I said before hanging up and heading back to the table.

My face must have given away my concern because Bonnie immediately asked what was wrong. I shook my head, "Damon's upset about something. It's nothing big."

Bonnie rolled her eyes and said, "Of course he is."

Caroline's eyebrows raised in surprise, while I whipped my head towards her with a glare. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?" I snapped.

She squirmed in her seat and rushed to explain, "Elena, all I want you to be is happy. I just think Damon is troubled and not the best guy for you."

Before I could yell, Caroline stepped in, "Bonnie. You don't even know Damon, he is going through a lot. Be a little more understanding."

"All I'm saying is the he has been in numerous bar fights, he drinks like a fish. He's practically a homebody at the bar. He always is angry and rude to people. And how many women has he been with since he's been back? Sure, I don't know him well but those don't seem like 'good guy' qualities," she said.

My fists curled in anger. I clenched my teeth and seethed, "You don't know the first thing about Damon, Bonnie. He's a great guy."

Bonnie either chose to ignore me or didn't hear me because she continued, "None of us even know what happened to him in Afghanistan! For all we know he could be going crazy! It's not like it's uncommon with soldiers, they go fight in war and come back a completely different person and never-"

"Shut up!" I half yelled, directing strangers attention to our table. I continued in an angry whisper, "If you want to be a complete judgmental bitch about this, then go right ahead. I don't want to hear any of this."

I grabbed my purse and stormed out of the restaurant to my car, still furious. I climbed in my car and slammed the door. I couldn't believe the nerve Bonnie had. Going crazy? Was she fucking serious? Damon was not going crazy. She didn't know what the hell she was talking about. I had never been so angry at my best friend in my life.

I pulled away and sped to the Salvatore house, anxious to see my boyfriend. The entire time I gripped the wheel so hard my knuckles were white. In my head, I couldn't get over what happened at dinner. I wondered what Caroline did when I left and I started to feel a little bad I stormed out like that and she had to deal with the rest.

Once I got there, I headed straight to Damon's room and passed Stefan in the living room. I quickly said hi and practically ran up the stairs. His door was open and I saw him sitting on the side of his bed, staring at a picture. His face held the upmost anguish and I could tell he was fighting back tears. My anger diminished immediately and I knocked lightly against his wooden door to let him know my presence. I knew better than to come up from behind him without a warning because he'd react one of two ways out of fear of being attacked. He'd either react violently or have a panic attack; neither of the two options were ideal.

He turned his head enough to see who it was and returned to stare at the picture. I slowly walked to take a seat next to him. He still hadn't said anything to me. He clearly had sobered up since I last talked to him on the phone. The both of us sat in silence, I didn't want to push him so I waited for him to start.

I glanced at the picture and saw a picture of him and a tall, built, blonde haired man. They were both in uniform and had big smiles on their faces. I don't think I've seen Damon with a smile as big as that one before.

"His name's Cam," he suddenly said. I watched his face as he looked up towards the ceiling and blinked. I took his free hand and held it between mine. Once he gathered himself he explained, "He was my best friend."

"Tell me about him," I offered because it was good to remember the happy things about the loved ones you've lost as opposed to remembering how you lost them.

He set the picture down and started talking, "He was this cocky guy who was two years older than me. The first time I met him in Iraq we almost got into a fight. We ended up becoming brothers and went in Afghanistan together. He was hilarious and always kept everyone in a good mood, even when things were rough. He was the bravest and smartest soldier I have ever met. He would do anything to keep his teammates alive and was the best person I know."

His voice cracked at the end he looked away. I reached and turned his face towards mine to see a tear falling down. Without saying a word, I took him in my arms. It was the first time Damon shared anything remotely serious with me, I knew how hard that was for him and I didn't want to screw it up by saying the wrong thing. Damon wrapped his arms around my waist and squeezed tightly.

No more tears fell down after the first one. Even when I hugged him, he held everything else in. When he pulled away, he leaned in and gave me a soft kiss. "Thanks for listening, and dealing with that," he said. His cheeks were red with embarrassment.

"You can share anything with me, Damon. I want to listen and be able to help," I said seriously.

He gave me another, longer kiss. "How was dinner?" he asked, changing the subject.

I suppressed an angry grunt. I laid back on the bed and said, "It went okay. Bonnie and I got into a fight."

I really didn't want to get into why and make Damon upset about stupid girl drama, especially when it was about him. "About what?" he asked, putting his hand on my leg.

"Stupid stuff. She's being her usual judgmental self about me being in a relationship and doesn't want me getting hurt," I explained, making sure to roll my eyes to let him know how ridiculous I thought it was.

"I would never intentionally hurt you," he promised. He shifted and rolled over on top of me with his arms on either side of me to keep his body from squishing mine.

I smiled and kissed his nose, "I know that. She doesn't."

With one smooth movement, Damon had me on top of him. He stared at me intently, his eyes taking in my body. My cheeks turned pink from shyness. "What?" I asked with a nervous giggle.

"You're beautiful," he breathed. He sat up, his face inches from mine.

I smiled and held his face between my hands, giving him another long kiss. My one hand reached for the hem of his shirt. He quickly stopped me and asked, "Are you sure?"

"I've never been more sure in my life," I responded easily, while I continued to get him out of his shirt.

To my dismay he stopped me again and looked at me with worried eyes. "Don't ask questions," he pleaded.

"What do you mean?"

As soon as his shirt was off I understood his plea. On his left shoulder were two circular scars that looked as if they were caused by bullets. His stomach had a longer scar that ran from his rib down to his hip. Another thicker, more noticeable scar was lower on his stomach, almost at his pant line. On his back were thinner scars, as if they were just serious scratches at one point.

Tears gathered in my eyes and I couldn't help but to gasp. "Oh Damon," I whispered as I took it all in. Besides his scars and mutilations, Damon's body was perfect. He was a bit skinny, so I could see the outline of his ribs. I assumed this was from his deployment, but he was getting healthier by the day. I could still see the muscles in his arms and back. When he sat up, his six pack was easily noticeable.

Along with his strength were more parts of him that told gave away his SEAL background. Hanging from his neck were his dog tags that had his identification engraved on them. Damon had more tattoos besides the never forget with the four sets of initials and a date on the inner side of his arm that I saw the first time I met him. A larger tattoo that read, Dead Upon the Field of Glory was spread across his upper back between his shoulders. A tattoo on his right rib read I've served my time in Hell. On his left shoulder was a large seal trident. I lightly traced the last one with my right hand. My other hand rested at his neck.

He shook his head and kept his eyes lowered. He looked up to me with wide eyes and begged again, "Please, don't ask about them."

I covered my mouth and asked in shock, "How can I not? Who did this to you?"

Damon started to get up, but I put my hand on his chest and forced him back on the bed. "I knew this was a bad idea, you shouldn't have seen these. I understand if you don't-"

"Stop," I demanded in a harsh voice. I forced him to look at me as I reassured, "I'm not going to ask you about the scars or tattoos, Damon. Of course I want to know and take care of you, but not until you're ready. You're beautiful, Damon. These scars- they're just a part of that."

Damon's mouth dropped a little and I knew he was speechless. I gave him a kiss and lowered myself so that I could continue to touch my lips to every single part of him, making sure I was slow and extra tender around his scars. Once I finished, Damon said, "I want you, now."

I smirked, "Then take me."

The next morning when I woke up Damon was nowhere to be found. I smiled as I remembered falling asleep with my head in the crook of his neck and our arms draped around each other. The smell of bacon reached my nose and I smiled. After quickly putting on one of his sweatshirts and my yoga pants, I skipped down the stairs to the kitchen.

I found Damon cooking breakfast, but unfortunately I was not the only recipient. Caroline and Stefan were chatting at the island. Caroline saw me first and smirked, "Good morning, Elena."

Three pairs of eyes turned to me which made my cheeks turn bright red, "Morning everyone."

Damon gave me a kiss and asked how I slept. "Good, where did you go?" I asked before slipping my arms around him from behind as he cooked.

"Couldn't sleep, so I watched TV downstairs," he replied.

"Did you sleep at all?" I asked, already knowing the answer would be no. Damon's sleep schedule was that of an owl.

He shrugged. "No, but I'll get some today. I don't have any plans," He turned around and added with a smile, "Now, take a seat and let me feed you some breakfast."

I followed his direction and took a seat next to Stefan. He turned and gave me a half smile, "Have a good night?"

I slapped him on the arm, "Shut up!"

He laughed for a second, but whispered, "Seriously though. However you cheered him up, I'm glad you did. He needed some distractions."

I smiled but didn't have a chance to respond because Damon turned around and handed us all a plate of breakfast. The four of us chatted about nonsense until Caroline headed out. She worked at the bakery from 9am - 9pm, mostly because she owned it and wanted to hire the least amount of employees as possible.

The rest of us had the day off. I turned to Stefan and asked, "What are your plans for the day?"

He shrugged, "Damon and I were supposed to meet for lunch with our dad, but he cancelled because of work. I'd like to take you somewhere though, I need your help."

My eyebrows shot up in surprise. I had no idea what Stefan would need my help for. "What can I help you with?"

Stefan smiled and replied, "You'll see. Can you be ready in twenty minutes?"

I nodded and agreed to meet in the kitchen by 10:15. Damon and I headed back upstairs to his room. I plopped on his bed and rolled to my side so I could face him as he stripped his clothes off for a shower. I stared at the Dead Upon the Field of Glory tattoo and asked, "When did you get that tattoo? The one on your back?"

Without turning around he answered, "After I got back from my last tour in Iraq. Alaric and I got tatted. He got the beginnings of a sleeve on his right arm."

"What made you choose that quote?" I wondered aloud. The quote was pretty depressing to say the least.

"Things I saw, experienced. A lot of people I met and the way they died," he explained. He wrapped a towel around himself and walked to the bathroom, to where I followed him.

"Are they the initials on your arm?" I asked tentatively. I knew this would surely be a sensitive subject and I was approaching dangerous grounds.

I waited as he turned on the shower and felt the temperature. He didn't answer until he stepped in, where the quickly rising steam prevented me from seeing him through the glass. "Part of them," he admitted.

I bit my tongue and thought about whether or not I should ask more about it. The tightness in his voice warned me not to. My decision making was interrupted when Damon's voice called my name.

I cleared my throat, "Yeah?"

"It's just a tattoo. It had way more meaning then than it does now. Please don't think anything of it," he pleaded.

"But you just said-" I argued.

"I know what I said. I don't want to talk about any of my tattoos or anything else," he said, in reference to his scars.

I sighed in defeat, "Okay."

There was a tense silence for the rest of his shower. I changed and did my hair and makeup while Damon put on sweats and a T-shirt. When I walked out of the bathroom, Damon was laying on his bed watching TV. Cari rested next to him with her head on his chest. I smiled and sat on the edge of the bed on his other side. "You gonna sleep now?" I asked.

He nodded and said, "Please don't think too much about what I said."

"I just want you to be happy," I replied, caressing his face with my hand.

He smiled and leaned into my hand. "I know," he whispered. "Thank you for caring."

I kissed him and pet Cari for a second before leaving to go out with Stefan. He was waiting in the car when I got downstairs. I jogged to the passenger door and climbed in. "Sorry," I apologized, "I didn't mean to keep you waiting."

He waved his hand to shush me. "It's all good. I'm just glad you're able to come."

"Of course. Now tell me what I'm helping you out with, I'm dying from curiosity!" I exclaimed.

He laughed but responded seriously, "You'll see when we get there. First, I wanna talk about you and Damon."

My cheeks turned red and I nervously played with my thumbs. I figured this was the 'he is my family don't hurt him' lecture. To my surprise Stefan started with, "To be honest, in the beginning when you and Damon met, I didn't want you guys dating. Not because of you, because of him."

He chuckled when he saw my eyes grow with surprise. He continued as he kept his eyes on the road, "Damon was, well still is, in a dark place. I want you to understand that, Elena. I'm not trying to make you run away or rethink you're relationship."

I nodded but stayed quiet to allow him to continue. "You're good for him, I can tell. I just want you to know what you're getting into before it's too deep. I don't want either of you hurt, but I care deeply about Damon. He's my brother and he's been through hell and I don't want a bad relationship to ruin that."

"I'm not going to hurt him, I promise," I interrupted. I couldn't imagine doing anything that would cause more pain to Damon. The thought brought tears to my eyes.

"I know that you wouldn't intentionally. Like I said, you're good for him and you make him happy. But the relationship is new and you haven't seen everything yet. There's a lot that Damon tries to keep hidden and when it comes out it's difficult to deal with. Katherine left when-"

"Wait, who is Katherine?" I asked, completely confused.

"You haven't had the exes talk yet?" I shook my head. "Oh shit, well I guess I'll tell you anyway. She was his ex girlfriend, they met in high school. Started dating before his first deployment to Iraq. She ended up cheating on him and leaving him when he came home. When he left for Afghanistan, his next tour, I have never seen him so defeated. It was like he had nothing to fight for anymore. Saying bye to him then felt like saying goodbye to him forever, I thought he wasn't coming back."

I covered my mouth, how much pain has Damon dealt with in his life? Stefan continued, "And I hated her for that, for taking away the fight in my brother. I still hate her. But after a lot of thinking about and questioning her decision, I see her side. Not the cheating, but caring about someone who is in the military, especially the SEALs is hard. They are gone constantly and you never know where they are deployed to and if they're in danger. We won't have to worry about that because Damon is no longer a SEAL, but we all have to deal with the toll war took on him."

"Stefan, I had no idea about Katherine. That's terrible. I want you to know that I would never leave Damon because he has too many problems or however you want to put it. I want to help him get better," I defended myself and my feelings for Damon.

He nodded and pulled off the highway. "I believe you, I never doubted you care about him. I just want you to know there is a possibility Damon will never fully heal from all of this. He might not ever be completely okay. I know that sounds morbid, but it's a possible reality."

"I don't care. Of course I want him to get better, but if he doesn't that's not going to change my feelings for him," I responded.

Stefan's shoulders relaxed as if a weight was pulled off him. "I worry about him, that's why I'm having this conversation with you. It's not because I think you're like Katherine or something. I think you're great," he offered.

I smiled and thanked him. When Stefan pulled into the parking lot of Tiffany & Co, my eyes went wide. "Are you proposing to me? After all of that?" I joked.

He chuckled, "I'm here to confess my love for you, Elena."

I smiled and said, "Seriously though. You're planning on proposing to Caroline?"

A giant smile spread across his face as he explained, "I want to on our three year anniversary, which is two months away. I'm asking for your help in picking a ring."

I couldn't contain my excitement as I reached over and hugged him, "Of course! Oh my god, this is great! I would love to help!"

We walked into Tiffany & Co and were greeted immediately by two women workers. "Mr. Salvatore, how may we help you?"

He politely responded, "I'm just looking around today. Thank you."

They both nodded and said to call if he needed anything. As they walked away I asked, "Been here before?"

He shook his head, "Fortunately or not, my dad made the Salvatore name pretty big. It's not often we get recognized."

I scrunched my nose, I didn't know that the Salvatores were that big of a deal. Stefan didn't seem to like it, but wasn't uncomfortable. I suddenly remember Damon and I's first date at the fundraiser. Damon seemed squirmy and extremely agitated with all the attention the reporters gave us. Stefan, as I now recalled, answered the questions smoothly and gave a great smile for the 'paparazzi' as he and Caroline entered.

Stefan must have noticed the look on my face because he reassured, "Mostly because it's a small area and my dad handles a lot of the bigger cases. It's not as if we get followed around like a celebrity, there is just a little attention on us."

I didn't say anything and kept my eyes on the two women workers, who both were giggling and watching Stefan like adolescents. I rolled my eyes and turned my attention to the reason we were there. "So what are you thinking for the ring?" I asked.

Stefan ended up buying a stunning platinum band with a round 14 carat diamond at the center, with two smaller stones on either side. Gold lining intertwined the stones in the most perfect way. The ring was absolutely gorgeous and I was so excited for Caroline. After we checked out, in which I didn't even want to hear how much the ring actually cost, we headed straight back to Stefan and Damon's home.

I knew that Damon would be sleeping for a while, so I went to my house and packed a few things up in my room. I wanted to ask Damon more about the apartment because I desperately needed a space of my own now that I was more independent. Looking at old pictures was both fun and saddening. When I saw a picture of me and my parents the night of my junior year prom, I started crying. Sometimes I forgot how much I actually missed them. How I missed their guidance and constant love and support.

Tears poured down my face as I packed more pictures and memories. I didn't even notice what time it was until I got a call from Damon at five in the evening.

"How was your day?" he asked after we greeted each other.

I tried to stop my tears and gather myself, but I ended up sucking in a lot of air and hiccuping. "Hey, what's wrong? Are you crying?" He asked immediately, the concern was evident in his voice.

"Yeah, yeah," I sniffed, "I'm fine. Just looking at old pictures. Remembering my parents." I wiped my tears in an effort to pull myself together.

"Oh, babe. I'm coming over now," he reassured.

"You don't have to," I argued. I knew how much he hated driving.

"I'l be there in ten minutes," he promised and the conversation ended. In all honesty, I was glad he was coming over. I wanted company - someone who could understand. And if anyone could understand loss, it was Damon.

Like he promised, he was there within ten minutes. I heard him greet Jenna and soon enough he was at my door, Cari at his feet. "I brought someone who might be able to help," he said.

I chuckled through my tears as Cari ran over and licked my face. I pet her face and wrapped my arms around her. Damon came and sat next to me. He wrapped his arm around me and pulled me in. "Tell me about them," he asked.

I told him story after story about my beloved parents. He listened intently and laughed at funny parts and was quiet during more serious stories. Once in a while, he would relate a story to one with his parents, mostly when his mom was alive. After my last story, I realized it was closing in on eight o'clock. "I'm sorry for keeping you for so long," I apologized to him. We were now laying on the floor next to each other, pictures all over.

"Shh. I want to be here and hear these stories. Don't ever apologize," he reprimanded. "What are you packing up for anyway?" He added.

I sat up, "That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I wanna move in your apartment soon, of course if it's still okay with you."

"Yeah, that's completely fine with me. I have to move the rest of my stuff out but by next weekend it'll be clear of my shit," he said.

"Thank you so much, it means a lot," I thanked him. He helped me clean up the pictures and put more of my crap in boxes. He laughed when he found pictures of me and Jeremy when we were younger. One was of me naked in the bathtub, making a silly face at the camera. He took the picture and asked if he could keep it. "I mean, I don't care," I responded.

He chuckled again and pocketed it. I rolled my eyes and slapped him. "What? You're adorable!" He innocently exclaimed.

"Next time we go to your house, I'm asking Stefan for embarrassing pictures of you," I warned.

"You won't find any, I was a stud, even as a kid," he smirked.

I raise an eyebrow, "Sure you were."

Damon and I finished up and headed downstairs. "Do you want to eat something before you leave?" I asked.

He shook his head, "No. I'll just eat something at home. Have a good day at work tomorrow."

I nodded and kissed him, "You okay to drive home?"

"Yeah, it's fine," he replied. He kissed me one more time and called Cari and headed out. I watched him with a smile as he drove away, I hadn't felt so happy with someone in a long time.