Chapter 7 - Where Do We Stand?

"What do you guys think the dream means?" I asked my friends. Bonnie, Caroline, and I were at Mystic Grill. I had just told them about the dream I had with Damon in it. "What did he say?" Caroline asked. "He didn't say anything." I said. Bonnie and Caroline looked at each other, exchanging looks as if they were keeping something from me. "Well, here's what I think - you and Damon are meant to have a future together." she smiled.

I shook my head slightly, thinking that she was crazy. "Caroline, I'm still in high school." I told her. "I can't think about my future right now, except for graduating high school and possibly going to college. Speaking of college, what college am I going to? My life... my life is over."

Caroline sighed, "You're being over dramatic Elena. Maybe you need a drink."

"She doesn't need a drink Care." Bonnie said, walking over to me and gave me a hug. "Thanks, I really needed it." I told her, hugging her back. "Well, you might as well confront Damon about your current situation with that dream of yours." Caroline said. Bonnie and I pulled away from our hug as I nodded in agreement.

"I guess you're right. I should go and talk to him. I'll see you guys at school tomorrow." I said, grabbing my bag and jacket, and walked out of Mystic Grill. I drove down to the Salvatore boarding house, parking my car in the driveway. I got out of the car and set my bag down on the chair near the entrance of the living room. "How was your day?" Damon asked me as I plopped down on the couch.

Damon sneaking up on me finally got old, even as a vampire. "Exhausting." I said as he handed me a glass of blood. I was thankful for having Damon around and my friends, but there were times when I just needed a minute to myself. He sat down next to me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. "Tell me about it." he said. I took a sip of the blood and turned to face him. I all ready confronted him about the dream, how was I going to be able to confront him about what Caroline thought?

"I saw Bonnie and Caroline today. I asked them about their take on the dream." I said.

"What did they say?" he asked.

"Caroline believes that you and I have some sort of future together. By future, I mean past graduation and college, like getting married and such." I said. He nodded slowly, and didn't say a single word after that. Here he was sitting in deep thought like the night I told him, and leaving me with no clue what he was thinking. "What's on your mind?" I asked him.

He stood up and began to walk away. I stood up, "Damon. You can't just leave me hanging like this. We have to talk about this." He stopped and turned towards my direction. "I just have to know what you're thinking." I muttered, almost silently.

"What I'm thinking is that Caroline may be right Elena." he said. "But I know you want to experience college and I'm going to give you the full experience. You and I..." He walked up to me, then reached up to caress my cheek. "We're going to get through this together and it doesn't matter what anyone says, just as long as we have each other." I leaned in and kissed his lips, then pulled away.

"I love you Elena, and I'm not going to leave you. You have to know that." he said. I nodded and then finished my glass, setting it down on the table. The door to the boarding house opened and closed as Caroline entered. "Hey Elena, I have an idea!" she beamed, walking up to me. She glanced at Damon who backed away, but maintained a good eye distance between us. "Okay...?" I asked her.

"Graduation is coming up in a few weeks, and I was thinking we should have a grad party here at your place." she smiled. My place? I asked myself, but I'm guessing the look on my face was more obvious than I thought. "It's going to be so much fun! It's our last final day in high school, and I figured that we go out with a bang. I even have a guest list set up and everything." she said.

I glanced towards Damon's direction whose face seemed unreadable. "Did you talk to Stefan?" I asked. She laughed a bit. "Why would I talk to Stefan? It's your house, not his." she said. I motioned over towards Damon's direction as she shrugged. "I'm sure it's okay with him."

"I'd be even more grateful if you'd ask Caroline." Damon said.

Caroline rolled her eyes. No matter what, she was going to get her way. Damon and I weren't going to let her have a party at the boarding house. "Give us at least time to talk it over Care." I said. She sighed, "Fine. I'll give you until the end of this week." With that statement, she left Damon and I alone. Damon walked back over to me and asked, "You're not going to go through with this, are you?"

"It's Caroline we're talking about." I answered. "I don't even want a party."

"Why's that?" he asked.

I smirked, "I just want to spend time with my sexy vampire boyfriend." Damon grinned and kissed my lips as I happily kissed him back. He scooped me up in his arms and then took me upstairs, closing the door behind us. He set me down on the bed and got on top of me, kissing my lips. "I loved you." he smiled when he pulled away for a moment. "I love you too." I smiled, kissing him once more.

...

Graduation was finally here and of course, Caroline had gotten her way and we were having a grad party at the Salvatore boarding house. I looked at myself in the mirror, wearing the red cap and gown. I couldn't believe that this day had finally arrived. I was graduating high school as a vampire. Damon entered bedroom, leaning against the wall with a glass of bourbon in his hand. "You look beautiful. Can't wait to see what you're wearing underneath." he smirked, finishing the glass and setting it down on the night stand.

I rolled my eyes and turned around to face him while he made his way towards my direction. "Just breathe, you'll be fine." he said. I took a deep breath and then nodded. We went downstairs and got into his car, then drove down to the high school where the ceremony was being held at. I have never felt so nervous in my entire life before. As soon as I got out of the car, I was greeted by all of my friends - Caroline, Bonnie, Tyler, Matt, and Stefan. We all gave each other a group hug, and suddenly the tears came.

"I cannot believe we're graduating." Caroline smiled.

"Who knew that we would finally get to share this moment together?" Matt asked.

"I've waited four years for this." Tyler said.

After the ceremony ended and we all moved our tassels from the left to the right, we tossed our hats into the air. Before I made my way over to Damon, I saw Stefan standing near his car in the parking lot with his hands in his pockets. I walked over to him and smiled, "Hey Stefan. We finally graduated."

"Yeah." he said. I sensed that something was wrong, but I was afraid to ask him any more questions. "Are you coming to the grad party?" I asked him.

"I'll see you later Elena." he said, then got in his car. I watched him back out of the parking lot and then drive away. "What's his problem?" Damon asked, walking up to me as I just shrugged. He and I walked back to his car, and then got in. We arrived at the Salvatore boarding house and Caroline was there waiting for us.

As soon as we walked up to her she told us that she brought some supplies for the grad party. Oh boy. I thought to myself. Knowing Caroline, everything must be put in a specific place. Tyler, Matt, Bonnie, and even Jeremy stopped by to help us with the decorations. While putting up decorations, my mind was still on Stefan. We hadn't spoken in a long time and I hate the idea of losing him as a friend.

I went upstairs and dialed Stefan's number. It rang at least twice before he picked up and answered. "Hello?"

"Stefan, before you hang up, I want to just ask you about earlier. Is everything okay?" I asked him.

"Everything's fine."

"Everything doesn't sound find. Stefan, I need you to talk to me."

"Caroline and I broke up."

"That's why you're not going to the party?"

"Good bye Elena."

"Stefan-" Before I could speak any further, I was left with a dial tone. I sighed, putting my phone back into my pocket. The news of Caroline and Stefan breaking up hadn't fully set in yet. I went back downstairs and grabbed a glass full of beer, then took a sip. "Thought we were going to keep this party alcohol free." Damon said about to take the cup away from my hands, but I resisted by pulling the cup from his grasp. "I really need a drink Damon." I said, finishing the beer and handing it back to him. The only question in my mind was where did Stefan and I stand? Were we still friends? Or were we not friends? I wondered to myself if I should just leave and go see Stefan, wherever he may be. I grabbed a few more drinks, knowing that Damon would disapprove but I didn't care, and danced with my friends who were all having fun. I wasn't going to let one question get the best of me, or was I?