Disclaimer: I don't own Vampire Diaries or Starstruck or anything pertaining to either of these things except my own writing. You may recognize a bit at the end; it's from the song What You Mean to Me from Starstruck, which I don't own. I don't own the title, which is a line from the song Hard to Say I'm Sorry by Chicago.

A/N: Final chapter! Thank you all for your amazing reviews, favorites, and follows. Your support has been fantastic. Thank you.

Elena walked out of the bathroom the next day, modeling yet another dress for her sister and Mary. "Okay, come here and spin," Maggie ordered. Elena rolled her eyes but did as she was told.

"It's just not… girly, enough," Mary deduced.

"But imagine it on me. Girly-er right?"

Mary tilted her head, examining Elena and then glancing back at Maggie. "Hmmm… maybe."

"Why don't you just try it on yourself?" Elena asked logically.

"Stop complaining," her sister ordered. "We only have three hours before the dance. Try this one on." When Elena had gone, Mary smiled at Maggie.

"So, what was it like having reporters on your lawn?"

Margaret smiled, as though nostalgic. "Exciting. But hey, those people don't seem to get that I need my privacy too, you know?"

Mary nodded seriously. "We all watched your sister on TV and she looked like she lost her mind." Elena, about to walk around the corner into the room, stopped. "I mean, the way she made up that story about meeting Damon Salvatore? It was just so pathetic." Elena stormed past the girls, out onto the back porch. "Oops. Do you think she heard that?"

Maggie glared at her friend. "Mary, you're an idiot. Get out."

Mary's eyes widened. "But–"

Maggie pointed to the front door. "Go." Through the screen door, she could see Elena. "Elena," she tried.

"Leave me alone."

She opened the door. "I can't. I'm you're sister."

"Then what d'you want?"

"Go to the dance with me."

Elena wouldn't look at her. "I thought I was pathetic and embarrassing."

"Not all the time. Come on." Margaret held out her hands. "Let's go get prettied up." Elena stared at her sister's hands for a second before taking them and allowing herself to be pulled back inside.

At the dance, Elena and Maggie made their entrance arm in arm. "You look great," the latter told Elena. "Now, tonight, I don't want you thinking about Cali, okay? Focus on having fun, partying, and talking to actual people."

"You know, Mags," Elena said, "in a weird way, you're kind of a good sister."

Maggie smiled. "Aw." Then she became serious and tacked on to that sentiment, "Pretend you don't know me." Elena laughed and shook her head as her sister disappeared in the crowded gym. Surrounding her were all of Elena's peers, already having the best time with their friends. But Elena had no idea were to even begin to join in.

She had only been standing alone for a moment, however, when the lights on the stage fell to a dim glow; then there was only a single spotlight. Someone walked across the stage into the light, and the girls immediately began to scream and shout. Damon Salvatore. Elena stared at the stage, feeling like a train that had come to an abrupt and unplanned halt.

"Elena Gilbert?" The whole capacity of the gym turned to look at her, but she couldn't move, unable to believe her eyes. She couldn't be so insane as to be dreaming all this, could she? "There're some things I forgot to say to you back in California." The students, with an 'Oooh,' felt a uniting sense of excitement over the welcome turn of events.

"Elena, I can't blame you for thinking that you never knew me at all," Damon began. "I tried to deny how you made me feel because I thought it would be easier if I let you come back here after the way we left it. But nothing I've ever done made me feel as wrong as that had. See, I thought I'd been protecting you from everything I have to go through every day, but I can see now that my efforts got lost along the way, and it only ended with my hurting you. I never meant to let you down, Elena, and I'll never make that mistake again. I can't afford to. Not when you're the one who says all those things no one else will say to me. Not when you somehow bring me back to who I am."

All the girls sounded an 'Awww' as Damon jumped off the stage. He stood in front of Elena, but she refused to give in.

"What did you think, Damon?" she wanted to know. "That you'd come here, deliver some of your perfectly crafted lines and I'd forget how badly you treated me?"

"Um… yes?" She raised her eyebrows. "No? No."

Her eyes turned up to him, she demanded, "Well? Which is it?"

"I just came to tell you I was wrong. About everything. Especially about you."

Andy Starr rushed in and stood beside the two with a microphone, the cameraman by her side.

"Don't you think you're a little late?" Elena, though she felt like crying, held her head high. "Everyone here thinks I was lying."

"I'm the one who lied." He noticed Andy in that second and a light flashed in his eyes. He grabbed the microphone from the 'news' anchor and stared directly into the camera lens. "I lied about knowing Elena Gilbert. I do know her. She's a terrible navigator and know-it-all." Damon turned to Elena. "But she's honest. And when she makes a promise, she keeps it." He lowered the microphone. "Elena, I'm so sorry that I hurt you. And I will never do anything like that again. Just… forgive me."

Elena glanced down at her feet. Should she forgive him? Would dealing with his crap be worth everything she'd get in return?

She looked back up at him, searching his face for the answers. She looked to Andy Starr. "Go away," she ordered. "Now." Andy immediately turned to her cameraman and pushed him until they could no longer be seen in the crowd. Then, Elena grabbed Damon's arm and pulled him out through the mass of people to the hallway, dead silence all around.

In the empty hall, Elena faced him.

"I know what I want to say," she said. "I want to act like everything's okay, like none of the bad in LA ever happened. But I'm not a liar."
"'Lena–"

"It's my turn. How am I supposed to trust you? After everything?"
"That's how this works, Elena; you give it a chance."

Elena looked at the linoleum floor. He was right about that bit. Being scared shouldn't be enough to hold you back, she knew, but she was just so unsure.

"And what would that entail?" she asked after a second.

"Go out with me, Elena. On a date."

"Would I have to wear a disguise?"

"No."
"Would you have to wear a disguise?"

"No."

That was it, then. It was either make up her mind now, take the chance, or let him walk out of her school and life like none of it had ever happened. But they would both know the truth. And dealing with that the past week had been killing her.

"Okay."

Damon, clearly expecting bad news, sagged. When he realized what Elena had actually said, he did a double take. "You're serious, right?"
"And here I thought you were smooth with girls. Yeah. I'm serious. Don't mess up." She was half-kidding, but he nodded.

"I won't." He smiled a little at her, and Elena tried not to show how much she had missed it. But before either of them could do anything else, Margaret, who had cracked open the gym door, cleared her throat. Elena sighed.

"Damon, this is my sister, Margaret. Maggie, this Damon Salvatore." Maggie smiled unbelievably wide and nodded, then promptly lost consciousness. Alaric, however, had conveniently appeared in the moment to catch her.

"Continue," he told Elena and Damon, helping Maggie away.

Damon studied Elena for a moment before smiling and reaching into his pocket. "I almost forgot." He held up his sunglasses. "For you."

Elena took them from him, smiling approvingly. "You remembered." She slipped them on and then inquired, "How do I look?"

"Stunning, if that wasn't obvious." He pulled out a pair of glasses for himself and put them on.

"Thanks for this."

"Believe me," Damon said, "we wouldn't be having this beautiful moment" (cue a laugh on Elena's part) "if it hadn't been for your brilliant sense of direction."
"And how is that?"
"It brought us right here."