All humans, at least once during their life, feel like monsters. Some of them even call themselves like that, either because they are bad people or because they hurt and destroy everyone around them. During our human life, we turn into monsters, one way or another. There is no happy ending for monsters. Is there one for humans? What happens when a monster turns back into human? What are the consequences? Elena would soon find the answer to all those questions.

Her sight became blurry and her knees weakened, as if they couldn't hold her small weight. Elena dropped to her knees on the wooden floor of the deck and wrapped her arms around her stomach. She was feeling sick. She could feel how the blood was leaving her previously rosy cheeks, leaving them pale and cold. She gasped for air, squeezing her eyes shut. All the intense senses, all the easiness to breathe, to move, they were all gone. She groaned and grabbed the balusters in front of her, panting. She was feeling dizzy and cold, as if she had fever. That was when Elijah's muscular arms locked around her, pulling her into his embrace. He was sitting on the floor, next to her, stroking her hair as she buried her face into his chest, without giving much thought to it. She gripped his shirt and sighed, remaining still, trying to control the overwhelming feelings. Being a vampire may had heightened everything she felt as human but this was completely different. It was like someone was sucking the life out of her, leaving her ill and emotionally empty, though being human again should mean exactly the opposite. She caught herself trembling, though Elijah's smoothing touch on her back helped her stop it.

"How are you feeling?" she heard his voice coming like from afar.
He was whispering against her hair and if she still were a vampire, she would be able to hear him far more than clearly. Now she felt deaf; helpless. She had forgotten how everything was when she was human and she had to admit, getting used to being a vampire now seemed much easier than this. She couldn't answer to him. She felt like if she did, she would throw up. Instead of getting better, the consequences of taking the cure seemed to get worse and worse by the minute. Her head was spinning, her thoughts were a mess and didn't follow a logical order. Flashes of her time with Damon, Stefan, her brother Jeremy and her best friends Bonnie and Caroline popped in front of her closed eyes. She started tearing up. The thought of leaving them all behind brought a consuming guilt and sorrow to pierce through her chest. She wasn't sure if the pain was more intense when she was a vampire or now as human again. What was she doing there? Why was she putting her trust into Elijah? It was because of his family that she was turned into a vampire in the first place; even though she was meant to actually die and not become a vampire. She had slept with him? Why? How could she? She felt an immediate need to be back in Damon's arms, just like the day before she had left Mystic Falls. She wanted to go back. This life far away from home was her vampire life. Now she wanted to go back, she needed it. It was her human life and it had to be again. She took a deep breath, feeling her lungs once again filling up with oxygen, and she pulled away from Elijah's protective embrace. She avoided eye contact with him and she tucked a strand of her long, straight hair behind her ear.

"I'm fine, Elijah." She nodded, realizing that her voice sounded different than before, when she was still a vampire. Her tone towards him was more formal, like it used to be every time they met in Mystic Falls. He had kept her company when she needed it, maybe a bit too much. She had actually starting growing feelings for him, she could see that now. As a vampire, the last two days, she felt like she needed him but it was because she felt he was connecting her to her past. What she needed was the past. Damon, her ex boyfriend, Stefan her ex boyfriend as well but lastly her friend. That's what she needed. She lifted her mocha coloured gaze to Elijah's facial features, only to find that he was staring at her already. There was something in his eyes, she could say that it was hope. She always had the feeling Elijah was watching her and somehow admiring her while she was human; she believed it was because he had forgotten how it was, to be human. He was a fan of humanity that was for sure, though she always wondered why he hadn't taken the cure himself when he possessed it. She blinked as she felt his hand brushing against her cheek. She shivered. After everything he did for her during the past few days, how could she tell him now that she couldn't do this?

She noticed a frown appearing on his forehead; he must have realized something was wrong. She exhaled sharply and stood up on her feet, supporting herself on the balusters. She averted her gaze away from him, focusing on the dark ocean lying ahead of them. The water was so calm that the stars of the night sky would almost reflect on it, if it wasn't for the fog floating just above its surface. Avoiding to look at Elijah again, Elena took a few, slow, weak steps towards the edge of the prow, with her attention fixed ahead onto the ocean, which was only lit by the moonlight. She stood on the small step, right behind the balusters separating the deck and the sea beneath. She found balance and slowly spread her arms to each side of her body, like waiting to hug someone. She tilted her head backwards and closed her eyes as a smile crept on her facial features. The last time she had felt the sensations of the sea, she was a vampire. She could feel everything much more intensely than now, yet this was much more refreshing and marvelous. She could feel her skin tingling from the cold breeze and her cheeks finding their rosy colour again. She could feel her heart racing due to the danger and the height, since she was standing on the edge. There were so many feelings she had earned when she turned into a vampire but also so many human feelings she had lost and regained now. It was officially her first night as human again. She wanted to consume it, just like she had consumed her vampire nature, though it had taken a while. Now she could feel like herself again; deep down she had always known that she didn't belong to be a vampire. She remained still, with her arms open, ready to embrace the ocean. She had gotten her life back. She was alive, again. All the excitement and adventures throughout her short vampire life had made her feel alive but the feeling of actually being human, with a real heartbeat was completely different to that. It was a unique feeling she had forgotten and regained. All these thoughts were interrupted by Elijah's hands that were suddenly positioned on her sides from the behind and his icy lips caressing the crook of her neck. She shivered but she didn't move. Her mind was telling her to pull away but her heart was right there, in that intimidating moment. She tilted her head to the side, giving him more access to her neck and she withdrew her spread arms, placing her palms on his now. Her eyes remained closed and an involuntary smile appeared on her face. She didn't even realize how fast his brims found her own, kissing them tenderly. She didn't reject him, instead she returned his kiss. Her previous instinct to go back to Mystic Falls, to Damon, it hadn't faded away. But there was something about Elijah that made her feel safe, in a completely different way. She couldn't define it. It wasn't love; but it certainly was magnetic attraction. His smooth, gentle touch, his tender, kisses, they were captivating her.

Their lips remained pressed against each other for a few more seconds before he pulled back and brought his mouth close to her ear, whispering in his usual, calm tone.
"You are so beautifully human, Elena. You have always been…this is how you belong to be."

She slowly fluttered her eyes open after hearing his profound words. She turned around to face him, placing her palms now against his vigorous chest, smiling up at him.

"Thank you." She answered in the same, whispering tone.
She wasn't sure about what exactly she was thanking him; giving her the cure, saying those enchanting words to her, keeping her company and being intimate with her during the past two days. Probably for all those reasons. Their gazes were locked together and she could feel as if she was reading her mind, a sensation she used to have with him back when she was human. His strong arms were now around her waist, holding her against him. What was going on inside his head? That was a question Elena had been asking herself from the first day they had met. He hardly ever smiled or expressed any emotions at all. But there was something in the way he was looking at her; sometimes she would call it caring but she doubted that term went along with the Original vampire in front of her, even if she knew for how long he had been in love with Katherine .

She watched him as he leaned in towards her, capturing her plush brims with his again, in a deeper and more passionate kiss than before. She ran her arms up his chest and snaked them around his neck, not rejecting him. She needed this. The warmth, the intimacy, she craved it for her first night as human again. Soon she heard the wind spinning against her ear and felt her back pressing against a flat surface. She opened her eyes, just a little without breaking their kiss, only to find that they were inside the ship, in the corridor close to her cabin; he must have transferred them there with his vampire speed, an ability she had now lost. He was biting her lower lip, tugging on it, making her moan softly into the kiss. She wanted him, she couldn't deny that to herself. All the thoughts of Damon and Stefan were now clouded by her lust and burning desire. Maybe this was not the right thing to do, maybe her mind was telling her differently, maybe her heart was lying elsewhere but he was all she wanted at that moment. She kept her eyes closed so she wouldn't get dizzy as he kept blurring them around the corridors with his original vampire speed till they were inside her cabin. They collapsed on the single bed, with him on top of her. She helped him take off his jacket prior to ripping his shirt open, letting the buttons fall on the mattress all around their bodies. She didn't care if he wanted to stay a gentleman, moral and firm in his suit. She wanted, she needed to touch him. She could feel his strong hands running up her thighs, lifting her dress along the way before pulling it completely off of her body, leaving her in her black laced underwear. She arched her back, pressing her chest desperately against his own, needing to be as close to him as possible. Her heart was racing; the blood pumping fast inside her veins. She ran her hands up and down his muscular back slowly, tilting her head backwards against the mattress as he left her lips, leaving a trail of heated, open-mouthed kisses down her neck and collarbone, then slowly down her exposed cleavage, his hands squeezing her breasts gently when his face was between them. Elena couldn't hold back her pleasurable moans. The shivers, the butterflies in the stomach, the desire, they were overwhelming her. She opened her eyes, looking down at him as he was taking her bra off before kissing down towards her stomach, tracing the hem of her underwear with his tongue. Elena sank her white pearls into her bottom lip, nipping it while running her digits through his dark locks, gripping them. Elijah took off her underwear hastily and spread her slender legs, putting each one over his bare strong shoulders so his face was right between her inner thighs. All Elena could do was watch him in anticipation as he grazed his tongue along her inner thigh till he reached her sensitive area, caressing her dripping entrance with the tip of his tongue. His lips caught her clit, sucking it teasingly, causing an escapade of loud moans to emerge through Elena's parted brims. Elena tightened her grip on his locks, her free hand gripping the thin white sheets underneath them. She had to admit that as a vampire, intense desire came to her much easier than when she was human; but with him right now it was totally different. He had his ways, experienced throughout the centuries, driving her crazy with a simple touch of his lips to the right spot. His tongue worked its way inside her throbbing folds, sucking and cleaning her bitter juices that were floating out. Elena had to bite harder on her bottom lip to suppress the moans from escaping. His teasing actions had brought her too close to the edge when he pulled away, licking his lips as he came up to kiss her, positioning himself between her legs now, easily sliding his thick length deep inside her aching core. He grabbed her hands and pinned them on the mattress, next to each side of her head. His face was right above hers as he started moving, rolling his hips against hers slowly, filling her completely with every thrust. He was staring down at her, straight into her chocolate brown hues. It felt more like he was looking like through her soul. She kept her eyes locked with his, her mouth open so she could moan and pant freely as her hips were rocking in sync with his, radically increasing the speed. At some moment she thought she saw him smiling but it was too brief to be sure it was real. Their bodies were moving together as one, in the heated, sweating atmosphere. Their lips were brushing against each other as he was grinding against her, thrusting in and out deeply and sensually, causing more satisfied and lustful shivers to run down her spine as she was coming closer to her climax. It was when his lips found her neck and trailed her skin towards her shoulder when she couldn't control herself any longer, releasing her sweet juices all over his shaft deep inside her; at the same time he exploded inside of her as well, filling her up with his warm cum. His thrusts then became rare, soft and shallow, his face buried inside the crook of her neck, his heavy breath caressing her sweaty skin there. She closed her eyes and felt a sly smile tugging on her features before she released a quiet, content sigh. She groaned softly as he pulled out of her and rolled on the mattress by her side, with his muscular arms pulling her in his embrace right away. She didn't feel regret for going down this road with him again. Instead she felt a wave of tiredness consuming every single part of her body. Being human meant getting tired more easily, that's a rule she would get used to again. She laid her head upon his chest and closed her eyes, breathing normally again. Sooner or later she would have to talk with him, about this thing going on between them, about her attitude towards it, about her feelings…feelings? She had to frown at that word passing through her mind. Maybe it wasn't love yet, but…no. She pushed all those thoughts out of her mind. Tomorrow was a brand new day and everything would be clear, inside her head and between them. Right now she felt like she used to back when she was human; she didn't know for sure what she wanted. She was afraid.
They didn't exchange any words; she knew he could feel how weak and tired she was. He brushed his fingertips against her hair smoothly, making sure to cover their bodies with the blanket that was provided by the ship's crew. Now that she was human again, cold was another weakness she had to deal with. She dozed off, cuddled up against his chest, falling into a deep sleep; so deep that she didn't even feel or hear the sudden, rough thud that struck the ship a few hours later.