a/n: I decided to be nice and post this today because I have yet to start One Kiss. Luckily this chapter was already done because I haven't had time to write in a week. Alright, time to see what happens after that evil cliffhanger I left you with :)

SEVEN

Time seemed to stand still as Damon's eyes dropped to her stomach. Slowly, he looked up to meet her gaze. Both of their worlds had been turned upside down the moment she opened the door and neither of them knew what to say. Damon's gaze moved to Stefan's face. His little brother looked outrageously happy and Damon was overcome with guilt. "Congratulations," he said around a tight throat and forced a smile.

Stefan beamed, but Elena said nothing. "Hey, we were just going out to dinner. Would you like to join us?"

Elena's eyes went wide, but she didn't comment. "Sure," he answered, knowing he didn't have a good enough excuse to say no. "I can follow you."

"Nonsense," Stefan said, shaking his head. "You can ride with us. You're car will be here when we get back. Let me take care of this and then we can go," he said and kissed Elena's forehead before leaving the room.

The tension in the room magnified as Damon and Elena stared at one another. Damon had a million and one questions for her, but nothing would come out of his mouth. She looked like a deer caught in the headlights and her mind was going a mile a minute, trying to understand what was going on. "Elena-" his voice finally pulled her out of her daze.

Before either of them could say anything more, Stefan returned to the room and linked his hand with hers. "Alright, let's go. Any preference?" he asked both of them.

"No," they muttered, neither of them feeling very hungry anymore.

Stefan got behind the wheel as the other two rounded the car and paused. "Go ahead," Elena said, gesturing to the passenger door. Without waiting for a response, she opened the door to the backseat and slid in. She sat behind Damon, figuring that it would be easier if they couldn't see each other for as long as possible. She knew he was still trying to process reality just like she was.

"I can't believe we've been living in the same city for god knows how long," Stefan mused. "It sure is a small world after all."

"Yeah, it is," Damon agreed, catching Elena's reflection in the side mirror.

"How long have you been here?" he asked.

"Not long. I just moved from Colorado a few months ago."

Stefan shook his head and grinned. "Still, out of all the places you could have gone, you picked here. That's got to mean something, right?"

Damon glanced down at the side mirror again and his eyes met Elena's as he said, "Yes it does."

She looked away and closed her eyes. "Then again, I'm surprised you came back to Virginia."

"I'll come back now that he's gone," he muttered, his tone bitter and full of pain. Elena's heart broke, remembering what Stefan had told him about Damon's rough childhood. He shook his head and rolled his shoulders. "How about we agree not to talk about him, okay?"

Stefan nodded. "That's fair."

The short ride was filled with Stefan's incessant chatter as he rattled off things that Damon had missed during his teenaged years. Damon and Elena did most of the listening, adding a few things here and there to keep the car from falling into an awkward silence. The tension in the air was thick enough to drown them both. The moment Stefan parked, Elena bolted from the car. The ride had made her slightly nauseous as well, a sign that the pregnancy was far from false. She sighed as she followed them inside where they were led to a table booth. She slid in next to Stefan as Damon sat on the other side.

"Anything here is good," Stefan assured Damon as he skimmed the menu.

"Thanks," he said. His eyes slid to Elena who was fidgeting in her seat. "Are you okay?" he asked her.

She swallowed hard and gave a weak nod. "I'll be fine."

Stefan reached for her hand and gave it a light squeeze. "I can call your father in the morning and see who he recommends."

She shook her head at that. "That would defeat the purpose of surprising everyone. You know he can't keep a secret like that from my mother." She shrugged and looked up at him. "Besides, whoever we make an appointment with will get us in the moment I tell them my name."

"Why's that?" Damon asked, curious.

"Her father is Grayson Gilbert. One of the best doctors in the country."

Damon nodded. He had heard the name once or twice. Growing up not to far from Richmond had enabled him to see articles with the doctor's name on it. "Sounds familiar."

Elena rolled her eyes. "It's kind of annoying, but it has it's perks."

They lapsed into silence as they looked over their menus. They didn't speak again until the waitress came to take their orders. "So Damon. Are you seeing anyone?" Stefan asked, causing Elena to go very still.

Damon was careful to keep his eyes on his brother. "No."

"No?" he asked with a grin. "I find that hard to believe."

Damon gave a shrug of indifference. "I've been moving around a lot. I didn't think getting tied down was a good idea."

Stefan shook his head, a smirk on his lips. "Meaning you just haven't found the right one yet."

Damon's eyes moved to Elena's again, but he didn't comment. Instead, he gave a heavy sigh of relief as the waitress came back with their drinks. He took a deep drink and set the half empty glass down before clearing his throat and looking at Stefan again. "So little brother, what to you do for a living?"

Stefan beamed with pride as he answered the question. "I'm an architect. I got an internship straight out of college and instead of completing it, they offered me a job a few weeks in. I've been designing buildings ever since."

"And you're still living in Richmond?"

"I don't do big jobs," he informed Damon. "Most of the ones I work on are collaborations while I build my portfolio and business savvy. They let me work out of the house for the most part. There are a few business trips to New York, but they're never more than five days at one time." He stopped and put his arm around Elena's shoulders. "And they've been giving me more and more projects which usually leads to a promotion."

Damon gave a lopsided smile. Listening to Stefan talk about his best projects so far brought him back to their childhood. He remembered his brother loved to draw and nine times out of ten, the pictures were of buildings. Elena noticed his smile and couldn't help but stare at him. He looked like the Damon she had met in the bar, relaxed and comfortable. Damon's eyes moved to hers again and he straightened when he realized she had been studying him.

"What about you?" he asked her since Stefan had finished talking.

"I'm a full time student."

"What are you studying?"

Elena gave a slight grin. She was known for changing her interests by the day. She had always wanted to be a teacher, but there were so many other interesting things out there to study that she wasn't quite sure. "At the moment, teaching. I'm close to getting my associates."

"Really?" he asked, a little surprised by that.

She nodded. "I started a little late. I took time off to find myself and enjoy life."

"And I'm happy she did because her journey led her to me," Stefan said and dropped a kiss onto her cheek.

And just like that, the tension was back. Damon downed the rest of his drink and clutched the glass. Like a mind reader, the waitress appeared with another glass of scotch. "What about you, Damon? What do you do that allows you to travel so frequently?" Stefan asked.

"A little of this, a little of that," he answered. Elena could sense that he had mentally pulled away, but she wasn't sure if it was because of the affection he had witnessed or something else.

"Such as...?" Stefan prompted.

Damon drank a little more and took a deep breath. "Whatever is available. Most of the time it's writing. Sometimes it's painting and photography, but mostly just the writing. I go to where the work is, although, like you, most of it I can do from wherever."

Elena's eyes widened in awe. She had always wanted to try her hand at writing, but never had gotten around to it. "Anything we would know?" she asked.

He shook his head. "Most of it is for newspaper columns. Kind of like a freelance writer who gets the pieces that nobody else wants or the paper needs to fill space for the day. I've written a few screenplays, but only one's been taken seriously."

"Has it been adapted?" Stefan asked.

"It's still being looked over."

"Writing, photography, and art. Is there anything you don't do?" Elena asked, completely captivated with the facts she had learned about him.

"You'll just have to see, won't you?" he asked, giving her another peek at the Damon she had originally met.

Before either of them said anything else, the waitress came back with their food. It was relatively silent while they ate. Damon spoke about a few places he had lived in, but even then the details were vague. When their plates were cleared, Stefan motioned for Elena to stand up. "I'll be right back," he assured her and headed off to the bathroom.

Elena sat down slowly, her gaze locked on Damon's. "So you're married," he said quietly.

"Damon-"

"That's funny, because I distinctly remember you without a ring."

She could hear the pain clear in his voice. "I don't want to have this discussion here."

"You're married to my brother, Elena. What were you even doing at the bar without your wedding ring?"

She shook her head. "I was engaged at the time. I know that doesn't make it any better, but we weren't married then."

"You cheated on him. And you can't blame that on me. You're the one that came to me that night. I had left you in the cab. It was your-"

"I know that!" she hissed and took a deep breath.

He stared at her, but said nothing else. He didn't know what to say and even if he did, he saw Stefan coming back to the table. "Did you guys want desert?" he asked, sliding back into the booth.

Elena shook her head as Damon said, "No thank you."

After the bill was paid, the trio headed back to the car and began to drive home. Once again, Stefan kept the car from being submersed in silence. Elena was amazed at how he kept finding more things to talk about. Once they were in the driveway, they stood there between the two cars. "I'm so glad you came," Stefan said.

He nodded, "Thank you for inviting me."

"Maybe we could do lunch soon, just the two of us."

"I'd like that."

"Great, I'll call you soon," he said and stepped forward to hug his brother. "I really am glad you're here."

Damon said nothing as Stefan pulled back and he looked at Elena. They stepped forward awkwardly until they were in each other's arms. Elena couldn't deny the sparks that were shooting up and down her spine at the feel of his arms around her. "Congratulations again," he said as he stepped back.

"Thank you," she whispered, closing her eyes briefly.

Stefan and Elena moved to stand in front of the cars as Damon got into his car and backed out of the driveway. "I got my brother back and found out I'm having a child all in one day. Am I the luckiest guy or what?" Stefan asked once Damon's car was out of sight. He pulled Elena into a hug from behind and placed his hands on her stomach.

She swallowed hard, those piercing blue orbs the only thing in her line of vision. "Yeah," she answered and cleared her throat. "So lucky."