The next morning Mady had me up at the crack of dawn, babbling nonsensically and making Elsa walk all over my face.
"Five more minutes." I pleaded to no one in particular. I knew Mady didn't understand the idea of time yet but I desperately needed her to. She reached over and grabbed Anna off the other side of the bed and pressed the button causing me to laugh. Anyone who thought that toddlers weren't perceptive, didn't know what they were talking about as the doll chanted "The skies awake, so I'm awake, so it's time to play." She knew exactly what she was doing.
"Alright, alright." I sighed knowing sleep was a lost cause now. She giggled and I swung my legs out of bed and pulled my phone off the charger.
"Talk daddy." She said excitedly upon seeing my phone.
"Daddy sleeping." I told her with a yawn before picking her up and carrying her out of the bedroom. When we got downstairs, my dad was sitting there with a cup of coffee.
"Good morning. You two are up early." My dad greeted me when I walked into the room and immediately poured myself a cup of coffee.
"She was ready to get up. It's light outside." I told him and he laughed.
"Ah yes. I'm just getting ready to go to sleep." He told me and I nodded. He would have just walked in the door after his night shift. It was a long one but hospital tended to be busier at night than during the day for reasons I would never understand.
"Papa sleep?" She asked wriggling out of my arms and walking over to my dad. He picked her up and set her on his lap as I made her breakfast.
"Yes, papa is very tired." He told her and she nodded solemnly.
"Mady no tired no more." She said and he laughed at her.
"Well papa is and papa needs sleep." He told her.
"No. Papa play with Mady." Mady insisted.
"I'll play with you after I have a nap." He told her and she relaxed. Everyone in Mady's life followed a very strict Mady approved schedule. Everyone had to play with her. It was endearing as hell.
"Mady hungy." Mady declared as I plucked her out of my dad's lap and into the highchair.
After breakfast was done and Mady and I were both dressed for the day, I loaded her into the car and made the drive to Mama Mikealson's.
"I see daddy." She muttered petulantly again and again. Ever since we left the house she thought we were going to see Damon. She missed her dad and I couldn't blame her.
"Tomorrow." I told her and she pouted. I laughed at her expression as I parked at the curb. Mama Mikealson must have heard us pull up because she had the door open moments later.
"Tell me you have not had breakfast Elena." She said and I laughed.
"I have not had breakfast, but Mady has." I told her.
"Good. I'm not used to having an empty house since Bex moved in with Matt and I made far too much breakfast." She told me as Mady walked up the front walk towards her. Mady loved Mama Mikealson. Her personality endeared her to everyone including my daughter.
"I can't wait. I'd never turn down a Mama Mikealson breakfast." I told her as I followed them into the house.
"I have an empty nest now that all my kids are gone." She told me as I sat down at her familiar kitchen table. I had spent so much time here through high school with Damon. It was like another home. She was family, even though she wasn't blood.
"So when did Rebekah move in with Matt?" I asked her. I hadn't been told that, or maybe I had and I'd forgotten. It was a distinct possibility considering everything that went through my head on a daily basis.
"About two weeks ago. It's been empty in this house, but Matt is such a good guy. He's perfect for Bex." She told me.
"He is. They are the perfect match. He levels her neurosis." I said and Mama Mikealson laughed.
"He sure does. My daughter has certainly had her more neurotic moments." She laughed and I joined in. "Can I get you something to drink dear?"
"Coffee if it's made." I said and she smiled.
"I knew you were coming over Elena, of course there is coffee made. You drank it before you had Mady, now I'm certain it's as much a part of your daily routine as brushing your teeth." She teased and I nodded in agreement.
"There's no point in denying it." I said shaking my head.
"So how is that boy of mine? He's a college student now, he doesn't call me anymore." She asked me and I smiled.
"How much do you know?" I asked her unsure of where to start.
"I know him and Caroline broke up. As sorry as I am for what happened between the two of them, I had to admit I knew it would happen. They weren't completely right for each other. It wasn't like it is between you and Damon." She told me and I nodded. I agreed with her, they needed to date, but they didn't need to be together for real.
"Well he's seeing someone new." I told her and she grew excited.
"Tell me all about her." She ordered and I laughed.
"Everyone in our house adores her. Mady and I both have a bit of a girl crush on her. She's a lot of fun, she's an art student and she definitely looks like one. She has a bit of a bohemian vibe when you look at her. Her name is Cami." I told her and Mama Mikealson grinned.
"Is she low key, or is she more like Caroline in that respect?" She asked and I laughed. Caroline was as far from low key as you could get. She was very high-maintenance and I hoped whoever she was dating now was ready for that.
"She's very low key. She admittedly goes to class in her pyjamas on a regular basis. She's amazing, completely perfect for Klaus." I told her and she relaxed into her chair.
"I'm so happy. So when do I get to meet her?" She wondered curiously.
"If they stay together, which I'm certain they will I'm sure he'll bring her to the wedding." I told her and she smiled.
"Is he into her like he was with Caroline?" She asked.
"It's different this time. He's completely smitten with her. He used Mady to get her to notice him, it was funny as hell. But he really really likes her and he's happy that we all like her. I have a feeling she's going to be around for a long time." I said and Mama Mikealson smiled wider.
"I'm so happy right now. All of my children are finding love." She said grinning.
"What's the rest of the Mikealson brats up to?" I asked her. If there was anything Mama Mikealson loved talking about it was her kids.
"Elijah is in London and he met this lovely girl that we haven't met yet. Finn is married with a baby on the way and Kol is who Kol has always been." She told me and I laughed. I had heard a lot about who Kol has always been. He took manwhore to a whole other level.
"Are they all in London?" I asked.
"Yes. I'm going over there around the time that the baby is born." She told me and I nodded. We lapsed into silence for a couple minutes when the phone started ringing. She excused herself and answered it quickly. I heard her sigh and end the call. "I'm really sorry Elena. The produce order never showed up so I have to get to the restaurant so I can rip someone's head off."
"Okay, I don't want to get in your way. I'll talk to you soon." I told her standing up and loading Mady up again. Mady was protesting but eventually I got her into her seat. She wasn't ready to leave yet.
"Don't be a stranger and tell that boy to call me. I want to hear about this Cami from him too." She told me and I promised I would tell him to call her.
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We went to the Grill when we left Mama Mikealson. There were people I needed to see there who I hadn't had a chance to say hello to yet. I walked in and immediately saw Matt. He waved eagerly and immediately came to us when we sat down.
"Welcome home Elena Gilbert, soon to be Salvatore. How's it going?" He asked.
"It's great. I hear you and Bex are living together." I said and he grinned.
"Yeah, I'm planning on proposing but I want to wait until after your wedding. Rebekah is waist deep in wedding planning with Caroline. I get the idea they're not running anything by you." He said.
"I told Care to get some ideas together and not to involve me until she has a few very good ideas. Apparently she's recruited your girl too." I laughed. It was so Caroline. I didn't have the time to plan a wedding along with everything else. In April I was planning on flying to New York to spend the weekend with Care looking for wedding and bridesmaid's dresses. Bonnie was supposed to fly in too and whoever I decided to name for the other two spots. Damon and I had agreed on four bridesmaids and four groomsmen.
"Yeah. Bex is set on bright colours and wildflowers for your wedding. Apparently Caroline is dead set on purple and black." Matt warned me.
"Care will kill me but I'm far more partial to Bex's idea." I told him and Matt laughed.
"I thought you would be. Bex is on her way here." He told me and I grinned.
"Good, I want to see her." I told him and Matt took my order and left. He had other tables to tend to and he couldn't spend the entire time with me.
Only a few minutes later, Rebekah walked in teetering on three inch heels.
"Lena." She cheered and ran over to hug me and press a kiss to Mady's forehead. Mady was sitting good in her highchair with a sippy cup full of chocolate milk. She was going to be hyper afterward but it was worth it for the temporary silence from her end.
"Hey Bex. Your mom told me you're living with Matt." I said and she grinned. She looked happier than I had ever seen her.
"So Caroline recruited me to help with the pre-planning of the wedding." She told me and I nodded.
"I heard and I want you to hear it from me. I like your idea much better. I don't want a fussy affair." I told her and she squealed in excitement.
"I'm so happy. I figured you would since its taking place in your parents' backyard." She said excitedly.
"It's true. So I'm going to take one second to ask you a very important question Bex." I said straightening in my chair. She stared at me waiting for me to ask my question. "Will you be one of my bridesmaids?"
"Oh my gosh, yes!" She squealed and I laughed.
"Good. I'll text you a date but Bonnie and I are flying out to New York one weekend in April to go dress shopping. I'd be great if you could come with us." I told her and she nodded eagerly.
"I'll be there." She promised and I smiled.
"Good. Now that that's out of the way. Have you heard about your brother's new girlfriend?" I asked her and she nodded her head.
"Her name is Cami right?" She asked and I nodded.
"Yeah and she's completely awesome. I'm thinking of asking her to be the other bridesmaid." I said and she nodded.
"That would be a good idea. Much less awkward considering who Caroline is dating." She said and I raised my eyebrows.
"You know who Caroline is dating?" I asked her. I was still in the dark but now I had my suspicions.
"Yeah, she let it slip when we were talking one night. I promised I wouldn't tell anyone." She said biting her lip.
"You don't have to tell me. I have my suspicions. If they're true, I think it's a good thing." I told her and she nodded relieved. I knew she didn't want to break Caroline's trust and I understood that. With Caroline, she didn't want anyone to know anything if they didn't need to until she was sure it was going to work out. The only reason anyone knew she was ever dating Klaus was because it was public. Now she's in New York with no one she knows, so whoever she's dating can remain a secret until she's ready to share. I could understand where she was coming from because it's hard to tell everyone you're seeing someone, only for it to end. She was being careful this time.
"So when do you go back to Richmond?" She asked me.
"Tomorrow morning. I miss my man and Mady misses her daddy." I told her and she nodded.
"I bet you do. The two of you have rarely spent more than a night apart since you got together. Especially not since you had Mady, aside from school." She murmured.
"He needed this weekend to himself. He needed to act like a normal college guy. He's been so swamped this year so far." I told her and she nodded understanding. We sat and talked for a while later since Mady was being so good. When we were done, I left some money on the table and we left together.
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The next morning, Mady and I got up early again. My parents were up and having coffee at the table.
"We should probably consider heading home." I told her and my mom stood up.
"We'll see you Friday when we come get Mady." She told me and I paused.
"You're coming to Richmond to get her? Usually we meet halfway." I said.
"We want to see your place and your life. So we'll come and get her and bring her back on Sunday." My dad said and I smiled.
"That would be great. I'm going to try to talk Damon into going to Atlanta for the weekend. We have some extra money saved up and it would be a nice getaway." I said smiling.
"That boy would do anything for you, and you know it." My dad said.
"I see daddy?" Mady asked and I smiled.
"Yes, we're going to find daddy." I told her and she smiled and clutched her Elsa doll to her chest.
"Bye Mama. Bye Papa." She called walking to the door without me.
"You better go. Mady is leaving with or without you." My mom laughed.
"Apparently. I'll see you guys Friday." I said following Mady to the door. Once I had Mady buckled in, we pulled away from my parents' house and started the journey home.