"You know I'm not one to break promises. I don't wanna hurt you but I need to breathe. At the end of it all, you're still my best friend. But there's something inside that I need to release. Which way is right? Which way is wrong? How do I say that I need to move on? You know we're heading separate ways, and it feels like I'm just too close to love you." ~Too Close, Alex Clare

Ch.10

Elena untangled her lips once more from Damon's as his words sunk in. He was going back to New York, and he was taking her with him. She wanted so badly to go, and to get swept up into the moment. That was until she remembered her responsibilities to Jeremy and the Grill. Technically her job was still open for her, should she decide to pursue it. She knew Alaric would welcome her back anytime but his overstayed welcome at her house had been enough to deal with over the past few months. His concern over Damon had shadowed her own. Come to think of it she probably should check her phone. It had been a few hours since she'd plugged back into the land of the living. Wrapping a blanket from the couch around her middle Elena explained,

"I'm just going to go take a shower and change back into some clothes. Seems you should too if you want to be leaving soon." She said with a wink.

Damon smiled and followed her upstairs. Entering his room she grabbed her discarded clothing and noted she needed to locate her panties…

Frustrated she eventually gave up as Damon passed her and began taking his own shower.

"You know you could always join me." Damon said smugly from the steam filled room.

"As tempting as that offer is, I think I should shower alone. Unless you never want to get to New York?" she said, her eyebrow shooting up as he gave her a pouty face. She giggled at him and left the room to find an empty bathroom. The boarding house was filled with them. She chose the communal one in the hallway and locked the door. Pulling her phone out of her pocket she was able to notice about 10 missed messages and calls from her brother, Caroline, and Alaric.

"Great" she breathed, as she hit the call button for Jeremy.

He picked up on the first ring.

"Elena is that you? Where the fuck have you been?" he practically screamed as she held the phone away from her face.

"Calm down Jer, I'm with Damon at the boarding house." She explained, leaning over the tub and turning on the water. She didn't want Damon to possibly overhear her conversation.

"Oh I see how it is. You get your main squeeze back and suddenly the rest of us are vapor."

"No. Not exactly. He's not really back.

"What do you mean?" Jeremy asked his interest piqued.

"Well…he doesn't seem to remember the last three years of his life, and I'm guessing the old Damon was a little edgier than what we're used to." She said, letting her voice drop to a softer tone.

"So in other words he's removed the stick up his ass?"

"Jeremy." Elena groaned, he could be so crass sometimes.

"Oh come on, I'm sure you two have picked up where you left off."

"Not really, I mean I feel like parts of him remember me, but I cant tell how much is real and what's just lust you know?"

"Ahh Elena gross…"

"I'm serious Jer, what if he's just using me?" Elena asked, her voice filling with emotion. She'd scarcely let herself think about these feelings since she'd gotten here, but now that she'd taken a minute to process everything it was becoming a bit overwhelming.

"Elena, just remind him of who you are. The doctors were hopeful he'd get his memories back right?"

"Right."

"Then you've just gotta stick it out. He'll come back to his senses. In the meantime, try to keep your legs closed."

"Jer!"
"I'm serious. It's hard enough for him to think straight. No pun intended. You've gotta remind him of why he cared about you in more ways than one."

"I know, I know you're right." She relented. How had her baby brother become such a fountain of wisdom all of a sudden?

"Hey, by the way, if I take off for a few days you'll be ok with Alaric right?"

"What? Where are you going?" Jeremy asked paranoia lining his voice. He'd never liked Elena going out of town since their parents had died. She figured it had been the car crash that freaked him out most of all. He didn't trust road trips anymore.

"Well Damon has it in his head to go back to New York."
"For how long?"

"I'm not sure."

"Well you can't just leave Elena. You're knocked up."

"I'm well aware of the fact."

"Well, then you know you shouldn't be traveling."

"Not for another couple of months. I'll be fine Jeremy."

"But you were on bed rest Elena. You really want to risk that?" he asked earnestly. She knew about his concern for her and baby peanut. She still hadn't had the heart to tell him about the miscarriage. It was too soon for her to even talk about it. She knew she would eventually, just not now. Some things were better left unsaid.

"I'll be with Damon. I'll be fine, and if I need to come home I will call you ok?"

"Promise?"

"Promise."

"Ok then, I'll see you in a bit."

"What? Why?"

"Cause you're going to have to pack right? Even I know that." Jeremy said and then hung up the phone. Damon was not going to like the side trip, but she knew her little brother was right. She needed to go home, if for nothing else for the reassurance that she could pack and leave Mystic Falls behind. After all how hard could it really be?

A few minutes later, Elena and Damon were in his blue car headed to the Gilbert household. His bags had been suddenly packed and Elena found it intriguing how fast he'd seemed to pull this whole trip together. It made her suddenly wonder how long he'd been planning this.

"So, I just want to make sure you're really sure about this decision." Damon said from beside her.

"Damon, we've been over this. I think some time together could be good for us."

"You know you're right. You're not the worst company in the world Elena."

"I know." She said mockingly as they stalled in front of her house. "Wanna come inside?" she asked him. She assumed he didn't want to appear rude so he turned off the ignition and nodded. Following her to the front porch Elena hesitated at the handle. Damon's footsteps behind her had seemed to stop, and she didn't feel him directly behind her anymore.

"Damon?" she asked as she turned around. His body seemed almost frozen on her front porch steps as he stared straight through her.

"Damon? Damon are you ok?" she asked coming to stand in front of him.

Damon's mind reeled as memories flooded his head; Elena standing before him in cutoff shorts and a blue tank top. Her hair was pulled back and she looked utterly kissable in the glow of the afternoon. He was sensing her hesitation, but without thinking he was speaking to her, asking her permission to test out one more thing. To prove that what he'd just felt wasn't his imagination. He was kissing her, and she was melting underneath him.

"Damon…Damon?" Elena's voice echoed in his mind. It took him a moment to realize that she was standing right before him. Her face scrunched up in a worried expression as she grasped his.

"Oh my god, never do that again."

She breathed as he looked at her and smiled. Without warning he bent down and crashed his lips to hers. He wanted to feel it again, the passion and fire that she set inside of him. Pulling back he looked at her in wonder and amazement.

"My God Elena, you've always taken my breath away haven't you?" he asked as his thumbs stroked her smooth reddening cheeks.

"I guess so Mr. Salvatore." She purred, as she led him into he house. The place was warm and inviting, and seemed to completely fit her personality.

"Wanna come with me?" she asked as she motioned towards the stairs. Damon nodded, and then got the feeling he'd been here before. His head was beginning to pound from the memories as he slowly followed her up the steps and into her bedroom. Looking around Damon realized how young Elena really was. Her room was every bit the high school seniors room. Pom poms were on display on her dresser. A graduation cap hung on a peg by her window, and a fluffy teddy bear adorned her bed. Without being able to restrain himself Damon plopped himself down on her mattress and held the bear to his stomach.

"Hey did you know that I used to have a bear almost exactly like this?" Damon asked, sarcasm dripping from his voice.

Elena rolled her eyes, and said, "Don't be mean. That's teddy and he's very temperamental."

"Oh…so is he the reason why you're shelf is broken?" he asked pointing to a rickety shelf at the corner of her bedroom. Elena's face turned red as she went to open her closet.

"No. actually that was me."

"Did you have a panic attack after seeing a spider?" he asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.

"Lets just say I was pretty upset when that happened. Its not one of my finer moments anyways." She explained, remembering a very dark day when she'd thought she would loose him. The doctors had done all they could and they were suddenly asking her and Stefan if they wanted to pull the plug. She'd been so furious that Stefan had even considered it that she'd taken it out on household furniture. His picture was the first thing to be torn from her wall amongst other things. She honestly should have done it months ago.

Damon's body filled with tension at the sight of her discomfort. Clearly she was remembering something painful for her.

"Elena…" he said pushing her to tell him the truth of what was really bothering her.

He might have had amnesia but he wasn't stupid. He could clearly see the wheels turning in her head.

"Look, Damon I'm worried about you, and this trip. I mean clearly you aren't acting like yourself."

"I haven't heard any complaints from you before now."

"That's because I'm trying Damon. I'm doing everything I know how to do to get you to open up."

"Well," Damon said standing and tossing teddy back on the bed. "Maybe you feel that way because you're used to seeing me on my best behavior. Is it possible that you're used to me not being myself?" he asked, as he loomed closer to her. Her heart rate accelerated in her ears and this time she was convinced it was more out of fear than desire.

Before they could continue their conversation a very large adolescent boy in the hallway rudely interrupted them.

"Elena? There you are!" he said embracing her.

"Jer, I told you I'd be here. Damon this is Jeremy, my brother." She said awkwardly. The introduction seemed forced, as she knew he should have been the one he remembered first.

"Little Gilbert." Damon said with a smile as he pulled Jeremy in for a hug.

"Guess he remembers me." Jeremy ground out.

"Well who could forget." He added as memories flashed of being in a restaurant, and drinking a lot. He seemed to go way back with this kid.

"How?" Damon asked bemused. His own memories didn't seem to fill in the gaps yet.

"We met working at the Grill. I was your student, you trained me in all the ways of the force." He said smirking.

"And on that note, I'm going to get packing." Elena said, as she kicked the boys out of her room. Damon and Jeremy didn't know how else to fill the awkward silence so Jeremy offered up a civil game of PlayStation. Damon accepted, and followed him downstairs.

Moments later Elena was calling for her brother and Damon was pausing the game. He'd beat Jeremy three times, and it was truly starting to annoy him.

"I thought you said you'd never played this game?" he moaned.

"I haven't. Great reflexes I guess." He crooned as Jeremy threw down his controller and went to assist Elena with her luggage.

"God sis are you planning to stay for a year?" he groaned carrying her luggage down the stairs. Damon was surprised to see one full sized suitcase, a duffel bag, and one carry on. How she'd managed to stuff all her crap into those suitcases was beyond him.

"OK gorgeous looks like we're ready." Damon said smugly, ready to leave.

"OK, now Jeremy you know where the emergency kit is right?"

"Yes mom, now go have fun." Jeremy said rolling his eyes as he handed Damon all the bags.

"Thanks bud."

"Anytime." Jeremy added, and left up the stairs to hug Elena once more.

"I'll be back soon Jer." She said, giving him a kiss on the cheek she descended the stairs and before he knew it they were off. Making way to the big apple, or as Damon remembered it fondly, the city that never sleeps. Either way this would be a trip he was determined never to forget.

************AUTHORS NOTE************

Ok I know this chapter seems a bit counter intuitive but there are a lot of things about to happen and you needed some fluffy background so...there it is! The Michaelsons will be making an appearance very soon in this story-especially Klaus so don't worry I havent forgotten about them.

**Damon is remembering! Slowly...there will be a very pivotal moment when he remembers everything (its the climax of the story) and trust me it will be epic!

***Thank you readers for your faithful support and reviews! :) Hope you have a great weekend! More M ratings to come...I promise...;)