Chapter Eleven

Ella stood on the edge of the cliff again, watching the sun rise in the distance. This time however she wasn't contemplating jumping over to her death, she was waiting. Selene had helped her regain her emotions, but she had refused to help Bonnie cast the spell to sever her connection with Jeremy and take away her pain. Ella had tried to do everything to convince her aunt, but after a week of begging she remained stubborn.

After a few more minutes, Ella heard someone approach and turned to face them. Elena stepped out of the treeline and smiled at Ella.

"Thanks for meeting me here," Ella smiled back, glad that Elena hadn't held a grudge over what she'd told her.

"Of course, but why did you want to meet here?" Elena asked, stepping forward and giving her friend a quick hug.

"I wanted to talk to you away from everyone else."

Ella shrugged and sat on a flat rock nearby. Elena took a seat next to her and waited patiently for her friend to explain what she had asked her there for. Ella struggled with her words.

"How…how do you…"

"It's ok Ella," Elena whispered, squeezing her hand gently. "You can ask me anything."

"How do you cope with loving two men at the same time?" she rushed finally.

"Oh."

They sat in silence for a long time, not looking at each other, just staring out at the view. Ella fidgeted with the sleeve of her coat, waiting patiently for the answer. She knew it wasn't an easy question to answer

"Jeremy and Alaric?"

"Yes," Ella nodded, although she didn't think it needed confirmation.

"There's no real answer to that question Ella," Elena sighed sadly. "You just need to make a decision and stick by it. Decide who you think would be better for you. Are you sure you even love Alaric?"

"I don't know," she answered honestly. "When I was with Jeremy it was easy to ignore everything else because loving him was all that really mattered. Now…I can't say I'm not attracted to Alaric, he makes me feel safe, but I don't really know how I feel about him."

"I hate to say this, Jeremy is my brother and I love him, but maybe you should let yourself feel it," Elena suggested. "Spend some time with him, get to know him better, then make your decision. Don't wait too long, I don't think even Ric and Jer will wait around forever."

"How did you choose Stefan?"

"I know that Stefan loves me, for being me. Sometimes I wonder if Damon only has feelings for me because of Katherine. Stefan…until recently…had never done anything to try and hurt me. Did you know that the first time Jeremy died while wearing his ring was because Damon snapped his neck?"

"Yes," Ella nodded. "Jeremy told me when we first started dating, before we knew Damon was my father."

"Damon can be selfish at times," Elena continued. "I always thought I'd made the right decision with being with Stefan and I still stand by my decision, I love Stefan."

"But?" Ella coaxed.

"With you I see a different Damon. He's kind and caring and he loves you more than anything in the world and isn't afraid to show it."

"Do you ever think you should give up on Stefan and be with Damon?"

"No," Elena shook her head without hesitation. "Stefan is the one. I just feel it."

Ella nodded. "You think I should date Ric?"

"Maybe," Elena shrugged. "It's difficult, he is your teacher, your father's best friend and Jeremy's guardian. Are you ready for the difficulty if you actually fall in love with him?"

"I don't know," Ella shook her head. "Maybe it will be worth it."

"But maybe it won't."

Ella thought about her discussion with Elena for the rest of the day. She sat on the rock looking out over the cliff long after Elena left. Then she walked home slowly. It was dark by the time she reached the Salvatore Boarding House. When she reached the door Ric was exiting and Ella took it as a sign.

"Oh hey," he smiled when he saw her. "How are you?"

Ella stopped in front of him, staring up into his kind blue eyes and suddenly made a decision. She took a step forward, closing the distance between them, grabbed the front of his coat and pulled him down for a kiss. His lips were soft against hers.

Ric froze in shock for a beat before finally melting into the kiss, his hands wound around her waist and pulled her against him. Ella sighed against his lips, her hands slipping up his chest and then into his hair. Heat flooded Ella's veins and she pulled herself harder against him, pressing her body flush against his.

They were both breathless when they finally pulled apart minutes later. Ella looked up at Ric, his lips red and swollen and his eyes were dark with desire. Ella's heart skipped a beat and she feared she may have just made her situation worse.

"Have dinner with me?" she heard herself asking.

"When?"

"Tomorrow night, here, I'll ask Damon to leave for a few hours."

"Are you sure about this?" he asked, his voice still breathless.

"Yes," Ella nodded. "I want to know what this is. I need to know."

"Ok," he said then pressed another quick kiss against her lips. "I'll see you tomorrow night."

Then he was gone and Ella was alone with her confusion and fear. She definitely felt something for Ric, she just didn't know what or how deep it was. Now it was time to find out, she owed it to herself and to the two men she loved.

TBC…